Carolyn Warner
I became interested in generosity while studying efforts of Muslim groups in some Western European countries to obtain permission for Islamic burials in public cemeteries, and to obtain permission to build full service community mosques.
I wondered to what extent the individuals leading groups that spearheaded these efforts were motivated by a religious background that might have stressed self-sacrifice for the community. And, within that, I wondered what aspects of Islam, as observed by these individuals and groups, affected self-sacrifice and generosity.
Because generosity is a trait that political science, my field, basically does not think exists, funding for field research on such a project was unlikely to be forthcoming. The Science of Generosity grant program facilitated my ability to explore the role of religious beliefs and institutions in the generosity of Muslims and of Catholics.
