Asia's development model is changing. Climate and health risks are intensifying, populations are ageing, technology is reshaping economies and societies, and social fragmentation is placing new pressures on communities and institutions.
These challenges are increasingly interconnected, making it harder for standalone projects and sector-based approaches to address the systems shaping development outcomes.
From Silos to Systems, Projects to Portfolios: A Perspective on How Philanthropy Can Better Support Inclusive Development in Asia, a new working paper jointly developed by Temasek Trust and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), explores how philanthropy can respond. Informed by discussions at the Philanthropy Asia Summit 2026 Leaders’ Breakfast and launched during Climate Week NYC, the paper makes the case for a more systems- and portfolio-based approach to catalytic philanthropy.
A Systems Approach to Development
The paper proposes two related shifts.
Moving from silos to systems means looking beyond individual sectors or issues to understand the institutions, incentives, markets, behaviours, and relationships that shape development outcomes.
Moving from projects to portfolios puts this thinking into practice by connecting multiple interventions around a shared objective, learning from how the system responds, and adapting the mix of actions over time. A portfolio is therefore not simply a collection of projects, but a coordinated set of interventions designed to reinforce one another.
Photo credits: UNDP Philippines, UNDP Nepal, UNDP Senegal.
Drawing on UNDP’s experience on the ground, the paper shows what a portfolio approach can look like in practice: connecting circular-economy policy, livelihoods, and markets in the Philippines; turning a bamboo supply constraint in Nepal into an opportunity for livelihoods and flood resilience; and using catalytic finance to crowd in commercial capital for cleaner mobility in Senegal.
Strengthening the Conditions for Inclusive Development
Three interconnected layers shape whether inclusive development can endure: foundational conditions, such as health, education, skills, infrastructure, and connectivity; inter-generational conditions, which determine whether opportunities or disadvantages compound over time; and societal conditions, including trust, social cohesion, governance, and civic participation.
Together, these layers help identify where philanthropy can have a catalytic effect, particularly where different systems intersect.
Key Takeaways for Philanthropy
The paper highlights four ways philanthropy can strengthen its contribution to inclusive development:
- Steward system shifts, not only individual projects. Connect investments and partners around a shared direction, and assess whether the wider system is beginning to change.
- Intervene where systems meet. Support connections across areas such as health, education, livelihoods, climate, and infrastructure, where progress in one can unlock benefits in another.
- Mobilise capital differently. Use patient, flexible, and risk-tolerant capital to prepare and de-risk opportunities, and crowd in larger pools of public and private funding.
- Invest in learning and adaptation. Build the flexibility to respond to new evidence, redirect resources, and adapt as conditions change.
Ultimately, the report invites philanthropy to look beyond individual interventions towards the conditions that allow progress to endure across generations, and to consider how capital, capabilities, and partnerships can work together to create impact at scale.
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