The increasing polarization of our societies plays into the hands of radical populists, making the work of civil society organizations committed to the values of "open society" more important than ever, writes the European Policy Centre's Janis Emmanouilidis....

In these difficult times, it is critical for philanthropy to live its values, share what it knows, and demonstrate that openness is the cornerstone of strong and just societies, writes Gayle Peterson, senior managing director at PFC Social Impact Advisors....

In the latest installment of our Alliance@PND series, the University of A Coruna's Marta Rey García asks, Can the emerging field of philanthropy scholarship provide value for policy and practice?...

Inequality, declining democratic accountability, and partisan polarization are at the forefront of cutting-edge political science, writes Harvard's Skocpol, but none of these phenomena can be fully understood without bringing organized philanthropy into the analysis.... 

Unless a foundation or trust is permanently endowed, writes London-based New Philanthropy Capital's Angela Kail, its payout shouldn't simply be a function of the return it earns on its investments....

Efforts to impose higher mandatory payout rates on foundations are misguided, writes Cathy Pharoah, not least because they would put at risk foundations' capacity to be proactive and respond to needs in flexible ways....

If foundations are to be "America's passing gear," writes Alliance contributing editor Timothy Ogden, perhaps it's time they adopted a more radical approach to helping poor people in failing communities.... 

People the world over are tired of bad development, tired of being patronized or ignored, and tired of seeing money poured down the drain, writes Hilary Gilbert, a research fellow at the University of Nottingham and chair of the South Sinai Foundation....

In the latest installment of our Alliance@PND series, Edouard Morena, a lecturer at the University of London Institute in Paris, examines the role of climate philanthropy after the Paris Agreement....

Long cherished, philanthropic freedom isn't guaranteed, and the growing number of direct and indirect attacks on this hallmark of civil society in the U.S. is cause for concern, writes the Philanthropy Roundtable's Joanne Florino....

The problem with philanthropy, argues Linsey McGoey in the latest installment of our Alliance@PND series, is not that it's too powerful, but that certain voices within the sector are too powerful within it....

The founder and executive director of 350.org, which works to raise awareness of the need to reduce carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million, explains why the movement needs the support of "big philanthropy"....

The fossil fuel era is winding down but the transition to a zero-carbon economy is being obstructed by fossil fuel companies. Philanthropy can, and must, lead the way to a clean-energy future, write three leaders of the divest-invest movement....

To meet the targets set by the Paris Agreement, a radical shift in corporate behavior is needed, argues Mark O'Kelly, head of finance and administration at the Barrow Cadbury Trust....

Allowing more migration to wealthy countries is one of the most powerful strategies for reducing global poverty. The Open Philanthropy Project's Alexander Berger shares some ideas about how foundations can help....

The Barrow Cadbury Trust's Ayesha Saran suggests that philanthropy's greatest opportunity in responding to the refugee crisis in Europe may be in treating the crisis not as a discrete event but as part of a wider effort to create more just and equal societies....

The Sustainable Development Goals will require governments to rethink how they collect and allocate funds, and how private investors and businesses must reorient their practices toward positive social and environmental impacts....

Because the Sustainable Development Goals focus as much on what we must achieve as on how we go about it, the development agenda enables new possibilities for collaboration across sectors and borders, writes the Dasra Girl Alliance's Rachita Vora....