Understanding why farm animal welfare funding has grown significantly—even as other philanthropic sectors stagnate—could help advocacy groups refine their strategies, guide donor decisions, and reveal broader shifts in philanthropic priorities. Without this insight, opportunities to sustain or accelerate this growth might be missed.

Research Approach

One way to investigate this trend could involve a multi-method study:

• Data analysis: Compiling funding trends from tax filings, grant databases, and reports to identify patterns (e.g., which regions or organization types attract the most funding).
• Stakeholder interviews: Speaking with donors, foundation leaders, and advocacy groups to understand motivations and strategies.
• Case studies: Examining successful campaigns or organizations to pinpoint replicable tactics.
• Comparative analysis: Benchmarking growth against other cause areas (e.g., global health) to uncover unique drivers.

The output could be a report offering actionable insights, such as whether growth stems from donor coordination, effective advocacy, or shifting public priorities.

Stakeholders and Execution

Farm animal welfare groups, donors, and researchers might benefit most from the findings. Advocacy organizations could use them to refine fundraising, while donors might identify underfunded opportunities. Researchers could gain insights into philanthropic behavior.

A phased approach might work:

1. Gather public funding data (e.g., IRS 990 forms, Animal Charity Evaluators reports).
2. Conduct 20–30 interviews with key stakeholders, offering anonymity to encourage candor.
3. Analyze data for themes and outliers, then share draft insights for feedback.
4. Publish findings via reports or webinars.

An MVP could start with analyzing public data before expanding to interviews.

How It Fits with Existing Work

Unlike broad philanthropic databases (e.g., Candid) or evaluators like Animal Charity Evaluators—which focus on charity impact—this project would specifically explore funding growth drivers. It could complement Open Philanthropy’s reports by aggregating insights across multiple donors rather than focusing on a single foundation’s perspective.