Causes put out a press release yesterday that I’m putting out in its entirety. It’s nearly 2 AM out here in Brooklyn. More analysis will follow tomorrow — I promise:
BERKELEY, Calif. — May 29, 2008 — One year after launching an application on the Facebook and, subsequently, MySpace platforms, Causes celebrates the milestone of registering 12 million consumers who are now supporting more than 80,000 non-profit causes worldwide. The Causes audience, to date, has raised $2.5 million in charitable donations, benefiting 19,445 501( c ) (3) charitable organizations.
Causes on Facebook, and subsequently MySpace, debuted 12 months ago with the opening of the Facebook development platform. Since its inception, Causes has created a new paradigm for online activism, spurring millions of Internet users to pledge online support for causes, make charitable donations, and to take action in the real world.
“We are thrilled that Causes is starting to gain hold and reach a critical mass of socially and politically aware people around the world,” said Sean Parker, CEO and co-founder of Causes. “Causes on Facebook and MySpace has become a gateway for people seeking to take action in support of causes and issues they care about, as well as raise funds to sustain positive change. We could not be more pleased with our first year results.”
One-Year Momentum and Results
Currently, Causes directs online activism into ten categories of support. Of the tens of thousands of non-profit causes supported through the application, the community engagement statistics reflect the following rank by cause category:
Charity Category Number of Causes
1. Human Services 16,203
2. Health 13,156
3. Public Advocacy 9,339
4. International 9,274
5. Arts & Culture 6,559
6. Animals 5,838
7. Political Campaigns 5,652
8. Education 5,589
9. Environment 5,286
10. Religion 3,834“Causes has helped create a new generation of UNICEF supporters,” said Caryl Stern, President and CEO , U.S. Fund for UNICEF. “Through virtual gifts and other social currency models, Causes is helping to activate first-time donors and volunteers to support UNICEF’s mission to do whatever it takes to save children’s lives.”
In another first year milestone, Causes partnered with the Case Foundation and Network for Good to launch the Causes Giving Challenge. The Causes Giving Challenge raised more than $570,000 for participating nonprofit organizations, apart from $250,000 matched by the Case Foundation. The peak of the campaign saw nearly 8,000 donors contributing to nonprofits in a single 24-hour period.
“This first year of growth on Causes has demonstrated the power of citizen philanthropy,” said Joe Green, co-founder of Causes. “Causes is on track to help restore social capital to the process of giving, and to provide young people or others who are not super-wealthy with a way to engage, contribute and become more aware.”
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