Open Society Foundations' decision to cut staff and spending in Europe is worrying beneficiaries, who argue a withdrawal of resources could be detrimental to human rights and the foundation's reputation.
The foundations' leaders told staff in Berlin and Brussels that they will be cutting staff by 80% and 60%, respectively, according to an internal email and current employees via the Associated Press. Offices in London and Barcelona have already learned that their office will either close or reduce staff significantly, causing several OSF members to leave.
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The planned European cuts signal a break from a decadeslong initiative led by billionaire and founder George Soros to provide support for education, human rights, and other policies. OSF leadership intends to complete the layoffs by January.
Alex Soros, George Soros's son, announced in June that the foundation would switch to a new operating model. He took over as head of the OSF's board of directors in December.
“The Open Society Foundations is changing the way we work, but my family and OSF have long supported, and remain steadfastly committed to the European project,” Alex Soros said in a statement.
As opposed to his father, a Hungarian-born Jew who survived the Holocaust, Alex Soros was born in America and has shown increasing interest in supporting projects at home rather than overseas. It's unclear whether the new operating model has anything to do with the younger Soros's attention being paid to U.S. interests, but the liberal philanthropist has been blasted in recent years for stepping up funding of liberal prosecutors in some of the country's biggest cities.
The internal email to OSF's Berlin office stated that the shift is, in part, due to the European Union providing public funding for human rights and pluralism. OSF is aiming to reallocate its resources elsewhere to beneficiaries who do not have that option.
However, grantees and beneficiaries are raising concerns that the withdrawal of support will be a strategic mistake. They also claim a lack of communication from OSF about the new operating model, which was adopted on June 28.
Under the new model, the foundations will be reorganized around ambiguous "opportunities" rather than specific programs. The "opportunities" are defined as “bodies of work organized around clear ambitious goals.”
This has caused some bitterness among OSF staff, as they are worried that a lack of concrete priorities will not assure Europeans that the foundations want to continue human rights or civil society efforts in their respective countries.
“Here we are, probably hundreds of groups around Europe, and we have no idea why this decision came to be,” Márta Pardavi, co-chairwoman of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a human rights group and longtime recipient of OSF funding, told the Associated Press. “When we look at the European Union, we really don’t see a justification for even decreasing support for human rights and democracy and for support for marginalized groups.”
Other beneficiaries are worried that a reduction in OSF programs will prevent nonprofit groups from receiving flexible and quick funding compared to project-based grants that take time to approve. OSF has a strong voice within the EU, advocating for policies and engaging decision-makers, staff and grantees told the Associated Press.
An absence of OSF programs could also allow conservative social movements to gain ground in Europe.
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“All of a sudden you will see that there are many more opportunities for different forms of philanthropy to enter into the European space by basically supporting organizations that at the moment are very marginal, like those pushing anti-abortion rights or pushing against LGBT rights,” said Alberto Alemanno, professor of law in Paris.
He added that the conservative donors “will find much easier access in Europe because there would be a lack of countervailing forces.”