Nonprofit seeks Gen Z civic engagement through easy “civic actions”

Nonprofit targets Gen Z with “civic actions” it says start small

A privately funded nonprofit is betting that small, low-barrier steps can pull more young people into civic life. The initiative, announced Wednesday, asks schools, employers and other partners to encourage young people to take on public-minded efforts such as calling elected representatives, volunteering locally or hosting neighborhood conversations.

The nonprofit, C&S — previously known as the Institute for Citizens & Scholars — laid out a three-year goal to reach 20 million young people ages 14 to 24. Its approach, led by C&S President Rajiv Vinnakota, is designed to counter narratives that Generation Z is disengaged or resigned.

C&S is also positioning the campaign as part of the broader lead-up to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s signing, a milestone the group said has spurred multiple efforts aimed at uniting Americans to address shared challenges. The nonprofit’s plan emphasizes actions that young people can begin with quickly, rather than activities that require navigating complex sign-up processes.

Vinnakota described the campaign as an incremental effort. “You’re not going to immediately go to a gym and try to bench press 325 pounds. You’re gonna start easy, simple, something you can do — both to affirm and start to build your muscle,” he said. “That’s what these civic actions are all about.”

C&S said its internal research indicates that young people are more likely to get involved when they believe their participation will have a meaningful impact and when they are given opportunities to develop solutions themselves. The nonprofit also said the biggest barriers to civic participation are that young people do not know where to begin and do not believe they can make a difference.

The group’s focus on accessible participation aligns with a broader push for “informal volunteering” among Gen Zers. Jennifer Sirangelo, president and CEO of Points of Light, said younger people often embrace help that is not affiliated with institutions. Instead, she said they may support neighbors directly or ask birthday party attendees to donate to a cause, arguing that the approach fits how young people act.

Sirangelo told The Associated Press last month, “Gen Z wants to do it fast, they want to do it authentic, they want to do it right now,” and she said, “They don’t have time — no patience for institutions or signing up.” In the C&S framing, the goal is to work within that impulse by creating civic opportunities that are easier to start.

C&S said it plans to launch a participation platform this summer as part of its recognition of the U.S. semiquincentennial. Inspired by movements such as GivingTuesday, Vinnakota said he wants the campaign to reach 15 million young people through an online effort highlighting how small actions can combine into wider national impact.

The nonprofit said it has existing partners, including YPulse, a market research provider focused on young consumers, and DoSomething, a youth social change platform. Vinnakota said the effort cannot be imposed “top down” and argued that older leaders should allow younger participants’ ideas to develop, including through pilots where some concepts work and others do not.

C&S said it is also backing more structured leadership development for a subset of young people through a program funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The nonprofit recently provided stipends and coaching to 500 young changemakers, with projects described as ranging from efforts to remove nonbiodegradable glitter from a river to improving ballot access for hospitalized voters.

In addition, C&S said it is working through a 135-member consortium of colleges to teach what it called three essential skills for democracy: productive conversations, finding sources of credible information that participants agree on, and working together to solve problems despite differences of opinion. Another component is a workplace-based initiative with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, where C&S said it has enlisted 25 companies for a pilot.

The nonprofit said it aims to bring interested young people together in person rather than remotely so they can see that peers share a desire to deepen civic commitments. Vinnakota tied that in-person focus to building “agency” and said, “Civic actions that don’t take a lot of effort initially but start to build something that we call agency,” can set in motion what he described as “the flywheel.” He said the campaign is aimed at creating “the spark.”