Can Soros’s Open Society Unlock Progressive Worldmaking?

Some shakeups are happening at Open Society Foundations (OSF), the uber-philanthropy org that has been a champion of democracy in Eastern Europe since the end of the Cold War.

Earlier this year, Alex Soros—who seems to share the cultural sensibilities of my generation (including New York hip-hop)—took over OSF from his father, George. Big reforms were foreshadowed as part of that succession process, but details were sparse.

Now, the outlines of change are finally being reported:

the $25 billion-strong philanthropy…will phase out many of its long-standing European programs and grant-giving activities…the changes reflect a larger reorientation that will pare down OSF staff from 1,650 a year ago to fewer than half of that…

As OSF moves away from Europe—and this is the real promise—it will rebalance toward social justice, economic security, and equality programs in the global South.

Why does this matter? Because, depending on how you cash out “social justice, economic security, and equality,” they’re shifting toward the core of the progressive foreign policy project!

Let me explain.