The Pure Charity State of Good Podcast is your weekly intelligence brief for nonprofit leaders and fundraisers. Each episode cuts through the noise to deliver what actually matters: how donors are thinking about giving right now, what's shifting in the sector, and the psychology behind generosity. Data-driven insights you can use immediately, in about 10 minutes, once a week.
Episode Title: More Dollars, Fewer Donors: The Concentration Trend and Where New Givers Are Actually Coming From
Summary: - The Fundraising Effectiveness Project confirms donation dollars are rising while donor counts continue to decline, creating long-term pipeline risk for nonprofits relying on fewer, larger gifts
Urban Institute research shows small charities lost a median 28% of their budgets from federal funding cuts, hitting smaller organizations hardest relative to their size
New research shows first-time donors increasingly discover nonprofits through social and peer-to-peer channels, while AI-driven search is narrowing organic visibility for nonprofits
The identifiable victim effect explains why specific, tangible impact statements dramatically outperform abstract appeals — critical as year-end campaigns launch
University of Arizona closes a record $2.1 billion capital campaign, proving donor ambition and capacity remain strong
Links: - Fundraising Effectiveness Project Report (AFP Global): https://afpglobal.org/news/donations-are-donors-are-down-reports-fundraising-effectiveness-project
Federal Cuts Impact on Small Charities (Chronicle of Philanthropy / Urban Institute): https://www.philanthropy.com/news/federal-cuts-took-a-big-bite-out-of-small-charities-a-median-28-of-their-budgets/ (https://www.philanthropy.com/news/federal-cuts-took-a-big-bite-out-of-small-charities-a-median-28-of-their-budgets/)
First-Time Donors and Social Channels (The NonProfit Times): https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/study-first-time-donors-found-via-social-channels/ (https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/study-first-time-donors-found-via-social-channels/)
The Nonprofit Visibility Gap (Stanford Social Innovation Review / M+R Benchmarks): https://ssir.org/articles/entry/nonprofits-ai-search-visibility-gap (https://ssir.org/articles/entry/nonprofits-ai-search-visibility-gap)
Small, Loewenstein & Slovic, "Sympathy and Callousness" (Carnegie Mellon): https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/sds/docs/small/Sympathy%20and%20Callousness.pdf (https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/sds/docs/small/Sympathy%20and%20Callousness.pdf)
University of Arizona Capital Campaign: https://news.ua.edu/2026/10/ua-capital-campaign-raises-record-2-1-billion/ (https://news.ua.edu/2026/10/ua-capital-campaign-raises-record-2-1-billion/)
Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview
0:30 — More dollars, fewer donors: the concentration trend
2:45 — Federal funding cuts and small charities
4:15 — Why donors give: the identifiable victim effect and tangible asks
5:30 — What changed: new donor discovery through social channels and the AI search visibility gap
7:00 — The bottom line and three actions for this week
7:45 — Good in Action: University of Arizona's $2.1 billion campaign
8:30 — Sign-off
12 Oct 2026
State of Good for October 12, 2026
Episode Title: "Funders Admit It's Not Working — And What That Means for You"
Summary: - Only 12% of foundations say their response to federal funding cuts has been effective, signaling openness to new approaches from nonprofit partners
Corporate giving is consolidating around fewer partners — nonprofits must articulate clear value to stay on the list
Gen Z donors are driving new donor acquisition, according to the Q2 2026 American Giving Index
Most Americans remain unaware of how nonprofits impact their daily lives, making visibility a critical challenge
Monthly donors retain at 90% vs. 46% for one-time donors — the subscription mindset is a powerful retention tool
Sources & Links: - Chronicle of Philanthropy — Nonprofits say funders aren't providing what they need to address new hardships: https://www.philanthropy.com/news/nonprofits-say-funders-arent-providing-what-they-need-to-address-new-hardships/
Chronicle of Philanthropy — Fewer charities will get corporate gifts this year. Here's how to make the cut: https://www.philanthropy.com/solutions/fewer-charities-will-get-corporate-gifts-this-year-heres-how-to-make-the-cut/ (https://www.philanthropy.com/solutions/fewer-charities-will-get-corporate-gifts-this-year-heres-how-to-make-the-cut/)
