The goal of The Purpose Project is to create a dialogue and exchange of ideas between different generations of social changemakers: those who will soon retire, and those who will be responsible for leading us forward. We are working to capture the stories and experiences of accomplished social leaders so that we may share their insights and reflections with others who are looking for ways to take action and create change.

A book will share these leaders’ stories, offering readers a journey through their lives, experiences, and lessons learned. Accompanying resources will help readers uncover their own insights and create opportunities for discussion and face-to-face interaction. And a web-based technology component will help users translate inspiration into action.

We believe that the time to engage in this type of dialogue is now. At the same time that the challenges of the world are vast and growing, many of society’s current social changemakers are beginning to retire. Therefore, if our generation hopes to sustain the causes of our predecessors and address new needs as they emerge, we would be wise to capitalize on their learnings.

If we can understand how and why so many of this now-retiring generation of leaders became involved in creating social change and what has made them effective-as well as what has limited their success-then our generation will be better equipped to build on their foundation of accomplishment towards continued progress.

The Leadership Gap

“I’m not sure anyone from my generation should be saying anything to your generation except, ‘We’re really sorry for the mess you’re inheriting. We are sorry for the war in Iraq. For the huge debts you will have to pay for without getting a new social infrastructure in return. We’re sorry for the polarized country. The corporate scandals. The corrupt politics. Our imperiled democracy. We’re sorry for the sprawl and our addiction to oil and for all those toxins in the environment. Sorry about all this…good luck cleaning it up.”

Bill Moyers, Commencement Speech May 2006

Bill Moyers summarizes our social dilemma well. The problems facing our communities, country, and world need our concentrated attention and collective action. But, at the same time that the issues are growing in number and complexity, a large portion of society’s current social leaders are beginning to retire.

In the year 2000, the Annie E. Casey Foundation conducted a study of its community-based grantees and found that 85% of their non-profit leaders will likely leave their positions by 2007

This deficit in leadership in the non-profit sector was further researched and written about by Tom Tierney, Co-Founder of The Bridgespan Group, in his white paper on the impending generation gap.

This trend is occurring across the nonprofit and philanthropic sector, and today many organizations and movements are facing the challenge of finding new leaders who possess the passion, energy, and skills to lead them into the future.

Soon, it will be up to younger leaders to take responsibility for charting positive courses for the future. And it will be up to the current leaders of social justice movements to invest in the future-to inspire the next wave of social changemakers, and help empower them to lead efforts that will create sustainable results.

Equipping Future Leaders

Fortunately, the outlook is optimistic. Although younger generations are frequently criticized as apathetic and inactive by some researchers and mainstream press, a new narrative is emerging: young adults are being recognized as potential social leaders capable of fixing problems rather than as “problems to be fixed.”

Many young adults are becoming informed and seeking outlets for action. Applications to service-corps programs such as Teach for America, City Year, and the Peace Corps have consistently risen over the past decade, and 3.3 million young American’s are contributing an impressive 2.8 billion hours of service annually.

Yet, while members of our generation are aware of the issues that surround us, many are still asking, “What can I do?” We need compelling illustrations that demonstrate the potential impact of our involvement.

While some have already demonstrated willingness to act and a desire to contribute, many are still asking “How do I do it?” We need persuasive examples of how others have become involved and taken action.

And while many young adults have become involved and demonstrated potential, many are still asking, “How do we create change effectively?” We need resources that will help guide our efforts toward sustainable results.