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December 2003-January 2004
Global Giving Round-Up
Overviews of best-practices around the world and links to learn more about them
Outlook good for giving in China
Participants from the nonprofit, corporate and government sectors attending China's first international forum on business and civil society in Beijing forecast a bright future for philanthropy in the world's most populous nation. Fan Baojun, President of China Charity Federation said at the opening of the forum that public awareness of charities has increased in recent years, and that government support is growing. In 1997, China for the first time moved to regulate donor companies and create tax incentives for charitable contributions. In September, further tax breaks for donors were approved. In an attempt to be good corporate citizens, the expanding ranks of multinational companies with operations in China are collaborating with local civil society to address unmet needs. Charitable donations have become an important source of assistance in disaster and poverty relief. In 1998, for example, when much of China suffered from serious flooding, billions of yuan were collected in donations from home and abroad. Still, with 100 million people living in abject need with incomes of $1 or less per day and 200 million with $2 or less, the need is great. Minister of Civil Affairs Li Xueju said China will cultivate more NGOs, encourage and support enterprises from home and abroad to engage in charity, and learn from international experiences to further the progress of philanthropy. (Xinhua, November 9; People's Daily Online, November 11)
Turbulent times for philanthropists in Russia: Open Russia Foundation an issue in Khodorkovsky's arrest
In a defiant statement from his Moscow prison cell, Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, former CEO of Russia's largest energy company, Yukos Oil, vowed to continue his public and philanthropic activities despite his arrest on charges of tax evasion, embezzlement and theft. The crackdown was the latest move by President Vladimir Putin against a group of Russian business leaders with global connections who are increasingly channeling their substantial wealth into both domestic and international charitable causes.
Through Yukos and the Open Russia Foundation (www.openrussiafoundation.com), which he established in 2001, Khodorkovsky reports spending more than $100 million annually on philanthropic programs. The first major Russian foray into large-scale corporate philanthropy, the foundation supports educational and cultural programs to bridge divides between Russia and democratic societies around the world. Trustees include Lord Jacob Rothschild and Henry Kissinger. Following his jailing, Khodorkovsky warned that if "judicial persecution continues against Open Russia also, the political motivation of the Yukos case will become even more obvious." In a subsequent briefing, Russian Deputy Economics Minister Mikhail Dmitriev noted that the ministry "highly values the philanthropy of Yukos" and asserted that "the problems experienced by Yukos are in no way connected to its philanthropic projects." (Financial Times, November 3; Gazeta.Ru, November 4; Rosbalt News Agency, November 12)
OSI Moscow office sacked after Soros criticizes jailing of Yukos CEO
Meanwhile, a midnight raid on the Moscow offices of the Open Society Institute (OSI) by camouflage-clad men wielding stun guns was linked to OSI founder George Soros' public criticism of Khodorkovsky's arrest. The intruders hauled away documents, equipment and computer records. The operation was carried out by private security forces ostensibly hired by a businessman with whom the Soros Foundation had been having a legal dispute. But OSI officials said they could not rule out a connection to the Yukos Oil case. Unidentified assailants were reported to have attacked the foundation's offices a second time less than a week later, injuring four security guards. Relations between Soros and Kremlin officials have been strained at times over the past 15 years as the Hungarian-born philanthropist has sought to push his agenda of democratic reform and strengthening civil society in Russia. Soros announced in June that he was sharply curtailing his philanthropic activities in Russia. (Los Angeles Times, November 8; AFP November 11)
Foundation makes education bloom in the Qatar desert
In a region where women customarily maintain a low profile, Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al Missned, wife of Qatar's ruler, has emerged as a leading force behind an ambitious project to reform the country's education system. As chair of the Qatar Foundation (www.qf.edu.qa), the Sheikha is recruiting world-class educational institutions for the planned 16-square mile complex going up on the outskirts of the capital city, Doha. Officially inaugurated in October, Education City will feature a broad spectrum of educational and social services, from the pre-school to the university level. The mission of the project, created and funded by the foundation, is the preparation of a generation of young people capable of assuming professional leadership positions in Qatar and the Gulf region. In keeping with the Sheikha's interest in broadening opportunities for women and the disadvantaged, the project includes a Social Development Center that offers vocational training, encourages micro-enterprises, conducts research on social problems, and promotes partnerships between the government, private sector and the media. Institutions already established in Education City include Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Virginia Commonwealth University Qatar and Texas A&M University. Among the Qatar Foundation's trustees is Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation, who was introduced to the Sheikha by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. (UPI, December 2)
Partnership targets child injury prevention in Vietnam
The Atlantic Philanthropies (www.atlanticphilanthropies.org) have committed up to $5 million in matching funds for a UNICEF initiative to reduce accidental deaths and injuries among children in Vietnam. The grant comes in the midst of a move by Atlantic to more tightly focus its giving on health-related initiatives in Vietnam (see related item below). Surprisingly, accidents, rather than disease, are the leading cause of death and disability among Vietnamese children and adolescents. Each year, approximately 50,000 children die and another 250,000 are injured in accidents of one sort or another, from drowning and electrocutions to those caused by landmines and unexploded ordinance. UNICEF's Child Injury Prevention Initiative in Vietnam hopes to reduce the incidence of accidental injuries among children in targeted areas by 25 percent through a combination of education, training and advocacy initiatives.
Zeroing in on top priorities at the Atlantic Philanthropies
The decision by The Atlantic Philanthropies to spend down its $3 billion endowment and in effect, put itself out of business in 12-15 years has resulted in a substantial reordering of foundation priorities. In a recent interview with onPhilanthropy, CEO and President John R. Healy described the impetus for the board's decision and how it planned to move forward to accomplish its new goals. In keeping with Founding Chairman Charles F. Feeney's "giving while living" philosophy, the foundation expects to ramp up its grantmaking over the next few years to about $350 million annually, depending on performance of the endowment. Healy said that future grantmaking will have a tight focus, both in programmatic and geographical terms, and will concentrate on ageing; disadvantaged children and youth; health of populations; and reconciliation and human rights.
Healy described the difficult choices the board faced in deciding how to move forward and the sometimes unexpected lessons learned. In Vietnam, for example -- one of only two countries where Atlantic has decided to continue work on health initiatives -- the foundation was surprised to learn that injuries from bike and auto accidents, not disease, were the leading cause of death. The expected preventive measures, such as helmets, were shunned due to discomfort of the wearer in hot climates. Making a virtue of necessity, the foundation has formed a nonprofit to manufacture appropriate headgear for the climate, and combined it with a public education campaign. (onPhilanthropy, September 19)
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