Welcome to the Science of Philanthropy Initiative

The Science of Philanthropy Initiative (SPI) is a research and outreach project that utilizes rigorous quantitative methods and partnerships with the philanthropic community to explore the motivations behind charitable giving.

SPI was started by John List, Michael Price, and Anya Samek in 2012 funded by a generous grant from the John Templeton Foundation. The overarching goal of SPI is to develop a deeper understanding of the types of social preferences that shape philanthropic giving and to apply this knowledge to both practitioners and policymakers interested in philanthropy and the private provision of public goods.

Funding for this website, spihub.org ended in 2015. You can watch the recordings from past conferences below.

Please visit the University of Chicago's SPI website for information on upcoming conferences.