-- The Third Sector research: the construction of a field of study. -- Section I – Theory. -- Theory of the Third Sector. -- Commentary on “Theory of the Third Sector”. -- Section II - Definition. -- Third Sector: the building of a research field. -- The terminological debate. -- In search of a positive, historical and experimentalist definition of civil society. -- Defining civil society in the turbulent times – lessons from Poland. -- Defining Civil Society - Commentary. -- Section III - Classification. -- Part One: The Classification of Civil Society, Nonprofit and Third Sector Organizations. -- Part Two: Turning a Critical Lens on Nonprofit Classification: Opportunities and Challenges in the Digital Age -- CSO classification: a commentary from Latin America. -- Section IV - Aggregation. -- Data Aggregation: An Overview of Opportunities and Obstacles from the National to the Global. -- Capturing Data on Volunteering in a Global Dimension: a Window of Opportunity for Furthering Third Sector Research. -- Technologies for Data Aggregation: An Overview of Technologies and Opportunities to Propel Third Sector Research. -- Commentary on “Data Aggregation” by Elizabeth Bloodgood, Ksenija Fonović, and Francisco Santamarina. -- Section V - Faith. -- The Relationship between the Third Sector and Religion. -- Analyzing civil society in the Arab world: a conceptual review. -- Religion and faith-based organizations in Brazil's social policies. -- Commentary on Section V Faith. -- Section VI - Ways forward. -- Third-Sector Research: Ubi eras, quo vadis?. -- Commentary on Section VI - Third-Sector Research: Ubi eras, quo vadis?. -- Future Challenges Facing Third Sector Research.

Open Access

The volume discusses the current state of international comparative Third Sector research and potential avenues for future development of the field. Building on seminal work by Helmut Anheier and Lester Salamon, the volume provides necessary updates to ensure further Third Sector research is relevant and impactful due to the changing landscape of international relations and the way that the Third Sector interacts with the state, corporates, and wider civil society to face the new global challenges: environmental, economic and social. The book is articulated in five sections that are organized to move from “theory” to “definition” and “classification” towards “aggregation” (measurement, counting), plus one section dedicated to the relationship between Third Sector and faith. The sixth and final section synthesizes the scientific conversation developed in the five previous ones and opens new research paths for the future. Encompassing multi-disciplinary approaches and international points of view, the volume is directed towards graduate students and researchers across the academic spectrum as well as practitioners and policymakers working in the Third Sector. This is an open access book.

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