de camargo isfp2008 final. pdf

8/9/2019 De Camargo ISFP2008 Final. PDF

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CENTER ON PHILANTHROPY AND CIVIL SOCIETY

THE GRADUATE CENTER, CUNY - CITY UNIVERSITY OF

NEW YORK

2008 INTERNATIONAL SENIOR FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

Jaqueline de Camargo

COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONS AND COMMUNITY SOCIALINVESTMENT: A MOVEMENT TO CONTRIBUTE TO SOCIAL

JUSTICE IN BRAZIL1

Abstract

The main assumption of the author, Jaqueline de Camargo, is that there is a placefor a strong Community Foundation movement in Brazil; that the already existingcommunity foundations and community foundation-like organizations in Brazil arecarrying the seed of this movement [adapting the Community Foundation conceptfor local, regional and national realities]; and that it should be fruitful to broadlyengage community leaders and youth leaders, in a systematic and systemic way, topromote this in the country. Such a movement, improving the conditions forsustainability and autonomy for social initiatives, would strengthen the perspectiveof social justice that nowadays, according to the author, is one of the mostrelevant aspects of the concept of community foundations. For this, somerecommendations are made proposing the action-learning methodology, broadlyincluding perspectives and knowledge of community social investmentsstakeholders.

1This paper may not be cited or quoted without permission of the author

[[email protected]]


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Executive Summary

The community foundation is a concept explored worldwide as a good vehicle for

donors to invest resources within a sustainable perspective as well as a vehicle that

looks to address community needs. The community foundation concept has raised a

genuine global intellectual curiosity amongst practitioners and social leaders.

The main purpose and assumption of the paper is to demonstrate that there is a

place for a strong community foundation movement in Brazil; that the already

existing community foundation and community foundation-like organizations in

Brazil are carrying the seeds of this movement [adapting the Community

Foundation concept for local, regional and national realities]; and that it should be

fruitful to broadly engage community leaders and youth leaders in a systematic and

systemic way, to promote this in the country. These assumptions are based on the

fact that there is real interest in it in addition to the engagement of important thirdsector leaders in Brazil with this concept of the Community Foundation. Brazils

third sector movement would benefit from such a conceptual frame, building

alternatives to improve social justice issues like social inclusion, which is one of

the most important gaps in Brazilian culture and to which the third sector has

aimed its contributions.

The paper suggests that community philanthropy should be translated to

community social investment as, in countries like Brazil, philanthropy has

attributes related to creating dependence-donations, without any objective to

transform reality.

The paper proposes that for such a community foundation movement in Brazil,

some important challenges should be met such as the strengthening of autonomy

through the creation of endowments in a country with no relevant and well-

structured tax incentives and the need to influence legal frame for community

foundations.

To take into account that some of the less well known organizations [and Grass-

roots leaders] have a strong potential to operate in a community foundation

adapted frame, as they already operate in community-philanthropy or, in a

community social investment model, are also a challenge which the paper

proposes to explore.

Looking for the inclusion of a wider range of social actors, like youth

representatives, who have enormous potential and wish to be part of the solution of

social problems, but who have been much more receivers of private social

investments to/for them than partners of social change, is an opportunity identified

by this paper.

As a method of research, besides a deep immersion in the International Senior

Fellowship Program, the CFC Community Foundation of Canada 2008 Montreal

Conference provided several meetings and readings that served as a source of

knowledge. It permitted the fellow to constantly re-order and re-structure some

assumptions as well as the previously planned research. During the CFC

conference, a special meeting was organized by the author, with some CF


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individuals and organization leaders in Brazil. This meeting definitely proved to be

an effective method and strategy for the research.

Finally, some recommendations are made for a systematic and systemic approach,

proposing an action-learning methodology, based on a vast bibliography and

experience to favor learning and interchange of knowledge processes. Suchapproach is proposed as a method to favor the inclusion of the perspectives and

knowledge of community social investments stakeholders, for the strengthening of

a CF movement in Brazil.

Acknowledgments

It is important to acknowledge The Kellogg Foundation who supported me with a

grant to attend the 2008 Senior International Fellowship of the Center on

Philanthropy and Civil Society. It is imperative to acknowledge the complete team

of the CPCS and I would like to refer to the excellent debates led by the director

Kathleen McCarthy and the coordinator of International Fellows Programs, Barbara

Leopold; to Eugene Miller who cooperated with the research, and to Amal

Muhammad and Peter Waldvogel who were so helpful to the fellows team. My

Senior Fellows colleagues, Ekaterina Maksimova; George Varughese, LuAnn Lovlin,

and Sonia Schellino shared with me the challenges and the goodness of an

immersion program: I thank them. I want to show my deepest acknowledgment

and respect for the work developed by the consultants who were part of our

program and for the previous fellows, community foundations, and community

philanthropy and youth programs practioners; mainly the ones who gave the

fellows a tour and lots of valuable information. Among them, Andrs Thompson, theKellogg Foundation Director for the Latin American and Caribbean Region has

contributed to my development and reflections. I want to acknowledge as well the

Brazilian participants of the 2008 CFC- Community Foundations of Canada

Conference, in Montreal, who have accepted my invitation for a special meeting on

community foundation in Brazil. They are: Lucia Dellagnelo, the leader of ICom/

Florianpolis; Tatiana Akabane van Eyll, the IDIS Instituto para o

Desenvolvimento do Investimento Social representative; Cinthia Sento S, the

coordinator of Affinity Groups of GIFE Group of Institutes, Foundations and

Enterprises representative. Last, but not least, I want to thank Willem Rabbeljee,

my husband, who supported me in the research and has become a new community

foundation and community social investment partner.


