Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, As some of you know, I am working on a project aimed at: Providing to District Governments, village governments, NGOs, communities, cooperatives, even individual entrepreneurs, in poor and developing countries, knowledge, information, contacts, etc., to help them: 1) dialog with Central Government on which services to start, and how to manage them; 2) analyze their local economy, to select, then (find the money to) finance and set-up, their own, viable, projects. I intend to publish a book on all this, and of course, I will inform this List. After some experiences in Africa, I will be working in Pakistan in September, to implement this project in a selected rural area, where I have been introduced by local friends. I would like to be able to do a similar experience in India, either in Tamil Nadu (Madras / Chennai), or in Karnataka (Bangalore). If anyone on the List has connections there, please kindly contact me directly. I will explain to you better my background and what it's all about, so that you may, if you wish, introduce me to your contacts there. I can be in those two States, from Aug. 10 to Aug. 30. I sincerely hope to hear from some of you, and I send to all of you my best regards, Arrigo della Gherardesca Managing Director ItAfrica - Italian African Alliance srl (denomination in process of being changed) Milano, Italy ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, Here is an interesting solution and perhaps a funding model that might be useful for projects that require micro-financing: http://www.fundable.org/ Respectfully, Ken DiPietro New-ISP NextGenCommunications ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, The issue with access to international donors for indigenous NGOs is not really related to their having information about the existence of such donors, but with their ability to deal with the donors in a manner that is acceptable to the donor. Basically, they need to speak the language of the donor, and often local NGOs are not sophisticated in that aspect; there are cultural obstacles to begin with. Many donors, as some have discussed here, required a great deal of work for a small amount of funding, many would not ever deal with indigenous NGOs, often a great deal of cost sharing is required which is prohibitively high for local NGOs... It is no wonder many large NGOs hire professional proposal writers - donors require that level of detail and this requirement can rarely be met by small indigenous NGOs. A database sounds like a great idea, and some similar attempts of such networks have been made before. I just wonder, however, what would be the use of such site. Donors do not usually go out looking for clients... Regards, Zoya Zoya Naskova [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear GKD Members: Responding to Sam Lanfranco's recent posting it's important to add some clarity to this discussion; perhaps even some sanity. I suspect some of these comments may not be politically correct to some, but if we are in fact going to solve serious problems, we have to have a clear view of the reality. 1. I too have serious reservations about the Live Aid and Live-8 and this approach. But let's keep in mind that this recent effort was mostly about raising awareness of the issues and applying pressure on the G-8 for action. Let's not read more into it than what it is. It was not about specifics as to solving all the problems of Africa nor was it about entertaining those living in, nor from, Africa. It was to draw attention. And it is not unreasonable that the selection of music and musicians was aimed at those targeted for gaining their attention. 2. If we're going to address debt forgiveness and move forward in a positive manner, ending corruption and accountability have to be addressed front and center. And focusing on those that are deserving as opposed to those who are not, is also mandatory. We've already wasted literally billions of dollars from the north, and without these components being addressed, we will simply ensure we waste billions more, and accomplish less than we all desire. First rule of holes, if you are in one, stop digging. If all we do is forgive debt on some unconditional basis, we should not be surprised that nothing changes. And we need change! 3. All humans have a tendency for survival, and the extension of humans in the forms of businesses and NGOs is no different. If that is viewed as self-serving, so be it. But it misses the point. We all are; and so what? The issue is abuses, be it from the north or the south. It's about contributions to the solution, be it from those living in the north or the south. Personally I'm a bit tired of this north is bad; south is good orientation that seems to permeate some of these recent discussions. 4. And the points made with regards to giving those in Africa a voice is right on point. But here too it's not a solution in itself. And in truth the biggest obstacle to this voice is not just an issue caused by the north, but also must include the rather long string of corrupt and unaccountable leaders of the south. Yes, the colonists left a nasty legacy. But more recently so have many of the so-called leaders of these countries that have acted irresponsibly and gave their people no voice at all for decades running. 