Modern Giving: Connecting with Next-Gen Philanthropists

My first gift was a nickel, put into an offering basket at my local church.

It was magic when my mom handed me that shiny nickel so that I could immediately give it away. I looked forward to giving in that way every Sunday. I did not quite understand it at the time, but I had been introduced to the culture of giving.

Back then, there were plenty of established channels to cultivate giving in every community. Houses of worship, fraternal organizations (Masons, Elks, Odd Fellows, etc.), local charitable clubs like the Kiwanis, and many others: all served as dependable pipelines for generosity to benefit nonprofit organizations and provide activities tailored to community needs. This was an ecosystem for the greater good.

But something has happened.

These days, philanthropic giving isn’t keeping pace with the growth of wealth and prosperity in our communities. And the giving appears to be ever more concentrated amongst fewer donors.

Are we less generous than we once were?

Probably not, but perhaps the old ecosystem and its traditional channels have changed. Maybe we need to build a new ecosystem, with new channels of giving.

In 1953, approximately 70% of all charitable giving in the United States was funneled through churches. In 2021, this figure had declined to just 23%. Similarly, fraternal organizations and their wonderful generosity are no longer the hubs of community giving that they once were. What has replaced these channels of giving?

To be clear, philanthropic giving has continued to increase even as traditional channels have dried up.

Generosity is still all around us powered by philanthropic foundations, family funds, corporate giving, community giving days, and yes, the continued vital contributions from places of worship, community organizations and even our fraternal groups.

But a specific part of our community philanthropic giving fabric is not being adequately addressed — the “Next Gens” — folks ages 20-45. Current philanthropic channels, perhaps even the entire philanthropic narrative, might not be speaking to them in a way that will activate their engagement. This is particularly important for the greater Austin community, because while Next Gens represent around 48% of our population, they might not have been properly invited to the table.

It’s not a good idea to leave out half of our population, some of our brightest, most energetic and committed citizens.

But here’s the dilemma.

A large part of our community, educated, active and ready to address community needs, is not as involved as other age groups. Perhaps our community’s philanthropic scaffolding needs some refurbishment.

What might that look like? The older scaffolding, those traditional philanthropic channels, were persistent and automatic. For instance, church members gave weekly for decades. Lodge members paid dues for life. The new channels are more likely to be voluntary and episodic: someone might donate via Facebook today but not establish a lifelong giving pattern. New channel scaffolding must integrate digital and social media in ways that speak more clearly to Next Gens and take advantage of the spectacular message leveraging available through these mediums. Also, rather than just giving money, Next Gen donors are more likely to volunteer, fund raise, and act as mentors for charitable causes. This can create new opportunities for nonprofits — but it also requires that nonprofits speak to the kinds of holistic values that Next Gens bring to the table.

Finally, Next Gens do not necessarily need or want intermediaries in their giving.

Next Gens prefer direct and personal connections. New philanthropic channels should reflect these and many other features that appeal to this vital group.

Austin’s Giving Generation ATX organization seeks to be part of this new scaffolding. GGATX is a networking, informational resourcing and mentoring collaboration for the Austin community’s Next Gens who want to learn more about philanthropy and get more involved. It’s easy to find out more about the organization and get involved either at the website link above or at their LinkedIn page.

Originally published November 4, 2025 in the Austin American-Statesman

Feature Photo by Rev. Lisa J. Winston