Ever hear of the Generosity Index? Compiled every year by the Catalogue for Philanthropy, the index ranks charitable giving, state by state, by U.S. citizens and companies. The index accounts for the amount of wealth that citizens and corporations in all 50 states can give, and how much they actually do give, to charities on an annual basis. The good news is that, overall, the Catalogue for Philanthropy reports that charitable giving held up fairly well during the economic woes of 2002, especially among individual charitable givers. The bad news is that affluent states like Massachusetts (44), New Jersey (48) and Virginia (37) rank at the bottom of the index, outpaced by less well-off states like Mississippi, Arkansas and South Dakota, which top the index. See where your state ranks.

Taxes or a Tax Deduction: There are times when you read about an idea that is so brilliant and yet so simple you say to yourself "why didn't I think of that?" In Sunday's New York Times in an article entitled "Charity Begins at Schedule A" Ian Ayres and Barry Nalebuff propose two small changes in tax law could encourage people to be more generous. First, extend the deadline for deducting donations to April 15 of the following year, the same as the deadline for contributions to an Individual Retirement Account. Second, provide a new line on the tax form for people to total their donations as a percentage of their income. For those taxpayers looking at writing a check to the IRS, this could provide incentive enough to make a contribution to their favorite charitable causes and reduce their tax burden. For those receiving a refund, they may share some of that windfall. Simply brilliant.

Philanthropy as an Export: The annual Transatlantic Community Foundation Network plenary meeting took place in Newcastle (England) March 28 - April 2, 2003, despite the Iraq-war. Community Foundation experts from the USA, Canada, Mexico and 10 European Countries came together, hosted by the Community Foundation serving Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, Europe's most successful Community Foundation (33 Mio. Euro in assets). The TCFN-conference gives strong evidence for the consistency and reliability of the Transatlantic relations on the level of Community Foundations. These feelings were emphasized by Sir John Weston, former British ambassador to the UN and NATO, in his Dinner Speech. Sir John is now chairman of the Community Foundation Network UK. Currently 46 Community Foundations from 14 different countries are members of TCFN. During the past decade the Community Foundation concept has spread rapidly around the globe. Although first invented in the US, its no longer a uniquely American concept. Much of the growth in continental Europe has taken place in Germany, thanks in part to the Bertelsmann Foundation which established Germany's first Community Foundation in its hometown of Gutersloh -- since then 46 Community Foundations have been established. The results of the network are published on TCFN's website .

America's Most Prestigious Boards: Make no mistake, serving on the board of directors of a charitable institution is special. But what if you also had the opportunity to serve with the likes of actor Denzel Washington, American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault, or FedEx Founder and CEO Fred Smith? Worth magazine interviewed dozens of experts in the 20 largest metropolitan areas to compile a list of the 100 most prestigious nonprofit boards of directors. Worth is currently redesigning their website, so we have included the list of the nonprofits. A complete description of the institutions can be found in Worth’s March 2003 edition.

GuideStar Expands Horizons: Buzz Schmidt, and his new executive team at GuideStar have been very busy as of late, offering a new high-tech charity screening service, and a British version of their service.