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It is only when social justice is achieved for all citizens,

that foundations can legitimately focus all their efforts on charity

Emmet Carson

INTRODUCTION

Cleveland, U.S., 1914. A banker, going beyond the limits of his sector, developed a

strategy which would have deep social impact in the future, crossing barriers and

frontiers all around the world. It contained the characteristics of being both strongly

locally aimed at specific communities based in specific territories, as well as being

fluid as a concept, serving a range of diverse historical and social circumstances.

By a mechanism of structuring a community organization with a diverse and

reflective board, by building an endowment and addressing community needs, a

whole movement on community foundations was generated. Legislation in The U.S.

was modified to improve the mechanism and successful cases started to appear.

Community Foundations have been growing ever since in The U.S., Canada and in

many regions of the world, sparking the interest of practitioners and researchers.

Examples of its vitality are showing and present in regions such as Europe, Russia,

South Africa and Latin America2.

What has been so successful and has attracted so much attention for social

cooperation in the world? Being a good vehicle for donors to invest resources

within a sustainable perspective and also a vehicle that looks to address community

needs: what exactly is community foundation?

For Dorothy Reynolds, a Mott Foundation consultant: [community foundation] is a

vehicle for the philanthropy of individuals, corporations and organizations that have

concern for a specific geographic area. It provides leadership in the community it

serves as an effective, independent arena for addressing difficult issues and/or

advocating for needed programs, services or policies.3

As Eleanor Sacks, one of the community foundation global leaders, states: The

community foundation concept is flexible and adaptable, able to meet current needs

and the changing needs of communities over time. It has shown the ability to

adjust not only to local conditions, but to local impact of change from externalsources, such as the ups and downs of economic cycles, the effects of globalization,

the decline of centralized, social welfare programs, and evolving political, cultural

and nonprofit environments. [] The adaptability of the concept makes it possible

for communities to mold it to fit their own circumstances.4

2See List of community foundations around the world, by Dorothy Reynolds, in the recent series: The

Balancing Act, The Roles of a Community Foundation, Edited by Charles Stewart MOTT Foundation,Set. 2008.3REYNOLDS, D., The Balancing Act, The Roles of a Community Foundation, Edited by Charles

Stewart MOTT Foundation, Set. 2008 [Preface].

See: http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspx4FLEURT, S. and SACKS, E. W. In: An International Perspective on the History, Development andCharacteristics of Community Foundations in WALKENHORST, P. [Ed.] Building Philanthropic and
http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspxhttp://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspxhttp://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspx


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For these characteristics and, I believe, because of the strong and true leadership

of its promoters around the world, community foundations have stimulated a

genuine intellectual curiosity in practioners and social leaders.5

Another community foundation global leader, Emmet Carson, referred to this

intellectual curiosity in his speech at the Symposium on a Global Movement forCommunity Foundations in Berlin in 2004. Referring about the relevance of the

decision taken by CF of Canada, to address community foundations by social

justice framework Carson cites: In short, a social justice framework necessarily

involves attention to issues of what, how, and who. The principle of fair and full

distribution of benefits and opportunities requires grantmakers to take into account

the nature of what they are achieving through their actions.6

The approach from Community Foundation of Canada can illustrate how social

justice has been addressed in that country and can inspire other realities around

the world: Powerful economic, social and political forces will be working against

social justice in coming years increasing competition, new patterns of humansettlement and changing roles for government. Yet Canadians have the potential to

address the root causes of injustice through cross-community dialogue and

collaborative action. Together, they can adopt strategies for systemic change for

places, for people and for public policy. Governments will have to be part of the

process and part of the solution to social injustice. But they are not well placed to

lead the charge. The initiative will have to come from civil society []. Charities and

foundations are likely to be the lynch-pins of these civil society efforts to mobilize

citizens to address the big issues [].7

Through the convening approach of Community Foundations of Canada, the

strength of a social justice framework to address social and local developmentrelevant issues is clear. Among these issues, it is possible to identify some of the

main themes of private- and corporate social investment, such as equity for race,

ethnicity and gender, social and intergenerational inclusion.

The main assumption of this paper is that there is a place for a strong community

foundation movement in Brazil; that the already existing community foundation and

community foundation-like organizations in Brazil are carrying the seeds of this

strong movement [adapting the Community Foundation concept for local, regional

and national realities]; and that it should be possible to broadly engage community

leaders and youth leaders in a systematic and systemic way to promote this in the

country. These assumptions are based on the fact that there is real interest in and

Social Capital: The Work of Community Foundations. Bertelsmann Foundation Publishers,

Gtersloh, 2001. [pp15-17].5 An example of the interest of practitioners and academic researchers is the International SeniorFellows Program at CUNY, The Graduate Center, Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society - CPCS, has

attracted fellows from several countries, interested in improving their work as leaders through the

community foundation approach.6CARSON, E. D. The Road Not Yet Traveled: A Community Foundation Movement for Social Justice.

