Isaac Jones: Teaching children and young people to be philanthropic citizens

Send us Fan MailIn this episode we hear from Isaac Jones, Director of the UK charity First Give, about their work in schools helping children and young people to become 'philanthropic citizens'. Including:What does First Give do, and how did the organisation come about?What does the program look like for a participant?Is the primary aim to get schoolkids to be more philanthropic, to teach them skills of civic participation/engagement, or to teach personal skills (e.g. presentation, confidence etc)? What is the balance of emphasis between these things?Where does the work that FG does fit within schools? E.g. Is it part of the curriculum, or extra-curricular?What impact does taking part in the program have on schools as institutions?Is the program the same across all schools, or is there room for it to be tailored to the specific needs of a particular school or the local context?Are there constraints on what participants can give to? (i.e. in terms of particular geographies, cause areas or types of organisations?)What role does personal experience tend to play in the choice of causes and charities that participants support?What is the response from recipient charities like? Do they view these donations differently or value them more because of how they have come about?Is “philanthropy” a helpful term when engaging young people, or does it cause confusion or bring connotations that might frame things in unhelpful ways?Do students who take part in FG demonstrate any increased engagement with their local area, or greater propensity to engage in associational life?How does taking part in affect students understanding of the charity sector?Do participant feel any better about the state of the world after taking part in the program? Do programs like First Give’s does have a role to play in addressing concerns about polarisation etc?Further Resources:First Give's websiteExternal evaluation report on First GiveIsaac's blog, "Giving Feels Good"Philanthropisms podcast episode on teaching philanthropy with Lindsey McDougle and David Campbell.Philanthropisms podcast episode with Natasha Friend and Maria Ahmed on participatory grantmaking