NonProfit PRO — Gen Z Drives New Donor Acquisition, Survey Finds: https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/gen-z-drives-new-donor-acquisition-survey-finds/ (https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/gen-z-drives-new-donor-acquisition-survey-finds/)
Chronicle of Philanthropy — For most Americans, nonprofits are 'invisible': https://www.philanthropy.com/news/for-most-americans-nonprofits-are-invisible/ (https://www.philanthropy.com/news/for-most-americans-nonprofits-are-invisible/)
Fundraising Effectiveness Project — 2024 Q3 Report: https://afpglobal.org/fundraising-effectiveness-project (https://afpglobal.org/fundraising-effectiveness-project)
UMSI — UMSI creates giving society to celebrate committed donors: https://www.si.umich.edu/about-umsi/news/umsi-creates-giving-society-celebrate-committed-donors (https://www.si.umich.edu/about-umsi/news/umsi-creates-giving-society-celebrate-committed-donors)
Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview
0:30 — Foundation effectiveness survey and the funder-nonprofit disconnect
2:30 — Corporate giving consolidation and partnership strategy
4:00 — Why donors give: the subscription mindset and monthly giving retention
5:15 — Gen Z driving new donor acquisition
6:15 — The nonprofit invisibility problem
7:00 — The bottom line and three action items
7:45 — Good in Action: University of Michigan's outcome-based giving society
8:30 — Sign-off
21 Sept 2026
State of Good for September 21, 2026
Episode Title: $177 Billion in Frozen Grants, AI Without Guardrails, and the Donor-Advised Fund Action Gap
Summary: - A new analysis shows $177 billion in federal grants have been cut or frozen, reshaping the competitive landscape for private philanthropy across the sector
98% of nonprofits are using AI, but most lack policies, budgets, or training — and adoption is unevenly top-down
FreeWill's 2026 donor-advised fund report reveals a persistent gap between stated priorities and operational action on donor-advised fund giving
New research on need-based appeals shows framing matters more than the information itself — testing beats intuition
Bequest revenue grew nearly 20% year over year, signaling the great wealth transfer is already underway
Sources & Links: - Chronicle of Philanthropy — Trump administration has cut or frozen $177 billion in grants: https://www.philanthropy.com/news/trump-administration-has-cut-or-frozen-177-billion-in-grants-analysis-shows/
Nonprofit Quarterly — How Nonprofits Adopt and Govern AI (NTEN/Bridgespan report): https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-nonprofits-adopt-and-govern-ai-insights-from-a-new-report/ (https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-nonprofits-adopt-and-govern-ai-insights-from-a-new-report/)
The NonProfit Times — Nonprofits' Use of AI Outstrips Training and Guidelines: https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/nonprofits-use-of-ai-outstrips-training-and-guidelines/ (https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/nonprofits-use-of-ai-outstrips-training-and-guidelines/)
FreeWill — What New Research Reveals About Donor-Advised Fund Giving in 2026: https://www.nonprofits.freewill.com/resources/webinars/what-new-research-reveals-about-donor-advised-fund-giving-in-2026 (https://www.nonprofits.freewill.com/resources/webinars/what-new-research-reveals-about-donor-advised-fund-giving-in-2026)
Phys.org — When Equity Appeals Inspire Giving to Classrooms: https://phys.org/news/2026-09-equity-appeals-classrooms.html (https://phys.org/news/2026-09-equity-appeals-classrooms.html)
Clairification — Why Your Small Nonprofit Needs Planned Giving: https://clairification.com/2026/09/17/why-your-small-nonprofit-needs-planned-giving-and-how-to-quickly-launch/ (https://clairification.com/2026/09/17/why-your-small-nonprofit-needs-planned-giving-and-how-to-quickly-launch/)
Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview
0:30 — Federal funding landscape: $177 billion in cuts and what it means for every nonprofit
2:30 — AI adoption vs. AI governance: the 98% problem
4:00 — Donor-advised fund behavior and the priority-action gap
5:00 — Why Donors Give: need-based appeals and the science of framing
6:00 — What Changed This Week: converging pressures and the knowing-doing gap
6:30 — The Bottom Line and three actions for the week
7:15 — Good in Action: bequest giving surges nearly 20%
8:15 — Sign-off
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