Author Archive:
Devon Kearney
Will human rights make it to 100?
The Wellspring Philanthropic Fund recently announced that it would close its doors in 2028. Though much about the Fund’s work has always been conducted in relative obscurity, it is well-known as one of the major …
The OSF cuts show how ‘lean philanthropy’ feeds the nonprofit starvation cycle
The Open Society Foundations recently completed a prolonged restructuring, announcing a new initiative to invest in green economies, and a sharp reduction of staff. As the process concludes, the foundation will retain less than 600 …
Spare some change: Is the Big Bets model effective?
Once again, after four years, a choice will be made, and our hopes for a better world are riding on it. I refer, of course, to the call for proposals for ‘100&Change.’ This MacArthur Foundation …
Three philanthropy myths to bust in 2024
2024 arrives with a sense of urgency on all fronts. At a time when democratic norms are slipping, inequality and human needs are rising, and the climate is dangerously heating up, we are called upon …
The future of the past: Intergenerational trauma and transitional justice
Recently I completed a research project for the Fund for Global Human Rights on the present and future of transitional justice: the things societies can do to address mass human rights abuses in their history. …
To shift power, fund entire ecosystems
It’s a classic tale of the trajectory of a nongovernmental organization (NGO): a well-meaning organization grows rapidly, crafts a beautiful strategy, and has all the right subject-matter expertise in place, only to realize late in …
Trust-based philanthropy is a solution not a myth
One of the most heated debates so far this year came in response to criticism of trust-based philanthropy by Jacobs Foundation CEO Simon Sommer and a piece by Charles Keidan exploring the merits of Sommer’s …
How to do philanthropy strategically in a messy world
I muttered and cursed on the subway the first time I read Paul Brest’s The Power of Theories of Change. It was the heyday of the Strategic Philanthropy movement, talk of measuring impact was everywhere, …
Letter to the editor: Trust-based philanthropy is not a myth, it’s a solution
Like Simon Sommer says of himself, I may not know what trust-based philanthropy is. But I have a good idea of where he goes wrong. Let’s set aside the broad generalizations (‘unrestricted funding seems to …
