As Paris Talks Wrap Up, Foundations and Media Must Join Hands to Push Climate Action
Nonprofit film and news organizations can counter energy-industry influence by encouraging citizens to put pressure on policy makers.
By Vince Stehle and Vincent Stehle
3 Key Ideas on the Power of the Zuckerberg-Chan Pledge
Despite its promise, the charity approach of Silicon Valley’s highest-profile couple could do great damage if widely adopted — and Congress needs to take a close look.
By TOM WATSON
Contributor
Opinion: Zuckerberg-Chan ‘Charity’ Plan Is Really a Business Strategy
Linsey McGoey, a sociology professor and critic of modern mega-philanthropy, argues in the Guardian that announced plans by the Facebook co-founder and his wife to give away 99 percent of their Facebook shares should be viewed as business rebranded as philanthropy.
Opinion: Yale Economist Urges ‘Impact Audits’ to Guide Giving
A Yale University professor who established a new organization to assess the efficacy of nonprofits through analysis modeled on financial audits describes the endeavor in The Wall Street Journal.
Opinion: ‘Effective Altruism’ Ignores Power of Empathy in Giving
The argument that philanthropy should be directed by purely rational considerations fails to account for psychological evidence that emotions, particularly empathy, provide a “powerful, positive spark” to giving, a social scientist at Stanford University writes in a New York Times column.
Trust Chan and Zuckerberg to Decide How to Spend Their Money for the Public Good
The attacks on the $45 billion gift are questioning the value of philanthropy itself and undermining its power.
By HOWARD HUSOCK
Contributor
To Strengthen the Nonprofit World, Independent Sector and the Council on Foundations Should Merge
With a single voice, the merged group could get policy makers and the public to pay more attention to how charities and grant makers can best help the neediest.
By Emmett D. Carson
Contributor
Will Zuckerberg and Chan End the Philanthropic Oligarchy?
If the couple finds a way to show the richest 1 percent how to involve the public in the distribution of great wealth, then they will truly make a difference in the world.
By MICHAEL EDWARDS
Contributor
Fidelity Charitable’s Executive Pay Strategy Shows Arrogance — and an IRS Flaw
Paying a third party to compensate its top leaders is a blatantly transparent attempt by the nonprofit to avoid disclosure and a sign of the organization’s Wall Street culture.
By Alan M. Cantor
Reporter
Many say divestment isn’t practical and wouldn’t make any difference in the fight to curb greenhouse-gas emissions.
By Ben Gose
Senior Editor