State of Good by Pure Charity

The Pure Charity State of Good Podcast is your weekly intelligence brief for nonprofit leaders and fundraisers. Each episode cuts through the noise to deliver what actually matters: how donors are thinking about giving right now, what's shifting in the sector, and the psychology behind generosity. Data-driven insights you can use immediately, in about 10 minutes, once a week.

State of Good by Pure Charity is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 18 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts State of Good by Pure Charity, a business show with 18 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #18

  State of Good for August 17, 2026

  Aug 18, 202610 min

  Episode Title: "Fewer Donors, Bigger Gifts, Sharper Stakes — Giving USA 2026 and What It Means for Your Shop" Summary: - Giving USA 2026 confirms ongoing donor participation decline while giving concentrates among fewer major donors — what this means for your revenue risk profile Stanford Social Innovation Review highlights the compounding fundraising workforce crisis and its direct connection to donor retention challenges ProPublica investigation reveals inconsistencies in donor-advised fund sponsor policies — practical steps to protect your DAF revenue Make-A-Will Month creates a timely window for legacy giving conversations with loyal donors The Pittsburgh Foundation's #ONEDAY Critical Needs Alert demonstrates the power of community-driven, urgency-framed giving moments Links: - Giving USA 2026: What It Means for Nonprofit Leaders — https://givingusa.org/looking-beyond-the-headlines-what-giving-usa-2026-means-for-nonprofit-leaders/ "Sustaining the Fundraising Vocation," Stanford Social Innovation Review — https://ssir.org/articles/entry/sustaining-fundraising-vocation ProPublica investigation on donor-advised fund sponsor policies — https://www.propublica.org/article/donor-advised-funds-charity-contributions FreeWill August FreeMinute: Nonprofit Fundraising Trends to Watch — https://www.nonprofits.freewill.com/resources/blog/free-minute-august-2026 Cialdini, *Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion* — https://www.influenceatwork.com/principles-of-persuasion/ The Pittsburgh Foundation #ONEDAY Critical Needs Alert results — https://pittsburghfoundation.org/newsrelease/oneday2026-results Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and weekly preview 0:30 — Giving USA 2026: donor concentration risk and what to do about it 2:45 — The fundraising workforce crisis (Stanford Social Innovation Review) 4:15 — Donor-advised fund infrastructure and the ProPublica investigation 5:15 — Why Donors Give: the power of reciprocity 6:15 — What Changed: Make-A-Will Month and legacy giving strategy 7:00 — The Bottom Line: three actions for this week 7:45 — Good in Action: The Pittsburgh Foundation's #ONEDAY campaign 8:45 — Sign-off

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #17

  State of Good for August 10, 2026

  Aug 11, 20268 min

  Episode Title: "$617 Billion in Giving — But Fewer Donors Are Writing the Checks" Summary: - The Giving USA 2026 Report estimates U.S. charitable giving reached $617.2 billion in 2025 — a healthy topline that demands deeper benchmarking at the organizational level The Fundraising Effectiveness Project confirms fewer donors are giving while total dollars increase, creating strategic implications for acquisition and retention New research from Momentive Software's 2026 Nonprofit Trends Report argues donor trust is built through operational excellence, not just communications Why specific, tangible impact statements dramatically outperform abstract appeals (the identifiable victim effect) Washington state's coordinated wildfire relief campaign shows the power of building emergency giving infrastructure before disaster strikes Links: - Giving USA 2026 Report analysis: https://philanthropy.indianapolis.iu.edu/professional-development/blog/the-giving-usa-2026-report-deserves-a-closer-look.html Fewer Donors, More Dollars (The NonProfit Times): https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/fewer-donors-more-dollars-new-methodology-at-fep/ Beyond Impact Reports – AFP session / Momentive Software 2026 Nonprofit Trends: https://community.afpglobal.org/events/event-description?CalendarEventKey=37c8da9d-6df3-4a1e-95e6-019eff4574f8&Home=%2Fhome Small, Loewenstein & Slovic – "Sympathy and Callousness" research: https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/sds/docs/small/Sympathy%20and%20Callousness.pdf Washington wildfire relief campaign: https://www.sos.wa.gov/about-office/news/2026/washingtonians-encouraged-help-support-washington-wildfire-relief Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 – Introduction and episode preview 0:30 – Giving USA 2026: The $617 billion headline and how to benchmark against it 2:00 – Fundraising Effectiveness Project: Fewer donors, more dollars 4:00 – Why donors give: The power of tangible impact statements 5:15 – What changed: Donor trust as an operations problem 6:30 – The bottom line and three actions for this week 7:15 – Good in Action: Washington state's wildfire relief infrastructure 8:15 – Sign-off

