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Why study philanthropy?
I’ve just graduated with an MA in Philanthropic Studies at the University of Kent, the UK’s first and only master’s course in this subject. Studying a whole degree in philanthropy sounds a bit niche to most people. (What even is philanthropy, some people wonder. One of our lecturers says she’s been asked more than once,…
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Who decides who gets the money?
Guerrilla Foundation is the rebellious teenager of European philanthropy. Many foundations avoid uncomfortable questions around power; Guerrilla Foundation, which backs activists and grassroots movements around Europe, is out to “radically and deliberately redistribute wealth” – and to have some fun with it along the way. Until 2022, however, its grantmaking process wasn’t all that unusual. A…
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A different centre of gravity
When things feel fragile and frightening – when even PR emails refer to “this clusterfuck of a year” – it’s hard to know where to focus your energy. One answer comes from something the comedian/musician/actor Tim Minchin said not long ago. Explaining why he had switched off from social media and breaking news updates, he…
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When someone’s struggling, ask them to help *you*
When he meets someone who’s struggling, Maff Potts relies on six words. “Could you do me a favour?” It’s counter-intuitive, but it’s never failed him, he says, even in extreme circumstances. Someone may be distraught, aggressive, or feeling utterly desperate. Instead of immediately trying to fix the problem, ask them for help. Can they offer…
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What does generosity actually look like?
Brits are becoming less generous – at least according to the World Giving Index, described as the “world’s leading study on global generosity”. The UK has typically ranked in the top 10, but in the latest index it’s in 22nd place, its (joint) lowest spot yet. This is not a new worry. In 2021, analysts…
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Facing the future: how do we help unborn generations?
Acting on behalf of our descendants isn’t a new thing. Indigenous groups have long practised “seventh-generation thinking” – making decisions based on how they will affect people far into the future. Europeans began building enormous cathedrals that they would not live to enjoy – because it was the “right thing to do” for their children…
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The addictive curb-cut effect
I recently wrote about the rise of online ‘body doubling’ – websites where you meet other people on a video call for an hour or so, then get on with your own work, silently accompanied by someone else doing the same. These spaces seem to be particularly valued by people with ADHD, who often struggle…
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Why super-altruists will give up a kidney
Would you give up a kidney to save the life of an anonymous stranger? Me neither. (I’m too squeamish even to donate blood.) But some people would. In fact, nearly 1,000 people in the UK have given up theirs, not because they’ve been moved to act by an individual’s appeal for help, but as “non-directed…
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Gifts: delight, obligation, poison?
Gifts are heart-warming. It feels good to be able to give something of value to someone we care about, and it feels good to receive something unexpected that signals someone has thought of us. Or… maybe not. It can also feel stressful when you’re under pressure to find the right gift. It’s awkward when you’ve…
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Chess, 3D printers -or doing nothing: public libraries as “shared living rooms”
“Hanging out at Oodi without a reason is welcomed and even recommended.” So says the brochure for Helsinki’s Central Library, named Oodi (meaning ‘ode’) – a vast ship-like, spruce-clad building that opened five years ago. It describes itself as “an open space for culture and creation”, and “everyone’s shared living room”. I don’t think that’s…
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