(This post first appeared on Sasha's Blog)
What I think it is important to note is the idea that each of us has something to offer. The belief that a wealthy philanthropist can simply throw money at a problem to solve it is overlooking the complex relationships involved in any issue. This becomes even more true when we talk about supporting development work internationally, where cultural understanding is paramount in any effective solution. That is why intermediaries in the giving chain that work with local community members to come up with realistic long-term solutions are essential to success. We need to allow each person who is affected by the problem to give that something they have to offer towards the solution in order to reach the best possible outcome. That is the goal we aim to achieve by working so closely with foreign partners in developing countries to find lasting solutions to community problems.
"Generosity alone is not enough
Generosity is nothing more and nothing less than the foundation upon which we build. We won’t solve the big problems of the world just by opening our hearts. That is a dangerous dream, because the stakes are much too high. Yet without generosity too many doors are closed, too much judgment creeps in. Without generosity empathy is not given a space in which to grow and we experience the terrible misfortune of undervaluing the gifts we have been given. In so doing we run the risk of forgetting that each of us has something important to offer in creating solutions big and small.
To me, generosity is an active orientation towards the world and all its messiness. It is a refusal to walk by, to shut down, to pretend that if we just keep our heads down everything will turn out OK. It won’t, at least not without all of us."
Read the rest of Sasha's post at Acumen Fund's blog
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