Giving Compass' Take:

• Kathleen Loehr, chair of the Advisory Council for the Women’s Philanthropy Institute at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, speaks on the trends in charitable giving between men and women. 

• How can women's giving circles and philanthropy groups utilize this information about women's giving habits? 

• Read the report on differences in charitable giving between men and women around the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Kathleen Loehr has over 35 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She has volunteered in political campaigns in upstate New York, run a childcare center in Ithaca, NY., and worked as a C-suite fundraising leader for the American Red Cross, Save the Children, the International Crisis Group, Cornell University, and other national and international organizations.

“This woven tapestry, if you will, of learning fundraising, philanthropy, and volunteering, made me realize the power of people coming together to make a difference,” she says.

Loehr, 63, who is currently chair of the Advisory Council for the Women’s Philanthropy Institute at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, spoke with Penta to discuss her mission.

Penta: How does gender influence giving?

Kathleen Loehr: The shift really happened when women started making more and more decisions. A study by Women’s Philanthropy Institute shows that in about three-quarters of general households, women are making joint decisions on giving. For high-net-worth households, women decide twice as often as men. So women are either making or being co-partners in the philanthropic decisions. The second big change that happened is that women are earning more. As they earn more, they tend to give more.

Are there any differences in how women choose particular charities and philanthropic causes?

If you break down non-profits into 12 or 13 sectors, women tend to give 90% across all the sectors; whereas men only give about 50%. Women are caring about their community, and they want to give in their own backyards.

What are the obstacles for women to give more?

Women are more discerning. They want to get to know the non-profit, for example, how they are run, what their mission is, and the impact of that mission.

Read the full article about gender and giving by Fang Block at Barron's