Category: Novedades

We visit women in Technology.

Through a virtual meeting, the Women in Technology  (Mujeres En Tecnología) team welcomed us to share their work. Through a virtual meeting, we were welcomed by Soledad Salas, Founder and Executive Director, and Yanina Dominguez, Director of Finance.

MET is an organization dedicated to promoting inclusion and diversity in the technological ecosystem through its courses, workshops, study groups and research. It also helps more women and gender diversity to connect professionally in the tech ecosystem.

MET has a significant reach, with 8,000 community members, more than 6,500 women and diversities trained, and 41,000 participants in its events.

Learn more about his work by visiting his website.

FLOR Foundation opened its doors to us

In our recent visit to the FLOR Foundation we were able to learn about its work in building a network of leaders committed to the goal of building more sustainable, diverse, inclusive and equitable societies.

We spoke with Giselle Petraglia, Executive Director and Victoria Borelli, Coordinator of Institutional Development and Communication, who told us about their projects, programs and new initiatives that they will carry out this new year.

FLOR Foundation invites us to lay the foundations for a more responsible society, where diversity and solidarity are sources of growth, sustainability, respect and peace. Managing diversity is the foundation’s key to achieving the transformation to a more just and inclusive society.

Furthermore, Fundación Flor recognizes and values ​​the impact of numerous organizations that are already walking this path. For this reason, it annually awards the FLOR Awards for Diversity, an initiative that pays tribute to those who are leading the change towards a more inclusive reality.

We are pleased to work with Fundación Flor and Mujeres en Tecnología. Both organizations are pillars for the active construction of a more equitable and diverse future.

Thank you for having us!

Since 2005, the sole criterion for inclusion of countries on the DAC list of ODA eligible countries is their status as “low- and middle-income” countries in accordance with GNI per capita as defined in the World Bank’s income classification. The threshold for graduation – i.e. exiting the list – is therefore classification by the World Bank (WB) as a high-income country for three consecutive years.

Important: making sure that a country’s graduation from the list is well-prepared and based on the notion of ‘smooth transition strategies’.  Recently, the DAC decided that in the future countries anticipated to transition to the higher income category will be informed by the OECD Secretariat about the ODA criterion and timeframes in the first year they reach the high-income threshold, rather than only a year in advance as previously practiced. Countries will thus be alerted earlier, giving them more time to prepare for ODA resources being phased out as a form of external financing.

The DAC members further confirmed their commitment to contribute to smooth transitions. This message was reaffirmed in the recent Communique from the DAC high level meeting on 14-15 November 2023, which stated: “We will anticipate countries’ transition to other sources of domestic, and where applicable, external finance, and explore options together with partner countries to continue co-operation through other avenues”.

The challenge of preparing countries whose GNI per capita trajectory indicates their upcoming graduation from the ODA list is one that DAC members will need to  address before the next triennial review of this list in 2026. At present, Guyana and Panama are on a trajectory to graduate following this review. Net ODA to these two countries was USD 139 million and USD 91 million in 2021, respectively.

In this context it is clearly a constraint that most donors do not have funding streams beyond ODA. A recent report from a Norwegian expert group has offered some ideas in this direction, suggesting that countries could make available non-ODA funds for this purpose – at the same time stressing that such funding streams should not be at the expense of ODA within the 0.7% target, but additional to it.

Another issue of concern to the DAC has been managing situations where a country graduates from the list, but afterwards falls below the threshold, in some cases due to sudden onset crises (e.g., Covid-19, natural disasters).

That risk prompted the DAC in 2020 to simplify and expedite the process of reinstatement, so that if in July of a given year, WB income data for the previous year reveal that a graduated country has fallen below the high-income threshold, that country can be re-instated immediately, retroactively effective to the first of January of that same calendar year. This happened recently for Palau which graduated in 2021 but was reinstated on the list in 2022.

Read the full report here.

We are pleased to announce that we are now members of Catalyst 2030, a global movement committed to the advancement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. We inaugurated our alliance by participating in a welcoming event that marked the beginning of a collaboration to address global challenges and build a more sustainable future.

Catalyst 2030, launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2020, is a rapidly growing global movement led by social entrepreneurs and innovators. It was created in collaboration with organizations such as Ashoka, Echoing Green, the Schwab Foundation of the World Economic Forum, and the Skoll Foundation.

