HistPhil

New HistPhil post: Catherine Milton, the first executive director of the Commission on National and Community Service (which laid the foundation for AmeriCorps), recounts the creation of the agency, the subject of her new book, Creating AmeriCorps: Bipartisanship in Action (2023).

Creating AmeriCorps Editors’ Note: Catherine Milton, the first executive director of the Commission on National and Community Service (which laid the foundation for AmeriCorps), recounts the creation of the agen…

In a recent HistPhil post, John Thelin and Richard Trollinger concluded that “the aggressive alumnus as major donor and activist is a product of our own times.” In a new post, Joan Marie Johnson challenges this, reminding us that “prominent white women philanthropists” in late nineteenth- and twentieth-century United States–such as Mary Elizabeth Garrett, Phoebe Apperson Hearst, and Katharine Dexter McCormick–could also be considered precedents. And in highlighting these feminist higher-ed donors, she asks us to think more about the category of "coercion" itself, and to consider when it might itself be a democratically legitimate response to an institution's failings.

What Can We Learn from Women Philanthropists as Precedents for Alumni Education Donors and their Push for Power Today Editors’ Notes: Looking for historical precedents to today’s “aggressive” alumni donors, John Thelin and Richard Trollinger wrote recently on HistPhil that “the aggres…

New HistPhil post: Richard Trollinger and John Thelin, scholars of philanthropy and higher education, seek to place the recent higher education "donor revolt" in historical context. How new is what the New York Times called the "new playbook" being used by donors like Bill Ackman and Marc Rowan?

Historicizing Ackman: Searching for Precedents of the Higher Education “Donor Revolt” Editors’ Note: John Thelin and Richard Trollinger, two scholars of philanthropy and higher education, put the recent higher education “donor revolt” in historical perspective. Rec…

New HistPhil post: Jonathan E. Cohen introduces the Health and Human Rights Oral History Project, a new collection of oral histories documenting thirty years of investment in the field of global public health by George Soros’s Open Society Foundations, housed at the University of Southern California Digital Library.

Using Oral History in Public Health Philanthropy: The Health and Human Rights Oral History Project Editors’ Note: Jonathan E. Cohen introduces the Health and Human Rights Oral History Project, a new collection of oral histories documenting thirty years of investment in the field of global …

"Despite a narrative around Indian philanthropic giving steadily rising in the last few years, there remains a lack of clarity about the overall size of the philanthropic giving sector in" India. A pathbreaking longitudinal study of household giving patterns in India, led by the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka University, seeks to address that gap. In a new HistPhil post, part of the forum on the "Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy," Shaivya Verma and Divya Chopra, researchers at the Centre, detail findings from two reports based on the study, and the methodological and conceptual challenges the study took on.

How India Gives: A First-of-its-Kind Longitudinal Study on Household Giving in India Editors’ Notes: Shaivya Verma and Divya Chopra outline the findings from two reports on household giving patterns in India, from the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka Univer…

New HistPhil post: What is the classical concept of "Magnificence," & how does it relate to "munificence," or the more modern "philanthropy?" And what does that relation tell us abt the one btw private wealth & the public good? Guido Alfani explains, based on his new book, As Gods Among Men: A History of the Rich in the West.

Magnificence: from Lorenzo de’ Medici to J.P. Morgan – and beyond? Editors’ Note: Guido Alfani explores the concept of the ideal of “magnificence” and situates it in relation to “munificence” and “philanthropy,” based on a…

New HistPhil post: Jae Yeon Kim on SNF Agora Institute's research on the uneven associational landscape of civic opportunity in the United States.

The Uneven Landscape of Civic Opportunity in the United States: What We Discovered While Mapping the Modern Agora Editors’ Note: Jae Yeon Kim introduces the research he has conducted, along with other colleagues at the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, on the uneven associational landscape…

New HistPhil post: Jeremy Snyder examines the often invisible role of crowdfunding platforms as charitable intermediaries.