Community Foundations: Symposium on a Global Movement. Berlin, Germany. December, 2004 [p.6]

[Referring to a paper written by the Centre for Voluntary Sector Research and Development for

Community Foundations of Canadas Project: Social Justice Grantmaking-Moving Beyond Traditional

Charitable Roles].7CFC Community Foundations of Canada. Strategies for Social Justice: Place, People and Policy.Prepared for Community Foundations of Canada by Judith Maxwell. September, 2006


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engagement of important third sector leaders in Brazil with the concept of

community foundation and that Brazils third sector movement would benefit from

such a concept, building alternatives to improve social justice issues, like social

inclusion, which is one of the most fundamental gaps in Brazilian culture, and to

which the third sector has aimed its contributions.

ADHERING STRICTLY TO VALUES; ADAPTING TO DIVERSE

REALITIES: creating new circumstances

Andrs Thompson, the Kellogg Foundation Program Director for Latin America and

the Caribbean, asks if the true community foundation would be a viable option in

the different circumstances of Latin America and the Caribbean?By the term: the

true community foundation A. Thompson refers to a kind of organization that has

both a grantmaking capacity and community responsiveness.8

We can assume that the community foundation concept has convened leaders and

organizations around the world because of the "democratic appeal" referring to its

two main approaches, as expressed by Thompson: 1] being based on endowment,

evoking sustainability approaches and being donor-oriented 2] The other being

community-needs focused, evoking values of autonomy and accountability.9

Having analyzed initiatives, originated through partnerships and alliances in Brazil,

to promote local development in specific regions that strengthen community social

investments, Thompson questioned their sustainability and effectiveness after the

end of the project cycle , but affirmed their potential if the diversity of conditions is

considered. As he stated: The clear conclusion is that community foundations arenot a model to be copied and replicated everywhere. Their feasibility depends on

the specific environment in which they are intended to grow and develop and, to

large extent, on the leadership capacity of the pioneer group10.

However, if there is not a model to be replicated, there is a widely stated

concept: Whether in Barcelona or Bombay, community foundations share common

features which is the title of an interview with a Senior Advisor to the Synergos

Institute and to Advisory Committee of the World Bank Community Foundation

Initiative, Shannon St. John.

St. John was asked by The Mott Foundation about what it is in the community

foundation concept that resonates so well with people whether they are in

Rustenburg, South Africa, Togliatti, Russia or London, England. St. John answered:

8THOMPSON, A.. Community Foundations in Latin America. Can the Concept be Adapted?. In Focus

on Sustaining Community Philanthropy: Looking for New Models, ALLIANCE, vol.11, number 1, March2006 [pp 41-43] [www.aliancemagazine.org]9THOMPSON, A. Idem, pp- 41-43.

10THOMPSON, A. Idem p. 43 A CPCS Fellow, Fabiana Hernndez-Abreu [researcher of the Local

Development Program, Latin American Center of Human Economy, Uruguay], agrees with Thompsonsproposition. As she declares in her paper for the 2007 CPCS Emerging Leaders International Fellows,Community Foundations: a vehicle to endorse and sustain development processes taking place inColonia Uruguay?: [] it is possible to think that the community foundations concept can be utilizedto endorse local development processes, and to conclude that the feasibility of a community foundationin Colonia [Uruguay] has to be discussed and imagined among Colonias community and localdevelopment stakeholders, by taking into account the novelties this model would bring with it.[p. 3].


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I trace it back to an innate human characteristic, which is the philanthropic

impulse. [] What is fascinating about the Community Foundation form is that

there are a number of institutions in places as diverse as Barcelona and Bombay

that have grown up with the characteristics of community foundations such as

people within a community giving to either a common pool or to individually-named

funds. Also, its people giving to an organization that is governed by a group of people reflective of that geographic area that gives for the benefit of that

community. But these organizations I am talking about have never heard the words

community foundation. They never heard about this thing started in Cleveland,

Ohio, in 1914 until someone comes along and says, Oh, you are a community

foundation. But that wasnt how hey started. It happens whether or not people call

it a community foundation.11

The democratic approach of community foundations directs the debate to a widely

considered, relevant factor: the reflectiveness of the board and the values

approach.

Using what we have, to get what we need are the convening words of Linetta

Gilbert, the Senior Program Officer of Ford Foundation for the area Community and

Resource Development. She was referring to the Alabama Black Belt Community

Foundation serving the poor rural area of the state.

As Gilbert states: [] Two years later, and with much struggle to respect and

embrace the potential and actual contributions of the whole community, an excited

and engaged foundation exists. Its board has African American and White leaders,

young and retired workers, a university administrator, a local blues singer, civil

right activists, elected officials, civic and corporate leaders. Their goals are to

improve educational and economic opportunities in the 11-county area to ensure anequitable community on the long term. Everyone is encouraged to g ive []. The

question we, as leaders of philanthropic institutions, have the courage to ask is: Do

we have the courage and vision to be the glue that brings diverse people together

to work towards their shared aspirations for equity, rather than a glue that keeps

far too many people stuck in conditions that deny their dignity and deprive them

opportunity and hope?12

11See St. John interview with Mott Communications Officer Maggie Jaruze at the Charles Stewart Mott

Foundation. http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/sstjohn.aspx. August 200812

GILBERT. L. Are we the right sort of glue? in Focus on Sustaining Community Philanthropy: Looking

for New Models, ALLIANCE, vol.11, number 1, March 2006 [pp 31-32] [www.aliancemagazine.org].

Linetta Gilbert, in a debate with the 2008 CPCS Senior Fellows, stated: It is important support

institutions that are value based. Strategies can change, but not the values.

