Any historian will you that the trends we think are important today are rarely those which turn out to have biggest effect. Proper historical judgements take time. Chou Enlai, Mao’s longtime henchman* was once asked what he thought the long term impact of the French Revolution had been, “it’s far too early to say” … Continue reading Asking for permission
Directgiving
Inside a Social Experiment
A while ago, we announced the launch of the Misfit Foundation, a new non profit set up to help charities connect donors with the work they are supporting through technology and the power of story telling. We did this because we thought donors deserved a better deal. And that treating donors better would create better … Continue reading Inside a Social Experiment
Is fundraising broken?
Until this weekend at least, it had been a quiet summer so far for news in the UK. We know this because the press have devoted a lot of front page space to stories about charity fundraising. It's nice to be noticed. Unfortunately when the right wing press* runs stories about fundraising, they aren't about all the amazing … Continue reading Is fundraising broken?
6 peaks, 6 countries, 72 hours
You've heard of the 3 Peaks Challenge, right? Or even the 4 Peaks which is basically the same thing but with added testosterone. These are, I proffer to you, for sensible people pussies*. Today's truly discerning charity challengeer (have I just made that word up?) laughs in the face of your paltry three peaks. And … Continue reading 6 peaks, 6 countries, 72 hours
How to give effectively to emergency relief
How do we know who to give money to for disasters such as the recent Nepal earthquake. Misfit Foundation's Tobin Aldrich provides some easy to follow tips.
So why can’t we all sell this?
I've been on, I don't know how many, field trips over the years and seen NGO projects of all kinds all over the world. I've seen some amazing things and met some utterly inspirational people. But until visiting Sankara Eye Care Institutions last week I had never seen this. Jessie White of Misfit Foundation and some old, … Continue reading So why can’t we all sell this?
A new charity is born
Last Thursday we launched our new charity, the Misfit Foundation in Islington, North London. The term “launch” perhaps gives the wrong impression. Actually we held a party and invited our friends and told them what we were doing. This seemed to go down very well although the copious amounts of liquid refreshment provided (thanks to … Continue reading A new charity is born
A better deal for donors
I've been working for charities for over twenty years, a sobering thought. I've worked for some great charities and done some fantastic fundraising. And some that's been less fantastic but we'll skip quickly over that. Overall, it's been really good. But what's been bothering me for much of this time has been that I haven't … Continue reading A better deal for donors
Stay tuned
A few friends and myself have been busy for the last couple of months. We're working on a new project. A new charity in fact. On Thursday 12 February we will be launching our new charity. And we will preview our first project. Which will be....interesting What we are aiming to achieve is ambitious enough. The charity … Continue reading Stay tuned
Fundraising Fundamentals 