The Complications of Crowdfunding: The Power of Unseen Intermediaries Editors’ Note: Jeremy Snyder discusses the role of crowdfunding platforms as charitable intermediaries, based on his new book, Appealing to the Crowd: The Ethical, Political, and Practical Di…

Experiential philanthropy, a pedagogy that allows students to actively engage in philanthropic decision-making, has grown in popularity lately, but has been largely restricted to the Global North. Lindsey McDougle writes abt her experience leading an experiential philanthropy class of sixth graders in Tanzania and what it might tell us about how such an experience can redefine what it means to be a philanthropist across the world.
https://histphil.org/2023/10/05/global-experiential-philanthropy-a-pedagogical-approach-for-developing-the-next-generation-of-philanthropists-around-the-world/

What happens when a class of 6th grade Tanzanians begin to think of themselves as philanthropists? Lindsey McDougle, PhD writes about experiential philanthropy, a pedagogy that allows students to actively engage in philanthropic decision-making around issues and causes that matter to them. It's primarily been limited to higher education institutions in the “Global North.” "As a result," she writes, "students in many other parts of the world have seldom had the chance to engage in the type of hands-on philanthropic learning that could profoundly reshape their understanding of and connection to philanthropy." To address this disparity, she "set out to explore whether implementing experiential philanthropy in the east African country of Tanzania could be used as an approach to develop and nurture the philanthropic identities of young people there." McDougle wrote about the experience for HistPhil.

Global Experiential Philanthropy: A Pedagogical Approach for Developing the Next Generation of Philanthropists Around the World Editors’ Note: Lindsey McDougle continues HistPhil’s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy, with a post on an experiential philanthropy class in Tanzania. How do young peo…

https://histphil.org/2023/09/11/understanding-philanthropy-in-china-challenges-and-opportunities/
Yongzheng Yang continues HistPhil‘s Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy forum, with a focus on philanthropy in China. He argues research on Chinese philanthropy needs to pay specific attn to the multitude of definitions and understandings of giving, the strong role of informal giving & the unique political context.

Understanding Philanthropy in China: Challenges and Opportunities Editors’ Note: Yongzheng Yang continues HistPhil’s Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy forum, with a focus on the study of philanthropy in China. Although philanthropy is generally d…

New HistPhil post: Dana Doan continues HistPhil‘s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy, with a perspective from Vietnam and the United States.

Where is the love? Philanthropy research in Vietnam and the USA Editors’ Note: Dana Doan continues HistPhil‘s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy, with a perspective from Vietnam and the United States. When people find out that I study phi…

New post: Bojana Radovanović continues HistPhil‘s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy.

An inclusive study of global philanthropy: Perspectives from Serbia Editors’ Note: Bojana Radovanović continues HistPhil‘s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy. In academic discourse, philanthropy is most often identified with donating money an…

New post in HistPhil's forum on the inclusive study of global philanthropy: Cassandra Chapman & Sana Nakata urge scholars to "take the colonial context seriously" when studying generosity “down under” & attend to richness of Indigenous giving traditions.

Studying generosity “down under”: Taking the colonial context seriously Editors’ Note: Cassandra Chapman and Sana Nakata continue HistPhil’s forum on the Inclusive Study of Global Philanthropy. All dimensions of life in Australia and New Zealand have been s…

We're excited to begin a new HistPhil forum on an inclusive study of global philanthropy. Pamala Wiepking, who helped organize it, leads things off, addressing the need to overcome definitional, cultural & geographical boundaries in the study of giving & generosity.

An inclusive study of global philanthropy: how can we overcome definitional, cultural and geographical boundaries? Editors’ Note: Pamala Wiepking opens HistPhil’s forum on promoting an inclusive study of global philanthropy. In the coming weeks, scholars from around the world will reflect on the stu…

How did GoFundMe become the "giving layer of the internet"? And how did its own mission & strategies change along the way? Matt Wade explores the platform's growth & the challenges it has faced, in this new HistPhil post.

How did GoFundMe become “the Giving Layer of the Internet”? Editors’ Note: Matt Wade recounts the growth of GoFundMe as the world’s largest giving platform, as analyzed in his recent article in the Journal of Philanthropy and Marketing. Despite …

New HistPhil post: Dana Brakman Reiser and Steven Dean discuss the significance of the rise of philanthropy limited liability companies, and place it within historical context, based on material from their new book, For-Profit Philanthropy: Elite Power and the Threat of Limited Liability Companies, Donor-Advised Funds, and Strategic Corporate Giving (Oxford 2023).

