Brad Fulton and Amber Hacker: Religion & American Philanthropy

Faith Angle

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Brad Fulton, professor of Nonprofit Management and Social Policy at the O’Neill School of Public Affairs at Indiana University, alongside Amber Hacker, Chief of External Affairs at Interfaith America. Our guests discuss the role of religious giving in philanthropy and the surprising trends that emerge from the underlying data. Out of the $557 billion dollars given annually in the United States to charities, twenty percent of the funds come from foundations. Does religious commitment influence that giving? Do we know from available data that generosity makes a person healthier or happier? Does the generation a person’s born into—say, a Boomer vs. a Millennial—impact giving patterns? They also discuss new networking tools as it relates to philanthropic giving.

Guests

Dr. Brad Fulton

Amber Hacker

Additional Resources

“Religious Organizations Crosscutting the Nonprofit Sector,” by Brad R. Fulton

“Faith-Based Public Foundations: Identifying the Field and Assessing its Impact,” by Allison Ralph and Brad R. Fulton

“Money, Meet Meaning,” by Amber Hacker and Tom Levinson