SOLVE Gears up for 2019

by Elisa Klein | Jan 5, 2019 | Events, Features, News

Portland, OR. Do you need a reason to get outside this winter? SOLVE has the answer. Organizers says, “Fresh air and camaraderie are included. Blisters and sweat are optional.” Last year nearly 30,000 people pitched in at more than 900 different SOLVE projects throughout Oregon. You can get involved by signing up at this link.

Over 300,000 pounds of trash was removed from parks, streets and other public places in 2018.

SOLVE not only removed tons of litter, volunteers also planted at least 14,000 native trees and shrubs.

Is your company looking for team building opportunities? There’s an “Out of Office, Into Nature program.” https://www.solveoregon.org/corporate-volunteering

From SOLVE:

Our Mission Is Simple.

SOLVE is a statewide, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to bring Oregonians together to improve our environment and build a legacy of stewardship. We are dedicated to developing relationships among different groups, individuals, and businesses in pursuit of a common goal: to protect and preserve the places that make up our uniquely beautiful home. SOLVE mobilizes one of Oregon’s largest volunteer networks to clean up our beaches, parks, neighborhoods, and other natural spaces through litter cleanups, invasive plant removal, planting native trees and shrubs, and other environmental projects. We annually support nearly 30,000 volunteers in 900 projects throughout the state.

Originally called S.O.L.V. (Stop Oregon Litter and Vandalism), SOLVE was founded by Governor Tom McCall and other community leaders in 1969 to address the need for community action in our ever-growing state.

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2018 Oregon ZooLights Biggest Display Ever

by Elisa Klein | Dec 23, 2018 | Events, Features, News

Portland, OR. The Oregon Zoo’s walk-through winter wonderland of more than 1.6 million colored lights opened on November 21st and is attracting more visitors than ever. According to zoo officials, over the past five years, more than a million visitors have strolled through the forests of lighted trees, been dazzled by life-size illuminated animal silhouettes and ridden the light-bedecked zoo trains. “Attendance has been off the charts the past several years,” said Ivan Ratcliff, the zoo’s guest services manager. Advance purchase tickets run from $17.95 for adults to $12.95 for children. ZooLights is open through January 5th, 2019, but will be closed December 24th-25th. Full pricing and schedule can be found at this link:https://www.oregonzoo.org/zoolights

In addition to visiting elephants, mountain goats and other animals, you can ride the popular lighted train. There are local food carts, special warm drinks and live music. 

For every remaining night of ZooLights, the zoo is offering a $5 admission discount for visitors who take TriMet (proof of ridership required). Ride and skip the parking lot! https://www.gettingtozoolights.com/

Here are some photos of what you’ll see:

Here are some tips to help you make the most of your visit.

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Technology and Transparency Top Trends for 2019 Charitable Giving

by Elisa Klein | Dec 23, 2018 | Events, Features, News

Portland, OR. Humanitarian crises, natural disasters, donating to help alleviate human suffering (like Bill Gates, Sr. who visited the Naz Foundation’s care centre for HIV Positive children in New Delhi) the needs today as pressing as ever, but the way we give is evolving, according to Time Magazine. Editors pinpointed five ways charitable giving is likely to change in 2019. Thanks to tax law and technology, along with changing consciousness and shifting social mores, philanthropy experts say there are notable shifts afoot in where, when and how Americans open their wallets to charitable causes. 

Here’s what Time says you can to expect in charitable giving trends in 2019:

Giving bigger donations, but less frequently

Charities and non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, are watching carefully to see if the doubling of the standard deduction under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 changes how — and how much — we give.

“Certainly, the NGOs are worried,” says Barbara Leopold, associate director of the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. “There’s a great deal of worry about it on the receiving end.”

One potential change is that people could switch to giving every other or every third year instead of annually, a tactic called “bunching” that would let them itemize in their giving years to get the deduction, and take the standard deduction in other years. “At the higher level of giving, people who were giving in calculated ways — I think they’re keeping a closer watch on what effects the law will have,” Leopold says.

Using technology to mobilize support

If you feel like you’ve seen more notifications in your Facebook feed that someone is raising money for a good cause to celebrate a birthday or other milestone, you’re probably right. “We have seen a rise in crowdfunding and peer-to-peer funding,” says Una Osili, professor of economics and philanthropic studies at Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

This growth is a confluence of two trends, she says: the desire of donors to personalize their giving, and advances in technology that make giving, or asking others to give on your behalf, as easy as typing up a heartfelt message and hitting “enter.”

Osili says the trifecta of how giving is traditionally framed — as gifts of “talent, treasure or time” — is getting a fourth leg. “Now, some people are adding ‘testimony’ to that, using social media to get the word out around a cause or get people mobilized around an issue.”

Growing clout of big donors (for better or worse)

“What I call ultra-philanthropy is going to continue to expand, as it has been over the last 10 years,” says Paul Schervish, professor emeritus and retired director of the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College.

“We’re going to continue to find that the top one-half of 1% will be giving about 30% of all the charitable dollars,” he says. Exemplified by the publicized giving of moguls like Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Michael Bloomberg, this trend has facilitated important advances in fields such as health care and higher education.

But there is a drawback in that funding is funneled to a smaller pool of recipients or causes. This, combined with the proliferation of charities at the grassroots level, may leave smaller non-profits feeling pinched, Schervish says. “Charities at these local levels are going to feel that they’re facing greater financial challenges in their fundraising, and the reason is that the number of charities continues to expand dramatically,” he says. “The total amount of dollars can be still given to local charities and so on, but they will be divided up more.”

Investing with a social conscience

Donors today increasingly see the appeal of putting their money into a firm or a fund that will give them a return while affirming their values or supporting a cause they believe in, Osili says. “Impact investing is the notion that you can make a difference by investing in a company that has a social mission,” she says. “The idea is that the toolbox is growing.”

Millennials in particular have shown an affinity for aligning themselves — whether as customers, employees or investors — with businesses that reflect their personal value system or beliefs.

Schervish adds that donors today are looking for places that let their money do double duty. “There’s more venture philanthropy, where there is the infusion of funds for for-profit activities or non-for-profit activities that have a social outcome as one of the major consequences,” he says. “We’re going to continue to see people choosing business approaches or commercial approaches for what they deem to be important social needs.”

Making transparency a key determinant

“Women and donors of diverse backgrounds are taking more of a leadership role in the sector of philanthropy,” Osili says. One key outcome is that donors today are more proactive about asking about where their money is going and what it’s being used to do. “There’s been a lot of momentum around transparency,” Osili says.

Leopold adds that donor due diligence is a key trend driving how people contribute today. Dovetailing with the trend of donors — especially young adults — wanting more personal involvement with their chosen causes, she observes that givers are willing to do the legwork and investigate a charity’s governance policies and how donor funds are utilized, while an increasing array of online resources give them the tools they need to achieve this.

“They will take the effort to look into the place they’re giving to,” she says. “It may be looking at tax documents, looking up 990s at the Foundation Center website or just asking hard questions of people making decisions.”

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