Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace Blog 02

Greetings! ‘The Role of Philanthropy in Society’ is an ongoing open-ended study initiated in 2016 by Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace. The aim of the study is to gain an understanding of the role that philanthropy is playing in society in various countries across the world. What’s happening now and what potential role could it play in the future?

We wanted to catch you up on our recent reports that have been published as part of the study, blogs, discussions and other news related to philanthropy in emerging markets.

Recent Reports

Philanthropy in India
This report aims to throw light on the current state of Indian philanthropy through conversations with people who have been trying to promote, support or strengthen different areas of philanthropy. This includes various forms of giving by the wealthy; social justice philanthropy, self-funded activist movements and community philanthropy; and giving by individuals of modest means. The documents include the full report and a summary, available here. The report is authored by Caroline Hartnell and published by Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace in association with Alliance, WINGS and the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy, Ashoka University.

Philanthropy in Russia
The report provides an overview of the current state of philanthropy in Russia, based on conversations with people who have been working to promote, support or strengthen different areas of philanthropy in Russia including various forms of giving by the wealthy, mainly through private foundations and corporate foundations; community philanthropy; social justice philanthropy; giving by middle-class individuals, and the new breed of fundraising foundations. The documents include the full report, a summary in English and a Russian translation of the summary that was made possible due to the support of CAF Russia, all available here. This report is authored by Caroline Hartnell and published by Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace in association with CAF Russia, Alliance and WINGS.

Our aim through these reports is to shine a light on new ideas and innovations, and the implications of these for the future role of philanthropy. We hope this will enable us to better address the questions: what is the role and purpose of philanthropy and how do we build a supportive ecosystem for it? This study is neither exhaustive nor complete – so the reports coming out of it should be considered a working papers, work in progress. With a country as vast as India or Russia, the insights presented here can only be a starting point, not a finished product. We hope that others reading the reports will comment, disagree with them and add to them, perhaps publishing other working papers that might fill in the gaps.

Upcoming Reports

Philanthropy in the Arab Region
Soon to be published in association with Alliance, Arab Foundations Forum, John D Gerhart Center for Philanthropy, King Khalid Foundation, Philanthropy Age, SAANED and WINGS this report aims to throw light on the current state of philanthropy in the Arab region through conversations with people who have been trying to promote, support or strengthen different areas of philanthropy. This includes various forms of giving by the wealthy, corporate philanthropy, progressive philanthropy, community philanthropy, giving by individuals of modest means, and the rise of social enterprise. The publication will include a full report, and a summary in English and in Arabic. Stay tuned.

Philanthropy in Brazil
The report will provide an overview of the current state of philanthropy in Brazil, based on conversations with people who have been working to promote, support or strengthen different areas of philanthropy. These include various forms of giving by the wealthy, mainly through private foundations and corporate foundations, impact investing, community philanthropy, social justice philanthropy, and giving by middle-class individuals. Coming soon!

Blogs

Observations on Philanthropy in Russia by John Slocum
Caroline Hartnell’s Philanthropy in Russia: A working paper provides an excellent overview of the state of Russia’s philanthropic sector. Based on a series of in-depth consultations with more than a dozen leading practitioners, this report is a welcome addition to a field where good English-language literature is frustratingly scarce, and some of…

CAF Roundtable: Building trust in Brazil and Russia by Amy McGoldrick At a time when it is increasingly common for civil society to look inward as national politics piles on the pressure, it was refreshing to attend a roundtable in London with CAF, to delve into the giving landscapes of Brazil, Russia and the UK. Their ‘Is Philanthropy Doing Enough to Build Trust?‘ event…

Philanthropy – one of the few languages in which we can talk with the world by Vyacheslav Bakhmin
What do we really know about philanthropy in our country, and what do people know about it in other countries? How would we like to present Russia abroad in the world of philanthropy, do we have to be part of global philanthropic society, and if so, why? Do we know about philanthropy…Other elements of Indian philanthropy by Amita Puri
In her fairly comprehensive paper, Philanthropy in India (a welcome addition to the literature on this topic), Caroline Hartnell emphasizes that the insights shared can only be a starting point in setting out an overview of philanthropy in India. For me the invitation to others to build on this is exciting in…
Philanthropy in Russia: an insider’s view by Maria Chertok
We at CAF Russia are very happy to co-publish this report with Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace (PSJP), Alliance and WINGS. We have always strongly believed in the value of benchmarking our work in Russia against the global context. This report, written by Caroline Hartnell, gives us this rare opportunity…

In conversation: India’s new philanthropy India has around 2 percent of the world’s millionaires and 5 percent of its billionaires, and since 2000, wealth in the country has grown 9.2 percent a year, faster than the global average of 6 percent. At the same time, India ranks among the highest in terms of income inequality and is home to the…

Resourcing social justice: understanding philanthropy in India by Tulika Srivastava
Sarojini Naidu once quipped to Mahatma Gandhi: ‘Bapuji! It takes a lot of money to keep you poor!’ Conversations about philanthropy and social justice as a sector are few in India, which makes Caroline Hartnell’s paper extremely relevant and timely. She has undertaken a herculean task, in providing a reader-friendly frame to…Transparency and philanthropy – an oxymoron in India? Not anymore by Sumitra Mishra and Chandrika Sahai
India has traditionally been a philanthropic culture with giving ingrained in all of its major religions, a part of everyday life. However, both formal and informal giving in India have mainly been private matters, the choice of cause and the method of giving have mostly been motivated by the… Philanthropy in India Report Sparks Questions…and Opportunity by Lauren Bradford
Recently, Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace, in association with Alliance magazine, Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support (WINGS), and the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka University, released a highly anticipated thought piece on the emerging philanthropic sector in India, one of the largest and most rapidly changing countries in… What role for philanthropy in India? by Chandrika Sahai
According to a recent research paper by economist Lucas Chancel, ‘income inequality in India is at its highest level since 1922’.[1] Earlier this year in January, an Oxfam report said that India’s richest 1 per cent hold 58 per cent of the country’s total wealth — higher than the global figure of about 50 per…

News

India’s Puja Marwaha wins Fifth Olga Alexeeva Memorial Prize
Alliance Magazine announced that the winner of the Fifth Olga Alexeeva Memorial Prize: Puja Marwaha, chief executive of Child Rights and You (CRY).

The judges commented “Puja Marwaha illustrates some of the key elements critical for moving philanthropy. A driven leader who sets the tone and gives confidence that it is possible to mobilize resources. Her local fundraising efforts not only bring resources to her work but also bring credibility to the local organizations working on the same issues with the added benefit of using indigenous resources. At the same time, the institution, which she has worked with for many years, created a solid ground for the necessary structures to grow and be nurtured. Her institution, CRY, has been a leader in India in building the philanthropic field. They have been probably the first and the most successful to build all their work with Indian philanthropy (when majority of CSOs working in the rights and justice space were dependent on foreign monies). Importantly, they have been extremely comprehensive in their approach by looking at individual donors (both big and small), corporate philanthropy and regular middle class givers. They over the years have also supported some very difficult work, tackling root causes of social injustice and inequity.”

To continue this discussion, we invite you to contribute your thoughts and responses to the working papers from any angle that interests you. To contribute a blog write to us at info@psjp.org