Do you have a hunch?
A hunch is an inkling, a possibility, a sneaking suspicion about the future. It’s that thought you’ve been turning over in your head that just might mean you’re onto something. We don’t often share our hunches, but when we do, amazing things can happen!
At the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, we have a hunch your hunch can help build a Culture of Health. We hope you’ll share it with us.
Thank you for submitting your hunch!
We will email you when your hunch is live on this site.
If you have any questions, get in touch at hunches@rwjf.org
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The effective date of this version of the User Agreement is September 30, 2020.
Explore hunches
I wonder if... others, like me, who have kids who are going to leave home within a year or two are shifting their priorities towards family time.
Lori MI have a feeling that... humans will be socializing in increasingly different ways in the past, and people may find new forms of meaning outside of human connection
ctI wonder if... the ubiquitous use of social media will change our brains sufficiently that we won't have the ability (and attention span) to read long-form narrative.
DeniseI wonder if... parents who get their kids vaccinated for COVID will stop wearing masks
I have a hunch that... More people will return to their offices soon as the need for more human interaction sets in.
DeniseI have a feeling that... antagonism toward Covid Vaccines may lead to antagonism toward public health - and with that future public health messages may be dismissed.
Sharon RI have a hunch that... the price of farmland in the northwest is going to drastically increase in the next decade as climate change makes agriculture in California more difficult.
DeniseI wonder if... People’s social networks have been permanently changed by COVID
Lori MI have a hunch that... we could reduce violence across the globe by teaching men emotional intelligence, and make it acceptable for young people across the gender spectrum to express all their emotions without shame.
JosephI wonder if... More people are cutting bangs because they are more noticeable in zoom calls.
Lori mI'm noticing that... there are errors that occur so often (and repeatedly) in texts--especially using "swipe" texting--that there is no need for the sender to tell me what they meant to type.
PattiI wonder if... Time is flying in one aspect of your life it also flies in the others
Lori mI'm noticing that... there is a resurgence of less stereotypical discussions about Indigenous real life lessons. For example, the Canadian philosopher John Ralston Saul sees indigenous political structures and cultures as key to the character of Canadian democracy.
Bruce HadenI have a feeling that... the time for flexible proxy-based governance systems (e.g. "liquid democracy") may soon arrive
Eli PariserI'm noticing that... urban trees in the bay area are really suffering from several years of drought. I want to knock on doors to tell people to please water their trees.
Erica SpotswoodI'm noticing that... cancer drugs are overwhelmingly being approved via accelerate approvals--they then can't recruit people for confirmatory trials --this seems to demand different trial designs
Richard FrankI wonder if... pandemic-related shifts to more remote work could revitalize rural areas, bolstering local economies, and making it possible for people to move out of cities. My hunch is good internet will be key to making this possible.
Erica SpotswoodI have a feeling that... climate misinformation is not the same as other health misinformation, and we have more of a responsibility to address it in higher-income countries like the U.S. because that's where the policy decisions are made that will have global impacts.
I wonder if... "the great resignation" is going to be a generationally important event for Gen Z
Eli PariserI'm noticing that... the exodus of people leaving not only jobs in general, but out of the helping/health professions is intense. I wonder how this is going to impact the way we think about "care," acceleration of robotics and AI, etc. Concerning hunch.
Laura Burney NissenI wonder if... allotment gardens will be the best way to create better access to whole fruits and vegetables for people in the mega-cities of our future? And I wonder if collaborations between architects and food folks might be a way to make that happen?
Amy TrubekI have a feeling that... people are leaving jobs at record numbers because they are reckoning with their mortality and want to spend their time on things that are more important to them than work.
Trista HarrisI'm noticing that... there's growing momentum toward thinking about new economic and governance systems that are in some sense "post-capitalist"
Eli PariserI'm noticing that... There are more 4-leaf clovers than when I was a kid. I looked it up and indole acetic acid controls leaf formation. And its affected by radiation. So I wonder if microwave radiation from cell phones is making those changes.
Julia MossbridgeI have a feeling that... sharing a hunch is the ultimate inclusion tool - allowing everyone to participate in all the conversations.
Carol GlanvilleI wonder if... we can simulate time passing at different rates
AriI wonder if... There have been more falls in subway stations as people wearing masks descend stairs?
