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It is too easy to assume that donations from social entrepreneurs are driven by all the wrong motives, writes SARAH CAREY.

THERE’S NOTHING that depresses me more than cynicism. I can be harsh, but it tends to come from anger or disappointment. Cynicism begets a kind of harshness that is deeply destructive to a person and a society. The sad thing is that cynics sound authoritative, so they get a good audience. Sometimes that’s because they’re right. Possessing the insight to divine base motives behind outward goodness is a useful trait. I’ve often been distressed and vaguely humiliated to discover someone I thought was doing good was simply playing to an agenda I’d failed to see. Despite the frequency with which this occurs, I’d still prefer to die naive and hopeful rather than bitter and twisted.