Still according to the Boards and their roles in keeping alive the values of an organization, a community

foundation in Mexico FES, Fondo de Estrategia Social, led by Marcela de Rovsar, developed a 4 step

model based on a mix between a community foundation and a social venture programme where the

board members have a strong participation in the development processes of projects and are educated

for their board responsibilities. In: ROVSAR, M. O. in Focus on Sustaining Community Philanthropy:

Looking for New Models, ALLIANCE, vol.11, number 1, March 2006 [pp 31-32]

[www.aliancemagazine.org] and in her presentation for the 2008 CPCS Senior Fellows.
http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/sstjohn.aspxhttp://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/sstjohn.aspx


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COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONS AND COMMUNITY SOCIAL

INVESTMENTS IN BRAZIL: opportunities

WINGS 2008 Global Report for Community Foundations13 lists at least three

separate organizations in Brazil that are promoting community philanthropy

through community foundations and/or community foundation-like organizations.They are:

Instituto Rio, established in 1995, being the first formal investment in the theme in

Brazil, started with the technical support of Synergos and a grant from Ford

Foundation and Avina Foundation14. In 2002, with the support of the Inter-

American Foundation and with the participation of a family and their company [Vera

Pacheco Jordo e Geraldo Jordo, and their company, Editora Sextante], Instituto

Rio raised around 1 million dollars and developed an endowment worth around

US$175,000. Instituto Rio has widely integrated with its in Rio de Janeiro, by

supporting projects, intermediating actions and capacity-building for organizations

in the west zone, with a view to becoming an effective bridge to socialinvestment.15 Operating close to the pure concept, has the challenge to raise

more than $19 million to be sustainable as a community foundation using only a

percentage of its endowment. The Inter-American Foundation, WINGS, Global Fund

for Community Foundations and Fundazione Zegna [Italy] are mainly supporting

the growth of Instituto Rio as a community foundation.

ICom Instituto Comunitrio Grande Florianpolis, in Santa Catarina, has proved

to be a successful adaptation of the community foundation-concept. Established in

2005, it started operating its public activities in 200616 and has attracted resources

from global partners [Avina Foundation, Kellogg Foundation], but also local, from

companies, families and individuals. ICom integrates diverse social actors in itsprograms, having created a Board of Investors. They developed two major

activities: a Community Social Investment Fund, which raises funds from local

funders to support social entrepreneurship among youth [with the technical support

of Ashoka]; and Projeto Fortalecer, to provide technical support to local NGO

leaders. ICom also developed a methodology launched in 2001 by Community

Foundations of Canada [Toronto Community Foundation] called Vital Signs17.

According to the WINGS 2008 Community Foundation Global Status Report,

Endowment funds are a new concept in Brazil and many donors still resist the idea

of immobilizing resources in face of pressing social needs. ICom is working to

introduce the concept of sustainability, and demonstrate the need for long term

13WINGS Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support. 2008 Community Foundation Global

Status Report., September 2008. Researched and written by: Eleanor W. Sacks.14www.institutorio.org.br

15WINGS Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support, Idem, p.82.

16www.icomfloripa.org.br

17Vital Signs methodology has a high potential to raise significant data referred to community local

development, to share the information with community integrating all sectors, including localgovernment and generating a positive relation with community. ICom launched its first Vital Signsreport: Sinais Vitais, Florianpolis. Check-up Anual da Cidade, Relatrio 2007 and it is the firsttime a report like this is developed for a Brazilian city. For more information about Vital Signs see:www.vitalsignscanada.ca; www.icomfloripa.org.br.
http://www.institutorio.org.br/http://www.institutorio.org.br/http://www.institutorio.org.br/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.cfc-fcc.ca/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.cfc-fcc.ca/http://www.icomfloripa.org.br/http://www.institutorio.org.br/


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social investment through different strategies18. A Permanent Fund has reached,

by now, the amount of US$ 13,823 or 4.05% of the total income in 2007.

IDIS Institute for the Development of Social Investment19 which, since 1999,

started to develop a Community Philanthropy Organization [CPO] with the support

of Kellogg Foundation and the Inter-American Foundation. A CPO does not makegrants itself but establishes social nets to identify community priorities and acts as

a broker and catalyst for bringing together community and individual resources in

conjunction with government money to tackle priority needs in their communities.

Although, according to the community foundation Global Report, IDIS, through its

main leader, Marcos Kisil, has identified in a research paper that the potential for

the development of community foundations has increased greatly in Brazil, IDIS

believes that a more supportive environment for philanthropy could be brought

about by studies and research which demonstrate the primary importance of

individual giving for community needs. Also, lobbying in the Congress for

community foundation-type organizations is a must20.

The 2008 WINGS Global Report recognizes that interest in community foundations

has been growing for some time in Brazil. Besides the structured cases mentioned

in the report and, certainly, at least two more initial experiences among others, are

already starting and/or are contributing to the community foundation debate in

Brazil:

Fundao Tide Setubal, a family-foundation led by Maria Alice Setubal, which

develops projects in the region of So Miguel in the East Zone of So Paulo,

engaging the surrounding community directly and actively. The objective is to

contribute to local development in a sustainable way, through the strengthening of

institutions and the empowerment of community21

.

Fundao Comunitria Baixada Maranhense22, an organization generated by an

integrated pool of projects coordinated by the social organization CIP Jovem

Cidado Formao, Centro de Apoio Educao Bsica, in Northeast Brazil. Led

by Regina Cabral, it is developing a plan, with strategic support from Kellogg

Foundation, to, among other objectives, support productive small projects and to

strengthen their capacity to generate social development, through two kinds of

funds: a permanent community fund and a fund to support projects. The group is

presently organizing a seminar to generate a debate about community foundation

and the possibilities as well as juridical constraints for the legal bases for Instituto

Comunitrio Baixada Maranhense.

