Category: Novedades

On November 10, 2017, at the Embassy of Canada in Buenos Aires, the Argentine Business Council for Sustainable Development (CEADS) and RACI, held a breakfast presentation of both platforms before journalists.

Both platforms aim to make visible the work of the Private Sector and the Civil Society in pursuit of compliance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The CEADS SDG Platform, developed by CEADS and EY Argentina, aims to publicize innovative experiences at the local level of companies that contribute to the SDGs. This Platform was presented in March and today has 101 initiatives, in which 46 companies participated, contributing to the work carried out around the 2030 Agenda.

On the other hand, RACI, with the support of Cablevisión Fibertel, launched an SDG platform in the month of August that has 138 projects from different CSOs in our country. This initiative aims to democratize the information on the work carried out by Civil Society Organizations in Argentina and make it visible in the eyes of key actors that will enhance them.

During the day, where Robert Fry, Ambassador of Canada to Argentina, acted as host, both organizations shared the results of their respective platforms to date.

We thank all those present for generating the space for dialogue to analyze the results and raise the next challenges in which we must work to strengthen both initiatives and disseminate the implementation of the SDGs in Argentina. We also thank the Embassy of Canada in Buenos Aires for granting the space so that we can carry out the event.

On Wednesday, November 1, the RACI Team, within its plan to get to know the Network’s Partners, met one of “Cosiendo Redes” offices.

During the visit, carried out at the office located at the Metropolitan Design Center (CMD), the members of Cosiendo Redes shared their work experience; we saw their workshops and shared part of the day with the students that participate in their courses.

Cosiendo Redes is a program that emerges and develops within the Peace Foundation for Non Family Violence. It aims to contribute to the social insertion of people, especially the most vulnerable sectors.

The organization emerged with the objective of training its students so that they can join the textile industry market through excellence training, according to their particular skills and interests. At the same time, they offer job placement workshops and follow-ups for their students through tutoring so that they achieve a successful integration.

We thank all the Cosiendo Redes Team that received us so warmly in their place. We also thank all the Members who have opened their doors for us in 2017. We look forward to retaking our visits in 2018!

If you want to know more of Cosiendo Redes, enter here: http://cosiendoredes.org

Most Civil Society Organizations collect only a fraction of what they could, at least according to Ron Schiller, a seasoned US fundraiser with vast experience in the area. The reasons why this happens are varied and usually related to the ignorance of proven practices.

According to Schiller, one of the most common mistakes when raising funds is focusing only on the organization itself, its needs, goals, and timelines. Those who work in Civil Society tend to talk about themselves all the time and what they need, oblivious to the fact that donors have their own objectives and interests, and are more interested in knowing how the needs of the organization articulate with their own.

Recent studies support this approach. A survey conducted in 2016 by US Trust and Lilly Family School of Philanthropy * found that when choosing who to support, 78% of large donors rely on their own values, while only 6% do so because a presentation or speech “convinced them”. However, few organizations take the trouble to ask about donors: What are their objectives? What do they want to achieve? The most successful organizations, according to Schiller, are those that offer donors the opportunity to achieve what they set out to do.

As a fundraiser for the University of Chicago, Schiller obtained eight figure funds because he took the time to learn what a donor partner wanted. Knowing this, the university formulated an adequate project according to their needs.

The error that Schiller considers the most serious is related to the above: considering donors as simple money givers. Organizations, he explains, often don’t allow donors to become true allies of their work, afraid to give them too much influence. And so they see the fundraiser as a solicitor and not as a facilitator, someone who allows donors to give with confidence so that both can jointly achieve something that none could on their own.

*http://www.ustrust.com/publish/content/application/pdf/GWMOL/USTp_ARMCGDN7_oct_2017.pdf

Source: bit.ly/2ApehkG

In recent decades, non-profit organizations have been going through a transformation: they have more and more business characteristics. According to Lester Salamon, of the Center for Civil Society Studies of the John Hopkins University, this change is global and has been more vigorous in developed countries, where the sector of the Civil Society has a greater participation in the economy. In this sense, it is not uncommon for a CSO to sell products or services to raise funds.

