What are the best options and strategies for philanthropy - especially private charitable institutions - to help build and sustain open and more equitable societies, especially during and emerging from times of crisis?

Institutional philanthropy continues to grow rapidly around the globe and new players are evolving - sometimes revolutionizing - new practices and structures to fit particular contexts and respond more effectively to local needs. The Salzburg session will convene leading thinkers and practitioners who are pioneering new models and mechanisms to stengthen international philanthropy and build local philanthropy in many different regions of the world in order to share experiences and further drive creative solutions.

The international private donor community is often supporting and seeding new efforts in different geographic locations, working with local leaders and Diaspora donors. But it is the leaders of indigenous efforts that are standing at the forefront of change and driving much of the innovation.

The Salzburg forum will provide a platform for leaders and innovators to meet and share knowledge, learn from what their counterparts are doing, promote more creative responses, and identify opportunities to deepen cooperation.

The session will look forward to new practices and innovative ideas to stimulate deeper and more effective approaches. Specifically, the program will share what has and has not worked effectively in different countries and contexts in terms of building and sustaining robust philanthropic sector, one that can respond to rapidly changing contexts, support local needs, and navigate and collaborate with international Diaspora efforts. Within the discussions attention will be given to the importance of legal and regulatory environments and insights into opportunities to advocate for a more enabling environment for the sector. Additionally, other factors that create a supportive environment for institutional philanthropy – such as the strength of civic engagement and of economic actors – will be examined.

Key Questions

The program will explore a number of questions, including, but not limited to:

• What seeding practices have been effective? What efforts have proven difficult or non-sustainable?
• What are the most important factors for establishing a positive regulatory environment? Are there cues that indicate when internal and/or external pressure can be applied to help create an enabling environment?
• What roles can be taken on by philanthropists in locations that are in, and emerging from, social and political crisis? How can they attract the support they need - internal and external - while negotiating a rapidly changing political and social environment at home?
• What support and networking mechanisms are effective for emergent philanthropy?
• Where are innovations being pioneered that can be leveraged, translated to other contexts, and/or scaled?

Session Goals

• Provide a platform for leaders and innovators to meet and share knowledge, learn from what their counterparts are doing, promote more creative responses, and identify opportunities to deepen cooperation.
• Convene leading thinkers and practitioners who are pioneering new models and mechanisms to build local philanthropy in many different regions of the world to share experiences and further drive creative solutions.
• Share what has and has not worked effectively in different countries and contexts in terms of building and sustaining a robust philanthropic sector, one that supports local needs and can navigate and collaborate with international and Diaspora efforts.
• Look forward to new practices and innovative ideas to stimulate deeper and more effective approaches, including informing a new framework to guide grant making in times of transition.

Salzburg Global Seminar will convene approximately 40 participants from as many as 20 countries with concrete experience to bring to the table. Most participants would represent indigenous philanthropy, with selected participation from relevant international foundations. In addition to sector differentiation, participants will reflect diversity with respect to gender, age, and geography.

The seminar will employ a combination of methodologies to fully engage participants and provoke open, critical, and constructive dialogue. The agenda will include moderated plenary sessions combining brief presentations of key questions with robust discussion, along with group work to delve deeper and extract compelling ideas. Participants will share experiences and information from their own countries and contexts, what has – and has not – been effective.