By Avila Kilmurray This post was first published on Latest from Alliance, the blog of Alliance Magazine on August 13, 2014. It is the second in the Alliance series of responses by contributors to the March issue of Alliance to John Kania, Mark Kramer and Patty Russell’s ‘Strategic Philanthropy for a Complex World’. You can read responses from Kathleen Cravera…
Sithie Subanhaniya Tiruchelvam, the founder of the Neelan Tiruchelvam Trust (NTT), an indigenous philanthropic organization based in Sri Lanka, passed away in Colombo on 22 March at the age of 69 following a brief illness. Writing a tribute to Sithie Tiruchelvam is not an easy task as Sithie was an intensely private person. Yet her public achievements,…
Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org The September 2013 issue of Alliance Magazine focuses on philanthropy and power. In his article, ‘The power of money’ guest editor Stephen Pittam explores how philanthropy can best use the power brought by increased resources, as it enters its “second golden age”, to increase its impact on social justice and promoting a…
By Stephen Pittam Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org Six months after I had started working for the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT) a close friend said to me, ‘you have changed – you expect people to listen to you.’ It was a good reminder of the best piece of advice I received on getting the job. Eric…
By the following members of the Working Group on Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace: Ana Criquillion, Barry Knight, Atallah Kuttab, Halima Mahomed, Stephen Pittam, Chandrika Sahai and Suzanne Siskel. Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org On 8 July members of the Working Group on Social Justice and Peace held a webinar to talk about power and philanthropy.…
By Albert Ruesga Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org ‘Let not thy will roar, when thy power can but whisper.’ Dr Thomas Fuller Wealthy donors are typically the lifeblood of a community foundation. These individuals and families draw their power from many of the institutions that define contemporary life in a capitalist society – not only financial institutions,…
By Avila Kilmurray Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org ‘This is how the verb “to participate” is conjugated – I participate, you participate, they decide.’ This comment relates to international development aid but could be echoed by grant recipients of many philanthropic programmes. Who decides on the allocation of resources and how? Motivated by an acute sensitivity to…
By Suzanne Siskel and Anna-Nanine Pond Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org How powerful are foundations relative to other actors in society? With few exceptions, foundations and NGOs pale in size, programme scope and budgets beside governments, international development agencies and multinational corporations. Yet, too often, grantmakers act as if the limited transactional clout of giving away money…
By Ana Criquillion Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org When I started the Central American Women’s Fund (FCAM) in Nicaragua almost a decade ago, I wondered how I could involve Central American women’s movements in decision-making without creating a political mess. Decisions around money are always difficult, particularly where there are so few resources available and where organizations…
By Linda Guinee and Barry Knight Courtesy of www.alliancemagazine.org The first question is: what is power? The simplest and one of the most effective formulations comes from feminist psychologist Jean Baker Miller, who defines power as ‘the capacity to produce a change’. Probing deeper, however, reveals a complexity that is hard to fathom. There are…