With the global financial situation under the spotlight, many organizations are rethinking their grantmaking strategies. What place will small grants have in future funding plans? What may seem like a drop in the ocean now can have long-term effects that go way beyond the original scope of the grant, says guest editor Chet Tchozewski, president of Global Greengrants Fund.

The special feature includes contributions from individuals and organizations around the world with experience of making small grants. These include Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai; Marion Rockefeller Weber, who talks about her innovative ‘flow funding’ circles; Jacqueline Delia-Brémond, who tells us why she felt the need to set up a micro-grants programme alongside Fondation Ensemble’s main funding programme; Ezra Mbogori, director of a new human rights fund in East Africa, and Stephen Pittam of Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, both talking about small grants and social change; Nonette Royo, working to fund small environmental projects in South-east Asia; Helena Monteiro, who has seen the positive impact of small grants on communities in Brazil; and Bill Belding of the US-based Association of Small Foundations.

But there are issues around small grants – one of which is measuring impact. Maya Ajmera and Victoria Dunning of Global Fund for Children talk about their new system for assessing the impact of their grants. Finally, Nicky McIntyre and Annie Hillar talk about why Mama Cash has recently moved towards making larger grants, in recognition of the limitations of small grants for the women’s movement globally.

Also in this issue: the head of the new Philanthropy Secretariat in Liberia on how philanthropic collaborations are helping to rebuild the war-stricken country; a look at the Fondazioni4Africa initiative, set up by four major Italian foundations; Ken Berger and Robert Penna on their plans to overhaul Charity Navigator’s ratings system; Bruce Sievers questioning the holy grail of impact; Tommy Hutchinson questioning the value of hero worshipping social entrepreneurs; and Tim Ogden highlighting the possibilities of new technology in philanthropy – plus a report on the extraordinary charitable response to the Haiti earthquake and the first in a series of columns focusing on philanthropy advice.

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