Global Giving Matters June-July 2001

Best practices and innovations in philanthropy and social investment around the world

Contents
Message from Adele Simmons – Welcome to Global Giving Matters

Feature: Instituto Multiplicar, Brazil – Applying Business Principles to Education

Feature: A Glimmer of Hope Foundation – Venture Philanthropists Build Projects in

Ethiopia

Global Giving Round-Up

§ BuyAfrica.com – Linking African Artisans with Global Markets
§ Foundation Supports Urban Agriculture in South Africa
§ Momentum on the HIV/AIDS Front
§ Foundation for Excellence – U.S.-based Indian Entrepreneurs Share Their Wealth
§ The Good Earth: Goldman Prize Honors Global Environmentalists
§ Don’t Fence Them In: Southern African Parks Initiative Opens Borders – and Job
Opportunities
§ Mexicans Say “¡Si!” to More Giving
§ Philanthropy Ink

Resources and Links

§ Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy Creates CEO Network
§ Forum for Venture Philanthropists in Budapest in October
§ Trends in Individual Philanthropy at HNWDigital.com
§ “What’s a Donor to Do” Outlines Resources for Philanthropists
§ Charities Aid Foundation Optimizes Giving Process
§ International Center for Non-Profit Law Centralizes – and Demystifies – Legal Issues

Your Ideas Wanted

About Global Giving Matters

Message from Adele Simmons
Welcome to Global Giving Matters

Since I left the presidency of the MacArthur Foundation, I have been working with the
World Economic Forum, The Synergos Institute and The Philanthropic Initiative to
better understand the shape of this growing “movement” towards global philanthropy. I
have come to understand that the emerging community of global social investors have
common questions and common concerns. Whenever I have participated in a meeting on
global social investing, I have noticed that participants enjoy talking to each other,
sharing insights and experiences. Global Giving Matters is an effort to extend those
conversations.

During my travels I've seen a lot of interesting and innovative projects. These projects are
often not reported on, so the lessons we can glean from the successes, and mistakes, of
others are unfortunately lost to many in the philanthropic community.

Over the last few years, a growing number of individual donors have begun to actively
look for new ways to impact the quality of life of the world's poorest people. These
donors, or social investors, want to make a difference. They also want to be sure that their
dollars are effectively used. And while the very large philanthropic gifts attract the
attention of the press, small gifts matter just as much.

I’ve also seen that while many people in the North are very interested in global social
investing, donors from developing countries are also searching for innovative ways to
address critically important issues, such as poverty, in their own countries.

After discussions with the World Economic Forum and Synergos, I have agreed to help
develop an online newsletter intended to respond to the interests and questions of donors
who are addressing global issues through their philanthropic investments. Like all of you,
I am inundated with electronic newsletters. At the same time, I find that I read, or at least
skim, a dozen or so each week that overlap with my interests and that bring together
information not easily found in one place.

Global Giving Matters will be distributed monthly. I hope you find it to be informative
and useful as a tool to help spark new ideas and develop and refine your own
philanthropic interests. We are always open to your suggestions, interests, contacts,
questions, and stories – contact us at [email protected]. – Adele

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 2

Feature: Instituto Multiplicar, Brazil
Applying Business Principles to Education

Perhaps Brazil’s most ambitious private sector initiative to address the country’s
unemployment crisis among disadvantaged young adults, Instituto Multiplicar has earned
an impressive record in a very short time. This initiative is an example of how one family
can bring experience and resources gained in the business world to bear on a pressing
national problem, in partnership with government and the nonprofit sector, and achieve
significant results.

Multiplicar is based on a simple thesis: offer bonuses to teachers who help a target group
– school dropouts accustomed to failure – to pass tests entitling them to an equivalency
certificate and a key to the door of jobs.

With support from government agencies at the state and federal levels, this certificate
enables students – more than 50,000 who earned passing grades in the first pilot phase –
to seek employment in the formal labor force and, in the process, gain a renewed sense of
hope for the future.

A long-term dividend for this investment of human, financial and social capital is a
healthier society and economy overall and a greater optimism for economic development
and social well-being in Brazil. A five-year plan aims to make the program nationwide.

Instituto Multiplicar is the creation of the brother-and-sister team of Daniel and Veronica
Valente Dantas, investment bankers who co-founded Opportunity Bank, headquartered in
Rio de Janeiro. Its private-sector model – offering incentive pay based on concrete results
– shows how individuals with a well-honed idea and the know-how to create partnerships
to leverage resources can produce success in a short time.

