Meet the MCON14 Be Fearless Pitch It Challengers

Posted on June 19, 2014October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

Congratulations to the MCON14 Be Fearless Pitch It finalists! New this year at the Millennial engagement conference, MCON14, the Case Foundation will host the first ever Be Fearless Pitch It challenge exclusively for Millennial social entrepreneurs. Up for grabs is $2,000, which the winner can use to help turn their idea into a reality. Both in-person attendees as well as live stream viewers will be able to watch all three pitches and vote to help determine the winner. Be sure to cast your vote on June 19 at 10:50 AM CT by tuning into the livestream at www.themillennialimpact.com.

Here’s a special sneak peak about each of the final three organizations—Ecoviate, Give Mob and Scholarships Expanding Education—and how their big ideas embody the Be Fearless principles.

What goals are you working towards at your organization? How would the grand prize from the Challenge help you achieve that goal?

Ecoviate – Our ultimate goal is to eradicate global warming. Sounds crazy, right? We currently have two technologies, the EcoTube and Greenshields, that reduce emissions from transportation and the industrial sector. We are working towards launching our products after an initial pilot phase. So far, we have bootstrapped and hacked our way into prototypes, testing, and a pilot program. The MCON funds will help us remain fearless with our approach and give us the capital to further perfect our design and go-to-market strategy. We are doing this because we want to show the kids of the world that even teenagers can do impactful things in their own lives with limited resources.

Give Mob – At GiveMob we strive to inspire small acts of kindness that anyone, regardless of age, can participate in. We hope to make charitable giving as easy, accessible, and intuitive as possible on mobile. Our goal is to become the primary way individuals discover, explore, and give to nonprofit and charitable causes while on their mobile devices.

Scholarships Expanding Education – When we initially developed the SEE concept, our outlook centered around scaling the platform quickly. It became clear, however, that long-term, sustainable growth will result from exceptional SEE scholarship organizer experiences. Our goal is to have each SEE user come away from their SEE experience saying, “Wow…that was cool. I did something there”. We want to craft philanthropic experiences that are meaningful and personal. We’re willing to trade slower growth, in the short term, for the awesome stories that will emerge from investing in the experience of each user.

What fearless approaches have you implemented in your life/organization?

Ecoviate – We strongly believe that age is not a determining factor to success. The Ecoviate team consists of some of the brightest young minds in the country. We know that our age is not a limiting factor. The beauty of being young is that it gives you room to take risk and be bold with your pursuits. Using our fearless story, we want to show other kids around the world that they too have the ability to build the future that they want to see.

Give Mob – If we were to win the MCON funds, we would put it towards development of Version 2 of our iPhone and Android app. In the past few months, we’ve learned an immense amount about how people are using and interacting with our app, and we know exactly what we need to improve on. We also have a few new features, including location-based giving and offline interactions, that we are exploring.

Scholarships Expanding Education – We came up with the SEE scholarship creation concept in early 2013. We had what we thought was a great idea, a platform where anyone can create a named scholarship in honor of a loved one, but we had no computer programming experience and no money. During that final semester at Wesleyan I decided to teach myself enough computer programming to build a simple prototype that we could use to explain the concept. I would go to forums, copy and paste snippets of code, and pretty much just see what happened. After five months of this, I managed to cobble together a platform that actually worked. The thing was a mess, but it worked. We built up enough courage to launch it at giveandsee.org as a beta-version of our platform and over the past six months, we’ve helped create 20 scholarships that have raised over $15,000. Putting the platform out there was a bit scary, but the experience has been incredible.

Do you have a question to ask these millennial entrepreneurs? Leave a comment or tweet us at @CaseFoundation with the hashtag #MCON14.

____________________

Ecoviate

Ecoviate creates sustainable technologies and empowers others to do the exact same. To see their incredible work, visit www.ecoviate.com

Give Mob

GiveMob was developed with the idea that mobile giving can and should be as seamless and accessible as possible. GiveMob is a charitable giving app for iPhone and Android that allows users to donate a small sum of money ($5-$10) to featured charities through SMS. Visit www.givemobapp.org to learn more.

