Billionaires are getting younger. According to City Index, the average age of the world’s billionaires has fallen from 58 in 2014 to 47 in 2023. Forbes’ most recent list of the world’s wealthiest people now boasts a litany of remarkably young individuals, from singer-songwriter Taylor Swift to 19-year-old heiress Livia Voigt.
This shift in the demographic reflects evolving economic dynamics, the rise of bright young-minded entrepreneurs, and the beginning of the great “Zillenial” wealth transfer. A younger generation is typically perceived as having a greater awareness of more progressive views and ideals, whether it be environmental sustainability or workers’ rights. It also presents an unparalleled opportunity for this rising generation of Zillenial billionaires to reshape the realm of charitable giving, patronage, and philanthropy. This is an opportunity that should start right now.
All too often, I see ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) relegate philanthropy as a plan for the future, one they’ll pick up in retirement, a footnote in the narrative of their success. Why defer the opportunity to leverage their energy, resources, and network for societal good? Instead, they should seize the moment to create major change and address pressing global challenges with youthful vigor and determination.
One specific concept of philanthropy benefits greatly from time and experience spent: moonshot philanthropy. An audacious approach inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s visionary address in 1962, it calls on UHNWIs to invest not only their capital and expertise into high-risk early-stage endeavors but also their time to help create long-term impact in their field of choice.
The ethos of this philanthropy, which asks us to confront grand challenges with unwavering resolve, is encompassed into three fundamental pillars. Firstly, there’s a willingness to embrace risk, the immediate acceptance that failure is possible but that it can also act as a catalyst for innovation and learning. Secondly, humility is a mindset that is open to collaboration and partnership. Lastly, perseverance develops an unwavering commitment to champion a single issue over many years, if not decades.
The advantage of commencing this journey early cannot be overstated. I am not a billionaire, but I have been blessed in life with financial independence and a modest surplus of discretionary capital. I began my journey into moonshot philanthropy, with my journey for universal access to vision correction, in my early forties. The decision afforded me the substantial runway to cultivate my expertise, develop new partnerships, and affect worldwide tangible change. Had I started only in the past few years, we would not have seen the progress made in this field, including supporting the Rwandan government to establish the first universally accessible primary eye-care service in a developing country (perhaps any country) in history, and the unanimous adoption by the UN General Assembly of resolution A75L, committing all countries to eyecare for all by 2030. Mainly because, in my sixties, I didn’t have the energy I once had! We, as human beings, are blessed with many gifts as we look to chart a course towards long-term, transformative philanthropy. None is more valuable than time.
It is very encouraging to see so many more UHNWIs wanting to make a difference. They are doing so at a time of great societal change and challenge. Therefore, it’s worth taking a step back for a moment and thinking deeply about what sort of commitment they want to make.
We cannot measure our contributions solely by the magnitude of our wealth. We must also measure it through our longstanding commitment to social good.
With philanthropy, an old proverb often comes to mind: “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now.”
