In episode 51, we explore philanthropic pledges: what are they, do they work and how have they been used to drive more and better giving? Including:
- Mackenzie Bezos' recent decision to join the Giving Pledge has been widely reported. But how successful has this initiative been overall?
- Who are the notable signatories and the notable absences from the Giving Pledge? Why have some people not signed?
- Has the Giving Pledge shifted the level of giving by the ultra wealthy? Has it had any impact on overall levels of giving?
- What can we learn from the pledge letters of GP signatories?
- Does the GP lack the tools to hold signatories to their pledges? Should it?
- Is the GP's scope less radical than it might have been, and why?
- What of other pledge initiatives like the Founders Pledge?
- Does a pledge represent an expectation that a certain level of wealth comes with responsibilities to give, or is it entirely voluntary?
- What does academic research tell us about the economics and psychology of pledges?
- Why are the concepts of "warm glow", "pain of payment" and "psychological distance" important in understanding how to design effective pledges?
- How does crowdfunding relate to philanthropic pledges?
- Could the future be about "conditional donations", where conditions are set and then donations automatically executed if they are met?
Related content:
- Marc Gunther's article "Has the Giving Pledge Changed Giving?" for The Chronicle of Philanthropy
- com article on the Founders Pledge
- Sadeh, Tonin & Vlassopolous (2014) Why Give Away your Wealth? An Analysis of the Billionaires' View
- Meyvis, T., Bennett, A. & Oppenheimer, D. (2011). "Precommitment to Charity" in Oppenheimer, D. ed. (2016) The Science of Giving: Experimental Approaches to the Study of Charity, Routledge.
- Cotterill, John & Richardson (2012) "The Impact of a Pledge Request and the Promise of Publicity: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Charitable Donations"
- Fosgaard & Soevtevent (2018) "Promises undone: How committed pledges impact donations to charity"
- Elsden, Trotter, Harding, Davies, Speed & Vines (2019) "Programmable Donations: Exploring Escrow-based Conditional Giving".
