Yes — we're asking for money.
A movement whose whole argument is that money is the wrong measure of a life still has to pay for a website, a translator, and the research behind every claim it makes. We'd rather say that plainly than dress it up in a mission statement.
Donations are received by Omprakash, a U.S. non-profit and our fiscal sponsor. That means your gift is tax-deductible in the U.S., and eligible for Gift Aid in the U.K. — the details are a little further down, and they're worth reading before you give.
One-time or monthly. The form is hosted by Omprakash and opens in a new tab.
Where it goes
What the money is actually for.
The movement is young and small, and none of this is a budget line item. It's a description of the work already on this site — and the work a donation makes more of.
An argument that survives being checked
Every load-bearing claim on Foundations is sourced and held to its caveats. The strongest objections are published against us, by us. The book is being written in the open. That takes reading time, source access, and the willingness to rewrite a chapter when the evidence doesn't hold.
The Uncounted
The annual honors list for people the rankings missed — published unranked, on purpose. Nominating is free and will stay free. What costs money is reading every nomination properly, and putting the people who are chosen in front of the world.
Free, and in more languages
No membership fee, no paywall, nothing behind a login — signing costs nothing and always will. The whole site already runs in English and Japanese. We'd like it to run in more, and translation done properly is the one thing here that can't be improvised.
Tax status
The part with the numbers in it.
All donations to the Impactism Foundation are tax-deductible for U.S. donors. If you are a U.K. donor, you can give tax-efficiently under Gift Aid — choose the U.K. Donor option on the donation form.
Both are handled by our fiscal sponsor, Omprakash, a tax-exempt non-profit organization registered under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code.
Tax ID 20-8655418
What "fiscal sponsor" means
The Impactism Foundation is not itself a registered charity — as the bottom of every page here says, this is a movement, not yet a legal entity. Fiscal sponsorship is the ordinary arrangement for that situation: an established charity receives donations on a project's behalf and is accountable for how they're used.
In our case that charity is Omprakash, which has run this arrangement for partner projects around the world for years. Your donation goes to Omprakash, is receipted by Omprakash, and is directed to Impactism. You can see the profile it's attached to at omprakash.org/global/impactism.
Giving from outside the U.S. and U.K.
You can give from anywhere, and the form works the same way. But be clear-eyed about the tax part: a gift to a U.S. 501(c)(3) is generally not deductible against income tax in Japan, Germany, or most other countries. If a deduction at home matters to you, it's worth checking with your own tax adviser before you give — we'd rather you know now than be disappointed in April.
All amounts on the form are shown in U.S. dollars. Your card or bank will convert at its own rate.
Does my employer match gifts?
Many U.S. employers match their employees' charitable gifts. Because donations are received by Omprakash, a registered 501(c)(3) (EIN 20-8655418), a gift here is typically eligible for those programs — but every program sets its own rules, so check yours. If your employer asks for the receiving organization, it's Omprakash, with Impactism as the designated project.
Ways to give
The Omprakash form takes a one-time gift or a monthly recurring one, by credit card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Stripe, bank transfer, cheque, donor-advised fund, donated securities, or cryptocurrency. U.K. donors have their own option for Gift Aid.
You can give anonymously if you'd prefer, and there's a notes field if you want to say something — we read them.
We publish no donor list and will never name you without asking. Nothing you give buys standing in this movement: there is no donor tier, no badge, and no seat at any table that isn't equally open to someone who gives nothing.
If you'd rather not
Money is the least interesting thing you can give us.
This would be a strange movement if the donate page were its front door. It isn't. Every one of these is worth more to us than a card payment, and all of them are free.
- 01
Honor someone
Write a Recognition Letter to one person whose contribution the money numbers missed. Twenty minutes, one person, no audience.
- 02
Nominate for The Uncounted
Put someone the rankings missed in front of the world. Nominations are open and free.
- 03
Found a Circle
Five to fifteen people who witness each other's work, one hour a month. The whole kit is one page.
- 04
Break the argument
Read the evidence and the objections, and tell us where it fails. A good counter-argument is a contribution we count — and it's the one we're shortest of.
- 05
Bring your organization
No fee, no certification, no audit. Organizations join by honoring one person.
Fund the argument that money isn't the measure.
Tax-deductible in the U.S., Gift Aid eligible in the U.K., through our fiscal sponsor Omprakash. One-time or monthly, any amount.