Leadership and Development

Although widely used, and viewed as an important ingredient in successful philanthropy and development, there is no common understanding of what people mean by the term leadership or how its value is demonstrated in practice. In March 2018, when PSJP ran an exploratory webinar for civil society practitioners to identify hot topics they wanted to…

Understanding sustainability

This is the fourth paper in PSJP’s Defining Key Concepts series and it looks at the concept of ‘sustainability’ in development and philanthropy. (The first paper, published in October 2018, looked at the concept of ‘Dignity’ and the second, published in March 2019, looked at ‘Leadership’. The third paper published last month (Nov 2019) was…

Measuring social change

This is the third paper in PSJP’s Defining Key Concepts series and it looks at the concept of ‘measuring social change’ in development and philanthropy. (The first paper, published in October 2018, looked at the concept of ‘Dignity’ and the second, published in March 2019, looked at ‘Leadership’.) This paper draws on three webinar sessions…

Individual giving in India, Russia, the Arab region and Brazil

This paper It looks at the development of individual giving in India, Russia, the Arab region and Brazil, with a special focus on some significant trends: crowdfunding and online giving, national giving days/weeks, fundraising by NGOs, and the causes that individual donors give to. It then goes on to look at the significance of the rise in individual giving; the role of technology in this; and finally the kinds of things that would enhance individual giving.

Advocacy, Rights & Civil Society: The Opportunity for Indian Philanthropy

This study published by Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy (Ashoka University) in December 2018 reviews the changing trends in the funding of the non-profit sector in India, particularly in the recent context of the Government of India’s heightened attention on inflows from international donors. It examines the impact of these trends on local civil…

Dignity and Development

This paper looks at the idea of ‘dignity’ and forms part of PSJP’s series on ‘defining key concepts’ in development and philanthropy. The 1948 Declaration of Human Rights enshrined dignity as the central goal of development, yet the term is not clearly defined, which makes it difficult to pursue and impossible to measure. Different people…

Local agency and power in philanthropy and development

PSJP, the Ford Foundation Office for Southern Africa, and the Mott Foundation (South Africa) are exploring the themes of local agency and power in philanthropy and development through a series of conversations with practitioners in the field. These conversations involved two sets of dialogues in South Africa and a consultation session at the 2018 African Philanthropy…

Philanthropy in Brazil

This report on Brazilian philanthropy is part of a larger study by Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace (PSJP), started in 2016, to review the current state of philanthropy in emerging economies and the role philanthropy is playing in the world today. It aims to throw light on current developments in, obstacles to, and possibilities for philanthropy in Brazil, especially highlighting innovations and new initiatives. The areas covered include various forms of giving by the wealthy, including corporate philanthropy, family foundations and impact investing, social justice philanthropy, community philanthropy, and giving by ordinary individuals.

How community philanthropy shifts power

While slogans like “think globally, act locally” have been around for decades, so much decision making about philanthropy and development aid still happens by stakeholders outside of communities. GrantCraft, a service of Foundation Center, released a new Leadership Series paper on how funders around the globe are challenging this norm by sharing and shifting power into the hands of local leadership. How Community Philanthropy Shifts Power: What Donors Can Do to Help Make That Happen by Jenny Hodgson and Anna Pond explores examples, advice, and the driving questions for donors interested in producing people-owned changes, without losing sight of their institutional interests.

Philanthropy in the Arab Region

This report on philanthropy in the Arab region is part of a larger study, started in 2016, to review the current state of philanthropy in emerging economies and the role philanthropy is playing in the world today. This is the third report from the study, which we hope will eventually form part of the Philanthropy…