Last week, I made a cup of morning chai, sat down behind my computer, and logged into an online forum hosted by the Giving Tuesday LAC Hub. The goal? To connect with over 1,200 leaders, organizations, and researchers from around the world to explore Generosity Without Borders. While generosity is indeed universal, it needs a supportive environment to flourish. Thus, following plenary remarks, I had the pleasure of moderating an online panel to discuss what it means to provide a supportive philanthropic environment. Alongside colleagues from Latin America and the Caribbean, we unpacked recently published data from the 2025 Global Philanthropy Environment Index (GPEI) and explored actionable recommendations for enabling generosity. A special thanks to GPEI country experts and co-panelists Catalina Celhay from the Centre for Philanthropy and Social Investments in Chile, Malou Morgan from Giving Tuesday and the Caribbean Collective in Barbados, Jacqueline Butcher from the Center for Research and Civil Society Studies in Mexico, and Paula Fabiani from the Institute for the Development of Social Investment in Brazil for their generous participation and insights. In this blog, I share key takeaways from the forum and regions.
What is the 2025 Global Philanthropy Environment Index (GPEI)? The 2025 GPEI is a unique research and policy tool published in May 2025, covering the 3-year period of 2021-2023. It provides an updated mapping of the barriers and incentives for fostering a supportive environment based on expert opinion data from 95 countries and economies and 15 regions. It assesses six key drivers of an enabling philanthropic environment: ease of operating an NGO, tax incentives, cross-border philanthropic flows, political, economic, and socio-cultural conditions. Global, regional, and country-level trends were discussed during the session.
Latin America and the Caribbean are two of the 15 regions included in the 2025 GPEI, and regional trends are reported separately. They are distinctive regions but also share overlapping characteristics. Together, they account for the world’s 4th largest economy, about $7 trillion USD in GDP and are home to a population of roughly 650 million people. Both regions have experienced the consequences of colonization. In Latin America, there are nearly 370 spoken languages, including, Spanish, Portuguese, and many different indigenous languages. The Caribbean is home to six official languages, including English, Spanish, French, and Haitian Creole, with many variations of blended languages. The 2025 GPEI includes 10 countries from Latin America and 3 countries from the Caribbean.
Key takeaway 1. Improve visibility, awareness, and trust of philanthropy. One distinctive and surprising trend from the 2025 GPEI was the decline in the socio-cultural environment in the Latin American region. On a global level, the socio-cultural factor is stable, scores the second highest among factors and is favorable in 14 of the 15 regions. In the Caribbean, the socio-cultural environment reflects helping attitudes, rooted in religious tradition. Despite the depressed score, many countries across Latin America continue to exhibit rich social and cultural traditions, including Venezuela with social values of solidarity and influences of the Catholic Church. Nonetheless, panelists shared examples about how diminishing trust, invisibility of philanthropy, and isolated scandals have influenced public perceptions. Some recommendations were shared to reverse this trend. In Mexico, for example, corporate social responsibility is gaining traction as well as structured giving programs through universities and companies. Their support and participation may also help with visibility and awareness of philanthropy. In Barbados, tourism is a robust industry and a potential site for building opportunities for philanthropy. And in Brazil, while capital is available, more public narratives are needed to improve understanding of philanthropy and motivate giving.
Key takeaway 2. Build cross-sector collaborations and recognize opportunities for global leadership. About midway through the panel, the audience was asked to share their observations of emerging trends, which were also addressed by panelists. Collaboration across sectors was a common theme. In Mexico, Jacqueline suggested that philanthropists in Latin America need to come together to speak with authorities about cross border giving, to strengthen the political environment and support for philanthropy. Further examples of coalitions were shared – to build upon commonalities and bring companies, NGOs, and the government together in building strategies for addressing areas of concerns such as mental health or education. In Brazil, Paula underscored the importance of the communicated value of philanthropy to government. She suggested that the government should campaign for culture of giving and fund data and research to develop the sector. With Latin America and the Caribbean susceptible to the impacts of climate change, panelists suggested the opportunity for philanthropy in Latin America to be an example for how to address climate change. Chilean expert Catalina underscored the reminder that local solutions should also be contextualized and driven by local culture and traditions, where outside models may not be the best suited to local needs.
Key takeaway 3. Data, data, data. Did someone say data? The full panel agreed that actionable recommendations were difficult to provide in the absence of comprehensive data. In Barbados, for example, country-level data is needed. In small island development states across the Caribbean, outsourced data is often used to drive decisions, which is limiting. With over 1400 registered NGOs in Barbados and at least four universities on the island, there is immense opportunity for building useful data on philanthropy. In Chile, on the other hand, country-wide data is available through the philanthropy barometer. Next steps suggested were regional-level research to make the sector more visible and understandable to policymakers and funders. International research like the GPEI is just the start to filling this gap.
Ultimately, the panel discussion elevated the power of evidence. Research tools like the 2025 GPEI give visibility to philanthropy while supporting informed decision-making, risk mitigation, and the safeguarding of civic spaces. Trust is fragile; hence the need to increase public awareness and a more embedded network for integrating philanthropy across sectors. Above all, a local lens is critical to asking the right questions, gathering the right data, and delivering the right messages across sectors to strengthen the environment for philanthropy.
A special thanks to Joao Paulo Vergueiro from Giving Tuesday for his friendship and kind invitation to join this inspiring regional event.
Brief author bio:
Afshan Paarlberg is a lawyer and interdisciplinary researcher who engages in policy-driven work on philanthropy, nonprofits, and access to justice. Afshan served as the director of the 2025 Global Philanthropy Environment Index (GPEI). She was also awarded a Fulbright Fellowship during 2024-2025, hosted by the University of British Columbia Centre for Migration Studies with the support of Fulbright Canada. The previous year, she was a Global Philanthropy Fellow, supported by the Giving USA Foundation. She is a PhD candidate at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, examining how immigrant-oriented nonprofits bridge access to justice across legal deserts. She continues to be active in both the legal and philanthropy communities, currently serving on the board of The Appellate Project—a U.S. nonprofit that supports emerging leaders as they work to build a more just and representative appellate field.
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