At times you can’t help feeling like the bottom of the fundraising chain. Bureaucracy (not meant in the derogatory sense) inevitably leads to impersonal relationships within an organisation. This is often coupled with a decline in the importance of local groups. Before Community Aid Abroad merged with Oxfam in the mid-1990s, our local group organised events like fundraising walks and met regularly to discuss overseas projects and decide which ones to fund.
This kind of community volunteering declined sharply for many reasons though there has been some resurgence in Australia. In many areas the initiative has been left to individuals and traditional organisations like local churches. I’d like to share a couple of these that have been reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation this year.
The Power of One
Can an individual really make a difference? What is the power of one to bring change in a foreign country?
Children Of A Lesser God (ABC TV’s Australian Story 05/04/2010) is the story of the Cambodian Children's Trust, a small NGO that runs an orphanage and related projects in Battambang, Cambodia. More importantly it tells how one young woman has made an enormous contribution by starting and maintaining this initiative:
Tara Winkler was just twenty-two when she established the Cambodian Children's Trust in Cambodia. She is now 'mother', mentor and older sister to twenty-seven orphans, some as young as two.
To find out more, the half-hour video and transcript are on the Australian Story website.
When I first watched the program in May, I wondered what might happen to this project if/when Tara was not able to continue her work. A visit to their website shows that they are working to make the Trust organisationally and financially self-sustaining. In fact a parallel NGO Green Kids Global has been established to work in partnership with CCT.
A Grassroots Niche
The second Australian project involves members of the Brisbane’s Wellers Hill-Tarragindi Uniting Church. They have adopted the Timor Children's Foundation, which was started by one of its members Bob Mitchell. TCF “donates mosquito nets, scholarships, schools, books and nutritional support for hundreds of East Timorese children.”
The full transcript of interviews with church members is available on the ABC Radio National Encounter website.
Bob Mitchell commented on the scale on their activities:
I think there is a space for niche organisations. One of the things that they offer is that they can respond to perhaps some of the smaller grassroots needs that perhaps get passed over by some of the larger organisations. One of the points of difference is that people know you, and they trust you and there's a great responsibility that comes with that.
Liz Jones felt that the strong sense of personal involvement is clearly a vital aspect of their work:
I think I'm the only one left on the committee who hasn't yet gone for a visit to East Timor - and so there's the very sense of a personal link and a personal responsibility for what's going on there that comes out of each person going for a visit, coming back, talking to us, bringing people from Timor over here to visit us, so it's not like I think most of our charitable givings often just money we give, we read, we play, this is that sense of connectedness that's made it very different for me and I think for our congregation.
That "sense of connectedness" seems to be a key indicator of success.
I think everybody can make difference. But this is a long way to the goal.
Thanks for this post Kevin. It’s very inspiring. Makes me want to do more and more and more. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Kevin, a great point. These smaller grassroots needs are oft-neglected by larger organisations. Laudable initiatives you mentioned. Great!
Hi Kevin, I think world needs both - big and small NGOs.
Big ones are respected internationally and draw attention to causes. They are well organized and come with professional help during crises - Haiti for example.
Small NGOs support very local projects and make a difference in local communities, they mean a lot to a village or a specific group of people - like Tara´s work in Cambodia.
Radka
I couldn’t agree more. There are many options for those who want to contribute.
Really interesting piece Kevin. Is there a danger that we will go too far towards connectedness? Will donors demand that the children they’re sponsoring/supporting get a mobile phone so they can check up that they’re receiving their aid? Does it replace the trust that has previously existed between donors and aid organisations?
One further benefit in favour of small organisations is that less money is “wasted” on bureaucracy and marketing. More of the funds and working hours of the volunteers go directly to the target.
If you think about a huge organisation like the Red Cross, so much of donations given by individuals and companies go to the wages of staff, marketing expenses, office rental, etc etc.
@Clare, personally, I do not believe going too far towards connectedness is dangerous. I think the trust in aid organisations will continue existing and that strengthen bonds with these children is not that bad. Instead, it is great.
@Liisa, good point…we often forget about this stuff.
@Luan: I haven’t quite made up my mind on this one. There’s a danger that aid organizations will devote more resources to keeping donors happy and informed than helping the communities in need. We need a balance between the two competing interest, methinks.
@Clare, now I see your point more clearly. Thanks. I agree now.
Thanks Luan. It’s hard to convey a complex point in a few lines some times, and I don’t always succeed. But glad I convinced you on this one