Green museum

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_museum 

A green museum is a museum that incorporates concepts of sustainability into its operations, programming, and facility. Many green museums use their collections to produce exhibitions, events, classes, and other programming to educate the public about the natural environment. Many, but not all, green museums reside in a building featuring sustainable architecture and technology. Green museums interpret their own sustainable practices and green design to present a model of behavior.

Green museums strive to help people become more conscious of the limitations of their world, and how their actions affect their world. The goal is to create positive change by encouraging people to make sustainable choices in their daily lives. They use their position as community-centered institutions to create a culture of sustainability.

Definitions

Museum

Museums make a "unique contribution to the public by collecting, preserving, and interpreting the things of this world", according to the American Alliance of Museums’ Code of Ethics. There are many types of museums that specialize in various fields, including anthropology, art, history, natural history, science, and can have living collections such as public aquariums, botanical gardens, nature centers, and zoos, or no collections like planetariums, and children's museums.

Green

The word "green" means environmentally thoughtful practice. The words "green" and "sustainable" are buzzwords often used interchangeably. However, according to Brophy and Wylie, "green" and "sustainable" have distinctly different definitions. "Green refers to products and behaviors that are environmentally benign, [...] while sustainable means practices that rely on renewable or reusable materials and processes that are green or environmentally benign." Another frequently cited definition for "sustainability" that is used in various contexts was developed by the United Nations (1987): "Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs."

Sustainability reflects a complex system where components are closely linked and do not exist in isolation from one another. A sustainable system affects and is affected by the individual and collective behaviors of its members. Sustainability, therefore, recognizes the human impact on the environment, and aims to mitigate negative effects.

Culture of sustainability

Green museums aim to promote a culture of sustainability, which can be defined in two parts: culture, which includes the values, practices, beliefs and aspirations of a society. Whilst sustainability asks people to adapt at a cultural level, changing their beliefs and behavior.

Museums are in a unique position to establish and promote a culture of sustainability as they are arenas that simulataneousy preserve and create culture. As a result museums are now considered to have a key role in shaping a sustainable future. These changes can be achieved through their exhibitions as well as their active engagement in debates surrounding climatic and environmental changes.

Museums have the capacity to influence visitor attitudes toward their local environment that can have a positive impact, for example, on the preservation of local biodiversity. Bristol Museum & Art Gallery joined a global coalition (United for #Biodiversity) to raise awareness about the protection of biodiversity and launched its exhibit Extinction Voices which aimed to highlight the threat of wildlife extinction and gather ideas for collective action. Another aspect of museums role in the culture of sustainability is getting their visitors to engage in climate change and sustainability issues more widely.

The California Academy of Sciences uses native plantings on its green roof to reduce heating and cooling energy requirements and contains many other energy and water saving features. It has been widely recognized as likely the "greenest" building currently on the planet.

History

Discussions within museums about environmental sustainability began in the 1990s and have continued to grow. Green museums are receiving a lot of attention from academia and the mass media. Some scholars believe that a focus on sustainability is a way for museums to be relevant in the 21st century. However, most conventional museums are not engaged in sustainable practices.

The green museum movement began in science and children's museums. Science museums found that environmental advocacy and education fit easily within their missions and programming. Children's museums saw that using green design in their inside environments created a healthy playground for their young visitors. Once sustainability became a topic of discussion in museum circles, zoos and aquariums realized that their existing missions and programming of species conservation was in essence sustainable education. Recently, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums revised its accreditation standards to include a requirement of environmental advocacy.

With the green museum movement beginning in children's museums, The Children's Discovery Museum in Normal, Illinois, became the first LEED certified children's museum on October 3, 2005, when it received a Silver certification. The Wild Center in Tupper Lake, NY became the first LEED certified green museum in 2008, followed by The Brooklyn Children's Museum, who achieved the LEED Silver certification in 2010. In addition, this museum used rapidly renewable and recycled features such as bamboo and recycled rubber flooring to construct the building as well as used photovoltaics to generate electricity. Other good examples of green museums include The Boston Children's Museum who earned a LEED Gold certification in 2007, and Pittsburgh Children's Museum, who received a LEED Silver certification in 2006.

Science museums and zoos were quick to follow children's museums in the green movement. One of the first science museums to adopt green initiatives was ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont, which was the first LEED certified building in Vermont. The Natural History Museum of Utah is another museum that has taken charge in the green museum movement. The Rio Tinto Center of the museum has been certified with a Gold LEED Certificate. 

Zoos and botanical gardens have also become leaders in the green museum field. The Denver Zoo, Woodland Park Zoo, and Cincinnati Zoo all received Green Awards at the 2011 Association of Zoos and Aquariums conference. The Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens was given a LEED silver certification for its new Welcome Center, which "is designed to evoke the geometry of the historic glass houses behind it." It has 11,000 square feet of lobby, ticketing, gift shop, and cafe space with a 34 ft high glass dome that is insulated to control glare and heat. Architects partially built the structure into the terrain, with 14th feet of usable space below ground. It was determined that by doing this, Phipps would save 40-50% of annual energy costs compared with an entirely above ground structure, and demonstrated that sustainable design could be created in ways that were still sympathetic to historic settings. Phipps will also be opening the Center for Sustainable Landscapes, which will house a center for education, research, and administration. It is scheduled to open in the spring of 2012, and is planned to exceed the LEED platinum certification, and achieve the Living Building Challenge.

Art museums are now also joining the movement. The Grand Rapids Art Museum became the world's first LEED certified art museum complex in 2008 when it received LEED Gold certification, with such innovative features as a heat recovery ventilator, CO2 sensors, and on site grey water reuse.

One specific example of a green museum is The Toledo Zoo in Toledo, Ohio. In 2007, the institution redefined its mission statement to focus on informing the public about conservation. As part of its mission, the Toledo Zoo committed to green construction, which was shown in the parking lot renovation project. The main parking lot was redesigned in order to increase parking capacity and aid traffic flow, and the project incorporated green elements such as rain gardens and reusing concrete. The renovation also included a residential-sized wind turbine and three solar panels to power the ticket booths at the park's entrance. The wind-turbine and solar panels generate 3600 kilowatt hours per year, which can be redirected into the zoo's main power grid when the booths are not in use and reduce the zoo's carbon footprint by 5600 pounds annually.

