 Matthew Bishop, co-author,
Philanthro-
capitalism: How the Rich Can Save the World
PND spoke with The Economist's Matthew Bishop about his book, the growing concentration of wealth in the United States, and the role of philanthropy in a democracy....
PND: You're credited with coining the term philanthrocapitalism, so who better to define it for us than you? What is philanthrocapitalism, and how does it differ from traditional philanthropy?
Matthew Bishop: Well, it has two definitions. One is very broad and has to do with capitalism as a force for good and playing a positive role in society. Throughout history, we see periods of great wealth creation producing not just enormous amounts of money for individuals and society at large; we also see individuals who made fortunes trying to give back to society by looking for and funding solutions to some of the social problems of their day. And, of course, we're seeing that again today.
The better-known definition has to do with high-profile business leaders and entrepreneurs, the wealth creators, becoming philanthropists and then applying their head for business to their charitable giving. It's not just about writing a big check, or building a monument to oneself, or giving and not really caring about what happens with the money. It's saying, "Well, how do I combine my giving with my talent and the abilities that made me wealthy? How do I put those to work to solve some of the huge problems facing society...."
Read the interview»
|
|
December 17, 2008
Civil and Human Rights
The Open Society Institute report Ten Reasons to Oppose the Criminalization of HIV Exposure or Transmission finds that criminalization policies are often unjust and unlikely to prevent new infections.... More»
December 15, 2008
Philanthropy and Voluntarism
Amazon.com's new Universal Wish List feature allows users to add items from any Web site — including donations to charities and nonprofits — to your personal wish list.... More»
December 9, 2008
Journalism/Media
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation's Communications Portal provides grantees with help on how to create a media plan and measure their communications efforts.... More»
Posted on December 7, 2008
Health
A new research brief from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation examines how advertising and regulation affects the choices young people make when it comes to healthy food and beverages.... More»
More Connections
Coastal Capital: Belize December 5, 2008
Lessons From a Communications Campaign for South Africa's Rural Poor
December 11, 2008
Americans Fail a Basic Test on Their History and Institutions
December 13, 2008
|
Through an arrangement with Stanford Social Innovation Review, PND is pleased to offer a series of articles and profiles related to the "business" of improving society.
|
Cultivating the Green Consumer
Consumers say they want to buy ecologically friendly products and reduce their impact on the environment. But when they get to the cash register, their Earth-minded sentiments die on the vine. Although individual quirks underlie some of this hypocrisy, businesses can do a lot more to help would-be green consumers turn their talk into walk....
Read the article»
|
In the blog, Lois Savage, president of the Phoenix-based Lodestar Foundation, talks about collaboration as a strategy that can help already strong organizations become even stronger. We look at some of the fallout from the Madoff scandal. And we announce a new feature, "Grants That Make a Difference," that's designed to help your organization tell its story....
More»
|
The PND message board is open, and here's a sample of what we're talking about...
Q:
I would like your thoughts on the appropriateness of inviting local foundation heads who have participated in programs to attend a major donor thank-you event.
A:
We all know that "donor appreciation" events are essential to the building of our donors' loyalty. They work just as well for individual, corporate, and foundation donors. Thanking them in that specific way is yet another step in active and continuing cultivation. We want those previous gifts to be renewed, and we want them to grow in size and frequency.
I am a firm believer in a simple thank-you event. Many major donors know each other, and so the potential is there for it to become a nice social event if it is not over-programmed....
Posted 12/5/2008
Join the conversation»
|
| |
|
|
Conference Calendar
Connections
Higher Educations, Public Affairs, Civil Society, Health
Newsmaker
Matthew Bishop, co-author, Philanthrocapitalism: How the Rich Can Save the World
NPO Spotlight
Women's Funding Network
On the Web
PubHub: Sharing Knowledge to Build a Better World
PhilanTopic
The PND Blog
PND Talk
Post of the Week
Special Feature
Focus on the Economic Crisis
SSIR@PND
"Cultivating the Green Consumer"
|
|
|
Focus on the Economic Crisis
Turn to the Foundation Center for news about the impact of the economic downturn on philanthropy, helpful resources in your community, research advisories from the Center's experts, and training oppor-
tunities designed to improve your fundraising results.... More»
|
Susan Saxon-Harrold
The CEO of CAFAmerica describes why donor-advised gifts are an attrac-
tive alternative to donor-advised funds in tough economic times.... More»
|
Women's Funding Network
Through its international member organizations, the network supports women's leadership and lasting change in human and economic rights, healthcare access, and education.... More»
|
|
PubHub: Sharing Knowledge to Build a Better World
Updated daily, PubHub is a search-
able catalog of annotated links to research reports, policy papers, and issue briefs published and/or funded by U.S. foundations.... More» |
|
February 1 - February 3, 2009
2008
At the Crossroads: Honoring Legacy & Forging New Traditions
Council on Foundations
Indiana, Indianapolis
April 29 - May 1, 2009
2009 Annual Nonprofit Conference
South Carolina Association of Nonprofit Organizations
Spartanburg, South Carolina
For more conference listings, visit our Conference Calendar.
|
|
