Charity: how effective is giving? | The Economist

Today's super rich are richer than ever and are

giving

away their billions like never before. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has pledged to donate 99% of his company shares to

charity

. Philanthropists are investing record sums to address the world's most pressing compassion issues. And unlike the mega-donors of the past, today's philanthropists want to see results in their lives. Michael Bloomberg's philanthropy is a gift to this planet, but how altruistic is this new golden age of

giving

? If these mega-donors become too powerful we have created a separate society and an unequal system in which billionaires influence simply by purchasing social change the way charities work is increasingly under the microscope long overdue reports of sexual abuse by Oxfam workers in Haiti we are in non-violent donations large and small a demand for better results for your dollar Caroline 103 nitiram rock form this is leading to innovative new approaches to doing good that are redefining notions of altruism They have been donated 100 million dollars thanks to altruism

effective

you Manhattan New York other roads belts if you need any services, we take a car Just in case, Hilton Douglas is an outreach worker for urban roads, a nonprofit organization that benefits from a recent

charity

explosion among wealthy Americans, and Hilton is on a mission to address one of the country's toughest problems.

One rough sleeper at a time, there are record numbers of homeless people. people in New York and every day Hilton tries to help some of the most affected hagel sir there is a card that is the reception center in 2018 the spending of charitable foundations reached a record of seventy-five billion dollars in the United States the The charity Hilton works for is one of 250 that are supported by New York's largest and best-known foundation, Robin Hood. Robin Hood provides a small percentage of urban roads' total revenue, but the foundation also donates strategic and operational assistance. Having the support of funders is essential.

If it weren't for Robin. Hood I'm not sure where I would be at this particular time. Put your feelings. Urban Paths conducts outreach programs at a drop-in center and provides shelter for around 850 men and women each night. It can be dangerous for other people on the street. Take advantage that Rufus has been on the streets for six years, good news for you and today I have a location for you in the safe haven, today we will do it today so you can finally walk the streets and give your chapter a new chance. chapter well for long-term rough sleepers like Rufus, the charity has set up three safe havens as an alternative to city-funded dormitory-style shelters.

Officers lost contact with his family and hope his temporary home can help him turn his life around. however you have to act tough when you're away, you hear a lot of murderers at some point and I see people just walking over someone they just left on the street and I would love to get back to work thinking for myself. I can go back to my family there and that is my family. The ultimate goal is to get Rufus and other homeless people into permanent, affordable housing. Hilton believes the Robin Hood Foundation is helping her charity find a long-term solution to the homeless crisis in New York and says if it weren't here, there could be more than two hundred people on the street that you could go over, so Robin Hood is saving lives because I am saving lives every year.

Robin Hood hosts America's most lavish fundraising gala, raising more than 60% of its annual funding in three hours, whatever amount you consider, whether it's a hundred dollars to house a family for one night or another. They would otherwise be homeless, while the average annual donation to the foundation is one hundred and eight dollars that the gala has helped. Robin Hood has become recognized as the charity of choice for hedge fund managers and bankers over the past 30 years. He has raised and spent around three billion dollars fighting poverty in New York. We have helped hundreds of thousands of people change lives.

Improve lives. Founded by Paul Tudor Jones. Robin Hood, an investor in a hedge fund manager worth around $5 billion, believes that private philanthropy leads the state in addressing society's problems if we had a perfect world in which governments would truly act in the best interests of the people they would actually represent. and what local communities need and address those issues, then no, we wouldn't need philanthropy, but unfortunately that's not the case. Innovation, as in practically everything in the world, comes from the private sector and, quite often, is sanctioned. and/or adopted by the public sector I don't think fighting poverty is any different.

Real altruism for most people at the Robin Hood gala would be to stop doing business as journalists Anna and Gary Derrida spent three years exploring the motivations. of America's wealthy philanthropists, concludes that some of their business practices create the very social problems their philanthropy attempts to address. What I see is a room full of people who think they are helping but are working on a much larger scale to maintain and entrench a system that, quite frankly, condemns the people they are helping. True altruism would actually do less harm if it didn't ruin workers by putting pressure on the companies in which they participate.

In the last 30 years, the number of foundations in the United States has almost tripled. Since 1978, the share of total donations coming from such foundations has also tripled, but the U.S. Treasury estimates that philanthropy will cost $740 billion in lost tax revenue over the next decade. Anand claims that these donations from wealthy Americans are more likely due to tax breaks. that charity, the poor, people who make twenty thousand dollars a year, pay higher taxes than they would otherwise, to subsidize about fifty billion dollars in tax breaks every year that we give to people for donating money, you are injecting harm into society, you are making more money. and then you go to the Robin Hood gala to donate 1% of what you have stolen from good to a fraction of the people whose interests you have harmed and you feel so proud of yourself that it is a pyromaniac convention that everyone is at under the mistaken impression that their firefighters, while some question the motivations behind large charitable donations, others are taking steps to stop what they see as tainted philanthropy.

It's Monday night in London, a group of activists are protesting in front of one of the city's most prestigious art galleries. They are angry. That the National Portrait Gallery is sponsored by BP, one of the world's major fossil fuel companies, don't you think it could be much better? One of the group's founders, Danny Cheevers, has chosen the opening night of a new exhibition to chain himself to the gallery bars. -eep partners with this great artist, partners with their top artists and presents themselves as this kind of positive company that is doing something useful in the world when in reality they are actively lobbying spending tens of millions of pounds every year to block the climate .

Laws curbing the growth of renewable energy make the world a much more dangerous place for everyone and, in the midst of a climate crisis, the idea of ​​taking money from, or indeed helping to promote, an oil company seems increasingly defensible. since 2012. Protesters have been invading spaces performing guerrilla theater like this protest against BP's sponsorship of the British Museum. They call themselves BP or non-BP and describe themselves as a theatrical protest group of activists. Methane is rising and it is killing us tonight. The protest is another attempt at shaming. A major arts institution to turn down philanthropic money from big oil institutions really needs to have a conversation with themselves and with their stakeholders and with their audiences and with their star about what their values ​​are and what the ethical red lines are that any of the guests do not seem to agree with the protesters.

I think sponsorship of something like this has helped artists tremendously over the last thirty years. Is it Bingo that some arts institutions have no choice but to accept sponsorship money in an era of austerity? They have to generate income from other sources and sponsorship is certainly one of the sensible ways they can have gallery security try to stop protesters from disrupting the night, but BP or not BP continues the protest, the group argues that For some important people, corporate philanthropy consists mainly of whitewashing their reputations, they are buying a cleanup of their image and they are doing it at a very cheap price;

It is not appropriate for overwhelmingly publicly funded institutions to whitewash the images of corporations that are actively working against the public interest. Around the world, revered arts institutions are now questioning the sources of the philanthropic donations they receive, as in the Guggenheim Museum's storage, To protest donors' alleged ties to the opioid crisis in 2019, the New York Guggenheim, the Tate, and the National Portrait Gallery rejected grants from the Sackler Foundation because the Sackler family was widely perceived to have benefited from the America's opioid crisis in the world today perhaps the most

effective

checks on the motivations and impact of big philanthropy come from other big philanthropists today billionaire Michael Bloomberg announced a $500 million pledge to support efforts to phase out the country's remaining coal plants since 2011, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has donated more than half a billion dollars to campaigns to replace coal with clean energy in the US by 2030.

I'm pleased Note that Bloomberg philanthropies are pledging $50 million over the next four years to support the Sierra Club's new grassroots campaign, beyond the call, but to take up the battle against climate change. Bloomberg has also clashed with other billionaire philanthropists on the opposite side of the debate. The Koch brothers are among the best-known politically active families in the country. The billionaire network of political action committees and advocacy groups. Lumberjacks for decades. Oil barons Charles Koch and his late brother David have given billions of dollars to nonprofit organizations to promote skepticism about global warming. Well, I give it to my foundations.

This is all public information. Koch's donations have had a major impact on strengthening the climate change denialist lobby in the United States. His money has helped attack scientists. who work in the field of climate change their money has helped support an army of policy experts and lawyers who poke holes in different efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions cokes have pulled all the levers of power with their wealth to try to stop the push to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, but Michael Bloomberg's donations to his Beyond Coal campaign have proven an influential counterweight so far, helping to retire 289 coal plants, more than half of the total of the country.

Michael Bloomberg's philanthropy is a gift to this planet thanks to coal plants that have been retired through the Beyond Coal campaign the US still has a chance to meet its commitments under the Paris climate agreement , even despite Trump's philanthropy that is harnessing the will of the American people and our desire for a better world for our children. The United States has witnessed the spectacle of its most renowned philanthropists fighting for one of the world's most important political issues. The story of philanthropy and climate change is a kind of story of billionaire versus billionaire. It's like watching these Greek gods take the plunge. damn each other you know, cokes against Bloomberg and that's increasingly a story on many current issues where you'll find billionaires on both sides of the issue raises a fundamental question: how much political power should rich but not rich philanthropists wield? elected?

I think Bloomberg is doing a great job. I am concerned about climate change. I also think Bloomberg has too much. power for a single individual you can encouragesomeone in their philanthropy even when you are concerned about their power in a society that is supposed to be a democracy even giving up even philanthropy even supporting nonprofits is still an exercise of power even when it is good and the goal of the modern democracies is to limit the power of private individuals over public life, that is the game, that is why we did this and now we have created a separate non-egalitarian system where billionaires can also influence simply by purchasing social changes while powerful and rich philanthropists are donating more and more of their money.