5. I suspect slogans and branding have value, but let's not fool ourselves into thinking that even the best most accurate slogan will solve much of anything. This is a very complex set of interrelated issues, and the truth is, collectively we simply to date do not have all the right answers to yield a broad-based, long-term, sustainable difference in many of these situations. We can admit that. And we should do this long before we blame other. While this may sound a bit harsh and critical, the facts are we have had this discussion for decades with only modest real movement. We need to move forward with more fresh thinking. And hopefully we can collectively be working on this. Darrell Owen ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues: I'd like to add a small contribution to this discussion re: bringing together international funding sources outside the formal ODA mechanisms with local community development efforts. One of the emerging areas that holds a potential contribution to funding of more local engagements, without taking on the deconstruction of the current donor-NGO dynamics, is that of better leveraging the Migrant and Diaspora communities and the Internet. There are some excellent Internet-enabled models starting to surface whereby the Diaspora's long-term engagement in the remittances is being channeled to local community projects such that direct linkages can be established at a lower cost, without much bureaucracy, but at the same time establishes the needed safeguards and accountability. When one looks at the amount of remittances moving from developed to developing countries, this is considerable; for many countries, more than the official development assistance, and foreign direct investments. And if even a reasonable portion of these funds can be shifted from what is frequently a subsistence-orientation at the family level, to community-development projects, then this can address some of the issues expressed in earlier contributions. Few people care more about countries than the Migrants and Diaspora population, and few want their funds used more wisely than this group. Several examples are starting to pop up that take a focus on reaching the purchasing power of the migrant and Diaspora populations and channeling some of this to local development projects. This is increasingly being done via establishing Internet Portals as trusted sites for these types of activities, though there are naturally other approaches. The opportunities hold significant promise. Darrell Owen ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear GKD Members, I'm not sure that Janice Brodman's story about isolated NGOs in Bosnia-Herzegovina trying to find private donors is much different from small non profits in rich countries trying to find private donors. I'm sure there are advantages to being in the US, but small charities still struggle to find donors. I think the suggestion of creating a database is a good one and I offer the Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC) as a model that could be duplicated to fill this need. In 1993 when the T/MC was created its founders recognized the following need: a) concentrated, segregated poverty in America's largest cities was the root cause of many social problems, ranging from high costs of health care and prevention services, to high rates of incarceration, high concentrations of poorly performing public schools, and small numbers of minority youth moving from inner-city schools to jobs/careers in industry and in professions such as math, science, engineering. b) while many people talked of the benefits of engaging more adults in the lives of inner city kids, as tutors, mentors, coaches, etc., there was no master database showing what programs were doing this, where they were located, who they served, etc. Without such a database, there was no strategy to help existing programs get the resources they need to constantly improve or expand to reach more kids, nor to help new groups form programs in neighborhoods where there were voids in services. So myself and a few volunteers created the Tutor/Mentor Connection: a) we began creating a database of tutor/mentor programs, as well as of related services. What I mean by this is that getting an adult involved as a tutor/mentor is just one of many ways adults and businesses need to be involved in helping a youth who is starting first grade today, be starting a job/career 20 years later. Thus, our database tries to identify all of the programs involved in this pipeline to careers. b) we began hosting conferences and creating public awareness with the purpose of drawing dollars and volunteers directly to the programs we had in our database, while encouraging those programs to come together more frequently to share ideas, network, and work together to achieve public awareness and increase the flow of resources. We did not have any funding to do this and have relied on volunteers and ad-hoc partners to build and sustain the T/MC for the past 12 years. In 1997 we began to put our information on a web site and now if you search Google for the words tutor mentor our web sites come up in the top 10 or 20 of many listings. At http://msg.uc.iupui.edu/TMC/html/index.php you can see a new web site that we're launching next month to replace the www.tutormentorconnection.org site. This was created for us by the technology department of IUPUI, which is a university located in Indianapolis, Indiana. I'm In Chicago, Illinois. All of the components of this web site are open source resources. Many of the maps on this web site were created by a volunteer from Wisconsin who I first met through this GKD discussion forum almost 5 years ago! This illustrates that someone on the GKD List, or a forum such as www.digitaldivide.net, can take a role in building a web site with a links database that could be used to collect information about NGOs working in different countries around the world. If the various NGOs worked together to draw attention to the database, I could begin to draw attention from donors. If it were to include GIS maps, such as those we demonstrate on the T/MC web site, the distribution of resources is more likely to go to more of the countries where help is needed than to just a few high profile organizations or countries. We've built the Tutor/Mentor Connection with very little consistent