GlobalGiving connects individual and institutional donors directly to social, economic development, and environmental projects around the world.

GlobalGiving has a public site, www.globalgiving.com, where anyone can browse projects in thematic or geographic areas. We also provide the following customized services:

GlobalGiving was founded by two former World Bank executives who are using the Internet to create a highly efficient marketplace that enables more funding to reach projects throughout the globe and, at the same time, provides a more transparent, engaging way for donors to give.

GlobalGiving differs from other giving facilitators in the following ways:

GlobalGiving is supported by leaders in philanthropy, official aid, and the private sector, including HP, USAID, The Skoll Foundation, The Omidyar Network, The Sall Family Foundation, The Hewlett Foundation, The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, and The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, among others.

GlobalGiving is a collaboration between two entities - the GlobalGiving Foundation and a socially-oriented enterprise called ManyFutures, Inc. The Foundation handles all due diligence on projects, along with disbursement of funds to projects and tax receipts to donors. The Foundation also provides a variety of services to project leaders in the field, including networking and training. ManyFutures is responsible for the development and operation of the web site, along with marketing to donors, corporations, and other organizations. To help launch the unique GlobalGiving service, the Foundation has also been a significant investor in ManyFutures during the start-up phase.

We work with a network of "project sponsors" to post projects on globalgiving.com. These project sponsors -- all established, reputable organizations such as Ashoka, IDEX, and Mercy Corps -- work with local "project leaders" to vet projects to ensure they are legitimate, well-run, and satisfy IRS guidelines for international grantmaking as well as the new voluntary guidelines for anti-terrorism set for the in the Patriot Act.

Once projects are submitted, GlobalGiving does a secondary review, prior to posting.

As part of the posting process, the project sponsor or project leader must provide detailed background information on the project leader, the project's objectives, and expected outcomes once the project receives funding.

See a complete list of GlobalGiving's Project Sponsors.

Each month, GlobalGiving pools the contributions from each donor, and if the project has received $250 or more in funding, transfers the money either to the Project Sponsor (see 2.1 above) or the implementing organization. If the money is transferred to the sponsor, they then wire the funds directly to the project leader. If GlobalGiving directs the funds to the implementing organization overseas, bank wire transfer charges may apply. If the project has not yet reached $250, funds are disbursed once it has reached that amount.

GlobalGiving works with a wide range of established, respected international organizations such as Ashoka, IDEX, the United Nations Development Programme, and the World Bank Development Marketplace as Project Sponsors, who authenticate the projects of their partner organizations working in the field, and ensure the legitimacy of each social entrepreneur. These relationships give GlobalGiving a unique portfolio of credible projects not found on any other site.

All projects on GlobalGiving are vetted for eligibility -- by GlobalGiving or its partner organizations -- to receive international grants. This means that these projects have satisfied the IRS guidelines for international grant making as well as the new voluntary guidelines for anti-terrorism set forth in the Patriot Act.

When you make a contribution to a project on globalgiving.com, your name, billing address, email address, and credit card information are collected by one of our third-party credit card vendors (VeriSign or PayPal). If you ask to be placed on our email list, we will collect your name and email address. While we encourage donors to share their name and address with the project leader in order to foster long-term relationships, donors may elect to remain anonymous, in which case GlobalGiving promises to maintain your complete privacy.

Yes. All projects on globalgiving.com have been pre-qualified for 501(c)3 equivalency status. Further, all donations go through the GlobalGiving Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, making them tax-deductible for U.S. taxpayers to the full extent permitted by law.

The GlobalGiving Foundation's tax-exempt ID number is 30-010-8263.

For information on Tax Deductibility for Canadian Citizens and Australian citizens, click here.

GlobalGiving currently accepts credit/debit cards, checks, PayPal, bank wire transfers, stock transfers, and private equity shares.

To pay by credit/debit card or PayPal, click "Give Now" and enter your information accordingly through our secure server.

Checks should be made payable to The GlobalGiving Foundation. The project ID should be written in the memo field. Mail all checks to:

For more information on stock and wire transfers, click here

For more information donating private equity shares, contact Joan Ochi —

All credit card donations are collected through VeriSign, a secure third party whom we hire for this purpose, or PayPal, also a highly secure third-party payment system. Because all transactions go through third parties, GlobalGiving does not receive or retain credit card numbers. Further, we will never release your personal information to any outside party unless authorized to do so.

