As Director of Philanthropy at Toronto Foundation, Gokhale shapes Canada's charitable landscape through:
"We need to stop equating philanthropy with check-writing and start treating it as community investment."
Connect via Twitter or email for pitches aligning with systemic change initiatives.
We've followed Aneil Gokhale's evolution from private sector beginnings to becoming one of Canada's most influential voices in strategic philanthropy. His 17-year career demonstrates a consistent focus on bridging wealth with social impact:
"Money sitting in donor-advised funds isn't helping anyone yet. Sure, it benefits tax planning, but it's not helping Canadians who need support today." [2]
This groundbreaking program engaged 115 millennials in a philanthropic MBA cohort, combining financial education with hands-on community impact projects. Gokhale's team developed a 12-month curriculum blending:
The initiative resulted in $2.3M in new endowments while shifting participant behavior - 89% increased their annual giving by 300% post-program. [4][8]
Gokhale's leadership in this $5M initiative addressed systemic funding inequities through:
The fund's 2023 impact report showed 73% of recipient organizations doubled their service capacity within 18 months. [5]
This 12-episode digital learning resource demystifies complex giving strategies through:
The series achieved 85,000+ downloads in its first year, with 42% of listeners under age 45. [8]
Gokhale prioritizes stories exploring participatory grantmaking and trust-based philanthropy. Successful pitches should highlight:
Rationale: His work on the Black and Indigenous Futures Fund demonstrates commitment to redistributive models [4][5]. Recent commentary on disbursement quota reforms shows interest in policy-level changes [2].
Focus on innovative engagement strategies for millennials/Gen Z:
Rationale: The Vision 2020 program's success stemmed from combining financial education with experiential learning [4][8]. His podcast series emphasizes donor education as critical for sector growth.
Seek stories that challenge traditional metrics:
Rationale: Gokhale's advocacy for "thick data" in philanthropy informs his preference for narrative-driven metrics [5][8].
Pitch transformative CSR models:
Rationale: His private sector experience at GE Healthcare informs practical insights into corporate philanthropy [1][4].
Focus on emerging legislative changes:
Rationale: Recent panel discussions show deep engagement with disbursement quota debates [2][8].
Recognized by the Canadian Association of Gift Planners for advancing philanthropic education. This distinction honors professionals demonstrating exceptional leadership in complex gift planning strategies.
As Toronto City Ambassador for NEXUS, Gokhale received this 2021 honor for bridging wealth management and social entrepreneurship communities through innovative programming.
Awarded by CivicAction for demonstrating exceptional leadership in developing the Vision Next initiative that engaged 100+ young philanthropists in COVID-19 recovery efforts.
At PressContact, we aim to help you discover the most relevant journalists for your PR efforts. If you're looking to pitch to more journalists who write on Philanthropy, here are some other real estate journalist profiles you may find relevant:
