In the early 1970s, when I first carried out empirical research in theCaribbean, I spent almost a year and a half in a small Caribbeanvillage. It had around 500 inhabitants, 50 per cent of whom wereunder the age of 15, and its history had been dominated by therise and fall of the cocoa industry...

Some voices argue that grant-making foundations are social innovators or the vanguard of society. Others see foundations as weak and encapsulated institutions, deprived of effective internal or external stimuli, and unable to deal with broad social problems. Both arguments have merit. While some...