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Philanthropy, old and new

Strategic Philanthropy | Jul 13, 2008

Just societies cannot be built merely by the distribution of surplus wealth.
With a plethora of the newly wealthy in India setting up trusts and foundations recently, it is a good time to reflect on the value of strategic philanthropy. When it comes to giving in …,dia, we have traditionally upheld that feeling of empathy towards others that opens up our hearts and pockets in charity. And millions of Indians, of all faiths, do so every single day, in acts of humble kindness.

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Strategic Philanthropy

We need to talk about failure in the social sector: NGOs must fail to succeed

A lot of ink is spilled and awards are bestowed each year celebrating the success of the social sector—and there is much to celebrate. But the truth is, if innovation is essential to the ultimate achievements of the sector, we should spend less time on success, and more time on failure. We lament the inability […]
Jan 22, 2019 | Article

COVID-19  |  Strategic Philanthropy

Taking Risks in the Face of a Pandemic

2020 has been a sobering year for the philanthropy sector, not just in India, but globally. We have witnessed rising inequality even in these past 6 months, with a few of the rich getting even richer while hundreds of millions of people fell behind in the ensuing economic slowdown. There are some who had just […]
Dec 26, 2020 |

Strategic Philanthropy  |  Civil Society  |  Societal Thinking

Closing Keynote | Strategic Non-Profit Management India | 2019

This is an edited version of Rohini Nilekani’s closing keynote address delivered to the 2019 class of the Strategic Non-Profit Management – India offered developed in conjunction with the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative and offered in association with the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy at Ashoka University. I think we are at a fairly […]
Jul 26, 2019 | Speech

Strategic Philanthropy

How Indian philanthropists are channeling their wealth to deepen democracy and governance

Philanthropist Rohini Nilekani believes mainstream media is weighed down by many handicaps and, therefore, wants to cocreate an entirely new media platform primarily funded by donor money. View PDF
Nov 4, 2014 | Article