Other experiences could be mentioned, in this case agreeing with Shannon St.

John, as previously mentioned, that they would not be formally recognized as a


Status Report., September 2008. p.90.19www.idis.org.br


Status Report., September 2008 p.95. To find out more about individual donors and philanthropicattitudes of individuals in Brazil, see: SCHLITHLER, C.; KISIL, M.; OTANI CORREIA, T.Descobrindoo Investidor Social Local. IDIS Instituto para o Desenvolvimento do Investimento Social, SP,2008.21

Fundao Tide Setbal. Relatrio de Atividades 2007 Participao Comunitria eQualidade de Vida. Atuao da Fundao Tide Setbal. www.fundacaotidesetubal.org.br.22www.formacao.org.br
http://www.fundacaotidesetubal.org.br/http://www.fundacaotidesetubal.org.br/


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The main action by the So Mateus Social Responsibility Network, in 2007, was the

planning and production of FOCO - Annual Fair of Opportunities and Connections for

Youth. Among its local partners, there are: business organizations: Rotary and CDL

- Clube dos Lojistas [Shop owners Club]; companies: SOS, IBRAM, G Assessoria;

government: Municipal District Office; State Secretariat of Social Assistance and

Development; State Secretariat of Work; State Coordination of Youth; SENAI(National Service of Industrial Education); SEBRAE (Brazilian Micro and Small

Business Support Service); coordinators and youngsters from the social

organizations: Ao Comunitria, Ao Social, Associao Pe. Moreira, Centro

Social, Obra Social, Sociedade Instrues e Socorros, Bloco Amizade, Cemais; and

ACJ-United Way Brasil.

One of the manifestations of the community leadership of the group can be

recognized by the words of one of the So Mateus group, Flariston Francisco da

Silva: Every social, educational, corporate investment or public action should be

concerned in generating human, social or economic development, with

environmental protection, generating autonomy and eliminating dependence. Wehave to appreciate and learn how to work with the concept of integrated and

sustainable local development, where every citizen and every community is called,

encouraged, motivated and qualified to identify their main problems and potentials,

and plan, initiating change processes optimizing what is at hand and consolidating

partnerships.24

The So Mateus group will have to work, however, to establish a structured base if

they wish to start a community foundation or want to become a community social

investment fund aimed at local development. Some of their structure can be

represented by the critical factors for the success of a community foundation that

were identified by Kathleen McCarthy25: 1] entrepreneurial director(s); 2] donorsto tide the institution over its early years; 3] a local giving base; 4] projects that

resonate with the community; 5] an existing culture of philanthropy [or community

social investment]; 6] backstopping resources [umbrella organizations]; 7] buy-in

from constituents; 8] participation of associations like Rotary clubs and Chambers

of Commerce to broaden its base of supporters.

Some of these critical factors the So Mateus Group already has, or are

potentially present there, but they should indeed be considered in its complexity by

the group.

I believe that UNAS and So Mateus group carry the seed of a communityfoundation. In previous discussions among their leaders, they also would like to

learn more about how to improve their knowledge about community investments

and building autonomy and sustainability for their community and youth projects.

The references to these grassroots experiences have the objective to exemplify

both WINGS and Shannon St. Johns statement about the vitality of the concept

24 ACJ-United Way Brazil 2007 Annual Report, coordinated by Jaqueline de Camargo,

Superintendent of Projects.25 Kathleen McCarthy is the Director of CPCS Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at TheGraduate Center, CUNY. The mentioned critical factors were listed by her during a learning sessionwith the 2008 Senior Fellows.


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around the world and, in this case, in Brazil, as maybe several practitioners and

social entrepreneurs can recognize.

LEARNING TOGETHER

In June 2008, there was a meeting at ICom, Florianpolis, with a global

representation of community foundations. Besides IComs staff and board

members, there were present: the GIFE General Secretary and Chair of WINGS,

Fernando Rossetti and the Coordinator of Affinity Groups of GIFE, Cinthia Sento S;

the group connected to Fundao Comunitria Baixada Maranhense; the main

leader of IDIS, Marcos Kisil; the Executive Director of Mexican Community

Foundation Frontera Norte, Karen Yarza.

The central presence of Monica Patten, Director of Community Foundations of

Canada was quite helpful to the community foundation debate in Brazil: besides

being a convener for the agenda of community foundations and social communityinvestments, she strongly agreed with the proposition that there was a need to

work collaboratively, thus improving contexts where there is still no established

culture of philanthropy aimed at community strategic investments.

Another meeting was meaningful for the purpose of this paper. In the context of my

learning process at the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society of the CUNY

Graduate Center Senior Fellowship and as a Kellogg grantee, during the CFC 2008

Conference in Montreal in November 2008, I invited the attending group of the

Brazilian representatives to meet on this topic. In this meeting, 4 persons were

present: representing ICom [Lucia Dellagnelo]; IDIS [Tatiana Akabane van Eyll];

GIFE [Cinthia Sento S, the coordinator of the Affinity Groups]; and myself. There

was a good understanding among the group about how to strengthen the concept

of community foundations and community philanthropy in Brazil. Lucia Dellagnelo

spoke about her efforts to leverage community foundation concepts in our country,

with the support of Global Fund. She shared with the group the importance of an

approach on how to better explore and create a culture of giving in Brazil,

considering mainly the legal constraints and lack of support via tax incentives in

this area . All persons gathered recognized the present moment as important for

Brazil with reference to community social investments and how strategic it would be

for an organization in the country to be the base for a systematic approach to a

dialogue in the country.

