Giving Thought

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Latest Episodes:

Developing the UK's culture of philanthropy, with Matthew Bowcock & Cath Dovey Jun 30, 2020

Show notes

In this episode we talk to Matthew Bowcock and Cath Dovey, founders of the Beacon Collaborative, about developing the UK's culture of philanthropy both pre- and post-Covid. Including

What is the Beacon Collaborative?
What was the UK culture of philanthropy like pre-Covid?
How does this perhaps differ from the culture in other countries (e.g. the US?)
What do we know about the barriers that prevent more wealthy people giving?
What has the response from wealthy philanthropists to the Covid-19 crisis been like?
How have attitudes to collaboration among philanthropists and funders changed as a result of the current context?
How do we balance the emphasis on centralisation/coordination of philanthropy necessitated by the crisis with the choice and freedom that is likely to motivate donors over the longer term?
Why are many donors moving from restricted to unrestricted funding right now? Is this going to herald a longer-term shift?
Should we expect anything in philanthropy to change fundamentally as a result of what we are going through? If so, what?
Are we likely to see a more positive or more negative narrative about philanthropy post-Covid?

Related Links

The Beacon Collaborative website
The Beacon Collaborative Manifesto
CAF's Coronavirus Hub
Our CAF Giving Thought podcast interview series on Covid-19: Voices from Civil Society
Our CAF Giving Thought podcast on Questioning the philanthropic response to Covid-19, with Kris Putnam-Walkerly
Our CAF Giving Thought podcast Philanthropy, civil society and covid-19: what now, what next?
Rhod's blog on Philanthropy and Civil Society after Covid-19: Key questions for the future

Using film to tell charity stories, with Simon Burton Jun 16, 2020

Show notes

In this episode we talk to Simon Burton, founder and CEO of the Charity Film Awards, about how charities can use film to portray and amplify their work. Including:

-What is the aim of the Charity Film Awards and how did it come about?

-In what interesting ways have charity entrants to the competition been using video?

-Why is storytelling important for charities?

-Positive vs negative representations of charities and the people they serve: do upbeat messages work? Or are tragic images still the norm?

-Is it possible for organisations with limited resources to use video effectively as a tool?

-Will we see more charities engaging with video as a result of the enforced digital transformation brought about by Covid-19?

-Have any charities used short-form video and platforms like TikTok effectively?

-Are any charities using virtual and augmented reality or 360 video?

-How did the CFA turn itself into a virtual event in such a short space of time?

-Will we see virtual events becoming more the norm after the coronavirus situation is over?

-Are charities well-represented in mainstream screen media?

-Are there any good TV programmes, films about charities or philanthropy? If not, why not?

Related Links

Kris's new book, "Delusional Altruism"
Kris's author profile on Forbes
Kris's Alliance Magazine blog
Kris on Twitter
Our recent CAF Giving Thought blog and podcast on philanthropy & civil society post COVID-19.

Philanthropy, Civil Society & Covid-19: What now, what next? May 06, 2020

Show notes

In episode 75 we take a look at the key issues facing civil society and philanthropy during the covid-19 pandemic crisis and beyond. We explore the benefits of historical insight, highlight some of the main challenges civil society organisations face right now, and consider the most important questions to ask as we look ahead to the future. Including:

The history of philanthropy and civil society in times of crisis

Centralization- what can we learn from C18th Hamburg and WWI in the UK about how crises lead to a desire to rationalise philanthropy?
How do views on the causes of crises affect the philanthropic response? Religious views on plagues and the role of charity, and how the understanding of epidemic illness affects collectivism and mutualism.
Poverty, Power & Inequality: The unequal effects of crises and the dangers- does philanthropy entrench inequality, or can it help to overcome it?

Key current trends

Reduced income but increased demand. Many orgs in survival mode.
Universal nature of crisis makes fundraising ask more complex (i.e. not "them", but "us")
Enforced pivot to digital - how do you adapt to new tools and avoid pitfalls?
Funder behaviour: unrestricted grants, core-cost funding, reduced reporting, trust-based grantmaking
Collaboration, cooperation & coordination
New digitally-enabled networks emerging alongside traditional charities

What might the future hold?

