Chapter 8: Fundraising across Nonprofit Sectors

Nonprofit organizations operate within different sectors and encounter situations specific to their area of activity. This chapter is organized around the nine subsectors used in Giving USA to draw fundraisers’ attention to specific data for each sector, to provide an analysis of upcoming trends and changes in donor behavior, and to identify the most useful approaches for fundraising by sector. The nine subsectors covered are Religion, Education, Human Services, Foundations, Public-Society Benefit, Health, International Affairs, Arts, Culture, and Humanities, and Environment and Animals. Although this chapter includes data from Giving USA 2021, the patterns identified here are part of longer-term trends that are likely to continue for the next several years. The chapter allows readers to learn what types of organizations fall in each of these categories, and specificities about each subsector by organizing the information around supporter and constituents for the sector and elaborating on issues that fundraisers should consider.