With schools well into their new academic year and the lingering heat of summer still in the air, Georgia nonprofits find themselves gearing up for the upcoming season of giving. This year, the importance of this season is magnified due to a challenging landscape: a nationwide drop in donations juxtaposed with a significant surge in the demand for their vital services. To help, the Georgia Center for Nonprofits (GCN) hosts GAgives on GivingTuesday, which has elevated Georgia’s charitable sector with statewide recognition and record-breaking giving each year since its 2012 launch. As a part of the annual, worldwide day of giving celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, this year’s GAgives on GivingTuesday will take place on Nov. 28, 2023. 

Once again, GCN is uniting nonprofit, philanthropic, and for-profit partners to highlight what happens when #GAgivesThanks. This collaborative effort encourages thousands of Georgians to support nonprofits across the state with contributions of all sizes. Each year, more than 1,000 organizations benefit, helping sustain their crucial services and ensure their community impact continues to thrive. The deadline to register for this year’s campaign is Friday, Oct. 13. 

Kicking off this year's GAgives initiative is #GAgivesThanks, a month-long social media campaign aimed at fostering gratitude and generosity in Georgia's communities in the lead-up to Nov. 28. Each day of this campaign, GAgives will prompt followers to remind their networks of the power nonprofits wield to spark positive change. From the heartwarming endeavors of animal rescues to the selfless dedication of aid agencies assisting our neighbors to the nonprofits enhancing our lives through parks and the arts, #GAgivesThanks pays tribute to their collective efforts. 

“While our nonprofits face an ongoing surge of challenges, they continue to serve their communities, impacting the lives of everyone in Georgia. Whether it’s through medical treatment, adopting a rescue, receiving educational training, spending a day at a park, or attending a theatrical production, peoples’ lives are improved in countless ways, every single day, by nonprofits,” said GCN President & CEO Karen Beavor. “Through GAgives on GivingTuesday, GCN is rallying Georgians to show how much we appreciate all the benefits that these organizations provide everyone, especially those in need. Each year, I’ve been proud to see Georgians rise to the occasion, and I hope to see yet another record broken in 2023. Regardless, I know GAgives will provide our nonprofits the boost they need to further their impact.”  

“We’re collaborating with nonprofits to offer enhanced resources, developing participant engagement opportunities, and bringing in more sponsor opportunities,” Beavor continued, “to show our commitment to the Georgia nonprofit community, to assist them in raising awareness for their missions, and to maximize the funds they’re able to raise.” 

While 2022’s GAgives on GivingTuesday set new records, with more than $29.3 million in donations and more than 190,000 gifts - an 8 percent increase over the prior year’s record-breaking total – nonprofits throughout the country have since seen a downturn in donations amidst an ongoing increase in demand for their services, complicated by the effects of inflation both on the costs of doing business and on giving. Coupled with a shortage of volunteers, this year’s GAgives has taken on new importance. 

Fortunately, there are silver linings: Urban.org reports that days of giving (like GAgives) continue to produce a surge in donations. And year-over-year growth is one of the hallmarks of GAgives: Last year, more than 1,100 nonprofits benefited – including long-time participants as well as 100-plus organizations taking part for the first time – and this year the opportunity for even more organizations to take part is strong, thanks to early registration and new tools, provided free through GAgives.org, for engaging supporters and raising funds. 

Nonprofits can currently register through GAgives.org for the 2023 GAgives on GivingTuesday campaign. By signing up early, organizations are able to take greater advantage of the complimentary resources GAgives provides to assist in maximizing donations – including donation-motivating prizes from official GAgives sponsors. Nonprofits of all sizes can utilize toolkits, marketing materials, complimentary online trainings, GAgives success stories, and more to help them engage their volunteers, staff, board, and supporters. By registering early, nonprofits also have the chance to be included in outreach campaigns, GAgives PSAs, and other engagement opportunities designed to engage their base. 

New and returning sponsors are encouraged to join in this international day of giving as well, with custom giving and sponsorship opportunities available. Through sponsors’ support, organizations benefited from an additional $50,000 in funding last year, distributed through a variety of giving competitions created to engage donors and incentivize higher rates of giving. This year’s list of GAgives sponsors already includes Aprio, Arby’s Foundation, Westrock, and more. Details on how to participate can be found on the GAgives partner page.  

All Georgia nonprofits also have access to an updated marketing and engagement toolkit on GAgives.org, featuring a new shareable calendar and customizable graphics for the #GAgivesThanks themed month-of-gratitude awareness campaign leading up to GAgives on GivingTuesday, along with peer-to-peer fundraising resources, online tutorials, sample messaging and templates for rallying supporters, and more. 

Since 2012, GAgives has galvanized Georgians to be a part of the state’s largest giving movement, totaling $122.8 million in donations so far from over 560,000 individual gifts. 

Created, executed, and overseen by GCN for the direct benefit of Georgia nonprofits, the GAgives on GivingTuesday campaign is enhanced through generous sponsors, media partners, and participating organizations, whose contributions and creativity amplify the impact for nonprofits, allowing them in turn to continue operations for, and enhance their offerings to, the communities of Georgia. 

GCN considers it an honor to champion Georgia’s largest giving movement and serve as the official state lead for GivingTuesday, a generosity campaign involving all 50 states and more than 150 countries.