Send us a text In this episode we take a deep dive into the relationship between philanthropy and business. Commercial ventures have always played a key role in generating wealth for people to give away through philanthropy, but is there more to it than that? And what are the promises and pitfalls of trying to combine profit with purpose? Including: Does philanthropy need to be "more business-like"? What does this actually mean, and why has the idea continued to be so influential? What can the h...
Jan 19, 2023•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Send us a text In our last episode of the year, 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 in 2023. Including: The impact of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and possible recession on philanthropy, everyday giving and the work of charities. Polarisation and political division making it harder for philanthropy to engage constructively with criticism and the need for change. More mainstrea...
Dec 15, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Season 1Ep. 27
Send us a text In this episode we take a look at a few of the biggest stories from what has been a notable newsworthy couple of weeks for philanthropy - focusing on the fallout from the spectacular implosion of crypto billionaire and high profile Effective Altruist Sam Bank-Fried. We also take a look at a big philanthropy pledge from Jeff Bezos and the latest on Mackenzie Scott's radical no-strings-attached big giving. Including: SBF: What the hell has happened in the SBF story? What impact migh...
Dec 01, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Send us a text In this episode, Rhodri talks to Sara Slaughter, Executive Director of the W. Clement and Jessie V. Stone Foundation, and Derek Mitchell, CEO of Partners in Schools Innovation about their relationship as funder and grantee, and how they have worked together to move towards to a new focus on equity and justice. Including: How and why has Stone Foundation changed the way it does grantee convenings? What do they get out of it as a funder, and what do grantees get out of it? How diffi...
Nov 16, 2022•1 hr 2 min
Send us a text In this episode we explore whether it is always necessary to say thank you for a philanthropic gift, whether it might sometimes be problematic, and the implications of how we choose to recognise donations. Including: If we view philanthropy as a duty of justice, rather than a charitable choice, does that mean we have a right to expect it and therefore don't need to be grateful? Does this apply to all philanthropy, or only to certain cause areas (e.g. inequality and poverty?) Is it...
Nov 03, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 24
Send us a text In this episode, Rhod talks to Martha Lackritz-Peltier, General Counsel of nonprofit technology specialist TechSoup, about using tech to overcome some of the barriers to cross-border giving and the localization of international development. Including: What is the UN’s Grand Bargain? Why is this important? Why has it not been delivered on so far? Where does the reluctance of INGOs to cede control to local CSOs come from? Lack of trust/fear of fraud & mismanagement? Unwillingnes...
Oct 20, 2022•55 min•Season 1Ep. 23
Send us a text In this episode Rhodri is joined by Angela Kail (Director of Consulting at New Philanthropy Capital (NPC)) to take a look at the growing cost of living crisis in the UK (and beyond), and what means for philanthropy, grantmaking and the work of civil society organisations. Including: Impact on charity finances What will the impact of inflation be when it comes increasing costs (e.g. staff costs, energy, food, building materials, leisure equipment etc)? What impact will inflation ha...
Oct 06, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 22
Send us a text In this episode we talk to political philosopher Emma Saunders-Hastings about her new book Private Virtues, Public Vices: Philanthropy and Democratic Equality and some of the big questions that philanthropy raises for philosophers and political theorists. Including: What is the distinction between distributive and relational concepts of equality? Many modern critiques of philanthropy focus on the former, but there is a rich history of exploring the latter (by people like John Stua...
Sep 22, 2022•56 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Derek Bardowell, CEO of Ten Years Time Ltd and author of new book Giving Back: How to do good better, We discuss why our understanding of philanthropy needs to shift from a mindset of charity to one of justice, and what this means for donors and grantmakers. Including: Why is the distinction between charity and justice so important, and what does it mean in practice? Is growing scrutiny of where philanthropic wealth has come from a good thing? What shoul...
Sep 08, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Charles Keidan, editor of Alliance magazine, about why we need philanthropy journalism and what some of the key issues are in civil society right now. Including: Why is it important to have journalists focussing on philanthropy? Is coverage of philanthropy too focussed on the Global North (especially the US)? Is it possible to rebalance this? Is it possible to bring philanthropy journalism to a mainstream audience on a regular basis? If so, how does this...
Jul 07, 2022•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 19
Send us a text In this episode we explore the long history of concerns that some money may be "tainted", and ask what this means for philanthropy now and in the future. Including: The history of tainted donations, featuring: St Augustine of Hippo, The Venerable Bede, St Thomas Aquinas, The Paris Guild of Prostitutes, Frederick Douglass, George Cadbury, George Bernard Shaw, The Salvation Army, J. D. Rockefeller, Mark Twain and G.K. Chesterton. Is a donation only tainted if the method of wealth cr...
