America is in a period of profound transition — and not just because of changing federal policies under a new presidential administration. Over the past decade, the nation has experienced heightened political and social upheaval, change, and transition, accompanied by a decline in public trust in institutions. In his essay for the Urban Institute, Jacob Harold reminds us that “institutions are patterns of relationship,” and those relationships are steadily weakening. Whether you look at data from Gallup, Pew, Edelman, or other surveys, multiple researchers are identifying that trust in our systems is at historic lows.

This reality made us curious about what is happening within the nonprofit and philanthropic ecosystem itself. Nonprofits often fill the gaps that remain when other institutions falter — providing food, housing, education, and essential services — and philanthropy helps sustain that work. Building on previous research, we sought to delve further into the extent to which the public trusts these actors and whether that trust is consistent across sectors and sub-sectors.

What We Know About What Americans Think About Nonprofits and Philanthropy

In April 2023, we saw a report from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University (Lilly School) titled What Americans Think about Philanthropy and Nonprofits. This study sheds light on the current state of trust between the public and the nonprofit sector — and, more importantly, it explores how Americans understand, perceive, and relate to philanthropy in its various forms. The findings reveal a striking disconnect between the values Americans hold and their understanding of philanthropy. Although 85% of respondents view volunteering, and 84% view donating money as philanthropic activities — and nearly 60% have donated to charity in the past year — only 20% of respondents self-identify as philanthropists.

Roughly a year later, the Center for Public Interest Communications at the University of Florida and the Council on Foundations collaborated on a joint project to build upon those findings to determine what Americans think about nonprofits and philanthropy. Their goal was to test whether stories, metaphors, or message framing could meaningfully shift public understanding and trust in foundations. Specifically, this project fielded a new national survey to “(1) Investigate how Americans view foundations and philanthropy, repeating some questions from the Lilly School’s survey tool; (2) Experiment with whether different types of stories about foundations may increase people’s trust in foundations and reduce their concerns and (3) Examine how we might use different metaphors about foundations to improve people’s trust in foundations.”

Read the full article about what Americans think of nonprofits and philanthropy by Emily Doebler and Jeff Williams at Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy.