Community philanthropy to strengthen links from the local level

On 14 June at 15:30 we talked about the potential of community foundations to generate small philanthropy networks that empower people and organisations at the local level.

What was the session like?

Community foundations are non-profit organisations whose purpose is to strengthen and articulate society in those territories where they work -localities, counties, small cities or neighbourhoods-, channelling resources and competences to solve needs and initiatives of common interest to their population. The Spanish Association of Foundations (AEF), which currently has more than 900 associated foundations, has been the main precursor of community foundations in Spain.

The first community foundation was born more than 100 years ago in Cleveland, Ohio. Since then, foundations have adapted to very different contexts and times, and today they are quite widespread in Europe (there are currently some 850, according to research by the European Community Foundation Initiative). Rosa Gallego defined the main characteristics that distinguish a community foundation: their specific geographical scope of work (neighbourhoods, cities, counties, etc.) and the great diversity of issues they deal with and that affect communities. In addition, they offer greater incentives for donors: they help them to carry out their contribution, to make contact with each other…

In Mexico, Community Foundations have been transforming people’s lives and the way philanthropy is done for more than 10 years. There are a total of 17 foundations in 16 states in the country, dedicated to a wide range of issues. ‘A community foundation is an enabler of local philanthropy: it allows us to move from a philanthropy of exchange and resources to a philanthropy that enables structural changes,’ said Agustín Landa. In the face of the lack of protection that civil society organisations often suffer, community foundations allow populations to take control of their future, ‘to be a political force’. ‘Foundations are the space for social innovation that must exist in communities,’ said Agustín. Aligned with global sustainability agendas, these types of foundations ‘are at the forefront of philanthropic trends’.

These foundations, being territory-based, serve as interlocutors between government and civil society. They can strengthen the local fabric, but also attract external funding. In order to promote systemic changes, changing the way philanthropy is done becomes a fundamental axis.