Philanthropisms

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In this episode we take a look at some of the key issues and trends affecting philanthropy and civil society right now and offer some thoughts on what to watch out for over the coming year. Including:

• Ongoing pandemic uncertainty/"normalisation" rather than an ending
• Will changes in norms re remote/flexible working become established? What will this mean for civil society in terms of both opportunities and challenges?
• Individual burnout and organisational closure
• The climate crisis: do all CSOs/funders need to be doing more?
• Racial justice: will the focus continue, or is there a danger of it being seen as a "moment" that has passed?
• Political hostility towards civil society around the globe- further closing of civil society space, new restrictions on foreign funding etc?
• Is there a decline in giving? Are we increasingly reliant on a smaller pool of donors?
• Are people giving in new ways that we are failing to count? Does this matter?
• Will we see more elite philanthropy supporting efforts to develop everyday giving?
• Impact measurement scepticism
• Core cost funding, trust-based philanthropy
• Debate over timeframes (immediacy vs long-term view) 
• Scrutiny of sources of wealth.
• Continuing criticism of philanthropy, pushback on criticism; more division within philanthropy
• The "platformisation" of giving?
• New cybersecurity threats
• AI implications: productivity tools, new ways of giving, new challeges to address, need for civil society to have a voice in debate over AI development.
• Cryptocurrency & blockchain: Rise of cryptophilanthropy (who are crypto-donors, what makes them tick?), can CSOs harness the NFT market (or is it a dangerous bubble?)
• The Metaverse: what opportunities & challenges might it bring for CSOs?

Related Links:

• Rhod's essay for the Law Family Commission on Civil Society
• Rhod's blog about Elon Musk's philanthropy
• Rhod in the New York Times talking about Elon Musk
• Rhod's blog on philanthropy, civil society & the Metaverse
• Rhod's blog on Mackenzie Scott
• Rhod's article for Catalyst on how AI will affect  charities
• Rhod's article for the World Economic Forum "Where Are Charities in the Great AI Debate?"

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In this episode Rhod talks to Ben Soskis, a Senior Research Associate at the Urban Institute's Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy and co-Editor of the website HistPhil.org, about the big issues and themes in US philanthropy over the last few years and where things might go in the future. Including:

• How has the pandemic shifted perceptions of philanthropy in the US over the short term? Are those perceptions likely to get better or worse over the longer-term, post pandemic?
• Mackenzie Scott: What are the most interesting/encouraging things about her emergence as a major philanthropist? What are the main questions that still need answering? Has she had an impact on the general public perception of philanthropy?
• Elon Musk: Is he the world's first "Troll Philanthropist"? What does his emergence as a major giver mean for the norms of philanthropic discourse? 
• Bill Gates: Has any of the controversy over the Gates Foundation’s involvement in vaccine development had an effect on the overall narrative about philanthropy in the US?
• Have the norms around time horizons in philanthropy shifted as a result of the pandemic? i.e. will we see more calls for foundations to spend down their endowments?
• Why are a growing number of elite donors/institutional funders interested in supporting the growth of everyday giving? What opportunities (and potential challenges) does the involvement of big money philanthropy in developing cultures of mass giving present?
• Why are we seeing more emphasis on direct cash giving in recent years? Is the growth primarily driven by individual P2P giving, or by organisations employing direct giving models? If the latter, is this primarily driven by a desire to democratise/shift power or by a belief that it delivers better results in terms of outcomes?

Related Links:

• The HistPhil website
• Ben's Urban Institute paper on "Norms and Narratives That Shape US Charitable and Philanthropic Giving"
• The recent New York Times article "Elon Musk’s Latest Innovation: Troll Philanthropy" (which Ben and Rhod were both quoted in).
• Rhod's blog on "MacKenzie Scott & the History of Challenging Philanthropy’s Status Quo"
•  Rhod's blog "The Edgelord Giveth: Elon Musk & a new era of discourse about philanthropy?"
• Rhod's previous conversation with Ben on the CAF Giving Thought podcast 

