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Opinions
The ethics of receiving
Among the many difficult ethical questions that arise in modern philanthropy, one seems to appear with increasing frequency, the issue of ‘tainted money’. This actually has to do with a very old quandary in the …
AGRA – a blunt philanthropic arrow
It is a common saying that when a man has a hammer in his hand every problem appears to be a nail. It takes a wise man to know that a hammer is just one …
How far do our values go?
The central issue in the debate about the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s investments is the extent to which endowed grantmaking foundations can and should apply their values to both of their two key roles: …
Philanthropy and hubris
The arrival of new sources of funding is always welcome news to anyone concerned with the application of private wealth to the benefit of society. The influx of vast new wealth into the non-profit sector …
The accountability conundrum
Perhaps the most frequently used word in discussions of the non-profit sector today is ‘accountability’. It features in the titles of conferences, articles in the press about non-profit issues, academic journals, and governmental hearings. Why …
Steering clear of the missionaries
Not every reader of Alliance will be familiar with the Ryder Cup, which is a golf match between the best 12 golfers in Europe and America. For years America won it. They had the best …
Intuition, trust, and a great river of money
‘Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.’ Albert Einstein In honour of the recent centennial of Einstein’s miracle year, here’s a thought experiment: imagine that you’ve been …
Questions reporters should have asked about the Buffett donation
Warren Buffett’s recent announcement of his intention to give most of his fortune (some $30 billion) to the Gates Foundation generated a spate of laudatory press coverage. While few would disagree that Mr Buffett’s donation …
Spotlight on business in Pakistan – Business and charity
The findings of a report by the Pakistan Centre for Philanthropy (PCP) on the volume, patterns and range of ‘giving’ by public listed companies in Pakistan are significant as well as interesting. They confirm the …
Can you blame them?
‘Democracy promotion’ has become a major area of activity for civil society organizations in recent years. This has provoked a clampdown on civil society by certain governments and in particular attempts by those governments to …