Why does giving matter?

The end of the year is a time when we think about others, give gifts and make donations – the festive season is a time for giving.

I believe that each and every one of us has a shared responsibility for the "bigger picture", for the society we all live in. The more privileged you are, the greater that responsibility is and the more opportunity you have to make a difference. The clichéd view of a philanthropist is someone who is wealthy and gives away some of that wealth to others. But for me, philanthropy is not first and foremost a question of  "how much," i.e., the quantity. It has far more to do with attitude.

It is about money, but it's far more than just that. Philanthropy is a multifaceted thing. It should be as diverse as the society we live in – a child donates some pocket money to help animal welfare, a businessman sets up a foundation to fund research into rare illnesses, or a student goes shopping for a bed-ridden neighbor. Each and every one of us can and should do what they feel comfortable with and is possible for them.

Generally speaking, Swiss people donate very generously and do a lot of volunteer work. Many people in Switzerland are philanthropists without even realizing it.

The older fellow Swiss among you may remember the “Schoggitaler," the chocolate coins for fundraising that we used to sell around the neighborhood when we were at school. The proceeds were donated to a cause chosen alternately by Schweizer Heimatschutz (a heritage organization) and Pro Natura (an environmental agency). For us children, collecting those coins was exciting. And you won't be surprised to hear that my childhood friends and I competed to see who could achieve the highest "sales."

To have the desired effect, we often need a kind of trigger, maybe in the guise of a not-for-profit organization or a charitable foundation that we support. We seek out what or whom we want to support, and then we want to see measurable impact.

Especially when resources are scarce – which they almost always are – and the job to be done is correspondingly bigger and more complex, it's essential for private and public stakeholders to work together. Foundations and sponsors can develop innovative approaches and serve as partners to governments.

This applies in Switzerland and – on a higher level – to the "big" problems facing the whole world. That's why UBS has committed itself to raising more private capital to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, or UN SDGs.

Our engagement goes beyond that. With our UBS Optimus Foundation we help UBS clients use their wealth to drive positive social change for children. We connect clients with entrepreneurs, new technologies, and proven models that bridge a gap preventing children from surviving and thriving. We select programs that improve children's health, education and protection, ones that have the potential to be transformative, scalable and sustainable.

But let's not forget that philanthropy begins on a small scale. As I said, it's not about quantity, but about our attitude and our desire to change things for the better and help as much as we're able and willing to do.

The most important thing is to actually do something, and for as many of us as possible to get personally involved in one way or another.

Personal commitment can achieve a great deal, in your immediate neighborhood or – more indirectly in partnership with others, by helping those who need it most.

Many of us lead very privileged lives. We must never forget that, and never take it for granted.

By investing our time and our personal energy  – everyone doing as they see fit – then, bit by bit, we can help to make the world a better place. For everyone.