Giving Thought

In episode 68 we talk to Danny Sriskandarajah, Chief Executive of Oxfam GB about philanthropy, inequality and power in global civil society. Including:   Philanthropy & Inequality What is the core role of philanthropy within society which differentiates it from either state or market provision? What should we make of arguments that philanthropy is a distraction from the need to focus on ensuring that the world’s elites are taxed appropriately, and may therefore be holding back efforts to address global inequality? Is there a danger that models of philanthropy are paternalistic, and too often about decisions being made about communities rather than by them? Are some philanthropist willing to challenge & seek change to the systems that made them wealthy in the first place?   Power & Structure There is a lot of focus in global philanthropy and civil society at the moment on “shifting power” ─ from funders to recipients, from the global north to the global south etc. –  by supporting grassroots org