Will we see a shift in public expectations of state vs philanthropic provision?
Will there be a rebalancing of the mutual vs charitable tradition?
Philanthro-localism or philanthro-globalism?
Will the reputation of philanthropy improve or deteriorate?
Are decentralised and networked organisational models an opportunity or a threat for civil society?
Does the response to the pandemic highlight an unmet desire for participation?
Will the current period of enforced digitisation lead to more CSOs engaging with the opportunities and challenges of technology?
Is the short-term imperative to meet critical need going to lead to a longer-term desire to rationalise philanthropy?
Will we see more transparency and sharing of data?
Are we seeing the end of organisational ego in philanthropy?
Will there be longer-term changes in attitudes to core costs, unrestricted grants and reporting requirements?
Will we see a shift in perception/norms with regard to endowed assets?
Will there be more recognition of the need for foresight among funders and civil society?
Will the crisis create new problems for civil society to address?

Related Links

Rhod's HistPhil blog "Philanthropy in A Time of Crisis: Lessons from European History"
CAF's Philanthropy Stimulus Package proposal paper
CAF's recent webinar on "Covid-19: latest insight on how charities and donors are reacting"
Rhod's Giving Thought blog "Philanthropy & Civil Society After Covid-19: Key questions for the future"
Our recent CAF Giving Thought podcast series on "voices from civil society during Covid-19"
Our podcast with Cassie Robinson from National Lottery Community Fund

Cassie Robinson - philanthropy & civil society during the covid-19 pandemic & beyond Apr 16, 2020

Show notes

In episode 74, we talk to Cassie Robinson, Senior Head of the UK Portfolio at the National Lottery Community Fund, and a prominent writer and thinker about the intersection of tech, civil society and philanthropy. I a wide-ranging conversation against the backdrop of the covid-19 pandemic, we discussed:

How is the Covid 19 pandemic affecting National Lottery Community Fund and the organisations it works with?
What has happened so far that should give us hope?
Will the short-term, enforced digital transformation that many civil society organisations (CSOs) are undergoing right now result in longer term changes within the sector? And what support may be required for that to happen?
What new challenges and unintended consequences might arise as a huge number of CSOs become reliant on platforms and digital tools?
What role will civil society need to pay in ensuring that short-term policy changes re data and technology that are driven by the need to respond to the covid-19 pandemic do not result in longer-term human rights and civil liberties issues?
Will funders and CSOs become more aware of/focussed on tech issues as a result of this period of enforced digitisation?
Is civil society engagement on tech issues too narrowly-focussed on human rights and international development?
What more needs to be done to engage wider civil society in these issues?
We are seeing more focus on the idea of decentralised or non-hierarchical governance models for social change movements - do you think this will filter into wider civil society? What opportunities and challenges might this bring?
Do charities and civil society organisations need to make a case for the continuing value of centralised or hierarchical structure in some cases? (I.e. can we "make infrastructure cool again" - if it ever was…?)
What support can traditional funders give to networks and decentralised movements?
Is the renewed focus on locality and place during the pandemic going to lead to longer-term shift towards 'philanthro-localism'?
Does the nature of the current pandemic crisis mean that we are seeing more focus on mutuality and collectivism rather than charity and philanthropy, and will this affect anything longer term?
Will we see more funders and CSOs thinking in terms of collaboration and systems, rather than individual action, as we move into a post-covid future?
Will philanthropy's prominent role so far in the response to the covid-19 crisis lead to less criticism in the future? Or more?

Related Links

Cassie's Medium account, where she writes all sots of interesting blogs about her work with TNLCF and other projects.
Eventbrite page for the Collective Action Labs work Cassie is doing with Rachel Coldicutt
The Foundation Design Lab (Full Disclosure: I'm working with Cassie and others on this as part of the Foresight strand).
The paper I gave at the ARNOVA 2019 conference on the strengths and weaknesses of tech-enabled decentralisation in civil society and philanthropy
My Alliance Magazine article, "Riding the Tiger of Technological Change"

The Covid-19 Crisis: Voices from civil society - David Ainsworth, Catalyst Apr 14, 2020

Show notes

This is a conversation with David Ainsworth, from Catalyst.

The Covid-19 Crisis: Voices from civil society - Dan Fluskey, Institute of Fundraising Apr 14, 2020

Show notes

This is a conversation with Dan Fluskey, Head of Policy at the Institute of Fundraising.

The Covid-19 Crisis: Voices from civil society - Dan Sutch, CAST Apr 14, 2020

Show notes

This is a conversation with Dan Sutch, Director of CAST (Centre for Accelerating Social Technology)

The Covid-19 Crisis: Voices from civil society 5 Apr 09, 2020

Show notes

In the fifth compilation episode in our series of conversation with leading voices across civil society during the covid-19 pandemic crisis, we talk to:

Dan Sutch - Director of CAST (Centre for the Acceleration of Social Technology)
Dan Fluskey, Head of Policy, Chartered Institute of Fundraising
David Ainsworth, Catalyst

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