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Is access to art a human right?
Two years ago the Working Group on Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace (PSJP) began to investigate the relationship between social justice and art, leading to the recent publication Framing the Discourse, Advancing the Work: …
Can art be a tool for social change?
The arts can often be a powerful expression of a community’s voice and identity, especially when that identity has been repressed by years of oppression – as demonstrated in our work with India’s Dalit community. …
Advancing the cause of women through the arts: interview with Sarah Mukasa
AWDF’s Arts, Culture and Sports thematic grantmaking area seeks to engage with key players in philanthropy and the arts to produce alternative images and messages of African women, which challenge negative stereotypes and images. It …
Why art and philanthropy are natural partners
Art first appeared in caves 40,000 years ago. The arts define humanity and our ability to understand, imagine, create and communicate. Art and philanthropy have been synonymous since civilization began because art is dependent upon …
Why fund the arts: because we like it?
A little over a decade ago, I suggested to the UK think-tank Demos that we organize a conference on the value of the arts. As an occasional assessor of Arts Council grant applications, I had …
An act of faith? Why should philanthropists fund the arts?
Few things make so deep or immediate an impression, or can dramatize the human condition so forcibly, as a piece of art, yet it’s an area where funders are reluctant to tread. We asked a …
Interview with Will Miller
‘Not every philanthropic act has to carry the full weight of all possible social benefits.’ The Wallace Foundation has announced a six-year, $40 million initiative to assist up to 25 performing arts organizations across the …
The power of film: interview with Sophie Leferink
International grantmaker Hivos is based in the Netherlands but funds in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is, in the words of staffer Sophie Leferink, ‘a development organization based on humanistic principles’. Why, then, does …
Case study – The Birds of Revolution
It wasn’t the ‘origami’ alone that triggered Naseej’s acceptance of Ossama Helmy’s application for a travel grant in 2010. It was rather a collection of values and practices that form an integral part of our …
Barrow Cadbury Trust – Forum Theatre
The Barrow Cadbury Trust is a UK family foundation with strong Quaker roots and a long history of working for structural and systemic change in areas of economic, gender, racial and criminal justice. We aim …