The Donor Bill of Rights: A Simple Transparency Check

At the heart of philanthropy are our donors. Their generosity makes nonprofit missions possible, and we have a responsibility to treat every donor ethically, fairly, and with the transparency and respect they deserve.

The Donor Bill of Rights was created in 1993 through a collaborative effort among leading fundraising and nonprofit organizations to establish clear, ethical standards for the relationship between donors and charitable organizations. It outlines the rights donors should expect—including transparency about an organization’s mission, finances, use of gifts, privacy practices, and stewardship of contributions.

Calloway & Co. recommends that nonprofits not only adopt the Donor Bill of Rights, but also publicly publish their commitment to it on their website. Doing so provides donors with a clear, accessible statement of the organization’s commitment to ethical fundraising and responsible stewardship.

From a due diligence and transparency perspective, a publicly posted commitment is a simple but meaningful trust signal. It gives prospective donors, corporate partners, foundations, and other stakeholders an easy way to assess whether an organization has embraced recognized principles of donor rights and ethical fundraising—and demonstrates that the nonprofit is willing to hold itself accountable to those principles.

To commit, please fill out this permission form.