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Philanthropy Information

Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity", in the sense of "what it is to be human", the essence of our humanity. In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of life"—balancing the social-scientific aspect emphasized in the twentieth century, with the long-traditional and original humanistic core of the word's ancient coinage.

Put simply, philanthropy is the pursuit of excellence in every facet of human life, for every human life, by imagining and implementing new systems, to bring that philosophy to fruition.

An important distinction should be made, that while being admirable, charity is not the same as philanthropy. Simply argued by the concept that an implemented philanthropic idea may make its owner rich, if he or she so wishes. Compare this to the singular act of giving money away, associated with charity, the two concepts almost oppose each other. "A philanthropist knows the act of philanthropy before knowing the definition of the word". (Paul Gignac Philanthropist.)

Contents

Etymology and original meaning

It is generally agreed that the word was coined 2500 years ago in ancient Greece by the playwright, Aeschylus, or whoever else wrote Prometheus Bound (line 11). There the author told as a myth how the primitive creatures that were created to be human, at first had no knowledge, skills, or culture of any kind—so they lived in caves, in the dark, in constant fear for their lives. Zeus, the tyrannical king of the gods, decided to destroy them, but Prometheus, a Titan whose name meant “forethought,” out of his "philanthropos tropos" or “humanity-loving character” gave them two empowering, life-enhancing, gifts: fire, symbolizing all knowledge, skills, technology, arts, and science; and “blind hope” or optimism. The two went together—with fire, humans could be optimistic; with optimism, they could use fire constructively, to improve the human condition.

The new word, φιλάνθρωπος philanthropos, combined two words: φίλος philos, “loving” in the sense of benefitting, caring for, nourishing; and ἄνθρωπος anthropos, “human being” in the sense of “humankind”, “humanity”, or “human-ness”. What Prometheus evidently “loved”, therefore, was their human potential—what they could accomplish and become with “fire” and “blind hope”. The two gifts in effect completed the creation of humankind as a distinctly civilized animal. 'Philanthropia'—loving what it is to be human—was thought to be the key to and essence of civilization.[1]

The Greeks adopted the “love of humanity” as an educational ideal, whose goal was excellence (arete)—the fullest development of body, mind and spirit, which is the essence of liberal education. The Platonic Academy's philosophical dictionary defined Philanthropia as: “A state of well-educated habits stemming from love of humanity. A state of being productive of benefit to humans.” Philanthropia was later translated by the Romans into Latin as, simply, humanitas—humane-ness. And because Prometheus’ human-empowering gifts rebelled against Zeus’ tyranny, philanthropia was also associated with freedom and democracy. Both Socrates and the laws of Athens were described as “philanthropic and democratic”—a common expression, the idea being that philanthropic humans are reliably capable of self-government.

Putting all this together in modern terms, there are four relatively authoritative definitions of “philanthropy” that come close to the Classical concept: John W. Gardner’s “private initiatives for the public good”; Robert Payton’s “voluntary action for the public good”; Lester Salamon’s “the private giving of time or valuables…for public purposes” and Robert Bremner’s “the aim of philanthropy…is improvement in the quality of human life”. Combining these to connect modern philanthropy with its entire previous history, “philanthropy” may best be defined as, “private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of life.”

This distinguishes it from government (public initiatives for public good) and business (private initiatives for private good). Omitting the definite article “the” with “public good” avoids the dubious assumption that there is ever a single, knowable public good, and in any case people rarely if ever agree on what that might be; rather, this definition merely says that the benefactor intends a “public” rather than an exclusively “private” good or benefit. The inclusion of “quality of life” ensures the strong humanistic emphasis of the Promethean archetype.

The Classical view of philanthropy disappeared in the Middle Ages, was rediscovered and revived with the Renaissance, and came into the English language in the early 17th century. Sir Francis Bacon in 1592 wrote in a letter that his “vast contemplative ends” expressed his “philanthropia”, and his 1608 essay On Goodness defined his subject as “the affecting of the weale of men... what the Grecians call philanthropia.” Henry Cockeram, in his English dictionary (1623), cited “philanthropie” as a synonym for “humanitie” (in Latin, humanitas) — thus reaffirming the Classical formulation.

Views

Philosophy

The purpose of philanthropy is also debated. Some equate philanthropy with benevolence and charity for the poor. Others hold that philanthropy can be any altruistic act that fulfills a social need that is not served, is under-served, or is perceived as such by the market.

Some believe that philanthropy can be a means to build community by growing community funds and giving vehicles. When communities see themselves as being resource rich instead of asset poor, the community is in a better position to solve community problems.

However, some believe the purpose of philanthropy is often tribute and self-aggrandizement, as arguably shown by the prevalence of self-titled foundations, rarity of large anonymous donations, and lack of support for unpalatable causes such as the treatment of diarrhea (which despite being easily treatable is the second leading cause of infant death worldwide.)

Philanthropy responds to either the present or the future needs.[2] The charitable response to an impending disaster is an action of philanthropy.[2] It offers immediate honor for the philanthropist, yet requires no foresight. Responding to future needs, however, draws on the donor's foresight and wisdom, but seldom recognizes the donor.[2] Prevention of future needs will often avert far more hardship than a response after the fact.[2] For example, the charities responding to starvation from overpopulation in Africa are afforded swift recognition.[3] Meanwhile, philanthropists behind the U.S. population control movement of the 1960s and 1970s were never recognized, and are lost to history.[2]

Uses of the word

Conventional usage

By the conventional definition of philanthropy[citation needed], donations are dedicated to a narrowly defined cause and the donation is targeted to effect a recognizable change in social conditions. This often necessitates large donations and financial support sustained over time[citation needed].

