Why Women in Philanthropy?

In the past, women were primarily philanthropists through their spouses.  The business relationships and boards that dictated a husband’s benevolence typically determined his wife’s as well.  Women were more likely to support their favorite causes by donating their expertise and skills to the operation and programs of an organization.

However, those trends have changed over the past few decades.  While women are still intimately involved with non-profits through volunteer time, they are now also affecting change through their checkbooks.

Women represent nearly half of the workforce and control 60% of the nation’s wealth, and an estimated 85 to 90 percent of women are the ones in charge of the family finances.   

Women make 84% of all charitable donations.

A recent study by the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund found that, among American women, almost half make the decisions on which charities their household will support and how much to give them.

Although that's not a majority, it starts getting more significant when you see that the vast majority of men (92%) say their wives are their primary source of influence in making charitable-gift decisions.