Why it's time to promote life changing philanthropy with game changing creativity.

The top 1 per cent own 50 percent of the world’s wealth.

According to Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the Twenty-First Century”, “If a radical shift does not occur, and all else remains the same, within 30 years, the top 1 percent will own 60 percent of total world wealth, three times the 20 percent they possessed in 2013!”

Short of wringing our hands in despair and calling for a global wealth tax on the super-rich, what can we in the advertising industry do about it?

Greater philanthropy is the only antidote to the ever greater consolidation of wealth

How about we reframe the growing concentration of wealth in fewer hands as an opportunity?

Advertising can make philanthropy feel like a pleasure, not a duty.

If advertising could move every philanthropist in the world (starting in Ireland) to give just 1% more of their wealth, imagine the social return on that money and its impact on people’s lives.

Philanthropy is an Irish problem.

We may be the world’s biggest donor per capita on gofundme.com, but compared to other European countries, the number of grant making organisations in Ireland is estimated to be 30 times lower than the European average (McKinsey & Company Philanthropy in the Republic of Ireland (2009).

To give you an idea of the gap between us and the most philanthropic countries, consider this.

The top 30 givers in the UK give around 1.2% of their wealth; the top 30 in the US give 13%. That’s quite a disparity. Comparable figures for Ireland are not available but they are lower than the UK.

Another surprising shortfall in our generosity is the relatively low levels of legacy giving in Ireland.

2023 research by Community Foundation Ireland (CFI) shows that while legacy giving is increasing by 15-16% each year, it is still at less than half the rate in the UK.

All of which might explain the launch of The National Philanthropy Policy for Ireland 2024-2028 in December last year.

Ireland is best placed to launch a campaign to promote greater philanthropy

·????? We are rich in creative talent.

·????? We are as renowned for our generosity as we are for our pubs.

·????? We are adept at producing creative work that rings true inside and outside of Ireland.

Cannes 2025 here we come?

The cultural context question is now a compulsory element on every Cannes entry and I can think of no better brief than one that starts with answering questions like:

Why is it that in a country like Ireland and the UK where ordinary individuals are disproportionately willing to donate to good causes relative to the rest of the world when their high net worth individuals aren’t?

What is it about US culture or high net worth individuals that makes them worldclass philanthropists?

Is donating anonymously the ultimate virtue or is philanthropy more effective when it is accompanied by a donor’s public advocacy?

Why are rich people potentially more comfortable bragging about their luxury purchases than they are about their philanthropy?

How do cultural norms about what constitutes success differ between the most and least philanthropic countries?

We all want to signal our success, but in ways that endear us to the people we care about. ?How does being super wealthy change the rules of this social game, if at all?

Interesting right?

I mean if you had to work on a proactive brief, it’s not a bad place to start?

Or maybe you won’t have to, because Ireland’s National Policy on Philanthropy 2024-2028 includes a stipulation for a communications strategy.

So what are you waiting for? To quote the closing sentence of Dame Shirley’s book:

“We waste too much time being afraid, when what we should really fear is wasting time”.

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#CannesLions2024 #philanthropy #creativity?

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