No Such Thing as a Free Gift: The Gates Foundation and the Price of Philanthropy

Nothing has altered the face of global philanthropy over the past decade so much as the rise of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Indeed, its presence is so pervasive today that honest appraisals of its strengths and weaknesses are hard to come by. Linsey McGoey, senior lecturer in sociology at Great Britain’s University of Essex, has just published a book designed to remedy that deficiency.

No Such Thing as a Free Gift: The Gates Foundation and the Price of Philanthropy, takes an unsparing look at the role “philanthro-capitalism” is playing today in reshaping the world’s charitable sector. She argues that “we are entering an age when the ideals of social justice are dependent on the strained rectitude and questionable generosity of the mega-rich.”

Is this a fair assessment, or is it so harsh as to endanger one of the chief sources of charitable funding today? Dr. McGoey spoke at Hudson Institute on November 12 from 2:00 – 3:30 pm, at a panel co-moderated by William Schambra, senior fellow at Hudson, and Pablo Eisenberg, regular contributor to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. The event was co-sponsored by the Chronicle.