New Strategies for Better Non-Profit Partnerships

Federal financing cuts; attacks on equity, immigrants, the guideline of law, and the nation's democracy; a brand-new tax costs; and the growing use of expert system are simply a few of the elements that have overthrown the nonprofit world. Amid this upheaval, how can funders and their grantees prepare for 2026 and beyond? In this special bundle, you'll speak with foundation leaders and significant donors about providing patterns in the coming year and efforts to react to Trump administration dangers.

You'll find vibrant predictions from leaders and thinkers across the sector about what lies ahead, including what the sector will look like five years from now, and how to respond to what assures to be another extraordinary year. It's time to shed our worry and acknowledge that those who want change will stop working if the individuals closest to the money do not have the courage to bear the most run the risk of.

Kathleen Enright, president & CEO, Council on Foundations The philanthropic sector must be clear-eyed about the difficulties ahead: the pattern of targeted attacks and government overreach developed to stifle our most essential liberties. John Palfrey, president, MacArthur Foundation Nonprofits are addicted to the hamster wheel of fundraising, and in 2026, AI may supersize both the wheel and the addiction.

Michael McAfee, CEO, PolicyLink It's hard to envision passage anytime soon of legislation requiring higher payment rates. Bella DeVaan and Chuck Collins collaborate the Charity Reform Initiative, Institute for Policy Researches Interaction is no longer background sound.

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Dimple Abichandani, author of A Brand-new Period of Philanthropy. Lighthouse illustration by Greg Mably for The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Findings from Church Mutual can help guide nonprofits as they navigate 2026 and changes in generational providing.

With that, here are five essential takeaways from the Church Mutual 2026 study: The Church Mutual survey found homes of praise continue to take in the lion's share of donations. All 4 generations represented (Gen Z, millennials, Gen X, and Child Boomers) donated mainly to places of praise, constituting 74% of charitable contributions.

Organizations that have spiritual ties need to emphasize this connection to donors, specifically if they actively support homes of praise or schools. Another important finding from the survey was that donors tended to make their contributions towards the end of the year (OctoberDecember). Throughout the four generations, end-of-year contributions comprised the greatest portion, with JanuaryMarch taking second place, followed by AprilJune, then JulySeptember.

Furthermore, out of the four generations, Gen Z was more than likely to offer during the slowest time of the year (JulySeptember). Those who operate in the nonprofit area must bear in mind of the end-of-year increase in contributions, which shows that OctoberDecember projects such as Providing Tuesday events, matches, and so on, could bring in a fundraising windfall.

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That said, "slow-down" durations must not be overlooked, as the younger generations may still be inclined to give even when the older ones are not. The study consists of an area that details "contribution expectations" for 2026, and it is these findings that might sound alarm bells. On the one hand, around half of donors (48%) said they will not make any modifications to their monetary contributions, with Boomers being the group most likely to leave their charitable giving the same.

Millennials were recognized as the group most likely to cut their giving, whereas Gen Z was not only recognized as the group least most likely to cut their giving, but likewise the group probably to increase their giving up 2026. Church Mutual has a few areas devoted to the primary monetary issues of donors, something that falls beyond the scope of this post.

One finding that nonprofits should likewise understand is that a majority of donors have concerns about the monetary health of the groups they support. Church Mutual found that 54% of donors are stressed over the monetary health of the recipients of their contributions. By generation, Gen Z was the most worried, followed by millennials and Gen X respectively, while Boomers were the least worried.

They should be prepared to attend to more youthful donors' issues and be proactive in dealing with any issues affecting the organization internally. Doing so might make a difference in winning over more youthful donors throughout economically unpredictable times. While lower financial contributions might be worrisome for nonprofits, there may be some excellent news.

When asked if they would increase "effort and time" to assist in other methods ought to they decrease their monetary donations, a majority of donors indicated they would; 26% said they were "very most likely" and 32% said "somewhat most likely," equating to 58% of donors overall. The study recommends these reactions might suggest "strong potential to transform reduced monetary offering into more volunteering, advocacy, or other non-financial assistance." In the face of smaller financial contributions, nonprofits should lean into other channels to engage their donors.

New Strategies for Better Charitable Giving

There are other findings from Church Mutual that were not covered in this post, such as donation methods and the leading monetary priorities of donors, and so I motivate all those in the nonprofit space to check out the report. The findings from Church Mutual can help guide nonprofits as they navigate 2026, specifically as Gen Z begins to take on a more popular role in the giving world.

Subscribe to the Johnson Center's email newsletter! This year marks a milestone for the Johnson Center: the tenth edition of our 11 Trends in Philanthropy report. What began in 2017 as a modest supplement to our annual report has actually turned into an extensively checked out and discussed publication, reaching more than 100,000 readers each year.

Typically, these articles explore brand-new shifts or progressing movements throughout the field of philanthropy. For this tenth edition, however, we have actually taken a different approach. Instead of recognizing an entirely new set of emerging trends, we have actually turned our attention backwards to show on the styles that have actually shaped our sector over the past 10 years, and to name both withstanding shifts and brand-new developments.

It is also a recommendation of the moment we discover ourselves in a moment of hyper disturbance, that combines both terrific stress and anxiety about where we are headed and terrific possibility for what might come next. Our future feels more uncertain than ever, however the opportunity to develop and scale life-altering developments for our communities feels present.

Driving Positive Community Change Via Philanthropy

As executive orders, legal contests, and legal arguments play out, we do not have a clear photo of just how much federal financing has actually been rescinded or kept from nonprofits and neighborhoods. We do not know the number of nonprofits have actually closed or will close their doors, how many personnel have lost their jobs, or how numerous neighborhoods have actually lost access to crucial services.