Global power shifts, conflict, climate change, inequality, and technological
disruption are reshaping the development landscape. Traditional aid is
shrinking, civic space is under pressure and calls to address deep power
imbalances are growing louder.
Amid these challenges lie opportunities for renewal. Emerging ideas — many
led by voices from the Global South — offer new pathways toward a more
trusted, equitable, and effective development system.
Philanthropy can help seed, support, and scale this change.
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“With crisis comes opportunity. For philanthropy, that opportunity is to stand with the Global South to shift the development landscape to one that centers their agency and intrinsic dignity.”
Srik Gopal, President and CEO of Humanity United
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“We must come together across divides, turning this moment into an opportunity to reimagine and create the systems and the institutions we need to ensure a more just and equitable world where people and nature flourish.”
Nancy Lindborg, CEO of The David and Lucile Packard Foundation
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“I urge international grantmakers to help build a new and more effective development and humanitarian system, build for the challenges and capabilities of the 21st century. We can also help make sure that local actors have a leading role in writing this new chapter.”
Peter Laugharn, CEO of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation