Charitable endowments are having a challenging moment. Despite the historical success of this medieval European charitable fund structure, the accumulation of capital for public benefit has always faced controversy. Endowments, which focus on long-term public benefit, have a built-in tension between capital and annual spending. Does the capital exist…
Tag: endowments
Total 5 Posts
“Is perpetuity 21 years?”, asked a charity colleague. “Well, no, it’s forever. Or until the end of time, or as long as we collectively exist,” I answered. Despite my emphatic response, the question is a good one because it underscores the inherent meaninglessness of the phrase “in perpetuity”…
COVID-19 has hit the charitable sector hard, and arts organizations face particular challenges. A recent article in The Globe and Mail about the Banff Centre described closed facilities, lost fundraising, cancelled programs, layoffs, deficits, resignations, and protests. The article also mentioned a request to endowment donors for “permission” to use…
People value objects more when they own or possess them – or at least when they presume ownership. In cognitive psychology this phenomenon is called the “endowment effect”. It’s a concept that was seemingly invented to describe a lot of behaviour related to estates, philanthropy and foundations. It’s time to…
“Is perpetuity 21 years?” asked a charity colleague. “No, it’s forever, until the end of time, or as long as we collectively exist,” I answered. Despite my pedantic response, the question is a good one because it underscores the inherent meaninglessness of the phrase “in perpetuity” in relation to charitable…