Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society
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| Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society | |
|---|---|
| Name | Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society |
| Formation | 2006 |
| Type | Research institute |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Leader title | Director |
| Leader name | Dr. Eleanor Grant |
| Parent organization | University of Boston |
Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society is an academic research institute focused on philanthropy, nonprofit studies, and civil society analysis. Located in Boston, the center engages scholars, practitioners, and policymakers through interdisciplinary research, outreach, and education. It operates within a university setting and maintains partnerships with foundations, international organizations, and think tanks.
History
The center was founded in 2006 amid debates involving Bill Gates, George Soros, Warren Buffett, and philanthropic reform discussions that referenced institutions such as the Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Rockefeller Foundation, and Open Society Foundations. Early collaborations included projects with Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tufts University, and Boston University. Its establishment followed conferences attended by representatives from United Nations, World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and policy actors influenced by reports from the Brookings Institution and the RAND Corporation. The center’s founding director, previously affiliated with Princeton University and Yale University, guided partnerships with philanthropic networks like the Council on Foundations, the European Foundation Centre, and the Association of Charitable Foundations. Historical milestones include convenings that involved leaders from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Kresge Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and practitioners from Oxfam, Save the Children International, and CARE International.
Mission and Programs
The center’s mission emphasizes evidence-based practice connecting research from Johns Hopkins University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, and Stanford University to practitioner communities such as The Philanthropy Workshop, Social Finance UK, and Impact Investing Institute. Programs cover topics central to nonprofit management with inputs from figures and entities like Michael Porter, Paul Farmer, Amartya Sen, Muhammad Yunus, and organizations including Ashoka, Acumen Fund, Skoll Foundation, and Echoing Green. Programmatic themes have been aligned with policy agendas from United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Children's Fund, World Health Organization, Inter-American Development Bank, and Asian Development Bank. The center runs applied programs that have engaged alumni from Charity Navigator, GuideStar USA, Independent Sector, and professional networks such as NetHope and TechSoup Global.
Research and Publications
Scholarly output has appeared through collaborations with presses and journals connected to Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, MIT Press, Routledge, and periodicals including The Lancet, Nature, Science, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. Research topics have intersected with case studies involving Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, Habitat for Humanity, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International. Reports have been cited by policy bodies such as European Commission, U.S. Agency for International Development, Department for International Development, and advocacy groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The center has produced datasets used by analysts at Pew Research Center, DataKind, Open Knowledge Foundation, and UNICEF researchers. Key publications referenced scholarship by Robert Putnam, Elinor Ostrom, James S. Coleman, Mariana Mazzucato, and Cass Sunstein.
Education and Training
Educational activities include executive education modeled on programs at Harvard Kennedy School, Yale School of Management, London School of Economics, and INSEAD. The center offers certificate courses that have drawn instructors from McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, and subject-matter experts connected to Philanthropy University, Nonprofit Leadership Alliance, and BoardSource. Student internships have led to placements at UNICEF, World Food Programme, International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, and municipal partners including the City of Boston and Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Workshops have featured guest lecturers from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, and practitioners from Tides Foundation.
Partnerships and Collaborations
The center maintains formal links with academic and policy partners such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University, Princeton University, Yale University, Oxford University, Cambridge University, European University Institute, and Johns Hopkins University. It collaborates with philanthropic intermediaries including Council on Foundations, European Foundation Centre, Charities Aid Foundation, and private donors modeled on activities by Gates Foundation and Soros Fund. International collaborations involve United Nations Development Programme, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, and regional actors like Mercosur and ASEAN. The center convenes multi-stakeholder platforms with NGOs such as Oxfam, CARE International, Save the Children International, Amnesty International, and corporate partners including Google, Microsoft, Cisco Systems, and IBM.
Funding and Governance
Funding sources include grants and gifts from foundations such as Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Rockefeller Foundation, and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, along with research contracts from National Science Foundation, Economic and Social Research Council, and philanthropic donors comparable to Warren Buffett. Governance follows university regulations similar to frameworks at Boston University, Harvard University, and Tufts University, with an advisory board comprising leaders from Council on Foundations, Independent Sector, European Foundation Centre, and practitioners formerly of United Nations agencies and international NGOs. Financial oversight is administered through institutional offices mirroring best practices advocated by Charity Navigator, GuideStar USA, and auditors including PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG.