GivingTuesday was celebrated early this year, with the annual event championing everyday generosity getting a second 2020 date in order to support emergency efforts to respond to the global coronavirus crisis. This year, the #GivingTuesdayNow campaign, which was organised in six weeks, raised $503 million in online donations – roughly the same amount raised in December 2019’s giving event. GivingTuesday say this may be a sign of ‘sector resilience’.

‘We are in awe of the outpouring of generosity, collaboration and innovation that came into focus on #GivingTuesdayNow,’ said Asha Curran, GivingTuesday CEO.

GivingTuesday usually takes place in December; however, motivated to mobilise in response to the global health crisis this year, the organisation decided to launch a second day on 5 May 2020, calling it #GivingTuesdayNow. The movement presented a united front of hope, generosity, and kindness at a challenging time.

‘On behalf of all local nonprofits, thanks for helping us get our fire back. It was about more than money today, today was about confidence. It was a chance to be bold in the face of so much uncertainty,’ said one local leader.

Across the world, communities responded to the movement in different ways. Buildings and monuments were lighted in red, including the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, the Petrin Tower in Prague, and the skyline of Chicago. In Slovakia, a ‘give 5 on 5’ campaign encouraged citizens to offer donations in increments of five, which came both in both funds as well as time and action.

Overall, the campaign reported activity in 145 countries. Official GivingTuesday global leaders in almost 70 countries took part in the campaign, and Sierra Leone, Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Turkey, and Guam launched country-wide GivingTuesday movements for the first time.

‘This show of unity is a reminder that we are all connected and we are all generous, even when we are uncertain and afraid,’ said Curran. ‘We must now take the energy and inspiration of this moment forward to establish stronger habits of generosity, to think about the good we can create in the world every day. GivingTuesday will continue to help communities and the social sector rebuild in the wake of COVID-19 with a renewed focus on resilience.’