By Anthea McLaughlin, CEO of Caribbean Philanthropic Alliance and Pablo Viñas, Executive Director of AFS Intercultura.
As part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen the global philanthropy ecosystem, WINGS launched the #LiftUpPhilanthropy Fund (LUP Fund) in 2024. Building on the experience of the WINGS’ Enabling Environment Fund, the LUP Fund is investing over 1 million euros to support innovative projects that strengthen philanthropy support ecosystems, improve the regulatory environment for giving and promote collaboration to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), through multi-stakeholders partnerships (MSPs).
In 2024, the LUP fund awarded more than 777,000 euros to 18 projects across Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Nearly half of these projects came from members of the LAC Working Group, reflecting the region’s growing leadership and creativity in building enabling environments for philanthropy. Among them are two standout initiatives from the Caribbean region, one in the Dominican Republic and another spanning the wider Caribbean, that are helping to shape new possibilities for collaborative, locally rooted philanthropy, including climate-conscious giving.
The Caribbean is one of the most climate-vulnerable regions in the world, yet reports indicate that climate-related philanthropy receives a disproportionately small share of global giving. Despite rising needs, climate mitigation funding still accounts for less than 2% of total philanthropic flows worldwide, leaving regions like the Caribbean severely underfunded in their efforts to build resilience and adapt to escalating climate threats1. While vibrant traditions of community giving and strong diasporas enable valuable support, the philanthropy sector in the region often operates in silos, without the infrastructure needed to scale impact or share knowledge. Cross-border collaboration is hindered by linguistic, cultural, and geographic divides, while the absence of reliable data and institutional support continues to hinder coordinated actions. In short, the philanthropic ecosystem is deeply under-resourced, fragmented across linguistic and geographic lines, and largely invisible in global funding data.
Rising inflation, shifting donor priorities, and political instability are deepening this structural fragility, shifting donor priorities, and political instability in parts of the region. Moreover, as global norms and regulatory expectations around funding continue to evolve, Caribbean philanthropy is under increasing pressure to professionalise and align with external systems. In this context, philanthropy support organisations in the region must become more than conveners; they must act as connectors, trust-builders, and long-term facilitators of systemic change2.
These challenges have also sparked a wave of innovation. In the Dominican Republic, the Philanthropy RD project, led by AFS Intercultura and GivingTuesdayRD, has begun laying the groundwork for a more coherent and connected philanthropic field. With support from the LUP Fund, they developed the country’s first philanthropy ecosystem map, bringing visibility to actors and gaps that had long remained under the radar. In similar efforts, a national Working Group was formed to co-create a roadmap for the Caribbean philanthropy sector, and a National Philanthropy Gathering convened over 100 stakeholders from civil society, government, academia and grassroots movements. This participatory process has helped reframe philanthropy as civic infrastructure, critical not just for charity, but for democratic resilience and long-term development. One of the most promising signs of change has been the active engagement of the national regulatory body for nonprofit organisations, which has joined the initiative as a key partner.
At the regional level, the Caribbean Philanthropic Alliance (CariPhil) has been catalysing a parallel transformation by driving a transformative shift in how philanthropy is practised and powered in the Caribbean. Established in 2019 as the first regional philanthropy support organisation dedicated to creating a hub for philanthropy to power sustainable development and a vehicle dedicated to Caribbean-led giving, CariPhil has leveraged the LUP Fund to advance an ambitious strategy rooted in equity, collaboration, and climate justice. This includes the launch of the Future Forward Caribbean Philanthropy Forum, scheduled for October 2025 in Jamaica, as well as the continued evolution of CLASP: Climate Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships. CLASP is a bold, Caribbean-born initiative mobilising funders, civil society and diaspora actors around a shared, justice-centred commitment to climate action.
With the support of the LUP Fund, CLASP has cultivated space for dialogue, co-learning and the adaptation of global frameworks, such as the seven pillars of the Philanthropy For Climate Initiative, to reflect lived realities of Caribbean communities. It’s not just about increasing funding; it’s about fundamentally reimaging how philanthropy responds to a region facing intersecting crises and long-standing systemic inequities. Through this work, CariPhil is connecting actors across borders and sectors, while building new mechanisms for regranting and trust-based funding that can channel resources directly into Caribbean-led solutions.
Important lessons are emerging from both initiatives. In the Dominican Republic, pairing data with inclusive dialogue has proven essential. Before this project, there was no clear picture of who the actors were, how they connected, or what common goals they shared. The absence of shared data, regular convenings, and unified language led to duplication and a weak influence on public policy. The data emerging from the mapping revealed this fragmentation, but it was the collective design of a roadmap, and the convening power of a national gathering, that created momentum for change. Collaboration happens when people feel seen, valued, and aligned toward impact.
Likewise, CariPhil’s experience reminds us that ecosystem-building is not linear. It takes time, trust, and cultural grounding. Their approach emphasises intentional, intersectional partnerships and recognises that philanthropy must be rooted in the lived realities of those closest to the challenges.
These efforts are helping redefine what philanthropy can be: not a top-down transaction, but a shared infrastructure for resilience, equity, and systems change. They also demonstrate that the future of philanthropy in the Caribbean should be rooted in the region’s own knowledge and priorities and governed by the region’s leaders, institutions and communities.
The LUP Fund project is planting the seeds of a different model, one built by and for the Caribbean. From the Dominican Republic and across the wider Caribbean, they are showing what’s possible when philanthropy grows from the ground up, built on proximity, shared power and a long-term vision. As new partnerships emerge and data begins to inform smarter strategies, we see a region that is not only ready to participate in global philanthropy, but to shape its future.
Looking ahead, the task is clear. To funders, Philanthropy Support Organisations, changemakers, and allies: don’t just join the conversation, join the commitment to building a stronger Caribbean ecosystem from the roots up.
- https://www.climateworks.org/report/funding-trends-2021-climate-change-mitigation-philanthropy/
- https://sciencephilanthropyalliance.org/reflecting-on-trends-in-philanthropic-giving-in-2024/
This article is part of a mini blog series showcasing the progress of grantees supported through the 2024 Call for Proposals under WINGS’ LiftUpPhilanthropy Fund. In the coming months, we’ll be sharing similar updates from Sub-Saharan Africa and the Asia-Pacific region – so stay tuned.
A new Call for Proposals was launched in 2025, attracting 69 applications from organisations across 24 countries. All submissions are currently under review, with selected grantees to be announced in November 2025.
Anthea McLaughlin is CEO of the Caribbean Philanthropic Alliance. Her journey spans championing service integration in New York City across child welfare, early education, youth development, and related sectors to building a Caribbean philanthropy ecosystem. A multidisciplinary leader, she bridges philanthropy, policy, and community leadership to advance systemic change, climate justice, gender equity, and diaspora giving.
Pablo Viñas Guzmán is Executive Director of AFS Intercultura in the Dominican Republic and Chair of Alianza ONG. With over 18 years of experience in international education and civil society leadership, he also serves as the Global Leader for GivingTuesday in his country. He is committed to building inclusive, collaborative ecosystems that advance global citizenship and sustainable development.
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