June 2018 - Alliance magazine

Welcome to the June 2018 issue of Alliance magazine.

This issue is devoted to philanthropy’s developers – the people, organisations and networks central to the growth and development of philanthropy worldwide.

Whether that’s data and research, advice and consulting, training, advocacy or representation, there’s an essential and vibrant but under-appreciated eco-system of philanthropy support worldwide.

In our special feature, Alliance editor, Charles Keidan and guest editors, Benjamin Bellegy and Maria Chertok offer a new and change-oriented vision for the future development of the field. The feature includes views from leading funders about why infrastructure matters, as well as discussion of the impact of tech, and the need for better data, collaboration and resources.

Elsewhere, we showcase a major new fund to affirm the values of democracy and solidarity in Europe. And for something rather different, we meet Scottish philanthropist, Sir Ian Wood, and learn about his foundation’s unique blend of ‘tea philanthropy’ and venture philanthropy in Africa.

The diverse issues, developments and trends in contemporary philanthropy deserve greater and we, at Alliance, are doing our best to provide it, and to constantly improve. In that spirit, please send your feedback, however critical, to alliance@alliancemagazine.org

As part of the non-profit philanthropy media, our aim is to give philanthropy the attention it deserves to enable it to do the most good. You can support our mission by donating and subscribing to Alliance.

Charles Keidan
Editor, Alliance

Special feature

Time for philanthropy infrastructure to step out of the shadows

29 May 2018
Maria Chertok

Philanthropy is going through big changes. Its support infrastructure must assert itself now As philanthropy grows in importance and extends into new areas of the globe, it is crucial to ensure that there is an adequate support system or infrastructure to enable philanthropy to take advantage of opportunities and to protect against threats. The purpose of this special feature is to develop a set of arguments that the support system’s role and place should be …

Special feature

Benjamin Bellegy: Heads together to #LiftUpPhilanthropy

29 May 2018
Benjamin Bellegy

There are many good reasons to invest in infrastructure and all of them point to the need for concerted thought and action It is not that common to debate the question of philanthropy infrastructure. It’s rare to turn the spotlight on this field which tends to play behind the curtains, to remain relatively intangible and generally unknown outside its own circle. Maybe one of the reasons is the term itself. Words are not neutral, they …

Charles Keidan

Editorial

A new view of philanthropy infrastructure

A new view of philanthropy infrastructure ‘Infrastructure for philanthropy is rather more like a skeleton than scaffolding. You need it all the time and, unlike scaffolding, you can’t dispense with it,’ commented European Foundation Centre CEO Gerry Salole at a meeting of ‘infrastructure funders’ earlier this year. Just as the human body would collapse without a skeleton, so philanthropy can’t function without its support and development infrastructure. Whether that’s high-quality data and research, bespoke advice and consulting, training, advocacy or representation, there is an essential and vibrant but under-appreciated ecosystem of philanthropy support worldwide. The puzzle for many of our …