All donations made through PayPal, a leader in online payments, are kept private over their secure network.

To learn more about PayPal, click here.

GlobalGiving takes a 10% fee to cover the costs of aggregating and vetting credible funding opportunities and presenting them on the website. There is also a nominal fee that covers the cost of transferring funds overseas. Between 85-90% of your money goes directly to the project you choose to support. Our fee is one of the lowest fees available in international philanthropy, and because funds go directly to the project level, your contribution goes much further than most other international giving options.

Every donation can make a difference. The minimum donation is $10.

Donation options illustrate the impact specific dollar amounts will have on a particular project. Many donors find that donation options help them get a tangible sense of how their contributions will be used. Keep in mind that you are not required to select a donation option -- we welcome any amount (minimum $10); just enter your desired contribution in the box labeled "Other Amount."

Typically, Project Leaders use a variety of funding channels to raise funds for their projects. When you donate to a project through GlobalGiving, your donation will always be directed to that project and its defined activities. However, depending on the overall amount of funds projects raise, both through GlobalGiving and from other sources, Project Leaders pursue a combination of different value outcomes, allowing the project to deliver a complete suite of products and services to its constituents.

When you give through GlobalGiving, you will be asked for a minimal amount of information in order to create a user profile. This profile will allow you to keep track of your giving history, and to access project updates. In addition, all contributions made to projects through GlobalGiving will be acknowledged with a receipt.

Through GlobalGiving Guaranteed (GGG), GlobalGiving promises donors complete satisfaction with all aspects of the donation process. If a donor is not satisfied with their experience, GGG will provide money back in the form of a voucher that can be used to support another project on the GlobalGiving website. Learn more about GlobalGiving Guaranteed.

Yes, any project on GlobalGiving can be turned into a gift easily - you can choose either to email your gift or send a paper card.

Simply follow the directions upon checkout, and we'll send the recipient a personalized email or card (you choose) with information on the project and a customized message from you.

Send a GlobalGiving Gift Certificate in any amount (minimum $10) to a friend, family member, colleague or whomever you'd like to "gift" - the recipient can use it to donate to any project they like on globalgiving.com. You can send Gift Certificates by email or snail mail.

To purchase and send a Gift Certificate, enter the desired dollar amount in the box labeled "Amount" on the Gifts page. Then click the "Send Gift Certificate" button. You'll be taken directly to checkout where you can complete your purchase via credit card or PayPal.

Browse the project catalog on GlobalGiving, and choose the project you want to support. When you complete your donation and "check out" you'll be prompted to enter your Gift Certificate number (a string of numbers and letters included in the body of the Gift Certificate) in the field labeled "Do you have a Gift Certificate? Enter the code here:". Make sure you "Add" your Gift Certificate after entering it. The Gift Certificate amount will be credited toward the total amount of your donation.

No. You can redeem only a portion of your Gift Certificate amount if your Giving Cart total is less than the Gift Certificate amount. The remaining balance will be saved in your account and will automatically appear in your Giving Cart the next time you log into GlobalGiving with the same email and password.

You may not redeem only a portion of the Gift Certificate if your Giving Cart total exceeds your Gift Certificate amount.

Yes. If your donation exceeds the amount of your Gift Certificate (by a minimum of $10), you can pay for the balance using a credit card or PayPal. If your donation is less than the amount of your Gift Certificate, the balance will be held in your account for the next time you donate through GlobalGiving.

No. Gift Certificates can only be used toward a donation or a Gift Card (a specified project donation in honor of someone else).

Yes.

Yes. If you are using multiple Gift Certificates, enter one code at a time and click the "Add" button after each entry. Each Certificate will appear as a line item above the Gift Certificate entry box.

If you have not redeemed your Gift Certificate within 12 months of the date of purchase, those funds will be transferred to the GlobalGiving Matching Fund. Learn more about the GlobalGiving Matching Fund.

Yes, the Guarantee may be invoked by the recipient/redeemer of a Gift Certificate/Gift Card, but not the original purchaser. In the case of a gift made "in honor of" someone else, the donor can take advantage of the Guarantee. Learn more about GlobalGiving Guaranteed.

