Philanthropy on the Road to Nationhood in Singapore Philanthropy in Asia: Working Paper No. 1

This paper attempts to address the gap in knowledge on the contributions by philanthropic players to national development in Singapore. Using grounded research, it explores the evolution of giving by individuals, the community and the private sector in Singapore from the end of World War II in 1945 to today. It looks at how each group gives towards prevailing social needs, unexpected events and crises as well as government calls for community support across fve key phases in Singapore's journey to nationhood. To provide context to the giving, the political and socio-economic situation of each time frame and concurrent government social welfare provisions in each phase are also described

The Dilemma of Middle Class Philanthropy: A Summary Report Focusing on the BRIC Countries

A key question for the future of philanthropy emerged from discussions at the consultation meeting in Delhi which formed part of the Bellagio Initiative on the future of philanthropy and development in the pursuit of human wellbeing: what's happening with middle class giving in BRIC countries and how can it contribute effectively to equitable and sustainable development? Two key and difficult questions emerged from the discussions in Delhi which the Resource Alliance felt needed further attention:* 'What is the potential for giving of the growing middle class in BRICS countries?'* 'How can this philanthropy be (made) transformative?'Beyond those important and difficult questions, the Resource Alliance sought 'new knowledge, potential and challenges' on the problem of middle class philanthropy, so commissioned resource papers on middle class philanthropy in Brazil, China, India, and Russia. The papers sought to gather data and analysis on 'the potential of middle class giving in terms of numbers and income groups, growth in last three to five years, professional/educational/ financial background; differing philosophies of giving; the role of religious identities, current motivations and mechanisms for giving .... and the challenges/future options and we can draw from them'.The four resource papers prepared on middle class philanthropy in Brazil, China, India, and Russia noted a number of important themes. Notably, they highlighted the lack of significant data on the middle class and on middle class giving, and the need for more data. Little research thus far, including the resource papers, provides real data on the scope of the middle class and it's giving in these countries. This makes analysis and recommendations both very difficult and highly anecdotal. Furthermore, it is difficult to differentiate 'middle class philanthropy' from other forms of giving by local communities. The resource papers give some hints -- primarily in the area of methods of giving -- but we are left without answers to key questions such as is the newer middle class giving to different causes? In different ways? For different motivations? Changing over time? Since this is a new research area, the resource papers only begin to address these issues, which, we hope, other researchers will take up in the future.The problem of trust and the need for higher levels of accountability and transparency in the charitable community to encourage and sustain donation processes emerges as a constraint on giving, and confidence in giving, in each of the resource papers. Of course, issues of trust, accountability and transparency are not specific to the somewhat artificial category of 'middle class giving'. Yet they need to be further addressed in each of these countries and presumably in many others as well.Like the problem of trust, language, accountability and transparency, the continuing importance of policy and legal frameworks to encourage giving -- all giving, not just from the middle class -- emerges from each resource paper. And like other themes, more facilitative policy and legal frameworks would help to strengthen giving and non-profit service in general, not just among the 'middle class'. The growing importance of social innovation in the giving context, including new forms, structures, institutions and modes of philanthropy emerges in each of the four country contexts. And this may actually -- though, again, the data isn't there -- be something more specific to middle class and wealthy donors

Investing in Ourselves: Giving and Fund Raising in India

This is the India case study of Investing in Ourselves - Giving and Fund Raising in Asia, which had its origin in the International Conference on Supporting the Nonprofit Sector in Asia, sponsored by the Asia Pacific Philanthropy Consortium (APPC) in January 1998

Service learning for sustainability in the practicum phase of initial teacher training

Service Learning is an educational practice that promotes learning processes of eclectic and thorough contents, competences and values through a community service and its critical review with the help of reflective tools. Its implementation is necessary, particularly in teacher training, in order to foster change in the education system and to progress towards sustainability. In this paper, we describe and analyse three projects involving the use of Service Learning related to sustainability in the practicum phase of initial teacher training. In order to evaluate the suitability of Service Learning in this stage, we have analysed outputs generated by the teacher trainees under the Rubric for the Self-Assessment and Improvement of Service Learning (RSAISL) projects (Rubio-Serrano, Puig-Rovira, Martín-García and Palos-Rodríguez, 2015). The results show that the trainees are capable of leading and executing successful Service Learning projects at schools, despite the limiting factors, such as time constraints or the lack of consolidation of some of these projects.El aprendizaje servicio es una práctica educativa en que la realización de un servicio comunitario y la revisión crítica del proceso mediante herramientas de reflexión vehicula aprendizajes eclécticos y matizados en cuanto a contenidos, competencias y valores. Su implementación es necesaria, particularmente en los estudios de grado de Maestro/a en Educación Infantil y Educación Primaria, para avanzar hacia la sostenibilidad. En este artículo describimos y analizamos tres proyectos que mediante el aprendizaje servicio introducen la sostenibilidad en el prácticum del último curso de la formación inicial del profesorado. Para evaluar la idoneidad del aprendizaje servicio en este estadio de formación, se han analizado los materiales generados por los estudiantes aplicando la rúbrica para la autoevaluación y mejora de experiencias de aprendizaje servicio (Rubio-Serrano, Puig-Rovira, Martín-García y Palos-Rodríguez, 2015). Los resultados muestran que los estudiantes son capaces de liderar y ejecutar proyectos de aprendizaje servicio exitosos en las escuelas, aunque existan algunos factores limitadores, como la duración del prácticum o la poca consolidación que consiguen estos proyectos

Local Tax Benefits at a Distance

This book discusses the concepts, types, models, and patterns of Japan’s Hometown Tax Donation Payment system, to provide a clear picture of this newly developed unique and innovative fund-raising tool used by municipalities. It also sheds light on the influences that reciprocal gifts provided by each municipality to donors have on local economies by reviewing empirical works and surveys targeting local business owners and local financial institutions. A distinguishing feature of the book is that it introduces a new social finance mechanism that is unique to the Japanese market and could provide policy implications for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as regional development. Furthermore, the book explores the efficacy of the demand–pull approach to support-strengthening SMEs, especially in rural areas. Finally, the book identifies some lessons learned from the system with a view toward advancing research on this phenomenon and making the system efficient and sustainable. As a whole, the book can provide ample benefits to novices, academics, researchers, and policymakers interested in Hometown Tax Donation Payment, an innovative social finance tool. This is an open access book