The need for a large financial commitment creates a distinction between philanthropy and charitable giving, which typically plays a supporting role in a charitable organization initiated by someone else[citation needed]. Thus, the conventional usage of philanthropy applies mainly to wealthy persons, and sometimes to a trust created by a wealthy person with a particular cause or objective targeted[citation needed].

Many non-wealthy persons have dedicated – thus, donated – substantial portions of their time, effort and wealth to charitable causes. These people are not typically described as philanthropists[citation needed] because individual effort alone is seldom recognized as instigating significant change. These people are thought of as charitable workers[by whom?] but some people wish to recognize these people as philanthropists[who?] in honor of their efforts[citation needed].

A growing trend in philanthropy is the development of giving circles, whereby individual donors—often a group of friends—pool their charitable donations and decide together how to use the money to benefit the causes they care about most. The re-emergence of philanthropy in recent years, led by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, which involves applying the techniques of business to philanthropy has been termed philanthrocapitalism.'[4]

Largest individual bequests

See also

Lists

References

  1. ^ The Classical etymology and history of philanthropia has received increasing attention among scholars. See McCully, George: Philanthropy Reconsidered, A Catalogue for Philanthropy Publication, Boston, 2008; and Sulek, Marty: On the Classical Meaning of Philanthropia, in Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly OnlineFirst, March 13, 2009 as doi:10.1177/0899764009333050.
  2. ^ a b c d e Rohe, John F. (2002-01-01). "Chapter 6: Prophesy and Charity". Mary Lou and John Tanton: A Journey into American Conservation. FAIR Horizon Press. ISBN 978-0971007901.
  3. ^ "Buzz (news and commentary blog)". onPhilanthrophy. Archived from the original on 2008-05-29. http://web.archive.org/web/20080529143617/http://flip.onphilanthropy.com/news_onphilanthropy/africa/.
  4. ^ The Economist
  5. ^ "Implementing Warren Buffett's Gift". Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. http://www.gatesfoundation.org/about/Pages/implementing-warren-buffetts-gift.aspx.
  6. ^ "Announcement by Azim Premji Foundation". Azim Premji Foundation. http://www.azimpremjifoundation.org/pdf/announcement.pdf.
  7. ^ "T. Boone Pickens: OSU's Big, Big Man on Campus". Yahoo! Finance. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/T-Boone-Pickens-OSUs-Big-Big-bizwk-3905335715.html?x=0.
  8. ^ "Clinton Hails Annenberg's $500 Million Education Gift". The New York Times. December 18, 1993. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/18/us/clinton-hails-annenberg-s-500-million-education-gift.html.
  9. ^ Andrew. Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1920
  10. ^ a b "Billions and Billions Served, Hundreds of Millions Donated". New York Times. November 7, 2003. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E04EFD81439F934A35752C1A9659C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. Retrieved 2008-07-28. "National Public Radio announced yesterday that it had received a bequest worth at least $200 million from the widow of the longtime chairman of the McDonald's restaurant chain. ... Few cultural institutions have been the beneficiaries of gifts as large as that received by NPR, according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy. One of the largest, worth $424 million, was given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art by foundations built on the Reader's Digest fortune."
  11. ^ Rockefeller Foundation
  12. ^ Gurney, Kaitlin. "10 years later, Rowan still reaps gift's rewards - Rowan Milestones", The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 9, 2002. Accessed August 1, 2007. "Rowan University catapulted onto the national stage a decade ago when industrialist Henry Rowan gave sleepy Glassboro State College $100 million, the largest single sum ever donated to a public institution.... Rowan and his late wife, Betty, gave the money on July 6, 1992, with just one requirement: that a first-rate engineering school be built. In gratitude, Glassboro State changed its name to Rowan College."

External links

Look up philanthropy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
· · Topics related to charity
Main topics Philanthropy · Alms · Tzedakah · Zakat · Sadaqah · Tithe · Altruism · Gift · Donation · Alternative giving · Youth philanthropy · Volunteering · Noblesse oblige
Organization types Voluntary association · Nonprofit organization · Non-governmental organization · Registered charity, Charitable trust · Foundation · Private foundation · Charitable organization · Public-benefit nonprofit corporation · Mutual-benefit nonprofit corporation · Religious corporation
Additional topics Charity Navigator · Charity badge · List of charitable foundations · List of wealthiest charitable foundations · Click-to-donate site · Halukka · Meshulach · Master of Nonprofit Organizations · Charity/thrift/op shop · Telethon · Warm-glow giving

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'Philanthropy' Definition

Noun

philanthropy (countable and uncountable; plural philanthropies)
  1. (uncountable) Benevolent altruism with the intention of increasing the well-being of mankind, especially by charitable giving
    As public funding is reduced, we depend increasingly on private philanthropy.
  2. A philanthropic act
    His tombstone lists his various philanthropies.
  3. A charitable foundation
    the Rockefeller philanthropies
Antonyms
from: Wiktionary: philanthropy,
Sun Jul 31 16:10:11 2011
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