Lori MI wonder if... one day we will come to realize that social movements are often the best treatment for many of our collective ills
Miraj DI wonder if... People who run while talking are better at breathing through their noses while exercising
Lori MI'm noticing that... people are hesitant to follow recommendations due to confusing messages. All leaders, no politicians, should speak loud and clear a message of lessons learned from previous pandemics: Physical Distance, Hands Hygiene, and Face Masks always.
Wendy MatosI wonder if... There is a secret dataset that contains information derived from the blood of people who got married before 1980?
Anjali GI wonder if... there's a fear that asking clinical trial patients how they are feeling (over apps) will over-report adverse events. Is there anyone who has experienced this?
Tom JulianI wonder if... Mice didn’t come into our homes would we think they were as cute as bunnies?
Lori mI'm noticing that... there are so many remakes of books and movies. Are we losing creativity?
Trista HarrisI'm noticing that... Rabbits are moving really slowly these days when approached by humans.
Lori MI wonder if... New workplace hybrid work policies can promote equity in social capital-within organizations. Some people have more friends than others do which helps them get stuff done. Though the answer is probably: don’t help your friends at work.
Lori MI wonder if... the USA has the worst heath outcomes of high-income countries because of state transportation agencies and local zoning boards. Public health will never overcome the chronic disease externalities of car-centric sprawl and exclusionary zoning.
Michael RI wonder if... Students (high school and/or college) were matched up With seniors (elderly) to assist/teach technology to use for health-related needs (telehealth appt, setting up a wearable device, troubleshooting an issue etc) - if that would close the tech gap
Lauren KremenovaI wonder if... foundations will continue giving more general support dollars after the pandemic.
CGI wonder if... would a community/health and wellness center for youth compile with what Pioneering Ideas Staff is seeking for their grant/idea requirement?
Eugene PoughI'm noticing that... people i work with that are approaching retirement (who "see the light at the end of the tunnel") are shifting their mindsets about work...in dift ways - giving opportunities to others who might need them for career development OR taking new risks!
Lori MI'm noticing that... I'm nervous driving on Route 1. I've worked in the Princeton area for 35+ years. I learned to be an aggressive driver and I feel like I've lost that. I can't possibly be alone. Are we going to see more fender benders when we go back to work?
DawnI wonder if... teaching a program of positive humor usage to correctional officers would reduce stress and improve communication with peers and inmates
Chrisian Hageseth III, MDI wonder if... or what role philanthropy can collectively play in solving major global issues of our time -- eradicating polio, addressing the environmental crisis, addressing the pandemic and its trail of destruction...
AnonymousI wonder if... foundations will learn from their past mistakes in funding during the 60s? Will they support grassroots social movements... without co-opting the power of those social movements?
TrishI have a feeling that... our understanding of black-led giving will increase.
L.I'm noticing that... Foundations give up power, spend down wealth, and stop being the center. They build wealth in marginalized communities so that wealth grows and becomes part of the larger power structure and continues to increase distribution of wealth and liberation
Deanna RolffsI have a feeling that... the Spend Down movement will gain traction.
L.I wonder if... the sector will embrace true change to the power structures that made philanthropists necessary.
AnonymousI have a feeling that... At some point, foundations will begin investing in crypto-currency long after the boom period is over and miss out on a lot of gains that could fund really good work.
Aaron TurnerI have a hunch that... there will be a strong move to "lighten" requirements for grants which won't shift practice or investments (it won't work to provide enhanced access to funding by BIPOCs).
L.I wonder if... we will ever live in a world where philanthropy does not have to be a safety net.
EBI wonder if... political donations / non-tax-deductible c4 donations will increase given the extremism in politics these days.
LibbyI have a hunch that... younger UHNW donors will aim to "give while living" whereas we see the Boomer generation giving more towards the end of their lives / at their passing.
MaggieI have a feeling that... foundations will continue to adjust their practices after the positive experience of more flexible giving this past year.
CarolI have a feeling that... philanthropy will not move as quickly as necessary especially in regards to racial equity and social justice.
EBI'm noticing that... we keep retelling the story of white philanthropy/wealth as a way to understand how to fix philanthropy instead of looking to the BIPOC orgs who over time have naturally been solving these problems.
CarolI wonder if... Billionaires will ever require foundations and such to multi-year funding for systems level work. Not surface level "feel good" work.
Aaron TurnerI'm noticing that... as the pandemic winds down, organizations are looking thirsty for stability and certainty and the easiest way for them to do that is to go back to what they've always done rather than embracing what we've learned from the pandemic.
TamelaI wonder if... spend down foundations will become the norm.
