Highlights from EFA’s 15th annual Skillshare & AGA

Announcements of EFA’s new president and its first executive director were among the highlights of the 15th Annual EFA Skillshare and Annual General Assembly, which took place in Zurich last month.

Fundraising professionals from across Europe gathered for the event, which was hosted by Swissfundraising, and took the theme of Shaping the Future of Fundraising in Europe: Technology, Trends & the Political Landscape.

EFA Board 2024. L-R: Paul Laird, Laurence Lepetit, Pia Tornikoski, Scott Kelley, Ceri Edwards, Paul Dalby, Ruth Williams, Larissa Probst

Day one started with EFA’s AGA, which saw Ceri Edwards, executive director of change at the UK’s Chartered Institute of Fundraising, elected as president, taking over the helm from Charlotte Rydh who has stepped down at the completion of her term. New additions to the board are Pia Tornikoski, Secretary General for the Finnish Fundraising Association (VaLa) and Ruth Williams, CEO at Fundraising Verband Austria. More on this here.

Eva Torsson joins as executive director

It was also officially announced that Eva Torsson has been appointed as EFA’s first ever executive director. The creation of the part-time role marks a critical expansion of capacity that will support EFA in the next stage of its development, and will see Torsson working closely with the board and EFA committees to grow its work and voice – as well as the voice of its membership – across Europe.

Skillshare sessions – part 1

Hanspeter Bigler

Implementing ethical principles for fundraising

Day two saw delegates attend a full day of inspiring and informative sessions, kicking off with Swissfundraising’s Hanspeter Bigler presenting on ethical principles for responsible fundraising. He explained how Swissfundraising developed them after research revealed that while most Swiss people identified with nonprofits’ goals and missions, many had concerns over their fundraising, and specifically direct mail. Bigler shared details on their implementation, along with some of the associated challenges.

Prof. Dr Leticia Labaronne & Fabienne Schmidli

Advancing the fundraising profession through education

Next up was a session on 20 years of fundraising education in Switzerland, presented by ZHAW’s (Zurich University of Applied Sciences) Prof. Dr Leticia Labaronne and Fabienne Schmidli. Reflecting on two decades of providing fundraising executive education (accredited by EFA since 2012), the presentation highlighted key milestones, and discussed challenges and trends, such as the move towards lifelong learning, and the rise of micro and digital credentials. The session concluded with thoughts on further advancing the fundraising profession, including combining “learning on the job” with professional fundraising qualifications, and introducing fundraising education at undergraduate level.

MEP Sergey Lagodinsky on screen with Esther Meester & Laurence Lepetit

Focus on the European political environment

EFA was honoured to have MEP Sergey Lagodinsky join ECNL’s Esther Meester and France générosités’ Laurence Lepetit for the next session on the European political environment. Looking at new developments in regulation affecting civil society and philanthropy, this interesting discussion covered a range of important topics including the potential consequences of the European Parliament reshuffle for European civil society, and the impact of the EU’s new AML/CFT package – as well as how EFA and its membership can best respond.

Part 2 – a whistlestop tour across Europe

After lunch, the focus moved to EFA members, 13 of whom shared their perspectives on a choice of two themes: the political landscape across Europe and its impact on the sector, and the integration of AI into fundraising, including successes and obstacles.

Responses to the political landscape

On the political theme, changes of government featured in a number of presentations, and while the rise of far-right parties was a problem for some, there was also plenty of good news.

Ahead of Austria’s election win for the far-right Freedom Party, Ruth Williams from Fundraising Verband Austria shared positive changes announced for the sector including an extension of tax deductability for donations set to benefit up to 45,000 organizations, along with the sector’s demands for the new government.

Marie Bednarova

Marie Bednarova from the Czech Fundraising Center highlighted how President Petr Pavel has signed an important amendment to the Public Collections Act back in July that significantly simplifies individual donations, especially with online giving.

Pia Tornikoski from Finland’s VaLa talked delegates through the implementation of the country’s new Civil Society Strategy, created with the starting points of promoting fundraising, improving funding practices, and reducing bureaucracy for CSOs.

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising’s Katie Docherty discussed the state of the UK including a £20billion + black hole in government spending, and how civil society is collaborating to effect change, along with its plans for working with the new Labour government.

Reporting on Slovakia, Eduard Marček from the Slovak Fundraising Center shared how the ultra-right government is reshaping civil society and fundraising, including through the limiting of public funding and of support to human rights, minorities, and arts and culture – as well as on the positive impact of the backlash against it.

Goede Doelen Nederland’s Yvette Kleekamp provided an informative look at the Netherlands’ response to a shrinking space for fundraising, including a new special legal position for nonprofits and donations in proposals regarding telemarketing and door-to-door fundraising.

AI – the current state of play across Europe

Presentations on AI included case studies from nonprofits across Europe, insights into its rate of adoption, along with associated challenges and barriers, and strategies and guidelines for its use.

In Denmark, ISOBRO’s Kenneth Kamp Butzbach said, there is much talk about AI but little activity, with it missing at strategic level in many organizations and some concerns over risks. ISOBRO is working on ethical guidelines for its use in fundraising with a plan to adopt them at its annual general assembly in May 2025.

In Switzerland, organizations are also discussing how they can use AI and what guidelines need to be set for this, explained Swissfundraising’s Roger Tinner. It has a working group looking at how AI is, and could be, used in fundraising along with the risks, which will present proposals for a framework for AI’s use to the executive board by the end of the year.

Charlotte Rydh shared how Giva Sverige conducted research and analysis to direct its guidelines, along with examples of how two charities are using the technology. Red Cross Sweden used AI for a multi-dimensional analysis of its F2F data to increase lifetime donor value, while the Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund implemented it to regain control over its images and branding on the internet.

Yaële Aferiat

AI adoption in France’s fundraising is promising but in its early stages, said Association Française des Fundraisers’ Yaële Aferiat. Giving an overview of its use so far – generally basic, such as content creation, she added that organizational guidelines are generally missing, or very restrictive due to ethical concerns. She expects a gradual adoption, with training and investment needed, and a pragmatic approach within organizations to using it.

55% of Irish charities are in early stages of AI adoption, said Charities Institute Ireland’s Scott Kelley, but only 40% of organizations have successfully integrated it with strong cybersecurity protocols. Taking a holistic approach that prioritises innovation and security will be essential for sustainable growth, he added, and strategic leadership is essential.

Is AI in fundraising a blessing or a curse, asked Larissa Probst from Deutscher Fundraising Verband, looking at both its value in supporting tasks like writing proposals and data analysis, and concerns over data privacy and ethics.

In Poland, said Robert Kawalko from Polskie Stowarzyszenie Fundraisingu, AI is just beginning to gain popularity amongst NGOs, but there are already interesting examples of its use, both in data analysis and campaigns. Dajemy Dzieciom Siłę Foundation for example, uses AI tools to monitor networks and detect potential violence, grooming, and other threats to children, while Siepomaga Foundation is using AI algorithms to optimize fundraising campaigns.

Charlotte Rydh and Larissa Probst

Goodbye and thanks to Charlotte Rydh

The day concluded with closing remarks, and an enormous thank you to Charlotte Rydh for all her hard work over the last six years on the EFA board – the last three as president.

Grateful thanks too to Swissfundraising for hosting the event, and of course to all the speakers, and everyone who participated.

Skillshare 2025

Next year’s Skillshare will be in Edinburgh, Scotland, hosted by the Chartered Institute of Fundraising. Keep an eye out for the date, which will be during the final quarter of 2025.