While the Dantas’ floated the general concept, Brazil’s First Lady Ruth Cardoso
approached them with the idea of focusing on poor youth between the ages of 15 and 29.
This population represents a critical “lost generation” of Brazilians (estimated at 64
percent of this age group) who have left school and lack opportunities to find good jobs.
The consequences are often a lifetime consigned to poverty and, with it, poor health and,
occasionally, crime.

Partnerships soon followed. O Globo, Brazil’s largest media company, developed tele-
courses so that instruction could be broadcast on television, and also publicized the
program. Other companies added state-of-the-art technology to create and disseminate
materials and develop a Web network for teachers to exchange information. Foundations
with experience in adult literacy training helped develop materials, which were designed
to provide accelerated learning; the full program lasts for one year. Arthur Andersen
provided auditing services to supervise program operations and administer tests. Banco
do Brasil, with its nationwide branch network, processed the bonus payments.

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 3

 Eventually other companies and foundations joined the effort. The government of Ceará
in northeast Brazil – one of the country’s poorest areas but one whose leaders are open to
new ideas – agreed to pilot the program. Its education department worked closely with the
Institute; with the Roberto Marinho Foundation, which has supported literacy programs;
and with other partners to ensure that the curriculum and certificate conformed to state
requirements. Students pay nothing to attend.

Trained teachers were recruited to teach the three courses required to earn the certificate.
The teachers had considerable latitude on how and when to teach. Classes are held in
schools, community centers, private homes and other locales. To accommodate work
schedules, courses were offered in morning, afternoon and evening shifts. Older people
were admitted to the program, and in least one instance three generations from one family
were learning together.

And although the initial publicity for the program was relatively low-key, turn-out was
not: Demand for courses was so high that state planners, who expected 2,300 TV rooms
for instruction, reported 4,200 TV rooms in use! Indeed, at the launch in May 2000 more
than 100,000 people enrolled. Ultimately, about 86,000 people completed the pilot phase
of the program and 50,000 passed the test to earn the certificate. Those who did not are
allowed to re-enroll. Technology tools to assist student learning and create Web networks
for teachers have been incorporated into the program.

Expansion of the Multiplicar model is in the works.

Feature: A Glimmer of Hope Foundation

How Venture Philanthropists Make a Difference in Ethiopia

After Austin-based Philip R. Berber sold his online brokerage firm, CyBerCorp.com to
Charles Schwab, early last year for $488 million, he and his wife, Donna Berber, became
full-time “venture” philanthropists. Pledging $100 million to set up A Glimmer of Hope
(AGOH), which funds projects in Ethiopia, they’re using a business-based model to
create a charity that supports long-term, sustainable projects and that funnels all donations
directly to projects.

The Berbers’ story begins in London, where Philip Berber, who was born in Ireland, met
and married Donna. In the mid-80s, Philip Berber created a high-tech London-based
company, Financia, which was bought in 1991 by Frontier Financial of Houston. The
Berbers relocated to Texas with the company and in 1995 they moved to Austin, where
Philip founded an electronic trading technology and Internet brokerage firm called
CyBerCorp. Five years later, with the Schwab purchase, the Berbers retired from business
to focus on philanthropy.

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 4

 But, they state in their Web site, www.aglimmerofhope.org, business principles remain a
mainstay of their work. Organizations in Ethiopia – chosen by the Berbers because of its
desperate poverty – must devise a plan that details the viability and sustainability of their
projects before they’ll get a grant and the technical assistance that AGOH also provides.
Quarterly report-backs documenting project progress are required to qualify for grant
renewal.

This built-in accountability gives recipient groups a critical degree of project ownership –
too often missing in charitable exchanges, the Berbers assert. For its part, AGOH acts
more as an “entrepreneur,” working directly with these groups – and not through
government bureaucracies – as social investors supporting projects that they expect will
succeed because they have been so carefully crafted.

The Berbers focused their initial efforts in a rural area called Dembi Dollo following a
feasibility study to identify core community needs. These included water, electricity,
schools and provision of health care. It took just six months to build a middle school
which opened this July. A project to provide potable water and a women’s vocational
center are being developed now. Under consideration are a health care facility for AIDS
victims, an animal clinic and a mill. After visiting the local hospital – which he found
“appalling” – Philip Berber led an effort, through the foundation, to provide health
supplies, and health professionals are now being recruited to work in the region.
(Teachers are also being sought.)

