Philanthropy

Philanthropy (pronounced fill-an-throw-pee) is a general term which means the desire to improve the world around you and make it a better place. It can include giving money for the benefit of others, for example donating money to charity; but is first and foremost about having a love for humankind in general, and doing anything you can to help others.

A phrase which is often associated with philanthropy is ‘working for the common good’.

Everyone has their own idea of what ‘common good’ is, and it is up to you to decide for yourself what it means for you and how you can contribute to it.

The most important thing is that you are doing something which makes you feel better about the world around you, and about your place in it, whilst helping others at the same time.

This does not just have to be about helping the poor or the needy. In many ways everybody is ‘needy’. As different as we are from one another, as unique as each one of us is, we are much more the same than we are different.

Everyone has needs and everyone has something of value to give.

How Can I Help?

There are lots of different ways you can give something back to the community. As we have already mentioned, lots of people help out good causes by giving some of their money to charity. But you don’t have to give money to help others, you can make a huge difference by volunteering some of your spare time.

Volunteering means spending your own time helping others; either in the community, or through a charitable project.

It can be any activity that involves spending time doing something that aims to benefit the environment, individuals or groups other than close relatives. Volunteer work can include anything from DJing at a local hospital radio station to helping the elderly in your community. Volunteers can do almost anything!