Philanthropy and Charity
The main difference between philanthropy and charity lies in the ways they are executed. While charity creates a dependent relationship between the giver and the receiver, philanthropy pursues to empower and enable sustainability. Charity is the instant solution whereas philanthropy is the preservation. Charity gives a relief to the suffering while philanthropy seeks for the root causes of social problems and solves them. Philanthropy is doing something more, something greater, that brings about important social changes than mere charitable activities.
When a charitable person makes a giving, either he digs his pocket for whatever he’s got or he meticulously writes a check for a particular amount and gives it to a thankful receiver. A philanthropist, on the other hand, makes a funding to a foundation or an organization, where that money is invested for a bigger social benefit. A philanthropist can make grants for a certain time period; say for five days, ten years or throughout life. A charitable man’s giving is used and exhausted, but the philanthropist’s power is preserved as it’s used in the long run. Charity is for today but philanthropy is forever.
Today, many nonprofit organizations have come up with their philanthropic missions to serve the poor and the needy in developing countries of the world. These organizations mainly work on multiple fronts such as education, health care and family welfare. They have been tremendously successful with their simple and highly effective solutions to create real changes in the lives of these people and to the society at large. They are encouraging more and more people to come forward and take up philanthropy to support their cause.
Almost all of us have done more or less a little bit of charity. Even a small kid donates his pocket money for some charity. But most people are unaware of the procedures of philanthropy. Questions like how to precede, whom to get in touch with, whether the money will actually reach the people who need it or is the organization accountable for its projects – often stop people to go forward with the deed. If these are the queries that come in mind, the solution is to do some active research work on some nonprofit organizations and know what they do and how they do it.
One can be assured once he or she has gathered enough information and positive reviews about the nonprofit organization. This will ensure that every dollar that is given will be used for the benefit of mankind. If someone is really interested to make a contribution, he or she can choose the kind of project they want to donate for and proceed with the donation.
