At a time where spending cuts have left many charities in financial difficulty, corporate support for the third sector takes on an even greater importance. So the latest Guide to UK Company Giving makes for very interesting reading.
It shows that the average given by the top 600 companies was 0.43% of pre-tax profits, with a clear shift from cash giving to in-kind support including volunteering time. To some this might set alarm bells ringing. Indeed the report warns that the proactive approach of both in-kind and volunteering efforts “can impinge too heavily on the charity’s own resources”, as companies provide resources that are not always needed by the charitable community.
Of course, no business wants its efforts to turn out to be a hindrance to the charity in question. So when looking to find an alternative to cash giving, what can companies do to benefit rather than burden the cause?
One answer is that companies can use their platform, brand, customer base and specialised skills to help charities operate more effectively. Orange, for example, has come up with the truly novel idea of mobile volunteering. Their innovative ‘Do Some Good’ app, far from impinging on the resources of charities, in practice actually helps provide additional support from their customers. The project has teamed up with 12 charities and allows consumers to complete charity ‘actions’ as and when they want. One of them, for example, involves users donating photos to create an image bank for charities.
BT has also found an original way of helping charities operate by launching an online fundraising site where 100% of donations go to charity – the first of its kind. This might not sound terribly groundbreaking but reaching people online has infinite advantages in terms of both organisation and ease of collection. More people are likely to donate, safe in the knowledge that all the money given will go to the selected charity, and this will undoubtedly raise fundraising totals.
As trends move away from straightforward cash donation and lean towards proactive strategies, there is no need for charities to panic. These two brief examples show the potential for new approaches to volunteering and charitable giving respectively and this, surely, is not to be sniffed at.
Stephanie has an MA in Corporate Social Responsibility and is currently on an internship at Corporate Citizenship. Contact her at Stephanie.caun@corporate-citizenship.com
New research reveals trend towards companies giving in kind support
Research carried out for the 8th edition of The Guide to UK Company Giving shows that the top 600 companies gave around £762 million in community support in 2009/10 (including £512 million in cash donations). The average given by the top 600 as a percentage of pre-tax profits was just 0.43%, and much of this ‘in-kind’ support rather than cash. The research suggests that while companies are becoming more proactive in their giving, often taking into account their perceived corporate social responsibilities within their communities, the trend is towards giving in kind rather than cash. The Guide to UK Company Giving provides commentary on the current state of corporate community involvement in the UK, and relevant advice and information on securing funding or winning other support from the listing of nearly 600 companies in the UK that give ‘in kind’ or cash donations to voluntary organisations.
Orange mobilises millions of volunteers through innovative app
Orange has extended its commitment to volunteering in the UK, with the launch of the UK’s first mobile volunteering initiative, harnessing the power of mobile technology to transform the way people give time to good causes. The ‘Do Some Good’ app allows convenient, bite-size volunteering through a mobile phone, enabling users to do a good deed at a time and place that suits their lifestyle – all in less than five minutes. Tom Alexander, CEO at Everything Everywhere said: ‘The potential for this app is huge; if one million people give just five minutes of their time, it will amount to nearly a decade worth of volunteering time.’ David Cameron, Prime Minister said: ‘Millions of people who don’t currently volunteer would like to do so if they had the time and information to make it as easy as possible. ‘Do Some Good’ is a great way of tapping into this huge pool of untapped volunteering energy.’
On 6 April, BT launched the first fundraising website that guarantees 100% of donations go to charity. MyDonate does not charge subscription fees or commission, with the company instead choosing to absorb the cost of maintenance as part of its corporate charitable programme. Non-profit organisations can benefit from Gift Aid from UK taxpayers who use the site, with the only charge being applied by credit card companies and PayPal. Charities already involved in the website include Mencap, Citizens Advice Bureau, Children in Need, the NSPCC, Scope and Unicef. TV presenter and MyDonate Ambassador Ben Fogle said: “You can begin fundraising knowing that every penny raised goes to the charity of your choice. That has to be a great idea.” NSPCC Chief Executive Andrew Flanagan added that the site could help organisations “significantly increase” their fundraising pots. Figures from BT indicate that people in the UK donated £10 billion to charity in 2010, yet only 7% of this was given via the internet.
Kraft helps plant urban farms in urban ‘food deserts’
Triscuit Crackers, part of Kraft Foods, is joining non-profit Urban Farming and cities across the USA in declaring April 12 ‘Home Farming Day’. The initaitive encourages people to grow their own vegetables and herbs and the announcement was made at a ‘Plant-a-thon’ in New York City’s Madison Square Park. Triscuit and Urban Farming unveiled plans for 65 community-based home farms in twenty US cities in 2011, including five home farms to be grown at low-income housing subsidiaries. These farms, located in urban areas, will provide local residents with greater access to more nutritious and healthier foods, consistent with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development mission of creating more sustainable and diverse communities.