Another project at the Toledo Zoo is the Solar Walk, which opened in November 2010 and includes over 1400 solar panels that produce 104,000 kilowatt hours per year, the same amount of energy used by ten typical homes in Ohio. The Toledo Zoo and the Solar Walk's design team wanted the project to be a visual reminder to all zoo visitors and traffic from nearby highway of the zoo's commitment to conservation. In order to accomplish the project, the Toledo Zoo turned to a local companies, and used funds from private contributions and an energy grant from ODOD to cover the $14,750,000 price. Also, The Toledo Zoo, in keeping with their mission statement, included informational panels on how the Solar Walk works and the amount of energy produced to date, so that visitors can be informed on the conservational value of the project. The Solar Walk will reduce the Zoo's carbon footprint by over 75 metric tons each year, which is equivalent to 15 medium-sized cars. The Toledo Zoo has further committed to incorporate green construction into its building plans through geothermal wells, environmentally friendly insulation and other renewable energy and green construction materials.

Green exhibits

Museums are taking a more active approach to the project development of their exhibits. Children's museums initiated the green museum movement, mainly out of health concerns for the young visitors. Using toxic materials and chemicals on structures intended for children became a high worry for both the museum staff and parents. "In its 2004 expansion project the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh used only adhesives, sealants, paints, carpets, and composite wood that are certified formaldehyde free with near-zero off-gassing."

Before the reduce, reuse, recycle mantra became mainstream, a small number of museums had already begun promoting sustainable decision making through exhibits. The Boston Children's Museum, developed a concept known as "The Recycle Shop".

Organizations are working to develop a standard rating system for the specific needs of green exhibitions. In 2008, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) developed the OMSI Green Exhibit Certification guide to assist museums in assessing the environmental sustainability of their exhibits, and to help develop more sustainable forward plans. Based on the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, the OMSI Green Exhibition Certification guide simplified and adapted the LEED system to cater to the specific needs of the museum sector, especially in view of the limited financial and human resources found in many museums.

The guide provides a checklist for organizations who follows eight elements regularly used in exhibit design. After evaluation, they are awarded 0-4 points:

1. Rapidly Renewable Materials
2. Resource Reuse
3. Recycled Content
4. End-life Assessment
5. Low-Emitting Materials
6. Certified wood
7. Conservation
8. Regional Materials

Through the project, Sustainability: Promoting Sustainable Decision Making in Informal Education, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), OMSI also developed Exhibit Social Environmental and Economic Development (Exhibit SEED) in collaboration with multidisciplinary professionals across the United States. Exhibit SEED is a toolkit designed to help museums create holistically sustainable museum exhibits. The guide is based on "Three Pillars of Sustainability for Museums," considerations based on environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability, and provides multiple examples of how a museum might reasonably adjust their practices to incorporate these pillars. Many museums across the globe has since developed and shared their own guidelines for sustainability in museums. The Madison Children's Museum in Madison, WI developed their own "green guide" for sustainable museum practice; their green initiatives in sustainable materials, community outreach, and museum programming led them to become the first Wisconsin museum to receive LEED certification.

Issues

Mission

Some scholars suggest that sustainability and green design are a natural extension of a museum's mission statement. Some museums choose to make sustainability a central part of their identity, writing their commitment to being green in their mission statements. Sustainability can be seen as relating to three aspects included in most museum missions: field of research, purpose of public service, and the mandate for education. Museums that model green behavior enhance their missions and support their communities.

Education

As informal education centers that serve the public, museums are in a position to teach about sustainability to a large audience in meaningful ways. Through a combination of motivation and information, green museums try to initiate changes in behavior in people's everyday lives. Green museums lead by example by explaining to visitors what sustainable activities they are doing and why through signage, programming, and websites. The goal is that visitors will learn about sustainable practices at the museum and then be able to implement them at home.

Many museums dedicated to sustainability and conservation education often utilize the works of theorists like Richard Louv and David Sobel to find the most effective ways to motivate their audiences to conservation action. For instance, Disney's Animal Kingdom cites Richard Louv's Nature Deficit Disorder as one justification for their Kids' Discovery Clubs, which focuses on encouraging children to not only learn about animals but also find out what they can do to help wildlife. Another museum to cite Louv's Nature Deficit Disorder for their programming is the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. They spearheaded the national Take a Child Outside Week, which encourages children and adults to spend time together outdoors. Many museums also approach sustainability issues with Ecophobia in mind. Ecophobia is David Sobel's theory that if you introduce abstract and difficult environmental issues to children at too early of an age, and with out the proper background knowledge, they will retreat from nature. An example of a museum attempting to overcome Ecophobia would be one that promotes a love of nature and presents a variety of actions guests can take to help the environment before presenting them with more controversial and abstract environmental and sustainability issues. The Brooklyn Children's Museums respects the developmental stages of children by using their LEED certified building to teach children and their families about environmental conservation through interactive, age appropriate exhibits and activities.

Social responsibility

In recent years, calls for museums to become sustainable institutions have come from within the museum field as a way for museums to achieve social responsibility and civic engagement. Sustainability is an opportunity for thoughtful, proactive museum work. "Museums can play a critical role in moving the communities they serve towards a more sustainable future. Aligning their missions and programs with sustainability principles ... will recalibrate their own daily practices as well as awaken their community to the array of choices perhaps otherwise invisible to them" (183).

Museums, as a trusted part of the informal education system, are able to address the economic, cultural, and social dimensions of sustainability. They achieve this by engaging the public with interactive exhibits and by publicizing their own green efforts. The goal, stated or unstated, is to educate patrons about the effect they have on their environment, the ecological, economic, and cultural risks taken when they ignore their impact on the world, and introduce ways that they can reduce their carbon footprint. Thus, museums achieve civic engagement and social responsibility through teaching.

Some museums, such as the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Saskatchewan, Canada, take a global approach to civic engagement. The Royal Saskatchewan Museum's green exhibit is titled The Human Factor and aims to show patrons the human ecological impact on the planet, what practices they can adopt to lessen this impact, and project what the future will be if humans do not take action. Visitors are helped to understand what Earth looked like before humans and gradual human impact over time through colorful depictions in the "Time Tunnel". The subsequent gallery, "Living Planet", explains how a global ecosystem functions and what human stresses are to the Earth's global ecosystem on a rotating globe. Specifically identified as a stress to the global ecosystem is the rising population. Curators placed clocks in the exhibit that count increases in population across the globe. Beneath the clocks are the forms of humans and in their shadow is the images of industrial productivity. The following gallery, "Causes of Stress," identifies the source of ecological stresses as rampant consumerism and explains what causes this extreme behavior. The solutions gallery depicts sustainable development and an electronic display of sustainability success stories. This is an effort to show patrons how their choices impact not only themselves and their parts of the world but other people and their environments. The last gallery, "Looking Ahead," describes the projected future of the globe if humans adopt the prescribed changes. The desired effect is an emotional response to the human impact on the global ecosystem.

