Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change

SESSION REPORT

499

Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change

Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

Participants of Session 499 Fellows

Rania Hamoud

Christom Mkhize

Managing Director, Mansour

CEO, Uthungulu Community

Elie Abouaoun

Foundation for Development, Egypt

Foundation

Africa and Iraq, United States

Hisham Hellyer

Inga Pagava

Institute of Peace, Lebanon

Fellow, The Brookings Institution,

Senior Consultant, CAF Russia,

UK

Russian Federation

Nonresident Senior Fellow, The

C.R. Hibbs

Stephanie Smith

Brookings Institution, Turkey

Visiting Practitioner, Stanford

Consultant, Compton Foundation,

University, USA

USA

Tatjana Hlavata

Lenka Surotchak

Senior Manager, Via Foundation,

Director, Pontis Foundation, Slovak

Robert Fish

Czech Republic

Republic

Associate Drector of

Barbara Ibrahim

Martina Tvrdonova

Director, American University of

Director, WellGiving, Slovak

Louise Hallman

Cairo, USA

Republic

Editor

Rhonda Jones

Mariyan Zumbulev

Sofia Azar

Assistant Professor, North Carolina

Project Director, Central European

Program Intern

Central University, USA

University, Bulgaria

Senior Program Officer North

Hakan Altinay

Myrna Atalla Managing Director, Alfanar, USA

Tariq Cheema CEO, World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists, USA

Mark Freeman Executive Director, Institute for Integrated Transitions, Canada

Neville Gabriel Executive Director, Southern Africa Trust, South Africa

Wairu Kinyori Programme Officer, Kenya

Shelagh Gastrow

Community Development

Executive Director, Inyathelo: The

Foundation, Kenya

SA Institute for Advancement, South Africa

Peter Goldstein

Moukhtar Kocache

Affairs Section, US Embassy in

Independent Consultant, UK

Bratislava, Slovak Republic

Isabella Matambanadzo

InterMedia, USA

Independent Consultant, Zimbabwe

Ingrid Hagen

Stephen McCormick

Director Strategy and Strategic

President, Skillful Means Inc., USA

Anja Mihr

Luma Hamdan

Professor, Utrecht University,

Executive Director, Arab

Germany

Foundations Forum, Jordan

Ivona Frkalova Program Coordinator, Public

Director of Communications,

Funding, Cordaid, USA

Observer

Salzburg Global Seminar Staff Clare Shine Vice President & Chief Program Officer

Nancy Smith Program Director

Ginte Stankevicuite Program Associate

Communications

Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

Introduction What are the best options and strategies for philanthropy – especially foundations and private charitable institutions – to help build and sustain open and more equitable societies, especially during and emerging from socio-political crisis? What lessons have been learned from foundation activity in support of previous democratic transitions? How can those lessons be captured and translated to support current and new efforts in the future?

These were key questions that were taken up in a special forum on “Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change” of the Salzburg Global Seminar, in cooperation with the John D. Gerhart Center for Philanthropy and Civic Engagement at the American University in Cairo (Gerhart Center) and Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT). A diverse range of donors, philanthropy practitioners, and transition experts came together to share experience, deepen the knowledge base, and to help formulate some of the most challenging questions that confront philanthropy in supporting transitions. Their insights have informed a new guide produced by the Gerhart Center and IFIT, “Disproportionate Outcomes in Times of Transition: A Framework Guide for Foundation Grantmaking in the Aftermath of War and Dictatorship”.Additional information on the Salzburg program can be found online: www.SalzburgGlobal.org/go/499

Philanthropy is “like acupuncture.

If we’re good and

put needle in right place, we’re effective.

If not, we just annoy people!

”

Hakan Altinay, Senior Fellow for global economy and development, Brookings Institution Full article:

http://philanthropynews. alliancemagazine. org/philanthropy-asacupuncture-its-all-aboutwhere-you-put-the-needle/

Fellows of Session 499 – Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change

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Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

A Fellow’s Reflection Hisham Hellyer

Non-resident Fellow, Brookings Institution

This seminar took place against a very interesting backdrop – a conference on philanthropy in the Arab world, at a time when so much political and social activity was taking place in the most populous Arab country. Egyptians at the conference were constantly checking news back in Cairo, and the conference itself seemed to constantly refer back to political developments in Egypt. All of that actually provided an opportunity for the seminar – to root more abstract discussions into real life, practical examples that were unfolding on the ground in real time.

Those discussions saw several points come up repeatedly. The first was the need for philanthropic organizations that operated in the region to take into account the regional suspicion of non-indigenous organizations. Over the course of the previous few years, the work of foreign organizations in Egypt in particular, but regionally as well, that dealt with any social or political issue increasingly had to face questions regarding their independence. The accusation that many had to deal with was essentially around their collaboration with ‘foreign agendas’ – for this reason, presumably, opinion polls collected in Egypt in the months after the uprising indicated that the majority of Egyptians opposed the presence of foreign NGOs. When it was presumed that this opposition was aimed at foreign NGOs carrying out political work, more research was done – and even apolitical civil society organizations were considered to be suspicious.

That sense of national pride, however interpreted, was brought up in the seminar often – it relates not only to philanthropic work in the region, but also to institutions and organizations such as the International Monetary Fund. If it were not indigenous, then it would have an automatic question mark over it until it could be proven that all was ‘kosher’.

