idealist.org

Crowdsourcing Philanthropy

By James Cridland via Flickr
Posted by Scott Stadum.

Say one has quite a bit of money to donate to a good cause, but isn't sure who to give it to. How might she or he decide where the money should go?

Paul Buchheit, the creator of Gmail and AdSense and one of the first Google employees, is crowdsourcing suggestions for where he should donate a "bunch of money." Using Google Moderator, Mr. Buchheit is asking for recommendations of IRS recognized public charities, with broad public support and a few public endorsements before he decides who gets the donation.

This is a fantastic use of Google Moderator and a fun way to raise awareness about wonderful organizations like Doctors Without Borders and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. But what's even cooler, and of course we're completely biased...Idealist.org is on the list!

If we're lucky, maybe we'll win a "bunch of money" and continue to help our supporters turn good intentions into action. Please check out our profile, leave a comment and consider voting for Idealist!