private sector support , but with the help of many people who shared our concern for kids living in poverty. We're constantly looking for people around the world to help us build the T/MC's tech platform, with the goal of using it in their own country while we use it in Chicago. Thus, you're welcome to look at the T/MC and duplicate its concepts if that helps you build the type of database/web site you have in mind. I think that there must be others who would help you and others in countries like Bosnia-Herzegovina. If anyone would like to know more about the T/MC, or join in its efforts, I'd be happy to talk to you here, or in the discussion area of the new web site. Daniel F. Bassill President Tutor/Mentor Connection Cabrini Connections 800 W. Huron Chicago, IL, USA ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear GKD Members: I share Janice Brodman's feelings about the fact that good NGOs in developing countries do not have a presence, and have little voice, when it comes to dealing with donors, and development issues, as monopolized by the 'North'. For example, too much of the dialogue in the North is about ending corruption and too little about rewarding the deserving, and not with prizes at global conferences but with funding. One need look no further than this Saturday's, July 2nd Willfull Media Distraction (WMD), orchestrated from England, and supposedly designed to make poverty history, at least in Africa. The voice of Africa has been almost totally absent in the planning, much of which is in the control of a small handful of powerful Northern NGOs who will insure that their own funding sources feel good about the event/affair. They have even barred touching on poverty in England. Forget about the selection of the music, the selection and framing of the issues is not what Africa would have liked to say. Ignoring the history of debt creation and conditionality, ignoring the trade policies of the North, etc. is more likely to confuse the general public than educate it. After the music dies the same old same old challenges will remain, and there will be little new to build on. Development is about doing the right thing right. Good intentions, especially blended with Northern NGO self-service, are not enough. With regard to Africa I would like to see Make Poverty History a subtitle in a larger production called Give Africa A Voice - or more properly, Let Africa's Voice be Heard. Why is asking so little seen as asking too much? Sam Lanfranco York University ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear GKD Colleagues: You guys are great. Churning over your ideas, input and experience has given me so much to contemplate I wish we could have an e-conference in real time; this might prove quite transformative. Tom Abeles, I loved your succint analysis of the issues. What field are you working in? Andy Lieberman, thanks for your discussion of the the conflicts between donor and project interests, and the benefits of building relationships with donors. I also appreciate the links to the websites that indeed bear similarities to what I was describing. Janice Brodman, best wishes for your work supporting soecio-economic development in Bosnia-Herzogovinia and thanks for sharing your insights there and in India. Arrigo, I hope to learn more details of what you see as a solution. Also, other comments below. My comments are the following: The primary reason given by USA for not increasing aid to Africa is the infrastructure isn't there. From all reports I hear, that is correct. The infastructure isn't there. But what infrastructure do industrialized countries want? They want the same infrastucture they have. But developing countries have learned from experience that this can be a dangerous thing. And so I think the issue is about funneling aid to developing countries who are trying to develop infrastructure at the localized level, according to their needs and values, not the needs and values of the donor countries. The issue of infrastructure doesn't apply to aid programs that are trying to provide emergency relief. Developing countries need food and water and I hope they gain more assistance through whatever means they can acquire it. But the means of acquiring emergency relief should not necessarily be transferred to the problem of long-term solutions. Hopefully, the new infrastructure(s) will be environmentally sustainable, socio-economically and gender just, most likely involving decentralized loci of control and decision making, not the centralized structure of industrialized countries. I genuinely believe that once these holistic, sustainable infrastructures take root in developing countries, they offer opportunity for quick growth and discovery, at a rate that surpasses what is possible in industrialized countries where a conflicting and pre-existing infrastructure intervenes. I personally believe that the reason existing monies are not channeled into such projects is not necessarily due to an ulterior motive. The fact is that there is a real problem in western-educated peoples believing that sustainable, organic agriculture, water treatment, traditional medicine, actually work. Indigenous science is multifactorial and process oriented. It involves different cognitive processes. Indeed, it is even hard for many people in developing countries to believe in sustainable technology, because they associate western technology with wealth and advancement. Sustainable methods do present challenges to be overcome. But comparing them to methods which have been developed with a vast amount of research money, commercial, social, and governmental support is a bit unfair. If as much collective energy went into developing sustainable knowledge, a new world would be possible. The purpose of the website I propose is not only to channel money into good causes; it is to