What’s The Point of Philanthropic Foundations? Part 2: Historical Perspective
14th November 2023
This is the second of a three-part essay mini-series exploring the nature and role of philanthropic foundations. In this part we trace the historical roots of the foundation idea.
What’s The Point of Philanthropic Foundations? Part 1: Definitions
14th November 2023
This is the first of a three-part essay mini-series exploring the nature and role of philanthropic foundations. In this part we take a look at why defining what a foundation is presents such a challenge.
GUEST ARTICLE: Why we (still) need to move beyond “overheads” as a way of judging charities
20th October 2023
In this guest article Tom Le Fanu from Raise Your Hands, explores why the “overhead myth” is still the bane of so many charities’ lives and what we can do to move beyond it.
Essay Series: The Expanding Landscape of Doing Good
23rd Sept 2023
Is the “landscape of doing good” getting bigger and more diverse than ever before? And what might this mean for traditional philanthropy and nonprofits? We pose the questions that are going to guide a new essay series on this website.
Does Philanthropy Make You a Good Person?
9th September 2023
We explore how and why philanthropy informs our judgements about other people’s moral worth.
Radical Philanthropy: Some thoughts on the recent New Yorker profile of Leah Hunt-Hendrix
17th August 2023
Rhodri Davies highlights a few thoughts prompted by the recent New Yorker magazine profile of philanthropist Leah Hunt-Hendrix.
In An Ideal World, Would There Be No Philanthropy?
14th July 2023
We explore the idea that “in an ideal world there would be no philanthropy”: why does it have such deep roots, how should we understand it, and is it right?
What is Philanthropy For? (Speech to Yorkshire Funders 2023 Conference)
23rd June 2023
This is the text of a keynote speech Rhodri Davies gave at the 2023 Yorkshire Funders Conference in Leeds, outlining some of the key questions about the nature and role of philanthropy and why there is a particular need to engage with them right now.
GUEST ARTICLE: Solidarity NOT Charity – What it means to be a funder in solidarity with immigrant communities
22nd May 2023
In this article Lorena Gonzalez and Jes Olvera from the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights highlight some of the key challenges they have faced in their work trying to give voice to children from minoritsed communities (whose voices have often been little-heard) and explore why this dictates taking a justice-centered approach to philanthropy; which asks funders to think in terms of solidarity, rather than charity.
Giving More & More Equitably: Reflections on the Gates Foundation’s Greater Giving Summit 2023
10th May 2023
Rhodri reflects on the key insights and topics of discussion at the recent Greater Giving Summit 2023, hosted by the Gates Foundation in Seattle.
Good For Ratings? MrBeast & Philanthropy in the Attention Economy
6th February 2023
Hugely successful YouTuber MrBeast has become well known for his model of on-screen “Beast Philanthropy”. We take a look at what it is, why it has become controversial & what we should make of it.
Philanthropy, Population Debates & Eugenics
19th January 2023
As debate grows over whether we should be more concerned about over-population or declining birth rates, we explore why philanthropy has such a problematic history when it comes to engaging with population issues, and what lessons this holds for modern-day donors and non-profits.
