TAI Weekly

TAI Weekly | Who Foots the Bill? Rethinking Wealth and Taxation

By TAI (Role at TAI)
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TAI Weekly

WHAT'S NEW?

Romain Chauvet warns that the United States foreign aid freeze risks the spread of Russian disinformation across Eastern Europe as independent media outlets close and leave space for Kremlin-backed narratives. With many smaller newsrooms already struggling, the halt in grants has left a gap unlikely to be filled by European institutions or private donors.

OPEN (Online Progressive Engagement Network) gathered global leaders from digital-first organizations to address threats to democracy, focusing on clear messages, shared stories to engage audiences, and a mix of online and offline tactics.

The USAID crisis reflects a larger issue: authoritarian control over public discourse. In Outplaying the Authoritarian Playbook, Martijn Lampert analyzed Trump’s inaugural speech using global values research, archetypes, and AI. How can these insights fuel innovation for civil society?

What can we learn from Slovakia’s ongoing civic mobilization? ICYMI, Eduard Marček highlights the powerful role of grassroots activism and independent crowdfunding in protecting democratic values. There are lessons for other countries with repressive governments.

The Southern Cardamom REDD+ project, reinstated in September 2024, faces criticism for violating Indigenous land rights. Authors Seoung Nimol and Coby Hobbs point to a certification process that ignores on-the-ground realities.

The European Commission has launched a new citizen engagement platform aimed at promoting intergenerational fairness. The #OurFutures site invites contributions from people across Europe, fosters dialogue on issues affecting future generations, and encourages collaborative efforts to ensure a fairer future.

The 2026 Aid Transparency Index has been canceled due to lack of funding. Gary Forster  raises questions about the true commitment of aid agencies to transparency and the implications for accountability in international aid, just when the aid community needs all the evidence ti can mobilize.

Keseb’s new report draws on interviews with coalition leaders and participants from across the globe to inform and urge collective action to achieve pro-democracy goals. Read alongside Tom Carothers concerns over the long-term impact on democracy promotion worldwide.

Gary Kalman and Maira Martini explore the dangerous consequences of the U.S. proposal to sell “golden” visas and passports. They argue the practice risks corruption, the erosion of national sovereignty, and the weakening of democratic institutions.

In a push to address the influence of money in UK politics, Alex Parson and Julia Cashion of MySociety have outlined four key steps, emphasizing better data collection, enhanced accuracy checks, stricter donation rules, and systemic reforms to curb financial influence in governance.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has banned former Credit Suisse executives Andrew Pearse and Surjan Singh from the financial sector following their convictions in the U.S. for arranging corrupt loans in the Mozambique “tuna bond” scandal.

Tim Davies is seeking examples of organizations or projects amplifying public voices in shaping technology policy. The rapid research project for the Open Government Partnership is mapping out global efforts in participatory digital governance, with a special focus on projects from Africa and Asia.

A study on transparency in political cooperation with interest organizations shows that transparency reduces politicians’ willingness to work closely with interest groups unless they exercise independent judgment.

In his recent article, Oliver Bullough explores kleptocracy as a system “for the corrupt, by the corrupt.” He questions how societies shift from democratic ideals to corrupt regimes.

ESSENTIAL READING

Superbloom by Nicholas Carr explores the effects of communication technology, warning that today’s information environment enables authoritarian movements and cults of personality. Read the review by Philip Ball.

FROM OUR MEMBERS

HEWLETT FOUNDATION: is looking for new team members. Open positions include Communications Officer, Program Director for the Education Department, and Program Associate for the Environment Department.

OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS: Continues to partner with local organizations to support displaced communities and returning veterans in Ukraine, ensuring their voices shape the country’s reconstruction and democratic future.

HUMANITY UNITED: Released their latest newsletter including Global Labor Justice’s "Fight the Heist" campaign, a new Philanthropic Toolkit for Transformational Systems Change from Collective Change Lab, and updates from the Black Solidarity Economy Fund, which awarded grants to 36 organizations through participatory grantmaking. 

TOOLS AND TRENDS FOR FUNDER

India’s philanthropy sector is expanding its climate focus beyond national borders, which fosters greater South-South collaboration with emerging economies.

Kevin Bolduc from Centre for Effective Philanthropy warns of increasing government coercion against philanthropy. He points to executive orders and threats of investigations targeting foundations with over $500 million in assets as intimidation tactics.

Donor collaboratives have grown significantly over the past decade, with nearly half of surveyed funds launching in the last 10 years. Bridgespan’s new analysis explores how these collaboratives can sharpen strategies for greater impact.

AidData examines whether China will expand its development role as the U.S. retreats from global aid. A policy brief provides fact-based analysis on U.S. and Chinese approaches to development and the implications of shifting priorities.