Another issue that was brought up, relating to the indigenous and authenticity question, related to the ‘securitization’ of philanthropy within the region. The basic assumption being – if we (the West) wish to escape threats to our security, then we should contribute financial muscle to avoid that, by sponsoring individuals, groups and institutions to keep that from happening. That has happened on a local, national, regional and an international level, and leads to more issues with regards to local organizations receiving funding, fearing that they might be part of a broader agenda that they are uncomfortable with.

If it were not “indigenous, then it would have an

automatic question mark over it until it could be proven that all was ‘kosher’.

”

A larger way of looking at this same issue, which also came up quite often in the seminar, related to the quandaries of engaging in the local, but with the knowledge 4

Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

Funding sources “should be purposely diverse, and funds

should be created around specific issues. Impact on the local stage should be demonstrated, so as to engender trust, and ensure that the right people know about that impact, so that they feel valued.

�

Hisham Hellyer speaking at the session

of the international, and how these link to each other. How much local knowledge actually directly feeds into the strategies on the ground, and how much (or the scarcity of it) is actually down to staffing decisions on the ground. This is key, particularly when many local partners begin to feel that if trouble happens in country, the foreign NGO or organization will simply pack up and leave, essentially deserting them in problematic situations (this happened, for example, to the staff at NDI in Egypt). There are safety issues pertaining to people working with existing organizations as members within them, as well as people working with those organizations from within other organizations.

In general, best practice seemed to be, particularly where countries in the region are growingly concerned with sectarianism and polarization, the stimulation of processes that are wide-ranging, enable good process, and actively non-sectarian or partisan. Funding sources should be purposely diverse, and funds should be created around specific issues. Impact on the local stage should be demonstrated, so as to engender trust, and ensure that the right people know about that impact, so that they feel valued.

Faith-based organizations in the region also came up for discussion at this meeting, which have taken on renewed interest from the point of view of international donors. These organizations often operate within their own networks, and nonreligious organizations might be unaware of them, or not have sufficient access in order to pursue further.

5

Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

There was a strong feeling that international donors are not there to solve problems in countries, nor get involved in political changes – if anything, international donors should be there as the last resort. But if they do get involved, then their game place should be to ensure local investment takes over as soon as possible, prioritizing social progress and catalystic change.

Philanthropy “needs to act politically – but not in politics. ”

Philanthropy needs to act politically – but not in politics. In other words, assist in good governance measures, but not from a partisan point of view – they should support new structures, create capacity, but ensure it is not for one group alone to benefit from. They must also consider – is it better to engage with existing NGOs and support them strategically, or get involved directly? One contributor used the idea of acupuncture – if philanthropy is meant to be a catalyst, then it is not a function of size, but similar to sticking a needle in the right place. If not the right place, you may just annoy people uselessly.

Sometimes, there are tensions between local needs, local staff (even if foreign staff), and the foundation/institution that pays the bills. Some staff might try to find imaginative ways of getting around bureaucracy that is simply unhelpful and cannot fulfill the needs of the mission – but they are only able to do that after thoroughly exploring the terrain, developing social capital, and even fighting within the institution. That ought not to be necessary, and more trust given to those in the know on the ground.

This is a key moment in the region’s history, and there is a sense of hope for change.

Philanthropy should capitalize on that hope and sentiment – because it could die quickly. It might be risky, but in order for change to be really effective, there has to be an attempt to engage directly, sooner rather than later; the energy for cataclysm may dissipate soon. In doing this, the networks may have to be widened – diaspora communities can be of great help, especially when many of them are returning to their countries in the region, hoping that change can come. Philanthropic institutions may already have links with them through other networks, and they should be leveraged.

Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, home of Salzburg Global Seminar and venue of session 499

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Philanthropy in Times of Crisis and Transition: Catalyzing Forces of Change Session 499

ABOU T THE REP ORT CONTRIBU TOR:

Hisham Hellyer is a nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution and director of the VC Group, a political advisory and commercial research consortium. Dr. Hellyer was previously Gallup’s first MENAbased senior practice consultant and senior research fellow at the University of Warwick, UK. A United Nations Alliance of Civilizations global expert in Arab politics, pluralism, religion and security issues in the West and the Arab world, Dr. Hellyer was appointed as deputy convener of the United Kingdom taskforce on tackling radicalization and extremism after the 7/7 bombings in London in 2005. He also served as the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s first economic and social research council fellow, within its Islam team and counter-terrorism team.

www.salzburgglobal.org/go/499

Salzburg Global Seminar is grateful to the following donors for their generous support of Session 499 Ford Foundation The F.B. Heron Foundation Additional scholarship support: Capital Group Companies BMWF Oesterreichische Nationalbank Claudio X. Gonzalez This session was developed with input from Arab Foundations Forum, and in cooperation with John D. Gerhart Center for Philanthropy and Civic Engagement at the American University in Cairo, and the Institute for Integrated Transitions.

Salzburg Global Seminar would like to thank the Session speakers for their assistance in developing this program and for generously donating their time and expertise, and to all the participants that contributed their intellectual capital and superior ideas.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTAC T:

Nancy Smith

Ginte Stankevicuite

Clare Shine

Program Director

Program Associate

Vice President and Chief Program Officer

nsmith@salzburgglobal.org

gstankevicuite@salzburgglobal.org

cshine@salzburgglobal.org

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