Get curious about histories of institutional giving: learn where our stories come from and consider compelling alternatives. Situate the Western concept of philanthropy among the historical and culturally-specific purposes of giving.
Is altruism a building block of human culture, just like story? Giving rituals have existed across time and cultures. Along the way, giving was codified. Organizations were set up to receive and distribute resources. Tax codes legitimized particular charitable structures, causes, and practices. Language and ideas were passed down, distinguishing between “worthy” and “unworthy” beneficiaries. We will take a look at the origin stories of Western, institutional philanthropy and explore some other cultural conceptions of wealth, inequality, justice, fairness, altruism, and care. It is by no means an exhaustive survey! Instead, it’s a jumping off point for asking questions about where our philanthropic institutions come from, what they were and were not designed to do, and how else we might think about giving.
"The first man who, having enclosed a piece of ground, bethought himself of saying ‘This is mine,’ and found people simple enough to believe him, was the real founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows, 'Beware of listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody.'"
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on the Origin of Inequality
Origin Stories introduces the idea that philanthropy as it looks today, in the West, emerged in response to increasing inequalities based in land ownership and agricultural surpluses thousands of years ago. Those disparities gave rise to both unmet human need and the desire for social stability.
Giving practices predate agrarian society and (as far as we know) extend to every society on record.
While Philosopher Thomas Hobbes famously described the natural state of humankind as “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short,” historians, anthropologists, evolutionary biologists, and even neuroscientists who study giving behaviours say that altruism and cooperation are just as essential to the human experience.
Institutional philanthropy has evolved as the running mate of feudal and capitalist economic systems... but Rousseau begs us to ask how else history might have unfolded. As if to say, 'what else is possible?'
"Looking at the past must only be a means of understanding more clearly what and who you are - so you can more wisely build the future."
Paolo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed
We're not just going back a century or two, we're heading back to the emergence of this concept that the wealthy give a portion of their wealth to the poor in an organized way, while continuing to grow their wealth. The structure for this redistribution has changed over the centuries, across places, but the idea of donating some part of surplus wealth while largely preserving the economic structure that produced it is key to the mainstream concept of philanthropy today. Understanding what motivated that choice in Mesopotamia can provide insight into the purpose of philanthropy today.
Cooperation is part of human nature.
How, we ask, did we shift from informal giving practices to formalized giving structures, and who have those structures served to benefit?
What's different about patterns of giving unmediated by formal institutions?
If we look at cultures of giving as distinct from institutions of philanthropy, can we open up some space to reimagine what present day philanthropic institutions are for, and who gets to decide?
Historical inquiry can help us. As Rutger Bregman reminds us in Human Kind, “One of the basic lessons of history is that things can be different.”
Bregman is a Dutch historian, journalist, and author whose subjects include social and economic innovation, philosophy, human generosity and collaboration.
Gain insights into the origins of present-day philanthropy. Specifically, understand the purpose and values behind many of the practices and policies that comprise its precursors, sticky beliefs that are part of contemporary philanthropic narratives, power dynamics, and laws. Read it here.
Map of Giving Practices
Find new perspective on what modern, Western philanthropy is and isn't by surveying other practices of giving and the philosophies that underlie them. Ask: which human needs and values are satisfied by various approaches to giving? Read it here.
Narratives from our past are sticky and have a way of showing up long after our most explicit stories have changed. We investigate the past to better see the present, and to remind us that the way things are could be otherwise.
Mapping the Stories of the Past to Your Present
Challenge yourself to spot where past attitudes, beliefs, and logics shape your present reality in relationship to institutional philanthropy and/or your own giving behaviours. Use this tool.
A guided tour through multiple cultures and times gives us many perspectives on what philanthropy is and what it was designed to do. Throughout we ask: What is the relationship between philanthropy, inequality, and justice?
Jenny is a journalist, public servant, and member of the City of Vancouver’s Renters’ Advisory Committee. She is also a member of the Vancouver hub of the Global Shapers, a network of young leaders convened by the World Economic Forum, and an SFU RADIUS Fellow. Jenny is deeply curious about Vancouver’s housing crisis and produces videos on the topic on Instagram and Twitter at @jennymeixi.
Sara Eftekhar is a first generation Canadian-Iranian immigrant. She is also a health care worker and advocate. She has been involved in numerous local and international charities and organizations since a very young age in various capacities such as managing projects, fundraising, volunteering and being a board member. Her activism in the community through philanthropy has caused her to be cautious, critical, inquisitive and committed to social justice.
Dr. Susan Phillips is a Professor at the School of Public Policy and Administration in Carleton University. She is the Founder and Program Director of the Master of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership. Her research focuses on the evolving relationship between government and civil society – in policy development, service delivery and promotion of citizenship. In particular, her work concentrates on comparative analysis of the policy, regulatory and financing frameworks that enable (or constrain) the work of civil society organizations and philanthropy, and the implications for public management. Dr. Phillips is a Research Fellow of the Carleton Centre for Community Innovation (3CI), and is centrally involved with the Regulatory Governance Initiative (RGI) and the Centre for Women in Politics and Public Leadership. She is a board member of the International Research Society for Public Management, a member of the Policy Advisory Boards of Imagine Canada and Volunteer Canada, and Past Fellow of the Wellesley Institute and the Canada School of Public Service.
Dr. John Borrows is one of the world’s leading scholars on Indigenous law. At the University of Victoria, Dr. Borrows co-founded the world’s first dual degree program in Indigenous and common law. He supports efforts for and by Indigenous peoples to reclaim their inherent rights to self-governance in order to address systemic and individual injustice and to build healthy, safe and inclusive communities. He's Anishinaabe/Ojibway and a member of the Chippewa of the Nawash First Nation in Ontario. Dr. Borrows is a Fellow of the Trudeau Foundation, a recipient of the Aboriginal Achievement Award in Law and the 2017 Canada Council Killam Prize, is a Fellow of the Academy of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada, and was awarded the 2019 Canada Council Molson Prize.
Calum Carmichael is an Associate Professor at the School of Public Policy and Administration. He holds a BA in Economics and Political Science from the University of Western Ontario, and a Masters in Public Affairs and Doctorate in Economics from Princeton University. Calum’s research has touched on several policy areas, including trade and monetary policy. Most recently, it has focused on ways in which governments do or could encourage and regulate the financial contributions that individuals make to charitable, non-profit and political organizations.
Mvuselelo Ngcoya teaches in the Development Studies programme in the School of Built Environment and Development Studies (SBEDS) at the University of Kwazulu-Natal (UKZN), where he has been since 2010. His academic and research interests cover agrarian issues such as land reform, small-scale agriculture, rural development, etc. and the social life and political economy of indigenous vegetables (particularly imbuya or amaranth). His academic interests also include investigating the role of subjugated philosophies in International Relations. in particular, the local and global significance of ubuntu, especially the contested social and political uses of this worldview. His background in International Relations theory sustains an interest in the relevance of Frantz Fanon to understanding international politics. Prior to joining UKZN, Mvu taught at American University in Washington D.C. and worked as a research analyst for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
Rabbi Dan Moskovitz is senior rabbi at Temple Sholom and author of The Men’s Seder (MRJ Publishing). He is an active leader in the community’s response to the Syrian Refugee Crisis, Climate Change and Social Isolation. Rabbi Moskovitz is also the chair of the Reform Rabbis of Canada and on the steering committee for Canadian Reform Judaism. Rabbi Moskovitz’ rabbinate has been shaped by his focus on fostering relational communities, his lifelong commitment to interfaith families raising Jewish children, and his work with Jewish by Choice. His approach to Torah and progressive Judaism is imbued with a passion for social justice and community collaboration. His writing and perspective on Judaism appear in major print and digital media internationally.
Mohamad Sawwaf is an entrepreneur, business owner and educator in Toronto, Ontario in Canada. He has over 10 years of experience in the financial services industry. He acts as CEO of Manzil, which he founded in 2017. Currently, Mohamad Sawwaf is a Doctoral Student at the Henley Business School at the University of Reading in the UK.
Dr. Wenjuan Zheng is a postdoctoral scholar with the Civic Life of Cities Lab and China Program at the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society. Dr. Zheng holds a Ph.D. from the Department of Sociology, CUNY Graduate Center. She earned a BSc degree in Environmental Science and City Studies from the University of Toronto in Canada and an MA degree in sociology from Columbia University. She is broadly interested in organizations, migration, social movements, and political sociology. Her dissertation, titled “Caught between the State, the Market, and Civil Society: The Divergent Paths of Chinese NGOs Seeking to Make Social Change in China,” examines how local institutional environments constraints and liberates the organizations’ strategic choices in anticipating and responding to external crises, using ethnography and comparative case studies of nonprofit incubators in two cities of China.
PurposePhil worked with a team of emerging artists to interpret abstract concepts in each episode, producing cover art and a complementary piece.
Rawan Hassan (she/her) - Cover art
Rawan Hassan is an artist/designer based in the unceded land of the Coast Salish people, specifically the land of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam (Vancouver, Canada). Her artwork explores realism and the abstract, through patterning, linework and pencil drawings. Her goal is to create work that reflects the cultures, experiences and perspectives she grew up and continues to evolve with.
Cover Art
Inspired by the quote “a human being is a human being because of other human beings” from Mvuselelo Ngcoya, this piece explores the concept of philanthropy and giving as growth.
This piece compares the different forms of giving through the interactions of the hands; the difference between vertical giving (from one hand with many, to another hand with less), and horizontal giving (two hands on equal standing, directly giving). The artwork brings into question the potential gap between intention and impact, in the context of rising philanthropy and rising inequality; represented through the top hand missing the receiving one.
Randall Bear Barnetson (he/him) - Complementary art
Randall Bear Barnetson is a multidisciplinary Northwest Coast Indigenous artist. Bear is from the village of Nadleh Whut’en, the Dakelh nation, and of the Duntem’yoo Bear clan. Bear’s artistic practice interprets matters such as mental health and wellbeing, identity, spirituality, and culture through the framework of Northwest Coast Indigenous art forms. Bear’s art and traditional storytelling has aided in reconciliation and decolonization efforts with settler organizations in discussing Indigenous culture and heritage. Bear is currently enrolled in a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts at Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Bear has completed the Foundation Program thus far.
Transformation
An Elder told me that “even when a being is fully transformed it still has remnants of its former self”. That is why I chose to depict the Raven with human hands.
As the Raven ascends to the place of a Spirit being he still holds the parts of his former self. The necessity of transformation doesn’t make the process any easier. Another Elder told me that one of the only reasons why Indigenous peoples are so resilient is because of rootedness in our culture and our ability to stay grounded in our cultural ways of being. We have survived countless hardships because we stayed true to our culture and our inherent goal of preserving our ways and passing those onto future generations. That is why I chose to depict the sun, eyes, and hands the same colour. As the Raven wrestles with the transformation their eyes stay focused on their goal, and their hands act out that goal, as difficult as that may be. As we continue towards our goal of a better future for the generations to come we must not lose sight of our goals and remain grounded in our teachings, culture, and ways of being.
Gain insights into the origins of present-day philanthropy by getting curious about the purpose, values, beliefs, and power dynamics, behind past practices.
To see philanthropic intents, practices, and values in a historical and cultural context
