Philanthropy and the civil society organizations it supports are agile and responsive, capable of changing strategies and financing vehicles as circumstances demand and new opportunities allow. All the while the social sector can maintain a long view. At the GPF we will explore some of the recent trends and hopeful signs—including new opportunities to learn while giving, as well as to collaborate across geographies and ideologies, even in polarizing times. We will test assumptions and find ways to work and learn together at a time when liberal democracy is in peril.

Digital technologies have been used to improve governance, assure accountability, establish identity and to improve health and education outcomes. But these same technologies can be used by autocratic governments to surveil and silence critics. They have already been used by malign actors to sow discord in democracies and to undermine trust. Finally, data can reinforce bias in systems that are biased, and be used to exclude or deny access. We will explore the many ways to put data to the service of democratic values and practice, and to protect against the dangers those same technologies can pose.

In the face of the perceived dysfunction at the national and international levels when it comes to large issues like immigration, inequality and climate, citizen leaders on all continents have turned to community solutions. And philanthropists—once obsessed with scale— have increasingly embraced a “new localism,” a phrase coined by Brookings scholar Bruce Katz. They complement their “big bets” with a focus on localities where collaborative problem solving is most visible; the opportunity and need for cross-sector engagement is most apparent; and the reality of mutual dependence is inescapable. Scholars, remarkable civil society actors and philanthropists will share stories of what has worked and what has not—and seek to learn from one another.