Growing Giving: The Data on Doing Good
Place-based giving is a collaborative philanthropic approach that concentrates financial resources, volunteering, and local capacity-building into a specific geographic community.
Organised under a well-proven model of place-based philanthropy, and established in almost every region of Aotearoa New Zealand, Community Foundations are local, independent, and not-for-profit. Regionally-focused, they work to strengthen communities from within and enable home-grown aspirations to take shape. They are connectors between local generosity and community needs and opportunities.
Aotearoa New Zealand’s 18 strong network are completely independent from the nation’s 12 legislative community trusts. The foundations are building long-term, reliable funding streams for their local communities by investing and growing the gifts they receive. So, in effect, a donor is not really giving to a Community Foundation, but through it. And the invested, not-for-profit model means that local generosity can have an impact, forever.
Eleanor Cater is CEO of Community Foundations of Aotearoa NZ (CFANZ), the national membership body supporting and uniting all of the regional Community Foundations across the motu. She has recently released a white paper titled Why New Zealand is leaving generosity on the table which explores how we encourage philanthropy, how we compare with other nations, and some of the ways we can strengthen our own philanthropy ecosystem.
Anchored by the fact that this country is about to experience the largest transfer of wealth in its history as $1.6 trillion passes from one generation to the next by 2050, Eleanor’s report explores how Aotearoa New Zealand stacks up against five peer nations (Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Singapore) in preparing for this extraordinary moment in time. The report offers a series of recommendations:
1. Development of a ten-year National Philanthropy Strategy in partnership with the sector.
2. Removal of the tax credit cap related to donations of more than $100,000.00 that was introduced as part of Budget 2026.
3. Consideration given towards introducing tax benefits for donating shares, property, and cultural heritage items.
4. Creation of a meaningful incentive for charitable bequests.
5. Fixing the digital and administrative barriers that are providing an obstacle to Kiwis who want to do genuine good.
“The wealth transfer is already underway, and the window is narrow to build the policies, infrastructure, and positive narratives that will steer a percentage of it towards public good. What’s needed now is sector strategy and political leadership that will create these enabling conditions for philanthropy to thrive,” says Eleanor.
Hot off the press, and highly relevant to ‘The Great Wealth Transfer’ as it’s been coined, CFANZ has just released its latest research focused on New Zealanders’ attitudes to bequests, drawn from its Giving in Aotearoa New Zealand research findings. The research, run by independent research agency BERL, had over 3,000 respondents during March and April 2026 and it is designed to help the sector understand giving behaviours, motivations, and barriers across Aotearoa New Zealand.
As recently as 2021, Fundraising Institute of New Zealand research found that only 6% of New Zealanders had made provision for a gift in their will to charity, with a further 21% likely to, or seriously considering, doing so. Eleanor says CFANZ’s research indicates something different.
“It was a survey that reached a high percentage of people who already give, and we were a little surprised as to the level of interest in gifts in wills. A total of 52.3% of New Zealanders surveyed were open to the idea – either considering doing it, intending to do it, or have already left a charitable gift in their will,” says Eleanor.
“Our research indicates that the last few years have seen a change he narrative, helped along by combination of charity sector campaign activity and advocacy in the professional advisor space, along with research such as The Bequest Report which was released in 2025 by JBWere,” she says.
The JBWere report stated that charitable bequests are mostly unrestricted in their use and have a return on investment around six times the average for all fundraising. However, bequests account for just 1.3% of all charitable income in Aotearoa New Zealand, indicating a huge opportunity for growth.
“Bequests are starting to appear in both charity sector and wealth management conversations. Quite a lot of wealth management companies in Aotearoa New Zealand have now appointed philanthropy specialists including JBWere, Craigs Investment Partners, and Forsyth Barr. Philanthropy and structured giving are becoming topics that are being talked about more in these spaces, so we’re not surprised that there are indications that things may be shifting.”
Despite these promising developments, a key finding from the CFANZ research is that it’s not a topic being brought up enough in professional advisor conversations.
“According to our research, only one in five people indicated that their professional advisors – whether lawyers or financial advisors – have raised the topic of charitable giving. So, that’s a really big disconnect if you have more than half of Kiwis indicating they’re interested in the idea of leaving a gift in their will – the crucial conversation that helps move interest to action is mostly not happening at all,” says Eleanor.
“There seems to be a bit of a knowledge gap, which we’re really interested in helping to address. Having research that links back to that is one way of bridging this gap in professional advice. Ongoing learning will have a significant impact on the frequency and depth of conversations around giving and philanthropy.”
It’s also very timely that Wills Month, established by the CFANZ network in 2018, is taking place in September. This national campaign seeks to encourage Kiwis to write a new will or update an existing one, while also considering a charitable gift or bequest as part of that process. It’s an excellent prompt for New Zealanders to consider how their potential future donations can have a long-term positive effect.
Eleanor encourages Philanthropy New Zealand members to get on board with promoting Wills Month, since it represents one way some of the enormous wealth transfer currently underway can be encouraged to find its way into the giving ecosystem.
“All of us in philanthropy have a role to play in growing awareness of this campaign and gifts in wills, and normalising those kinds of giving conversations. We all have a responsibility to be part of the ecosystem that nurtures and grows philanthropy for the future of Aotearoa New Zealand.”
“I’ve yet to hear a funder say they have enough money to support every application they receive, meet all of their community’s needs, and support all their aspirations to thrive. Growing philanthropic funds has to be a priority for all of us and helping to fly the flag around bequests – the big philanthropic gifts to both charities and communities – is something we can all start to talk about more, normalise, and even lead by example,” she says.
The CFANZ website offers a wealth of knowledge and information relevant to the sector – subscribe to its e-newsletter so you don’t miss future releases of research drawn from the Giving in Aotearoa New Zealand survey. The upcoming CFANZ Conference 2026, focused on the theme of ‘Building connected communities – Te hanga i ngā hapori tūhono’, is another valuable learning opportunity for the growth of community philanthropy across the country
In closing, Eleanor lays down a wero for everyone working in philanthropy.
“This generation is kaitiaki for the next. Aotearoa New Zealand must look at maturing practices, research, and evidence, ultimately motivating action and new philanthropy, to make the most of the opportunities ahead. Together, we can grow community funds significantly over the coming decades, but it will take collective action and commitment, working together for the future of Aotearoa New Zealand.”