ABSTRACT
Philanthropy, in the broad sense in which we define it, permeates our lives, whether we are conscious of it or not. There are few things that affect as many aspects of our lives as philanthropy, and yet there are few that are less well understood. Philanthropy is as important in our lives as are law and medicine, subjects about which we know tremendously more than we know about philanthropy. Philanthropy is an essential tool in our collective attempts to solve public problems, yet there is too little – or only illinformed – consideration of philanthropy in our public conversation. Unlike business, philanthropy does not have its own regular section in the daily newspaper; unlike politics, philanthropy rarely makes the front page. Yet in the United States alone there are millions of volunteers at work as you read this, thousands of checks totaling millions of dollars are in the mail today to thousands of philanthropic organizations and institutions, some better known to you than rock groups, college football teams, or breakfast cereals.
