The 10 Most Popular SSIR Articles of 2025

Building collective capacity; AI's power for the greater good; grappling with systems collapse; lessons from collaborative philanthropy; and more.

Dec. 15, 2025

See full article here with the 10 links

In 2025, SSIR authors grappled with the world as it is. This year’s top articles examine the fallout from massive cuts to USAID, how to reevaluate the impact we can have when systems collapse, taking a collective approach to solving global challenges, and philanthropy’s response to the radical changes we’re living through.

Other articles shared new perspectives on recurring topics: communications and narrative change, leveraging new technology for social good, donor engagement, partnering with government, and randomized controlled trials.

During a year when the social sector and our communities have been under attack, social change leaders are stepping forward with courage and hope to face these challenging and disruptive times.

To answer the question posed in SSIR’s top article of 2025, “Are you building something?” The SSIR community responds in these articles with an emphatic, “Yes!” Thank you for sharing your insights, challenges, and points of light with us in 2025. We look forward to seeing what this community of social change leaders builds together in 2026.

1. Are You Building Something? An interview with Marshall Ganz

2. Gather, Share, Build by Nithya Ramanathan and Jim Fruchterman

3. From Fixers to Builders by Trabian Shorters

4. Big Aid Is Over by Kevin Starr

5. How to Measure Narrative Change by Yewande O. Addie, David Hanson, Emily Melnick, Melody Mohebi, and Annie Neimand

6. Grappling With Systems Collapse by Liz Ruedy, Tom Glaisyer, and Rachel Reichenbach

7. Are Women Donors the Key to Unlocking More Giving? by Heather McLeod Grant and Jessica Robinson Love

8. Helping NGOs and Funders Make the ‘Big Shift’ to Working With Government by Rakesh Rajani and Tim Hanstad

9. The Future of Innovation Is Collective by Cynthia Rayner, Sophia Otoo, and François Bonnici

10. In-Depth Series: Philanthropy’s Response to the Radical New Reality