On reflection, this is one I should have defined more clearly early on. Instead of the "pick a group that's doing well and scored decently on the Charity Navigator!" perhaps I should I have picked a specific goal and directed my resources toward groups that worked in that area. And perhaps I should have aggressively looked for smaller operations that aren't as well-funded and well-known as many of the groups I donated to. Ah, well -- lessons learned.
January -- KQED's fundraising drive
February -- The Asian Elephant Conservation Program
March -- The Land Trust Alliance
April -- Common Cause
May -- The Oasis Exotic Bird Sanctuary
June --The Greenbelt Alliance
July -- The Elephant Sanctuary (at Hoehenwald)
August -- Surfrider Foundation
September -- American Tortoise Rescue
October -- The Nature Conservancy
November -- Island Cat Resources & Adoption
December -- Modest Needs
I'll be keeping up the donations in 2007, albeit with some changes. I haven't decided which ones -- maybe donate to one group all year? Maybe pick a field and focus exclusively on that?
I like the idea of picking one cause. I make two regular monthly donations -- to Sick Kids in Toronto and World Vision -- but this year I often felt a bit overwhelmed when deciding where to send additional donations. I usually ended up just sending it to whichever cause my friends or workplace were collecting for at the time, regardless of whether it was particularly close to my heart. I think this year I'll select a cause -- I'm thinking AIDS, because I was really moved by a lot of the people I spoke with during the International Conference in August -- and either donate monthly to a different charity, or pick a couple to make regular donations to.
Posted by: drunken monkey | 2006.12.30 at 17:51