Model dwellings companies (MDCs) were a group of private companies in Victorian Britain that sought to improve the housing conditions of the working classes by building new homes for them, at the same time receiving a competitive rate of return on any investment. The principle of philanthropic intention with capitalist return was given the label "five per cent philanthropy".
Peabody Square Model Dwellings in Blackfriars Road, Southwark.
Image: Artizans Company logo (cropped)
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material gain; and with government endeavors that are public initiatives for public good, such as those that focus on the provision of public services. A person who practices philanthropy is a philanthropist.
Herodes Atticus, a Greek philanthropist of Ancient Rome active during the 2nd century CE
The Foundling Hospital in London, c. 1753. The original building has since been demolished.
William Wilberforce, a prominent British philanthropist and anti-slavery campaigner
The Red Cross, after the Battle of Gravelotte in 1870