The Bronx Zoo seeks to educate its patrons about water resources and the impact of restroom use on water resources through the EcoRestroom exhibit. At the same time, by installing this restroom with composting toilets the Zoo has reduced its carbon footprint. The restroom serves men and women with 12 toilets and six sinks for women and two toilets, four waterless urinals and four sinks for men. The sinks do not rely on electricity or battery power; rather, they recharge as water runs through them. The used water runs into a Grey Water garden that is unharmed by the bio-compatible soap available for use by patrons. The restroom doubles as exhibition space, informing visitors of water conservation. Along the pathway to the entrance of the restroom there are water-droplet-shaped signs that give visitors tips for conserving and repurposing water at home. Signs continue over the sinks, providing visitors with facts about water use meant to inspire thought about their own use and what they can do to use less water. Signs on the inside of the stall doors inform visitors how composting toilets function and the impact they have on the environment. This installation not only shows patrons how they can make simple changes to conserve water but implements those changes in real time at the Zoo. In educating, the Zoo is also making a difference.

As stewards of the public trust, museums bear a responsibility to maintain collections utilizing the most efficient methods available. Museums must do their part to ensure that there is a public to enjoy the collection and resources to exhibit the collection. One way museums can conserve resources is to incorporate energy saving practices into their daily operations, altering the facilities they already inhabit rather than building anew. Brophy and Wylie identify simple solutions such as installing motion sensors that turn the lights on when visitors enter the gallery and turn the lights off when they exit, such as those found at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. Those light bulbs could even be replaced with long-lasting LED bulbs. Other museums that manipulate their facilities location include the Morgan Library, as identified by Brophy and Wylie, whose storage is "carved out of Manhattan bedrock." The bedrock provides natural cool storage without using electricity to generate an air conditioned climate. Thus neither money nor electricity are spent to control the climate of the storage space, which stresses not only museum funds but increasingly scarce electricity too.

Museums achieve further social responsibility through implementation of sustainable practices that they advocate in building or altering facilities such that they are sustainable. This includes using LEED building practices and sourcing materials locally. Purchasing building materials and employing local labor stimulates the economy in the vicinity of the museum. It also reduces the carbon footprint of construction; materials purchased from local suppliers do not need to be delivered on a tractor-trailer, on an airplane, or on a ship, all of which consume fuel, time and money. The Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, CO, has incorporated locally sourcing materials into its LEED-Gold design plan. The Museum highlights that its green roof, furniture fixtures and equipment have all been locally sourced. The museum also encourages the use of public transportation by offering discounts to visitors who use this as a means of accessing the museum. In building to the LEED Gold standard, the Museum of Contemporary Art has also made its operations more energy efficient. The façade is built to maximize climate control and limit the use of traditional forced air. Radiant flooring circulates heat around the perimeter of the building. These are two ways that MCA Denver conserves energy. The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego purchased paint, office furnishings, windows and doors from local vendors. By educating the community and putting advocacy into action, museums become socially responsible.

Landscapes and outdoor spaces

One approach green museums are taking to improve sustainability is to consider their outdoor spaces and landscape design. Greening outdoor spaces provides multiple benefits beyond aesthetics and museums are increasingly using their outdoor spaces to further sustainable strategies and educational goals. According to the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities, there are many types of educational, recreational, and social skills that may be successfully taught outdoors. Outdoor museum spaces include pathways, trails, pavilions, picnic areas, fountains, courtyards, waste management areas, rooftops, and the greater surrounding environment. Whether a new facility or an existing one, green museums use these outdoor areas to implement sustainable practices. For instance, incorporating native plants, wetlands, bioswales, rain gardens, butterfly gardens, vegetable gardens, and green roofs are all ways museums can maximize the use of, and green their grounds. Additionally, the natural surrounding environment can be an integral part of the green museum (where the land is part of the museum). Incorporating these outdoor spaces provides a more flexible learning environment with greater educational opportunities. Outdoor spaces allow for hands-on projects that promote environmental awareness and are an ideal catalyst for community involvement.

Increasingly, green museums are incorporating sustainable thinking in their outdoor planning. For example, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum designed a rooftop that won the 2003 Chicago Green Roof Award. The living portion of the roof reduces the volume of storm water runoff and solar panels generate electricity used by the museum below.

The ability to quantify the performance of outdoor spaces is important to be a trusted example in the green museum community. There are multiple rating systems and interactive tools online and there is a growing consultancy field aimed at helping museums audit, develop baselines, and benchmark their performance. One strategy for museums going green is to become LEED Certificated. In 2000, the US Green Building Council (USGBC) introduced the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system that ranks sustainability in buildings and operations. To date, LEED is focused mostly on structures and development, while landscape issues are minimally addressed. The Sustainable SITES Initiative (SITES) is a new benchmark and rating system that was created, as a joint venture by the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and the United States Botanic Garden. Modeled after the LEED program, SITES is a work in progress to establish benchmarks and a rating system that addresses site selection, landscape design, construction, operations, maintenance and monitoring. Currently SITES is in the pilot project phase, and will be completed in June 2012.

Lighting in museums

Lighting is an essential component for museums since light is required to view objects as well as move and interact in the front and backend of museums. However, lighting can irreversibly change the appearance of objects such as paintings, textiles, leather, photographs, books and paper, or mounted specimens. Museums must take special care to avoid unnecessary light damage. Visible and near-visible light can be separated into three categories: ultraviolet light (UV), visible light, and infrared light (IR). Ultraviolet light is the most energetic and most damaging to objects, while IR produces heat that can also damage objects. Museums generally use halogen or metal halide track lighting in galleries and fluorescent light in storage; however, these are not energy efficient options. Halogen lights waste energy by creating four times the amount of heat as a regular incandescent light and can become fire hazards. In a world where the use of more energy-efficient products is on the rise, museums have more opportunities than ever to cut down on the amount of electricity they use. The challenge to the lighting designer is to achieve a balance between creating interesting and desirable spaces, maintaining visual comfort and health of the visitor, while adhering to energy conservation goals. Lighting is a constantly changing field, especially with new innovations in green technology and energy-efficient options. The lighting options for museums available today will radically change in the next ten years.

Lighting options

Beyond halogen and incandescent light options, museums use LEDs, CFLs, fiber optics, hybrid solar lighting and natural light.