Jun 23, 2022•1 hr 21 min
Send us a text In this episode we discuss the links between religion, faith and giving with David P. King, Karen Lake Buttrey Director of the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving and Associate Professor of Philanthropic Studies at the Lilly Family School on Philanthropy at Indiana University- Purdue University, Indiana. Including: How important a part does faith play in motivating and shaping approaches to giving in the modern world? What role has it played historically? When it comes to faith a...
Jun 07, 2022•46 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Send us a text In this episode we take a look at the opportunities and challenges that cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology bring for giving and ask: is cryptophilanthropy a boom market, or a busted flush? Including: Is the resurgence of interest in cryptophilanthropy in the last 18 months partly to do with the enforced digitisation many of us went through during the pandemic? At the same time, what do recent decisions by organisations like the Wikimedia Foundation and WWF to dial down or ...
May 19, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Tyrone McKinley Freeman, Associate Professor of Philanthropic Studies at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, IUPUI about his book "Madam C. J. Walker's Gospel of Giving: Black Women's Philanthropy During Jim Crow" and about the history and current context of Black philanthropy. Including: Madam C. J. Walker: Who was Madam C. J. Walker, and why is she such an important figure in the history of philanthropy? Was what she represented- as a role model o...
May 05, 2022•59 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Send us a text In this episode, in light of recent high-profile disasters in places like Ukraine, Afghanistan and Tigray, we take a look at the long-standing relationship between philanthropy and disaster response. Including: History: The history of disaster response philanthropy: from 16th Century "charitable briefs" in response to fires and floods to the emergence of the Disasters Emergency Committee and the rise of celebrity-led disaster appeals What has been the relationship between one-off ...
Apr 21, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Sadaf Shallwani, Director of Learning and Evaluation at the Firelight Foundation, about funding systems change, supporting grassroots communities and shifting power dynamics within philanthropy. Including: How did the Firelight Foundation come about, what is its core mission, and what is distinctive/unique about its approach? Why is "traditional aid broken"? Why is the distinction between charity and justice or solidarity so important to Firelight's work...
Apr 07, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Teddy Schleifer, Senior Reporter at Puck News, about what is going on in big money philanthropy in the US, and the challenges of reporting on philanthropy. Including. Why is it important to have journalists focussing on philanthropy? Does the trend towards independent media outlets (substacks, specialist outlets etc) make it easier to report on elite philanthropy, or harder? How do you balance focussing on the individual stories of philanthropists vs sys...
Mar 24, 2022•55 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Cassie Robinson, a leading philanthropy thinker, connector and innovator, and formerly Deputy Director of Funding Strategy at the National Lottery Community Fund. We discuss the current state of philanthropy, how it needs to change, and what those working in the field can do to transform it. Including: -What are the best and worst things about working in institutional philanthropy and being a "philanthropoid"? -How much power do philanthropoids have to s...
Mar 10, 2022•57 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Send us a text In this episode we talk to Mihaela Giurgiu, a philanthropy expert from Romania who works as a mapping, research and peer-learning expert for the European Community Foundation Initiative and as an international network consultant for The Funding Initiative. Including: What is the history and current context for civil society in Romania and across Central and Eastern Europe more broadly? What is the general attitude of governments in CE Europe towards civil society and philanthropy?...
Feb 24, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Send us a text In this episode we take a look at the growing prevalence of "platform philanthropy" (i.e. giving and organising via online platforms) and the opportunities and challenges this presents. Including: The rise of the platform economy & the current state of platform philanthropy Are we seeing a shift from dedicated platforms for giving, towards commercial organisations adding giving functionality to their existing platforms? How is the growing use of direct payment platforms like C...
Feb 10, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Send us a text In this episode, Rhod talks to author and historian Maribel Morey about her new book White Philanthropy: Carnegie Corporation's 'An American Dilemma' and the Making of a White World Order. Including: What is "An American Dilemma" and what role has it played in the history of thinking about race in the US? What are some of the contemporary and subsequent critiques of the report? Why do we need to re-evaluate the role of the Carnegie Corporation in shaping the development and eventu...
Jan 27, 2022•59 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Send us a text In this episode Rhod talks to Edgar Villanueva, author of "Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance" about why many of our current models of philanthropy reflect structures and approaches that disempower and disadvantage minoritised communities and how things need to change to address this problematic legacy. Including: Why is it important that philanthropy acknowledges and addresses the fact that it almost always reflects structures and systems t...
Jan 13, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Send us a text 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 crisi...
Dec 30, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Send us a text 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? Mack...
Dec 16, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Send us a text 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 enou...
Dec 02, 2021•49 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Send us a text 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 g...
Nov 18, 2021•1 hr 44 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Send us a text 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. ...
Nov 04, 2021•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 2
Send us a text 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...
Oct 21, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Send us a text 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.
Oct 19, 2021•5 min
