Ronnie Chan (HKSAR) & Nirvana Chaudhary (Nepal)
Title
Ronnie Chan & Nirvana Chaudhary
Organization
CAPS' Co-Founder & Chair, and Honorary Chair of Hang Lung Properties; Managing Director of CG Corp Global and member of CAPS' Advisory Board
Country
HKSAR & Nepal

Published date: 20 September 2024

At the launch event for the Doing Good Index 2024, CAPS’ Co-Founder and Chief Executive, Dr. Ruth Shapiro, hosted a fireside chat with Mr. Ronnie Chan, Co-Founder and Chair of CAPS and Honorary Chair of Hang Lung Properties, and Mr. Nirvana Chaudhary, Managing Director of CG Corp Global and member of CAPS’ Advisory Board. They discussed donors’ perspectives on philanthropic giving in Asia and how collaborative efforts can supercharge efforts to address social challenges. 

Ruth: Good afternoon, both, and thank you for joining me for our launch event. I wanted to start with a very broad question: What do you think the role of philanthropy is? 

Nirvana: As a member of a corporate family, philanthropy is a vision set by a founder or leading family member who sets out to make a difference in some area within a given economy.  

Philanthropy goes beyond just charity. A charitable dollar has one life, but a philanthropic dollar has multiple lives. That is exactly how corporate philanthropy functions. Corporate philanthropists set out to eradicate a social problem. They leverage their corporate infrastructure, network and resources and address challenges by applying private sector resources and a business-oriented mindset towards philanthropic ends. They measure returns not in terms of profit but the impact they create. 

Ronnie: This question has many layers. In terms of individual motivation, philanthropy is a means of gaining joy and satisfaction, driven by the knowledge that one has done well for society. However, philanthropy alone cannot solve the world’s problems. So, how do you leverage the dollars that you do have? It works best if you leverage your dollar to do the work of two or three dollars.  

A famous Hong Kong philanthropist used her philanthropic dollars to vaccinate people in the poorest province in China, which then prompted the government to vaccinate the whole country. That’s the ripple effect that philanthropy can have–one philanthropist working in one poor province was so successful that she shaped government policy. So, I think that ingenuity and creativity can really abound in this space, and the world has yet to scratch the surface of what philanthropy can offer. We are potentially entering a “golden era” of philanthropy in the sense that we may see a lot of ingenuity. This is particularly true of Asia because philanthropy is still a growing sector here, unlike in Europe or the US. 

Ruth: Nirvana, can you share with us an example from either the Chaudhary Foundation or Nepal, more generally, where philanthropy demonstrated the viability of an initiative and the government picked it up? 

Nirvana:  In 2015, Nepal experienced a devastating earthquake. Approximately 10,000 people died, and 700,000 homes were either damaged or destroyed. Given the sheer complexity and scale of what the government needed to accomplish in terms of relief efforts—complicated by bureaucratic hurdles, policies, and emergency disaster protocol—crisis response was inevitably delayed. That’s where the private sector’s speed and efficiency came in. 

The private sector has the unique ability to rapidly mobilize infrastructure and resources to respond to a crisis of this nature. Our company made full use of the resources at our disposal. We opened up 15 of our schools as relief centers, and we used the healthcare branches under the Chaudhary Group to provide relief materials to those affected by the earthquake. Because we had two thousand staff on the ground involved in relief efforts, we knew exactly which families were most affected by the earthquake. The government and various multilateral agencies used our data to determine which homes urgently needed assistance. 

Given that so many homes were damaged, we aimed to construct a new home or transition shelter and allocate it to a family in just 15 days. Over the course of a year, we built 5,500 homes,  55 schools, 22 digital classrooms, and 20 clean-water drinking systems. We also rebuilt an entire village with 180,000 homes and a community center and trained 7,000 people. 

In comparison, it took the government one year to organize the necessary resources. The government has bureaucratic processes, which can slow relief efforts, especially in developing countries like Nepal. However, the private sector can intervene to a positive end in its limited capacity. There’s no end to how much you can do. Through all this, we continuously partnered with local governments and NGOs with the knowledge and experience necessary for a venture of this scale. 

Ruth: Ronnie, much of your family philanthropy is not through Hang Lung but your family’s Morningside Foundation. Nirvana, in your case, your family philanthropy is mostly routed through the Chaudhary Foundation, which is one and the same as the Chaudhary Group. I want to talk about how this plays out because personal and corporate philanthropy are often delinked in the West, whereas in Asia, they tend to be more closely connected. What are your views on this? What are the upsides or the downsides of linking, or not linking, personal philanthropy with corporate philanthropy? 

Ronnie: Well, in the West, most large companies are already public entities, so a family’s intervention is by default limited, at least in terms of equity ownership. However, in much of this part of the world, many companies are directly linked to a particular family. As a result, the two entities tend to blend together, the extent of which depends on the level of corporate governance. If the standard of corporate governance is high, then there will be no misuse of funding.  

Ruth: My observation has been that when people invest in companies in Asia, they also invest in the families that own them. The investors often know the dominant shareholder very well and decide to invest because they believe the family will continue to make money. So, there is a little bit more latitude for Asian companies to take a more expansive view of family philanthropy and really build up the societies and the communities in which that family lives and the company operates. What do you think, Nirvana? 

Nirvana: We consider ourselves a small, 100% family-owned company. But our strategy has always been very clear and emerges in three distinct strands. The first is that the Chaudhary Group has a family-led constitution. As a family, we decided on the areas where we feel we can make the most difference in our homeland, Nepal. For instance, in the health sector, we prioritize funding maternal and child health initiatives and focus on improving child nutrition, with a special focus on stunting. Second, as the Chaudhary Group, we focus on four or five areas. We’re able to leverage our networks and infrastructure to generate a bigger impact.  

Third, I run my foundation in a personal capacity. As part of my personal philanthropy, I support orphanages and animal shelters and fund many scholarships. These priorities may not necessarily fit in with my family’s—or the company’s—philanthropic objectives and goals. The role requires me to wear different hats depending on whether I represent myself, my family, or the Chaudhary Group.  

Ruth: In the Doing Good Index, three out of the four sets of major indicators pertain mainly to government policies:  regulations, tax and fiscal policies, and procurement policies. Government looms large in Asia. Nirvana, you said you regularly work with the government on your projects. How? And what do you think the role of government should be in helping private individuals, families and companies?  

Nirvana: In the context of Nepal, the role of the government is to create the right policies. We rely on the government to create an enabling environment so that we can get the regulatory approvals we need and launch certain social initiatives on time.  

For example, our foundation engages in a lot of new development projects in sports and education, and we were lobbying the government to improve the enabling environment around these areas. When the budget for this year was announced, the government declared that sports sponsorships would be considered CSR. No more than a week later, we saw companies start saying, “What more can we do to strengthen sports infrastructure and strengthen cricket academies and football leagues?” That one policy has already started changing the narrative of youth development through sports.  

Ruth: I’ve said before that policies and regulations are like cholesterol: good regulations are good cholesterol, and they allow the system to flow. Bad cholesterol, like bad regulations, gums things up. You can’t just not have any regulations, but you need the right scale and type of regulations to spur good behavior and allow both innovation and organizations to flourish. 

Both of you have worked with and supported a variety of nonprofit organizations, and also participated in collaborative efforts to bring various actors together to make a larger impact. What are some of the things you have learned about working collaboratively? 

Nirvana: I’m currently undertaking a massive task of creating a group of 25-30 different organizations to take part in the Third Pole summit. Nepal is a custodian of the trans-Himalayan region, which consists of nine economies and 1.9 billion people. This region is heavily impacted by global warming, and we need to address this quickly for the future of our people. 

I’m leading this initiative, but I am getting government stakeholders, the World Economic Forum, and the Gates Foundation involved. There are several organizations that have expertise and are already doing a lot of things in this space but have not come together collectively. If they collaborated, the impact they generated could be much bigger because right now they are working in isolation.  

Ruth: What goes in to attracting collaborative partners such as these? 

Nirvana: If you want to create an impact as a philanthropist, you need to have a clear vision and a clear heart. Why would partners collaborate with us? Because we have a proven track record. If they see you have a track record, if they see you have the right strengths, the right competency, the right people, and the right ideas, they will want to work with you. The same thing applies to how the development sector thinks. Organizations want to multiply that dollar investment they’ve got, which normally they would not have expected much return on. 

Ruth: Ronnie, you have worked with many philanthropic efforts in which there are multiple funders. Are there certain “rules” for effective collaboration? 

Ronnie: When thinking about pooling resources for the common good, it’s about more than just money. 30 years ago, my family provided financial assistance to a community organization in desperate need. But when I look back, my biggest contribution to that organization was not the funding, but rather, I introduced them to a friend of mine who was the Executive Director of one of the biggest real estate companies in Hong Kong at the time. He eventually became the chair of their board. My point is that there are many ways to contribute. Networks and expertise are very, very important. 

Ruth: Nirvana, do you have any final thoughts about the evolution of philanthropy in your lifetime? How do you see the perceptions of the sector changing? 

Nirvana: I’m seeing a massive change. Because of greater access to information, the younger generation is far more aware of the problems around the world and in their environment.  

Ruth: I agree. Thirty years ago, there was the nonprofit philanthropic side, the for-profit investment side, and nothing in the middle. Now, there’s a lot in the middle, with different kinds of financial tools being brought to bear, and that creates a lot of opportunity and innovation. Ronnie, what do you think? 

Ronnie: This is a sector that is very, very young. This sector has more innovation and creativity yet to be seen. Intellectual capital, when married with financial capital, can do tremendous good. The message that I want to convey is simple. Perhaps philanthropy is not a sector that will solve the world’s problems, but it will make life a lot more beautiful for the givers and the receivers. 

Asia’s rich flip the script on charitable giving: Instead of mega-foundations, they’re using their family companies

Fortune

Asia has its fair share of high-net-worth individuals—think Indian mega-mogul Mukesh Ambani, whose family just threw a wedding reportedly worth $600 million—yet the region’s wealthiest tend not to rely on mega-foundations for their charity work.

Instead, the company takes the lead in Asia. “There’s very little distinction between personal philanthropy and corporate philanthropy” in Asia, says Ruth Shapiro, co-founder of the Centre for Asian Philanthropy and Society (CAPS), a Hong Kong-based think tank. “There are no Ford, Gates, Rockefeller foundations here.” Corporate giving comes with its own set of perks: on-the-ground experience, existing distribution systems, and personal connections. “Companies want to fund where they’re operating,” Shapiro explains. “Why send it through another organization,” when companies can just do it themselves.

Read the full article here.

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CAPS’ biannual Doing Good Index identifies the factors that drive or hinder the giving and receiving of private social investment to address social needs.

Now in its fourth iteration, the Doing Good Index 2024 looks at how the four components of the Index—regulations, tax and fiscal policy, ecosystem and procurement—have changed in the last two years. The findings are evidence-based, derived from original data from surveying 2,183 nonprofits and social enterprises and interviewing 140 experts across 17 Asian economies. This iteration of the report also includes a special thematic section on the impact of digital technology on Asia’s social sector.

Against the backdrop of the tumultuous Covid-19 years, the 2024 Index shows a continuation of the status quo with few major changes. However, the lack of change is not necessarily bad, as stability lays the groundwork for the social sector to thrive. The report also finds that Asia’s social sector is insufficiently prepared for the technological future, held back by inadequate access to digital infrastructure, capacity constraints and insufficient donor support.

The Index offers a blueprint of the policies and practices that can unleash private social capital and how the public, private and social sectors can work together to build a stronger and more equitable Asia.

Doing Good Index microsite

Our interactive microsite lets you explore and compare our Index data using visual and digestible graphics. The economy profile pages present a deep dive into each economy and provide a longitudinal overview of select data points. The data dashboard allows you to compare economies with each other, the Asian average and over time.

The Doing Good Index is published every two years. Read the inaugural edition from 2018, our 2020 edition, and our 2022 edition.

 

专访亚洲公益事业研究中心联合创办人兼首席执行官夏露萍:中国将涌现很多慈善创新

21世纪经济报道

CAPS成立于2013年,是一家立足亚洲、以行动为导向的独立研究和咨询机构,致力于亚洲地区公益慈善事业质与量的双重提升。CAPS希望通过研究和提供有助于系统变革的最佳实践、模型、政策和战略的建议,促进亚洲社会投资领域的发展。谈及中国,夏露萍表示,回馈社会、帮助邻里的观念在中国已有数千年的根基,未来中国将会涌现很多的慈善创新,即思考新的方式来利用财富行善。 据夏露萍透露,CAPS正筹备在上海设立一个办事处,日后该组织将会在中国内地开展更多工作。

Read the article here.

Building Back Greener: Addressing Climate Change in Asia

Climate change and environmental degradation are increasingly impacting our society and have highlighted the necessity for collective action by individuals, governments, and the private sector. However, in a region where most economies are still emerging, striking a balance between ambitious environmental efforts and development goals adds a layer of complexity.