Scholarships Expanding Education (SEE)

Scholarships Expanding Education (SEE) provides the necessary tools and logistical support for anyone to create, and fundraise for, a named scholarship in honor of a loved one. Anyone can create a SEE scholarship at giveandsee.org.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Millennials

Posted on June 12, 2014October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

The Case Foundation invites you to join us at MCON14—a special convening on Millennial engagement—June 18 and 19, 2014, in Chicago at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Together, we’ll explore how this fearless generation is redefining issues in our communities, building movements to create change and using their talents and resources to inspire peers.

The four themes we’ll be covering at MCON14 include:

Culture: How organizations and companies can redefine culture in order to build stronger businesses.
Relationships: How technologies build transparent relationships among constituents and consumers.
Movements: How Millennials are using communities and a common purpose to promote change.
Resources: How to use talent and financial resources to build stronger products, services and human centered organizations.

Whether you join us in-person (register) or via livestream (free), you’ll be able to hear unique insights from our own Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation Dale Partridge of Sevenly; Sujean Lee of Chobani; Justin Herman of the Federal government; Paulie Harraka the NASCAR driver; and many more talented changemakers.

You’ll also be one of the first to hear new findings from the 2014 Millennial Impact Report—part of the ongoing Millennial Impact Project. To date, more than 16,000 Millennials and 50 partners have participated in the project to amplify the voices of this generation. This year the report focuses on corporate engagement with Millennials and offers fresh perspectives straight from Millennial respondents.

Can’t make it? Follow along on Twitter at @CaseFoundation and #MCON14 for live updates from the team.

The Case Foundation is the proud Presenting and Founding sponsor of MCON14 and the official Research and Insights partner for the Millennial Impact Project.

How your nonprofit can engage with Millennials

Posted on July 31, 2013November 1, 2018 by Case Foundation

This past July, more than 10,000 young adults, thought leaders, and philanthropists joined us in person and online for the Millennial Impact Conference (MCON13) – a conference hosted by Achieve, the Case Foundation, and the Buckingham Foundation, that explored the expectations of Millennials interacting with issues and organizations they care about. The conference marked the fourth release of the Millennial Impact Report, a comprehensive digest of how this young generation of do-gooders connect, get involved, and give. Our top takeaways from the report outline the importance of nonprofit engagement with this impact and tech-minded group and how we can tap into this next great generation to drive social change.

Engage: The way nonprofits interact and engage with Millennials is changing. It isn’t just about asking for a donation and expecting them to give, but rather asking them to engage in other low-lift methods like spreading the word about a cause through social media or signing a petition.
Going Mobile: Eight in 10 Millennials have smartphones and use those to connect with causes, which means the ways organizations communicate and how must evolve. Nonprofits and foundations should think “mobile first” and explore responsive design and content to optimize their online platforms for the Millennial community to meet them on their playing field. They need to re-imagine their digital presence for the most effective ways to share their mission and success stories.
Word-of-Mouth: Three out of four Millennials like, retweet, or share content on social media. Nonprofits can capitalize on this and create easy ways for their followers to spread information about issues and organizations they care about. Three out of four respondents also expressed an interest in joining nonprofit young professionals groups; this is an opportunity for charities to create networking and educational events for this demographic.
Collaborate: Milllennials tend to share information about preferred causes instead of specific organizations. One of our Be Fearless principles here at the Case Foundation is to “reach beyond your bubble” and embrace collaboration, a key element for reaching the masses. When nonprofits partner with each other, businesses, and government, their message grows stronger, they garner more attention to their cause, and they grow their supporter base.
Be Authentic: Hype and jargon no longer drive action. Philanthropies need to humanize their voice in the digital world and avoid trying to manipulate their readers through emotional visuals or words. Try using straightforward communications that clearly define the mission, the issue being addressed, and how a potential supporter can make a difference.
Embrace Email: Twenty years ago, when our founders Steve and Jean Case were building AOL, most of the world had never heard of “email.” They worked to bring America online and revolutionize the way people communicated and shared information. Today, email is still paramount and Millennials are using the preverbal “old school” method to learn more about brands and causes that interest them. This is an opportunity for organizations to design and drive action with email in mind – such as using plain text messages and optimizing images for smartphones and email clients.
Be succinct: “#Millennials are a generation speaking in 140 characters, watching 6 sec. @VineApp & @SnapChat videos. Learn to speak in Milllennial.” Now go tweet that!
Use Visuals: With new platforms like Pinterest and Instagram emerging as top players in the social community space, nonprofits have new channels for storytelling. In addition to educating your community on the basics, there are many opportunities for sharing impact through photos, videos, infographics, and even the infamous animated GIF. Some of the most shared and liked posts on Twitter and Facebook are rich media content.

