On June 12^th, the BBB Wise Giving Alliance will be hosting a charity conference in Washington DC.  While we hold a conference each year for BBB Accredited Charities that participate in our charity seal program, this gathering is special.  Another organization, the International Committee of Fundraising Organizations (ICFO) is partnering with us to produce this event.  ICFO, is an international association of national charity monitoring organizations. Their members are standards-based charity reporting organizations that report on charities in other countries as we do in the United States. Each year an ICFO member hosts their annual meeting in their home country, this time it is our turn. 

As a result we are opening up the conference to a wider charity audience and inviting any organization with an interest in charity accountability issues to register for this one-day event.  The agenda will include a discussion of a variety of topics related to trust issues: 

• Donor Trust in Charity Data Security & Privacy
• Cultural Differences that Influence Trust in Charities & Fundraising Strategies
• Gaining Donor Trust of New Generations
• Communicating Charity Value and Inspiring Trust 

In addition, our keynote luncheon speaker, Carrie Martin Munk, the Chief Communications & Marketing Officer, ALS Association, will talk about the Ice Bucket Challenge. 

We hope charity executives and others interested in the mentioned topics will be able to join us for this gathering.  It will be a wonderful opportunity to not only learn from thought leaders on these subjects but also to meet monitoring groups from around the world who face many of the same accountability challenges as the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. 

With today’s technology, global issues are impacting charitable organizations with greater frequency.  Whether it be tragedies such as the devastating earthquake in Nepal or internet privacy and security threats, charitable organizations are recognizing they are part of an ever expanding community that seeks to maintain donor trust and strengthen accountability.  

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors.  Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving.  Our recently evaluated charities include:     

• Bone Marrow Foundation
• Infant Crisis Services
• National Kidney Services
• Operation Homefront 

Finally, remember to let us know by going to / if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.    

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance