F.A.Q.
FAQs ABOUT ALTRUISM
What is Altruism?
Altruism is a registered charity in Ireland CHY 20726. Our mission is to benefit the community by providing for the advancement of the efficiency and effectiveness of charitable bodies within Ireland. We aim to achieve thisby educating charities on the opportunity connected to the use of Internet technologies and developing dedicated communication strategies with their key stakeholders. We aim to achieve this by providing teaching to charities on the opportunities innovative Internet technologies offer, reducing the cost of fundraising in the process and ensuring that donations can be made more securely and with greater transparency.
When was Altruism created?
Altruism Ireland was created in 2014. The first two years were spent developing the platform and we officially launched in January 2016. Since its foundation, we have continued to grow in terms of the range of technology we provide to charitable organisations within Ireland. We also plan to provide free education programmes to charities in the near-future.
Does Altruism charge for its service?
No. Altruism charges zero. We have a “zero fee” policy, seriously. Our sole goal is to support both charities and altruistic people to connect through technology.
Is Altruism affiliated with another organization of any kind?
No. Altruism is not affiliated with any other charity in the world, so you can trust that our information is 100% objective.
How can I help Altruism?
If you are an individual donor, the best way you can support Altruism is to use our service to find a charity you wish to support and to tell your friends and colleagues about it.
If you represent a company, the best way you can support our work is to contact us to discuss ways in which we can develop partnerships so that we can maximize all our efforts to ensure charitable giving thrives.
Anyone can support Altruism by making a donation on the Altruism's charity page here.
Who works for Altruism?
The Altruism staff consists of people from a variety of professional disciplines who have come together in the belief that their skills and knowledge can benefit all charities. Additional information about Altruism's board can be obtained on the Altruism's charity page here.
How is Altruism funded?
Altruism is a registered charity itself and was originally funded by the co-founders. Later on we have actively sought contributions from individuals and companies who think that we provide a valuable service to the public.
Anyone can support Altruism by making a donation on the Altruism's charity page here.
Is Altruism hiring?
We are always looking for smart, talented, energetic people who share our vision of making the non-profit sector work better. If you are interested, please send us your application on the "Contact Us" page here.
How can I contact Altruism?
You can reach us on the "Contact Us" page here.
FAQs ABOUT THE CHARITIES
Which organizations do you include?
Because we aim to help givers and to celebrate charities nationwide, we use one simple guideline for choosing which organizations to include. We only include organisations to which the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, Charities Section have granted charitable tax exemption. In granting tax exemption Charities Section give the body a CHY reference number.
How can I get Altruism to include my favourite charity?
You can send us an email indicating your favourite charity in the "Contact Us" page here.
Why is the charity that I support not present on your website?
It probably means that the charity has not signed up yet or that we have not been able to include it yet. There are thousands of charities in this country and we will do our best to support as many as we can.
How do I find a charity on your site?
You can use the search bar on our website and rank charities based on our Transparency score. Our smart search engine will help you identify a charity by name or keyword. Then you can refine your search using the "Filter by Location", "Filter by Size" and "Filter by Category" functions and sort the results by "Near to you", "Highest rating" and "New charities".
Additionally, you can filter charities that are looking for volunteers.
FAQs ABOUT THE TRANSPARENCY SCORE
Where does the Transparency score come from?
We base our Transparency score on the information each charity provides on our website. Charities submit this information and make a self-declaration that the information is accurate and reflects the truth.
How is the Transparency score calculated?
We issue an overall Transparency score that combines the charity's performance in three broad areas.
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Transparency on the Projects:
The score is calculated based on the information shared by the
Charity in relation to the projects they want to carry out in the
current year. We ask the charity to:
- Public telephone – Write the main public telephone number of the charity
- Public email – Write the main public email address of the charity
- Short description of you – Write a description of the charity mission
- Subcategory of activity – Publishes the subcategory of activity of the programs provided by the charity
- Cities where active – Write one or more cities where the charity has active programs
- Video URL – Link a short video introducing the charity
- The cause you address – Write a description of the overall cause that the charity addresses
- The response you propose – Write a description of the response that you propose
- Fundraising objective – Write the total fundraising objective that the charity wants to raise to finance the projects for the current year
- Projects – Write three or more specific and measurable projects that the charity plans to carry out during the current year.
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Transparency on the Results:
The score is calculated based on the information shared by the Charity in relation to the results achieved in the previous years. We ask the charity to:
- Results – Write the result achieved for each specific and measurable project that was planned the previous year. The results can be shared within 3 months from the end of the previous year. During the first year in which the charity is registered on Altruism’s website we assume that the results have been shared.
- Total Income – Write the total income of the charity of the previous year. The income can be written within 6 months from the end of the previous year.
- Total Program Expenses – Write the expenses on programs and services of the previous year. The expenses can be written within 6 months from the end of the previous year.
- Fundraising costs – Publishes the fundraising costs of the previous year. The expenses can be written within 6 months from the end of the previous year.
- Financial report – Upload the financial report of the previous year. The report can be uploaded within 6 months from the end of the previous year.
- CEO name – Write the CEO name.
- CEO compensation – Write the CEO compensation.
- Board Members' names – Write the names of the board of director members.
The methodology that we use in the scoring system, including the information that is evaluated and the weights, is clearly communicated to all charities because we want to enable them to achieve the highest transparency score.
We believe our score will dramatically improve the quantity and especially the quality of information available to givers. Our score provides clear, objective, and reliable assessments of the transparency of charities. By using our score, givers can be confident that in supporting those charities scored highly by Altruism, they will be supporting organizations that committed to communicating externally their projects, results and financials. We do not recommend using our score as the only factor in deciding whether to support a particular organization. Givers should also seek out additional information from charities directly.
What is your score scale?
The Transparency score is calculated on a scale from 0 to 10.
How current is the Transparency score?
We base our Transparency score on the information from the previous year and the current year. Our score is based on the most current information made public by each charity.
When do you update the Transparency score?
The Transparency score is updated in real time when the charity publishes new information.
Does the CEO salary impact upon a charity's score?
No. We include CEO salary solely as part of our larger effort to bring transparency to the charitable sector and to help educate donors. A charity that publishes the CEO salary is considered transparent independently from the amount of the salary paid. It is a matter of personal sensitivity to decide if a salary is appropriate for the level of responsibility of a CEO. Before you make any judgments about salaries, we encourage you to look at CEO compensation as a percentage of total expenses. A charity CEO compensation of €100,000 for an organization spending €10 million per year (1%) probably seems much more reasonable than the same salary for a €1 million organization (10% of expenses for one person).
Why do you not score the charity's effectiveness?
Evaluating the effectiveness of a charity's programs is out of our scope. Our goal is to increase the level of transparency and reduce the cost of fundraising. We believe that mindful giving will bring more effectiveness as a consequence.
Is it better to support one charity or many charities?
We suggest that you take the time to find a few well-run charities that match your interests and make a commitment with a monthly donation. Charities can work better when they have a stable flow of donations to be invested in their programs.
FAQs ABOUT TAX DEDUCTIONS
Can I deduct my giving?
For every donation that you make, both single and monthly, Altruism provides a receipt from the charity to back up any tax claim that is permitted.
DATA PROTECTION
At Altruism Ireland we value privacy and understand that you may be concerned about privacy issues that surround the use of the Internet. Because of our values, we do not share personal information with outside parties.
Personal information collection
This website collects personal information submitted by the site visitor for the sole purpose of follow-up communication by the charity that an individual has donated or fundraised for. This integrity and security of donor information is maintained within our database. This may include information such as your name, mailing address and email address.
We limit access to non-public personal information to those employees, representatives, and agents who need to know in order to produce compliance reporting, service your donation, and provide you with a broad range of services and products. Our employees, representatives, and agents are required to maintain and protect the confidentiality of your personal information and must follow established privacy procedures. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect your personal information. We strive to keep our customer records complete and accurate. We will give you reasonable access to information we have about you. We encourage you to review this information and notify us if you believe any information should be corrected or updated.
Use of your personal information
Altruism Ireland appreciates the importance of responsible use of information collected on this website. We will never sell, trade, or rent your personal information with anyone else, nor send mailings on behalf of other organizations.
Cookies Policy
Cookies are small text files that are set to your web browser, allowing the website operator to provide services for web users, such as registration, online discussion or making a donation. Cookies also provide information to the website operator about which pages and services are being used and how often.
When you visit this website, you can surf the site anonymously and access information without revealing your identity. Please be aware that we may use “cookies” to track your visit. This cookie serves as your identification card, recording information you provide. It cannot be executed as code or deliver viruses. While this site may use cookies, we will not use them to store confidential data, or to attempt to identify you.
Most browsers are initially set to accept cookies. You can set your browser to notify you when you receive a cookie, giving you the chance to decide whether to accept it. In some instances, accepting a cookie is not optional. If you choose not to accept the cookie, you may not be able to participate in the related action.
Altruism Ireland is not responsible for the content, copyright, cookies or privacy policies of other websites. Any external links to other websites are clearly identifiable as such.
Other information
Our Web servers automatically log the IP/Internet address of your computer, the browser type, and browser version you are using. Forms you submit to us may also automatically log this information as well as the date and time the form was submitted. Under no circumstances does this information identify you personally. You remain anonymous unless you have otherwise provided this website with personal information.
Altruism Ireland uses an EU-based server.
By accessing or using this website, you are consenting to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these terms, please do not access or use this site. Altruism Ireland reserves the right to change the Privacy Policy from time to time at its sole discretion. Your use of this site will be subject to the most current version at the time of such use.