The foundation focuses on supporting cultural changes towards equity, collaborating with concerned parties to balance power in decision-making. What sets Catalyst 2030 apart are its strategic pillars to drive its mission. The foundation is built on a solid network of leaders and movements working for social change, prioritizing both impact and the well-being of its members.

Together with Catalyst 2030, we embark on the mission of implementing sustainable strategies and solutions to boost a positive change.

The year 2023 presented significant challenges in matters of human rights, especially due to repression and atrocities in places with armed conflicts. The selective outrage of governments and transactional diplomacy came at a cost for those not included in
international agreements.

To contemplate the challenges of 2024, it is important to look at the present and recent past, finding clues and trends that can guide us in building a more just, peaceful, and democratic world. In this quest, Human Rights Watch invites us to recognize the challenges and pending debts from the previous year.

Key themes: Loss of rights, armed violence, and the climate crisis. Renewed conflicts between Israel and Hamas, as well as in Sudan, caused much suffering to their populations, along with ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Myanmar, Ethiopia, and the Sahel.

Governments faced the challenge of the climate crisis, dealing
with the warmest year on record and a series of natural disasters in Bangladesh, Libya, and Canada, with catastrophic consequences.

Economic inequality increased globally, generating outrage over political decisions that left many people struggling to survive. In this context, the rights of women, girls, and LGBT individuals faced harsh reprisals in various parts of the world. A notable example was the disproportionate gender-based violence driven by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Faced with these challenges, the landscape offers the opportunity to explore alternative paths and work towards a fairer future.

Consequences of transactional diplomacy The causes of these human rights crises and their consequences often transcend borders and cannot be resolved by governments acting alone.

There is an interconnection between these crises that goes beyond borders and requires a response based on the universal principles of human rights and the rule of law.

Some governments choose to ignore the principles that underpin universal agreements on the respect for human rights, undermining trust in institutions responsible for enforcing and protecting these rights. In this context, transactional diplomacy has played a crucial role in rights violations, as governments of the most influential countries have sacrificed principles for short-term benefits in trade or security.

Read the full report here.

We launched our Yearbook 2023, a compilation of the projects, activities, and achievements that marked our commitment to Civil Society. Throughout the year, we achieved notable milestones that strengthen our network’s impact.

We obtained the status of Consultative Non-Governmental Organization with ECOSOC at the United Nations, solidifying our international presence. Guillermo Correa ́s inclusion in the IAVE Committee strengthened our representation in Latin America. We enthusiastically welcomed 41 new Civil Society Organizations to RACI, expanding our network to over 200 members by the end of the year. Additionally, we celebrated RACI’s appointment as the national coordinator for Good Deeds Day, showcasing our commitment to positive initiatives at both local and international levels.

In the realm of social investment, 2023 was a strategic year. We maximized investment in CSOs, with notable collaborations such as the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives, the New Zealand Embassy Fund in Mexico, the Karelsie Foundation, the Innovation Fund for Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Annual Social Inclusion Award. These associations enable us to manage funding for 38 projects and mobilize over $300,000 USD to drive CSO initiatives in Argentina.

Furthermore, we focused on knowledge management, producing key documents and conducting research to understand the current landscape of International Cooperation in our region. Through 243 surveys and 50 interviews in 19 countries, we provided crucial data for regional progress.

We appreciate your participation and continuous support for the growth of our country and the region.

Thank you for accompanying us!

Where is Latin America and the Caribbean located in the current scenario of International Cooperation? Is it a priority region on the donors’ agenda? What topics seem to be the most important for International Cooperation? Which populations or communities occupy a priority place?

We address these and other questions in our new research: “Trends in International Cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean.” A study that seeks to provide current information to understand the scenario of International Cooperation in our region. At RACI, we make this analysis available based on the results of an open survey at the regional level, as well as interviews conducted with different actors from civil society and international cooperation.

We hope that the proposal contributes to providing tools to civil society organizations in the region on the current scenario of International Cooperation, identifying the main challenges and recommendations when working with this type of collaboration.

The latest CIVICUS Monitor report, titled “People Power Under Attack 2023,” throws light on the growing threat to civic freedoms around the world. The Monitor has been in operation since 2017, tracking the state of freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression in 198 countries and territories.

Each year, CIVICUS tracks the state of civic space conditions, based on data collected through local civil society organizations, regional research groups, and international human rights indices, as well as CIVICUS think tanks.

In 2023, some of the most relevant data were:

Widespread Attacks: civic freedoms are under attack in 118 of 198 countries and territories, signaling a growing limitation on the exercise of fundamental human rights.

