Author Archive:
Lester Salamon
Philanthropication thru Privatization: A way to build charitable assets?
I had the good fortune to be called out by name a week and a half ago by celebrated Economist columnist Matthew Bishop for having put together his ‘dream conference’ combining his ‘two favourite themes: …
European foundations missing the boat on data
The special feature on the importance of data for the world’s philanthropic community in Alliance’s September 2012 issue comes none too soon. But, ironically enough, as Alliance readers were opening this special feature, Europe’s statistical …
Philanthropy’s blind spot
It is widely recognized among social psychologists that beliefs have a bigger impact on what we see of reality than does reality itself. In other words, our systems of belief filter what we see, creating …
Satellite accounts show true contribution of civil society
The release in March of the first-ever French satellite account on the non-profit sector marks the latest stage in the implementation of the recently issued United Nations Handbook on Nonprofit Institutions in the System of …
UN handbook on nonprofit institutions
In December 2003, the United Nations published a new Handbook on Nonprofit Institutions in the System of National Accounts, which for the first time calls on national statistical agencies to create special ‘satellite accounts’ documenting …
How healthy is your civil society sector?
We live in an era of performance and accountability. Increasingly, citizens, consumers and investors are demanding proof that their taxes, purchases and investments are really effective. Civil society is hardly immune from these expectations. To …
