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On this episode we are joined by Craig Newmark - founder of Craigslist, philanthropist and recent Giving Pledge signatory - to discuss his thoughts on the importance of philanthropy and how he approaches it. Including:

• What was it that particularly made him decide to sign the Giving Pledge last year, given that he has been doing philanthropy at a significant level for a long time now?
• Part of Craig's stated aim in signing the Giving Pledge is to “inspire really rich people to pony up some dough” – is this something he is planning on doing primarily by example, or in other ways too?
• Why were his Sunday School teachers and Leonard Cohen both important in shaping his thinking about giving and responsibility?
• Why is a desire to “defend the country” a key common thread in Craig's philanthropy, and what are the different ways that manifests?
• Can it be a challenge these days to be patriotic in a way that isn’t seen as partisan or nationalistic? Is it important to use philanthropy to model a ‘good’ version of patriotism?
• In his Giving Pledge letter Craig wrote that“My most effective approach to addressing a manageable number of needs is to build a network of networks of people who know how to get the job done on stuff I care about….I find the group, fund them, nudge them to work together, and get out of the way.” So how does he find the people who know how to get the job done, and what does it mean to “get out of the way?”
• Why has cybersecurity and fighting online scams become such a big area of focus?
• Are there other philanthropists or funders working in this area? Do we need more?
• What was it that originally drove Craig's interest in supporting journalism through his philanthropy? How has that evolved?
• Where did his interest in support for military veterans and their families come from?
• What is the most important lesson he has learned about philanthropy?

Further Resources

• Craig Newmark Philanthropies
• Craig and Eileen Newmarks' Giving Pledge letter
• Chronicle of Philanthropy, "Craigslist Founder Signs Giving Pledge and Narrows Focus"
• Nieman Lab, "Craig Newmark explains why he’s pulling back on funding journalism"
• Fortune, "Craigslist founder signs the Giving Pledge, and his fortune will go to military families, fighting cyberattacks—and a pigeon rescue"
• Inside Philanthropy, "Why Craig Newmark Is Concerned — and Hopeful — for American Democracy"
• WPM article "When Nobody Knows You’re a Dog: Tech, Civil Society, and the Fight for Authenticity"
• Philanthropisms podcast with Jonathan Heawood

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In the third and final episode of our "Myths of Philanthropy" series, Rhodri and Chiara are joined by Zaineb Mohammed (Kataly Fund) and Devi Leiper O'Malley (Closer Than You Think) to discuss individualism and scarcity. Including:

• What does it mean to have a scarcity mindset, and why is it so common in the nonprofit sector?
• What does a scarcity mindset lead to?
• How can funders and nonprofits overcome the scarcity mindset themselves, and how can they help the nonprofits they fund to do so? (E.g. by giving big grants up front, removing restrictions, working over longer timescales etc.)
• Is there too much competition and not enough collaboration in the nonprofit sector? Why is this?
• Is the emphasis on competition a legacy of modern institutional philanthropy’s roots in capitalism?
• How can we design better approaches? What kinds of resources and infrastructure will this require?
• Can organisational identity be a barrier to effective collaboration?
• Is the idea that foundations need to exist in perpetuity a reflection of a scarcity mindset? If so, how?
• Does adopting an abundance mindset make it easier to consider spending down?
• Why does the myth of the “philanthropic lone hero” (i.e. individuals or ogranisations working alone to solve complex social issues) continue to be so pervasive?
• Is part of the challenge that we find stories about individuals more compelling than ones about systems, so there is a tendency to frame things in terms of the former?
• How can we effectively recognise the role individuals play whilst at the same time emphasising the importance of the collective?

Further Resources:

• Zaineb's "Myths of philanthropy" essay, "Leaning Into Abundance: What If Philanthropy’s Potential Wasn’t Limited by Manufactured Scarcity?"
• Devi's "Myths of Philanthropy" essay (with Ruby Johnson and Swatee Deepak), "Solidarity Leadership: What If Philanthropy Encouraged Collaboration Rather Than Competition? "
• Kataly Foundation
• Closer Than You Think

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For the second episode in our "Myths of Philanthropy" series, we are joined by élysse marcellin (Whose Knowledge?) and Tesmeralna Atsbeha (philanthropic strategist & advisor, formerly Wellspring Philanthropic Fund) to discuss presumed knowledge. Including:

• Why do we equate wealth with expertise across a broad range of domains, and why is this a mistake?
• Do we also make judgements about those who do not have money (i.e. that they have less knowledge or less capacity to absorb funding)?
• To what extent does the way in which a wealthy donor has made their money inform and shape their view about the role of philanthropy and how to practice it?
• How can donors approach their philanthropy with a suitable degree of humility?
• Are those who work in foundations also guilty of equating their position in relation to wealth with expertise in addressing issues? How can we get out of this mindset?
• Does this require understanding and re-evaluating our own attitudes to money?
• Does prioritisation of certain kinds of knowledge act as a barrier in philanthropy? How is this reflected in grant application processes, funding decisions etc?
• What role does language play in marginalising certain forms of knowledge (especially indigenous knowledge)?
• What does it look like for a philanthropic organisation to demonstrate that it genuinely values a wide range of different forms of knowledge?

Further Resources:

• élysse's "Myths of Philanthropy" essay (with Cassie Denbow and Anasuya Sengupta), If You Know You Know: What If Philanthropy is Mistaking Wealth for Expertise?
• Tesmerelna's "Myths of Philanthropy essay", Reconsidering Our Relationship to Power: What If Philanthropy’s Greatest Resource Isn’t Financial but Relational Capital?
• Liberatory Archives and Memory, a project by Whose knowledge?
• WPM articles, "Three currencies that are more important than money for philanthropy" and "Language Barriers"