In this case I would like to present a successful and possibly inspirational case

given by Barbara Leopold26 during her orientation for the CPCS Program to identify

successful cases of the implementation of a systematic dialogue for the

strengthening of the concept of community foundation and focusing on the

following question:

How to contribute to a more systematic and systemic dialogue about community

foundation in Brazil, as circumscribed in the equation: social investment and social

26 Barbara Leopold is the coordinator of the CPCS Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society

International Fellows Programs.


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justice? How to improve a collective and shared learning about community

foundations and community social investment in Brazil?

The model case is illustrated by TUSEV [Third Sector Foundation of Turkey]. A

seminar was organized by them in 2006 with the following objectives: [1] Discuss

the viability of the community foundation practice and its adaptation in the Turkishcontext [2] Introduce the community foundation practice and its various

applications across the world.

It was a one-day Seminar, with one-to-one approaches taking place before the

Seminar. They invited 70 national and international participants from every sector.

The following are the aspects considered at the debate: governance for

transparency and accountability; standards and criteria for allocating funds to

NGOs; gaining the trust from donors; tax incentives and legal structures; locality:

national or local?; how community foundations can make funds more accessible to

NGOs?; competition for donors?; in what ways are community foundations different

from or similar to existing practices?

TUSEV Seminar Recommendations can be summarized as follows: learning by

doing [Ellis Center]; pilot program [World Bank] in a place with good balance of

wealth and a good degree of right partners; clarifying legitimacy and taxation

[Synergos];not preventing innovations, clarification on principles and values, and

having a similar meeting in prospect locations for community foundations [Mott];

community foundation for community development [UNDP Turkey]; community

foundation as a mechanism one gives through and not gives to [T. Philanthropic

Fund and PwC Turkey]; look at existing community level organizations [CAF

Russia]; local commitment as a crucial factor [WINGS].

It is relevant to highlight the fact that one year after the seminar promoted by

TUSEV, a community foundation was established and registered in Turkey27.

BEING BROADLY INCLUSIVE AND REFLECTIVE: challenges and

opportunities

As it has been explored by community foundation literature, and by this paper, one

of the pillars of the community foundation concept is the autonomy of communities

[since an endowment is built using a communitys own resources/management].

The obvious advantage to supporting the autonomy of the social groups which are

leading and engaged in the promotion of the betterment of community, is that

other sources of financial resources do not always stimulate autonomy, these,

being, many times more connected to the donors point of view than to the

community perspective.

However, the issue building autonomy by building an endowment will have to

be adapted to cultural and legal frameworks, since in countries like Brazil there are

no relevant and well-structured tax incentives, making it difficult to raise money for

social purposes and for social strategic goals. It is imperative that umbrella

27 TUSEV. Community Foundations and Turkey: Summary of Conference and Working Group . 6-7

October 2006, Istanbul, Turkey.


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organizations seeking to strengthen community foundations start a coordinated

effort to influence the legal framework.

In addition to the challenges of building sustainability and autonomy through the

constitution of endowments, the issue of being inclusive is a challenge as well. I

would like, also, to refer to important actors who should be considered and includedin the consultations and convening processes about community foundations in

Brazil.

Grass-roots leaders, as previously mentioned, and youth representatives have been

much more the receivers of investments, than partners in social change. In the

case of youth, there is a tendency for private social investments in Brazil to support

projects for them to start an early productive life, providing them with skills to

enter the work market. However, it is even more important that policies on youth,

such as those supported by the World Bank, be directed to expanding

opportunities for developing the human capital of youngsters and their capacities as

decision-making agents, and also offer second chances to manage consequences ofbad outcomes that occur early in life28.

Youth should be more seriously considered by social private investments and social

community investments as a source of social change.

It is important to mention that in Brazil a few organizations already have

incorporated this approach. Some Initiatives aimed at youth and social

entrepreneurship, like Ashoka [GMM] and IYF - International Youth Foundation

[IAM], for example, have been supporting projects to empower and include youth

as social change makers. These also include initiatives of GIFE members, which

have invested in youth, and their participation in the GIFE Affinity Group on youth

[GAJ]. Part of this group is represented by Institutes and other GIFE associated

members who have been developing relevant work in Brazil with youth as a field of

social investment and social development.

GIFE/GAJ has a seat on the Second National Youth Council (CONJUVE). Its

representative, Rui Mesquita Cordeiro, comes from the activist and intellectual

youth movement and he is Program Associate for Latin America and the Caribbean

Region at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

Two examples will illustrate for Brazil, and for community foundations globally, the

opportunity for youth to be seriously engaged as actors who are part of the

solution of social problems and are included in decision-making processes.

First of all, it is important to mention the place and space youth occupied at the

2008 Community Foundations of Canada Conference29. Their presence was

amazing, not only as artists, singers and dancers, but also as being part of the

invited reflectors during this 3-day conference. But what particularly demonstrates

the effectiveness of their presence at the Community Foundations of Canada

28World Development Report 2007: Development and the Next Generation, World Bank.2006.

29CFC Community Foundations of Canada 2008 Conference. November 7-9, Montreal, CA.


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Conference, were some sessions driven by youth and the presentation of a project

with strong presence of youngsters in its development in Vancouver 30.