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In this episode I talk to Dan Corry, Chief Executive of NPC - a UK think tank and consultancy for the social sector. We discuss NPC's "Rethink, Rebuild" project, and how the pandemic might reshape philanthropy and civil society. Including:

• What does it mean to take a systems approach whens setting strategy, and why is it important?
• To what extent might erode individual organisational identity over time? Is that a problem, or a good thing?
• Is there too much competition and not enough collaboration in the charity sector? Why is this?
• Why are existing approaches to collaboration not always good at ensuring equity and fairness?
• What kind of challenges are there for traditional grantmakers when it comes to bringing communities and people with lived experience into decision making processes?
• Are there signs that funders are changing their behaviour during the current crisis? (Moving to unrestricted funding, trust-based grantmaking etc.) Is this likely to lead to longer-term changes?
• How can funders strike the right balance between taking a trust-based approach and not placing unnecessary reporting burdens on grantees, and having sufficient measurement to ensure they still know their funding is working?
• What role can data play in making philanthropy and grantmaking more effective and equitable?
• How do we enable and incentivise data sharing approaches?
• What will be required to convince local and central govt, and public sector bodies, of the merits of sharing their data with charities?
• Is too much of the emphasis in the current UK government “Levelling Up” agenda on physical infrastructure?
• How do we get government to think of social infrastructure alongside physical infrastructure?
• Do we need to “level up” the charity sector itself, in order to overcome geographic imbalances in where there is provision and resources?
• What is the role of government when it comes to philanthropy & civil society? E.g. To acknowledge it, to craft a narrative about the role it plays, to support it actively, to hold it to account etc?
• How can we get better understanding and clearer narratives about philanthropy/civil society in the minds of policymakers?
• Are there any practical barriers that are currently limiting the ability of civil society to “have a seat at the table” when it comes to policy discussions? What could we do to overcome these?

Related Links:

• NPC's website
• NPC's Rethink, Rebuild resource hub
• Dan's speech at the recent NPC Ignites conference
• The piece I wrote for 360 Giving on why open data could help drive a better culture of philanthropy
• My comment piece with Dan Fluskey of CIOF for Civil Society on "How Fundraising and Philanthropy Can Help 'Level Up'"

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In this very much feature length (!) episode we explore the philosophy of philanthropy. We take a look at some of the key philosophical questions about giving that have been tackled by great thinkers through the ages,  and ask how they can inform our thinking about philanthropy today. Including:

-Is altruism or egoism the basis of human nature? 

-What is the nature of property? 

-Why should we give? 

-Is giving a choice or a duty? 

-How does charity relate to justice? 

-What should we give to? 

-How should we give? 

-Are perpetual endowments justifiable? 

-What is the role of philanthropy in a democracy? 

-Why has Effective Altruism become so influential, and should we be concerned? 

-Do we need to wider philosophical perspectives on philanthropy? 

Related Links

• My Suggested Reading list on the philosophy of philanthropy
• CAF Giving Thought podcast on Effective Altruism
• CAF Giving Thought podcast interview with Rob Reich
• Recent Aeon article “Why Longtermism is the World’s Most Dangerous Secular Credo”
• Amia Srinivasan’s 2015 London Review of Books article “Stop the Robot Apocalypse”

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In this episode we talk to Lucy Bernholz, Director of the Digital Civil Society Lab at Stanford University's Center on Philanthropy & Civil Society, about her new book How We Give Now: A Philanthropic Guide for the Rest of Us.  In a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation, Rhodri and Lucy discuss many issues relating to themes in the book, including:

The expanding "Giving Space"

• What will the expansion of the “giving space” and the proliferation of ways of “doing good” (e.g. crowdfunding, social investment, ethical consumerism,  etc) mean for traditional philanthropic giving? Does this matter?
• Has most of the “democratization” of giving in recent years actually being “commoditization”? What would genuine democratization of the giving space look like?

Platforms and online giving

• What dangers are there in assuming that platforms are neutral public spaces? Will these problems be exacerbated by the shift to new forms of giving?

Data donation

• What does data donation look like in practice? 
• Is there something fundamentally different about a form of giving in which the donor retains the asset they have donated?

