The World Wide Fundraising Web

I talk about how the internet has impacted communications within the non-profit sector a lot in this blog - and I'm certainly not alone (Beth Kanter, Sean Stannard Stockton, and Katya Andresen are all frequent commenters on this topic as well).

Mainstream media is also picking up on this theme these days. I just ran across this article in the Philadelphia Enquirer that I think makes some good points - so I wanted to pass them along to all of you -

Photo credit: NOELLE THEARD / Miami Herald

Photo caption: Hands On Miami volunteers paint a mural at an elementary school. "Everything we do, our entire business model is built around the Web and our technology," said Pat Morris, president of the group.

Here are some of the key quotes from the article (in my opinion):

• "There is no such thing as local anymore," said Ruth Shack, president of the Dade Community Foundation in Miami. "This new generation of givers are very, very different. They see themselves as change agents. . . . They are giving to issues. Global warming or breast cancer or whatever it is they feel close to."
• "This new Web 2.0 approach - social-networking sites and that kind of thing - has really started to intensify for charities in the past year or two," said Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy magazine in Washington. "New charities are being created using those tools, and older, established charities are embracing them, too."
• "They have a different notion of privacy than their parents, a different idea as to what information they share in a public forum like the Internet," he said. "Most adults I know aren't comfortable with these concepts. They place a greater trust in brands. The kids have a greater trust in their friends, and that's who they want to hear things from."

Have other thoughts on this topic? Add your opinions below in the comments section.