Aligning philanthropy to protect democracy and civic space

The first year of Trump’s second presidential term was defined by intentional chaos and massive political disruption. The administration has a blatant disregard for the Constitution and rule of law – willing to bend or break laws, norms and traditions that stand in the way of its agenda. This includes attempts to silence and threaten perceived enemies of the Trump administration in the non-profit sector and larger civic space. Major philanthropic institutions have been accused, in bad faith, of supporting terrorism. These accusations are thinly veiled attempts to stop efforts that are not aligned with the administration’s agenda. 

Few of these attempts have been successful at closing the doors of philanthropic institutions or ending support for work that the administration dislikes. Philanthropy and the larger civic sector have developed strategies effective at resisting authoritarianism and protecting democracy. More needs to be done. Continuing initial success relies on identifying what has worked and doubling down on those efforts. As Europe braces for a significant election year in 2026, with public support for far-right parties in several countries, European philanthropy can prepare to protect democracy and civic space based on lessons from the U.S.

Authoritarianism in a global context    

The move towards authoritarianism is a global trend. Experts have described the U.S. as descending into a “mild form of…competitive authoritarianism.” Competitive authoritarianism refers to governments that are neither fully democratic nor autocratic, where elections are seen as the primary means to attain political power, but other democratic institutions (like the courts, legislature, or free press) slowly erode.  Several European countries are facing a similar crisis of democracy with growing popular appeal of right-wing authoritarian populism. The growing appeal of authoritarianism is paired with “a complex and evolving network of anti-rights actors” who look to rollback advances in the protection of human rights, including women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights and minority rights. For funders who support democracy, human rights and peacebuilding in Europe, the time is now to prepare for the defence of democracy and civil society.

I work for a relatively small family foundation based in the Pacific Northwest in the United States. We have chosen to take an active role in sector-wide efforts to protect and defend philanthropy. We’ve joined cross-sector networks for information sharing and solidarity. We’ve signed letters in defence of philanthropy and the civic sector. We front-loaded unsolicited and unrestricted grants to our existing partners to fulfil urgent needs and increased our total grantmaking to support grantees as they navigate an unpredictable political environment. 

We believe this is existential. If larger philanthropic institutions buckle under pressure, it opens the door for funders of any size to be targeted and dismantled by any administration at any point in the future. Even small funders, like my organisation, can and should participate in efforts to protect philanthropy and the non-profit sector.

No “anticipatory obedience”

In the context of authoritarianism, political leaders try to create a culture of fear so that people comply in advance before resorting to more forceful measures. Complying in advance by stripping unfavourable language, cutting funding, or ending programs hastens the authoritarian power grab. It’s a short-sighted response that undercuts the future of a healthy and vibrant non-profit sector free from government interference. As Timothy Snyder writes in On Tyranny, “anticipatory obedience is a political tragedy.”     

Most importantly, our partners cannot succeed in the context of growing authoritarianism and an anti-rights agenda. The pressure campaign from the Trump administration is not actually about weeding out corruption, abuse, or fraud in philanthropy. The administration wants to cut off support to our partners whose work may not align with its agenda. Further, there is no perfect level of compliance that will satisfy an authoritarian’s demands. Practicing ‘compliance minimalism’ is key. We’ve aligned our actions with a strong message to our partners: we stand with you. Our hope is that our actions, however small, will embolden our partners and other funders to continue their work despite political pressure.

Working in networks as collective defence

The critical part of our strategy is to participate in networks, both cross-sector and cross-borders, in defence of democracy. Working as a collective group distributes the risk that any one institution may take on if acting alone. It may be advantageous for us, as a smaller funder, to act now while we’re not under immediate political pressure. While we understand that our voice can create an enabling environment for our partners, we are more confident in doing so while coordinating with like-minded funders. We’ve found it particularly useful to engage with democracy and human rights funders, whose work highlights fundamental lessons on countering authoritarianism from around the world.

Because we know that the trend towards authoritarianism is global, efforts to protect democracy and civil society are global too. Transnational solidarity (send an email to your American colleagues, please) is important to maintain relationships, funding or otherwise. Further, activists around the world are developing new and novel tactics to resist authoritarianism. These are lessons that can be shared across borders to protect democracy worldwide. Funding pro-democracy work and transnational networks are a powerful strategy for funders because it facilitates necessary coordination, information sharing and coalition building. 

Fund for the future

Much of the effort in the U.S. today is focused on protection and prevention. We’re moving from crisis to crisis, unable to keep up with the scale of devastation. In this context, an important role for funders is to think about the future and help to build what comes next. The previous status quo is not a viable option, and our partners need breathing room to develop new, resilient strategies for the future. Whether it’s supporting democratic renewal or strategising around new multilateralism and hybrid geopolitical power, funders can create space for bringing about a new futures thinking and build the necessary infrastructure to bring about a more peaceful and just world.