This report examines the ways in which Asian private capital—from corporations, investors and philanthropists—is being brought to bear on environmental challenges. Drawing insights from interviews with 163 individuals and experts from companies, foundations, and nonprofits across 10 Asian economies (Mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand) we look at what actions local companies and organizations are taking to adapt to and mitigate environmental challenges. It provides unique Asian perspectives on climate action and offers recommendations for public and private sectors.

The report identifies four characteristics of the ways in which funders push resources towards environmental challenges, identifies the challenges companies and organizations face when doing so and presents recommendations and next steps for funders in this space.

The Tao of Giving: Insights into Ultra-High-Net-Worth Giving in Greater China

In late 2022 and early 2023, CAPS surveyed 135 ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) individuals—those worth more than US$30 million—across mainland China, Hong Kong, and Chinese Taipei.  Respondents answered questions about their philanthropy and other private social investments as well as their sources of advice, the impact of philanthropy on their personal lives and families, and their interest and engagement on social and environmental issues.  

This report draws on the analysis of these findings, building on CAPS’ studies and observations on philanthropy in the region. Findings show that UHNW individuals and families in Greater China are actively doing good and that philanthropy and social investments are seen as benefiting UHNW families across generations.  

在2022 年末至 2023 年初期间,CAPS向135 位来自中国内地、香港和中华台北拥有超过 3,000 万美元家族凈资产的高凈值个人或家族成员代表进行了问卷调查。受访者就财富管理、公益慈善事业、私人社会投资、获得专业建议的信息渠道、公益慈善事业对个人生活和家族的影响,及他们对社会和环境议题的关注点等方面回答了一系列问题。

本报告基于对调查结果的分析、CAPS 过去十年对整个亚洲的慈善家的研究和观察,以及广泛的文献综述。我们的研究表明,在大中华地区,超高凈值个人和家族将社会投资视为财富管理、家族传承和对社会的承诺的一部分。在此基础上,我们得出了四个主要洞察。这些发现构成了本报告的主要内容,随后的章节将探讨这些发现对亚洲私人社会投资和财富管理所产生的影响。

DECODED: Donor-Advised Funds in the Asia-Pacific

Our DECODED series unpacks, explains and crystallizes issues critical for social investment in Asia. It draws upon our expertise in research and access to an extensive network of sector experts and philanthropists in 18 Asian economies enabling us to identify emerging trends in the region. Through DECODED, we translate these concepts into digestible insights.

This edition of DECODED looks at the emergence of donor-advised funds (DAFs) in the Asia-Pacific and identifies the different models and motivations for setting up this type of fund in the region. While yet to become mainstream in most Asia-Pacific economies, donors, sponsoring organizations and social innovators have a strong and growing interest in the potential of DAFs to facilitate strategic philanthropic giving in the region.

我们的解码系列(DECODED)旨在深入探讨亚太地区的私人社会投资领域,为您提供清晰、全面和系统的分析。凭借我们在研究领域的专业能力和广泛的行业专家和慈善家网络,我们能够捕捉到该地区的新兴趋势。通过解码系列,我们将这些概念转化为易于理解的见解,助您做出明智的决策。

本期的解码报告聚焦于亚太地区捐赠者建议基金(DAF)的兴起,并分析了在该地区设立这类基金的不同模式和动机。虽然在大多数亚太经济体中,DAF还未成为主流,但捐赠者、运营机构和社会创新者对DAF在该地区推动战略性慈善捐赠的潜力表现出浓厚兴趣,并且这种兴趣还在不断增长。

The power of clusters: Building a strong philanthropy ecosystem in Asia

Philanthropy News Digest

Recognizing that philanthropy and other types of private social investment are increasingly important facets of a family’s vision of the resources they seek to both grow and deploy, Hong Kong and Singapore are endeavoring to become family offices. While there is more money in the region, the lack of collaboration and cooperation among various stakeholders has hindered the development of effective and sustainable solutions.

Angel Chiang from CAPS discussed how to use the philanthropy cluster model to unlock the potential for philanthropy and build a collaborative ecosystem for long-term impact.

Read more here.

Philanthrophy in Hong Kong

rthk.hk

In an interview with the “Backchat” program hosted by Radio 3 of RTHK, Kithmina Hewage, Senior Advisor, Centre for Asian Philanthropy and Society, discussed how Hong Kong can become an international hub for charities with the hosts and guest speakers. Listen to the full conversation here.

Fab Luxe Feature RUTH SHAPIRO

Fab! Luxe

Fab! Luxe Magazine spoke with Ruth Shapiro, Co-Founder and Chief Executive of the Centre for Asian Philanthropy and Society, about philanthropy in Asia.

Read more here.