Mutual Aid & Movements

• Does the enthusiasm for mutual aid networks, digital movements etc demonstrate an unmet appetite for greater participation? Have traditional nonprofits fallen into the trap of being too transactional and seeing those who give simply as sources of money rather than potential partners in achieving social change?

Political giving:

• In the context of new online digital social movements, and renewed appreciation by political parties of the importance of grassroots organizing, does the distinction between “philanthropic” giving and “political” giving make sense any longer?
• Do we need to maintain a distinction between political giving and charitable giving, because the former needs to be wholly transparent while the latter should allow for anonymity?

Policy:  

• When we talk about recognizing other types of giving, are there policy implications? 
• To what extent is it the role of government to try to shape our culture of giving? Should it take an active role, or should it merely ensure minimum standards and safeguards and otherwise stay out of the way?

Elite philanthropy & mass giving

• There seems to be a real interest among elite donors/institutional funders right now in supporting the growth of everyday giving, social movements etc. Why is this? 
•  Can mass giving movements help to counter concerns about the potentially anti-democratic impact of big money philanthropy? 
• What opportunities (and potential challenges) does the involvement of big money philanthropy in developing cultures of mass giving present?

Related Links:

• Lucy's new book "How We Give Now"
• Lucy's website
• The Stanford PACS page for the wider How We Give Now research project
• Video of the launch event for Lucy's book that Rhodri recently helped to moderate (with Asha Curran & Edgar Villanueva)
• Lucy's appearance on the CAF Giving Thought podcast
• Rhodri's recent blog on "Philanthropy, Civil Society & the Metaverse"

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Welcome to episode 1 of Philanthropisms! This is the podcast where we put philanthropy in context. Through conversations with expert guests and deep dives into topics, host Rhodri Davies explores giving throughout history, the key trends shaping generosity around the world today and what the future might hold for philanthropy. 

In this episode we’re going right back to first principles to ask the question “what is philanthropy and why should you care?” To answer that we will take a whistle-stop tour through more than 2,000 years of history, explore the ways in which philanthropy has been defined by comparison to other concepts, and find out about some of the key debates shaping philanthropy today.

Including:

• What does “philanthropisms” mean?
• Is philanthropy an inherently vague term (or a “floating signifier”)? Does this stop us using it in practice?
• The roots of philanthropy in the ancient world
• The development of Judeo-Christian notions of charity
• The impact of secular humanism, the Reformation, the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution on philanthropy
• The Victorian “golden age” of UK giving and the rise of “scientific philanthropy”
• How the early C20th US Gilded Age established the paradigm for modern philanthropy (for better or worse)
• Defining philanthropy by what it isn’t- “Philanthropy vs…”:
  • Charity
  • Altruism
  • Mutual Aid
  • Private giving
  • Commercial activity
  • State provision
  • Taxation
  • Politics
  • Justice
• Why should you care about philanthropy (and therefore listen to this podcast…)?

Related Links

• My book “Public Good By Private Means: How Philanthropy Shapes Britain” (PDF version available HERE)
• Hugh Cunnigham on “A History of Western Philanthropy”
• “Philanthropy and human rights: the genealogy of the idea from antiquity to global society”- 2013 conference paper by Ojvind Larsen
• The Hist Phil website https://histphil.org/ 
• Video of the panel discussion on “Rewriting the Rules of Philanthropy”, which I moderated recently for the launch of Lucy Bernholz’s new book “How We Give Now” (including Lucy, Asha Curran from Giving Tuesday and Edgar Villanueva from the Decolonizing Wealth Project).
• My Medium article “Language Barriers: why the ways in which we talk about philanthropy & civil society are holding us back”
• My short video of the history of British charity in 2 minutes.

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Welcome to Philanthropisms: the podcast that puts philanthropy in context. This is a brief trailer ahead of our launch on 21st Oct.

In this show,  through conversations with expert guests and deep dives into topics,  host Rhodri Davies will explore giving throughout history, the key trends shaping generosity around the world today and what the future might hold for philanthropy.