Millennials Take the Stage at MCON13

Posted on July 19, 2013November 1, 2018 by Case Foundation

Millennials as a generation represent many different things to many different people. Attributes like “egotistical,” “tech savvy,” and “educated” are all characteristics commonly used to describe this generation that is 80 million strong. Today, I can add a few more to that list of traits, including: empowered, charming, fearless, bold, funny, empathetic, and open. These descriptors capture the overwhelmingly talented personalities at yesterday’s Millennial Impact conference hosted by Achieve in Indianapolis, IN, called MCON13.

A diverse, cross-sector group of 300 thought leaders, executives, Millennials, and practitioners all gathered to explore, understand, and share new trends and ideas on how Millennials want to connect, give, and get involved with issues and organizations. The enlightening day featured almost 20 different speakers representing the nonprofit, corporate, education, entertainment, technology, and media sectors.

The Case Foundation is proud to be a sponsor of MCON13 for the third consecutive year, and a research partner for Achieve’s Millennial Impact Report, which was released yesterday as well. We believe that this unique gathering and significant research is helping to advance the larger conversation around Millennial engagement. By fostering a deeper and better understanding of this generation—the “next greatest generation”— we can support organizational and corporate sector efforts to work with this generation to create more meaningful impact.

There were countless takeaways from the conference, and we’ve picked the top 10 lessons learned and stories to recap our experience and to help extend the conversation:

1. Millennials are confident, self-directed, resourceful, and want a high-level of engagement in whatever they do whether that be personal or professional. – Nicole Roy Tobin, Deloitte

2. Millennials have been dubbed the “Me generation.” Look closer, however and you will see that it’s actually more about the “We.” – Justin Wheeler, LiNK

3. Did you know?

Twitter registers 1 billion tweets every 2.5 days and has 200 million users worldwide.
Forty-two percent of Twitter’s unique online users are between the ages of 18 and 34 years old.
Forty-nine percent of Twitter’s unique US mobile users are between the ages of 18 and 34 years old.

– Jenna Golden, Twitter

4. Is the glass half-full or is it half-empty? The answer is—yes. That is to say, when assessing a situation, we must acknowledge that in all cases there will be both strengths and weaknesses to take into consideration. Own them both to succeed and truly lead. – Paul Schmitz, Public Allies

5. There is not just a job crisis that is impacting Millennials, there is a “calling” crisis—what are your passions, what is your meaning? – Mike Del Ponte, SOMA

6. Millennials represent the most culturally and ethnically diverse group our nation has ever seen. – Jose Antonio Vargas, Define American

7. Every organization and corporation is made up of people, and we often overlook that fundamental element and forget that at the core of everything we do are relationships. The reality is that we use digital and social media these days to humanize ourselves to the masses. – Azita Ardakani, Lovesocial

8. When creating your own content for Millennials consider Millennial motivations with online video and social media, remember that this generation tends to follow the four C’s: Create content, be part of the Community, stay Connected across devices, and Curate information. – Jessica Mason, YouTube

9. “The volunteer experience has the power to transform an individual to be a giver for the rest of their life.” – Rachael Chong, Catchafire

10. Organizations should first look within to identify what their passion points are that will drive their social good identity. This identity should be authentic and reflect your organization’s core values. Millennials can tell a fake or sniff out an insincere campaign, promotion, ad, or other false front in an instant… and that’s all the time it takes for them to click off of your page. – Sophia Bush, actress and advocate

We invite you to share your own thoughts, ideas, and questions here in the comments section of this blog, or tweet us at @CaseFoundation with the hashtag #MCON13.

The Future of Your Nonprofit Organization And Why You Need to Join This Conversation

Posted on July 11, 2013November 1, 2018 by Case Foundation

Written by Derrick Feldmann on behalf of the Case Foundation:

“Why do you care so much about Millennials?”

A person in the audience at one of my recent speaking engagements asked me this question in relation to my research, The Millennial Impact, and the book I co-authored, Cause for Change: The Why and How of Nonprofit Millennial Engagement.

