ISTR Fourth International Conference Dublin, Ireland / July 5-8, 2000 The Third Sector: For What and For Whom?

Helmut K. Anheier

One of the most notable results of recent research on the nonprofit sector in Western Europe is a recognition of the immense scale of the nonprofit sector in this region despite the rise of the modern welfare state. This outcome is a byproduct, in important part, of the partnership arrangements between the state and nonprofit organizations that formed in many parts of Western Europe during the expansion of the welfare state. In the process, a distinctive Western European pattern took shape that, with important variations from country to country, features a large and well-developed nonprofit sector that is heavily financed by the public sector and significantly engaged in the provision of core welfare services in the fields of education, health, and social services. The major deviation from this pattern is in the Nordic countries, where less reliance is placed on nonprofit organizations to deliver welfare services, but where these organizations still play a vital role in civic and cultural life.

The sizable Western European nonprofit sector has long been overshadowed by the rise of the welfare state. Now, however, it is attracting increased attention as a potentially important part of the solution to the significant unemployment and social cohesion problems currently plaguing Western European societies, and as contributors as well to a revitalization of Western European democracy. This paper discusses the role and impact of the nonprofit sector in a cross-section of European Union countries and also contrasts the Western European experience with those in other developed countries, such as the United States.

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