Philanthropy: A Man and His Money; SAP founder Hasso Plattner has been an innovator in private life, too, sparking a wave of corporate giving in Germany.

Byline: Stefan Theil

The billionaire founder of SAP, Hasso Plattner, is a rare species in Germany. Taking a cue from his software buddies in Palo Alto, California, where he lives part time, he's put his money where his mouth is--[euro]230 million, in fact. That's what he ponied up in 1999 to create an elite engineering institute for the University of Potsdam, complete with a nearby business incubator. Today the Hasso Plattner Institute is renowned for its first-rate IT designers and has already spun off some promising start-ups. "I didn't want to have to ask myself one day, 'Why didn't you do anything?' " he says.

By doing his bit, Plattner has become the poster boy for one of Germany's most heartening trends. More and more Germans have pondered their country's future beyond the nanny state--and decided to get involved. From Bavaria to Berlin, volunteerism is surging. Citizens' groups have taken over public services such as libraries and swimming pools from bankrupt local governments. After years of watching public education decline, Germans are turning to new private schools, more than 2,000 of which have been founded in the past 10 years.

This may all seem unspectacular compared with the United States and other countries. But that's the point: in Germany, it's traditionally been up to the state to care for society's needs. Government bureaucracy thus permeates public life. German foundations have been marginalized over the years. Organizations such as churches or charities, which elsewhere ...