ESSENTIAL WATCHING

This Corruption Crossroads webinar convened leading experts to discuss how the United States retreat from anti-corruption efforts affects policy, compliance, and accountability worldwide.

FOCUSED TOPIC OF THE WEEK:

Tax Policy for Inequality Reduction: An Integrated Approach

Taxation is simultaneously a technical, political, and moral issue requiring comprehensive reform to create more equitable societies. The United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has declared that governments have an obligation—not merely an option—to implement fair tax policies to address economic inequality. This shifts taxation from being purely an economic matter to an essential mechanism for fulfilling human rights obligations, particularly for marginalized communities who suffer the most from inadequate and unfair tax structures.

This declaration comes at a critical moment, as economists at the Center for Global Development highlight how the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly widened economic disparities within countries worldwide. These experts stress that both fiscal policies (taxation and government spending) and monetary policies require comprehensive reform to create economic systems that produce inclusive growth by design rather than through afterthought redistribution measures.

Within this context, the Tax Expenditures Lab's research confirms the importance of rigorously evaluating tax expenditures—deductions, exemptions, and credits that represent significant "spending through the tax code." These provisions must be assessed for their effectiveness in achieving policy objectives, cost-efficiency compared to direct spending alternatives, impact on tax progressivity, and potential creation of economic distortions. 

Speaking in the UK last week, Gabriel Zucman continued to make the case for a 2% minimum wealth tax on billionaires, highlighting a fundamental failure in contemporary tax systems: their inability to effectively tax those with the greatest capacity to pay. When the wealthiest can effectively opt out through various legal mechanisms and loopholes, the burden shifts disproportionately to middle and working-class taxpayers, undermining both revenue generation and public trust in governance. Zucman’s call was picked up in an op ed from Nobel Prize winning economists Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, citing that incredible statistic that we started things off with today and bears repeating: one percent of the wealth of the world’s 3,000 richest people would cover the budget of the five largest bilateral donors.

An effective tax policy framework for addressing inequality must therefore: 

  • Recognize fair taxation as essential to fulfilling economic and social rights; 

  • Address both explicit tax rates and less visible aspects of tax systems; 

  • Implement rigorous evaluation of tax provisions; 

  • Develop innovative approaches to wealth taxation; 

  • And ensure marginalized communities participate in policy development. 

ESSENTIAL LISTENING

The podcast Development Dialogues explores the future of evidence-based policymaking in international development. In this episode, Stefan Dercon, Trudi Makhaya, and Rory Stewart discuss how populism and narratives often overpower facts.

JOBS 

CALLS

  • In 2025, the Rockefeller Foundation will open applications for its Big Bets Climate Fellowship, available in the Asia Pacific Region and the United States.

  • Philanthropist and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman is looking for answers with a $10 million open call for organizations working to build faith in government, the media, public health, universities, and more. Learn further at this March 26 webinar.

  • Civitates’ Tech and Democracy open call supports organizations working at the intersection of tech and democracy, focusing on key EU regulations like the Digital Services Act and AI Act. Eligible non-profits and mission-driven for-profits can apply until March 14, 2025, at 23:30 CET.

  • Help shape the agenda for the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain (Oct 7-9, 2025)! Vote on topics, share insights, and refine ideas before March 14.

  • Civicus is calling for proposals for the WeRise Campaign, a comprehensive and forward-looking approach designed to promote and protect Freedom of Peaceful Assembly (FoPA) as a fundamental right and tool to defend and expand the civic space. Deadline March 15, 2025.

  •  The Amazonia+ call seeks a managing organization for local forest governance projects led by women and youth in the Amazon. Grants up to 400,000 Euros for 10 projects. Deadline March 19, 2025.

  • The YCompassion Leadership Programme helps leaders integrate compassion into their approach. The next cohort begins in April 2025, with only 10 spots available. Apply by March 19 to secure your place!

  • Local cross-border investigative journalism grants available in Europe. Deadline March 27, 2025.

  • Call for submission of abstracts for a short paper and panel presentation at the 2025 Global Investigative Journalism Conference. Selected research papers will be presented at the 2025 Global Investigative Journalism Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from November 20 – 24, 2025.  Deadline 31st March 2025.

  • Publish What You Fund is offering free, online training on using the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI)—the leading global open aid dataset. 

  • Working on the political economy of aid and development? Join PEADS2025, April 23-24, 2025 in Pitlochry, Scotland.

  • The Thousand Currents Academy in Atlanta, will bring funders and allies together to support unrestricted, long-term funding for Global South movements, fostering systems change through trust and accountability, May 19-22, 2025.

  • The 10th edition of the School for Thinktankers returns to Fundació Bofill in Barcelona in 2026. Submit your early-bird application.

 CALENDAR

We’d love to hear from you on how we can further improve TAI Weekly to better serve your needs in program management on the transparency, accountability, improved grantmaking and civic space. Please direct your feedback to [email protected] or

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