Building on the nexus between philanthropy and government that emerged during the late 1920s, American foundations played a significant role in developing American-European cultural relations. They shaped the interaction between government and private agencies; they acted as catalysts of social change; they served as ‘global’ bridges between East and West; and they stimulated political, intellectual and economic elites to co-operate with one another, in both national and international contexts. This volume assembles the contributions of an international conference held at Amalfi in 2001. The authors explore emerging connections between the history of international relations, the history of scholarship, and the history of philanthropy. Their work focuses on the role of the larger American foundations in Europe during the 20th century, and explores the ways in which the foundations worked – across countries and cultures, and throughÿ– across countries and cultures, and through bi-lateral, trans-national and international projects and programmes.