• LEDs- Light Emitting Diodes create light through the movement of electrons in a semi-conductor material. As such, they produce very little heat and can sometimes emit light in the 400 nm range (always check a LEDs Spectral Power Distribution [SPD] before purchase). LEDs consume approximately one fifth the energy of halogen bulbs, have estimated lifespans of 50,000 hours, and decrease building cooling costs significantly. Their initial installation may be expensive due to the cost of the bulb and whether or not the museum can retrofit. However, they can pay themselves back in three years (or sooner!) depending on the lightbulb and lighting/heating energy costs. Over a period of ten years, they can save ~240 million kilograms (~530 million pounds) of CO₂ emissions.
• CFLs- Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs use gas that is stimulated with an electric current to produce light. CFLs use less energy than an incandescent and last six to ten times longer. CFLs contain mercury so disposal should be handled with appropriate safety measures (caution, PPE, staff training when applicable, waste management consultants, etc.).
• Fiber Optics- Fiber optic lights use plastic or glass fibers to distribute light. The heat source is removed from the end of the fiber and the longer the length of the fiber.
• Hybrid Solar Lighting- Hybrid solar lighting combines solar power and fiber optics to channel sunlight into an enclosed space. Sunlight is tracked by a rooftop parabolic disk and sensors maintain a constant level of illumination by supplementing sunlight with traditional electric light in special hybrid lighting fixtures. They are more energy efficient than typical light sources because of their hybrid nature, and remove UV and IR light before they enter an enclosed space. One of their primary limitations is the distance light must travel via fiber optic cable.
• Natural Light- Museums can also use sunlight to illuminate spaces. However, sunlight is one of the most damaging forms of light because of the presence of UV light in the sun's rays. Sunlight is a viable lighting source for spaces that do not contain light sensitive materials: lobbies, offices; or in museums that do not contain light sensitive objects. Museums can use UV filters on windows to lessen the harmful effects of sunlight. One rationale for using natural light is predicated largely on economics; a greater reliance on daylight reduces energy consumption and costs. Literature supports that natural light can create a more positive effect on spaces than electric light and improves human performance. With properly installed and maintained daylighting systems, natural light has proved to be beneficial for the health, productivity, and safety of building occupants.
• Brise soleil is a natural lighting option that uses permanent architectural sun-shading techniques to reduce the amount of light that enters a building or a museum.
• Motion Sensor and Task Lighting- Motion sensor or task lighting lighting allows for light and energy to only be used when a person is engaged in a specific task or in a certain area. Museums can use this lighting in areas with less traffic, office spaces, and most importantly, to minimize light exposure for especially light-sensitive objects. Lighting entire areas that are rarely used or used less often than high traffic spaces is a drain on energy and money for a museum, and can lead to significant photobleaching. Motion sensors allow for decreased energy costs and a longer display time for very light-sensitive objects.

Greening the field of preventive conservation

The needs of conserving artifacts and landmark buildings are often seen as conflicting with the most efficient and effective means of “going green.” Light, temperature, humidity, pollutants, particulates, and pests must all be monitored in order to properly preserve objects and historic buildings - the energy spent to control and maintain ideal environments for historic building and artifacts alone is staggering. Since the heart of authenticity for many types of museums is the display of artifacts and specimens from their collections, it can be challenging to create ideal environments for these objects while also creating greener museum buildings and exhibition spaces. For example, the California Academy of Sciences, which is housed in a LEED Platinum building designed by Renzo Piano, utilizes a natural ventilation system that could expose its collections to airborne flora and fauna, fluctuations in temperature and humidity, and strong daylight. In order to combat these factors, Jonathan Katz, CEO of Cinnabar, Inc., the firm that was hired by the California Academy of Sciences to design exhibits for the main floor of its new Natural History building, devised a “kit of parts” system where specimen display cases themselves could be configured to control temperature, humidity, and light. These cases had to reflect the sustainability mission of the museum and thus had to be built in such a way that they could be reconfigured and reused as exhibits changed. This is simply one example of how the perceived conflict between green exhibition and building design and the preservation of objects was resolved.

The struggle to reconcile green practices and object conservation goes far beyond the exhibition hall, as most museums only display a fraction of the objects in their collections. Museum conservators are tasked with the care, preservation, and restoration of these objects – the American Institute for Preservation, a professional organization in the United States that establishes and upholds professional standards among its members, states that the goal of its conservators is “to preserve the material evidence of our past so we can learn from it today and appreciate it in the future.” In striving to be “greener,” conservators must also now “consider not only the interaction of materials and environment with the art and artifacts [they] treat, but also the use, production, and disposal of the materials [they] employ in [their] work.” Thus, another problem facing conservators is the issue of finding non-toxic or lower VOC replacements for tried and true conservation treatments. In order to fully understand the challenges associated with green conservation practices, then, it is helpful to examine what conservation professionals identify as core issues. Patricia Silence, in “How Are US Conservators Going Green? Results of Polling AIC Members” identifies five areas pertaining to sustainable practices: recycling, energy consumption, waste, improved sustainability through products and procedures, and education. The following list was composed based on findings from Silence's paper:

Recycling

• Reusable materials (rags, sponges, brushes)
• Less paper (digital archives)
• Saving scrap (for later use)

Energy Consumption

• Temperature Control (radiant heating systems)
• RH Control (finding creative and pragmatic solutions to display and storage of objects)
• Light Control (Using more energy efficient lighting schemes to illuminate museum objects )
• Using renewable energy to power environmental systems
• Using more energy-efficient environmental systems

Waste

• Use less energy (environmental controls and office appliances) and materials (wood, paper, plastic, foam)
• Try to reuse or recycle a greater proportion of used items
• Proper disposal training for toxic items

Improved Sustainability through Products and Procedures

• Less toxic chemicals and solvents
• Water-based cleaning systems and/or natural products
• Organic cotton rags and towels
• Recycled or re-purposed products
• Used equipment, furniture, tools
• Less toxic packing materials
• Less toxic pest management chemicals
• Re-distilling
• Procedures for proper disposal
• Procedures for testing new materials

Education

• Best Practices Manual
• Resource List

Decolonization of knowledge

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decolonization_of_knowledge 

 

Removal of the statue of Cecil Rhodes from the campus of the University of Cape Town on 9 April 2015. Rhodes Must Fall movement is said to have been motivated by a desire to decolonize knowledge and education in South Africa.

