Your inbox is likely flooded with requests for “GivingTuesday,” a relatively new international day of charity. It follows Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, where local and online deals can be found.

GivingTuesday is a day to step away from the buying frenzy and instead shift time and resources toward an organization you care about, whether it’s donating your time, or your money.

The international day of giving was born in 2012 through the 92nd Street Y in New York and the United Nations Foundation. It’s since branched out into its own organization, but also a movement. Efforts for fundraising and volunteerism now span across more than 100 countries.

Just last year in the U.S., donors contributed a collective $3.1 billion, 8 million people volunteered, and 10 million gave goods or items groups needed. In the Boston-Cambridge-Newton area alone, $34.5 million was donated online for the holiday in 2023.

Celeste Flores is the U.S.+Canada hub director for GivingTuesday. She said it’s not just massive nonprofits that are benefiting. Flores said data shows a lot of donations are locally concentrated, and that medium-sized nonprofits have benefited the most.

“People are looking to give local most of the time during GivingTuesday,” she said. “And when they look local, they look to what’s immediately around them and what are the needs of the community and what are the needs of their neighborhood, and what organizations are supporting that work.”

Rebecca Riccio, the founding director of the Social Impact Lab at Northeastern University, said GivingTuesday builds on the established “seasonal mindset” to prompt donations. But she added that while the donations can really help a nonprofit, the need is typically year-round.

“There is so much need that we don’t address through government programs, that we don’t address through revenue-generating or business models, that we simply have to have charity and philanthropy filling in these gaps,” she said.

Tips for donating smartly

Scams are, as always, a concern. State Attorney General Andrea Campbell issued guidance and do’s and don’ts on Monday to consumers on spending wisely for charitable giving. Flores of GivingTuesday also recommends doing your homework.

Their tips include:

  • Do not use cash for donations.
  • Make out checks to charities, not specific fundraisers who may call you.
  • To check if an organization is legitimate, look for search engine results and check their social media channels. You can also reach out to friends or family who might have donated.
  • Call the Attorney General’s Non-Profit Organizations/Public Charities Division at 617-963-2101 to find out if the charity and its fundraiser are registered to operate in the state.