2024 philanthropy wrap-up
As a community foundation with an intergenerational model, we are often asked about the future of philanthropy. What role will it play? What lessons have we learned? How can we do things better? These questions come at a pertinent time. With communities struggling, we now have an important opportunity to reflect and reimagine generosity so that it contributes to a stronger and more resilient future for our communities.
Image credit: Ruamahanga Farm Foundation.
Sustainable local giving
This year, we continued to see shifts in giving. For many donors, the sustainability of their gifts is a core consideration – they want to make sure that the gift truly invests in an organisation’s growth and will create a ripple effect beyond the individual charity and have an enduring impact. Giving also continues to be highly localised, with many new funds such as the Kāpiti Coast Environment Fund, Gwenda Martin Fund and H&L Martinborough Fund being established to support the places donors live in or love.
Collaboration continues to be important to maximise local impact. In 2025, we celebrate 20 years of working alongside The Tindall Foundation as its Local Donation Manager for Kāpiti, Wellington City, Porirua and Hutt Valley, ensuring its vision is executed well on the ground.
“We believe that the people who know best what works for communities are the people who live and work there. Community foundations, like Nikau, have a great opportunity to make positive change because they bring together their community’s wishes and funders to help achieve joint goals within their regions.”- Sir Stephen Tindall
A changing philanthropic landscape
While the New Zealand welfare state once rendered philanthropy as a ‘gap filler’, it is becoming an essential function to address inequities, encourage systemic change and build a better future. “As New Zealand has such a wide range of giving vehicles, many of which have come about via legislation around existing community assets rather than philanthropy, we don’t necessarily make the connection that local people can play a part in shaping the future,” says Community Foundations of Aotearoa New Zealand Philanthropy and Membership Services Director Eleanor Cater.
The rise of collective giving styles underpinned by closer connections within the community, knowledgesharing and co-designed solutions are central to this evolving role. Now more than ever, donors wish to give in a way that responds to key needs while allowing scope for the community to decide what it requires and when. Designing their own endowment funds with a broad scope provides this intentional, futureproofed flexibility. “Community foundations are essentially helping New Zealanders to discover that they can be the best ancestors simply by trusting the community foundation of the future,” says Eleanor.
This trust is exemplified by Nikau donor Margaret Nixon, who established the Reintegration on Leaving Prison Fund knowing that the organisations she wanted to support weren’t currently available. “Although a full range of services doesn’t yet exist to support positive reintegration [from prison post release], as society changes and these organisations are established, I want to make sure there is funding ready and available for them in future,” says Margaret. Of the 11 new funds that were established and committed throughout the year, we observed a few key trends. Of the total $3.2 million in donations to new and existing funds, over $2 million was dedicated to supporting future generations of youth and over $800,000 was dedicated to environmental causes – gifts that will be invested, grown and protected, forever.
The gift that gives beyond a lifetime
Although legacy giving is still relatively uncommon in Aotearoa New Zealand, with 6% of Kiwis leaving gifts to charity in their wills (compared to 7.5% in Australia and 15% in the UK), it is set to rise as wealth is transferred down the generations and bequests continue to be promoted as a powerful giving option.
“With the intergenerational wealth transfer of the Baby Boomers now under way coupled with increasing concern around growing inequality and declining social cohesion, Kiwis are giving more purposefully into New Zealand communities,” says Eleanor. With combined funds under management of $255 million and over $1 billion in the pipeline, the now 18 community foundations across Aotearoa New Zealand will play a significant role in stewarding this transfer and ensuring the generosity of today effects positive change for generations.
Strategic, futureproofed fundraising
With funding opportunities narrowing and fundraisers facing a challenging environment, many for-purpose organisations are taking strategic opportunities to diversify, create more certainty in their fundraising and offer alternative, future-focused giving options to their supporters. For organisations like Cure Parkinson’s NZ, establishing the Cure Parkinson’s NZ Wellington Fund was a strategic way to mobilise new audiences of donors, grow awareness of its work on a local level and expedite fundraising to work towards a Parkinson’s disease-free future.
As a community foundation, Nikau recognises the philanthropic sector as a change-maker and seeks to contribute to its strength and growth. This year, we were delighted to work on several projects designed to build fundraising capability and raise awareness of endowment fund giving. Additionally, our improved online donation platform offers an accessible opportunity for donors to give to the causes they love, extend the impact of their dollar and create charitable legacies, no matter how much they have to give.
Consolidating charitable entities
While establishing a charitable trust or lone standing foundation was once an attractive option, generational and legislative shifts have left many trustees searching for a succession plan. While they wish for the charitable intent to be preserved, transferring assets to community foundations like Nikau helps to consolidate, remove bureaucracy and expedite the delivery of resources where they are most needed. In 2024, we were delighted to become the kaitiaki of The Joe Aspell Fund and the Wellington Children’s Foundation Fund – two significant Wellington institutions – so that their stories and impact in the community can continue, forever.
Download our 2024 Impact Report
Featuring almost 50 voices from accross the for-purpose sector - from volunteers to donors, funders to people on the front lines, founders to for-purpose organisations - Nikau’s 2024 Impact Report shares stories of impact and generosity from accross Te Upoko-o-te-Ika-a-Maui, the Greater Wellington region, funding and philanthropy trends and key mahi to grow generosity to support the people and places of our region.
