Philanthropy, done differently.
The Five Percent Foundation is a movement of people who pledge to donate at least 5% of their income to address pressing global issues.
Join the movementHow it works
Pledge
Give 5%
Donors pledge to donate 5% of their income to our charitable investment fund.
Grow
We grow your 5%
All donations are invested in line with our ethical investment policy in the Australian Ethical Balanced Fund, which has produced 6.4% returns per year since its inception.*
* Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
Impact
Address global causes
We donate 100% of the profits of our ethical investments to highly effective charities addressing pressing global causes. Over the long term, this means a lot more money goes to charity compared to donating directly.
Why we're doing this
At the Five Percent Foundation, we're striving to make the world a better place for all.
Our goal is to do good by making a lasting impact to address global issues like extreme poverty.
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Why join the movement?
Did you know, if you earn $60,000 AUD per year you are in the richest 2.5% of the world’s population?
With minimal sacrifice, you have the power to significantly impact some of the world's most pressing issues.
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Our investment model
We do not donate the money donated to our charitable fund by donors (i.e. 5% of their income). That money remains in the fund, and continues to generate investment returns, for the rest of time. 100% of those investment returns are donated to the charities we support.
We believe this will empower donors to dramatically increase their social impact over time.
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How do we select charities?
We do things a little differently here.
The Five Percent Foundation uses fantastic resources from organisations such as GiveWell and The Life You Can Save to evaluate and pre-select the world's most transparent and effective charities.
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Fund size
(19 donors pledging, last updated 8 September 2024)
Amount donated to charity
(As at 1 July 2024 - charity donations are typically made every 12 months)
Frequently asked questions
Click 'Join the Movement' to submit an inquiry to us. From there, one of our team will be in touch to give you all the information you need.
We harness the power of technology, kind people and goodwill to ensure our costs are kept to a minimum.
For the costs that we aren’t able to avoid altogether, our co-founders pay them out of their own pockets.
To date, we have never paid for operating costs out of the 5% contributions from donors.
It might not sound like much, but your 5% contribution can make a real impact where it’s needed most.
The scale of global challenges might seem intimidating, but by pooling and growing our donations, we can make a difference. Our model of philanthropy makes your donation work harder and go further than it ever could alone.
We have built a range of tools to help you visualise how your 5% could make a difference.
We recommend that donors donate 5% of their 'net' income. The best way of doing this is by donating 5% from each paycheck you receive, and 5% from any tax return paid to you.
However, you don’t have to stop there! You can donate more than this amount if you wish. Also, all donations are tax deductible in Australia.
In short: it’s about maximising the social impact of money over the long-term. Click here to hear more about our model.
We allow everyone who donates to the Five Percent Foundation to tell us how they would like the Foundation to donate the profits of our investments. We then redirect the profits to the charities we support.
Want to support a charity we do not currently distribute to? We’re always open to considering new charities who align with our values. You can suggest a charity by contacting us.
Yes! We're a charity ourselves, and while we adjust the investment ‘profits’ each year to account for inflation, we otherwise donate 100% of the profits. Click here to learn more about our model and why we adjust for inflation.
We partner up with some of the most effective charities, who have proven track records of achieving positive social impact.
These charities have stringent reporting procedures which ensure funds raised are being put to good use. We are also exploring technology and reporting techniques to ensure that you will have full transparency and can track where your hard-earned dollars end up.
We recognise that circumstances change, which is why you’re able to pause your donations at any time. When you’re back on your feet, we’d love to have you back!
However, to achieve the greatest impact, we recommend that you continue donating if you can.