The Berbers’ model welcomes other donors. Income from their $100 million pledge,
given in the form of an endowment, supports the foundation's operating costs and capital
for some projects. Additional donations – which may be made on-line – go directly to
projects.

Global Giving Roundup

Overviews of best-practices around the world and links to learn more about them

BuyAfrica.com – Linking African Artisans with Global Markets

Ever look longingly at the exquisite beadwork, basketry, masks and other artwork, crafts
and handiwork from Africa? In an innovative venture to make these products more
widely available – and help expand employment and income opportunities in the
continent – Johannesburg-based Hylton Appelbaum, who is a trustee of the Liberty Life
Foundation, has helped to create BuyAfrica.com, a business-to-business Web site linking
African artisans and small manufacturers with distributors in global markets. For more
information visit www.buyafrica.com.

Foundation Supports Urban Agriculture in South Africa

In 1977 Joy Niland and Pauline Raphaely, two suburban South Africans, founded the
Food Gardens Foundation as a way to introduce low-cost (or even no-cost) methods of
“restoring life and fertility to poor soil” and, most important, growing food, to families in

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 5

the impoverished black township of Soweto. More than 20 years later, Foundation
projects operate in rural and urban areas throughout Southern Africa. To learn how
Niland and Raphaely got started, built bridges into communities that normally regard
outsiders with mistrust, and what FGF looks like today, visit
www.cityfarmer.org/s.africa.html#S.Africa.

Momentum on the HIV/AIDS Front

Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke has become the
unpaid chief executive of the Global Business Council on AIDS, which advocates for an
increased private sector response to the AIDS crisis. A member of the Council, Coca-
Cola Corporation, recently announced that it will tap its resources in a variety of ways to
address the crisis in Africa – including using its marketing infrastructure for outreach and
education and providing medical coverage for employees. Coca-Cola will also lend staff
to nonprofit groups to assist in logistics of distributing information, condoms and other
items. For more information about the Council and its members, visit www.gbcaids.com.

Foundation for Excellence – U.S.-based Indian Entrepreneurs Share Their Wealth

Venk Shukla, co-founder of a successful Silicon Valley company, has a second, unpaid
job: As president of the Foundation for Excellence (FFE) funded by Indian
philanthropists in the Valley, he oversees a fund to provide scholarships back home in
India. While the technology sector went down in 2001, FFE’s activities and donations
grew. To learn more about how and why he does it, see
www.economictimes.com/060800/06dias01.htm. You can also check out FFE’s Web site,
www.ffe.org.

The Good Earth: Goldman Prize Honors Global Environmentalists

For the past 14 years, the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Foundation has awarded annual
prizes totaling $750,000 to honor six environmental crusaders worldwide. Each year,
activists from each of the six continental regions are singled out for their leadership and
commitment to environmental protection, often taking significant risks in the process. For
details, click www.goldmanprize.org.

Don’t Fence Them In: Southern African Parks Initiative Opens Borders – and Job
Opportunities
The South African newspaper Business Day recently reported that Anton Rupert,
chairman of the South Africa-based Peace Parks Foundation (PPF) and head of the huge
Rembrandt conglomerate, was planning to donate the equivalent of a winning lottery
ticket to create a huge “trans-frontier” national park bordering Mozambique, South Africa
and Zimbabwe. This project would give tourists access to an area currently restricted to
hunters – and bordered with an electric fence – and generate jobs. Read about this
initiative, and the general work of the foundation, at http://www.peaceparks.org.

Mexicans Say “¡Si!” to More Giving

The San Diego Union-Tribune recently reported on the rapid rise in philanthropic
activities in Mexico, including corporate giving. The latest edition of the Mexican Center
for Philanthropy’s Directory of Philanthropic Institutions lists more than 4,200

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 6

 philanthropic organizations in the country and says new ones are developing all the time.
One of these is the Fundación Internacional de la Comunidad, a spin-off of the San
Diego-based International Community Foundation, which helps Mexican nonprofits in
the areas of health, education, community-building, and the environment. For a complete
text of the article, click www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/20010622-
9999_1n22mexsmith.html.

