Good morning, Greater Washington! I hope that you all enjoyed the rainy-yet-somewhat-warm weekend in DC — and I thought that I’d start the week with a more global news item.

For an interesting evaluation of our charitable habits compared to those of other large countries around the globe, check out this article from today’s Wall Street Journal. How much does the US give away and, moreover, what prompts our citizens to give in the amount or precise manner that they do?

The urge to do good through philanthropy varies across the globe. Differing cultures breed differing motivations and some countries appear vastly more generous than others.

Charitable giving in the U.S. as a proportion of gross domestic product, for example, is around 1.7%. In Europe, it is around 0.7% and in Japan it is just 0.04%, according to U.S. wealth manager Northern Trust. So why the discrepancy between the giving habits of developed countries and what is it that motivates giving around the world? “In many countries, like Russia or China, getting involved with social change may still be seen as politically taboo,” says Marguerite Griffin, head of philanthropic services at Northern Trust. “The U.S. has become the global vanguard for philanthropy partly through generous tax laws. Aside from the U.K., philanthropy around the rest of the world is remarkably underdeveloped.”

The bulk of the article offers some interesting giving figures for a dozen countries, including South Africa, Australia, Russia, China, and Italy. However, their “map of global giving is not designed to show which nation is most generous to offer a flavor of varying philanthropic cultures across the world.” Again, do check out the full map right here.

That phrase that caught my attention, however, was “philanthropic cultures.” For sure, “the long-standing American model of encouraging giving through tax rebates” does encourage that culture. But I would also argue that tax policy cannot create a culture, not can it alone foster its growth and determine its future. We, as individuals and in small communities, do that.

What do you think creates and fosters a culture of giving? If the US indeed has become the “global vanguard for philanthropy,” how did that occur — and what can we do to ensure that the trend continues? Assuming that non-profit tax law will not become even more generous (or even fundamentally different) in the next few decades, should we be thinking about the next great incentive?