Talking about philanthropy

Challenging the status quo, A New Era of Giving argues that giving without impactful, sweeping change risks rendering it meaningless for both giver and receiver

A New Era of Giving - Reflections on Philanthropy for Social Justice

Publisher: ISDM Centre for Philanthropy

Pages: 287

Price:  It is available for free at, https://shorturl.at/bAV04

Giving back to society is a catch-phrase that’s as old as the hills in India, where capitalism is finding its shining moment on the world stage in only recent times. However, the trend is one that’s yet to reach critical mass. For beyond the occasional headlines of multi-billion dollar pledges and proclamations that vast amounts of wealth will be bequeathed to the needy, India remains a nation with vast disparity of income across its states. That is  what the Indian School of Development Management (ISDM) anthology purports to tackle in A New Era of Giving.

Business leaders, social sector specialists and public figures, including Rati Forbes, Amit Chandra, Ashish Dhawan and others, have shared their points of view on the next steps to building a society that’s “more equitable and inclusive.”

Books that feature multiple voices seldom possess cohesive narratives and singular focus, and those that are a compilation of dozens of conversations with different people that have been transcribed into a book face the risk of either being repetitive or all over the map. A New Era of Giving also faces such risks given that it is a compilation of talks that would have perhaps been suited better for a fireside chat or even maybe a series on charity for the likes of Netflix.

But one can’t ignore the underlying objective: To spread the word about giving back, doing good and doing it in a way that has maximum impact.

More and more entities are giving back in terms of philanthropy. Funding for the non-profit or the social sector was recorded at Rs 83,000 crore in 2015. That has grown to Rs 1.03 trillion in 2021. This has happened despite the decline in funds coming from foreign outfits. How? The answer, according to the book, lies in the significant increase in giving from corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds,  which has almost doubled from 12 to 24 per cent.

Yet more must be done and in ways better than ever before, those interviewed in the book suggest. While much of the book is written in a drab, academic style that is common to works created by institutional organisations, the end result is that the work lacks the cohesive narrative to keep a reader turning the pages. There are little if any human stories of evolution, growth and development reflected in the chapters. A reader expects to find parables or examples of how funds that are channelled the right way can actually help a family, or light up a village or feed a town or save a life. Such instances will not be found here.

In today’s world there is no shortage of causes for entities to support and fund. To that end, a new wave of giving beckons. As private equity executive Ashish Dhawan of Chryscapital, who has been featured in the book, says ,“Give more, give sooner and give better,” which is a clarion call for younger people to start on the journey of philanthropy.

In some part that is already happening with the likes of Nikhil Kamath of Zerodha funding ambulances and more during the pandemic. Mr Kamath would have actually been a welcome addition to the books given that he is a “young new leader” and in a position to influence those of his ilk. What would have also been welcome are inputs from the House of Tata, Azim Premji and others who have been headlined for their large and outstanding contributions towards philanthropy.

The broader point that remains unaddressed is a closer look at how charity, commerce and CSR intertwine. How much of the giving is because it has to be done and is mandated by law and how much is done for the sake of it?  What is the measurable impact of the charitable aid that is being disbursed and is it being reviewed, upgraded frequently? Are there certain villages that have been revamped and given employment en masse, or has first world-level sanitation and waste management been introduced in towns and precincts? Is there a restaurant in India that operates gratis like a Sikh Gurdwara where no hungry soul is turned away?

Ultimately, like many of the larger business ventures in this country that focus on that all powerful metric called scale, charity and giving eventually will have to do the same. Without the ability to make change sweeping, powerful and widespread, the very notion of giving risks being reduced to a facile, desultory effort that will benefit neither the receiver nor the giver.

Indeed, that is the very focal point that A New Era of Giving must address. As Amit Chandra says in the book, “The amount of wealth that exists in the world is just staggering and it’s not being used. It’s basically just lying there. So the question is how can some of that be used productively to solve issues that are relevant during our lifetime?” That’s an important question indeed.