Giving Thought

A conversation with Fran and Will Perrin, founders and trustees of Indigo Trust, on why they have ramped up their grantmaking in response to the Covid-19 crisis.

This is the fourth in our series of conversations with people across civil society about the challenges presented by the coronavirus crisis and how they are responding. In this episode, we speak to:

-Will Moy, CEO of Full Fact

-Virginia Anderson, Head of Fundraising at Bobath Scotland

Carol Mack, CEO of the Association of Charitable Foundations (ACF)

This is the third of our series of short conversations with people from across civil society during the coronavirus crisis. In this episode we talk to:

-Nick Temple, CEO of the Social Investment Business

-Holly Piper, Head of CAF Venturesome (and my colleague!)

-Rich Collins, Creative Director of Sortified

This is the second in a series of "voices from civil society during the Covid-19 Pandemic". Featuring:

-Clare Kiely, Senior Investment Partner at Comic Relief

-Rita Chadha- CEO, Small Charities Coalition

-Savraj Kaur, CEO, United in Hammersmith & Fulham

In response to the Covid-19 crisis and the potentially unprecedented challenges it brings for civil society and philanthropy, we have been speaking to a range of people across the sector to find out how the pandemic has affected them so far and how they are responding.

In part one:

• Fran & Will Perrin, founders and trustees of Indigo Trust, explain why they recently announced they are going to increase their annual grantmaking significantly to help address the short term impacts of the crisis.
• Rob Williamson, CEO of the Community Foundation for Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, tells us about the role they are playing in leading and coordinating the philanthropic response in the North East.

In episode 68 we talk to Danny Sriskandarajah, Chief Executive of Oxfam GB about philanthropy, inequality and power in global civil society. Including:

Philanthropy & Inequality

• What is the core role of philanthropy within society which differentiates it from either state or market provision?
• What should we make of arguments that philanthropy is a distraction from the need to focus on ensuring that the world's elites are taxed appropriately, and may therefore be holding back efforts to address global inequality?
• Is there a danger that models of philanthropy are paternalistic, and too often about decisions being made about communities rather than by them?
• Are some philanthropist willing to challenge & seek change to the systems that made them wealthy in the first place?

Power & Structure

• There is a lot of focus in global philanthropy and civil society at the moment on "shifting power" ─ from funders to recipients, from the global north to the global south etc. – by supporting grassroots orgs or using participatory approaches. How is this informing Oxfam's work?
• Are there practical challenges when it comes to shifting power? E.g. in the relationship between formal organisations and movements, and the dangers of "movement capture"?
• We are seeing more focus on the idea of decentralised or non-hierarchical governance models for social change movements - do you think this will filter into wider civil society? What opportunities and challenges might this bring?
• Is declining trust is an issue for civil society? If so, is this merely part of a wider decline in trust in traditional institutions, or do charities and CSOs face particular challenges? And how can they reverse this trend?

The Climate Emergency

• Does Oxfam view the global climate emergency as primarily an environmental issue or a social justice issue? What bearing, if any, does that have on the approach you take to addressing it?
• Is there sometimes a tension between taking the action necessary to address environmental challenges (climate change, biodiversity loss etc.) and respecting the rights and freedoms of local communities around the world? How does a major funder like Oxfam navigate that tension?

Technology

• Do you generally take an optimistic or pessimistic view of the impact of technology on civil society?
• Do you worry that CSOs and funders are not getting to grips with either the challenges or opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution?

Related Links:

• The BBC World Service The Real Story programme on "Philanthropy: Does it work?" that Danny and I were both on.
• Oxfam's blog on "5 shocking facts about extreme global inequality and how to even it up"
• CAF research into growing giving in East Africa
• Rhod's article for Alliance magazine "Riding the Tiger of Technological Change"
• Rhod's article for the World Economic Forum, "Philanthropy is at a Turning Point: Here are 6 ways it could go"
• CAF Giving Thought blog, Does Philanthropy Help or Hinder Democracy?
• CAF Giving Thought blog, Innovation, discovery and the legitimacy of philanthropy
• CAF Giving Thought blog, Taxing Questions: What do Rutger Bregman's Davos Criticisms Mean for Philanthropy?

