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Aid-sector layoffs are pushing more professionals toward philanthropy, where demand for talent is rising. Recruiters say organizations want strategic, relationship-driven candidates with strong people skills.
Also in today’s edition: The numbers on Chinese aid, and an alarming new report on ultra-processed foods.
Get a giving job
With aid-sector layoffs piling up, more professionals are turning to philanthropy — and it’s actually a good moment to jump in. “It’s a dynamic time in philanthropy with a lot of work to be done, and we need all the good people we can get,” said Christina Schiavoni, senior communications coordinator at Grassroots International. “As an actor in philanthropy, you will be helping to shape it from the inside.”
The roles look familiar — grant writers, donor managers, program officers — and there are plenty of openings at places such as The Rockefeller Foundation, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Queen Rania Foundation, and Food for the Poor.
Recruiters say interest is booming, writes Devex contributor Rebecca Root. Cause Recruitment, which supports hiring for charities, fundraising agencies, and for-purpose organizations, saw 60% of its business in the past 12 months come from philanthropy recruitment.
How to get in? There’s no set route. Sources Rebecca spoke to came from grassroots organizing, journalism, student union leadership, and even credited previous spa and moving jobs for helping to hone communication skills. What matters is alignment — finding an employer that matches your values and, as Schiavoni put it, having “clarity on what [you] want to contribute.”
Transferable skills go far: Fundraising is about people skills, and recruiters want strong relationship-builders, sources told Rebecca. And with nonprofits stretched thin, it’s a good idea for applicants to show they understand revenue pressures and come ready with ideas.
Read: How to get your first job in philanthropy (Career)
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Beijing steps forward
With the United States pulling back from global development — and other major donors deprioritizing aid — many are asking whether China might step in.
China has been a development player since 1949, but everything scaled up with the 2013 Belt and Road Initiative. And while it’s not replacing the U.S. yet, its financing footprint is huge, though it remains largely in the form of loans instead of official development assistance. AidData tracked 20,985 projects worth $1.34 trillion from 2000 to 2021. Between 2018 and 2021 alone, China spent or committed $253.1 billion abroad, including $27.2 billion in ODA-like funding (peaking at $12.1 billion in 2018 before dipping sharply).
Most of the money went to sub-Saharan Africa — $13 billion, or nearly half of all ODA-like spending. South Africa topped the list because of one giant $2.7 billion loan from the China Development Bank for the Kusile Power Plant. Egypt, Sri Lanka, North Korea, Belarus, Cambodia, Bangladesh, and Côte d’Ivoire followed. Transport, energy, health, and communications were the top sectors.
Western critics say China relies on predatory lending, writes Devex analyst Miguel Antonio Tamonan. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio argued China lacks “the capacity or the will to replace the U.S. in humanitarian assistance, in food deliveries, or in developmental assistance.” Research is mixed: IMF analysis shows positive economic and social outcomes but weaker governance.
China’s opaque reporting feeds uncertainty, though newer policy statements hint at more transparency — something the World Bank says is crucial for making BRI work better.
But with the U.S. stepping away from internationalism, China’s rising influence feels increasingly likely. Even if Washington remains the biggest donor, Chinese financing may fill gaps where U.S. funds have disappeared — and unless major donors rebalance, China’s reach has a lot of growth potential.
Read: Is China headed toward becoming the next aid superpower? (Pro)
Related: The US aid freeze has left a funding gap. What if China steps in? (Pro)
From the archives: How does China lend? Insight from a study of 100 loans
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Women shut down violence
On the eve of the G20 Leaders Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, thousands of women staged a massive show of power. They flooded the streets to protest soaring gender-based violence — a crisis so widespread the government declared it a national disaster.
At the earlier G20 Social Summit, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa warned, “The violence perpetrated by men against women erodes the social fabric of nations,” and said all partners must take “extraordinary and concerted action” to end it, my colleague Elissa Miolene writes.
The shift followed months of pressure from Women for Change, which organized the nationwide G20 Women’s Shutdown. Their message was blunt: “We refuse to allow South Africa to present itself as a ‘stable, growing economy’ while women’s bodies are the battlefield beneath it.” On Nov. 21, women dressed in black filled streets, parks, and promenades across the country. At noon, thousands lay still for 15 minutes — one for every woman killed each day in South Africa.
For many, the moment was both cathartic and devastating. “It felt liberating, but painful,” says Kgopotso Radebe, founder and executive director of Abundance in Light. A survivor herself, she has spent five years reliving her trauma in court, appearing more than 10 times while her abuser remains free. “Sometimes you lose hope in the system,” she says.
The statistics are staggering: 1 in 3 women in the country experience physical violence, nearly 120 rape cases are reported daily, and femicide rose almost 34% in just one year. South Africa has had a strategic plan to tackle gender-based violence since 2019, but key structures — including the council meant to oversee it — still aren’t operational.
While the disaster declaration shifts responsibility to the executive branch, the government says it “does not invoke emergency powers” and instead strengthens existing systems. It’s unclear whether new funding will follow. As Radebe puts it, “We need to know what is next. … We’ve still got a long way to go, but I’m still not losing hope in my country.”
Read: Protests push South Africa to name gender violence a national disaster
When food turns toxic
Ultra-processed foods are now so widespread that The Lancet’s new trio of studies calls them a global public health emergency. The reports warn that powerful food corporations have reshaped diets worldwide and fueled chronic disease — and they urge governments to act with front-of-package labels, bans on marketing to kids, and removing UPFs from schools and hospitals, tactics reminiscent of the campaigns against tobacco decades ago.
Consumption is soaring everywhere, my colleague Tania Karas writes. In Spain, China, and Argentina, UPF intake has tripled in 30 years, and in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, UPFs comprise more than 50% of the average diet. Of 104 long-term studies, 92 linked UPFs to higher risks of chronic disease, from obesity and type 2 diabetes to cardiovascular issues and early death.
Meanwhile, industry power is immense.
“This is a problem that is being driven by some very large and powerful industries, and they need to be regulated,” says Dr. Neena Prasad of Bloomberg Philanthropies, which funded the report. Report author Chris van Tulleken added that critics of UPF science often have industry conflicts of interest.
Global institutions are sounding alarms, too. UNICEF and U.N. experts warn that food environments now prioritize profits over rights and health. And as Prasad puts it, “This is not at all about individual choice. … They are designed in a way to kind of keep us coming back and consuming more and more and more.”
Regulation momentum, though, is coming from the global south. In Mexico, Colombia, Chile, and Brazil, rules about food labeling and taxes are designed to combat the problem. At the same time, the report notes, organizations such as the U.N. are struggling to put their own regulation in place.
Read: Lancet studies sound alarm on rise of ultra-processed foods
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In other news
The U.N. Peacebuilding Fund has surpassed $1 billion in approved support since 2020, but leaders warn a remaining $500 million gap threatens its ability to meet rising demand. [UN News]
After his no-show at this year’s G20 summit, U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that South Africa will not be invited to next year’s gathering, which will be held at his property in Florida. [The New York Times]
Médecins Sans Frontières announced it will withdraw its staff from a hospital in Central Darfur in Sudan after an attack killed one of its health workers and injured four others. [Anadolu Agency]
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About the author
Helen Murphy
Helen is an award-winning journalist and Senior Editor at Devex, where she edits coverage on global development in the Americas. Based in Colombia, she previously covered war, politics, financial markets, and general news for Reuters, where she headed the bureau, and for Bloomberg in Colombia and Argentina, where she witnessed the financial meltdown. She started her career in London as a reporter for Euromoney Publications before moving to Hong Kong to work for a daily newspaper.
