Foundations in the United States: Dimensions for International Comparison1:

The United States offers a challenging case for the comparative study of philanthropic foundations. Depending on definition, foundation numbers total 80,000 or 130,000. They hold comparatively large assets per capita, though they vary enormously in assets; most are quite small, and compared with government and profit-seeking business, their wealth and their influence are very limited. Public controversies shape and confuse much of the discussion about them: the increasing inequality in the distribution of wealth, the continuing subordination of people of color and women, the impact of money on elections and on public policies and international relations, the prominence of the largest endowed, nonprofit universities and hospitals. Seeking to evaluate the critiques as well as the foundations’ positive contributions, the U.S. researcher encounters all “the combined complexities” that bedevil comparative international studies of foundations. Deriving their corporate charters from the states, they operate unde...