In episode 67 we look at the recent announcement by the world's richest man, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, that he is going to donate $10bn to tackle global climate issues. We ask: what do we know so far, what has the reaction been, and what does this story highlight about the key issues when it comes to philanthropy currently? Including:

• Does Bezos use of his own Instagram channel to make the announcement reflect a desire on part of big donors to control their own narrative, much as populist politicians have harnessed Twitter etc. to speak directly to voters?)
• Is Bezos' decision to focus on climate issues an easy one, because it is the obvious cause right now; or a brave one because he knows it will bring scrutiny of Amazon's own environmental impact?
• Will this result in more big donors getting involved in climate issues, because it puts a marker down; or will they be crowded out by the scale of Bezos philanthropic resources?
• Given Bezos has previous pitched his interest in fairly radical ideas such as space travel and extra-planetary expansion as the best way of securing the planet's future, does this new fund represent an acknowledgment that we also need to focus on shorter-term solutions?
• What form is this new vehicle going to take? (Foundation, DAF, LLC etc?)
• Will it have a limited life (i.e. is the aim to spend all of the $10bn as soon as possible, or build for the longer term?)
• Will it fund advocacy and lobbying, or just "direct services"?
• Bezos says that new vehicle will "fund any effort that offers a real possibility to help preserve and protect the natural world." Who is going to assess those "possibilities"? Will the process be democratised, or will it end up concentrating a huge amount of power in the hands of a small number of unelected people?
• In the reaction to the story, what has been the balance of praise, scrutiny and cynicism?
• Is the donation not big enough (because it is only 7% of Bezos's total wealth), or too big (because it puts too much power in his hands to dictate the direction of policy and spending)?
• How do we understand this gift in the context of concerns about Bezos and Amazon's tax affairs, concerns about Amazon's treatment of employees, and concerns about the company's own environmental impact?
• Since this is only a pledge at this point, how do we keep track of delivery?
• Is there a danger that some critical responses to stories like this ignore nuance and contextual factors, and instead end up making arguments against philanthropy as a whole that are unwarranted?

Related Links

• Ben Soskis's story about the Bezos announcement for the Chronicle of Philanthropy
• Simon Jenkins's opinion piece on Bezos and philanthropy for The Guardian
• CAF Giving Thought blog on Philanthropy and Space Exploration
• CAF Giving Thought podcast on Philanthropy, Risk & Innovation
• CAF Giving Thought podcast on Philanthropic pledges
• CAF Giving Thought blog on Innovation, discovery and the legitimacy of philanthropy
• K. Chesterton's attack on Rockefeller, Gifts of the Millionaire

In episode 66, we talk to Fozia Irfan- CEO of the Bedfordshire & Luton Community Foundation (and trustee of the Association of Charitable Foundations). We discuss diversity, equity and inclusion in the foundation and charity world; the challenges of power dynamics in philanthropy and the role of place. Including:

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

• What is the DEI Coalition?
• What is the difference between equality and equity, and what does this mean for funders and charities?
• Does the philanthropy/charity world in the UK have a diversity problem? What are the main existing barriers to greater diversity within the sector workforce, and how can we overcome them?
• Are funders more effective when they reflect more closely the people and communities they serve? In what ways can they achieve this?

Power & Participation

• What are we to make of criticisms that since philanthropy is to some extent a product of structural inequality, it can never truly be part of the solution?
• Is philanthropy paternalistic, and too often about decisions being made about communities rather than by them?
• What about approaches such as participatory grantmaking, which seek to shift power as well as money towards recipients? Will we see more of this in coming years?
• Are there practical challenges when it comes to shifting power?
• Should more funders support grassroots organisations and movements?
• Some argue that a key part of the role of philanthropy is to drive society forward by taking risks and funding things that the state and market cannot - how much current philanthropy meets this criterion?

