The Foundation Center has just released Philanthropy Annual: 2008 Review, the second edition of its yearly compendium highlighting the news, issues, people, organizations and giving trends shaping the field of philanthropy.

The new edition “serves as a permanent record of the ups and downs we’ve faced together in 2008 and the efforts of so many people to strive for something better,” says Bradford K. Smith, the Center’s president, in the Annual‘s introduction. “Further, it’s a manifestation of the Foundation Center’s ongoing commitment to our founding principles of accountability and transparency in philanthropy, which are as important now as they ever were.”

The Annual provides a full overview of organized philanthropy, illustrating its important role in society and its national and global impact. Contents are drawn in part from Philanthropy News Digest, the Center’s daily online news service, as well as selected research findings in the annual Foundations Today Series and other Center sources.

Highlights include:

• topical issues covered in the mainstream and philanthropic press during 2008, including the impact of the economic downturn on the philanthropic sector
• in-depth interviews and commentary from widely respected leaders and thinkers
• lists of the top foundations and public charities, as well as updated statistical information about U.S. grantmaking
• a sampling of books, periodicals, and blogs in the field
• updated key contacts at philanthropy support organizations

Philanthropy Annual: 2008 Review is available for free download.