JCI wonder if... the wealthy will redesign their giving vehicles to really give impacted communities more control over resources. I also wonder what that would look like!
LibbyI wonder if... we will see a significant increase in CEOs of color by 2040.
TianaI wonder if... 'big bet philanthropy' will continue to be a trend in the sector, and if so if it will be done responsibly to (at a bare minimum) mitigate negative impacts on historically oppressed communities
MI wonder if... philanthropy would need to exist if there were a wealth ceiling and governments taxed people appropriately, eliminating income inequities leading to a need for philanthropy.
BKI have a hunch that... trust-based philanthropy will become the standard.
AllisonI have a hunch that... Philanthropy will continue to perpetuate more of the same. Good, bad, or indifferent, the overall system of Philanthropy will need a major shake up in order to change.
Aaron TurnerI'm noticing that... more and more boards understand they have to be more effective and that to do that, they require different composition and culture.
L.I'm noticing that... Bren Smith is figuring out how to farm the ocean for the future, AND Maine is experiencing unprecedented "brain drain" as kids leave for college and don't return. Can ocean farms be a solution to keeping (young) people in/ attracting them to Maine?
Kristin SilvaniI wonder if... how people consume the majority of their meals has a correlation to their health? (chopsticks, fork, spoon, hands)
JohnI wonder if... local or state governments will give ratings (which are required to be prominently posted) to day care facilities like they do for NYC restaurants, so parents will know whether they're getting the quality they think they are/what they're paying for.
PattiI wonder if... Lawyers - trained to detect patterns -- make good futurists
Lori MI'm noticing that... A lot of people are donating their hair
Lori MI wonder if... flavored seltzer is reducing soda consumption?
JohnI have a hunch that... wealth transfer from baby boomers to millenials is a huge untapped opportunity
RoryI wonder if... the trend in American society of placing primacy on stories and amplifying the voice of individuals will make the practice of evaluation a much more subjective endeavor.
Clark MI wonder if... there will be a return to focus on the impacts of class versus those of race
Clark MI wonder if... corporate funders will fulfill their loud, public commitments to funding racial equity?
AnonymousI have a feeling that... it's becoming more acceptable for foundations to endorse general operating support grantmaking
Lori NI have a feeling that... knowledge management and knowledge sharing will be a key part of our practice.
karunaI have a hunch that... there will be a backlash against too much advocacy by foundations - even when it is for causes that folks agree on.
NickI'm noticing that... there are less reporting for grants.
ClaudiaI have a hunch that... I'm missing of information and context during the pandemic with the loss of informal interactions.
RI have a hunch that... most foundations will get to 100% mission and program related invested
TI'm noticing that... funders are finally considering how their internal processes may be impacting grantees and the power implications
Lori NI have a feeling that... next generation philanthropists will look more towards starting "social impact businesses" than grantmaking foundations.
Jeremy GreggI have a feeling that... the pandemic and remote work made many of us in philanthropy realize even more just how important it is to listen to our grantees and hear what THEY need from us. It forced us to show up in ways we weren't able to before. Let's keep it going!
Liza YI wonder if... climate change will increasingly dominate all of the issues that we care about
DSI have a hunch that... the perpetual foundation will become a rare form.
Clark MI wonder if... large international NGOs and cooperation agencies will make a shift to Trust-Based Philathropy
DanielaI'm noticing that... some institutions are already getting tired of discussing "racial equity"
AnnaI wonder if... philanthropy will unify as a sector and take a leadership role in advocating for systems change (rather than rely on on-the-ground nonprofits to address their specific issues, without a real, collective influence).
Jenn KillianI'm noticing that... more foundations are committing to diversifying boards.
karunaI'm noticing that... corporations are more willing to be open about anti-racism efforts in 2020 and 2021. I hope that this continues!
Kelsey MidthunI have a feeling that... we will be talking more and more about how philanthropy uses its investments and assets, not just its grantmaking dollars.
DSI wonder if... shorter applications will be used after the pandemic.
ClaudiaI'm noticing that... while there is more talk about democratizing philanthropy, there's a widening divide between small amount giving (often based on an emotional appeal) and large foundation giving (systems change, analytic, thinking always of maximizing impact).
NickI have a hunch that... more funders will support efforts that strengthen democracy and civil society regardless of 'type' of funder.
I have a feeling that... the changes to grantmaking made in response to the triple pandemics of 2020 will not become the norm unless funders are proactive (funders will drift back to how things used to be)
MelanieI wonder if... the stigma around hearing aids is due to fear of aging. People don't have the same stigma for wearing glasses...but both are just a slight loss of one of our senses.