In the developed world, on average, fewer people donate than two decades ago. A long-delayed report into sexual abuse by Oxfam workers in Haiti says it is a decline that has coincided with scandals that have rocked some of the world's best-known charities, not only taking people's money but have endeared themselves to people and betrayed them, it is no wonder that charities are now experimenting with new and innovative approaches to persuade donors to part with their money. I'm very excited about tonight, I think it's going to be a lot of fun in London. The project's director, Jennifer Johnston, is about to give her money away, but she doesn't know how much.

I don't even consider myself a smart philanthropist. Jennifer is one of 80 people attending an event organized by the funding network eret is here she has to compete for bids from donors the aim of wave cafe is to establish a vibrant community arts cafe in north London it is a live auction with a difference so you raise your hand and when I point you say your name and the amount you would like to give to Caroline 100 octopus 100 ok 300 yes Martin one hundred four hundred Francesca Franchesca 100 Thank you Jennifer 200 I was saying about 12 minutes we have grown up to 15 large charities have just a few minutes each to present at an average event the funding network raises between £25-35k in around 40 minutes we want to reduce those maternity deaths and you can help us please i have I know my budget but that's inherent when you know in advance that someone might come tonight and contribute £200, but they'll walk away saying I was part of a group of people who raised £30,000.

It is a dynamic donation model and it is turning anyone with a philanthropist into some money to spare. We believe that we are democratizing philanthropy, something that we can all not only do but have the responsibility to do and that is what makes us very proud. There is a lot of people from different backgrounds here tonight I think what we all have in common is the desire to engage with the community on the issues facing the world today. I feel really inspired. That is the objective of the financing network. You come here with your small contribution to contribute to the common good.

The funding network organizes events in 25 countries. countries around the world and hopes to buck the trend in the developed world of fewer people donating to charities. I think that's why it's up to Holden to all of us who work in this area to be transparent, be open to building trust with our donors, and look for innovative ways to engage or re-engage people with a growing demand for transparency and accountability. accounts some charities are offering potential donors a clearer incentive results mm Catherine kisara I Dominion it, it can kill them, it's a small amount of funding Analia can come Guinea West Africa the front line in the fight against a disease that kills more than 400,000 people around the world each year Cabala lost her two-year-old son to malaria last year she never ate Dylan Annie Annie I don't want them to see her Anya Nadya Kalapana Salalah one Santa de fer fer McKenna me aitana yamato- kun, but this is also the front line of a new approach to giving that has its roots in the difficult economy.

Here a malaria charity is distributing mosquito nets in Guinea. This year alone they have distributed four point eight million mosquito nets. and they are doing it because, by analyzing the data they have calculated, this is the most efficient way to save lives instead of attracting donors using marketing techniques that play on emotions. The charity relies on arguments based on hard data. It is a growing model known as Effective Altruism Effective altruism is a movement and philosophy that aims to use reason and evidence to do the most good possible. Data is absolutely fundamental to everything we do.

They allow us to say critically how many mosquito nets should go to each home so that there is universal coverage, we ensure that donors have confidence that we are going to do what we say, that we will do every two dollars, every dollar really counts, effective altruism depends on organizational evaluators. charities that find and evaluate nonprofit organizations that save or improve the most lives for every dollar charities that achieve the best results are published in a ranking to help donors identify which will make the best use of their money against malaria. The foundation consistently ranks among the highest for impact and accountability.

If we were going to buy a car, we would look at all the different options and try to determine which one is the most suitable and which one is the best value for money; It is generating the same scrutiny that we brought to other well-known economic areas of the charity sector over the last ten years. Effective altruism has contributed for more than ten years. One hundred million dollars in donations to the malaria foundation. The charity says this has helped fund the distribution of 50 million mosquito nets around the world, protecting 90 million people and financially saving around thirty thousand lives.

When you are sick and suffering from malaria, you cannot work. It cannot be taught, it cannot be cultivated, it cannot really function, which places a burden on the economies of these countries and it is estimated that for every dollar spent in the fight against malaria through mosquito nets, twelve dollars are generated in GDP. for that country, but effective altruism EA has its critics who say that giving is not a science and that charity is more than cold, hard numbers. EA's critics have said that maybe it appeals to logic and not emotion and here we are in a hospital.

Today there are numerous young children suffering from severe malaria and worried parents can be seen everywhere. I don't see any lack of emotion in any of that. This scientific approach to giving and charitable work is on the rise and is taking on some new and innovative forms being used by some members of the current class of billionaire philanthropists. How this plays out alongside your growing power will help redefine the impact of altruism and how you are perceived.