"Different charities/foundations have different strategies. Some focus on short-term aid and others work on sustainable solutions. In terms of the difference in mission between non-profits and government, there are some problems that require the power of a government to solve. Income inequality, environmental policies, etc. often require government policy. Ideally I would say that governments would be able to and should plan for long-term strategies to solve these massive problems. Unfortunately that is unlikely since one of the drawbacks of democracy is that it is extremely short-sighted." - Kevin Bondelli