serve as an educational tool for potential donors that when these types of projects are viewed as a comprehensive whole, they can present a highly functional infrastructure. Unlike the globalgiving website, sustainable projects would need to be gleaned from among the other emergency and high technology projects, that are also good, but can be addressed through existing paradigms. The project should also be geared to tap into a grassroots donor base, not the large foundations. I think more individuals would be inclined to donate $100.00, if they knew this $100.00 would not be swallowed up by administrative costs of a large foundation. Arrigo, you bring up a good concern about scamming, which had also occurred to me. Yes, there would be a potential for this, but you need to weigh it against how much money is being wasted through large bureaucratic infrastructures that are legitimate (besides the fact that these infrastructures are not immune to abuse either). Accountability in the terms of documentation costs a lot of money in and of itself. I am proposing that it be replaced by extreme transparency (posting pictures, contact info, physical address). If, for example, a church congregation were considering adopting a project and making large donations, such as to an orphange in Africa, they should be encouraged to send a few members of their congregation over there as scouts. This would still prove cheaper than them trying to run the orphanage themselves. It is also apparent that whether this manifests as a funding website is somewhat immaterial. What we really need to consider is a proliferation of projects --- educational, funding,
[GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, Lee Thorn, Peter Burgess, Ursula Huws, Gena Fleming, Vickram Crishna, Andy Lieberman and others have all given useful contributions to the issue of how to finance grassroots projects. The current debate on more Aid (Jeffrey Sachs and the UN, Tony Blair's Commission for Africa, the recent decisions by the EU and the expected ones by the coming G8) is all nice and well. But as you probably know, some people believe that aid (especially official aid from Government - or the World Bank - to Government), the way it is given, has little benefits and could even do harm (William Easterly, etc.). Personally, I have been wondering if there could be a more productive form of aid, both official and private. More effective and less distorting (dependency, corruption, waste, etc.) After all, aren't economies - throughout history - driven more by entrepreneurial drive than by Governments? At least, I believe so (having been both a Government bureaucrat and an entrepreneur). I have nothing against good Governments. But it is VERY GOOD to talk about how to develop forms of support that could reach DIRECTLY to the people and their own projects, as we are doing. Channeling A LOT MORE MONEY to viable, sustainable, projects by communities and small private entities, in a poor country, makes a lot of sense. In addition, empowering local (poor) people to do their own development, doesen't necessarily include only entities such as CBOs, cooperatives or micro-enterprises; it could extend to (poor!) Local Governments too. And it wouldn't have to cut out NGOs just that the projects or businesses would be started, owned and managed directly by the people. Of course, the NGOs would help, could provide credibility, etc. But I am under the impression that most big private donors (principally Private Foundations and Corporations in the US), are not donating that much, overall, internationally (where are the numbers?); and, in any case, they give primarily to big, established NGOs, not directly to single grassroots projects. Isn't this so? Again, where are the numbers? I don't think they would even bother checking out (forget financing...) some project by some small entity, say in rural India, even if they produced a full, well documented, business plan and grant proposal. Or would they? If this is the case, would Showcasing projects on the Internet (with simple descriptions, some photos, etc.) bring us far? Do you think people would donate much? Maybe some individuals could. There are web sites doing this... But I wouldn't think the big donors would, and one wouldn't be able to determine a SIGNIFICANT flow of money. Am I wrong? For one, what would prevent silly, wrong projects, or even downright scams and frauds, from being posted? My impression is that credibility, reliability and transparency issues may be the most important, here. If so, how can they be addressed? I hope that some other GKD Members that know this world (of fundraising + donors, etc.) better, will dwell on the matter. Best regards to you all, Arrigo della Gherardesca ItAfrica - Italian African Alliance srl Milano ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear GKD Colleagues, I am currently in Bosnia-Herzegovina, looking at some opportunities for ICT to support economic development in this beautiful country that has been through such suffering. Great progress has been made in rebuilding, although sometimes one feels the trauma that people have experienced here. But they are doing their best to put it behind them and recreate the vibrant economy that once thrived here. Unfortunately, their efforts to use ICT to get into international markets are thwarted by a telecom sector that is still owned by the government (3 telecom companies, but the government owns a majority of all three) so there is no real competition. As a result, prices for international calls and for Internet are out of sight. Not surprisingly, Internet penetration is estimated at only about 5-6%. Even among young people who have jobs, estimates from a recent survey suggest that only about half have used the Internet. Unemployment hovers at 40%. Nonetheless, as is so often the case in