The Philea Virtual Library

The Philea Virtual Library includes over 1,000 free-to-download publications from a range of organisations and publishers on the topics of philanthropy, the management of foundations and the areas they are involved in and support. As a Philea member you can send us your publications for inclusion in the library which will also be added to the global IssueLab network where they will be made available to an extended audience, including users of Worldcat, the global catalogue used by tens of thousands of libraries. For questions or assistance, please contact the Philea Virtual Library.
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Foundation funding for climate change mitigation: Europe spotlight

October 12, 2021

This is the most comprehensive report ever published on philanthropic climate change mitigation funding in and from Europe. It draws on 6,230 grants, worth €1.8 billion ($2 billion), from 136 foundations across Europe.The funding trends analysed in this report will enable foundations to make improved data-driven decisions about future investments, civil society organizations to better understand where funding is going, and policymakers to arm themselves with data about gaps in public funding that the philanthropic sector might be filling, or what it may be missing.

Environment and Sustainable Development; Food and Agriculture; Foundation Sector, History and Analysis; Philanthropy, Theory, Philosophy and History

Advancing Human Rights : Annual Review of Global Foundation Grantmaking, 2019 Key Findings

November 1, 2022

Every year, Candid and Human Rights Funders Network's (HRFN's) Advancing Human Rights research reveals insights from the latest, most comprehensive data available for global human rights philanthropy. The goal of this study is to provide long-term evidence to understand gaps, changes, and new possibilities in resourcing human rights. In this year's analysis, the authors track the $4.1 billion that foundations granted in 2019 in support of human rights. This represents a 10% increase from the previous year and points to several hopeful and surprising trends.

Foundation Sector, History and Analysis; Human Rights, Citizenship, Democracy; International Affairs, Global Challenges

Conservation Learning Initiative: Learn from evidence. Improve Conservation

October 20, 2022

The conservation community needs smarter and more successful actions to improve the impact of its work. For example, it is not always clear how to create training programmes that improve performance in a lasting way, or what the ingredients of a successful conservation partnership are, or how donors can set up funding so that grantees can work in a strategic and sustainable way.One way of designing successful, effective actions is through using insights from evidence-based learning. Recent years have seen significant steps forward in developing concepts for defining and using evidence in conservation. In late 2021, the MAVA Foundation, Foundations of Success (FOS), and Conservation Evidence joined forces in an initiative to build further on this work.Combining the strengths of their approaches with MAVA's treasure of nearly 30 years of conservation data, they set out to formulate assumptions and collect evidence to answer key learning questions. The results of this joint work are now available on the Conservation Learning Initiative website (https://conservation-learning.org/) and in a consolidated report.The website and report present:A practical 5-step approach for evidence-based learning in conservation, designed for combining different sources of evidence, dealing with differences in reliability and relevance, and drawing conclusions.Valuable insights based on data regarding four widely used conservation strategies: capacity-building, forming partnerships and alliances, providing flexible funding, and research and monitoring.The lessons learned will help conservationists fine-tune their work or investment to increase their conservation impact. By applying the approach on their own data, they can learn from evidence to make better decisions and improve strategies over time.

Environment and Sustainable Development; Evaluation and Learning

Giving in Numbers 2022 Edition

October 20, 2022

CECP's Giving in Numbers is the premier industry survey and research, providing standard-setting criteria in a go-to guide that has defined the field and advanced the movement. Over 21 years, CECP has created the largest and most historical data set on trends in the industry, shared by more than 617 multi-billion-dollar companies, representing more than $388 billion in corporate social investments over that time span. The report is embraced by professionals across all sectors globally to understand how corporations invest in society, with topics ranging from cash and in-kind/product, employee volunteerism and giving, and impact measurement. From quick questions, to presentations to company teams, boards, and CEOs, CECP is a trusted advisor to companies, analyzing Giving in Numbers data to provide customized insights to advance strategy and measure the business value.

Corporate Philanthropy

Imagining the Future of Philanthropy Research in Europe : Paper prepared for the International Philanthropy Research Conference 22 and 23 September, Turin, IT

September 22, 2022

A conference paper by Rien Van Gendt, who argues for funding academic research in the field of philanthropy.

Philanthropy, Theory, Philosophy and History; Science and Technology

The State of Global Air Quality Funding 2022

September 20, 2022

The only global snapshot of clean air funding from donor governments and philanthropic foundations. This report highlights funding trends and gaps in 2015-2021, as well as recommendations for smarter investment for people and planet.99% of the world's population breathes air that exceeds World Health Organization air quality guidelines. Cleaning the air is a massive opportunity to improve public health and climate change. Because air pollution and climate change are mainly caused by burning fossil fuels, these problems can be tackled together. By addressing these issues in isolation, funders and policymakers drastically overlook the potential of clean air to realise multiple health, social and sustainable economic benefits.Our fourth annual report is the only global snapshot of projects funded by international development funders and philanthropic foundations to tackle air pollution. We identify gaps in funding, and opportunities for strategic investment and collaboration for systemic change. As the world prepares for COP27 in Egypt, we call for more joined up policies and funding to address air pollution, climate change and unsustainable economic growth simultaneously. This report provides recommendations for decision makers, policy makers and philanthropic foundations.