Decolonization of knowledge (also epistemic or epistemological decolonization) is a concept advanced in decolonial scholarship that critiques the perceived universality of what the decolonial scholars refer to as the hegemonic Western knowledge system. It seeks to construct and legitimize other knowledge systems by exploring alternative epistemologies, ontologies and methodologies. It is also an intellectual project that aims to "disinfect" academic activities that are believed to have little connection with the objective pursuit of knowledge and truth. The presumption is that if curricula, theories, and knowledge are colonized, it means they have been partly influenced by political, economic, social and cultural considerations. The decolonial knowledge perspective covers a wide variety of subjects including epistemology, natural sciences, science history, and other fundamental categories in social science.

Background

In his 1585 Descripción de Tlaxcala, Diego Muñoz Camargo illustrates the destruction of Mexican codices by Franciscan friars.

Decolonization of knowledge inquires into the historical mechanisms of knowledge production and its colonial and ethnocentric foundations. It has been argued that knowledge and the standards that determine the validity of knowledge have been disproportionately informed by Western system of thought and ways of thinking about the universe. According to the decolonial theory, the western knowledge system developed in Europe during renaissance and Enlightenment was deployed to legitimise Europe’s colonial endeavour that eventually became a part of colonial rule and forms of civilization that the colonizers carried with them. The knowledge produced in Western system has been attributed a universal character and claimed to be superior over other systems of knowledge. Decolonial scholars concur that the western system of knowledge still continues to determine as to what should be considered as scientific knowledge and continues to "exclude, marginalise and dehumanise" those with different systems of knowledge, expertise and worldviews. Anibal Quijano stated:

In effect, all of the experiences, histories, resources, and cultural products ended up in one global cultural order revolving around European or Western hegemony. Europe’s hegemony over the new model of global power concentrated all forms of the control of subjectivity, culture, and especially knowledge and the production of knowledge under its hegemony. During that process, the colonizers... repressed as much as possible the colonized forms of knowledge production, the models of the production of meaning, their symbolic universe, the model of expression and of objectification and subjectivity.

In her book Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples, Linda Tuhiwai Smith writes:

Imperialism and colonialism brought complete disorder to colonized peoples, disconnecting them from their histories, their landscapes, their languages, their social relations and their own ways of thinking, feeling and interacting with the world.

According to the decolonial perspective, although colonialism has ended in the legal and political sense, its legacy continues in many "colonial situations" where individuals and groups in historically colonized places are marginalized and exploited. Decolonial scholars refer to this continuing legacy of colonialism as "coloniality" which describes colonialism's perceived legacy of oppression and exploitation in many interrelated domains, including the domain of subjectivity and knowledge.

Origin and development

In community groups and social movements in the Americas, decolonization of knowledge traces its roots back to resistance against colonialism from its very beginning in 1492. Its emergence as an academic concern is rather a recent phenomenon. According to Enrique Dussel, the theme of epistemological decolonization has originated from a group of Latin American thinkers. Although the notion of decolonization of knowledge has been an academic topic since the 1970s, Walter Mignolo says, it was the ingenious work of Peruvian sociologist Anibal Quijano that "explicitly linked coloniality of power in the political and economic spheres with the coloniality of knowledge." It has developed as "an elaboration of a problematic" that began, because of a number of critical positions such as postcolonialism, subaltern studies and postmodernism. Enrique Dussel says epistemological decolonization is structured around the notions of coloniality of power and transmodernity, which traces its roots in the thoughts of José Carlos Mariátegui, Frantz Fanon and Immanuel Wallerstein. According to Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni, although political, economic, cultural and epistemological dimensions of decolonization were and are intricately connected to each other, attainment of political sovereignty was preferred as a "practical strategic logic of struggles against colonialism." As a result, political decolonization in the 20th century failed to attain epistemological decolonization, as it did not widely inquire into the complex domain of knowledge.

Theoretical perspective

Decolonisation is sometimes viewed as a rejection of the notion of objectivity, which is seen as a legacy of colonial thought. It is sometimes argued that universal conception of ideas such as "truth" and "fact" are Western constructs that are imposed on other foreign cultures. This tradition considers notions of truth and fact as "local", arguing that what is "discovered" or "expressed" in one place or time may not be applicable in another. The concerns of decolonisation of knowledge are that the western knowledge system has become a norm for global knowledge and its methodologies are considered to be the only form of true knowledge. This perceived hegemonic approach towards other knowledge systems has resulted in reduction of epistemic diversity and constituted the center of knowledge which eventually suppressed all other knowledge forms. Boaventura de Sousa Santos says "throughout the world, not only are there very diverse forms of knowledge of matter, society, life and spirit, but also many and very diverse concepts of what counts as knowledge and criteria that may be used to validate it." This diversity of knowledge systems, however, has not gained much recognition. According to Lewis Gordon, the formulation of knowledge in its singular form itself was unknown to times before the emergence of European modernity. Modes of knowledge production and notions of knowledge were so diversified that knowledges, in his opinion, would be more appropriate description. According to Walter Mignolo, the modern foundation of knowledge is thus territorial and imperial. This foundation is based on "the socio-historical organization and classification of the world founded on a macro narrative and on a specific concept and principles of knowledge" which finds its roots in European modernity. He articulates epistemic decolonization as an expansive movement that identifies "geo-political locations of theology, secular philosophy and scientific reason" and simultaneously affirms "the modes and principles of knowledge that have been denied by the rhetoric of Christianization, civilisation, progress, development and market democracy." According to Achille Mbembe, decolonization of knowledge means contesting the hegemonic western epistemology that suppresses anything that is foreseen, conceived and formulated from outside of western epistemology. It has two aspects: a critique of Western knowledge paradigms and the development of new epistemic models. Savo Heleta states that decolonization of knowledge "implies the end of reliance on imposed knowledge, theories and interpretations, and theorizing based on one’s own past and present experiences and interpretation of the world."

Significance

According to Anibal Quijano, epistemological decolonization is necessary for creating new avenues for intercultural communication, interchange of experiences and meanings as the foundation of another rationality which may justifiably claim some universality. Sabelo Gatsheni says epistemological decolonization is crucial in handling the "asymmetrical global intellectual division of labor" in which Europe and North America not only act as teachers of the rest of the world, but also have become the "sites of theory and concept production", which are ultimately "consumed" by the entire human race.

Approaches

Decolonization of knowledge is neither about de-westernization nor about refusing Western science or Western knowledge systems. According to Lewis Gordon, decolonization of knowledge mandates a detachment from the "commitments to notions of an epistemic enemy." It rather emphasizes "the appropriation of any and all sources of knowledge" in order to achieve relative epistemic autonomy and epistemic justice for "previously unacknowledged and/or suppressed knowledge traditions."

