Ask HN: How do you decide where to direct your charitable giving?

Or, what makes a charitable project or organization attractive to you? As the holiday season approaches in the US, many individuals and companies step up their giving. For both individuals and companies, what determines how much you'll give and where it will go? How did you discover the organizations to which you currently give? Are you satisfied with how your donations have been used?

For background, I run a tech-focused community organization, and I'm trying to figure out ways to improve our donation revenue this season as we work towards financial self-sustainability. The name's not important here, but you can email me for more info.