“We believe that this is a moment for philanthropy to be bold, brave, and courageous.” - Julie Broome
With the publication of Ariadne's 10th Forecast on the future challenges facing European philanthropy, Julie Broome, Director of Ariadne, talks to us about the key points of this study and the specific challenges facing France.
What are the main challenges for European philanthropy in 2024? Are there any new trends compared to previous years?
Many of the challenges that we see this year for European philanthropy are escalations of existing trends. Far-right parties in Europe have been gaining traction for several years, but the European Parliament elections this year, alongside other national and local elections, present the possibility that the far right could make significant advances in a short amount of time. For foundations that support fundamental rights, anti-discrimination, or social inclusion, for example, such a result would pose serious challenges for their work.
Similarly, restrictions on civil society organisations and activism, have been of growing concern over the past decade but are increasing. These restrictions might include legal or administrative barriers to registration, access to funding, or campaigning. Ariadne recently held its annual conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, where the government is considering (and likely to pass) a 'foreign influence' bill that would require civil society organisations and media outlets that receive 20% or more of their annual income from foreign funding sources to register with the Ministry of Justice as 'organizations serving the interest of a foreign power.' While this bill is usually connected by critics to similar legislation in Russia, it is worth noting that Hungary, an EU Member State, passed a similar law in December 2023. Western European countries have also passed restrictions on protests and criminalised some forms of activism. Initially, the primary target of these laws was climate activists, but in the past year the focus has come on pro-Palestinian protestors, with bans limiting pro-Palestinian demonstrations passed in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, and Sweden. This trend has been documented by Liberties in its 2024 Rule of Law Report.
Finally, one of the major challenges in 2024 is a reduction in available funding, at least in the areas of human rights and social change. With a number of international foundations withdrawing support from Europe or narrowing the scope of their work, many groups will be struggling to fill gaps in their budgets in coming years. At such a critical juncture for European democracy, it is a shame that the organisations trying to protect human rights and the rule of law will likely be making do with less and having to devote more of their time to fundraising.
Why elections scheduled this year in Europe and beyond are both an opportunity and a risk for philanthropy?
Elections always bring with them both risk and opportunity. In this case, the risks are that far-right parties, which have already gained ground in Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the Netherlands, just to name a few, will take even more power, in the European Parliament and locally. This could lead to regression on issues like tackling the climate crisis as well as pose particular challenges for migrants, ethnic and religious minorities, women, and LGBTI people.
As go into this election season, there is also a risk that mis- and disinformation will flourish. Online platforms, which are not heavily regulated, are easy vehicles for the spread of false or misleading information designed to influence voters. This not only has the potential to make the playing field among candidates uneven; it can also undermine faith in the electoral process as a whole. We saw the effects of this quite clearly in the United States in January 2021. Many foundations are concerned about the distorting effects of disinformation on the electoral process and are supporting efforts to mitigate the problem.
The opportunity of elections lies in the potential to truly engage the electorate. We all know that voter turnout tends to be low, but this year provides an opportunity to reach out to those communities that often do not vote, including younger voters, and encourage them to become more politically active. The climate movement has galvanised youth activists, who recognise that they will be the ones to bear the greatest impact of the climate crisis. Hopefully that activism can be channeled into making political change. We know that the climate crisis is urgent and that we need to make significant political, economic, and social changes now to avert ecological collapse. This is the opportunity to build on the public awareness that has been created and elect leaders who will take the needed decisions.
Faced with these challenges, how philanthropy should operate? How their modes of action should evolve to increase their impact? Are new forms of cooperation emerging?
We believe that this is a moment for philanthropy to be bold, brave, and courageous. It's a moment to take risks, by funding work that is slightly more political or that tests new ideas and may fail. Foundations don't like to invest in projects that fail, but the flexibility of the capital we have in this sector means we can take those kinds of risks. It’s a good time to be thinking about the kinds of communities who typically are not involved in decision-making and considering how to create a seat for them at the table.
Although it sounds like a cliché, organisations also need more long-term and institutional funding right now. Flexible support gives them the chance to respond to changing circumstances and priorities, and multi-year grants mean that they can have more stability. We know that social change takes a long time – sometimes decades – and it's unrealistic to expect organisations to be able to produce major results with one-year grants.
We do see new collaborations emerging around the need to strengthen democratic processes and institutions. On the European level, Civitates was created in 2019 and has been growing support to these issues. More recently, there have also been discussions at the national level in several countries, including France, of possible funder collaboration around the protection of democracy and civic engagement.
Are new profiles of philanthropists emerging?
We are seeing a younger generation of philanthropists that have a different attitude towards their wealth and are eager to give funding in a much more flexible manner. Marlene Engelhorn, a young Austrian inheritor, has been quite outspoken and critical about the abolition of the inheritance tax in Austria and has invited randomly selected people to create a citizens group to determine how she should give away EUR 25m of her inheritance. The example of Mackenzie Scott in the US, who has given selected organisations large, unrestricted gifts with no onerous application or reporting requirements, is also inspiring other philanthropists to think about a different approach to their funding.
Are there any specific challenges for philanthropy in France in 2024?
The primary challenge that emerged from our interviews with French foundations centered on the potential impact in France of the withdrawal of international funders. As there are still relatively few French foundation supporting human rights issues, there was a concern that without support from international foundations, the human rights sector in France could be significantly weakened. This may therefore be a moment for French philanthropy to consider whether it is prepared to step into this area to prevent any backsliding.
There were also some concerns raised around the potential impact of the 2024 Summer Olympics on the security discourse in France, as Paris prepares itself for hosting such a major sporting event. As all eyes will be on Paris for those two weeks, it could be an opportunity for activists to draw attention to their causes, but there is also the potential for conflict with security forces. In addition, some funders raised concerns about the impact of the Games on the already difficult social housing situation in Paris. This is an issue that could continue to be relevant for French foundations long after the Games themselves are over.