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #16

  State of Good for August 3, 2026

  Aug 3, 20269 min

  Episode Title: "More Dollars, Fewer Donors: Why Retention Is Your Growth Engine" Summary: - The Fundraising Effectiveness Project's Q1 2026 data shows giving dollars up 4.3% but donor counts down nearly 1%, confirming a multi-quarter concentration trend NonProfit PRO analysis reveals repeat and recaptured donors are powering growth on a shrinking base, with a warning that the second half of 2026 could be tougher Stanford researchers studied over 2 million PayPal users to understand what drives online donor acquisition at scale The 2025 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy finds 68% of affluent donors cite values and beliefs as their top giving motivation New PNAS Nexus research shows social expectation and guilt avoidance are powerful drivers of charitable giving Links: - Fewer Donors, More Dollars, and Methodology Changes At FEP — The NonProfit Times: https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/fewer-donors-more-dollars-and-methodology-changes-at-fep/ Repeat and Recaptured Donors Power Growth on a Shrinking Donor Base — NonProfit PRO: https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/repeat-and-recaptured-donors-power-growth-on-a-shrinking-donor-base-new-data-shows/ New Research Could Help Nonprofits Attract Millions of Online Donors — Stanford GSB: https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/new-research-could-help-nonprofits-attract-millions-online-donors What the 2025 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy Reveals About Giving Today — Giving USA: https://givingusa.org/what-the-2025-bank-of-america-study-of-philanthropy-reveals-about-giving-today/ Leveraging Social Expectation for Charitable Donations — Phys.org (PNAS Nexus study): https://phys.org/news/2026-07-leveraging-social-charitable-donations.html PKD Foundation Increases Research Investment by 50% — PKD Foundation: https://pkdcure.org/resources/pkd-foundation-increases-research-investment-by-50-announces-2026-research-grant-and-fellowship-recipients/ Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview 0:30 — Q1 2026 fundraising data: more dollars, fewer donors 2:30 — Retention trends and year-end planning caution 3:45 — Stanford's large-scale online donor acquisition research 4:30 — What affluent donors say drives their giving 5:15 — Why donors give: social expectation and guilt avoidance 6:30 — What changed this week: the concentration pattern is now undeniable 7:15 — The bottom line and three action items 8:00 — Good in Action: PKD Foundation increases research investment by 50% 8:45 — Sign-off

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #15

  State of Good for July 27, 2026

  Jul 27, 20269 min

  Episode Title: "The Trust Advantage: Why Donors Trust Nonprofits But Not Philanthropy — and What That Means for Your Fundraising" Summary: - The 2025 Nonprofit Fundraising Study reveals donor acquisition challenges and a shift away from year-end-heavy giving patterns toward year-round digital giving New polling from Independent Sector shows 56% of Americans highly trust nonprofits, even as trust in government and corporations lags far behind A striking trust gap: Americans trust nonprofits at 56% but trust philanthropy overall at just 29% — perceived motive is the key differentiator A House committee advanced nonprofit-related bills in a partisan markup, signaling that the regulatory and tax environment for the sector is actively in play Georgia Tech raised a record $415 million in FY2026, pushing its campaign past $2 billion through partnership-driven fundraising Links: - 2025 Nonprofit Fundraising Study — NonProfit PRO: https://www.nonprofitpro.com/resource/2025-nonprofit-fundraising-study/ New Polling: 56% of Americans Highly Trust Nonprofits — Independent Sector: https://independentsector.org/blog/new-polling-56-of-americans-highly-trust-nonprofits-as-trust-in-government-corporations-remains-much-lower/ Americans Trust NPOs, Philanthropy Not So Much — The NonProfit Times: https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/americans-trust-npos-philanthropy-not-so-much/ House Committee Advances Nonprofit Bills in Partisan Markup — Independent Sector: https://independentsector.org/blog/house-committee-advances-nonprofit-bills-in-partisan-markup/ Georgia Tech's Record Fundraising Year Propels Campaign Past $2 Billion — Georgia Tech News: https://news.gatech.edu/news/2026/07/23/georgia-techs-record-fundraising-year-propels-campaign-past-2-billion Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview 0:30 — The fundraising playbook is shifting: year-round giving and retention 2:30 — The trust advantage: 56% of Americans highly trust nonprofits 4:00 — Why donors give: the trust gap between nonprofits and philanthropy 5:15 — What changed this week: nonprofit bills advance in Congress 6:30 — The bottom line and three action items 7:30 — Good in Action: Georgia Tech's record-breaking $415 million year 8:30 — Sign-off

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #14

  State of Good for July 20, 2026

  Jul 20, 20269 min

  Episode Title: "The Gap Between How It's Always Been Done and What the Evidence Shows" Summary: - A New Jersey foundation's experiment with outcome-based grantmaking is producing early results worth watching — and worth preparing for New analysis from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project reveals mid-level donors as a significantly under-cultivated segment in most donor files Behavioral research shows familiar fundraising tactics may be backfiring with Gen Z donors The IRS proposes regulations clarifying 501(c)(3) requirements for educational institutions, with broader implications for charitable purpose compliance Utah's statewide giving campaign demonstrates the power of collaborative fundraising Sources & Links: - Chronicle of Philanthropy — "Philanthropy Isn't Broken—but How We Fund Might Be": https://www.philanthropy.com/opinion/philanthropy-isnt-broken-but-how-we-fund-might-be/ AFP Global — "The Overlooked Power of Mid-Level Donors" (Fundraising Effectiveness Project Q3 2025): https://afpglobal.org/overlooked-power-mid-level-donors AFP Global — "Familiar Fundraising Tactics May Be Losing Ground with Gen Z Donors": https://afpglobal.org/news/familiar-fundraising-tactics-may-be-losing-ground-gen-z-donors The Nonprofit Times — "IRS Proposes Regulations Changing Education Institution 501(c)(3) Status": https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/irs-proposes-regulations-changing-education-institution-501c3-status/ Utah Nonprofits Association — "UTAHGIVES 2026 Report": https://www.utahnonprofits.org/2026/07/09/utahgives-2026-report/ Approximate Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction and episode preview 0:30 — Outcome-based grantmaking experiment (Chronicle of Philanthropy) 2:30 — The overlooked mid-level donor segment (AFP / Fundraising Effectiveness Project) 4:15 — Gen Z donor behavior research (AFP Global) 5:45 — IRS proposed regulations for education nonprofits (Nonprofit Times) 6:45 — Bottom line and three action items 7:45 — Good in Action: Utah's statewide giving campaign 8:45 — Sign-off

  ListenShow Notes

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.