We Can't Do This Alone
The Fastest Growing Form of Philanthropy You Haven't Heard Of
Giving in America is shrinking. Fewer than half of households give at all and that number keeps falling, yet one model is growing faster than anything else in philanthropy: the giving circle. Emily Rasmussen built Grapevine to power that movement. In this episode we explore why pooling everyday gifts is the bright spot in a generosity crisis, how the model is moving billions, and what it could look like inside hospitals and health care systems that have only ever known traditional fundraising. Takeaways: What a giving circle actually is, and why so many philanthropy professionals have never heard of one even after decades in the sector The data: giving circles named the fastest growing form of philanthropy, moving more than $3 billion over five years per the Johnson Center study The generosity crisis: fewer than half of U.S. households give, and how collective giving brings new people in rather than fighting over the same shrinking pool Where the money goes: a broader diversity of givers funds a broader diversity of causes, with women and girls a top funded area in women's circles How giving circles could work inside hospitals and health care systems, with real examples already out there What Grapevine does: the all in one tool that lets a group run with no bank account, no 501c3 and no overhead, with every member getting their own tax receipt Links & Resources: Instagram Website LinkedIn
