Ipsos Poll: Donating To Charities Is One Of The Least Likely Expenses Canadians Are To Cut This Holiday Season

CanadaHelps

With 20% of Canadians relying on charities to meet daily essential needs such as food, shelter and health services, new poll results reflect the value Canadians place on charitable giving

TORONTO, Nov. 22, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — New findings from a recent Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of CanadaHelps reveal that amid current economic challenges, more Canadians would rather cut back on holiday gift-giving (35%) among family, friends, neighbours, or coworkers than cut back on charitable donations (17%). This is encouraging news since one in five (20%) Canadians are currently relying on charities for essential needs, and 24% of Canadians are expected to turn to charities for help within the next six months.

“Charities in Canada are experiencing unprecedented levels of demand for services as Canadians face a high cost of living compounded by economic uncertainty,” said Duke Chang, President and CEO of CanadaHelps. “With two in ten Canadians currently relying on charities to meet daily essential needs, we are very pleased to see that Canadians are putting the needs of their communities first this holiday season, even in the face of economic challenges.”

This year, more Canadians are likely to say they do not give financially to charities (27%), and less are likely to say they will give the same amount this year as they did last year (39%). While 15% of Canadians expect to give more to charities this year, 19% plan to give less.

The Ipsos poll also included findings that signal other giving trends, which are discussed in greater depth below.

Physical Health Charities Are The Top Cause Of Interest For CanadiansWhen asked to choose the top five causes that they are prioritizing through financial donations this year, almost half (46%) of Canadians said a physical health cause (e.g., cancer, Alzheimer’s, heart disease) followed by a mental health cause (35%,) and a food-insecurity cause (35%). Other popular causes include homelessness (30%), animals (26%), crisis relief (22%), education (20%), climate change (17%), and religious causes (14%). Among the causes that were ranked lowest are refugees and newcomers to Canada (e.g., from Ukraine, East Africa, etc.; 12%), anti-racism/social justice (9%), supporting Indigenous communities and reconciliation (7%), opioid/drug abuse (6%), arts and culture (5%), and other causes (12%).

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Majority Of Canadians Have Not Volunteered To Help Charities In The Last Six MonthsWhen asked if they have volunteered their time in the last six months, more than six in 10 Canadians (66%), said they had not. Two in ten Canadians (21%) reported volunteering their time at a charity or non-profit, while 11% stated that they volunteered through a mutual aid network and 5% volunteered at a protest.

The Majority of Parents Talk to Their Kids About the Importance of GivingThe poll found that 71% of parents with children in the household discuss the importance of giving and how to support their favourite charitable causes.

“It is more likely today than ever before that someone connected to us – a friend, co-worker, or neighbour – is turning to food banks, shelters, or charitable health services for help,” said Chang. “It is promising to see that nearly three in four parents speak to their children about the importance of giving, which helps to instill this critical value among the next generation of Canadians. One way to kick-off this conversation is through giving a CanadaHelps Charity Gift Card. Children can explore charities and causes they care about, learn about current needs, and choose to donate the gift card funds to the charity of their choice.”

To inspire more conversations and to engage youth in acts of generosity, GivingTuesday Canada, which was co-founded by CanadaHelps in 2013, is calling on parents, teachers, and other adults to discuss with the children in their lives about the causes they care about and how they can help. Canadians can register their giving project ahead of GivingTuesday, which takes place on November 28th, as part of the “It’s Cool to Be Kind” campaign and eligible projects will receive badges. So far, more than 3,800 badges have been requested.

About The Ipsos PollThese are among the findings from an Ipsos poll conducted between October 20 to 25, 2023, on behalf of CanadaHelps.org. For this survey, a sample of 1,001 Canadians aged 18+ were interviewed. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample’s composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ±3.85 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadians aged 18+ been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to, coverage error, and measurement error.

About CanadaHelpsCanadaHelps is a public foundation advancing philanthropy through technology. For Canadians, it powers CanadaHelps.org, a safe and trusted destination for discovering and supporting any charity in Canada, and UniteforChange.com, where Canadians can learn about causes and easily support the collective work of charities addressing a cause they care about. CanadaHelps also develops affordable fundraising technology used by more than 30,000 charities, and free training and education so that, regardless of size, all charities have the capacity to increase their impact and succeed in the digital age. Since 2000, more than 4.5 million people have given more than $2.8 billion through CanadaHelps. Connect with CanadaHelps on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Note To Media:The source survey data, an executive summary, and graphics are available for download here.

Media Contact:Christine AlfredPublic Relations and Marketing Specialistmedia@canadahelps.org