Philanthropies - an attempt at conceptual organization based on practice

• In Event: Rethinking how we Talk About Philanthropy

Abstract

In the field-arena (Bourdieu, 1992) of social change, various disputed narratives are interposed. They are not always explicit, but there are many of them in the context of philanthropy - and their inconsistencies or even paradoxes (Mendonça et al, 2023), especially in highly unequal countries like Brazil.
In recent decades, there has been greater dynamism in the philanthropic field - mirroring a scenario of complexity and liquidity in which everything solid seems to fall apart (Bauman, 2011; Berman, 1986). There has been a shift from a model based on religious charity, predominant in the country for centuries, to approaches ranging from community participation and protagonism (Hopstein, 2018), on the one hand, to the application of sophisticated financial market instruments in philanthropic relations, on the other (Silva and Oliven, 2020). Consequently, the conceptual boundaries have become blurred in the face of countless definitions, currents and even attempts to appropriate the concept of philanthropy.
It is in this context that we set a research with the aim of surveying, categorizing and discussing the different currents of philanthropy that currently stand in the way of collective action and social change in the country. Based on a preliminary and non-exhaustive review of the literature and consultations with specialists, we have identified 12 main philanthropy nomenclatures commonly used in the field, namely:
1. collaborative
2. community
3. decolonial
4. strategic
5. philanthrocapitalism
6. independent
7. social justice
8. progressive
9. radical
10. regenerative
11. reparative
12. venture philanthropy
(Bishop & Green, 2008; Herr & Obeng-Odoom, 2019; Hopstein, 2018l Jensen, 2013; Mendonça et al, 2023; Nogueira & Schommer, 2009, Paoli, 2002; Sanglard, 2005; Saes, 2020; Silva & Oliven, 2020; Toepler, 2022).
We start from the assumption that each one carries within it connotations of the political-ideological spectrum and different - often competing - worldviews on how social change should take place. In this sense, we set out in the study to survey the main concepts and definitions accepted and used in the practices of the field in Brazil, and to categorize them into the following dimensions of analysis:
• level of adherence to the capitalist system (adherence vs. confrontation) and maintenance of the status quo
• relationship with the state and public policies
• views on social participation
• adherence to specific themes and audiences (traditional to progressive)
The categorization of the dimensions is being carried out in and will then be done by consulting 30 experts in the field who work across these different spectrums, who will classify the different nomenclatures of philanthropy based on their perception in a system of scales, with a view to building an analytical framework.
During ISTR, we will bring its final results by applying these different terminologies and discussing them in groups, in the format of a laboratory, where researchers from all over the World will bring their perspectives and geographic differences/similarities so that we can compare with our results and explore them towards a better comprehension of the complexities that not always is well understood both by researchers and academics.

References

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Authors

• CASSIO AOQUI, Coletivo Labô

• Andressa Garcia, Funda��o Getulio Vargas

• Vanessa Domingues Prata, Ponteaponte