Throughout its remarkable journey, GO Humanity (formerly Foundation Beyond Belief), stood as a distinctive charity, uniquely bridging the worlds of philanthropy and humanism. The organization gave over $3.8 million to causes reflecting humanist values including poverty alleviation, ecology, civil rights, and disaster recovery.

Over 150 participating volunteer teams—largely humanist, atheist, and mutual aid groups—contributed over 256,000 volunteer hours to various food security, disaster recovery, and community service projects. This included supplying over 165,000 individual known beneficiaries with over 184,000 meals through our food security program.

Some major milestones that defined our impactful journey:

2009-2010: Inception

• Foundation Beyond Belief was created by humanist writer and educator Dale McGowan as an experiment in encouraging philanthropy in nonreligious communities. He hypothesized that charitable giving by religious Americans far exceeded that by nonreligious Americans partly because secular people lacked a version of tithing—the religious practice of donating a portion of one’s income to a religious institution or charity.
• A $10,000 grant from the Institute of Humanist studies allowed us to build our website and hire staff, and a New York Times article put us on the map.
• FBB launched a Humanist Grants program, raising $12,000 in our first quarter for non-profit organizations in various sectors, from education to poverty alleviation. Grantees were vetted rigorously for effectiveness, secularism, and scientific methods.

2011: Disaster and volunteer programs launched

• Tōhoku tsunami in Japan made clear the immediate need for a disaster response program. We vetted a beneficiary and quickly launched an appeal, raising $20,000 for recovery.
• We merged with Houston-based SECULAR Center USA to create a national network of volunteer teams at work in their communities. The program later grew to incorporate over 150 teams from across the US and several other countries including Nigeria, Haiti, Kenya, Mali, and the Philippines.
• The program later goes on to respond to numerous other disasters, including raising $150,000 for Hurricanes Maria and Irma and incorporating on-the-ground volunteers for Hurricanes Juaquin, Ian, and Dorian and the 2016 Louisiana floods. The unique aspect of secular and humanist organizations participating in disaster relief efforts—especially in collaboration with interfaith groups—was of interest to media outlets, as it highlighted a diverse and inclusive approach to humanitarian work.

2013: International Volunteer Programs

• We launched the Pathfinders Project, wherein four volunteers traveled the world practicing responsible humanist service while working with grassroots organizations.

2014: Natural World Program and Heart of Humanism

• The Natural World program was launched, emphasizing environmental conservation and stewardship as a vital aspect of humanist values.
• We held a Humanism at Work Conference in Chicago, IL, and gave out the Heart of Humanism Awards, recognizing outstanding contributions in volunteerism and humanist organizing.
• We launched the Compassionate Impact Grant, a large competitive grant to a particularly innovative and impactful organization given once each year.

2015: Expanding Our impact

• We surpassed $2 million in total donations to charitable causes, and raised $75,000 for the Nepal earthquake.
• We launched a Humanist Service Corps (HSC) volunteer program in Ghana, in support of Songtba—a Ghanaian human rights organization working to protect women accused of witchcraft. HSC teams successfully reintegrate accused women for years.
• We created a bilingual medical records system to increase healthcare access in the rural community of Kukuo, Ghana, giving 1,250 people access to their health information for the first time in a language they understand.

2019: Record-Breaking Year

• We achieved record-high levels of charitable giving, distributing over $500,000 to featured charities.

2020: Humanism at Work During Global Crisis

• We launched a vocational training program in Wiamoah, Ghana, providing sewing, business, and entrepreneurial skills to a cohort of 10 trainees, enhancing their economic prospects. The program later grew into an independent Ghanaian-run organization, Humanist Action Ghana. Dozens of graduates of the program go on to run their own small businesses.
• Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, teams in our volunteer network logged over 18,525 volunteer hours at 252 service events.
• We coordinated Secular Week of Action with an emphasis on alleviating poverty during COVID-19.

2021-23: New focus

• In the economic fallout from COVID-19, we launched an ambitious new program to tackle food insecurity through our service network.
• Monthly grants help 24 teams organize food distribution programs in their communities, plant community gardens, and create programs tailored to the unique needs of food insecure people in their regions. 106,305 individual known beneficiaries are supplied with over 184,000 meals.
• We change our name to GO Humanity (Giving and Organizing for Humanity) to reflect how active, engaged, diverse, and inclusive our work has become. Our updated values include commitments to the principles of humans helping humans, shared local power, and radical inclusion.

2023 - End of the journey:

• GO Humanity makes the difficult resolution to dissolve, having made a significant impact in the secular and humanist philanthropic landscape.

Throughout its journey, GO Humanity fostered a community of compassionate individuals who believed in the power of reason, empathy, and shared humanity. While the organization may have come to a close, the spirit of secular philanthropy and humanist values lives on in the hearts of those who were a part of its mission.

Thank you for being a part of the story and for contributing to a better world through reason and compassion.