The Huffington Post reports that the US has fallen from its (joint) top place among the most generous nations in the world, according to a new survey by the Charities Aid Foundation. It now ranks second to Myanmar, with which it tied last year.
The report doles out about 1,000 surveys among a range of communities in each country, including rural areas, and assesses the percentage of people who have given to charity, volunteered their time and helped a stranger in the last month.
While the number of people giving money to charity had dropped back from 68% to 63%, volunteer rates in the US are on the rise, and it maintained its generous lead against New Zealand, Canada, and Australia. Malaysia rounded out the top ten nations.
The Huffington Post offers religion as an explanation for Myanmar’s stellar giving record.
Thanks in large part to its high proportion of Theravada Buddhists, who practice Sangha Dana, Myanmar was the most generous country last year. Its citizens volunteered the most and with 92 percent of its citizens giving to charity, it also came in first for donations.
Across the globe, the Foundation found that countries of all stripes were experiencing a rise in the rates of citizens giving back.
Photo via the Charities Aid Foundation