Resources

Foundations are among the largest and most influential civil society actors today, with the power to significantly influence the global development agenda. Dasra’s report, Funding in the 21st Century - Trends and Priorities in the Foundation Sector spotlights the influence and the impressive accomplishments of the foundations sector, and identifies the top trends in foundation giving.

In the report, Dasra points out how it is critical to bring in business principles and prioritize talent development, and work on capacity building of their grantees and invest in building sustainable institutions, not just programs. In addition, different funding strategies and the rise of venture philanthropy has led to innovation in the way foundations fund programs, which should be explored. Also, a renewed focus on outcome oriented philanthropy has made it critical to understand evolving evaluation practices in the sector.

Finally, it is increasingly important for foundations to collaborate and partner with each other, to avoid duplicating effort. While recognizing that the foundation sector as a whole is at different stages of evolution in each of the priority areas, this report guides foundations on how they can move forward together.