Faith in Philanthropy

The Faith in Philanthropy research project was conducted by graduate students at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs on behalf of the Aspen Institute’s Religion & Society Program. In 2012, the Aspen Institute launched this program with the aim of supporting religious pluralism – secular and religious people and organizations work together harmoniously. The Religion & Society program also seeks to increase understanding and cooperation between secular and faith-based philanthropic organizations.

Our team examined the history of religion and philanthropy, the current state of the field, and the impact of religious identity on participation in funder groups. Contrary to our expectations, we found that faith-based and secular foundations regularly work together to achieve shared goals.

We hope you enjoy exploring our site, which was custom made by our web team to share our research. If you have questions about our work, contact information for our faculty advisor, Dr. Brad R. Fulton, and project leaders may be found below.