On March 18, our government ordered the closure of public schools, non-profit organizations and other public services that provide essential services to the most vulnerable families in the Greater Florianópolis region, Brazil. Socially vulnerable children, in particular, depended on food offered to them at school or from local non-profit organizations. At the same time, informal workers began to lose their income due to social isolation. It was a wave of losses that highlighted even more clearly how unequal our region is. People in socially vulnerable situations quickly began to feel afraid: not only of the Covid-19 virus, but also the fear of hunger, the fear of not having access to drinking water, the fear of not having an income, etc. On the same day, March 18, community-based organizations, partners of ICOM – Instituto Comunitário Grande Florianópolis, began mobilizing their communities and launching fundraising campaigns to ensure that food reached those most in need.
The importance of our existing “giving infrastructure”
In April 2018, at ICOM, we launched an “Impact Fund for Social Justice”, or “Social Justice Community Fund”: a circle of recurring donations from companies and individuals that, through a participatory process, support organizations in society civil society that work to guarantee human rights and reduce social inequalities in Greater Florianópolis. The fact that we already had this donation infrastructure made a big difference, allowing us to respond quickly. We sent a letter to each member of the giving circle, requesting that the fund be redirected to address urgent needs arising from Covid-19 in our community. There was unanimous agreement that we needed to respond and within one day, March 19th, we had an Emergency Support Line up and running, with a dedicated page on our website where financial donations could be received.
While other groups in Florianópolis later launched online campaigns, on March 19th we were one of the only platforms created and ready to receive funds! In just four days, we raised enough to support one of the community-based organizations, in the Chico Mendes community, which provided assistance to around 100 families (more than 500 people) with food, water, cleaning and hygiene products. At the twenty day mark, we had raised R$ 98,400 from 145 donors (local people and organisations) and a national corporate foundation donated an additional R$ 500,000. With these resources, a participatory donation committee allocated them to 14 CSOs and Social Movements which, in turn, provided necessary supplies for more than 900 families at risk in Florianópolis.
Long term thinking
We also started a new pilot program in cooperation with Banco Palmas: we created a “community bank” that is currently being tested by 77 families and four local businesses in the Serrinha community, a particularly vulnerable community in our region, in addition to the Chico Mendes community. In short, with the money raised through the ICOM Fund, the bank will open an account for at-risk families (who have been identified by community organizations working with us), depositing R$ 200 per month for three months into each family's account. We are calling them “social currencies”, even though the entire operation and management is digital. These “currencies” can be used to buy products only in local stores. This way, families will be able to purchase items according to their needs, while the money remains in the community for a long period of time. We are very proud to be able to promote this new initiative!
The ICOM team meets virtually
The emergency situation arising from Covid-19 and the related socio-economic crises we are facing have made us realize the importance of keeping our community philanthropic organizations strong and resilient. We are not just thinking in financial terms, but also in terms of strong governance systems and an engaged team! This is making all the difference for ICOM as we test new ways of working and acting in this complex and unexplored terrain. In the long term, we may need to acquire different skills, but for now, we are trusting each other, offering everything we have to offer.
Updated numbers
After just over two months of the launch of the Covid-19 Emergency Support Line, 294 people and organizations (more than 90% of them, individuals), sensitive to the deepening of social inequities in Greater Florianópolis, donated through ICOM, aiming to guarantee to people living in vulnerable communities, safe, sufficient and healthy food and hygiene and cleaning items. As a result, ICOM has strengthened its role as a grantmaker, donating around R$ 133 thousand to 24 CSOs, groups and social movements. Together these organizations are benefiting 1,400 families and 6,400 people in the region. In addition to direct financial support to CSOs, 506 families from peripheral communities are receiving an income of R$ 600 each in digital social currencies through the ICOM Community Bank, co-organized with 5 other Civil Society Organizations and Collectives from Florianópolis, in three different territories: Serrinha, Chico Mendes and Monte Cristo. The Community Bank is one of the support strategies for the Covid-19 Emergency Line, which aims to have a long-term impact.
Per: Mariane Maier Nunes, Executive Director of ICOM
To learn more about this work, visit http://coronavirus.icomfloripa.org.br or contact Mariane at marianemn@icomfloripa.org.br
Originally published https://globalfundcommunityfoundations.org/news/covid-19-is-a-social-justice-issue-how-one-brazilian-community-foundation-is-responding/
