Understanding Our Philanthropic Commons

Willingness to give is a finite but renewable resource. Exploring how to sustainably govern our philanthropic commons, this book uses institutional analysis to identify challenges in giving and volunteering, offering insights for scholars, practitioners, and students. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Understanding Our Philanthropic Commons boldly rethinks giving and volunteering as part of a shared resource system-a philanthropic 'commons'. Drawing on the influential frameworks of Elinor and Vincent Ostrom and the Ostrom Workshop, this book equips readers with accessible tools, including the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework, Social-Ecological Systems (SES), Institutional Grammar, and Design Principles for self-governance. Using case studies ranging from giving circles and donor-advised funds to workplace campaigns and volunteer management, the authors show how rules, norms, and strategies create institutional arrangements that shape philanthropic behaviour. Fresh insights are offered into addressing philanthropic social dilemmas-such as declines in giving and volunteering-amid technological, social, and economic change. This book is ideal for scholars, nonprofit leaders, policy professionals, and students seeking to understand how to sustainably govern giving resources, and for anyone interested in philanthropy. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.