The Rise of Philanthropy LLCs and the Erosion of the Bargain of 1969 Editors’ Note: Dana Brakman Reiser and Steven Dean discuss the significance of the rise of philanthropy limited liability companies, and place it within historical context, based on material …

New HistPhil post: Matthew Wyman-McCarthy assesses William MacAskill's use of 18th/19th C. British antislavery (based on the work of Christopher Brown) as a model for the long-termism movement in his latest book, What We Owe the Future. Yes, antislavery serves as an inspiration for extending moral horizons (geographically and temporally), but there's even more he could learn from it.

Antislavery in What We Owe the Future: The Contingency of Moral Change Editors’ Note: Matthew Wyman-McCarthy examines the role of British abolitionism as a case study and model for the longtermism movement in William MacAskill’s What We Owe the Future (Bas…

New HistPhil post: Gregg Gardner on the development of charity and its relation to conceptualizations of wealth in early Jewish thought.

The Development of Charity in Early Jewish Thought Editors’ Note: Gregg Gardner introduces his new book, Wealth, Poverty, and Charity in Jewish Antiquity (University of California Press, 2022), The ancient rabbis of the first centuries tell a…

New HistPhil post: Bruce Kimball and Sarah Iler discuss the deleterious consequences of the financial rivalry among higher education institutions, as detailed in their new book, Wealth, Cost, and Price in American Higher Education (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2023).

Stemming the Financial Rivalry that has Eroded Esteem for Higher Education Editors’ Note: Bruce Kimball and Sarah Iler discuss the deleterious consequences of the financial rivalry among higher education institutions, as detailed in their new book, Wealth, Cost, and…

New HistPhil Post: A story abt the power of philanthropy...and puppets. Kathryn Ostrofsky on how Lloyd Morrisett, who died last month, Built Sesame Street--from the Foundation Up.

How Lloyd Morrisett Built Sesame Street, from the Foundation Up Editors’ Note: Kathryn Ostrofsky offers a tribute to Lloyd Morrisett, the foundation leader who died on January 15, 2023, best known for his role in the creation of Sesame Street. Photo of Mo…

New HistPhil post: John DiIulio, Jr. reflects on the philanthropic vision of his friend and colleague Michael Gerson, who died on November 17, 2022.

Michael J. Gerson and the Duty of Philanthropy Editors’ Note: John DiIulio, Jr. reflects on the philanthropic vision of his friend and colleague Michael Gerson, who died on November 17, 2022. The photo of Gerson on the HistPhil header is …

New HistPhil post: Leonard Cassuto and Robert Weisbuch discuss the decline of U.S. philanthropic foundation support for the humanities in higher education, based on their book The New PhD: How to Build a Better Graduate Education (Johns Hopkins, 2021).

Where Have All the Funders Gone? How Big Philanthropy Left the Humanities Behind Editors’ Note: Leonard Cassuto and Robert Weisbuch discuss the decline of U.S. philanthropic foundation support for the humanities in higher education, based on their book The New PhD: How to…

New HistPhil post: 'Community' is one of the most frequently invoked words in urban policy. But as Jeremy Levine details, there's no agreement what we mean by it, an indeterminacy which helps explain nonprofits' oversized, sometimes precarious, role in civic life.

The many meanings of ‘community’ and nonprofits’ place in urban policy Editors’ Note: Jeremy Levine discusses the indeterminate meaning of ‘community’ and how it shapes nonprofit organization’s place in urban policy, a major theme of his 2021 b…

What's most striking abt Tocqueville's 1831 tour of the U.S. is not what he saw, but what he didn't see--and still got right. Based on his new biography of the Frenchman who explained U.S. associational life to Americans, Olivier Zunz explains.

A Masterpiece of Political Imagination: What Tocqueville Saw–and Didn’t See–in the United States Editors’ Note: The following is an adaptation of a lecture delivered in May 2022 by Olivier Zunz at the University of Virginia’s Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture on his book, The Man…