Raewyn Connel states:

The colonized and postcolonial world [...] has actually been a major participant in the making of the dominant forms of knowledge in the modern era, which we too easily call ‘Western science’. The problem is not the absence of the majority world, but its epistemological subordination within the mainstream economy of knowledge. This economy has been profoundly shaped by what the Peruvian sociologist Aníbal Quijano (2000) has called the ‘coloniality of power’. In consequence, a wealth of knowledge produced in colonized and postcolonial societies has never been incorporated into the mainstream economy, or is included only in marginal ways.

According to Raewyn Connel, decolonizing knowledge is therefore about recognizing those unincorporated or marginalised forms of knowledge. Firstly, this includes indigenous knowledge, which was dismissed by the colonialist ideology. Secondly, it endorses alternative universalisms, i.e., knowledge systems having general and not just local application, which have not derived from the Eurocentric knowledge economy. Connel says the fairly known system among these is Islamic knowledge. This is not, however, the only alternative universalism. She also suggests Indian knowledge tradition as an alternative to the current economy of knowledge. Thirdly, it concerns Southern theory, i.e., knowledge framework developed during colonial encounter which emphasizes that the colonized and the postcolonial world has been affluent in theoretical thinking and that these societies have continually produced concepts, analyses and creative ideas.

According to Achille Mbembe:

The Western archive is singularly complex. It contains within itself the resources of its own refutation. It is neither monolithic nor the exclusive property of the West. Africa and its diaspora decisively contributed to its making and should legitimately make foundational claims on it. Decolonizing knowledge is therefore not simply about de-westernization.

Walter Mignolo theorises his approach for decolonizing knowledge in terms of delinking, which he believes shall ultimately lead to decolonial epistemic shift and will eventually foreground "other epistemologies, other principles of knowledge and understanding."

Decolonizing Academia

One of the most crucial aspects of decolonization of knowledge is to rethink the role of the academia, which, according to Louis Yako, has become the "biggest enemy of knowledge and the decolonial option." He says Western universities have always served colonial and imperial powers, and the situation has only become worse in the neoliberal age. According to Yako, the first step toward decolonizing academic knowledge production is to carefully examine "how knowledge is produced, by whom, whose works get canonized and taught in foundational theories and courses, and what types of bibliographies and references are mentioned in every book and published article." Yako says a research work in almost any given field is required to include names of certain "elite" European or American scholars in the bibliography or references. These scholars are commonly considered "foundational" in their respective fields. The citations are evaluated based on the "credibility" of the sources, which must be accepted by the "ruling elite, including the elite that rules the universities." For example, citing sources from a university press or an academic journal is deemed to be more "credible and rigorous" than citing sources from independent authors and experts. There is a hierarchy even when citing publicly available works. Citing the New York Times, the Guardian, or the Washington Post is considered "better" to a newspaper from Africa or Latin America. Even when such citations are allowed, foreign sources are typically seen as insufficient, necessitating their "validation" by Western sources. Yako opposes to the labeling of new scholars as "Marxist", "Foucauldian", "Hegelian", "Kantian", and so on, which he sees as a "colonial method of validating oneself and research" through these scholars. According to Yako, despite the fact that scholars such as Marx, Hegel, Foucault, and many others were all inspired by numerous thinkers before them, they are not identified with the names of such intellectuals. He criticizes the academic peer-review process as a system of "gatekeepers" who regulate the production of knowledge in a given field or about a certain region of the world.

Decolonizing research

This section is an excerpt from Neo-colonial science.

Neo-colonial research or neo-colonial science, frequently described as helicopter research, parachute science or research, parasitic research, or safari study, is when researchers from wealthier countries go to a developing country, collect information, travel back to their country, analyze the data and samples, and publish the results with no or little involvement of local researchers. A 2003 study by the Hungarian academy of sciences found that 70% of articles in a random sample of publications about least-developed countries did not include a local research co-author.

Frequently, during this kind of research, the local colleagues might be used to provide logistics but are not engaged for their expertise or given credit for their participation in the research. Scientific publications resulting from parachute science frequently only contribute to the career of the scientists from rich countries, thus limiting the development of local science capacity (such as funded research centers) and the careers of local scientists. This form of "colonial" science has reverberations of 19th century scientific practices of treating non-Western participants as "others" in order to advance colonialism—and critics call for the end of these extractivist practices in order to decolonize knowledge.

This kind of research approach reduces the quality of research because international researchers may not ask the right questions or draw connections to local issues. The result of this approach is that local communities are unable to leverage the research to their own advantage. Ultimately, especially for fields dealing with global issues like conservation biology which rely on local communities to implement solutions, neo-colonial science prevents institutionalization of the findings in local communities in order to address issues being studied by scientists.

Evaluation

According to Piet Naudé, decolonization's efforts to create new epistemic models with distinct laws of validation than those developed in Western science has not produced reliable outcomes. Because the central issue of "credibility criteria" has yet to be resolved. He says decolonization will not succeed unless key concepts such as "problems", "paradigms", and finally "science" are essentially reconceptualized. The present "scholarly decolonial turn" has been criticised on the ground that it is divorced from the daily struggles of people living in historically colonized places. Robtel Neajai Pailey says that 21st-century epistemic decolonization will fail unless it is connected to and welcoming of the ongoing liberation movements against inequality, racism, austerity, imperialism, autocracy, sexism, xenophobia, environmental damage, militarisation, impunity, corruption, media surveillance, and land theft because epistemic decolonization "cannot happen in a political vacuum".

Charity (practice)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charity_(practice) 

 

Illustration of charity

The practice of charity is the voluntary giving of help to those in need, as a humanitarian act. There are a number of philosophies about charity, often associated with religion. Effective altruism is the use of evidence and reasoning to determine the most effective ways to help others.

Etymology

The word charity originated in late Old English to mean a "Christian love of one's fellows", and up until at least the beginning of the 20th century, this meaning remained synonymous with charity. Aside from this original meaning, charity is etymologically linked to Christianity, with the word originally entering into the English language through the Old French word charité, which was derived from the Latin caritas, a word commonly used in the Vulgate New Testament to translate the Greek word agape (ἀγάπη), a distinct form of love (see the article: Charity (virtue)).

Over time, the meaning of charity has evolved from one of "Christian love" to that of "providing for those in need; generosity and giving", a transition which began with the Old French word charité. Thus, while the older Douay-Rheims and King James versions of the Bible translate instances of agape (such as those that appear in 1 Corinthians 13) as "charity", modern English versions of the Bible typically translate agape as "love".

