The value of collaboration for the third sector.

Brazil has been learning the value of collaboration for the success of any social initiative. The last two years have been exemplary in this regard. Our country felt the impact of the pandemic like few others, counting so far 600,000 lives lost, not to mention the exponential growth of unemployment, poverty, and hunger.

Even if we haven't descended into social chaos, we owe it to the thousands of heroes and heroines of the non-profit sector who voluntarily extended a helping hand to the most vulnerable segments of the population.

When sources of income disappeared in the outskirts of the city, these professionals were on the front lines, ensuring food, personal hygiene items, masks, hand sanitizer, school supplies, and various other types of aid. Our public authorities failed to support the poorest with healthcare and sufficient emergency income to guarantee a dignified life. Therefore, millions of Brazilians were only able to get through the worst moments of the pandemic thanks, above all, to the power of collaboration.

We must learn at least one lesson from the current crisis: without collective work, without unity around common goals, we will never build the more just country we all dream of. It is necessary to establish an alliance between the government, the private sector, civil society, and the third sector to focus efforts on the real needs of those most in need. Collaboration, after all, also means including the poorest in decision-making processes, allowing them to define strategies, projects, and public policies that will directly impact their lives.

This endeavor requires new social leadership, which, once again, depends on collaboration between various actors in the third sector to move from planning to implementation. That's why we celebrate the partnership between Gerando Falcões and the Bem Maior Movement, which is completing its first year and reaping promising results.

The goal of this partnership is to accelerate the social leadership training program run by Gerando Falcões, through Falcons University, thereby expanding the impact of social development initiatives in the favelas. After a year of partnership, we exceeded expectations, training over 100 leaders and inaugurating, by the end of 2020 alone, 11 new units accelerated by Gerando Falcões, doubling its size.

Gerando Falcões is currently present in over 1,540 favelas and has more than 138 NGOs in its ecosystem. The goal for 2023 is to have a presence in over 10,000 favelas, inaugurate 100 accelerated units for its network and, with the help of the Bem Maior Movement, train more than 3,340 new social leaders.

These are ambitious goals, but achievable for those who work as a team. This is because the exchange of experiences makes our actions more efficient. No third-sector entity has expertise in all types of projects. Therefore, it is necessary to share knowledge, especially that acquired in practice, so that entire solidarity networks can replicate successful initiatives.

This exchange also improves the governance of social organizations and their support networks, allowing for more concrete actions with well-defined goals, transparency, and measurement of results. Not to mention that good management attracts more support, including financial support, which is essential for any solidarity initiative.

Collaboration is what guarantees uniting people around goals and ideals. The pandemic has relegated us to a very serious economic and social crisis, but it has also given clues, through countless examples of the transformative power of collective work, as to how we can emerge from this crisis. Building a more supportive country depends on collaboration between different social actors, united around the commitment to eradicate poverty, reduce social inequality, and create opportunities in the favelas of Brazil.

Carola Matarazzo and Edu Lyra

This article was originally published on the Estadão website.

Image Credit: Press Release/MBM