Dr Frederick Mulder is a philanthropic polymath, identifying innovative ways to raise money and attention for many causes, from giving circles to donation challenges and underwriting advertising.

A Canadian based in the UK since attending Oxford University in 1968 to finish his philosophy PhD, Mulder's philanthropy began early, with a religious background and childhood enterprises to raise money for the church, and continued when he became an art dealer specialising in original prints.

He helped found one of the first giving circles with the Network for Social Change, whose 100 members collectively spend around £1 million a year to promote progressive social and ecological change, and then worked with other to create the Funding Network, in which a wider pool of individuals join together to fund social change projects.

The Funding Network has raised about £2 million for 350 causes since its inception in 2002, and has several groups in the UK, outposts in Canada and South Africa, and a group for younger people to give.

His giving creativity shows in many ways, from underwriting press advertising for Greenpeace, the anti-apartheid movement and other causes, to challenging art clients to donate the difference between his prices and their offers, and raising almost £130,000 by offering neighbours perpetual access to his land in exchange for a charity gift.

Mulder has not forgotten his Canadian roots, setting up the Prairie Trust to conserve the country's prairie environment and foster sustainable communities.