Practice

See also: Alms

 

A Hindu woman giving alms (painting by Raja Ravi Varma)

Charitable giving is the act of giving money, goods or time to the unfortunate, either directly or by means of a charitable trust or other worthy cause. Charitable giving as a religious act or duty is referred to as almsgiving or alms. The name stems from the most obvious expression of the virtue of charity; giving the recipients of it the means they need to survive. The impoverished, particularly those widowed or orphaned, and the ailing or injured, are generally regarded as the proper recipients of charity. The people who cannot support themselves and lack outside means of support sometimes become "beggars", directly soliciting aid from strangers encountered in public.

Some groups regard charity as being distributed towards other members from within their particular group. Although giving to those nearly connected to oneself is sometimes called charity—as in the saying "Charity begins at home"—normally charity denotes giving to those not related, with filial piety and like terms for supporting one's family and friends. Indeed, treating those related to the giver as if they were strangers in need of charity has led to the figure of speech "as cold as charity"—providing for one's relatives as if they were strangers, without affection.

Most forms of charity are concerned with providing basic necessities such as food, water, clothing, healthcare and shelter, but other actions may be performed as charity: visiting the imprisoned or the homebound, ransoming captives, educating orphans, even social movements. Donations to causes that benefit the unfortunate indirectly, such as donations to fund cancer research, are also charity.

With regards to religious aspects, the recipient of charity may offer to pray for the benefactor. In medieval Europe, it was customary to feast the poor at the funeral in return for their prayers for the deceased. Institutions may commemorate benefactors by displaying their names, up to naming buildings or even the institution itself after the benefactors. If the recipient makes material return of more than a token value, the transaction is normally not called charity.

In the past century, many charitable organizations have created a "charitable model" in which donators give to conglomerates give to recipients. Examples of this include the Make a Wish Foundation (John Cena holds the title for most wishes granted by a single individual, with over 450 wishes) and the World Wildlife Fund. Today some charities have modernized, and allow people to donate online, through websites such as JustGiving. Originally charity entailed the benefactor directly giving the goods to the receiver. This practice was continued by some individuals, for example, "CNN Hero" Sal Dimiceli, and service organizations, such as the Jaycees. With the rise of more social peer-to-peer processes, many charities are moving away from the charitable model and starting to adopt this more direct donator to recipient approach. Examples of this include Global Giving (direct funding of community development projects in developing countries), DonorsChoose (for US-based projects), Kiva (funding loans administered by microfinance organizations in developing countries) and Zidisha (funding individual microfinance borrowers directly).

Institutions evolved to carry out the labor of assisting the poor, and these institutions, called charities, provide the bulk of charitable giving today, in terms of monetary value. These include orphanages, food banks, religious institutes dedicated to care of the poor, hospitals, organizations that visit the homebound and imprisoned, and many others. Such institutions allow those whose time or inclination does not lend themselves to directly care for the poor to enable others to do so, both by providing money for the work and supporting them while they do the work. Institutions can also attempt to more effectively sort out the actually needy from those who fraudulently claim charity. Early Christians particularly recommended the care of the unfortunate to the charge of the local bishop.

There have been examinations of who gives more to charity. One study conducted in the United States found that as a percentage of income, charitable giving increased as income decreased. The poorest fifth of Americans, for example, gave away 4.3% of their income, while the wealthiest fifth gave away 2.1%. In absolute terms, this was an average of $453 on an average income of $10,531, compared to $3,326 on an income of $158,388.

Studies have also found that "individuals who are religious are more likely to give money to charitable organizations" and they are also more likely to give more money than those who are not religious. Among those individuals are members of American religious communities, about whom the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding conducted a recent study regarding philanthropic and charitable giving. The study found that American Muslim donation patterns when it comes to charitable giving align mostly with other American faith groups, like Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish communities, but that American Muslims were more likely to donate out of a sense of religious obligation and a belief that those who have ought to give to those who do not. The study also found that most American faith groups prioritize charity towards their own houses of worship when it comes to monetary donations, and then other causes. Muslims and Jews contributed more than other religious groups to civil rights protection organizations, while white Evangelical Christians, followed by Protestants and then Catholics, were the most likely to make charitable contributions to youth and family services.

A study from 2021 found that when prospective donors were asked to choose between two similar donation targets, they were more likely to opt out of donating altogether.

Criticism

A philosophical critique of charity can be found in Oscar Wilde's essay The Soul of Man Under Socialism, where he calls it "a ridiculously inadequate mode of partial restitution . . . usually accompanied by some impertinent attempt on the part of the sentimentalist to tyrannise over [the poor's] private lives", as well as a remedy that prolongs the "disease" of poverty, rather than curing it. Wilde's thoughts are cited with approval by Slavoj Žižek, and the Slovenian thinker adds his description of the effect of charity on the charitable:

When, confronted with the starving child, we are told: "For the price of a couple of cappuccinos, you can save her life!", the true message is: "For the price of a couple of cappuccinos, you can continue in your ignorant and pleasurable life, not only not feeling any guilt, but even feeling good for having participated in the struggle against suffering!"

— Slavoj Žižek (2010). Living in the End Times. Verso. p. 117.

Friedrich Engels, in his 1845 treatise on the condition of the working class in England, points out that charitable giving, whether by governments or individuals, is often seen by the givers as a means to conceal suffering that is unpleasant to see. Engels quotes from a letter to the editor of an English newspaper who complains that

streets are haunted by swarms of beggars, who try to awaken the pity of the passers-by in a most shameless and annoying manner, by exposing their tattered clothing, sickly aspect, and disgusting wounds and deformities. I should think that when one not only pays the poor-rate, but also contributes largely to the charitable institutions, one had done enough to earn a right to be spared such disagreeable and impertinent molestations.

The English bourgeoisie, Engels concludes,

is charitable out of self-interest; it gives nothing outright, but regards its gifts as a business matter, makes a bargain with the poor, saying: "If I spend this much upon benevolent institutions, I thereby purchase the right not to be troubled any further, and you are bound thereby to stay in your dusky holes and not to irritate my tender nerves by exposing your misery. You shall despair as before, but you shall despair unseen, this I require, this I purchase with my subscription of twenty pounds for the infirmary!" It is infamous, this charity of a Christian bourgeois!

The American theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr also opined that charity could more than often act as a substitute for real justice. In his 1932 work Moral Man and Immoral Society he criticized charities funding Black education, writing that the "white philanthropy" failed to make a "frontal attack upon the social injustices" from which the Black Americans suffered. He wrote: "We have previously suggested that philanthropy combines genuine pity with the display of power and that the latter element explains why the powerful are more inclined to be generous than to grant social justice."