Place & Community

• What role can philanthropy and voluntary action play in building bridging social capital, bringing diverse communities together or fostering wider civic engagement? Does this value of charitable giving and volunteering as an activity rather than simply the outcomes it produces need to be a more prominent part of the narrative about its importance to society?
• Does taking a place-based, rather than cause-based approach make it easier to address the multiple, cross-cutting needs of people and communities?
• Is "place" more complex than it is sometimes presented? I.e. at what geographic level do we feel a sense of belonging or identity?

Philanthropy- the big picture

• What is the core role of philanthropy within society which differentiates it from either state or market provision?
• What should we make of the current wave of criticisms of philanthropy coming from the US? Do these resonate in the UK context? Which are most acute or difficult to answer?
• Does philanthropy (and the foundation sector in particular) need to be more transparent? If so, why and about what? Who does it benefit (the foundations themselves, their donors, grantees, taxpayers etc)?

Related Links

• Follow Fozia on Twitter
• More info on The DEI Coalition
• Bedfordshire & Luton Community Foundation
• Dec 2019 issue of ACF's "Trusts & Foundations News", with a special focus on diversity, equity and inclusion
• Ford Foundation's DEI tools for grantmakers
• Our Giving Thought podcast episode on "Philanthropy, Diversity & Inclusion"
• Our Giving Thought podcast interview with Megan Ming Francis, on "Philanthropy, Civil Rights & Movement Capture"
• Our Giving Thought podcast interview with Paul Ramsbottom on "Foundations & Endowed Philanthropy"

In episode 65, we chat to John Picton from the Charity Law & Policy Unit at the University of Liverpool about charity law and the ethical and legal challenges surrounding certain kinds of charitable donations. Including:

Charity Law

• What are some of the key principles of UK charity law? (e.g. public benefit, charitable threshold etc.)

The "Dead Hand" & Cy Pres

• Why have some critics argued that perpetually endowed charitable institutions are problematic?
• What does legal theory have to say about the balance between respecting donor intent and avoiding "zombie" trusts?
• What is the practical process for freeing up money from an endowed structure whose purposes are no longer deliverable? How difficult is this?
• What is the legal status of charitable gifts made in wills? When heirs challenge donations, what issues does it raise?

Tainted Donations

• Why are some donations seen as "tainted"? What is it about them that is "bad"?
• What powers and responsibilities do charity trustees have when it comes to assessing whether or not to accept a donation?
• Is it possible to give donations back? Or is this harder in practice than you might think?
• Can charities keep donations on the basis of "turning them to good purposes"? If so, how do they ensure the donor doesn't get benefit (e.g. social status, reputation, warm glow)?
• Should there be any sort of statute of limitations on tainted donations (e.g. those stemming from proceeds of slavery etc)?
• If institutions have assets that are tainted and want to do something about it, is it enough to give them to any "good cause", or do they need to be directed at a cause related to the nature of the taint? (I.e. is it a case of making reparation?)

Nationalising charitable assets?

• There have recently been proposals that the charitable assets of private schools should be seized by the government, and similar ideas have been floated in the past. Is this feasible in practice? Are there broader issues of principle in terms of charity law?

Academia & Practice

• How well does academia informs practice (and vice versa) when it comes to philanthropy?
• Where might there be gaps?
• How can we getter stronger links between academics and practitioners?

