Greetings Friend,

This year, the Council on Foundations will take part in several side events at the 2025 G20 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, including the B20 and the G20 Social Summit. Looking ahead, as the U.S. prepares to host the 2026 G20 Leaders’ Summit, we are exploring opportunities for philanthropy to engage in partnership with WINGS and peer philanthropy networks. We’ll share additional updates in the coming months. 

If you plan to be in South Africa for the Summit or if you’d like to be part of early conversations around the 2026 U.S. G20 process, we’d love to hear from you. Please reach out to victoria.mendez@cof.org.

Upcoming at the Council

LATAM & Caribbean Funder Circle

We’re closing out the year with the final LATAM & Caribbean Funder Circle of 2025, co-hosted with International Center for Non-profit Law (ICNL) on December 2 at 1 p.m. ET! The conversation will bring together funders from across the region for updates on legal and regulatory shifts shaping the sector and reflection from organizations navigating these challenges. Register here to join.

 Learning From Across the Atlantic

The Organizational Development Community of Practice will host a webinar on December 1, from 10–11:30 a.m. ET, as part of its Building Resilience in Times of Crisis series. This year’s USAID funding freeze was a stark reminder of how quickly partners can lose essential resources and how rapidly funders must adapt. This session will look at recent U.S. approaches and offer reflections for European funders preparing for similar moments of uncertainty. Learn more and register.

Legal and Regulatory Resources

Global Development in Transition: U.S. Government Updates

• Heightened Federal Oversight of U.S. Foundations: Congress and the Trump administration continue to scrutinize foundations such as Open Society and Ford, raising alarms about increased scrutiny into nonprofit activities. These investigations explore whether foundations are funding terrorism, improperly reporting activities in foreign countries, or engaging in racketeering or fraud. Earlier this year, over 730 charitable giving organizations signed the Council’s joint statement defending the freedom to give and independence in the sector.
• New “Baby-FARA” Laws Now in Effect in Nebraska & Oklahoma: Nebraska’s Foreign Adversary & Terrorist Agent Registration Act took effect on October 1, 2025, followed by Oklahoma’s international-agent registration law on November 1. ICNL highlights these measures as part of a growing trend in state oversight that could heighten compliance risk for funders and nonprofits working internationally.
• Private Philanthropy Responds to U.S. Aid Freeze: Following the Trump administration’s freeze on U.S. foreign assistance earlier this year, private donors mobilized $125 million to sustain critical global development programs. Led by former USAID staff through Project Resource Optimization (PRO), the effort identified 80 high-impact initiatives that received emergency support from foundations and individual donors, including GiveWell and MacKenzie Scott.

Global Philanthropy Updates

• U.S. Nonprofits Look Abroad Amid Domestic Uncertainty: U.S.-based nonprofits and foundations are increasingly establishing international affiliates in countries like Canada and the U.K. amid rising political and regulatory uncertainty at home. Charity law firms in both countries report a surge in requests, some seeing up to a tenfold increase as organizations explore “insurance options” to safeguard operations, funding, and staff.

Global Legal and Regulatory Updates

• FATF Plenary - Key Updates for Funders and Nonprofit Organizations: At its October 22-24 plenary, the Financial Action Task Force (FAFT) adopted new mutual evaluation for Belgium and Malaysia and removed Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Nigeria, and South Africa from its “grey list” of jurisdictions under increased monitoring. FATF also reaffirmed that Recommendation 8, governing nonprofit oversight, must be applied proportionately to avoid disrupting legitimate civil society work.
• EU Philanthropy: Member States Urged to Act: As the November 2025 implementation deadline for the European Council’s social economy framework approaches, Philea is urging the European Commission to reconsider its decision to withdraw the European Cross-Board Associations (ECBA) Directive, a key step towards enabling smoother philanthropic activity across Member States. Philea warns that its withdrawal risks slowing progress toward a true “single market for philanthropy.”
• Kenya PBO Act Compliance Deadline Extended: The Kenyan government has extended the deadline for NGOs to comply with the Public Benefit Organizations Act of 2013, to May 2026. Organizations previously registered under the repealed NGO Coordination Act of 1990 now have additional time to re-register and align their operations with the PBO framework. 

Keep in Touch!

Share your organization’s impact story with us at
engagement@cof.org.

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