Giving Tuesday: A Chance to Give Back During the Holiday Season

Will donating to charity ever be as popular as shopping during the holiday season?

A partnership of nonprofits hopes so.

For many people, the holiday shopping marathon began on Thanksgiving day, with some national chains opening their doors just hours after the traditional turkey dinner. Then comes Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, which has morphed into Cyber Week.

Now, there's a new campaign asking you to open your wallet—Giving Tuesday.

The Giving Tuesday website says the effort, coming on the heels of days devoted to consumerism, is designed "to create a national day of giving at the start of the annual holiday season. It celebrates and encourages charitable activities that support nonprofit organizations."

Several Silicon Valley nonprofits are among those using their websites and social media networks to kick off the inaugural effort. Local nonprofits like Career Closet (San Jose) and Habitat for Humanity East Bay/Silicon Valley are hosting activities, while larger corporations like Cisco (San Jose) and Gap, Inc., are similarly holding larger scale events. 

The effort includes the Twitter hashtag #GivingTuesday, designed to help spread the word.

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What do you think? Can a social media push get people giving more of their money and time to charities during the holiday season? Tell us in the comments section.