Generosity Approaches $2.5 Million on #GivingTuesday

STORY ​HIGHLIGHTS

• $2.47 billion was raised on #GivingTuesday.
• Donations increased overall by 25%.
• An estimated 34.8 million people participated.

Earlier this year, it was estimated that tens of thousands of nonprofits could close their doors permanently due to COVID-19 shutdowns. However, Americans are some of the most generous individuals on the planet!

More than $2.47 billion was raised on #GivingTuesday, a 25% increase from the $1.97 billion both online and offline in 2019, according to preliminary estimates from the GivingTuesday Data Commons. This good news came as a relief to the nonprofit leaders who had voiced concerns that donors who had given more than usual throughout 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic distress might avoid this yearly show of support for charities. For example, an earlier event, #GivingTuesdayNow, raised more than $503 million in May for pandemic relief.

#GivingTuesday happens on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which fell on Dec. 1 in 2020. However, the event is becoming a week of giving and not just one day. An estimated 34.8 million people participated this year, which would be a 29% increase compared to 2019.

The fundraising totals were in addition to the more than $503 million in online donations contributed in the U.S. on #GivingTuesdayNow which occurred on May 5th, in response to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).  Facebook attributed $135 million in donations over the two weeks leading up to #GivingTuesday. Other platforms reporting donations included DonorPerfect, $55 million; Classy, $37.9 million; Neon One, $16.3 million, and GiveCampus, $12.5 million.

“This groundswell of giving reaffirms that generosity is universal and powerful, and that it acts as an antidote to fear, division, and isolation,” Asha Curran, co-founder and CEO of GivingTuesday, said via a statement announcing the results. “Throughout this year, we have seen people driving extraordinary efforts rooted in a pursuit of equity, community, and shared humanity — driving giving and action across all races, faiths and political views. We know that when we act collectively — what we can, with what we have, from where we are — we can make massive change happen. Now, let us resolve to carry this energy forward to reimagine a world where generosity is at the heart of all we do,” she said.
#GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a day that encouraged people to do good and has become a  “global generosity movement with a distributed network of entrepreneurial leaders” who have launched more than 240 community campaigns across the U.S. and national movements in more than 70 countries.

About #GivingTuesday
GivingTuesday, often stylized as #GivingTuesday for the purposes of hashtag activism, is the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the United States. It is touted as a "global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world". The organization of the same name is an independent 501c3 nonprofit that supports the global movement. #GivingTuesday began as a simple idea in 2012 a day that encourages people to do good. As an organization, GivingTuesday promotes the concept of radical generosity— “generosity not as a benevolence that the haves show to the have-nots but rather an expression of mutuality, solidarity, and reciprocity.” To that end, they execute several year-round activities to support the generosity sector around the world.