PHILANTHROPY AND PUBLIC SPACE

25 June 2019

In episode 52, we take a look at the relationship between philanthropy and public space. How has philanthropy shaped our understanding of public space, and what role does public space play in driving philanthropy? Including:

• Philanthropy and rural public space
• The role of philanthropy and voluntary action in shaping the development of national parks in the UK and US
• The history of the National Trust and what it can teach us about the tension between preservation and access
• Urban parks and greenspace in the UK
• Public parks philanthropy in the US - success and controversy.
• How do we ensure that public spaces near where rich people live aren’t supported at the expense of those in less well-off neighbourhoods?
• Non-green urban public space: sport facilities and community buildings
• Public space and bridging social capital
• Does the emergence of quasi-public spaces owned and controlled by the private sector raise new challenges for philanthropy and civil society?
• Philanthropy and the concept of the public sphere
• Digital platforms: are they really public spaces? Or do we risk handing control to unaccountable gatekeepers, and what might this mean for civil society freedoms?