Roles of philanthropic foundations as funders and distribution agents in disaster response

This chapter focuses on the roles of foundations as grantmakers fromtheir own funds, and as distribution agents for money from other sources(for example, public donations). We begin by outlining some definingcharacteristics of foundations, and differences between them. We thenconsider issues and constraints facing foundations in their response to disaster.Foundations may engage in grantmaking in a disaster but, we suggest, this isnot ‘business as usual’. Roles, models, time frames and issues of geographyare among the factors complicating any simple picture of foundations’ disasterresponses. We explore the question of time frames, focusing on endowedfoundations’ potentially special role in recovery and resilience building, andthen the longer- term effects of the experience of responding to disaster onfoundation thinking and practices. Finally, we offer some reflections anda plea for a more nuanced approach to describing foundations’ responsesto disasters