Seems like a reasonable question, but some of you may be surprised by my answer:

I care about Millennials getting involved in causes, but I care more about the state of the organizations that are trying to make a difference in our communities. I worry they are not prepared to engage Millennials who want to be involved and have not adapted to the growing business changes this generation and others are demanding, such as: transparency, real time reporting, digital connectedness, and collaborative leadership.

Lets face it. Today we are dealing with a whole new way to do business and social sector work that is playing an increasingly important role across sectors.

We have websites that allow us to connect with anyone needing help in communities we never heard of or have ever dreamed of visiting.

I can watch polar bears in the Arctic in real time to see what is happening to their ecosystem, and if so moved can support efforts to preserve their habitat with several clicks of a button.

The concept of workplace teams now means a team of individuals not based on location, but rather brought together by talent and expertise.

We hear about tragic news—such as the Boston bombings—one second after it happens in less than 140 characters.

This is not meant to scare us, but rather to help us change the way we operate … in order to easily invite anyone from anywhere ‘in’ who wants to help, or respond when asked by our constituents to react to local needs, and innovate when necessary.

Why so much attention on Millennials?

It’s simple.

They are the largest generation with more than 80 million in their ranks.
Their consumer discretionary spending amounts to $300 billion each year.
They are entering our workforce and as a result other generations are finding themselves challenged by this generation’s work/life blending concept.
They want to conquer the world.

Perhaps most importantly, they want to accomplish all of this regardless of what existing institutions are already trying to do. For some, this “Millennial” approach may be frustrating, while for others this only adds to the intrigue of this generation and increases their desire to find common ground with Millennials.

The bottom line is that Millennials want the same thing you do—to offer ideas, be challenged, and to create solutions to our pressing problems. They want to be involved in causes, but not every organization is open—open to the ways the generation seeks to be involved. Nor are they open to the idea that today’s public expectation is that the organization is more human and transparent than ever before. Millennials are knocking on the doors of these organizations and asking them to listen. Unfortunately, we see that some organizations shut them, and any generation that disagrees, out with the way they do business.

So then the question is whether or not all generations of constituents, volunteers, staff members, and leaders for a common good in our communities (however you define that community), can find a way to work together in order to reach the impact we all desire.

The answer is that we have to, because if we don’t, we run an even bigger risk. Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation, put it eloquently in the foreword of Cause for Change:

“If government or nonprofits aren’t moving fast or being effective, Millennials will channel their efforts through corporations or communities. And if corporations and communities aren’t working they’ll use their dollars, followers, and friends to demand change or to support those institutions that are making change happen on their terms.”

Rather than perpetuate the ongoing development of more organizations, why not find better ways to get Millennials and organizations working together?

So then what’s it going to take?

Organizations interested in operating differently—more openly, creating more collaborative work and constituent environments, and refining how external audiences can communicate with, involve and give so it is easier, faster, and more trustworthy.

At the same time, Millennials must be willing to come to organizations with better expectations of how institutions are ever evolving. This is a time of evolution where change does not happen overnight. Millennials must recognize that organizations possess much of the historical knowledge of community building and valuable ability to address needs.

We need an environment where both sides can excel with each other. Where conversation and dialogue about the newest ways to build these movements and how organizations can adapt.

That is why we built MCON—a platform to create dialogue among executive leaders wanting to engage the Millennial generation, but who need assistance to get going. MCON is a day of thought leadership from both Millennials and non-Millennials talking about their experiences, sharing what has failed, and collaborating on ways in which they will innovate as they go about their journey of redefining their organization. This year, MCON13 will take place on July 18 both online (FREE livestream) and in person (register) in Indianapolis, IN.

After MCON13, the conversation will continue with some of the best leaders and practitioners who are actively using social media, service and fundraising techniques to engage Millennials. This 12-month program, MI Talks, is included with every in person or online paid ticket to MCON. Participants will build upon the thought leadership gained at MCON13 with specific strategies and tactics from organizations such as Crochet Kids or Water.org.

I know the generation may frustrate you and make you work hard for their dollars and time, but trust me, magic truly happens when Millennials and organizations come together for a common good. Join us at MCON13 to hear how your organization can get started with a new approach to how you work with and for a generation that is ready and waiting to be engaged.

Register to attend MCON in person or online on July 18 at themillennialimpact.com.

Derrick Feldmann is the CEO of Achieve Guidance. You can follow him on Twitter @derrickfeldmann.

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