Many companies have implemented some inspiring actions to join efforts towards the emergency situation in Japan. Salesforce.com Foundation is match-funding donations from their members, Anglo American has donated $5 million to the appeal and Starbucks has donated $2 million. Google set up the ‘Google Crisis Response’, a tool which provides critical information to internet users about electricity cuts, missing people through ‘People’s Finder’, maps about the affected areas, a list of shelter residents and options to make a donation. Another example is Hitachi, who has established an Emergency Headquarters for Response that gathers information on losses and damages suffered by employees and their families and a Disaster Victim Support System for local municipals.
Earthwatch and Rio Tinto launch film to celebrate 20 years of working together
Earthwatch launched a new film on April 18, which documents and celebrates 20 years of the environmental organisation’s partnership with international mining group Rio Tinto. Dave Hillyard, Earthwatch’s International Director of Partnerships says, ‘Through our work with Rio Tinto we have demonstrated that business can play a positive role in protecting nature, supporting educational initiatives and enhancing livelihoods.’ The new film profiles three case studies that illustrate how this long-standing partnership has achieved just that. The first tells the story of Madagascan biologist Johny Rabenantoandro, who whilst working as a field biologist for Rio Tinto took part in the Earthwatch capacity building programme – aimed at providing training opportunities for early career scientists in developing countries. The second case study profiles ClimateWatch, an initiative spearheaded by Earthwatch in Australia with the support of Rio Tinto. Finally, the film highlights Earthwatch’s Drylands Research Centre in Samburu, Kenya, where Rio Tinto’s support has led to the establishment of a climate change impacts mapping project. The film is available to view on the Earthwatch website as well as on its YouTube channel.
Standard Chartered provides $7 million to Pakistan microfinance initiative
Standard Chartered Bank has successfully closed Rs 600 million two year finance facility to Tameer Micro Finance Bank Limited under the State Bank of Pakistan’s Micro Finance Credit Guarantee Facility (MCGF) launched under the DFID Funded Financial Inclusion Programme. This is the largest ever bilateral facility to any micro finance institution under the MCGF scheme. According to the Access to Finance Survey, more than 68 million adults do not have access to formal financial services in Pakistan. The purpose of the MCGF is to facilitate banks and development finance institutions to play a leading role in easing credit constraints of micro finance institutions and banks, in their efforts to maximize outreach by extending credit facilities to them. Since 2005, Standard Chartered Bank has exceeded its commitment under the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) to provide $500 million of financing for micro finance institutions by 2011, taking its MFI lending total to $720 million.
Standard Chartered’s partners donate fees to charity
In celebration of World Health Day, partner brokers for Standard Chartered’s Financial Markets business will donate a day’s trading fees to Seeing is Believing, a global initiative aimed at tackling avoidable blindness. Standard Chartered aims to raise in excess of $300,000 through the initiative and will match donations from the brokers, dollar for dollar reaching an estimated total of $600,000. Last year, brokers contributed more than USD250,000 as part of the initiative, resulting in a donation of more than USD500,000 with the Bank’s matching. Brokers across Asia, Africa and the Middle East have committed to take part in the one-day event this year.
Africa’s first cervical cancer prevention programme launched with Merck
The Government of Rwanda, together with QIAGEN and Merck announced the launch of a comprehensive national cervical cancer prevention programme on April 25. the programme includes a vaccination for girls aged between12 to 15 and modern molecular diagnostic screening for women between the ages of 35 and 45. ‘It is our goal to create a comprehensive, coordinated programme that includes HPV vaccination, cancer screening with HPV DNA testing, and treatment in order to address the nation’s unmet needs for cervical cancer-related health services,’ said Dr. Richard Sezibera, Rwanda’s Minister of Health.
Nissan North America launched an in-class and online educational outreach initiative called ‘Choose Zero’ in elementary and middle schools in April. The curriculum, which features the 100% electric Nissan LEAF, is designed to empower kids to make and advocate for changes that reduce carbon emissions in their homes, schools and communities. Developed in partnership with Kaleidoscope Youth Marketing, the initiative is rolling out to 2.5 million students in 7,500 schools across the US.
The Co-operative launched an ambitious project on April 12 to instigate a series of ‘Bee Roads’ across the UK which will act as food-rich main routes for pollinators. As part of its extended £750,000 Plan Bee campaign, The Co-operative will help identify and convert corridors of land to create and secure habitats for pollinators. The Co-operative and its partner Buglife will create the first Bee Roads in Yorkshire, where farmers and other landowners will sow wildflowers in two long rows that will eventually stretch north to south and east to west across the county.
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