Please read the information below about Giving Tuesday and look for the 2 activity suggestions at the end of the post that our BASE Lend A Hand Community Service Program is promoting. Share your Giving Tuesday activities with us by emailing Melissa at melissa@basefortatkinson.org and we will include your Giving Tuesday activity in our follow-up blog post.
GivingTuesday, the groundbreaking global generosity movement, announced #GivingTuesdayNow, a global day of giving and unity, set to take place on May 5, 2020 as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19. The day is designed to drive an influx of generosity, citizen engagement, business and philanthropy activation, and support for communities and nonprofits around the world. #GivingTuesdayNow Leadership Supporters the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and PayPal are already actively responding to COVID-19. Confirmed additional partners include original #GivingTuesday co-founder the United Nations Foundation powering the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization, the CDC Foundation, Facebook, LinkedIn, Guardian News and Media, the Aga Khan Foundation, United Way Worldwide, Candid, The Communications Network, Global Impact, Philanthropy Together, Teach for All, Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support (WINGS), with NBC News and MSNBC returning as GivingTuesday's signature media partner.
#GivingTuesdayNow will mobilize GivingTuesday’s global network of leaders, partners, communities and generous individuals. GivingTuesday is also committing $200,000 to launch The Starling Fund, designed to support its existing network of official community and country leaders. Priority will go to leaders in the regions of greatest crisis or lowest resource in order to strengthen their #GivingTuesdayNow initiatives.
The global day of action will rally people around the world to tap into the power of human connection and strengthen communities at the grassroots level. Communities are encouraged to take action on behalf of first responders, as well as the world’s other - often forgotten - frontline workers: the nonprofits and community organizations that feed, house, educate, and nurture neighbors impacted by the global pandemic. The social sector is in crisis at the very moment the world needs it most, and GivingTuesday stands ready to rally the world at this critical time.
On the last GivingTuesday, December 3, 2019, the global giving day generated $2 billion in giving, just in the United States, and inspired millions of people worldwide to volunteer, perform countless acts of kindness, and donate their voices, time, money, and goods. The additional giving day planned for May 5, 2020 is being deployed in response to needs expressed by communities and leaders around the world.
“For eight years, GivingTuesday has celebrated grassroots generosity, and has built a movement that empowers millions of people to give, engage their communities, and find common ground,” said Rob Reich, Faculty Co-Director, Stanford University Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society and chairman of the board for GivingTuesday. “We are all confronting the same challenge right now, we need the giving spirit more than ever.”
People can show their generosity in a variety of ways during #GivingTuesdayNow--whether it’s helping a neighbor, advocating for an issue, sharing a skill, or giving to causes, every act of generosity counts. The giving day will emphasize opportunities to give back to communities and causes in ways that comply with public health guidelines. Planned initiatives include:
Dozens of countries will mobilize national networks to activate locally and promote generosity in their country.
Hundreds of communities across the United States led by volunteer leaders and by organizations like community foundations, United Ways, and giving groups will both raise funds and provide safe opportunities for supporting neighbors in need with other forms of civic participation and generosity.
Corporate and foundation partners from around the world will activate employees, and provide technical resources and matching funds in support of efforts on the ground around the world.
Giving platform partners are delivering solutions in response to the crisis already, and will be coordinating those efforts for #GivingTuesdayNow; and, they have committed to sharing data and collaborating on research into giving patterns, interest, and impact.
GivingTuesday Kids will offer opportunities for youth to organize internationally and give back while many young people are distanced from their schools and classmates.
GivingTuesday Military will activate their network of military service members, families, and veterans around the world to engage with their communities to give back in a show of unity.
The GivingTuesday Data Commons will continue to collaborate with online giving platforms around the world, and conduct primary research to provide in-depth analyses on giving trends and donor behavior in times of crisis, and offer recommendations in support of sector resilience and emerging best practices from this influx of generous behavior.
“As a global community, we can mourn this moment of extreme crisis while also finding the opportunity to support one another. We each have the power to make an impact with acts of generosity, no matter how small, and to ensure the sustainability of organizations and services that are crucial to the care and support of our communities,” said Asha Curran, CEO of GivingTuesday. “#GivingTuesdayNow is a chance for us to stand united and use grassroots generosity to show that we are all in this together, beginning to end. Even as many face financial uncertainty, generosity is not about size. Every act of kindness is not only a beacon of hope, it’s a critical act of civic and social solidarity.”
Created in 2012 at New York’s 92nd Street Y and incubated in its Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact as a day to do good, GivingTuesday has grown into a year-round global generosity movement with leaders who have launched more than 200 community campaigns across the U.S. and national movements in more than 60 countries. At the grassroots level, people and organizations participate in GivingTuesday in every single country in the world.
To learn more and participate in #GivingTuesdayNow, visit the GivingTuesday website (www.givingtuesday.org), Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday) or follow @GivingTuesday and #GivingTuesday on Twitter.
Simple Safe Service activities are designed to spark generous action and youth and family conversations for the good of all.
Many elderly people are isolated and cannot see their loved ones. This project includes making a welcome connection and following up with a card in the mail to show listening and caring reflection on what you discussed.
Interview a grandparent or senior friend by phone via call or video chat and ask, “What did you do for fun when you were young?
Use this conversation starter to compare activities from today and long ago.
Draw pictures of you and a senior friend having fun together. Make it into a greeting card and write a nice note inside.
Send cards to residents at a senior living home to brighten someone’s day.
Reflection: Look at pictures of your family and listen to stories from long ago. Reflect on how the stories make you feel about the people you care about and how they are the same or different than you.
Double the impact of your service by posting it on social media with the Hasbro and Design for Change hashtag #DoGoodFromHome. For every simple safe act of service youth do, Hasbro will donate a toy to a daycare center where essential workers send their kids.
Simple Safe Service activities are designed to spark generous action and youth and family conversations for the good of all.
Bees, butterflies, and birds need water! When the sun is hot, provide a source of water and draw pollinators to your garden with bright flowers. Many people know about bird baths, but bees also need water for digestion and to keep their hive cool. Provide a simple bath for insects and animals.
Clean a used 2-liter bottle or shallow plastic container. If using a 2-liter bottle, measure up 3 inches from the base and (with adult supervision for young children) cut the bottle around the diameter. Use tape to cover the sharp plastic edge. This makes a shallow dish.
Tape or glue an eating utensil (plastic or metal) lengthwise from one side of the container to the other, as a perch for birds and insects. Or put stones in the dish for the guests to stand on while they drink.
Fill the container with water, leaving 1 centimeter (form of measurement) from the top edge. Put the water well outside and watch the animals and insects that stop by for a drink!
Plant bright flowers that attract bees, butterflies, and birds, and make your garden a sanctuary. Flat or shallow blossoms, such as daisies, zinnias, asters and Queen Anne's lace, will attract the largest variety of bees.
Bonus: Make a "bird treat". Tie a string around a pine cone, spread a thin layer of peanut butter on the pine cone, roll it in bird seed, and hang the "bird treat" from a tree.
Reflection: Keep a journal of insect and animal visitors you see each day. Make notes about changes noticed and ideas for improvements. Reflect on your role in helping nature thrive.
