Young Australians' political engagements: rich, famous and humanitarian?

Abstract

‘Celanthropy’ and ‘philanthrocapitalism’ are terms that denote the purportedly growing engagement of billionaire celebrities and capitalists in humanitarian pursuits, establishing and directing projects, such as Bob Geldof’s ‘Make poverty history’ or Bill Gates’ commitment to eradicating AIDS in India. My ARC-funded research of 1000 young Australians reveals that some of them appear to be influenced by ‘celanthropy’, combining imagined careers of fame and fortune with humanitarian achievements. Indeed, there is more enthusiasm for philanthropic engagements than for mainstream political activism among the respondents, although neither pursuit engages a majority, by contrast with their commitment to family and work/career. My findings add weight to other sociologists’ findings that young people are not alienated from politics per se, but rather are not generally interested in the mainstream politics practised by politicians and parties.