In today’s rundown: Warren Buffett’s philanthropic pledge is to give away 99% of his wealth. What’s yours? | More Americans are giving another precious asset — their time. | The number of homeless families with children is on the rise. | And a new way to track federal grants and contracts with nonprofits.
— In this commentary, philanthropist Warren Buffett writes about why he’s pledged to give 99 percent of his wealth to charities. And why giving of one’s time can be just as precious of an asset. Do you have a philanthropic pledge? Tell us about it in the comments section below.
— More Americans are giving their time by doing volunteer work. In this video, Patrick Corvington, head of the Corporation for National and Community Service, discusses the biggest spike in volunteerism in the U.S. in seven years.
— Even as the number of homeless people in shelters fell last year, the number of homeless families with children increased, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 2009, the number of families in homeless shelters rose seven percent to 170,129. Click here for more.
— Subsidyscope.com, a website devoted to tracking government subsidies, has a new feature that allows the public to search a database for information about federal grants and contracts with nonprofits. The site says it’s making government subsidies more transparent to the public.
