By Cristina Orpheo and Joyce Maria Rodrigues
How philanthropy is supporting the fight against the pandemic
The search Covid-19 emergency, carried out by GIFE, presents an analysis of the emergency actions of different organizations in the field of philanthropy and social investment, and reveals that there was a strong response from this sector in building actions to minimize the impacts of the pandemic. Regarding resource allocation, in a group of 98 organizations interviewed, 78% stated that they invested in final initiatives to combat Covid-19. Regarding the amount allocated, the research shows that the sum of 69 organizations resulted in a total value of R$ 2 billion. Compared to the amount invested in other initiatives and in the management of these organizations, this amount is 1.9 times higher.
In this context, community funds and foundations gathered in the Philanthropy Network for Social Justice (RFJS) have also played a strategic role in facilitating the donation of resources. Throughout 2020, Network organizations directly donated an amount of R$ 14,019,120.70 to more than 1,200 civil society initiatives. Indirect donations (basic baskets, hygiene kits and humanitarian aid, in general) total approximately 2.9 million reais, totaling more than 16.9 million reais.
Furthermore, RFJS, through its Support Program, donated an amount of R$ 210,000 to strengthen its members in facing the pandemic through three lines of action: community mobilization and donation and communication, information and production campaigns of knowledge.
As the study shows The role and protagonism of civil society in confronting the covid-19 pandemic in Brazil, although the amount of donations from local funds that make up the RFJS is not comparable to the resources mobilized by large fortunes, the Network's actions were and continue to be strategic in the context of the pandemic due to its ability to react in an agile and assertive way, meeting multiple demands , focusing on political minorities and vulnerable groups.
These data demonstrate that the urgency for responses to the coronavirus pandemic scenario promoted a priority of investments among organizations in the world of philanthropy and social investment in Brazil.
If the unpredictability of a global pandemic explained the shift in priorities and the greater mobilization of resources throughout 2020, a year and a half after its start we realized that the emergencies did not end, but were transformed.
The country finds itself immersed in a scenario of setbacks in guaranteeing human and environmental rights, an increase in the unemployment rate in line with the rising cost of living, which, added to the numerous absences of public policies to minimize the impacts of covid-19, have worsened the living conditions of the most vulnerable population, especially indigenous peoples, quilombolas and other traditional peoples.
Paraphrasing the authors Luiz Antônio Simas and Luiz Rufino, cHow can we combat mortality when it becomes commonplace? If we follow the trails of the answer to the authors' question, we need to exercise the politics of life, the enchantment.
Enchantment as an ability to move through the countless turns of time, invoke spiritualities of battle and healing, strive for community-based politics and education among all beings and ancestors, inscribe everyday life as a rite of reading and writing in different poetic systems and striving for the intelligibility of cycles is a struggle against the paradigm of disenchantment installed here. In other words, enchantment is a political foundation that confronts the limitations of the so-called consciousness of Westernized mentalities. (SIMAS AND RUFINO, 2020, p.8)
Therefore, the current context demands actions aimed at (re)construction, strengthening and mainly recognizing the leading role of community-based and traditional organizations. Unfortunately, we do not see the construction of public policies that are capable of serving these populations for this reconstruction.
We have moved from a moment of humanitarian support to support with more structuring actions, and with it the challenge of philanthropic resources actually reaching the most impacted communities.
Alliance between Funds
In this context, the Alliance between Funds, made up of the Baobá Funds, Brasil de Direito and Casa Socioambiental.
The dialogues and exchanges between these organizations that took place in 2020 to learn about mobilization, coordination, allocation and management of emergency resources during the most critical period of the pandemic resulted in a targeted strategic alliance to support initiatives by traditional communities in the face of impacts caused by covid19.
A Alliance was launched on August 26th and its main objective is to contribute to the autonomy and protagonism of traditional populations, organizations, groups and collectives in construction of solutions for the impacts caused the pandemic through support for projects in three thematic axes; (1) Strengthening resilience, (2) sovereignty and food security (3) defending rights.
The initiative also aims to strengthen the philanthropy ecosystem for racial, social and environmental justice through a strategy of joint action between the Funds, generating learning and reinforcing the importance of collaboration to face emergencies, enhancing support for community groups.
Thus, the Alliance serves as support and bridge for the construction of life policy planted on the banks, capoeiras, sambaquis, quilombos, mangroves, backlands, gameleiras, corners and forests here. The “enchantment” becomes a metaphor, but also a collaborative strategy where the Funds seek to support foundation actions, (re)construction and facing the challenges posed by the pandemic for quilombola communities and indigenous peoples.
The Philanthropy Network for Social Justice was a fertile field for the birth of this Alliance, creating an important space for dialogue at the worst moment of the pandemic in 2020, encouraging creative actions to support grassroots groups for emergency actions to combat Covid19. We believe that the Alliance and the Network can continue on the path to generating learning, especially in the areas of collaborative strategies for mobilizing resources and monitoring and evaluating support for grassroots groups.
Next steps
The Funds that make up the Alliance began launching calls for project support in September, with an initial forecast of 2.5 million reais to support quilombola and indigenous groups. The notice In Defense of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, launched by Fundo Brasil. A Call for Projects to Support Quilombola Communities in Coping with the Impacts Caused by Covid-19, launched by the Casa Socioambiental Fund. And the notice Quilombolas in Defense: Lives, Rights and Justice, launched by the Baobá Fund for Racial Equity.
For 2022, an agenda is being built to strengthen capacities and exchanges between the community groups that will be selected in the notices.
References
Covid-19 Observatory in Quilombos – https://quilombosemcovid19.org/
Covid-19 Emergency Research: gathering data and information on the response of philanthropy and private social investment to combat the pandemic – https://sinapse.gife.org.br/download/pesquisa-emergencia-covid-19-levantamento-de-dados-e-informacoes-da-resposta-da-filantropia-e-do-investimento-social-privado-no-enfrentamento-a-pandemia
The role and protagonism of civil society in confronting the covid-19 pandemic in Brazil – https://www.redefilantropia.org.br/publicacoes/o-papel-e-o-protagonismo-da-sociedade-civil-no-enfrentamento-da-pandemia-da-covid-19-no-brasil%E2%80%89
SIMAS, Luis Antônio and RUFINO, Luis. Enchantment, about the politics of life. Rio de Janeiro. Morula Ed.2020.
Cristina Orpheo is Executive Director of the Casa Socioambiental Fund. She has a degree in Administration, with a postgraduate degree in social project management, third sector and environmental management. He has 20 years of experience in project preparation and management, human resources management, project development, strategic planning and resource mobilization. For the last 10 years he has worked in Grantmaking and supporting grassroots community groups.