developing countries, there are outstanding people who are building ICT-related businesses, or are creating NGOs to try to use ICT to provide social services. A major problem is that all organizations are extremely isolated. Good companies have few links to the international market -- this includes ICT companies that don't know how to penetrate market niches where they have strength and relatively low cost, as well as non-ICT companies that desperately need access to ICT in order to get into international markets. For example, the wood products industry is a major employer, but they face tough competition from the Chinese on the low-cost end of products, which is where they are currently competing. I am exploring the possibility of their getting into high-end, designer furniture, if they can get access to CAD/CAM, reasonable Internet access rates, and some other ICT applications that would enable them to enter that market successfully in Europe. Similarly, NGOs don't have a clue as to where they could get financial support, regardless of the great work they do. I was in India a couple of weeks ago, and the story for NGOs (though not companies by and large) was the same. Some fantastic NGOs doing great work, but threatened with shutting down because they don't know how to get support from international foundations or philanthropic individuals. Several years ago I tried to convince several donors to support creation of a database of NGOs around the world. Any NGO could have a space and provide information, and there would also be a space for people to write comments about the NGO's work -- positive or negative. My goal was to create something that individuals or foundations (or donors) could use to identify organizations doing good work that are usually invisible in the international arena. I am still convinced it is extremely valuable and feasible, but the donors with whom I talked were totally uninterested. I still feel the same frustration when I see great NGOs working incredibly hard in developing countries, and always under the cloud of extinction because they only know how to do good work, not how to tap into funding sources. Thus, Peter and Gena's ideas about creating some online source of information about NGOs resonates strongly. Perhaps we can find some way to make this happen... Cheers from Bosnia, Janice Janice Brodman Director Center for Innovative Technologies [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
On 6/24/05, Gena Fleming wrote: Currently, people in need of funding need to do quite a bit of sleuthing to find funding sources. Can we create an alternative? I am imagining a website which showcases a diversity of projects through photos and brief descriptions (women's rights, sustainable water purification, permaculture, medicinal gardens, etc.) so that individuals who want to donate can get an overview of a diversity of sustainable projects around the world and choose specific projects they would like to donate directly to, without the mediation of individual foundations. I think this would serve the dual purpose of offering a new vision of a sustainable world, while helping donors feel more personally connected and involved with projects to which they are donating financial support. It is definitely a great idea. From my experience, it is precisely the 'alignment' that takes place with individual mediating organisations that results in some amount of dilution of purpose for the grassroots players: your 'marketplace' (souk, bazaar, eBay) model provides an alternative. However, even that bazaar needs support - hosting, design, bug-fixing, the main tech issues, and other broader issues like certification, ratings, ancillary commercial issues and the like. We should discuss ways and means of getting this off the ground in a workable manner. -- Vickram ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, As I've been struggling over the last couple of years to build up an NGO in rural Guatemala, I have been learning a lot about trying to match our organization's needs and wants with those of donors. It has been much tougher than I expected. Those of us in the field have specific ideas about what we want to do to achieve the impact we believe will be most beneficial for our communities. Donors also have their own ideas about what they would like to fund and how and where. Development is subdivided into so many competing areas and places that finding a match is difficult. But matching interests is only one part of the challenge in reaching donors. I believe it is important to build up relationships with donors and potential donors that are more than one-time funding of a project. For example, many developing country organizations spend time in the wealthy countries giving talks and presentations about their causes. Even if that isn't feasible, a grassroots project can use Internet effectively to share success stories and draw people in. Once a person grows attached to an organization by seeing its work over a few months or years, a funding appeal will be more likely to gain the interest of a potential supporter. For grassroots initiatives that do not have resources to do all this on their own, there are organizations that are trying to help. Gena Fleming mentions the idea of websites to help connect potential donors and projects. There are organizations doing this. Take a look at: www.globalgiving.com and www.donorschoose.com Best of luck to all, Andy Andrew E. Lieberman Presidente (Nab'e eqanel) Asociacion Ajb'atz' Enlace Quiche 5a. Calle 3-42, Zona 5, Santa Cruz del Quiche Guatemala tel. y fax: 502-7755-4801, 7755-0810 [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.enlacequiche.org.gt ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Arrigo: I am interested in the topic you present, with respect to finding funding for grassroots endeavors, and