Trista's 2025 Philanthropy Predictions

2025 Predictions

Every year, the FutureGood team and I dust off our crystal ball (okay, it’s more like digging through a year of research and notes from talking to hundreds of leaders in the field) and predict the trends that will shake up foundations and nonprofits in the coming year. Here’s what’s coming for 2025:  

The Sector Under Siege

I’m known for my optimism and ability to find bright spots that will impact the social sector but we are facing some existential threats that need our immediate attention.  HR 9495 wasn’t just a bad dream; it was the opening salvo in a growing effort to undermine nonprofits and foundations. Buckle up, folks, because the hits are going to keep coming. The sector will need to befriend elected officials and remind them that nonprofits are massive employers and the duct tape holding society together.  

Oh, and if you’re working on climate, reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ issues, or immigration? Stock up on security measures because threats to staff and buildings are on the rise. Who needs to skydive when you have the adrenaline rush of doxxing and office evacuations?  

Embracing the Digital Revolution

AI isn’t just for writing questionable blog posts or generating ads where the main character has one too many fingers. In 2025, nonprofits will embrace their techy side, using AI to streamline operations, analyze data, and personalize donor engagement. We’re also predicting a new class of consultants who’ll show up like tech-savvy fairy godparents to help nonprofits deploy these tools while keeping an eye out for digital bias. This shift means your team can spend less time on repetitive work and more time on the big, messy, world-saving stuff.  

Journalism Rises from the Ashes of Misinformation

We’re all drowning in AI-generated nonsense, from fake headlines to articles that barely make sense. But out of this mess, real journalism is making a comeback.

Hyperlocal outlets, ethnic media, and journalism schools are reclaiming their space, cutting through the noise, and rebuilding trust. In a sea of garbage content, journalism is the life raft we didn’t know we needed. From funding investigative journalism to backing community-driven reporting, the social sector is putting resources behind the truth-tellers, because without them, the issues we care about won’t get the spotlight they deserve.

RIP to the Hubris of a 5 Year Plan

Remember those 5-year strategic plans based on the assumption that nothing major will change? (Pause for collective laughter.) Yeah, those are a pre-2020 relic. The new approach to strategic planning is all about dreaming big—think 20- to 30-year goals—and staying flexible with quarterly tweaks. It’s like a flight plan to get you from New York to California. Turbulence will constantly get you off track but you will readjust so you don’t land in Vancouver. Strategic planning also isn’t something that you should outsource to an external expert. We need to start building internal capacity to be strategic. We just launched FutureProof to help you build that internal strategic operating system for your organization.

Double Down on DEI

Let’s be real: the Supreme Court’s decision on DEI caused a collective freak-out in the social sector. Organizations started tiptoeing backward, worried about getting into legal hot water. But here’s the thing—our communities can’t afford for us to play it safe. Anticipatory obedience? Nope. Not today.

Now is the time to lean all the way in on equity work. DEI isn’t an accessory you add at the end to make your work look nice—it’s the engine driving the whole operation. Without it, your mission stalls, and progress goes nowhere fast.

The Power of Future Thinking

Let’s face it: the world is chaotic. If it’s not economic uncertainty, it’s climate change, or the latest upheaval of democracy, or [insert existential crisis here]. In times like these, future thinking skills are not just useful—they’re mandatory. These skills let leaders do more than react; they help us anticipate trends, adapt to change, and actually plan for long-term success. Basically, they’re the difference between barely surviving and confidently thriving.

But here’s the thing—future thinking isn’t just about staying ahead of the curve. It’s about changing the curve entirely. The social sector doesn’t exist to maintain the status quo. We’re here to alter the trajectory of the future. 

About the Author: Trista Harris is a philanthropic futurist, nationally known for her unshakeable optimism and unmatched ability to predict what’s coming for the social sector. She’s also the author of “How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar” and “FutureGood: How to Use Futurism to Save the World”. As President of FutureGood, Trista helps organizations prepare for whatever wild plot twists the future throws our way.

Want to hear more? Join the conversation about Trista's Predictions for 2025 when she sits down with EPIP in January for a free webinar. Learn more and register here.