Giving circles

Call your friends and start one today:

For some the world of philanthropy has seemed the domain of the moneyed few, a luxury for "the other half."

But a growing development in that arena has taken hold, opening philanthropy up to the masses in a user-friendly way: giving circles.

A giving circle is a group of people who gather together to pool money for a common cause. Like a miniature, informal foundation of sorts, the group members manage the fund and determine how their collections will be spent.