Philanthropic and Political Consulting
AL Advising works with progressive philanthropists to create a portfolio of civic engagement, policy, and advocacy investments including 501c3, 501c4, candidate, and related political giving.
While I dislike the term Generation Y, as it implies that generation (otherwise known as Millennials) is similar to Generation X (which couldn't be further from the truth), this New York Times article outlines the upcoming generation, dubbing them Generation Z.
The Bridgespan Group has a comprehensive Giving Checklist for philanthropists. While directed at larger and more hands-on donors, there are many excellent questions to help you get started in thinking about how and why you give. AL Advising is developing a more customized questionnaire for clients -- stay tuned!
Labor Day is the unofficial kickoff for Get Out The Vote (GOTV) on a campaign -- the time when the intensity ramps up even more and you start ticking off days on a calendar with abandon. One year out from that critical time in 2016, I thought I would reflect on the presidential election thus far.
Read MoreWith support from the Case Foundation, the Millennial Impact Report has been looking at Millennials as donors and volunteers to causes since 2010. Their new report synthesizes findings of several past reports into a Top 100 facts and quotes. The findings are in-line with other research but clearly reveal Millennials preferences for giving time and money. (I was struck by #22 and #81.)
Pew is out with yet another fascinating look at changes in how we communicate via social media. Following up on their 2012 report, Mobile Messaging and Social Media 2015 includes detailed demographic information across platforms.
There are many implications here -- from allowing political campaigns to better target favorable audiences to trends among Millennials. I'm particularly impressed by the non-white usage of newer platforms like Instagram and Pinterest.
Inside Philanthropy has yet another good article out today, Five Big Myths About Techies and Philanthropy. I think the author, David Callahan, does a good job of pointing out common misconceptions about donors from the tech space. Give it a read.
My observations have been that these donors: a) like a big challenge -- "wicked problems" in philanthropy, if you will; b) are open to both traditional and disruptive giving and: c) are, as a whole, giving way under their weight.