This trend seems to go hand in hand with the change in government funding, which since the 1980s has been financing the Third Sector, increasingly, through contracts. According to the National Council for Voluntary Organizations (NCVO), the percentage of this type of funding by the UK government went from 49% to 81%. This caused many CSOs to seek to stabilize their income, now less predictable, through the sale of goods and services, for example Sue Ryder, an organization that helps fund their hospices with thrift stores.

This business-like professionalization of the CSOs began to attract more young people, who began to look for qualifications tailored to the new organizations. Universities started to make available more courses and careers related to philanthropy and CSO management (in the United States, the number of university careers related to the civil society sector grew from 284 in 1986 to 651 in 2016), and work in the sector became more attractive to graduates of other careers. In the same way, the sector began to attract donors and financiers who wanted to be more involved and to be part of the boards.

Professionalization is also seen in the demand for experienced fundraisers, which according to Michael Nilsen, of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, has grown rapidly. This has resulted in a greater number of studies and fundraising techniques, from the effect that different marketing materials have on donor satisfaction and future giving, to better ways of attracting large donors.

One of the biggest differences that still persists between companies and civil society organizations is access to capital. Unlike companies, a CSO cannot sell shares, as it cannot generate profits to pay its shareholders. But new types of practices are trying to fill the gap left by that impossibility. One is the “impact investment”, which has been growing in recent years, in which a philanthropic return is expected instead of, or in addition to, a financial one. Another is the possibility of a third party (a foundation or government) being a guarantor of loans to civil society organizations, so that it takes the risk if the CSO cannot pay it back.

But of course, the transformation towards organizations with business characteristics also has its critics. Fund-raising practices, specifically the exchange of data between collectors, were called into question in the United Kingdom in 2015, when the bombardment of letters begging for donations to a donor could have played some role in her suicide. Some organizations also received criticism regarding the increasing salaries that CSO executives have, which are already close to those paid to business executives.

Some fear that if the line separating companies and CSOs continues to be erased, donors and volunteers will have less incentive to donate their time and money. On the other hand, there are also those who think that CSOs with business characteristics would be better equipped to survive and grow, and therefore to have a greater capacity to impact.

Source: http://econ.st/2jSGVmZ

On Friday, October 6th, Scouts de Argentina carried out their tenth “Always Ready” Recognition Awards. The Argentine Network for International Cooperation was honored with the Award for its joint collaboration with the organization.

The ceremony took place in the Honorable National Congress. There, different organizations and personalities were distinguished for their collaboration, contribution, effort and goodwill toward the community, revealing a true “Scout Spirit”.

From RACI, we thank Scouts de Argentina for this recognition!

The task ahead for the CSOs is not simple; the reduction of inequalities is an arduous challenge that requires a long-term commitment. Regrettably, most of the funding options they can count on tend to be short term.

Kathy Richards, Director of Building Institutions and Networks (BUILD) of Ford Foundation, considers that these kinds of grants focused on the short-term stifle the investment to the critical areas, much needed for a sustainable impact. Ford Foundation, a pioneer on new forms of development funding, thinks it’s necessary to change this paradigm to help CSOs become more efficient change makers in the long run.

On September 27th, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors published a report about this titled: “Scaling Solutions toward Shifting Systems”. The report shows the results of a yearlong research in which nonprofit and social enterprises that were successful in the implementation of scalable solutions were interviewed about their experience with funders.

From these interviews emerged clear conclusions for large-scale transformation, summarized in five good funder practices: change power dynamics with organizations, put them in the driver’s seat (Empower); offer flexible and strategic financing to help build resilient and innovative organizations (Accelerate); develop a body of knowledge on what truly shift systems (Learn); share information with other funders to align actions (Collaborate); and redesign donation processes to make them less complicated for CSOs (Streamline).

Ford Foundation has already begun to implement some of these practices. They are paying a minimum of 20% overhead on all project grants. They also launched the aforementioned program, BUILD, which provides 300 partner organizations with a combination of general operational support and specific support to strengthen basic skills, vital to achieving greater impact. Each beneficiary of BUILD receives 5 years of financing, at levels higher than those historically received.

The Foundation expects that a greater link with its beneficiaries and more flexible support to strengthen areas such as strategic vision, adaptability, financial sustainability, and leadership will produce Civil Society Organizations that have a more significant and sustained impact on the society.

