Philanthropists getting younger by the year

The best age range to educate children about and involve them in philanthropy is five to 12, said Doug Mellinger, founder of Foundation Source Inc., a Fairfield, Conn.-based service provider for private foundations, at the annual meeting of the International Association of Advisors in Philanthropy. The intergenerational discussion of philanthropy is one of the main topics at the two-day conference this week in Chicago. More than 130 advisers are participating. Many clients believe the years to engage children are 18 to 35, Mr. Mellinger said, but that is a time when young people seek to break away from the family. At younger ages, on the other hand, the family is a primary source of education. The first barrier to passing along a tradition of philanthropy is understanding different mindsets. “We have conflicting views and geographic dispersion today,” Mr. Mellinger said. “There is tremendous opportunity there if you can get them to deal with that reality and find common ground.” That said, today’s philanthropists are younger than in previous generations. “They want to take more action and take more ownership of the action,” he said. “Not just give it to a ‘bucket’ charity.” Private foundations continue to be popular, with number doubling since 1992, he said. Half of all foundations are less than 10 years old. And 67% of foundations have assets under $1 million. Fewer than 1% of foundations have assets of $1 billion or more, Mr. Mellinger said. Many people do not realize that, through a private foundation, they can make grants to individuals, loan money to charities, make international grants and offer scholarships, he added. Transparency is becoming more important to the philanthropic world. In the future, philanthropy is also likely to leverage more technology, Mr. Mellinger said. In the next 20 years, he said, the focus will not only be on raising money, but also on utilizing the business and political expertise of donors. The International Association of Advisors in Philanthropy is based in Rocky Hill, Conn.