Philanthropy Ink
The Economist (June 16, 2001) features a survey entitled “The New Wealth of Nations,”
which focuses on the rise of new and larger class of wealthy people around the world and
suggests that a global “golden age of philanthropy” may be on the rise as well. While
American philanthropy remains proportionally higher than anywhere else, The Economist
points to signs that it is “becoming increasingly important in other countries, too.” Citing
Latin America as the most fertile ground for philanthropic growth, The Economist
highlights the Star Media Foundation, created two years ago by Uruguayan entrepreneur
Fernando Espuelas to narrow the digital divide through education and technical training,
and initiatives by Brazilian business leaders such as Victor Siaulys, of pharmaceutical
firm Ache, to use their wealth to campaign for change.

Resources & Links

Activities, Web Sites and Other Cutting-Edge Information for Global Givers

Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy Creates CEO Network

CEOs are becoming more proactive in their giving activities. Founded in late 1999, the
Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy (CECP) promotes increased levels of
corporate giving, with a focus on CEO leadership. Read about it in New Century
Philanthropy, CECP’s newsletter:
www.corphilanthropy.org/cecpdocs/whatsnew/newcentury/nc2001spring.html.

Forum for Venture Philanthropists in Budapest in October

International venture philanthropists, hosted by NESsT (Nonprofit Enterprise and Self-
sustainability Team), will pool resources and knowledge at a meeting in Budapest,
Hungary, from October 1st to 3rd. For more information, go to
www.nesst.org/listings/Forum.htm.

Trends in Individual Philanthropy at HNWDigital.com

HNW Digital has just published Wealth & Giving, a survey of giving patterns by high net-
worth individuals. Part of a series called “Wealth Pulse,” survey topics include reasons
for giving, preferred causes, volunteer involvement, on-line giving, family giving, and
more. For more information, see www.hnwdigital.com/hnwmarket/wealthpulse_giving.html.

“What's a Donor to Do” Outlines Resources for Philanthropists

The Philanthropic Initiative is distributing a report about how new and emerging donors
are becoming involved in philanthropy, what resources are available to them (or should
be developed), and how US foundations can learn from, and work with, the new

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 7

 generation of philanthropists. This report is available at
www.tpi.org/_tpi/promoting/publications/WhatToDo.pdf.

Charities Aid Foundation Optimizes Giving Process

The mission of London-based Charities Aid Foundation, or CAF, is “to increase the
substance of philanthropy around the world.” To do this, CAF works with donors –
individual and corporate – to optimize their giving, and helps non-profits make the most
of what they get. You can learn more about this remarkable organization, which also has
offices in Belgium, Bulgaria, India, Russia, the U.S. and West and Southern Africa, by
clicking www.cafonline.org.

International Center for Non-Profit Law Centralizes – and Demystifies – Legal Issues
One of the biggest challenges to global philanthropists is understanding tax laws in
different countries that affect grant-giving and grant-seeking. Fortunately, legal experts
Leon Irish and Karla Simon have already done a lot of the work: as founders of the D.C.-
based International Center for Non-Profit Law, they (and an international staff) have
developed an on-line archive of the most up-to-date information on tax laws and
regulations regarding non-profits around the world. Their mission, they say, is “to
facilitate and support the development of civil society and the freedom of association on a
global basis.” Visit their information-heavy Web site at www.icnl.org.

Your Ideas Wanted

Global Giving Matters aims to present information on best practices and innovations in
philanthropy and social investment around the world. We encourage you to send us:

§ Ideas about issues or people you would like to learn more about

§ Examples of your own philanthropy

§ Comments about this issue.

Write to us at [email protected].

You may also give feedback online at www.synergos.org/globalgivingmatters/feedback.htm.

Global Giving Matters does not present solicitations of support for particular initiatives
or organizations.

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 8

About Global Giving Matters

Global Giving Matters is an initiative of the World Economic Forum and The Synergos
Institute’s Global Philanthropists Circle. An archive of all issues is online at
www.globalgivingmatters.org.

Editors: Adele S. Simmons, Senior Advisor on Philanthropy, World Economic Forum

and James M. Brasher III and Myra Alperson, The Synergos Institute

To manage your subscription or to send comments and questions, contact

[email protected]/ tel +1 (212) 517-4900.

The World Economic Forum

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CH – 1223 Cologny/Geneva
Switzerland
tel +41 (22) 869-1212
fax +41 (22) 786-2744
www.weforum.org

The Synergos Institute

9 East 69th Street, New York, NY 10021
USA
tel +1 (212) 517-4900
fax +1 (212) 517-4815
[email protected]
www.synergos.org

Global Giving Matters June–July 2001 9