Shafi Musaddique

2 weeks ago | alliancemagazine.org | Shafi Musaddique

Ocean sustainability is not an obvious candidate as a model for southeast Asian collaboration. However, philanthropies are, in their various sizes and localities, collaborating more effectively. How does this serve as a model of learning? One such model is ‘trust based philanthropy’. While the idea has generated much noise from the large-scale US funders such as Mackenzie Scott, it is family foundations in Asia that have practised the idea long before multi billionaire philanthropists emerged.

2 weeks ago | alliancemagazine.org | Shafi Musaddique

‘Philanthropy is the tail of the dog, not the dog itself.’ If ever there was a quote to summarise a session, this would be it. A whole philanthropic ecosystem is being built in southeast Asia, changing almost day by day. With the global headlines on USAID and traditional sources of philanthropy facing pressure, there is the sense that there is an opportunity for Asian philanthropists to take up the challenge. Unique to Asia is an intersection that others have yet quite to reach at the same speed.

2 weeks ago | alliancemagazine.org | Shafi Musaddique

Climate change. Now, more than ever, referred to as the climate crisis. We all know about it by now. Scientists have, for decades, warned about its catastrophic consequences. Seven million people die every year because of poor air quality, with an additional 5 million deaths ‘directly attributable to burning fossil fuels.’Heat will increase political instability across the world. So, is philanthropy enough to combat climate change and the rate of change it is applying on human health?

2 weeks ago | alliancemagazine.org | Shafi Musaddique

Family foundations are a bedrock in Asian philanthropy, particularly in southeast Asia. What makes them unique to the region and what lessons can be learnt from them? Alliance magazine caught up with Carol Liew, managing director of the ECCA Foundation, on the sidelines of the Philanthropy Asia Summit in Singapore. Her foundation supports ocean sustainability projects in Thailand and Singapore.

2 weeks ago | alliancemagazine.org | Shafi Musaddique

Qatar’s philanthropy scene has improved dramatically, according to the Global Philanthropy Environment Index. The table, published by Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, calculates improvements made in the ease of operating organisations, tax incentives, freedom of cross-border financial flows, and the political, economic, and social environment. Qatar’s overall philanthropic environment index has gone from a 2.07 index in 2018 to 3.61 in 2025, one of the highest increases.