When people ask me about philanthropy, here is what I usually say: If we are lucky enough to live financially comfortable lives, we should be sharing some of our wealth. And, we should be giving in proportion to what we have. Additionally, our giving should help address the injustices that enabled our wealth. In recent…
Continue reading →Giving is good – but there is a darker side to fundraising and philanthropy which it is useful to be aware of. Examples include organisations soliciting funds for questionable purposes, and donors, businesses or funding organisations using their money to influence democracy in ways which are unethical and/or untransparent. Unfortunately, according to this excellent Radio…
Continue reading →Christmas has come and gone again. Ah, Christmas. It’s when we express our love of others through the giving of gifts, right? No – wait – isn’t Christmas just a commercial thing, where we buy stuff which usually isn’t what the other person actually wants? Hmmm – it’s a tricky thing Christmas. Now, reread the…
Continue reading →Ending Homelessness – we thought it couldn’t be done. Then along came COVID-19, and, thanks to a significant collaborative effort, a large proportion of the homeless population had some kind of roof over their head at last. It wasn’t perfect, and it isn’t a permanent solution, but it happened. So how do we build from…
Continue reading →How should funders be supporting our communities in light of the Covid-19 pandemic? All of us will be affected, directly or indirectly. But the impact for families and communities already struggling with issues like homelessness, mental health, addictions, family violence and poverty will be especially challenging. So, it’s time to step up our support funders!…
Continue reading →It’s a new year and a new decade. So, philanthropic funders, what will our New Year’s resolutions be? Here are three suggestions: 1. Aim for Equity: Is our funding reaching the causes and people who need it most? Or do we give to organisations which are already well funded, and which serve communities that are…
Continue reading →There’s a lot of discussion in the farming world about the importance of moving away from extractive practices and instead embracing regenerative agriculture – here’s a recent relevant story from the Waikato. Might some of these same considerations apply to philanthropy? Let me start with a couple of dictionary definitions: extractive: the withdrawal of [natural]…
Continue reading →The Philanthropy Summit, held in Wellington from May 15 – 17 and created by Philanthropy New Zealand, was one of the best learning opportunities I have had in a long time. Here are the top four things I learned: There is a curious and delightful parallel between dental health and a racism-free world. One of…
Continue reading →What does it mean to be a good Pākehā? How do we build better relationships with Māori? And how might this play out in the world of funding? Here are my thoughts. A few years back I set myself on a journey to be a better Pākehā. For me, this means questioning what it means…
Continue reading →Here is the second of two podcasts on generosity where Scott Miller from Volunteering NZ and I are interviewed by the wonderful David Binstead from Twice Podcast. (You might also be interested in the first episode.) Some of the concepts and questions explored include: How to attract great volunteers and ensure that they have a…
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