Gen Y or the Millennials, call them what you will, but this emerging generation is reshaping philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, community impact and how we communicate the need and success of these efforts. The Cone Inc., AMP agency report, The Millennial Generation (2006) posits:
“There are high expectations for this generation and Millennials are happy to take on this challenge. Specifically, they believe that, as civic-minded and active participants in today’s world, it is up to them to assume the responsibility of making a lasting, positive impact on the future.”
It is encouraging and uplifting to find such a positive perception of the emerging working generation. As the Millennials enter the workforce, and climb corporate ladders, we are excited to see how these men and women will continue to push philanthropic endeavors inside the workplace.
Apparently people were worried that this emerging Generation Y was not going to be as “philanthropic” as the previous generations, but a Campbell & Company-funded study conducted by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana U. May of 2008 concluded that this generation is as giving as the previous ones, they are just “under asked” for donations.
We are not encouraging folks to go out and ask the Millennial group for larger donations. Rather, we are interested to see how more nonprofits and foundations could benefit from Millennial generosity. Look at our March Goodness campaign or the Pepsi Refresh project. Thousands of folks participated in March Goodness, donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to individual nonprofits. The Pepsi Refresh project gives thousands of dollars to new, innovative and sustainable ideas based on their online voting platform. Since the Millennial generation numbers 50 million+ and is rumored to exceed both the Boomers and Gen X, we will go ahead and ask the question. What can this generation do to change the way we give and how much we give?
What do you think Millennials? Are you up to the challenge?