Are shifts in international civil society at the heart of current world events?
Helmut K. Anheier, president and dean of the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin and a leading global civil society expert, will present “Trends in International Civil Society – What are the issues?” during an April 6 event in Indianapolis hosted by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. The program is presented under the auspices of the Stead Family Chair in International Philanthropy at the school.
Anheier will examine key trends in international civil society since the end of the Cold War, emphasizing the past 15 years since 9/11. Comparing different facets of global civil society over time, including changes in the Global Civil Society Index, he will explore the reasons that first contributed to significant growth and expansion and then to a slow-down, even contraction, of transnational space.
Shifts away from democracy and less welcoming political climates at the regional level contribute to current developments, Anheier contends. Yet at the same time, while the growth of traditional international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) is stagnating, web-based activism continues to grow. Is the future of global civil society increasingly online?
"We are fortunate to welcome Dr. Anheier at a time when civic life around the world swings dramatically between welcoming the destitute to forsaking neighbors,” said Amir Pasic, the Eugene R. Tempel Dean of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. “He is a pioneer in the scholarship we need to make sense of emerging upheavals that challenge the ways we choose to relate to our neighbors and to strangers.”
A reception will begin at 5:00 p.m. and the lecture will begin at 5:30 p.m. Following the lecture, Shariq Siddiqui, executive director of the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action and Greg Witkowski, associate professor of philanthropic studies at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, will join Anheier in a panel discussion offering further insights. The events, which will be held at the IU Indianapolis University Library’s Lilly Auditorium (lower level), 755 W. Michigan St. in Indianapolis, are free and open to the public; RSVPs are requested.
In addition to leading the Hertie School of Governance, Anheier holds a chair of sociology at Heidelberg University and is academic director of the Centre for Social Investment. He founded and directed the Centre for Civil Society at London School of Economics and the Center for Civil Society at UCLA. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University, was a senior researcher at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Public Policy, professor of public policy and social welfare at UCLA's Luskin School of Public Affairs, and Centennial Professor at the London School of Economics. Before embarking on an academic career, he served as social affairs officer to the United Nations.
Anheier is the author of more than 400 publications, and has won various international prizes and recognitions for his scholarship. Among his recent book publications are Nonprofit Organizations - Theory, Management, Policy (London: Routledge, 2014), A Versatile American Institution: The Changing Ideals and Realities of Philanthropic Foundations with David Hammack (Washington, DC: Brookings, 2013) and The Global Studies Encyclopedia with Mark Juergensmeyer (5 vols, Sage, 2012). He is the principal academic lead of the Hertie School´s annual Governance Report (Oxford University Press, 2013), and currently working on projects relating to indicator research, social innovation, and success and failure in philanthropy.
About the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
The Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy is dedicated to improving philanthropy to improve the world by training and empowering students and professionals to be innovators and leaders who create positive and lasting change. The School offers a comprehensive approach to philanthropy through its academic, research and international programs and through The Fund Raising School, Lake Institute on Faith & Giving and the Women’s Philanthropy Institute. Follow us on Twitter @IUPhilanthropy and “Like” us on Facebook.