2008 Talking About Charities - full report

TAC2008-03-CompleteReport.pdf (application/pdf Object)

The Board of Directors of The Muttart Foundation is pleased to release the fourth
iteration of Talking About Charities. This report outlines the results of almost 3,900
phone interviews in which respondents were asked for their views about charities and
issues affecting charities.

Charities can take pride that they continue to enjoy significant levels of trust.
Trust is a critical component of the relationship that beneficiaries and donors must have
with those community organizations working to improve the quality of life.

Two years ago, when the last report was released, we said the study had important messages for the sector. Those messages are reiterated, sometimes even more strongly, in the results from this year’s interviews.

Clearly, respondents say they think charities can and should do a better job at
providing information about their activities, particularly in the area of fundraising.
The charitable sector ignores these messages at its peril. Respondents say they
want the sector to become better at telling its story – not only about the values that
underline its work and the value of its work to communities across the country, but also
about how it accomplishes its work.

We hope that this report can help make charities more aware of the public’s
interest in having a more complete understanding, since that can do little but to
strengthen support.

We commend this report to the sector, to policymakers at all levels of government
and to the public at large. May it help guide our discussions and our efforts.