For more information, enter http://bit.ly/2y9M4gG.

Last Monday, September 18th, the Honorable National House of Representatives declared of interest the workshops given by RACI since 2009, acknowledging its work and contributions to the Civil Society Sector.

The project was presented by national representative Marcelo Weschler and co-signed by representatives Gisela Scaglia, Alicia Besada, Waldo Wolff, Ricardo Spinozzi, Nelly Lagoria, Facundo Garretón, and Liliana Schwindt. The initiative was born from Fernanda Sanoner, ex-volunteer from RACI and current assistant to the Parliamentary Secretary of the PRO bloc in the National House of Representatives.

Through its workshops, and thanks to the support of different allies, RACI promotes the democratization of information and broaden its work areas in a constant effort to maintain the federalization of the Network.

With more than 10 years of work, RACI aims to strengthen the third sector; empowering it as a change-maker and producer of new initiatives that contribute to the social transformation of the country.

We thank the interest of the representatives and the effort of Fernanda for their contribution to the dissemination of RACI’s work.

Let’s keep building the Network!

Within the framework of the activities of the next G-20 2018, where the Argentina will hold the presidency, Poder Ciudadano and the Argentine Network for International Cooperation (RACI) will be in charge of the Presidency (Chair) and Vice-Presidency (Co-Chair) respectively of the Civil Society 20 group C-20.

In December of this year, Argentina will assume for the first time the presidency of the G-20, thus becoming the seat of one of the most important economic and financial forums in the world that brings together emerging and developed countries to discuss issues concerning the global agenda. From then on, the two civil society organizations will assume the mentioned roles during the one year period.

The C-20 is a specific space for civil society to contribute in a structured and sustained manner to the G-20, ensuring that world leaders listen not only to the voices representing the government and business sectors but also to the proposals and demands of civil society as a whole.

The objective of this group is generating debate spaces, building feasible proposals to be raised to the G-20 working groups, and influencing the political agenda of the forum. For this reason, both Poder Ciudadano and RACI will be the institutions in charge of promoting and ensuring the participation of the C-20 in the meetings prior to the summit.

Argentina’s presidency of the G-20 will be one of the most important international political events in the history of our country, involving endless challenges and opportunities. From Poder Ciudadano and RACI, we take up the challenge of putting at a global level the work experience and commitment of the civil society.

With support from Banco Galicia Foundation and TEA Foundation, RACI will conduct the training “Increasing the impact of Civil Society Organizations: Fostering networking and institutional strengthening”. The workshop is aimed to all organizations that wish to know strategies for internal strengthening, and how to generate sustainable alliances with key actors.

The event is totally free and will be held on October 30, 2017, from 9.30am to 3.30pm, in the Sala de la Memoria (Memorial Room) of the Provincial House of Representatives Library, located at Corrientes Street 200, Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina.

The objectives of the meeting are to strengthen the CSOs –especially grassroots organizations – so they can access to strategic social development investors in better technical and institutional conditions; and to deepen the national coverage of institutional strengthening activities, in order to contribute to the democratization of information and the training of inland CSOs.

The workshop is open and free of charge, and certificates of attendance will be provided. Previous registration is needed to attend, as there are limited allocations.

On Friday, October 13, was held the Second Civil Society Organizations Forum, organized by the Professional Development Department of the Torcuato Di Tella University in collaboration with RACI.

As in the previous year, the objective of the meeting was generating a space of interaction for the students of the University to know the work and activities carried out by different Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and their representatives; to be able to know the professional opportunities in the field of organized Civil Society.

On this occasion, the event, moderated by members of RACI, was attended by representatives of various organizations such as CIPPEC, Cimientos, Junior Achievement Argentina and Chequeado.com.

Throughout the day each organization made institutional presentations and shared experiences and knowledge about the various internship programs and job searches for young professionals that CSOs possess, as well as their activities.

We thank the Organizations for their participation, commitment, and enthusiasm throughout the day. We also thank the Torcuato Di Tella University for once again allowing the generation of interaction spaces between students and graduates of their institution, collaborating with the emergence of new professional opportunities in Civil Society Organizations.