The philosopher Peter Singer opposes charity on the grounds that the interests of all people should count equally since their geographic location or citizenship status does not affect their obligations towards society.

The Institute of Economic Affairs published a report in 2012 called "Sock Puppets: How the government lobbies itself and why", which criticized the phenomenon of governments funding charities which then lobby the government for changes which the government wanted all along.

Needs-based versus rights-based debate

Increasing awareness of poverty and food insecurity has led to debates among scholars about the needs-based versus the rights-based approach. The needs-based approach solely provides recipients what they need, not expecting any action in response. Examples of needs-based approaches include charitable giving, philanthropy, and other private investments. A rights-based approach, on the other hand, includes participation from both ends, with the recipients being active influences on policies. Politically, a rights-based approach would be illustrated in policies of income redistribution, wage floors, and cash subsidies. Mariana Chilton, in the American Journal of Public Health, suggested that current government policies reflect the needs-based approach. Chilton argued this leads to a misconception that charity is the cure for basic needs insecurity, and this misconception drives the government to avoid welfare reform and instead to rely on charitable organizations and philanthropists. Amelia Barwise supported Chilton's argument by describing the consequences of philanthropy. Using an example of Michael Bloomberg's donation of $1.8 billion to Johns Hopkins University for student debts, Barwise questioned the most effective use for this money. She listed one motivation of philanthropy as to avoid paying federal taxes, so the donor may be recognized for their generosity and send their earned money to organizations they are passionate about. Barwise therefore implied that Bloomberg's actions resemble this motivation, since he has saved $600 million in federal taxes and donated the money to his alma mater. Furthermore, this non-politicized idea of philanthropy and charitable giving is linked to the government's approach to poverty. Barwise said that Americans have an innate distrust of the government, causing them to favor private and de-politicized actions such as charity. Her research explores consequences of philanthropic actions and how the money can be used more effectively. First, Barwise stated that since philanthropy allows for tax evasion, which decreases opportunities for welfare policies that would support all low-income workers. Furthermore, philanthropy can diminish the institution's mission and give more power and influence to the donor.

Acknowledging these consequences of philanthropy and the diminishing of public funding, Mariana Chilton offered solutions through the rights-based approach. Chilton argued that the government should adopt a more rights-based approach to include more people in their policies and significantly improve basic needs insecurity. She called for government accountability, an increase of transparency, an increase of public participation, and the acknowledgement of vulnerability and discrimination caused by current policies. She argued for increased federal legislation that provides social safety nets through entitlement programs, recognizing SNAP as a small example. Chilton concluded with a list of four strategies for a national plan: 1) increase monitoring to assess threats to food insecurity, 2) improve national, state, and local coordination, 3) improve accountability, and 4) utilize public participation to help construct policies.

Philosophies

Charity in Christianity

In medieval Europe during the 12th and 13th centuries, Latin Christendom underwent a charitable revolution. Rich patrons founded many leprosaria and hospitals for the sick and poor. New confraternities and religious orders emerged with the primary mission of engaging in intensive charitable work. Historians debate the causes. Some argue that this movement was spurred by economic and material forces, as well as a burgeoning urban culture. Other scholars argue that developments in spirituality and devotional culture were central. For still other scholars, medieval charity was primarily a way to elevate one's social status and affirm existing hierarchies of power.

Tzedakah in Judaism

Sandstone vestige of a Jewish gravestone depicting a Tzedakah box (pushke). Jewish cemetery in Otwock (Karczew-Anielin), Poland.

In religious Judaism, tzedakah—a Hebrew term literally meaning righteousness but commonly used to signify charity—refers to the religious obligation to do what is right and just. Because it is commanded by the Torah and not voluntary, the practice is not technically an act of charity; such a concept is virtually nonexistent in Jewish tradition. Jews give tzedakah, which can take the form of money, time and resources to the needy, out of "righteousness" and "justice" rather than benevolence, generosity, or charitableness. The Torah requires that 10 percent of a Jew's income be allotted to righteous deeds or causes, regardless if the receiving party is rich or poor. However, if one regards Judaism in its wider modern meaning, acts of charity can go far beyond the religious prescriptions of tzedakah and also beyond the wider concept of ethical obligation. See also mitzvot and halukkah.

Zakat and Sadaqah in Islam

In Islam there are two methods of charity. One called Zakat, the other is called Sadaqa.

Zakat is one of the five pillars upon which the Muslim religion is based, where 2.5% of one's saving is compulsory to be given as Zakat per Islamic calendar year, provided that the saving is beyond the threshold limit, called Nisab, usually determined by the religious authority.

Sadaqa is voluntary charity or contribution. Sadaqah can be given using money, personal items, time or other resources. There is no minimum or maximum requirement for Sadaqa. Even smiling to other people is considered a Sadaqah.

Dāna in Indian religions

The practice of charity is called Dāna or Daana in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. It is the virtue of generosity or giving. Dāna has been defined in traditional texts, state Krishnan and Manoj, as "any action of relinquishing the ownership of what one considered or identified as one's own, and investing the same in a recipient without expecting anything in return". Karna, Mahabali and Harishchandra are heroes also known for giving charity.

The earliest known discussion of charity as a virtuous practice, in Indian texts, is in Rigveda. According to other ancient texts of Hinduism, dāna can take the form of feeding or giving to an individual in distress or need. It can also take the form of philanthropic public projects that empower and help many.

Dāna leads to one of the perfections (pāramitā). This can be characterized by unattached and unconditional generosity, giving and letting go.

Historical records, such as those by the Persian historian Abū Rayḥān al-Bīrūnī who visited India in early 11th century, suggest dāna has been an ancient and medieval era practice among Indian religions.

Effective altruism

Main article: Effective altruism

Effective altruism is a philosophy and social movement that uses evidence and reasoning to determine the most effective ways to benefit others. Effective altruism encourages individuals to consider all causes and actions and to act in the way that brings about the greatest positive impact, based upon their values. It is the broad, evidence-based and cause-neutral approach that distinguishes effective altruism from traditional altruism or charity. Effective altruism is part of the larger movement towards evidence-based practices.

While a substantial proportion of effective altruists have focused on the nonprofit sector, the philosophy of effective altruism applies more broadly to prioritizing the scientific projects, companies, and policy initiatives which can be estimated to save lives, help people, or otherwise have the biggest benefit. People associated with the movement include philosopher Peter Singer, Facebook co founder Dustin Moskovitz, Cari Tuna, Ben Delo, Oxford-based researchers William MacAskill and Toby Ord, professional poker player Liv Boeree, and writer Jacy Reese Anthis.