While wealthy individuals are the ones who are most often associated with philanthropy in the media, anyone who passionately donates their time, energy, money, and reputation to a charity or cause is a philanthropist.

Establishing a fund or scholarship for a specific group (those who excel in a certain area such as math or the arts, those belonging to an ethnic group, single parents, low income students, etc.)
Fundraising to make a project a reality, such as opening a homeless shelter, buying specialized equipment for a hospital, or opening a free clinic
Championing a cause to raise awareness for it (running info sessions, placing ads in media, securing sponsorship, approaching political players to back the project in government, etc.)
Buying land and building an animal sanctuary or shelter on it
Starting a foundation (to fund charities that benefit cancer research, to pay for life-saving medical treatment for those who can't afford it, etc.)
Establishing a charity to supply much-needed aid in a specific area (to provide aid to refugees fleeing war, for example)
To start a non-profit organization to help others in a specific way
Joining a charity and putting large amounts of time, energy, and funds into growing it
Planning and funding infrastructure to give people access to something they need, such as roads to reach medical care or irrigation to allow for farming
Building a school in a remote location so local children have access to education
Fund raise to supply schools in need with new textbooks or updated technology

There are five basic human needs that, when missing from a character's life, could motivate them to pursue this goal. The following needs are all possibilities, but only one of them should be the primary driver for any given character. For more information on the relationship between human needs and outer motivations, please see​ this ​Character Motivation tutorial.