April 23, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
While other philanthropy and fund-raising conferences have experienced declines in attendance this year, roughly the same number of people are attending the 2009 Global Philanthropy Forum as last year.
Steve Fox, a spokesman for the World Affairs Council of Northern California, which runs the event, said that about 400 or so donors and philanthropists have come to Washington to discuss global affairs and giving. While the event is not immune to economic problems and has trimmed some of its costs, it is an elite, members-only meeting, which keeps the numbers of attendees fairly steady.
To join the forum, a philanthropist must apply for membership or be nominated by a fellow donor. While it does not require attendees to make a pledge, like the Clinton Global Initiative, its online eligibility guidelines state: “This event is geared toward individual donors and investors with a significant commitment to philanthropy.”
The application form asks how many years an applicant has been involved in grant making, how much of his or her giving goes abroad, and what global causes interest them.
The forum also has another rule for its members: “All conference participants are required to adhere to the GPF’s strict ‘no-fundraising and no-solicitation of business’ policy throughout the conference.”
