Today, even as dire challenges arise and societies worry about their ability to cope with these obstacles, philanthropy is on the upswing. Not only are more people giving than ever, but in different iterations and to address problems we may not have realized years ago.

According to the 2016 BNP Paribas Individual Philanthropy Index (the latest iteration of an annual survey), the United States donated the most, both in amounts pledged or given. According to the National Philanthropic Trust (NPT), individual Americans gave $389 billion in 2016, a 4 percent increase from 2015. Corporations donated some $18.55 billion (a 3.5 percent increase from the previous year), while foundations gave some $58.28 billion (also a 3.5 percent increase).

BNP found that philanthropists overwhelmingly labeled “Health” as their top cause, donating to nonprofits who specialized in this area (namely medical organizations such as Doctors without Borders). A key exception was Asia, where philanthropists placed the environment as their leading charitable cause.

In terms of vision, BNP awarded top honors to Europe, labeling these nations as most likely (and willing) to explore and innovate new approaches to philanthropy. A key reason for this recognition likely stems from the multitude of philanthropic structures pioneered by the continent.   Europe has also pioneered “venture philanthropy”, which adapts the principles of venture capitalism to promising, forward-thinking charities. Clearly, unlike the United States, much of European philanthropy seems to be based around organizations, rather than individuals.

In America, one way in which corporations have expanded into philanthropy is that of donor-advised funds (DAFs); essentially, a DAF is an accounts maintained by charitable arm of a corporation (usually banks or financial services firms). Basically, a user deposits cash, securities, or other assets into a DAF, which then distributes the money to various charities over a period of time.

Read the full article about philanthropy internationally by Igor Markarov at Medium.