Generations of Giving: Leadership and Continuity in Family Foundations

Using detailed and comprehensive analysis, “Generations of Giving: Leadership and Continuity in Family Foundations” examines continuity and leadership over time within family foundations. Based upon a study of foundations in the United States and Canada that have survived through at least two generations, the authors ask probing questions, including: Why were the foundations started? What did they look like at the beginning? How did the families of the founders come to be involved? And how did they organize themselves to do their work from year to year, decade to decade? Although the foundations in the study are quite diverse in their goals and management, they have all had to confront and survive a common set of challenges. At the core of this volume is the study of two aspects of philanthropy: funding and volunteers– each essential to the survival of a foundation. This study is about the “why” and the “how” of these two crucial aspects. The authors give a truly unique perspective, which serves as a powerful tool for readers as they address the specific situations of their own foundations. A thorough and powerful work, “Generations of Giving: Leadership and Continuity in Family Foundations” demands that we must not only appreciate philanthropy, but we must also increase our understanding so that we can do it better. This book is a co-publication with the National Center for Family Philanthropy.