What does International Day of Charity mean for nonprofits?

In necessary things, unity; in doubtful things, liberty; in all things, charity. –  Richard Baxter

Charity is an important medium as it helps us reach wider sections of the society. Today, there are many ways of nonprofit fundraising and volunteering, that people can use to support the weaker. The International Day for Charity is aimed at encouraging people world over to indulge in charitable activities, like fundraising by nonprofits, supporting their causes, individual efforts, etc.

The UN declared 5th September as the International Day for Charity as this day marks the death anniversary of Mother Teresa. She was a 1979 Nobel Peace Prize winner for work undertaken in overcoming poverty and distress. 

As a part of the United Nations agenda on Sustainable Development, the UN recognized that poverty presents an enormous challenge for the global community. If there is one big step that would help in accomplishing the Sustainable Development Goals, it is eradicating poverty in all forms. It is so because poverty exists in every nation, from developing to developed. It becomes a barrier against prosperity and equality for millions of people, regardless of their social and cultural situations. 

If you jot down the ways that could help eradicate poverty, the primary steps would be encouraging charities and individuals conducting humanitarian activities. Nonprofits play a significant role in alleviating human suffering and crises. Recognizing their work, the UN General Assembly, under resolution A/RES/67/105PDF, has designated the 5th of September as the International Day of Charity.‎  On this Day, the UN invites all member states to commemorate the occasion by encouraging these organizations and individuals to raise public awareness about their causes. It promotes nonprofit fundraising events and provides a platform for nonprofit organizations to spread their message.

Nonprofit fundraising is a huge industry in the United States and people have been willing to donate more and more through the years. This day brings a great opportunity for nonprofits to capitalize:

1. The day falls on the first week of September, which is very close to the major festive season of the year, i.e., the holiday season. The major part of annual nonprofit fundraising is conducted during this quarter. Organizations can thus kickoff their holiday fundraising around this day. It does bring a lot of marketing opportunities too, as nonprofits have a base a fundraising event and market it with the trending occasion.
   
2. There are a lot of promotional advantages with this day which charities can capitalize. As the day would trend on social media and other internet platforms, nonprofits can promote their fundraisers under the same threads and gain a bigger audience. Hence, large number of audience would result in larger number of donations.
3. Charities can incorporate different nonprofit fundraising techniques to test them before the upcoming fundraising season. Techniques like text-to-give, crowdfunding, etc. could be tried and tested. Thus, they would have a clear idea of which technique to use in their upcoming campaigns, based on the results.

GiveCentral provides an intuitive and easy-to-use online donation platform that serves to increase nonprofit financial health and sustainability. We second the prospects of encouraging nonprofit organizations for their humanitarian activities. It is all of our efforts that could help this world become a better place.