Local Funding for Human Rights

The sub-debate theme of articles explores the strategies that human rights groups around the world are exploring or could possibly explore to obtain local sources of support for their activities.

Read our related articles on:

Funding for human rights and New business models for human rights

Is China the future for hybrid CSO funding models?

By: Shawn Shih-hung Shieh
Español | 简体中文

As foreign funding dries up, Chinese CSOs have quickly adapted and reinvented themselves to mobilize local funding.

What we can learn from feminists who fund themselves

By: Tenzin Dolker
Español | Français

Now more than ever, feminist organizations need to deepen the search for autonomous resourcing models that work for our movements, on our own terms.

Collaborating across movements to fill funding gaps for women in Nepal

By: Pratima Gurung
Español

Groups in Nepal working at the intersections of different issues such as indigenous women with disabilities, are largely invisible to funders—but cross-movement ...

Building communities to boost local fundraising

By: Sadhana Shrestha
Español | नेपाली | Français

Fundraising should never just be about money—it must also be about raising awareness of human rights and social justice.

Fighting misconceptions and logistics to raise funds in Brazil

By: Ana Valéria Araújo & Maíra Junqueira
Português | Español

Logistical issues and lack of awareness among Brazilians have created significant—but not insurmountable—obstacles to fundraising for human rights.

Cross-movement organizing in Mexico leads to new resources

By: Jenny Barry
Español

Feminists and environmentalists are coming together in Mexico to form new partnerships with an emphasis on local resource mobilization.

Migrants are driving innovative campaigns for female refugees in Germany

By: Claudia Bollwinkel
Deutsch

Activists are using a multi-van in Germany to help female refugees cope with violence and harassment.

Local funding is not just an option anymore—it’s an imperative

By: Jenny Hodgson

As local rights groups seek alternative funding sources, the closing space for civil society makes this even more imperative.

Building community around women’s rights: feminist philanthropy in Serbia

By: Zoe Gudovic
Español

Becoming agents of change for women’s rights in Serbian society requires creativity in building connections and solidarity.

Rethinking progressive NGO funding in Israel

By: Hillel Ben-Sasson
Español

Marked as traitors by the dominant Right for relying on foreign aid, Israeli liberal NGOs need a wider base of local donors.

Sustainability through direct dialogue: a Latin American success story

By: Mariela Puga & Luz Aquilante & Natalia Eberbach
Español

Building a culture of giving in Latin America takes creativity, persistence and a willingness to invest in people.

Getting creative with local resource mobilization in Hong Kong

By: Linda To
Français

To get funding amidst intense non-profit competition in Hong Kong, human rights groups must get creative.

Insisting and resisting: women’s funds lead the way for local philanthropy

By: Lucía Carrasco Scherer & Christen Dobson
Español | Français

Women’s funds are gaining increasing recognition at the local and international levels as leading agents of social change.

Mongolia’s economic crisis: an end to corporate social responsibility?

By: Bolor Legjeem

Despite an economic crisis, some Mongolian companies still respond to carefully constructed funding requests.

Can celebrities and fashion magazines in Mexico really influence social change?

By: Jenny Barry
Español

Partnering with celebrities and seeking visibility is key to mobilizing resources for the women’s movement in Mexico.

Do-It-Yourself-Aid: alternative funding sources for rights work?

By: Anne Meike Fetcher
Español

Is “Do-It-Yourself-Aid” the answer to funding rights work? Anne-Meike Fechter describes this model, its funding and related implications

An alternative to international aid

By: Nora Lester Murad
Español | עברית | العربية

Nora Lester Murad describes a new alternative to international aid and domestic charity for Palestine; community directed funds

Exploring local possibilities for local rights

By: Okeoma Ibe
Français

Designing and planning solutions to human rights problems from thousands of miles away often produces unsustainable results. The time has come for Southern human ...

To raise funds, Indian rights groups must emulate the country’s newest political party

By: Ajaz Ashraf

Donations by ordinary citizens to India’s newest political party, the AAP, prove that Indians can and will donate to important causes. Indian rights groups can ...