REMARKS BY CONSUL GENERAL TIMOTHY SANDUSKY ON THE OCCASION OF THE NGO ROUND TABLE ON “CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES IN THE SVERDLOVSK OBLAST” ON JUNE 24, 2009 HOSTED BY THE INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL EDUCATION AT THE URAL STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY
I am grateful to Mr. Dmitri Vershinin [Sverdlovsk Oblast Duma Deputy] for inviting me to participate in this event today. I admire his efforts to improve the lives of orphans and underprivileged children in your region. I am happy to see Sverdlovsk oblast human rights ombudsman Tatiana Georgievna Merzlakova on the list of speakers today. We have great admiration for her efforts to develop civil society in this region. It is said that charitable giving is an important indicator of the health of civil society. I am also pleased to see Valery Basay, whose efforts to promote volunteerism and develop the professionalism of NGOs reflect our own commitment to community volunteerism. I look forward to making the acquaintance of others in the audience today.
I have been asked to describe the American experience in the field of charitable activity and I am very proud to be able to do so. In 2008, according to the organization USA Giving, Americans donated $307 billion. Donations from individuals accounted for 75% of this total. Foundations gave 7%. Corporations gave 5 % of this total. Though last year’s total was 2% lower than 2007, due primarily to the financial crisis, it is still a substantial sum. According to a study by the Charitable Aid Foundation of the United Kingdom, Americans gave 1.67 of the U.S. gross domestic product to charity. The study found that the level of taxation was important to the level of giving. In fact, of the countries studied, the U.S. had the lowest average taxation rate. Religious belief is also important. In the United States, nearly one-third of charitable donations are made to religious organizations. By comparison, about 14% of charitable giving goes to educational institutions.
In the United States, charitable giving is not just something that rich people do. According to Clare Gaudian of the New York University Center on Philanthropy, the willingness to give cuts across income levels The investments made by those who donate go to developing ideas, inventions and people to the betterment of the whole economy.
Our tax code devotes extensive attention to the treatment of charitable donations. It is much too complicated for me to describe in detail here, but in general, in order for a donation to qualify for favorable treatment under our tax code, the donation must be made to an organization that has been recognized by the Internal Revenue Service. Donors must keep records of their donations, and there may be limitations on the amount of tax relief one can claim. The rules are complex, but many Americans take advantage of them. The range of causes that Americans contribute to is extremely broad. In addition to religious organizations, every U.S. university, whether state or private, solicits contributions from their alumni. These often go for special purposes, such as scholarships, library collections or support for sports teams or recreational facility construction. Americans contribute large amounts of money to organizations that carry out research to find cures for such diseases as breast cancer, prostate cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, just to name a few. Americans can contribute to organizations that help people with HIV/AIDS or who are homeless. Veterans groups, cultural organizations, public radio stations, groups that help underprivileged children all engage in active fund-raising campaigns. Groups that support Native Americans or work to protect the environment are also an important part of this culture. Groups that provide shelter for homeless animals or train guide dogs for disabled people receive an important part of their funding from private donations. American giving is not only restricted to charitable causes in the United States. About 5% of annual American charitable giving is spent abroad. Last year almost 40% of American charitable giving overseas was donated by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, mainly for trying to alleviate world health problems such as malaria and AIDS in Africa and alleviate poverty in some of the poorest countries of the world. According to some sources, the total American charitable giving abroad is more than half as great as total U.S. governmental foreign aid. (http://www.becker-posner-blog.com/archives/2009/03/american_charit.html) Private Americans have given billions of dollars overseas to help the survivors of the Indian Ocean tsunami, for earthquake relief in Pakistan and Iran, and for refugees in the Darfur conflict in southern Sudan, among many other international needs.
But there is another part to this. Americans have found other ways to contribute apart from donating money. Many people donate time, professional services, or other assets they may own. They become tutors or mentors for young people. They help elderly people remain independent. But the important thing is that many Americans contribute something unique that will benefit the community.
On June 17, President Obama announced the “United we Serve” campaign, a call to service challenging Americans to help lay a new foundation for growth in the United States by engaging in sustained, meaningful community service. Since his inauguration, the President has called on Americans to serve their communities and be a part of building a better future.
The United We Serve summer initiative begins on June 22nd and runs through the National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11th. The National Day of Service and Remembrance was created by the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which President Obama signed in April to help encourage and facilitate community service across the country. During this summer, the President is renewing his call to all Americans to identify needs in their communities, engage in meaningful service to create change – and stay engaged with those projects long after September. The President's call focuses on four key areas where everyone can have a continuing impact in their community: education, health, energy and the environment and community renewal.
“The challenges we face are unprecedented in their size and scope, and we cannot rely on quick fixes or easy answers to put us on the road to recovery,” President Obama said. ‘Economic recovery is as much about what you're doing in your communities as what we're doing in Washington – and it's going to take all of us, working together.”
But don’t just take my word for it. The United States has no monopoly on volunteerism. There is a UN organization – United Nations Volunteers – that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. I also understand that there is a growing movement among young people in the Sverdlovsk Oblast to become involved in volunteer activities to help orphans. Hopefully volunteerism can become a growing movement to address other social problems with the assistance of government and community support.
Volunteerism is a powerful means of engaging people in tackling challenges, and it can transform the pace and nature of meeting these challenges. Volunteerism benefits both society at large and the individual volunteer by strengthening trust, solidarity and reciprocity among citizens, and by purposefully creating opportunities for participation.
International volunteer day is December 5. I hope you will be able to look back over your accomplishments on that day and celebrate.