Welcome to Winter and to June – Workplace Giving Month and Philanthropy Week. Whilst many face-to-face fundraising events are morphing into fun online formats, Good2Give knows how important it is to focus on creative ways to grow the giving movement.

The size of the economic fallout is yet to be truly felt; getting our heads in the right space to navigate it will be critical. Acknowledging the challenges others face, will help us all face our own challenges. We urge our corporate clients to also look at ways in which to go the extra mile – and to look at how they can help support the charity sector in a post-crisis world.

Increased pressure is being put on charities whose services such as domestic violence support, food banks and homeless shelters, are in dire need right now. So please do consider supporting them now and in the future.

You can support by making a donation or volunteering your time. Volunteering Australia recently commissioned the Australian National University (ANU) Centre for Social Research and Methods to undertake analysis of the experience of volunteers during COVID-19 to date.

Their analysis found the decline in volunteering during COVID-19 has been substantial, with 66 per cent of volunteers estimated to have stopped volunteering between February and April 2020; a reduction equivalent to 12.2 million hours per week.

Do contact us to find out more if your organisation or team is interested in getting involved in Volunteering as we’re now offering this service in partnership with Communiteer. We have created a community where businesses and their employees can access volunteering opportunities that match their skills with the real needs of charities.

One of the aspects of my job that I love the most is, in times of great adversity, we see the best in companies and people as they rise to the challenge to help communities that are most vulnerable. Three stand out clients are Accor Hotels, Facebook and Stockland. We’ve been co-hosting a series of social impact webinars with LBG showcasing innovations in corporate giving during COVID-19. If you missed any of these webinars, you can listen to the recordings:

• 6th May
• 20th May
• 3rd June

We have also been busy working on a fabulous community partnership selection project – the innovative Small Business partnership between MYOB and Smiling Mind – created to ensure MYOB’s customers have access to tools and meditations specific to their needs. The outcome was a great fit for MYOB and Smiling Mind to help make a real difference for the small business community. The partnership includes monetary support through workplace giving, office fundraising, customer donations, as well as in-kind support through MYOB PR, product and staff volunteering time. A brilliant initiative!

If you would like any more information about how to facilitate or adapt your corporate community investments, please do reach out to either myself or the Good2Give team.

From all of us at Good2Give, we hope you are finding reasons to smile during these challenging times. Together we can make a difference through charitable giving.

Lisa Grinham Chief Executive Officer Email LinkedIn