AFP & Fundraising Partners to Develop Best Practices for Data on Race, Ethnicity, Gender Identity, Pronouns

(Arlington, VA) The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the largest community of charitable fundraisers in the world, is partnering with three leading fundraising organizations to develop best practices about the collection, storage and use of data on race, ethnicity, and gender identity in charitable fundraising. 

AFP, CASE, Apra, and the Association of Advancement Services Professionals (AASP) will create recommendations for responsibly collecting data on race, ethnicity, gender identity, and pronouns.  

Data helps today’s advancement teams understand and engage with diverse alumni and donors. But too often, processes and systems aren’t optimized to collect this information in transparent, responsible ways. The new guidelines this partnership will create, to be released in December 2022, will give development professionals guidance on how to ethically handle this key demographic data. 

“Updated and relevant donor data is critical for any charity or nonprofit, but it’s essential that we collect and use this data in an appropriate, professional and ethical manner,” said Mike Geiger, MBA, CPA, president and CEO of AFP. “Our members are asking about best practices in these areas, so I’m excited that AFP is partnering with our colleagues at CASE, Apra and AASP to provide guidance to the fundraising community. This is another important way AFP is working to advance the profession as we seek to diversify fundraising, our donor base and all of society.”

Higher education and data leaders will spotlight the project at numerous fundraising conferences in 2022, including AFP ICON in Las Vegas, May 2- 4, and this week at CASE’s DRIVE/Conference in New Orleans. 

The partnership agreement between AFP, CASE, Apra, and AASP began in February 2022, and the collaborative work to draft resource documents will occur in phases throughout 2022.  

This data partnership builds on each association’s work in research, data, and diversity and inclusion. Last year, Apra's Ethics and Compliance Committee released its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Data Guide outlining best practices in the ethical collection, storage and usage of DEI data.

The partnership work will also be underpinned by AFP’s Code of Ethical Principles and Standards of Professional Practice, the only enforced code of ethics in the fundraising profession, as well as The Donor Bill of Rights, a document that lays out the expectations that donors should have when making a charitable gift.

Building on more than four decades of work focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion, AFP launched its Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Access (IDEA) program in 2017. AFP’s objective remains to ensure that all fundraisers, regardless of background or characteristic, had the same opportunities to achieve fundraising success, however they might define it. 

AFP’s IDEA programs are currently made up of three campaigns: the Anti-Racism Initiative, the Women’s Impact Initiative and the Emerging Leaders Initiative.  

Since 1960, the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) has been the standard-bearer for professionalism in fundraising. The association works to advance effective and ethical philanthropy by providing advocacy, research, education, mentoring, collaboration and technology opportunities for the world’s largest network of professional fundraisers. AFP’s more than 26,000 members in over 240 chapters raise over $100 billion annually for a wide variety of charitable organizations and causes across the globe. For more information, go to www.afpglobal.org.