Giving Compass' Take:

• Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace, in association with Alliance magazine and Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support (WINGS), released an annual report discussing the inner workings of Russian philanthropy to better understand how the country's philosophy on giving.

• What can we learn from other countries' giving habits? How can the U.S. collaborate and make international giving circles? 

• Learning how philanthropy thrives in various countries helps us understand the difference in impact-giving from culture to culture. To expand your knowledge read about philanthropy in India. 

Russia to me is challenging to understand despite having traveled to its major cities and enjoyed its delightful culture and hospitality. This is true for understanding philanthropy there as well. Philanthropy in Russia is a working paper rather than an attempt to describe the sector in its entirety; it begins to distill what is known to create meaning. Here are some of my takeaways:

  • You can't understand Russian philanthropy without understanding its context: Despite the country's long and chequered history, philanthropy in Russia is relatively young, both the sector itself and even the notion of giving.
  • Who's giving, and how, are changing: Oksana Oracheva, general director of the Vladmir Potanin Foundation, believes that people are more supportive of philanthropy now, particularly as they become more involved themselves through corporate volunteerism, community philanthropy, and small individual donations. In 2017 it was very cool: the most popular form of giving by individuals, at 40 percent, was SMS.
  • Community foundations and rural funds are springing up: The focus on community foundations globally is increasing as people realize that community foundations can do what many others cannot — understand and work closely with the community on local issues.
  • New ways of distributing funds are developing. Grant competitions are on the rise, supporting a range of initiatives and spotlighting local projects that may not have had the visibility required to obtain a grant otherwise.
  • Trust in NGOs is growing. The community foundations have also begun to build trust and shift cultural values at the grassroots level.

Read the full article about Russian philanthropy by Lauren Bradford at PhilanTopic.