To find candidates, could we work through the United Nations Volunteers program to disseminate information about the conference and potential scholarships to NGOs? Interested parties could submit their ideas for projects that need entrepreneurial skills and funding, then a committee could select from the applications to provide a diverse range of project types and geographical areas.

The conference then could include breakout sessions to discuss the project ideas, with the scholarship recipients included on the respective panels to provide input and feedback.

Thanks again for your participation in our discussion at SoCap08. I really appreciate your comment here.

Stacey

Thanks so much for your comment! It was great to meet you at both BarCampAfrica and SoCap08 and, of course, via Twitter. I hope your trip to Albania is going well.

I absolutely agree with you that each of us, regardless of race or geography, needs to be involved in the solutions. I also realize that there are many places beyond Africa that need support. As you’ve said, many people across the globe “do not have the tools or the power” to create change in their own countries – which is precisely my point: they should. In fact, as I’m sure you’ve likely seen in your own work, many people in developing countries, like Mama Lucy, are doing what they can to improve their own communities with incredibly limited resources. Efforts should be made to ensure that these entrepreneurs are represented at conferences like SoCap and are part of the fabric of the formation of the budding social capital marketplace. Not only do they have invaluable insights as to where investment would be most helpful, but their life experience within communities of potential impact makes them uniquely qualified to create change in such places.

As “visitors” we can only do so much; change that is led from within a community is, IMHO, potentially the most successful. If we can connect the resources that were in the room with the ideas and passion of people like Mama Lucy who, despite their lack of resources, are creating incredible change anyway, I think that partnership will produce the best possible results.

I think one of the panelists said “collaborate pathologically” – we must. Those collaborations should include not only the wealthy white who have traditionally held power in the marketplace, but people with great ideas from diverse socio-economic backgrounds across the globe.

I really appreciate your insights!
Stacey

At SOCAP08 I just accepted the fact that WHITE PEOPLE were there trying to do the best they could to make connections in support of the work they are doing in Africa or some other region. Even though your work has you concentrating in Africa, it is not the only region in need of support from people like us. It is the most needy of all the world and unfortunately a lot of people within Africa do not have to tools, nor often the power to start something up which can make a difference in their country. African’s have had to deal with leaders who have done their best to subjugate the masses for as long as possible. I read a book about Uganda once and realised that just 108 short years ago, 11 years AFTER my grandfather was born, that Uganda was as undeveloped as a country could possibly be. Kampala has come a long way in 108 years and NGO’s are beginning to take root and actions are beginning to make a difference but a lot of those changes have come because people of all colours from America and Europe saw a need and then used the NGO model to try and make a difference.

I am not disagreeing with what you have said, nor what Mama Lucy has pointed out either. However, things must start somewhere and they often start when a rich country like the USA, England, France, Japan and Norway decide that there is a problem which needs to be fixed and they provide money to do so. I would love it if all those efforts led to an ultimately sustainable solution leaving behind a local NGO to continue with the work, but in most cases once the money dries up the effort does as well.

Anyway, those are my thoughts.

Glenn Strachan