Ascend Releases Landmark Report Supporting 2Gen Investment Approach

Since 2010, philanthropy has fueled a new movement that has re-embraced a two-generation, or 2Gen, approach with the goal of building family well-being by simultaneously supporting children and the adults in their lives together.

Earlier this month, Ascend at the Aspen Institute released a new report documenting over $500 million in public and private investments in 2Gen approaches over the past decade, including $114 million invested through six federal pilots and initiatives, $273 million invested by six states, and nearly $200 million from the philanthropic community.

The report, The 2Gen Investment Case: Making the Most of Capital in All Its Forms, will be the topic of an online discussion with Anne Mosle, Aspen Institute Vice President and Ascend Founder & Executive Director, and Dr. Raquel Hatter, Managing Director of Human Services at the Kresge Foundation, on April 28 from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. You can register here.

Mosle writes in the report’s introduction that its findings offer a pathway to continued success. “The 2Gen Investment Case documents a unifying success story that shows that when we galvanize and focus financial resources, we can go from pilot capital to system-shifting capital. It details how to capitalize onpromising solutions and have significant impact. It is — in clear, simple terms — a proof point illustrating how a new mindset and approach can change the trajectory for millions of families.

“Imagine what would be possible if we shift from the current paradigm of mission chasing money to money fueling mission. As more communities and states embrace the 2Gen approach, we can expect the financial capital dedicated to 2Gen approaches to grow from the current, conservative estimate of $500 million to over $1 billion. We can use this report’s findings as a roadmap to make a case for other good ideas ready for a quantum leap forward, informed by data and science, lived experience and expertise, and insights from on the ground innovation and best practice.”

Some takeaways from the report on how to align change capital to reach and positively impact more families:

1. Align capital to back new ways of thinking. “For 2Gen, this has meant focusing resources on the earliest years and following new systems thinking, not old system tinkering.”
2. Tap philanthropic and public funding streams and create buy-in at the onset: “Philanthropic capital proves models worth trying, and government funding gives new models the reach to make the difference.”
3. Focus resources to incentivize services and systems to streamline and link existing programs and policies for big payoffs without starting whole new programs. “A big part of the 2Gen approach has been linking programs for parents with programs for children to unite families instead of creating silos within them.”
4.  Invest “patient capital” that gives room for growth. “For 2Gen to be embedded at the local, state, and federal level, we needed to grow and support a field of practitioners, policymakers, researchers, caregivers, and parents. It took time for this field to modernize, build relationships, and mature as reimagined systems took hold.”
5. Engage in participatory grantmaking and investments that involve families as co-equals. “Engaging parents as co-designers and not just program recipients is a critical mindset shift and practice.”
6. Fund inter-sector and interagency collaboration with the express purpose of serving whole families, not just parts of them. “By investing in mission-aligned public sector leaders at important levers of change, like those working in health and human services, we can build on front-edge state efforts like Washington state’s Poverty Reduction Initiative and Task Force, which was sparked by Department of Social and Health Services leadership.”
7. Create more streamlined and agile evaluation capacity that measures interconnectivity, tracks multiple contributions, and applies real-time learning to improve outcomes and processes for strong case-making. “With technology advances, we can measure impact like never before. It is essential to build on existing case studies with data and apply new rapid-cycle evaluation tools, lived experience, and technology. Strong numbers attract strong capital streams. These insights offer keys to unlock the trillion-dollar sleeping giant of the public health and human services sector and lay a foundation for a new community-public-private  model.”

The report concludes: “Interest in and adoption of 2Gen approaches have accelerated significantly over the last decade. Now is an opportune time to develop the resources and structures that funders need to continue making these strategic investments, ensuring that 2Gen approaches are the standard for all family-serving organizations.”

Contributors to the report include: Anne Mosle, Marjorie Sims, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, Family and Workforce Centers of America (FWCA), Colorado Department of Human Services, Raquel Hatter, The Kresge Foundation, Buffett Early Childhood Fund, William J. and Dorothy K. O’Neill Foundation, Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, Brighton Center