Sep 26, 2023 | Alan's Letter
I admit to being a slow learner, but perhaps not as slow as some of my colleagues in philanthropy. For decades I’ve been a democracy purist, arguing that we had to greatly increase charitable investments in structural democracy reforms (public financing of elections,...
Aug 29, 2023 | Alan's Letter
It’s summertime, the livin’ is easy, and I have 50 CCC letters under my belt, making this a good time to look back and reflect a bit on our mission and these letters. All 50 are on our website under the original heading “A*Musings,” a title that was supposed to...
Jul 25, 2023 | Alan's Letter
As you read this month’s letter, it is helpful to keep in mind: There is over $200 billion sitting in donor-advised funds There is over $1.3 trillion sitting in private foundation endowments There is over $18 trillion being held by the top 0.1% of US households (those...
Jun 27, 2023 | Alan's Letter
I was in Jerusalem last week to attend a conference marking the 50th anniversary (delayed a year due to COVID) of the Leonard Davis Institute on International Relations at Hebrew University, which was titled “The Futures of the Liberal International Order (LIO).” In...
May 30, 2023 | Alan's Letter
{Spoiler Alert: This is a personal, partisan, pro-democracy letter. After reading, please file this away in your Now or Never folder.} Memorial Day has just passed, and we are reminded that freedom is not free and cannot be taken for granted. What we’ve fought for in...
Apr 25, 2023 | Alan's Letter
For those of us advocating for charitable reforms that address both the threat of plutocracy and encourage a greater contribution by ultra-rich donors and foundations to address society’s ongoing crises, April was a bad-news (four articles) month. A few weeks ago I...