Related Links:

• The University of Liverpool's Charity Law & Policy Unit
• John's blog for The Conversation, 'Sackler donations: why museums and galleries can be stuck with gifts – even if they don't want them'
• John's blog for The Conversation, 'Supreme Court Legacy Ruling: Leaving A Gift To Charity Can Be Egoistic As well As Altruistic'
• John's Third Sector article 'Purely Academic: The Rare, Gruesome Nature Of Failed Charitable Gifts By Will'
• Picton, A. J. (2017). Egoism and the Return of Charitable Gifts. In R. Hickey, & H. Conway (Eds.), Modern Studies in Property Law (Vol. 9, pp. 175-194). Oxford: Hart.
• CAF Giving Thought podcast on "Tainted donations"
• CAF Giving Thought podcast on "Philanthropy, Death and Taxes"
• CAF Giving Thought blog, "When should charities say no to donations?"

In episode 64, we explore the philanthropic response to the ongoing bushfires in Australia and what it highlights about philanthropy issues and trends. We also give take a look at some of the other top philanthropy stories in the news.

The Aussie Bushfires:

• How does the philanthropic response to the Aussie bushfires compare to the Notre Dame Cathedral fire last year?
• Does it tell us anything about the differences between our response to man-made vs natural disasters, or disasters affecting man-made heritage vs natural heritage?
• Does the fact that the Aussie bushfires are highly dispersed make a difference?
• Are environmental issues less likely to be perceived as "elite", and thus philanthropy focused on them less likely to be criticised as "self-interested"?
• Is the response to the bushfires partly about people feeling a sense of agency over the issue of climate change, which often seems so huge that it can cause donation paralysis?
• Does the fact that animals as well as humans have been affected make a difference?
• Has the ongoing nature of the fires helped to make the relief effort itself a focus of philanthropy?
• What questions does the voluntary nature of the firefighting services some raise about state responsibility vs that of philanthropy?
• Has the response of elite philanthropists been slower than in the Notre Dame case? If so, why?
• Could the fact that many Aussie philanthropists have made their money in extractive industries play a part in making them reticent to engage with a problem that is clearly being linked to climate change?
• Celeste Barber's Facebook fundraiser: what does her runaway success tell us about the distributed nature of fundraising in the future? What challenges does it highlight?
• Other fundraising efforts: "The Nude Philanthropist" and altruistic drug dealers…

In other news:

• MIT releases damning report into Jeffrey Epstein links- not good for the institution
• Is there a "war on philanthropy"? Karl Zinnsmeister's op ed for the Wall Street Journal, and the ongoing debate in the US.
• Columbia Journalism Review article on challenges with philanthropic funding skewing the priorities of non-profit news orgs.
• Harry & Meghan: stepping away from royal duty to focus on other things, in which philanthropy likely to play large role. Does this raise potentially interesting questions about the nature of inherited vs created wealth, ownership/stewardship, and the role of philanthropy vs being a public figure.

Related links

Aussie Bushfires

• Our Giving Thought podcast on "Notre Dame: Lessons for Philanthropy"
• Article in The Australian "Bushfire recovery: Donor war as Andrew and Nicola Forrest donate $70m"
• Former podcast guest Krystian Seibert's Conversation Au piece on "How to Give to Bushfire Relief"
• Zagefka et al (2010) "Donating to disaster victims: Responses to natural and humanly caused events", European Journal of Social Psychology, Volume 41, Issue 3, April 2011, 353-363
• ABC News, "Why Celeste Barber's bushfire fundraiser is more complicated than it seems"
• ABC News, "Gina Rinehart hits back at Celeste Barber's criticism over bushfires"
• Vox, "Nude photos raised over $1 million for the Australia fires"
• NZ Herald "Drug dealer promises to donate 10 per cent of cocaine earnings to Aussie bush fire appeal"
• CAF World Giving Index: 10 Year Trends

In other News:

• MIT's report into links with Jeffrey Epstein (and check out our Giving Thought podcast on Tainted Donations)
• Karl Zinnsmeister's WSJ op ed ($),a critical response in Non-Profit Quarterly (And for more context, my piece for HistPhil on the history of state vs voluntary provision)
• Columbia Journalism Review piece on foundation funding and non-profit journalism (and check out our Giving Thought podcast from 2019 with Sameer Padania)