{"id":1430,"date":"2015-11-15T22:33:00","date_gmt":"2015-11-15T22:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:8888\/gophil\/2015\/11\/15\/celebrating-avanis-20-years-a-shared-responsibility-in-making-the-world-a-just-place\/"},"modified":"2019-05-03T20:56:34","modified_gmt":"2019-05-03T20:56:34","slug":"celebrating-avanis-20-years-a-shared-responsibility-in-making-the-world-a-just-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gophilanthropic.org\/celebrating-avanis-20-years-a-shared-responsibility-in-making-the-world-a-just-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating AVANI\u2019s 20 Years: A Shared Responsibility in Making the World a Just Place"},"content":{"rendered":"
Lydia Dean – Founder GoPhilanthropic Foundation<\/i><\/p>\n
As AVANI celebrates its 20th anniversary, we at GoPhilanthropic Foundation, a long-term donor and partner, take the opportunity to reflect on the impact this dynamic organization has had on the lives of so many. \u00a0 We pause for a moment to consider the reasons why it continues to drive change in such a positive way and how we as a donor community can most effectively continue to be a part of that change.<\/p>\n
GoPhilanthropic Foundation was first introduced to AVANI\u2019s work in 2009, during a trip we made with Dr. Arun Gandhi to learn about the plight of migrant communities surrounding Kolhapur and the vicious cycles that emerge from bonded labor. \u00a0GoPhilanthropic is a US-based organization with a mission to help small grassroots NGOs to \u201cstand on their own.\u201d \u00a0Unlike development models relying on a more traditional hand-out charity approach, we enter into our relationships with an ultimate goal of helping local communities take ownership themselves and accountability for uplifting those who are underprivileged. \u00a0The process begins by identifying small NGOS with the most potential\u2014ones that have a unique and critical combination of passion, resourcefulness and accountability. \u00a0Simply put, we support programs that have found their own solutions to social issues. GoPhilanthropic then invests in broadening the strength of these organizations, both financially and in terms of capacity building.<\/p>\n
From the outset it was clear that AVANI had the distinct qualities GoPhilanthropic looks for in a funding partner. \u00a0They had empowerment and education at the core, and a goal to sustain themselves longer-term through local support. \u00a0What we didn’t expect to find, however, was the extent of return on our investment of time, resource and energy, or the degree to which the local citizens would embrace and take accountability for its future success.<\/p>\n