Welcome to the ESSEC chair in Philanthropy, an initiative of ESSEC's Institute for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship.

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English

About the chair

Philanthropy is growing and expanding at a global scale. It plays an increasing role in addressing social challenges, and the tools available to philanthropists have never been so diverse. Its unique status – neither government nor for-profit – and its innovative potential have allowed philanthropy to experiment with new solutions in the public interest, in various domains such as social welfare, education, healthcare, and the arts.

What is philanthropy?

In modern times, the term ‘philanthropy’ has usually been defined as “private initiatives for (the) public good”. This implies a distinction from both government and business initiatives, as philanthropy aims at addressing public purposes through the voluntary action of private individuals and organisations.

Philanthropy is very diverse in its forms and stems from very different traditions in the world. At ESSEC Business School, we understand philanthropy broadly as all voluntary transfers of resources (money, time, goods and services) from private bodies, with the goal to serve the common good and to improve the quality of life of humanity.

Nonetheless, European philanthropy si still relatively poorly understood, as many questions remain to be tackled: How do the legal, fiscal, cultural, religious or economic contexts shape philanthropic practices? What are the different types of philanthropists? What are their motives? How does one manage a philanthropic initiative? Which strategic approaches are available? What is philanthropy's impact and how to measure it? What do we know about the relations between philanthropy, governments, corporations and NGOs?

To date, answers to these questions are partial and scattered. Academic knowledge regarding philanthropy in Europe does not match the growth nor the stakes of this sector. With this in mind, ESSEC Business School has decided to launch a new chair in Philanthropy.

Why ESSEC?

ESSEC Business School has always been sensitive to the ethical values which are instrumental in sustainable economic development. Ten years ago, ESSEC became the first French business school to create a chair in Social Entrepreneurship and to develop both academic and practical expertise on the matter, enabling willful students to become entrepreneurs for the common good.

In 2009, the launch of ESSEC’s Institute for Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (IIES) reinforced this effort, developing additional knowledge on corporate social responsibility, “base of the pyramid” approaches and equal opportunities in education.

Expanding on the Institute’s experience, the ESSEC chair in Philanthropy marks a natural step forward as philanthropy is a key resource for social enterprises, and a field of pioneering practices for the common good.