In the action week towards the objectives of sustainable development, it seems important for us to remember the platform that was launched by the Red Argentina para la Cooperación Internacional [Argentine Network for International Cooperation] (RACI) along with the support of the United Nations in Argentina and with Cablevision-Fibertel. It is a digital tool that enables the visualization of which, and how many, civil society organizations in Argentina are currently working towards the United Nation’s 17 objectives of sustainable development (ODS).
We inform you of some of the projects we have completed so far, here from RACI, on this platform:
- Leave No One Behind. In the efforts to continue working on the 17 Objectives of Sustainable Development (OSD), RACI, with the support of CIVICUS and the Canadian Embassy in Argentina, joined the initiative of Leave No One Behind: a series of national dialogues carried out in diverse regions of the world, with the objective of including minority communities in the global agenda. The event took place on October 20, 2016 in the Canadian Embassy in Argentina. This event counted with the participation of more than 100 people, including representatives from the civil society, the public sector, the private sector, and academia. One of the main objectives of the endeavor was the elaboration of a diagnostic on the perception of the current situation of OSD implementation in our country and its relation to communities that are generally mostly excluded. Using this information as a base, the central question was: How can we create innovative solutions that do not leave anyone behind during the implementation of the objectives of sustainable development in Argentina?
- Strengthening the network’s work in order to optimize the capabilities of Argentine social organizations. The project seeks to promote the coordination and collaboration between the civil society organizations that work throughout the Argentine territory, so as to contribute to their strengthening and sustainability and, in this manner, contribute to the creation of a more solid and independent social sector that can therefore continue contributing to the democratization processes in our country. In this particular case, by offering a monthly space for the creation, diffusion, and transfer of tools and practices, as well as contact between the organizations themselves, potential donors, and professionals that workshop in topics inherent to the sector, the project of improving civil society organizations’ institutionality can be targeted.
- Social innovation laboratories for civil society organizations. The co-creation of an innovation lab, focused on three specific topics, is proposed; in this lab, social entrepreneurs and organizations would not only be able to exchange their succeses and their gained knowledge, but would also have the possibility of presenting their projects that are still in the production or implementation phases, thus identifying potential allies that can lead to sustainable, high impact synergies. Therefore, the goal is to institutionally develop and strenghten the participating civil society organizations, as well as generate an increase in their capabilities and technical resources so that they may increase their growth and enhance their sustainability.
- Workshop training to strengthen: Institutional development of CSOs and project elaboration. With the support of Raffo Laboratories, these workshops seek to institutionally develop and strengthen civil society organizations through two training efforts, each half a day long. The workshops share information, tools, mechanisms, and good practices relating to institutional strengthening and the processes for the development of projects related to funding requests essential to the organizations’ mission. Throughout these workshop efforts, RACI aims to increase the capabilities and technical resources of civil society organizations, so that they are able to perfect the quality of the proposals and projects they present when requesting resources, and that they may count on better institutional preparation when it comes to working with different actors while simultaneously strengthening themselves on this institutional level.
- Project Regional Innovation Laboratories: Strengthening organizations, generating more impact, now finalized and executed by the Red Argentina para la Cooperación Internacional [Argentine Network for International Cooperation] (RACI) with the support of Galicia Bank. The objective of the project was to strenghten the organizations’ work in project presentation material. This was done through paired exchanges, using the technical assistance of RACI to address proposal improvement, the generation of strategic alliances with other CSOs, and the promotion of a surge of innovative ideas that can add value to the presentations. The final result was the ideation of 14 social projects, with a solution prototype presented to the audiences in each of the labs. The methodology used was able to accelerate the creative process of those assisting in the co-creation of innovative solutions for local issues. The acquisition of agile and concrete tools to evaluate the problem and solution was also an outcome that assistants could count on after each workshop.
Our platform is the first space that provides visibility to the projects of all Argentine social organizations, as well as their respective contributions to the fulfillment of the OSD. Currently, 411 total projects have been registered by different organizations.
We hope to continue contributing to the objectives of sustainable development and that more organizations can join!