Tech Nonprofits Defy Economic Crisis with Continued Financial Support
The collapsing economy hasn’t hit the fundraising of tech-oriented nonprofits just yet, according to the early accounting of groups we asked. Most groups didn’t yet have solid numbers calculated for 2008, but they had a good sense of how the year would finally look.
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Desperate pleas from some tech nonprofits around the holidays suggested that donations would fall in tandem with poor year-end results by corporate supporters in technology and with belt-tightening by individuals. Creative Commons narrowly surpassed its fundraising goal with a last-minute increase in its contribution from Microsoft (WID Dec 31 p6). Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales said in a plea to users in late December that the site would have to start accepting advertising or charging subscriptions without a fresh infusion of donations. The Wikimedia Foundation collected $2 million from 50,000 donors in eight days after Wales’ plea, pushing its total for 2008 over $6 million.
The Center for Democracy & Technology has done well with foundations the past few years and expects to continue, said Chief Operating Officer Ari Schwartz. Its mix of donors is changing, as the percentage of its donations from foundations was up last year to more than 50 percent from 40 percent, he said. Contributions from companies have been level, though the center is worried about whether this will continue, he said. “We raised what we projected, and it was an increase over the year before,” he said. Schwartz attributed the steady donations to an interest in the center’s issues of free expression and open government and its location in Washington, where people and the government are still spending.
Donations in 2008 turned out almost exactly as expected for the Progress & Freedom Foundation, said President Ken Ferree. He thinks the organization is fine - though as for starting new programs or giving raises based on new money raised, “who knows?” he said. The foundation’s small size has probably contributed to maintaining its donations, Ferree said. “If you're looking to save money and you're Viacom or somebody, cutting PFF doesn’t do much for you,” he said.
Similarly, contributions to Public Knowledge are “lunch money” for funders, said Communications Director Art Brodsky. The group was lucky in that it “frontloaded” its fundraising before the economy turned truly sour, but Brodsky said he didn’t have more specific figures at the ready. Neither did the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which was coming off a two-week break at the end of the year. Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, said the group has had better years, but he didn’t give solid figures. He said donors are still interested in the group’s issues. Rotenberg said he hasn’t seen a drop-off in the number of donors, though some have given less than they had previously.
The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University wrapped up its fundraising before the financial crisis hit, leaving it without much sense of how things will look the next two years, a spokesman said. But “obviously we expect things to be a little dimmer going forward.”