There are several references about the engagement of youth in community

foundation literature. The Mott Foundation publication, The Balancing Act, highlights

the issue:

A worldwide movement is developing that may help ensure the future of effective

grantmaking involvement of young people as decionmakers and, in some cases,

fundraisers. The Youth in Philanthropy movement in the U.S. in the YouthBank

Programs that are emerging in Northern Ireland, Russia and Bosnia, give raise to

the hope that future generations will be sophisticated and effective grantmakers.

The Mozaik Community Foundation in Sarajevo, Bosnia, has teamed with the

Community Foundation for Northern Ireland [CFNI] to scale up development of

YouthBanks in that country. Mozaik has secured local support from five municipal

governments for the local YouthBanks, and more than 50 young people are being

trained as grantmakers. Prior to this project, CFNI worked with the Community

Foundation Tuzla [also in Bosnia] to establish a successful YouthBank in that city.

Not only are young people becoming involved in philanthropy, but also they are

ahead of most of their elders in terms of their global interests.

Exchanges between YouthBank in Russia and Northern Ireland have taken place,

as have exchanges between the Youth Advisory Committee in Berks County,

Pennsylvania, and Togliatti, Russia.

This is but the beginning of the international movement of Youth in Philanthropy

and bodes well for its future31

.

Through his work together with members of the youth movement, Rui Mesquita

Cordeiro demonstrates that youth actually wants to take more part in the

discussion spaces and political debate in Brazil, and moreover, wants to discuss

public policy not only for the youth, but also policy aimed at the Brazilian society as

a whole32.

Referring to his responsibility of having been recently (April 23, 2008) chosen to

represent the group de Afinidade de Juventude (Youth Affinity Group) (GAJ) of the

group de Institutos, Fundaes e Empresas (Group of Institutes, Foundations and

Company) (GIFE), at Conselho Nacional de Juventude (Counselor in the Second

30 For more information, see: Youth Vital Signs [www.youthvitalsigns.ca]. Youth Vital Signs is a

youth-driven project, that gives fresh voice to the experience and knowledge of Vancouver youth aged

15-24. In: Vancouvers Youth Report Card, presented during a specific CFC Conference Youth

Session, coordinated by Barbara McMillan, the Director of Regional Strategies for Community

Foundations of Canada. According to this project it looked like clear that there is a potential to address

social justice issues and to favor inter-sector and inter-generational partnership for local

development.31REYNOLDS, D., The Balancing Act, The Roles of a Community Foundation, Edited by Charles

Stewart MOTT Foundation, Set. 2008 [Highlights].See: http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspx32 MESQUITA, R.C. Political Impressions about the 1st Participatory Youth Conference for PublicPolicies in Brazil In: http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/
http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspxhttp://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspxhttp://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://ruimesquita.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/political-impressions-about-the-1st-participatory-youth-conference-for-public-policies-in-brazil/http://www.mott.org/recentnews/news/2008/monographseries.aspx


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National Youth Counsel) (CONJUVE) Rui Cordeiro lists the voted priorities which

clearly show the potential connection between youth and social justice movements.

Since CONJUVE does not reflect a specific geographic area, but the whole nation, it

is made up of meaningful communities that reflect, if not geography, communities

of identities. The purpose of referring to this movement here is to indicate thevitality of a segment of population which represents almost 50 million persons

(between the ages of 15 and 30) who should be increasingly included in decision-

making processes.

With 634 votes, racial equality was number 1 among all the priorities at the 2008

Youth National Conference. The most important discussion-points in such

meeting[s] were related to strengthening of racial justice policies for new black

youth generations. [..] The message is clear: let us all open our eyes to the theme

of Racial Justice!

[] Similarly, but not less importantly than such 22 top priorities, another cross

theme that is more connected to the Legislative Power than to the Executive Power

echoed unanimously in all the National Conference, and among all the different

youth groups: that the National Congress should discuss and approve the Proposal

for Constitutional Amendment 138/03, also known as the Youth PEC. [My

comment: This project has been recently approved in its first phase].

[] After all, young people do not only want to voice their opinions on public

policies relating just to young people, but also on those relating to society as a

whole. And the reason for this lies precisely in the fact that the current

generations of young people are not merely inheriting from the previous generation

the problems and a responsibility of policies for young people, or for society as a

whole, since the new generation always completely takes on the role of the

previous one, and not just sections of it33.

Approaches which will build bridges among the sectors, generations and diverse

social groups could really bring some answers the country [and Social Responsibility

Movement] are looking for, to overcome some of its greatest challenges of being

one of the most unequal countries in the world: rich in natural resources, a growing

economy, but with race and gender deficits clearly reflected in the most important

indices such as education, health and distribution of wealth.

33MESQUITA, R.C. Idem.


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ACTION-LEARNING PROCESSES: ways to make it happen;

some recommendations

Finally, considering the previous analysis of the TUSEV case, following the

recommendations and main tendencies already in process to implement the concept

of community foundations in Brazil and integrating some of my previousexperiences, I can identify four potential steps that refer to a methodology that has

been successfully used to favor learning processes among persons and

organizations in development contexts34.

