UNIVERSITY PHILANTHROPY RESEARCH BY THE CAPE PARTNERSHIP


PHILANTHROPY IS growing rapidly.

EDUCATION is the biggest BENEFICIARY of Philanthropic Giving.


Download our latest insights paper that examines the low levels of philanthropic giving to Latin American universities.

Download our latest insights paper that examines the low levels of global philanthropic giving to Latin American universities.

Read our latest study on diversity in foundation leadership

Want to receive our research? sign UP here

OUR VIEWS

Read Andrew Wigley’s article on the Fortune at the Bottom of the Philanthropic Pyramid published by the Dorothy A. Johnson Center.

This platform provides research that looks at giving trends to universities. It is designed to help university leaders and their institutional advancement and fundraising teams identify giving patterns and philanthropy flows as it relates to universities.

Global philanthropy is a boom sector.

While many societies have long traditions of philanthropy, the modern global foundation sector is growing. Nearly three quarters of grant giving foundations were established in the last 25 years.

In 2018 cross-border outbound philanthropy from the top 47 economies exceeded $834 billion.
— Global Philanthropy Tracker, Lily Family School of Philanthropy, Indiana University

The growth in philanthropy is explained by a significant increase in private wealth accumulation as well as government efforts to encourage philanthropic institutions and giving. The Global Philanthropy Report by Harvard University and UBS identified around 260,000 philanthropic foundations in more than 40 countries. The fixed assets of known foundations exceed US$1.5 trillion. The authors of the report note that this is a conservative figure. The majority of such foundations are highly concentrated in Europe and the US.

Most are independent, often family endowments or family-run organisations. The UBS Harvard study reports that the sector is highly fragmented. Over 50% of foundations have no paid staff and disburse less than $1m annually. This can cause challenges with respect to their ability to source new projects. It also presents challenges for beneficiaries - such as universities - to know where funding opportunities lie.

Moreover, cross-border philanthropy is climbing steeply. The Global Philanthropy Tracker published by Lily Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University estimates that the scale of cross-border philanthropy outbound from the top 47 economies to be around $834 billion in 2018.

Education is the most popular area for giving.

According to Harvard and UBS 35% of nearly 30,000 foundations direct resources towards quality education initiatives. In 2020 the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) published a report that looked at education funding in 2018 by a sample of 33 foundations. The study identified higher education as the biggest beneficiary receiving more than all funding to early childhood education, secondary education and vocational training combined. Encouraging news for universities and their fundraising or institutional advancement teams, then. Education, it seems, is often viewed by donors as the key to both individual opportunity and achievement, and as an engine of national economic prosperity.


Snapshot: the changing face of international philanthropy (2012 - 22)


Our news