Charitable giving by the biggest donors in the U.S. fell by 30% in 2015, according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy's annual ranking of the 50 most generous individuals and couples.
All told, these donors gave $7 billion to their favorite causes, the lowest amount since 2010, and donations by technology sector philanthropists plummeted to $1.3 billion from the $5 billion they gave away in 2014.
The Chronicle uncovered several factors that may have contributed to the decline.
It said huge stock market swings may have caused some donors to hold off making megagifts, as both the Dow Jones and Standard and Poor's indexes fell for the first time since 2008's stock market collapse.
Another possible factor was what The Chronicle said were natural fluctuations of the list. In each of the past five years, a megagift has inflated the Philanthropy 50 total. In 2014, for example, two big donations amounted to nearly $3 billion.
Kathleen McCarthy, who heads the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at the graduate Center of the City University of New York, told The Chronicle that the decline may be a result of more rich people looking to giving modes outside of direct charity.
For example, Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, who do not appear on the 2015 Philanthropy 50 list, last year pledged to give $45 billion to "improving this world for the next generation" through a limited-liability corporation.
(Check out Top 10 Most Generous U.S. Donors: 2015.)
The Chronicle reported some data that suggested mega-donations remained strong in 2015. The Philanthropy 50's median donation in 2015 was $91 million, compared with $92.5 million in 2014.
Critics Weigh In
Zuckerberg and Chan's decision to use of an LLC became a focus of criticism and brought more scrutiny of donors' intentions at a time when Americans increasingly feel the economic system favors the rich and powerful.
The Chronicle said the 2015 Philanthropy 50 list would bolster arguments that ultra-high-net-worth people could do more good with their wealth.
It noted that the 23 Forbes billionaires among the top 50 donors gave less than 1% of their estimated wealth to charity in 2015, a total of some $3.6 billion.
It said this may indicate that many very rich Americans simply are not big donors, but added that other billionaires failed to make the list because they donate infrequently in huge amount or give anonymously.
Following are the 20 most generous donors on The Chronicle's 2015 list.
20. J.B. and M.K. Pritzker
Location: Chicago
Wealth source: Family, finance
Top cause: Social justice
Total giving: $101 million
Biggest gift: Northwestern University
19. Ruth Bedford (deceased)
Location: Westport, Connecticut
Wealth source: Family
Top cause: Medical care, human services
Total giving: $104 million
Biggest gifts: Norwalk Hospital, Westport Weston Family YMCA
18. Ernest and Evelyn Rady
Location: La Jolla, California
Wealth source: Real estate
Top cause: Higher education
Total giving: $112 million
Biggest gifts: University of California at San Diego Rady School of Management, University of California at San Diego Jacobs Medical Center
17. Paul G. Allen
Location: Seattle
Wealth source: Technology
Top cause: Various
Total giving: $113 million
Biggest gifts: Arts and culture, brain and cell science, climate change, efforts to fight Ebola and wildlife conservation
15. Donald Sirkin (deceased)
Location: Seattle
Wealth source: Insurance
Top cause: Human services
Total giving: $125 million
Biggest gift: LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired (San Francisco)
15. Conrad T. Prebys
Location: San Diego
Wealth source: Construction, real estate
Top cause: Medical research
Total giving: $125 million
Biggest gifts: Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute, Indiana University at Bloomington, Public Broadcasting Service
14. Louis Simpson and Kimberly Querrey
Location: Naples, Florida
Wealth source: Finance, insurance
Top cause: Higher education
Total giving: $137 million
Biggest gifts: Northwestern University, Princeton University
13. John and Laura Arnold
Location: Houston
Wealth source: Finance
Top cause: Foundation
Total giving: $163 million
Biggest gift: Laura and John Arnold Foundation
12. Jay Faison
Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
Wealth source: Technology
Top cause: Public affairs
Total giving: $166 million
