Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Lessons in philanthropy



Little by little, the world is changing its views on philanthropy. It is no longer the endeavor of wealthy individuals with cash to spare. With the advancements in technology and information, philanthropy has become a challenge to every individual to contribute to causes and programs that are geared toward solving some of the various problems that the world has today.



Image Source: crosspointplus.com


In order to give more power to the act of giving and to have it make more of an impact, people will have to learn about modern philanthropy. There is a need for people to know about the various aspects of philanthropic work (what works and what doesn’t) for them to be able to formulate better solutions for the many problems of the modern world.



Image Source: newafricanpress.com


Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, who teaches philanthropic courses at Stanford University, has revealed in an interview that more than half of all individual philanthropists give to charity without knowing exactly how their contribution will impact the cause. She further goes to say that there is a massively untapped potential there and that results could be improved if the givers were better informed of how their generosity can be translated into something that affects the world in a more meaningful way.



Image Source: son.wisc.edu


Recently, Ms. Arrillaga-Andreessen has shared her notes and syllabi on philanthropy online, in hopes that making educational material on charity easily available can spur other educational institutions to start offering their own courses on philanthropy and strategic giving.

Follow this Twitter page on Alex von Furstenberg to find more articles on matters related to philanthropic work.