Thank you, Warren and Bill
Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are getting plenty of favorable attention recently for their efforts to persuade their fellow billionaires to be more philanthropic, and they deserve it. But for years studies have confirmed that wealth and charity seem to be inversely related, and that lower income people tend to be more generous than higher earners.
Perhaps this is so because it is easier for lower income people to appreciate the need for charitable organizations. If you’ve had to use a food bank or homeless shelter, or have friends and relatives who have, you might be more inclined to support them. Buffett and Gates seem to be saying that we all benefit from the infrastructure of our society, which includes the nonprofit sector, and the most successful in particular have an obligation to recognize those benefits and support that infrastructure.
How lucrative a profession would medicine be if there was no public or charitable investment in medical research and technology, or hospital construction? How vibrant a private sector would we have without the public and charitable investments that have educated generations?
It’s a safe bet that two equally talented entrepreneurs would fare differently if one set up shop in a country with ineffective or non-existent public and charitable support for education, health, recreation, the arts, transportation and communication, while the other was able to take advantage of the civic infrastructure built and maintained in this country by the public and nonprofit sectors.
As Buffett and Gates bring more attention to our shared obligation to support charitable endeavors, they will undoubtedly also bring attention to the need for nonprofits to be more accountable for their performance, even if that is not their intent. And that is a good thing. Current economic conditions are forcing governments, businesses, and consumers alike to make adjustments and rethink priorities. The nonprofit sector must do the same.
Hard times are when strategic planning is most critical. There is only so much giving to go around and only so much talent available to serve on boards. More collaboration and perhaps in some instances some consolidation among nonprofits may be required as the sector positions itself for the improving economic conditions that lie ahead. Hopefully, Buffett and Gates have started a conversation that will increase charitable giving, and not just among the very wealthy. If so, the burden is on nonprofits to demonstrate they are worthy of that support.