I see your question has also generated a good deal of response. I did a bit of internet searching a while back trying to assist a friend in South Africa who was starting an NGO for rural women's rights. I have also become aware of sustainable projects in Africa that are in dire need of funding, through participation in an international biotechnologist organization, You discuss many possibilities. I think it is necessary to define which possibility you are talking about for each project. Some foundations will fund non-profits, but not individuals; I found one recently that specifically only wanted to fund entrepreneurs, not non-profits. Some want to fund only those in the start-up phase, trying to obtain non-profit or NGO status. The specifics of the group and the issues they are addressing are key to matching with an appropriate donor. In the U.S., unless the foundation is funding start-up organizations, a foreign NGO should benefit by finding a non-profit 501(c)3 to act as a go-between, at least if the donor wants to be able to claim a tax exemption for the charitable contribution. Being able to write off a contribution as a tax exemption is pretty important if the person is making a large donation. They can approach non-profits with similar goals, and I think the non-profit might take a percentage to act as a go-between, but that is understandable. All of the above relates to the existing status quo. That being said, I am also interested in trying to create alternative funding channels so donors can directly fund sustainable projects from the bottom-up, instead of traditional top-down projects. Currently, people in need of funding need to do quite a bit of sleuthing to find funding sources. Can we create an alternative? I am imagining a website which showcases a diversity of projects through photos and brief descriptions (women's rights, sustainable water purification, permaculture, medicinal gardens, etc.) so that individuals who want to donate can get an overview of a diversity of sustainable projects around the world and choose specific projects they would like to donate directly to, without the mediation of individual foundations. I think this would serve the dual purpose of offering a new vision of a sustainable world, while helping donors feel more personally connected and involved with projects to which they are donating financial support. I appreciate the thoughts and feedback of others in the group. Best regards, Gena Fleming Traditional Chinese Medicine Website: http://www.plantbyplant.com On Tuesday, June 14, 2005, Arrigo della Gherardesca asked: How can a small entity (say in rural India or Africa) - it could be a women's cooperative, a small local NGO, or even an existing company or a single entrepreneur (but the same could hold for a Local Government) - if they have a viable project (both economically and socially), tap the rich countries donor and grant opportunities (Foundations, Corporate donors, etc.)? Would they have to go through a credible, well established international NGO? And in the absence of one, what could they do? ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Arrigo, You may be interested in some of the guidance on getting EU funding (including for projects based outside the EU) on the website of the EMERGENCE project - http://www.emergence.nu/toolkit/index.php is the home page for the toolkit and the links to funders are on http://www.emergence.nu/toolkit/funding.php Best wishes, Ursula Huws On 6/14/05, Arrigo della Gherardesca asked: How can a small entity (say in rural India or Africa) - it could be a women's cooperative, a small local NGO, or even an existing company or a single entrepreneur (but the same could hold for a Local Government) - if they have a viable project (both economically and socially), tap the rich countries donor and grant opportunities (Foundations, Corporate donors, etc.)? ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] RFI: How Can A Grassroots Project Obtain Financing From Private Donors In Rich Countries?
Dear Colleagues, I would be very interested in the answer to this question myself. Speaking for the Transparency and Accountability Network, and our new program to help raise money for relief and development activities, we are looking for activities that demonstrably improve the quality of life in a community. This requires some baseline information about the community, some information about the planned activities, and a review of the community metrics periodically after the activity has been implemented. Something that costs $100 should facilitate an increment in community value of some multiplier of this ... perhaps as much as $1,000. From our perspective, external funds are only valuable when they help make local resources, especially human resources and local natural resources, productive. Our expectation is that funds used for one purpose will get repaid, and then go on to facilitate some other needed work. We are not very interested in the organization that implements the activity. In fact the less organization the better, since too much of relief and development assistance funding is used to strengthen an organization rather than delivering activities to the intended community beneficiaries. Having said that, an organization that has successfully done relief and development activities and can show results is a plus. In order to be put in our funding pipeline we need information about the community, the activity, the implementing organization ... if you want more specifics I would be pleased to send them. Peter Burgess Peter Burgess Tr-Ac-Net in New York 212 772 6918 [EMAIL PROTECTED] The Transparency and Accountability Network With Kris Dev in Chennai India and others in South Asia, Africa and Latin America http://tr-ac-net.blogspot.com ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
