Building our futures by revisiting our histories
GivingTuesday CEO Asha Curran on the power of community giving
Tuesday, 26 November 2024
Asha Curran is CEO of GivingTuesday. She serves as Chair of the Board of Guardian.org, as a Board member of the Resource Alliance, and as Advisory Committee Co-Chair for the Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact at the 92nd Street Y, where she was formerly Chief Innovation Officer. She is a Fellow at Stanford University’s Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society, a Marla and Barry Beck Visiting Social Innovator at the Social Innovation and Change Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School, and a Fellow at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford.
Generosity has been a cornerstone of cultural and spiritual life in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) since time immemorial. The region’s right legacy of giving has led the world with moments like the establishment of the world’s first endowment by Fatima al-Firhi who endowed the University of al-Qarawiyyin in Fez, Morocco, in the ninth century.
The region’s history and traditions - expressed in various ways across Islam, Christianity, and Judaism - offer a powerful foundation for modern philanthropy, serving as a source of pride and a launchpad for innovation as the next generation builds and innovates on these values.
Today, there’s a renewed interest in long-standing giving practices like waqf—charitable endowments established to fund community services over generations. These efforts are being revitalised as tools for sustainable development, offering ways to support education, healthcare, and community well-being.
At the same time, the region’s youth are growing up in a digital world, where new ideas and global influences shape how they engage with traditions or if they even learn about them.
With 140 million young people aged 10-24 across the region, this demographic holds incredible potential to reimagine giving while staying connected to the values that have defined their communities. We believe it’s essential for youth to learn about their rich cultural traditions of giving and consider how to embrace and evolve these practices in their own lives.
As future leaders, they will be responsible for stewarding these values. Without intentional conversations and meaningful experiences that encourage them to reflect on the importance of generosity and community, we risk losing the deep-rooted traditions that have sustained and strengthened communities for millennia.
"Together, we can foster a culture of generosity that transcends boundaries, blending the wisdom of the past with the innovation of the future."
GivingTuesday is looking to connect this legacy of giving to contemporary approaches. GivingTuesday Lebanon ran a Generosity Photo Contest, in which people were encouraged to share photos of how they give and which causes they support, and launched a campaign alongside the Beirut Marathon, where runners participated in the marathon specifically to raise awareness for eight different impactful NGOs.
Serbest Salih, a Syrian photographer and GivingTuesday leader, runs Fotohane Darkroom, a pioneering initiative that empowers children affected by war and displacement through the art of photography. Through the work of these GivingTuesday leaders, we see how timeless values can be elevated through modern platforms.
And in Yemen, GivingTuesday leader Yaser Alselwi , a labor union and civic society activist, demonstrated the transformative power of collective action, raising tens of thousands of dollars for local schools by inspiring small, widespread contributions on GivingTuesday 2023. These stories remind us that generosity takes many forms and that its collective impact can uplift entire communities.
At this pivotal moment in history, the need for generosity has never been greater. Economic uncertainty, crisis and conflict, and disasters have created immense challenges across the region. Yet, there’s also extraordinary opportunity and hope.
By empowering young people to engage with giving traditions like zakat, sadaqah, and waqf, we can help them adapt these practices to meet today’s challenges while honouring their traditions.
Together, we can foster a culture of generosity that transcends boundaries, blending the wisdom of the past with the innovation of the future.
Now is the time to celebrate the Middle East and North Africa’s proud legacy of giving while building bridges to the future. By intentionally engaging youth, amplifying collective action through movements like GivingTuesday, and embracing timeless traditions, we can ensure that generosity continues to inspire and transform lives for generations to come.
