The global philanthropy community and its response to the Covid-19 crisis
Since our last newsletter, where we shared the impact of Covid-19 as well as our members’ response in China, there has been a worldwide proliferation of the virus. As in the case with China, our members and the philanthropy community has moved with speed and agility in response to the crisis. Given it has impacted every aspect of life in most parts of the world, the response needs to be- and has been multi-pronged. These include emergency grant alignment, sharing of resources, relying on partners and networks and coordinating advocacy efforts in response.
At WINGS we have launched an online resource repository where we have collated a range of responses and resources that our members and partners can share. It can be accessed at the a newly launched resource page at our website. This will be constantly updated and we invite members who may wish to share their resources to send it to Maira Prado at mprado@wingsweb.org
Here, we share some updates on the global philanthropy community’s response to the crisis. This is not an exhaustive list, please refer to the above webpage for more:
Shared Resources & tech support
TechSoup
TechSoup is organizing a COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund to provide organizations with critical flexible funding so they can identify, acquire, and implement the technology and solution offerings available through our NGO Technology Marketplace, which will aid them in managing the impact of COVID-19.
TechSoup’s Chris Worman has shared a list of useful resources in Tech Against Coronavirus. Techsoup’s own website is offering its Covid-19 related course for free [Coronoavirus Mitigation Track]
Donors and Foundations Networks in Europe (DAFNE)
DAFNE has pulled together a very basic open source document (please find the link here) to collect useful information for its members in an easily accessible format.
They have also started using the hashtag #PhilanthropyDoesNotStop to link up all the relevant information referring to COVID-19 and philanthropy, inviting the global philanthropy community to do the same.
Database/Grants Maps
Assifero
In Italy, which has seen a huge casualty in terms of deaths, our member Assifero is partnering with other organizations in a platform that is mapping all the Covid-19 initiatives from the philanthropy and the third sector in the country.
According to Carola Carazzone, General Secretary of Assifero, “The objective of this platform is dual: on the one hand, it pools together and display all private philanthropy initiatives and make them available to the general public, raising awareness and hopefully offering systemic data and maybe sparkling further collaboration”.
Candid
Candid have a free disaster funding map which was created in partnership with the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, which tracks giving to disasters, including coronavirus. They are also running a web page which is tracking and automatically updating the latest funding going to respond to the outbreak, as well as related news, and RFPs:
The Center for Disaster Philanthropy also has several resources that can help funders be effective in their response to this crisis.
(Note from Candid: Candid is tracking the philanthropic response to coronavirus, available free to all at candid.org/coronavirus. If your association is monitoring the response in your region, please consider sharing funding data so that we can collectively build a complete picture. Reach out to Lauren.Bradford@candid.org to explore sharing data)
Council of Foundations
CoF launched a new searchable database that lists COVID-19 foundation funds (in US and globally). It provides easy access to frontline organizations who may be in need of emergency funds. CoF is also leading on a call to action through a pledge (see link below).
Further, CoF is running a series of webinars that will be useful for our network. They have opened several of these to non-members, please check their website for more details
Yishan
Yishan is a data-driven intelligent donor advisor and a member from China. Their mission is to promote transparency and maximizing impacts of grants. They built a data platform to track the donation flow for coronavirus. And since our report last month, there is some update. Yishan’s platform has collected data from over 34000 grant makers and 4500 public charities fighting for virus in China. The total donation has been over 4 billion USD in the past 2 months. They are now in the process of working on the data analysis of the donor strategy and how the charities spend the money.
China Foundation Center
The CFC’s real-time disclosure platform (in Chinese) has attracted great attention from the public and has won recognition in and outside the philanthropy circle. They continue to have updated information. In order to provide a more intuitive interface, they are also working on improvements and have added a real-time update map of charities in different provinces accepting donations and/or expenditures for the epidemic situation.
GIFE
GIFE is working to create a website to bring together information about how the philanthropic sector is dealing with this crisis and responding to Covid emergency in Brazil.
