Our Approach to Achieving Greater Impact

Most funders engage in what can be referred to as Vertical Philanthropy: focusing on one problem, strategy, theory of change, organization, or geographic location at a time. This approach has a long history of creating meaningful social impact and remains central to the work of the social sector.

However, there is another approach funders can employ. It has a longstanding track record of achieving an exceptional ROI and far-reaching results, yet remains almost entirely under the radar. It can be referred to as Horizontal Philanthropy. Propel Philanthropy has partnered with Catalyst Now (formerly Catalyst 2030) and others to help bring this approach to the fore.

Rather than focusing on a single issue, Horizontal Philanthropy can positively impact many people, nonprofits, communities, causes, and environments with the same dollars. This far-reaching impact has been achieved in part through highly strategic investments in large-scale organizations such as GivingTuesday, TechSoup, Grameen Bank, GoFundMe, Candid, and Charity Navigator. You will find additional examples involving mostly modest grants on our Stories of Impact Page.

We achieve A Million Dominoes when funders identify and fortify a critical linchpin that leads to achieving an exceptional, “outwardly rippling” social ROI that

Case Example: The $355k Catalyst
In 2024, GivingTuesday launched its first large-scale media campaign. Based on promising data from that effort,  GivingTuesday and several funders collectively invested $355,000 to scale the campaign in 2025. They recognized that GivingTuesday had built a powerful advertising and distribution engine capable of significantly increasing the value of each dollar invested. They also believed that additional support could unlock a sizable increase in giving across the broader social sector ecosystem.

The funders involved were not focused on advancing one cause or nonprofit. They were focused on advancing many. The campaign benefited a wide range of causes that many of us care about, including health, education, democracy, poverty alleviation, the environment, and more.

The Results
The $355,000 investment played a significant role in helping to generate tens of millions of dollars for thousands of nonprofits. The campaign also strengthened the brand of the world’s largest generosity movement. Some of the benefits are likely to continue for years because research suggests that first-time donors often become repeat donors.

Read GivingTuesday’s Report

Was This Simply a One-Off Success?
While this is a reasonable question, our Stories of Impact Page suggests a recurring pattern: strategic investments in far-reaching organizations can produce an outsized ROI. The A Million Dominoes team believes that funders can achieve a powerful ripple effect by identifying and fortifying a critical linchpin within an organization, platform, network, initiative, or partnership that already possesses significant reach.

How We Help Funders and the Social Sector Ecosystem
Propel Philanthropy, Catalyst Now, and others comprise a team of seasoned philanthropists who actively seek out A Million Dominoes opportunities and make them available to funders. We do so at no charge as our way of serving and strengthening the social sector ecosystem.