$135,000 Grant Supports Research on Fundraising

Who gave it: StubHub Foundation (housed at Silicon Valley Community Foundation)

How much: $135,000

Recipient: Association of Fundraising Professionals Foundation for Philanthropy

What it’s for: To study how charities can make their special fundraising events more successful

Why it matters: The grant will support the first large survey of what works in special events at charities and will enable nonprofits to compare their progress with one another. “You can get advice on special events from lots of different people, but this is the first attempt to gather a massive breadth and depth of information about special events—and not just funds raised, but also data regarding use of technology, management, logistics, et cetera,” says Andrew Watt, chief executive of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. “We’ll be able to allow for comparison of data so individual organizations can benchmark their results with those of the sector and see where they can improve.”