The site will contain: (1) the actions that their associates – more than 160 organizations – are carrying out, (2) funds and campaigns that are being created – by donors and civil society – to respond to the main needs in health, education, social assistance (food, cleaning kits, basic income, productive inclusion), (3) a selection of main news related to the philanthropic response and (4) international tools and information. At the same time we are building a space of articulation and fund coordination. They have also created a document with guidelines for philanthropy and social investment actions to respond to the COVID-19 crisis (the English version is available here).
Emergency Funds
IDIS
IDIS (Instituto for the Development of Social Investment), CAF (Charities Aid Foundation) representative in Brazil, has led the creation of an easy, fast and trustable instrument for Brazilian philanthropists engage in donating to strengthening the public health system in the country.
With relevant partners in the field of philanthropy, Movimento Bem Maior (founded by 3 great Brazilian philanthropists, including Elie Horn, the only Brazilian member of the Giving Pledge) and BSocial, a prominent local giving platform, the ‘Fundo Emergencial para a Saúde – Coronavírus Brasil’ (Emergency Health Fund – Coronavirus Brazil) was launched with great success. Link . The fund will count with a Medical Technical Committee to support the decision on the most strategic grants.
Pledges and Call to action initiatives
- CIVICUS published an Open Letter to ask the donor community to reinforce its support and commitment to enabling maximum flexibility for the work of civil society partners during this crisis.The group calls on all donors and intermediaries providing essential support for civil society to offer as much flexibility, certainty, and stability towards grantees and partners as possible.
- A Pledge -spearheaded by the Ford Foundation, informed by conversations with the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project and in partnership with the Council on Foundations—is a call to action to philanthropies everywhere to address the unanticipated effects of this global crisis as its social and economic implications unfold, so grantees can move quickly to serve the communities most impacted.
- CAF is part of Transnational Giving Europe (TGE) – a network of 21 locally led infrastructure organizations working together to encourage and facilitate the flow of tax effective cross border giving across Europe. Led by the Swiss Philanthropy Foundation as the TGE representative, they are working with the UN Foundation and World Health Organisation (WHO) to collect funds that will be used by WHO to provide assistance around the world. CAF America is also collaborating with in-country charity partners to provide expedited grants to organizations responding on the frontline across affected countries.
- Elsewhere and all over the world, regional networks and funders have also initiated pledges and calls for actions. In the UK, the London Funders have called for flexibility in their grant giving and announced new emergency support funds.
- Foundations 20 (F20), has supported an open letter from a small group of philanthropists and representatives of foundations mainly from Germany underlining their support for the European Green Deal but also requesting that upcoming EU stimulus packages responding to the global Corona crisis are closely aligned with the spirit and the goals of the Green Deal.
- IDIS and its partners, supported by GIFE(Brazilian Foundations Association) and Synergos (global philanthropic platform) are publishing an open letter to engage Brazilian philanthropists and the society to donate to supporting the Brazilian public health system, through the fund or other channels.
(WINGS, in consultation with key members and regional networks, will take up calls to action at the global level and draft response in support of key funders’ messages and advocacy for the philanthropic sector).
Survey
- CAF Russia has just undertaken polling (Survey– in Russian)to better understand how civil society organisations are being affected by this crisis, how their sustainability will be impacted and the support that will be needed from funders (results in English to be shared later this week), whilst they have found that British people are digging deep to find ways to help others during the crisis – by volunteering, donating food and continuing to give money to charities. CAF’s recent research series in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and South Africa identified the high levels of generosity that exists in communities with the middle class giving approximately a third of their income to individuals and charities.
- European Foundation Centre (EFC) has sent a survey to its members to gather insights and allow for sharing on how they are coping in the face of the crisis.
(WINGS will follow suit, along the lines of EFC’s survey to its members. In the spirit of collaboration and efficiency, they have kindly allowed us to use their template).
Alliance Magazine
- Our media partner Alliance Magazinehas a dedicated section on Covid-19. It hosts key thought leadership pieces and updates from around the world in the evolving crisis situation.
This blog was compiled by the WINGS Team. This will be constantly updated and we invite members who may wish to share their resources to send it to Maira Prado at mprado@wingsweb.org
