October 11, and every day

Thank you to all who participated in the inaugural Give to Women and Girls Day! We celebrated the groundbreaking #GiveToWomenAndGirls campaign on October 11, 2022, but you can continue to use the information on this website year-round to inform your work as a fundraiser, donor or anyone interested in helping to drive more charitable giving to women’s and girls’ organizations.

Check out Inside Philanthropy to hear reflections on the need for Give to Women and Girls Day from Jeannie Infante Sager, Director of the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, and Elizabeth Barajas-Román, President & CEO of the Women’s Funding Network.

Supporting Gender Equity Through Giving

#GiveToWomenAndGirls


The Women & Girls Index shows that nearly 50,000 organizations in the U.S. are dedicated to women and girls, yet they consistently receive less than 2% of all charitable giving, according to research by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI).

SAVE THE DATE

October 11, 2023

On October 11, 2022, WPI launched Give to Women and Girls Day, a groundbreaking effort to increase funding for women’s and girls’ organizations, in partnership with Giving Tuesday, the Ms. Foundation, Philanos, Philanthropy Together, Pivotal Ventures, Schusterman Family Philanthropies, United Nations Foundation, Vital Voices, Women's Funding Network, and Women Moving Millions. Mark your calendars for October 11, 2023 and remember that you can #GiveToWomenAndGirls all year long!

Watch our Inaugural Give to Women and Girls Day Virtual Celebration:

A note from WPI Director Jeannie Infante Sager

Women and Girls Receive Less Than 2% of Charitable Donations. Together, We Can Change That.

Since 2019, the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) has measured giving to women’s and girls’ organizations through the Women & Girls Index (WGI). While nearly 50,000 organizations are dedicated to women and girls across the United States, the WGI consistently shows that less than 2% of total charitable giving goes to these organizations.
This year, in addition to unveiling the 2022 WGI research findings, WPI celebrated the inaugural Give to Women and Girls Day on October 11. Launched with support from Giving Tuesday, the Ms. Foundation, Philanos, Philanthropy Together, Pivotal Ventures, Schusterman Family Philanthropies, United Nations Foundation, Vital Voices, Women’s Funding Network, and Women Moving Millions, Give to Women and Girls Day is a national campaign to raise awareness and galvanize support for women and girls.

To commemorate the launch of the first-ever Give to Women and Girls Day, WPI hosted a virtual event to discuss the need for this campaign, celebrate organizations dedicated to women and girls, and equip the philanthropic community with the latest WGI research findings. The event featured insights from Cindi Leive, Co-Founder and CEO of The Meteor, and former Editor-In-Chief at Glamour Magazine; Nicole Robinson, CEO of the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago; Mona Sinha, Board Chair of Women Moving Millions; and Ted Bunch, Co-Founder and Chief Development Officer at A Call to Men. It also included special performances from Girl Up activist and poet Isabel Liu and Broadway performer Morgan Wood.

The event kicked off with a moving spoken word performance from Isabel Liu, whose poignant words evoked a sense of solidarity and illustrated the power of collective action.

“But I promise you, if all of the doors shut you out, I will lead you through mine…I am not much. A girl. An image. A molecule among molecules. But together we are a movement.”

With the virtual room buzzing in support of women and girls, I shared research findings from this year’s WGI to help frame the panel discussion. The WGI has consistently shown that less than 2% of philanthropic support goes to organizations dedicated to women and girls. As Nicole Robinson reflected during the event, “Sound the alarm! This number has been stagnant for way too long.” I then asked the panelists what’s the first thing that comes to mind when they hear this statistic, and why do we need Give to Women and Girls Day?


Cindi Leive hit it right on the bullseye:

“A national campaign like Give to Women and Girls Day is so important because it helps us position gender-related issues as big public crises that we all need to step up to take action on.”

Cindi continued, “Reframing the crises that women, girls and gender-expansive people face as institutional and systemic problems instead of sad individual events is such an important repositioning.” By contextualizing these issues in this way, Cindi recognizes the value of collective impact, which we know from our research resonates with women.

Nicole Robinson lifted up the importance of building communities of resilience, because when people feel like they belong, they can thrive. “When we underinvest in women and girls, we actually underinvest in the whole family,” said Nicole.

“But I’m hopeful because there are more philanthropists applying a gender and equity lens to the work.”

