The Middle is a position somewhere in between physical reality and the world of ideas. It is also a dwelling space somewhere in between the personal and the political. But most importantly, it is a very concrete place in geographical terms. The Middle Kingdom, China - known for being the greatest dictatorship in the world - is the main topic of discussion in this forum. Ironically, if published in the Middle Kingdom, this blog would most likely have been forbidden.

Friday, March 10, 2006

The Culture of Giving

Attended an interesting symposium/grant making ceremony yesterday, and learned more about a topic which is quite foreign to us Swedes: philanthropy (let's see if I get any comments on this one...!). In Hong Kong, private and corporate giving is a field of study - and a culture - in itself.

Is there a link between a large welfare state and a marginalized culture of giving? If our money disappears in the form of paid taxes instead of through private donations, do we tend to care less about the cause for which it is intended? Perhaps not necessarily, but it is still interesting to reflect on how West European countries could encourage an increased sense of social responsibility on the individual level, while maintaining a net of social security on the societal level.

More on this later. And for now, a link to the organization sponsoring the event: HER Fund Hong Kong - kindly introduced to me by my "boss" Yan-yan Yip of Civic Exchange.

7 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

If I'm not totally wrong, the great grandfather of philanthropy, Andrew Carnegie stated back then that "the man who dies rich, dies discraced". But then of course, he 1. lived where your efforts made all the difference to your living standards (cradle - please fill the gap yourself - grave). 2. Lived where conclusions thus might be drawn once in a while that your efforts could make all the difference to someone else as well. 3. A skillful fellow could make more than his wife could spend (this was all before Chloë handbags of course).

This is why giving is at 2%+ of GDP in the U.S. and rising. As for Sweden, we stick with contributing to the melodifestival. I vote Günther (@ SEK 2.50)

6:40 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I could say amen to that.

10:23 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I say amen to anything you say amen to.

Amen dude!

7:47 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

amen to saying amen to everything i say amen to.

Haudi!

7:03 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hallå tjejen!!

allt väl i lilla rummet i stora staden? i sthlm skiner solen, snart e våren på g, jag lovar.. har precis varit på segeltorpsskolan och tagit mig igenom ännu några kaotiska lektioner, idag som ma/no-lärare, måste läsa på lite om magnetism tills imon tror jag, har inte funderat på sånt sen 9:an ;-)

hur går d m ditt bostadsletande? e d april och maj jag ska kolla efter? jag är numera nyinflyttad på körsbärsvägen, T - tekniska högskolan, och det känns bra! lite rörigt än så länge bara.. du får komma och hälsa på! vi hörs vännen, kramkram =)

7:58 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hallå, vännen!
Nu var det ett tag sedan. Hur har du det? Hur går uppsatsen? När kommer du hem? många frågor... Här hemma väntar vi fortfarande på våren. Hoppas den kommer snart! Vi hörs! Kram-Lisa

5:30 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ja, det finns en direkt koppling mellan privat välgörenhet, och storleken på det statliga skattetrycket.

Detta blir tydligt ifall man placerar olika länders i en tabell. Med storleken på välgörande dontationer i kolumn A, och skattetrycket i Kolumn B. Vilket förstås har gjorts. Har för mig att en sådan undersökning finns publicerad i Gabriel A. Almond Comparative Politics Today.

10:06 PM

 

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