Environment and Sustainable Development; Foundation Sector, History and Analysis; Health

The State of Global Giving by U.S. Foundations: 2022 Edition

September 20, 2022

For 25 years, the Council on Foundations and Candid have partnered on studies of globally focused giving by U.S. foundations. The new edition of The State of Global Giving by U.S. Foundations dives into 2016-2019 data to provide the latest perspective on how the nation's foundations are supporting critical efforts to improve health outcomes, address climate change, offer access to education, ensure human rights, and engage with a wide array of other global priorities. Through interviews with a selection of global funders, Global Giving also offers insights on how foundations are addressing the critical challenges of our time and where they see signs of optimism and opportunity going forward.Key Report FindingsU.S. private and community foundations included in Candid's Foundation 1000 dataset awarded globally focused grants totaling $8 billion in 2019—close to four times the approximately $2.2 billion awarded in 2002.Health accounted for 49 percent of global grant dollars.The largest shares of funding focused on the Sub-Saharan Africa (25.1%) and Asia & Pacific (17.7%) regions.Among the many issue areas supported by foundations, human rights has realized the fastest growth in global support in recent years. In the 2016-2019 period, human rights reached 11 percent of global foundation grant dollars, up from less than 7 percent in the 2011-2015 period.Roughly 13 percent of U.S. foundations' global grant dollars went directly to organizations based in the country where programs were implemented in the 2016-2019 period, up marginally from approximately 12 percent in the 2011-2015 period.Funding by Foundation 1000 foundations for efforts to counter or mitigate the impact of climate change in the United States and globally totaled nearly $1.8 billion in the 2016-2019 period, up from $1.3 billion in the 2011-2015 period.The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation accounted for 44% of global giving by U.S. foundations from 2016 to 2019.

Foundation Sector, History and Analysis

Global Trends and Strategic Time Horizons in Philanthropy 2022

July 20, 2022

This study expands on previous research conducted by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors in 2019 and 2020 to understand the factors that affect a philanthropy's consideration in choosing the length of time for which it will remain active. With the advent of COVID-19, socio-economic uncertainty, and rising geopolitical tensions, the responses from 150 philanthropies from 30 countries to a global survey help illuminate how and why philanthropic organizations make important decisions, including those about philanthropic timeframes.This global research includes an exploration of various dimensions of strategic time horizons and examines strategies and operations, as well as perceived advantages and disadvantages of different philanthropic timeframes. The report also includes views on reasons for giving, causes, geographic flows of funding, decision-making and next-generation involvement.A recording of the launch webinar that highlighted key findings from the report is available to watch here: https://www.rockpa.org/global-trends-and-strategic-time-horizons-in-philanthropy-2022/

Corporate Philanthropy; Family Philanthropy; Foundation Sector, History and Analysis; Governance, Boards and Strategy; International Affairs, Global Challenges

Building a High-Quality Climate Science Information Environment: The Role of Social Media

July 12, 2022

This issue brief is part of a larger body of work around the intersection of digital rights with environmental; and climate justice, supported by the Ford Foundation, Ariadne and Mozilla Foundation. This research project aims at better equipping digital rights funders to craft grantmaking strategies that maximise impact on these issues.This issue brief by BSR was published alongside several publications, including a research report mapping the landscape at this intersection by The Engine Room, and issue briefs by APC, Open Environmental Data and Open Climate.All publications can be found at https://engn.it/climatejusticedigitalrights

Human Rights, Citizenship, Democracy

Accelerating Equitable Grantmaking: Seizing the Moment to Norm Multiyear, Flexible Funding

June 22, 2022

Over the course of the pandemic, more than 60 percent of foundations loosened restrictions and lightened reporting for grants. Now is the time to normalize these good practices across the sector, because flexible, multiyear grants, anchored in trust, are not only the right way to build grantee partnerships but also the smart way for grantmakers to create more impact, advance equity, and strengthen grantee organizations for the long run, as strong evaluations show.In October–November 2021 MilwayPLUS interviewed, surveyed, and conducted focus groups with 30 global funders and nonprofits that had significantly increased their percentage of multiyear, flexible funding over the past decade. The analysis surfaced five common barriers to making the shift and practical ways that boards, CEOs, and program officers have broken through, which nonprofits felt helped to share power. Moreover, the researchers also discovered five effective accelerators of change that both funders and grantees rated more significant than the barriers and could speed the transition. Among the accelerators was the adoption of an equity lens on grantmaking.To help funders and nonprofits harness this positive momentum for change, this toolkit offers tactics, resources, examples, and starting points. It seek to equip trustees, CEOs, program officers, and grantees themselves to overcome board biases and other barriers, to accelerate the shift to multiyear, flexible funding, and to embrace practices that create the greatest impact and strongest partnerships with their grantees.

Ethical issues and Good Practices; Grantmaking and Programme Management

Philanthropy and COVID-19: Examining two years of giving

May 25, 2022

Candid and the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) released a new report, Philanthropy and COVID-19: Examining giving in 2021, that details COVID-19-related philanthropic funding in 2021. Candid and CDP's third assessment of COVID-19 philanthropic data emphasizes that it will take decades for many communities to recover from the compounding effects of the pandemic. It highlights the role funders will play in long-term recovery from the pandemic, and CDP provides actionable steps funders can take to invigorate their COVID-19 giving strategy.

Foundation Sector, History and Analysis; Health; Humanitarian and Disaster Relief; International Affairs, Global Challenges

How to Fund Tech

April 1, 2022

This guide is for people working in trusts and foundations who want to effectively fund technology.Many trusts and foundations are grappling with the same challenges: they want to support impactful, inclusive technology and innovation in not-for-profit organisations and address the societal changes brought about by emerging technology.This guide offers guidance and processes to help in understanding the technical maturity of not-for-profit organisations, or assessing the feasibility of technology-heavy grants. It also gives notes on how to have productive conversations with grantees and partners about technology.The contents of this guide are shaped around conversations within foundations that are focused on equality, justice and human rights.

Grantmaking and Programme Management; Science and Technology; Technology and Foundations

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