As donors, our research shows women are drawn to an expanded definition of philanthropy that includes time, talent, ties, treasure, testimony, transparency and trust. In her response, Mona Sinha spoke to the importance of trust-based philanthropy in Women Moving Millions’ work:

“It is vitally important to invest in grassroots women who not just experience the issues but who also find the best solutions.”

Emphasizing the importance of men as allies, Ted Bunch shared how the patriarchy’s rigid notions of manhood are harmful to everyone: women, girls, the queer community, as well as men and boys. “If we’re looking at issues impacting women – whether it’s the fact that less than 2% of resources are going to women and girls, or violence against women or the pay gap – we have to look at it through the lens of a male-dominated society,” said Ted.

“We need to look at the collective socialization of men and how we pass that down to our boys. Men and boys need to challenge these privileges and entitlements that are passed down from one generation to the next.”

The event closed with an empowering rendition of Katy Perry’s “Roar” by Morgan Wood, who is currently playing Eliza Hamilton in the “And Peggy” North American tour of Hamilton.

If you weren’t able to join the event, you can watch the full recording here. To learn more about the Women’s Philanthropy Institute and the latest research findings from the Women & Girls Index, please visit our website. Just because Give to Women and Girls Day is over, the movement to increase funding to women’s and girls’ organizations isn’t – learn how you can participate and help spread the word at GiveToWomenAndGirls.Day every day of the year!

Yours in support of women and girls,
Jeannie
Read More
Save the Date - Give to Women and Girls Day on October 11, 2023
#GiveToWomenAndGirls

Check back for updates on Give to Women and Girls Day 2023. In the meantime, continue to use the resources on this site to help inform your giving and fundraising efforts!

FAQs

Why do we need a day for giving to women’s and girls’ organizations?
The Women & Girls Index has consistently shown that less than 2% of all charitable giving goes to the nearly 50,000 U.S. organizations dedicated to women and girls. Give to Women and Girls Day is an opportunity to increase giving and move beyond 2%!
How do I know which organizations are the best for me donate to?
You can utilize the WGI to discover organizations dedicated to women and girls. You can refine your search by keyword, geographic location and category to find the organizations that best align with your values and interests.
What else can I do to support women’s and girls’ organizations and causes?
Remember the 7 Ts — there are many ways to support these organizations! Volunteer, inform your network about your preferred causes or organizations, or use Give to Women and Girls Day to drive further attention to the needs of all women and girls. Find resources to help spread the word here.

Our Give To Women and Girls Day Partners

“I want unfettered opportunities for girls and women. This means putting girls and women at the center of everything. It means supporting girls and women to speak for themselves and to design and lead solutions to the stubborn problems that get in the way of creating a more equal world for all. It means allowing girls and women to control the resources that are needed to implement those solutions. Give to Women and Girls Day is a celebration of the great potential for change.”

- Michelle Milford Morse

Vice President, Girls & Women Strategy,
United Nations Foundation

“Women Moving Millions is honored to support Give to Women and Girls Day—a day that speaks to the heart of our mission to catalyze unprecedented resources for gender equality. Investing in women and girls builds a better future for us all, and we hope philanthropists at every level will join the movement and support organizations building a gender equal world.”

- Sarah Haacke Byrd

CEO,
Women Moving Millions

“Give to Women and Girls Day is an important opportunity and wake up call. With less than 2% of giving currently directed to women and girls, it is vital that givers at all levels step up and invest in our health, well-being and leadership. When women thrive, families, communities and societies thrive.”

- Lisa Eisen

Co-President,
Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies

"While women and girls make up 51 percent of the world’s population, organizations that support women and girls receive less than 2 percent of all philanthropic giving–even less for funds that focus on women and girls of color. We can and must do more. That's why the Women's Funding Network, the world’s largest philanthropic alliance for gender equity, is proud to partner on Give to Women and Girls Day. When all genders thrive, we bring our whole community with us."

- Elizabeth Barajas-Román

President and CEO,
Women’s Funding Network

​​“By investing in women and girls, we’re cultivating a community of strong, powerful leaders who are paving the way for true equality in this country. Pivotal Ventures is proud to support the first day of giving dedicated specifically to women and girls, and we hope this effort helps launch a new era of philanthropy that directs more energy and attention to gender equality and ensures this chronically underfunded, crucially important issue finally sees the resources it deserves.”

– Haven Ley

Managing Director of Program Strategy at Pivotal Ventures

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