Charitable donations and grants are being reframed as investments requiring measurable social returns

Evidence

When someone decides to give some money to a charity, or when a local authority decides to award a grant to some social actor, there is always some form of valuation beforehand. First of all, the decision must be made to provide support, and then how much. This valuation operation is what is gradually becoming financialised. There is a redefinition of the idea of donations and grants, which become investments that must have returns. These required returns are called ‘‘social returns’’ (but may also be financial). This is a highly specific view of valuation, which requires a connection between the money invested and what the organisation produces, with a view to choosing between organisations based on compared social returns. — Ève Chiapello, Financialisation of Valuation, 69

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines ‘social returns’ as the financialized valuation concept applied to charity and grants.
• XREF: Connects to the reader’s finance focus: how rate-of-return logic migrates into philanthropy and public subsidy, paralleling impact-investing discourse. — connects to: Impact investing extends finance into the nonprofit sector — Ève Chiapello, Financialisation of Valuation, 72; Philanthropy has been remade in the corporation’s image through venture philanthropy. — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 419; Venture philanthropy reframes justice as enlightened self-interest for markets. — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 423 (+4 more)
• ADDENDUM: Directly extends the Sacrifice article’s theme of gifting by showing how modern charitable giving gets instrumentalized as investment.

Related

• Impact investing extends finance into the nonprofit sector (similarity 0.84)
• Philanthropy has been remade in the corporation’s image through venture philanthropy. (similarity 0.83)
• Venture capital logic migrated into philanthropy through venture philanthropy and social entrepreneurship (similarity 0.83)
• Venture philanthropy reframes justice as enlightened self-interest for markets. (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• Philanthropy has been remade in the corporation’s image through venture philanthropy. #expands (0.90) — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 419
• Venture philanthropy reframes justice as enlightened self-interest for markets. #expands (0.90) — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 423
• Venture capital logic migrated into philanthropy through venture philanthropy and social entrepreneurship #expands (0.90) — Ève Chiapello, Financialisation of Valuation, 73
• Impact investing extends finance into the nonprofit sector #expands (0.85) — Ève Chiapello, Financialisation of Valuation, 72
• Neoliberal social spending is redirected toward donors’ interests, not ended #qualifies (0.75) — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race, 1749