Philly mag takes a deep dive into the region’s philanthropic legacy

Thanksgiving is over and #GivingTuesday is tomorrow, which means it’s officially philanthropy season.

Philadelphia magazine dedicated a chunk of its December issue to all things giving in Philly — including its apparent dearth of charity compared to other cities, which is all the more concerning when considering how many thousands of nonprofits live in the region (which we already knew need all the help they can get).

“Only You Can Fix Philly’s Philanthropy Crisis” by Malcolm Burnley takes a close look at why that is. Some examples: In the early 2000s, major funders Annenberg Foundation moved to L.A. and Pew Charitable Trusts shifted much of its philanthropic focus elsewhere, while economic segregation (like in, ahem, Philadelphia’s suburbs) tends to mean less charitable giving overall.

Experts such as Nonprofit Repositioning Fund’s Nadya Shmavonian, Fairmount Ventures’ Don Kligerman, William Penn Foundation’s Shawn McCaney and National Philanthropic Trust’s Eileen Heisman weigh in, too.

Also in Philly mag’s philanthropy package:

• The top 10 largest gifts in Philadelphia’s past 10 years
• “Giving 101” answering a handful of common charity Qs
• A nonprofit giving guide featuring 32 orgs for 32 causes (which, full disclosure, was written by this editor)