Kelsey MidthunI wonder if... the federal funding soon to be available will bring about positive change.
Amy KerwinI have a hunch that... hormone replacement therapy will become increasingly important in health care
anonI wonder if... the changes made in response to the pandemic and racial uprising will stay or revert back
NSI wonder if... the way we talk about workforce development and wealth creation in BIPOC communities can ever lead to liberation if it's based on capitalism.
ErikaI wonder if... requiring 'proximity to communities we serve' (i.e., beyond grantees) for all staff will widen our lens and help us craft and support better solutions to complex and multi-sector issues.
karunaI have a feeling that... cross-racial organizing and movement building is what we need more of.
Fatima AngelesI have a feeling that... COVID will prove to be the great disruptor we've been searching for.
CI'm noticing that... there has been a lot of transition/turnover in roles in philanthropy the past year.
RI wonder if... Artificial intelligence will replace program officers for data driven foundations?
TristaI wonder if... a decrease in reporting requirements from grantees to grantors will be a lasting change post-pandemic. How can that be a lasting change once life is not so dominated by a pandemic-run life, workplace, etc.
SarahI wonder if... the incredible shift in lifting up leaders of color as well as trust based philanthropy will endure
BFI'm noticing that... more of my colleagues of color including myself are looking to create their own spaces and businesses that fully address the needs of community and elevate the voices that are usually left out of conversations all together.
Art GarciaI have a feeling that... people are so burned out from responding to the uncertainty and stress of the pandemic (in their professional lives and personal lives) that it will not be easy to create/expand on new ways of doing business in the immediate future.
SCI have a feeling that... Gen 2/3/4+ will lead their family's foundations in remarkably different directions than their forebears.
Jeremy GreggI have a feeling that... if member orgs/affinity groups collaborate more our sector will be stronger!
MelanieI have a feeling that... trust based philanthropy will be a trend.
Jeanne CraginI'm noticing that... as a result of the pandemic funders are streamlining or doing away with their former reporting practices.
Jeanne CraginI have a hunch that... in the future, many foundations will move towards sunsetting/spend down to fully invest their resources in the communities/causes they care about.
JaserI have a feeling that... there will be opportunities for philanthropy to partner with commercial real estate brokers and urban growers in the near future to repurpose empty office buildings
Karen GuileI'm noticing that... there's an incredible shift in lifting up leaders of color as well as trust based philanthropy
BFI have a feeling that... if we don't institutionalize change now in our policies and how we do business that we'll lose momentum as distance in time from traumatic events grows.
JKI wonder if... more funders will eventually become more open minded to thinking about results and impact in more expansive ways and simplifying requirements for their funding.
Liza Y.I wonder if... white long-tenured leadership will start to leave their positions in order to allow for more representative leadership.
MGCI wonder if... mutuality (benefits for both donors and beneficiaries) is at the heart of philanthropy
KenI'm noticing that... foundation board members are more open to general support and ceding grantmaking power to regranting organizations
Greg HornerI have a feeling that... funders will have an increased willingness to fund in new and creative ways.
Aaron S.I have a feeling that... organized philanthropy will become less relevant as go fund me and other platforms grow
TristaI wonder if... the field of organized philanthropy will come up with a standard way of 'quantifying the qualitative' and then end up with composite ratings for how well organizations are doing, sort of like financial investment ratings.
NickI'm noticing that... funders in the Southern U.S. are not as interested in systemic change as their counterparts on the coasts.
Jeremy GreggI'm noticing that... many nonprofits have found effective and efficient ways to deliver services to people in need virtually. Perhaps a physical space is not always needed.
KatherineI wonder if... how white funders really are thinking about giving up power re funding black led organizations
PclarkI wonder if... private foundations will dedicate more of their $1 trillion in assets to impact investing?
Jeremy GreggI'm noticing that... people are becoming aware of how trust starts from within their own organization.
CarolI have a feeling that... there will be even more use of DAFs by individual donors
BFI'm noticing that... Most in the philanthropic sector are not taking the risk of biosphere and civilization collapse seriously enough. The breadth and the depth of this cluster of problems either are not known, simply brushed aside, or psychologically painful.
Gurpreet SinghI'm noticing that... more foundations in supporting public policy work and advocacy efforts.
Jeremy GreggI'm noticing that... funders are more likely to work together to respond to crises and increase impact.
Aaron S.