Reduced Civic Space: Nearly one-third of the world’s population has minimal civic space, particularly impacting groups that promote democracy, better governance and environmental protection.

Threats to Freedom of Expression: Freedom of expression is the most severely impacted, affecting more than half of the recorded violations from both state and non-state sources.

In the context of the Americas, the report highlights a significant increase in state control over civic space, with abuses of punitive power affecting human rights defenders and journalists, undermining the foundations of modern democracies.

Recommendations:

CIVICUS Monitor has provided a list of recommendations that seek to create a healthy, respectable and enabling environment in which civil society activists and journalists can work freely, without fear of violence, in line with international human rights commitments, addressed to governments, the United Nations, international organizations, the private sector and donors.

We hope that this report will serve as a global wake-up call and contribute to building a more democratic 2024 around the world.

The last member visit we made this year was with the team of Mocha Celis, an organization that through actions and programs seeks to comprehensively guarantee all the rights of trans, transvestite and non-binary people, promoting a dignified and fulfilling life.

Lautaro González, Mocha Celis’ Institutional Relations Assistant, showed us each room of a building that is synonymous with support and containment for the community and introduced us to the fundamental programs that define the spirit of the organization: the Bachillerato Popular Travesti-Trans, a proposal that promotes the integration of TTNB people in formal education, and #TEJESOLIDARIO, an initiative of material support and comprehensive accompaniment in the completion of procedures and subsidies that seeks to prevent evictions and facilitate access to health.

But the work of Mocha Celis does not end there; the organization is also committed to the insertion of the community into the labor market, conducting workshops and/or training sessions to help the TTNB population access their first job, as well as acting as a liaison between companies and beneficiaries during the selection process. 

During our tour, Francisco Quiñones Cuartas, president of Mocha Celis, also showed us other spaces that are important to the organization’s comprehensive approach: from the clinic, where health professionals provide care, to the Lohana Berkins Library, where beneficiaries have access to a wide range of literature and resources on sexual diversity, to the production room, where textile workshops are held.

At the end of our meeting we exchanged views on the current situation and future projects. 

Thank you for having us! Don’t forget to visit their social networks.

RACI had an outstanding participation in the International Civic Forum 2023, organized by the International Civil Society Centre held in Brussels, Belgium, on November 29-30. The main objective of this event was to explore sectoral areas of action and identify possible ways at both the individual and organizational level to strengthen the anticipatory capacity of civil society organizations.

The fundamental purpose was to improve the process, thus inspiring new ways of thinking and acting within Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). In addition, the groundwork was laid for the implementation phase of the ‘Anticipating the Future of Civil Society’ initiative, an operational space dedicated to developing a solid methodology that can be replicated and widely adopted, thus strengthening the civil society sector.

The event yielded extremely positive results, providing knowledge that will be applied in RACI’s Strategic Planning 2025-2030. In addition, bilateral meetings were held with representatives of European Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and staff members of European Union (EU) agencies.

On November 30, we had the privilege of holding the third meeting of the “Cycle of Multi-stakeholder Dialogues” organized by the Regional Center for Innovation for Change in Latin America and the Caribbean. In this instance, we explored the intricate relationship between democracy, human rights and environmental preservation.

We had the outstanding participation of Tamara Taraciuk Broner, Director of the Peter D. Bell Rule of Law Program at the Inter-American Dialogue, and Daniel Barragán, member of the International Center for Research on Environment and Territory (CIIAT) of the University of the Hemispheres.

Taraciuk Broner shared her reflections on democracy and human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting the complexities that cut across diverse territories. She emphasized the crucial importance of an independent judiciary and freedom of the press as vital tools to safeguard democratic integrity in the region. Her presentation concluded with an invitation for citizens to take innovative action, thinking beyond conventional boundaries and working to achieve democratic consensus.

Daniel Barragan provided essential perspectives by reframing the relationship between environmental rights and nature in the context of resources as driving forces for development in the countries of the region. He emphasized: “The connection between human rights and nature is direct, both intrinsic and bidirectional. Ensuring a healthy environment and recognizing the rights of nature is essential to preserving human life and fundamental rights”.

This space proved to be propitious to continue weaving alliances and sharing experiences that promote concrete actions towards a more just and sustainable future. We appreciate the active participation of our distinguished speakers and look forward to continuing to build bridges of dialogue in future meetings.

Let us move forward together towards a horizon of democracy and well-being for all in our region!