The methodological steps reflect, in the context of this paper, a technical approach

to the three main assumptions the paper underscores: [1] there is a place for a

community foundation movement in Brazil; [2] the already existing community

foundations and community foundation-like organizations [or community social

investments] in Brazil are carrying the seeds of this strong movement, adapting

the community foundation concept for local, regional and national realities; and

34This methodology was applied by Instituto Fonte and Nucleo Maturi in the context of workshops to

promote Interchange of Knowledge among social organizations in the Program organized by ACJ-

United Way in Brazil. It reflects the Action-Learning process, according to the CDRA Centre for

Developmental Practice [www.cdra.org.za]. The diagram indicated was selected from: Action Learning, aDevelopmental Approach to Change. Adapted from Action Learning for Development: use your

experience to improve your effectiveness, byJames Taylor, Dirk Marais and Allan Kaplan.


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[3] it is important, as we move forward, to broadly engage, in a systematic and

systemic way, community leaders and youth leaders to promote the concept in the

country.

It is evident for any social manager that there is not only one way to reach a good

or expected result. The recommendation of the action learning methodology tostructure a systematic process to implement the concept of community foundation

in Brazil comes from some previous successful experiences with learning processes

that I have had the opportunity to organize35.

This methodology has permitted me to contribute to learning processes that include

the perspectives and knowledge of persons, who are not only part of the

leadership, but also the persons who are simply beneficiaries of or general

stakeholders in the projects. Because stakeholders at all levels are heard and

engaged in the decision making processes, contributions to the final solutions are

equally systemic and effective.

In practical and concrete terms, the recommendations of this paper, following the

4-step action-learning methodology, are:

[1] Action [Demand for Social Justice and community social investment]: Which

significant things are already in place /concretized such as, important community

foundation initiatives that have started and have connected global, offering space

to new experiences to emerge as part of solution for the demand for social justice?

The community foundation and community foundation-like experiences in Brazil

already operating and the ones which are starting up should be better known by

Third Sector community. Both GIFE and ICom meetings which reunited national and

global organizations and leaders in 2008, and the consultation developed by LuciaDellagnelo, ICom leader and Global Fund grantee, were important milestones and

reflect a multiregional and diverse scope of experiences in Brazil. The dissemination

of their proposals, involving youth groups and perspectives, by means of articles,

documents and communications will be highly fruitful, making clear to the third

sector community, the connection among these experiences and of all of them to

the two most relevant bases in the concept of community foundation: social justice

and social local development.

[2] Reflection [Social entrepreneur immersion; youth social-entrepreneurs

engagement; peer learning and knowledge exchange; affinity groups]. Umbrella-

organizations like GIFE which connect private social investors and is affiliated toWINGS; foundations and agencies which fund and support community foundations

and community social investment initiatives like Kellogg Foundation; Synergos;

Avina; Ford Foundation; Mott Foundation and World Bank through Global

Fund/WINGS; organizations that catalyze others, such as IDIS; community

foundation and community foundation-like organizations and, starting community

foundation- and community social investments initiatives, such as the previously

mentioned [Instituto Comunitrio Baixada Maranhense, supported by Kellogg

Foundation; and Fundao Tide Setubal]. Community foundation centers aimed at

practioners knowledge, such as the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, an

35I refer to the learning programs I have had the opportunity to develop at MacArthur Foundation and at

ACJ United Way in Brazil


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Affinity Group, for example, could improve mechanisms for working collaboratively

to complement competencies and to improve opportunities in the field.

Some guide questions for this step: Do we know of any other experiences that are

useful here? How are they building trust for potential donors? How and who should

be broadly, but significantly, engaged? What do we share/ have in common, thatcan be implemented and complemented if we were put together? What are the

means to allocate resources? Who, which organizations and/or groups are

potentially connected to our experience? Which of them could better represent and

reflect the movement in Brazil? In what ways are Brazils community foundations

different/similar to existing practices in the sector? What/which contributions do

other significant actors in the field bring to the enterprise of strengthening

community foundation in Brazil? What legal structures could be better focused to

benefit community foundation and community social investments in Brazil in the

future?

3. Learning: [Seminar]: Organizations and connected youth previously engaged inthe process to strengthen community foundation and community foundation-like

movement in Brazil and other organizations, practioners and social entrepreneurs

from countries where community foundations and social justice and local social

development have been a coherent experience, should be part of a seminar. They

should, then, engage other identified relevant actors which eventually would not

been involved yet, as decision makers [like youth and community- based leaders],

in questions such as: what other theories/experiences can help us to deepen these

learning? What kind of community foundation concept should be adapted for

Brazilian social, cultural, economic and legal contexts?

Such a Seminar would much probably look for some consensus about communityfoundations in Brazil.

4. Planning: [Strategic Plan: so, what does it mean in practice? ] Completing the

action-learning cycle, a new group and sub-groups formed after the experience of

social-entrepreneurs immersion; peer learning and interchange of knowledge;

affinity groups and seminar, being reflective on the diversity of third sector

organizations and movements aimed at social justice and social local development,

would develop a strategic action plan.

CONCLUSION

A strategic action plan, developed by a reflective group of representatives of

community foundation and community foundation-like initiatives in Brazil, with the

contribution of global, regional and community social investments leaders, including

youth representatives, will be the guide for a systemic and autonomous process to

improve community foundation concept in Brazil. It will reflect the belief of an

innate human characteristic, which is the philanthropic [or community social

investment] impulse36 , aimed at building community capacity to face the

challenges and the opportunities for social inclusion, with inter-generational, inter-

sector, multi-racial and social development perspectives. This is the main objective

of social leaders, but it also is what companies and corporate social responsibility

might look for and, what governments are about.36See p. 8, the referred statement of Shannon Saint-John.

de camargo isfp2008 final. pdf

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