Graciela Hopstein
Instituto Rio (Brazil)
'Instituto Rio was the first community foundation in Brazil and it was created in 2000 to support and strengthen initiatives that promote social development in the West Zone of the city of Rio de Janeiro. Instituto Rio is focused on empowering local communities, mobilizing the coordination of the strategic actors present in the territory, fostering partnerships and collaborative networks and implementing training programs for leaders of social community organizations and movements.
Certainly, community philanthropy has grown visibly and significantly over recent years, and within this context, I believe it is crucial and a priority to be able to analyze the causes of this phenomenon. In the current scenario, marked by crises in the major narratives, including the modern political model and particularly policies around representation, the return to the local and the different dynamics of community organizations become a potent and transformative political paradigm. The return to the “communisms” – understood as the installation of common and universal benefits and wealth, and non-government public spaces – implies the creation of different types of activities and collective organization at the local level that currently represents a trend that allows us to think about direct participatory processes.
Furthermore, an important element of community philanthropy is the promotion of transversal and cooperative networking. However, at the same time, new conflicts, dynamics and demands emerge and it is necessary to study and analyze these phenomenon. In this sense, I hope that the Summit can contribute with debates, the acquisition of new knowledge about innovative experiences in the field, and the elaboration of a new agenda for community philanthropy so it can effectively become an alternative for social transformation and the democratization of access to universal and citizenship rights.'
People Behind the Summit