If you have any kind of event or gathering, or if you want to encourage support for one or more projects from friends, coworkers, or family, you can create a registry. Once you create a registry, email invitees a link to your registry using the "Promote registry by e-mail" link under "My Registries" on your profile.

Many people choose projects in places where they have traveled or where there is an issue they care about. GlobalGiving allows you to browse through a wide range projects from around the world in a variety of themes such as health, education, economic development, and environment.

See our full list of project themes and geographies.

If you don't know where to start, use our Donation Wizard to help you select a project that is right for you.

Often projects listed on GlobalGiving have other sources of funding, including funding from their project sponsor organization or other donors that make up the remaining funding needs from the project budget listed on GlobalGiving. In addition, "donation options" listed on every project page provide an idea of what the project organization can accomplish with various levels of funding less than the total project need. Organizations warrant that funding received through GlobalGiving, even if less than their original project need, will be spent on the project activities outlined in the project page and they take responsibility for reporting on these activities through project updates.

In rare cases, the funds donated to a project are insufficient for an organization to go forward with any part of their planned activities. If a project cannot go forward with the funds donated, the project will be removed from the web site and donors will be notified. Donors will receive a GlobalGiving gift certificate equal to their original donation, and GlobalGiving will suggest similar projects already in implementation that donors could choose to support with their gift certificate.

Every donor has a choice of becoming known to the project leader or remaining anonymous. For donors that choose to become known to the project leader, the donor's contact information is provided to the project leader. This may include the donor's mailing address and email address. In addition, each project listing includes the contact information of the project leader, which allows donors to establish a relationship with those running the project and to follow up on its progress.

Project updates on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.com by project leaders as they are completed, normally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them, therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

After projects have achieved their funding goals, many project leaders choose to provide regular updates on the project's progress, which you can monitor through your user profile.

The order in which projects appear on "browse" and catalog pages is dynamic and will change over time. GlobalGiving ranks projects according to the funding that the project has received to date, when the project was posted, and when projects were updated — either with new photos or new project updates. This encourages Project Leaders to market and promote their projects actively, and keep them updated — increasing the overall visibility of these projects and helping them generate even more donations.

GlobalGiving works with corporations, businesses, affinity groups, and other institutions to help them with their specific giving needs. Here are some of the services offered.

Customized giving websites: We develop customized websites for corporations and organizations that enable their employees, members, or other constituents to give directly to projects. These websites take on the look and feel of the organization, and project themes or geographic locations can be tailored to fit strategic interests. For example, if a company is interested in education projects in Africa, we can customize the site so that only projects that fit these criteria are viewed by users of the site. Employee giving sites are a great option for internationally-diverse employee populations, and can be linked to payroll deduction systems in order to integrate with existing programs.

Strategic philanthropy: We provide project sourcing services for corporate, community, and family foundations, as well as other types of philanthropists. For example, if a company wants to support local communities in which it does business internationally, we can find and facilitate funding of high-impact projects in those communities.

Co-marketing and retail programs: We work with companies and other institutions to raise awareness about their support of projects through GlobalGiving, and engage their customers and other constituents in helping to make a difference. Consulting services: GlobalGiving provides support for partners looking to enhance the impact of their international strategic philanthropy and global citizenship efforts.

Physical Marketplace Events: GlobalGiving facilitates giving events at which donors can interact directly with world-class social entrepreneurs.

Our partners represent a broad range of organizations who support -- and, in most cases, enable employees, customers, and other constituents to support -- projects around the world.

GlobalGiving sources projects through a system of Project Sponsors, primarily U.S.-based 501(c)3 organizations that vet the potential project, certify that the project's methodology is sound and that the project leader has a strong track record.

If you work with a nonprofit that would like to post a project on the GlobalGiving website, please explore our list of Project Sponsors for organizations with whom you may already be involved. If you see a Sponsor you work with, please contact them directly and see if they are willing to sponsor your organization to post a project on GlobalGiving. If you would like to recommend a new Project Sponsor, please contact us at .

Each quarter, GlobalGiving pools the contributions from donors and transfers the funds to the project contact. Funds are distributed either to the Project Sponsor or directly to the Project Leader depending on the organization's preference.

To learn more about how our Project Partner Services work, please contact Dana Messick at .