Panel, Fireside Chat
New Wave Giving: How the Next Generation of Philanthropists Is Rethinking the Model
Milken InstituteMelissa Stevens, Matt Dalio, Leili Gerami, Justin Rockefeller, Cameron Saul, Darius Baxter
- An unprecedented wealth transfer of $59 trillion is projected between 2007 and 2061, with $27 trillion anticipated for charitable giving, driving a shift where the millennial generation aligns financial decisions with moral consequences through investing rather than traditional models.
- A new wave of philanthropy is expected to expand beyond traditional mechanisms by incorporating hybrid for-profit/non-profit entities, specific tools like impact investing (a term coined in 2008), and engineering giving directly into high-quality consumption to foster consumer pride and tangible change.
- Specific ventures anticipate significant scale and impact, including a gunshot detection company reducing crime by 30 percent, a VR company simulating crisis scenarios, and a social enterprise scaling poverty alleviation as consumer sustainability consciousness rises.
- Commercial entities plan to launch ethical green cashmere in October and operate for 50 years, utilizing sustainable resource management to prove that impact and product quality coexist, while placing pressure on the wider fashion industry to understand supply chains.
- Technology is expected to transform emerging markets by enabling access for the next billion consumers, with PC usage projected to exceed historical levels despite smartphone prevalence, potentially transforming healthcare in Bangladesh if technology empowers the 70% of the market currently served by unqualified practitioners.
- The Rockefeller Brothers Fund plans to divest from fossil fuels symbolically while making large investments with seven managers to achieve measurable social impact without compromising returns or increasing risk, alongside launching a network to share transaction-level data and improve capital allocation.
- Strategic initiatives include an investor donating 20,000 computers valued at one million dollars to impact 80,000 to 100,000 children in Jordanian refugee camps, a non-profit fashion magazine launching soon, and the creation of a members club to tackle global challenges by connecting entrepreneurs and foundations.
- Future expectations suggest that technology will allow families to make informed investment decisions through aggregated data frameworks, global and local giving will operate in tandem, and the disappearance of borders will integrate villagers from Indonesia with Silicon Valley managers.
- Long-term outlooks emphasize that 70% of emerging market consumer economies rely on mom-and-pop shops, requiring businesses like BottleTop to set examples for the next generation, while the panel anticipates continued progress as social entrepreneurs and philanthropists drive global change.