Ariadne’s Thread – December 2015

Ariadne’s Thread – December 2015
décembre 8, 2015 Lori Stanciu

December 2015

Ariadne’s Thread is a monthly update of events, briefings and research for social change and human rights funders. 

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Ariadne News & Events

Ariadne Christmas GreetingsSEASON’S GREETINGS: As the holiday season approaches, we would like to take the time to wish you a peaceful and happy holiday and thank you for your continued support. It is the Ariadne members who make our jobs a pleasure and make Ariadne successful. We look forward to working with you in the coming year.

REGISTER NOW: 2016 ARIADNE FORECAST ROUNDTABLES: Ariadne is creating its next Forecast for Social Change and Human Rights Funders. We invite you to join some of the best brains in the field to help us as a community create an overall Ariadne forecast for the year ahead. We will be holding meetings on January 18th in Brussels, January 20th in Paris, January 28th in London and on February 5th in The Hague, with appropriate refreshments, to help us all think about major trends, in both the issues and in the field of philanthropy. To come to one of the 2016 Forecast locations, please click here.

REGISTER NOW: ARIADNE PORTAL TUITION: One-hour tuition session to increase your skill in using the Ariadne Portal will be held on Wednesday, January 13th 2016, at 15:00 UTC (London time). This is an online webinar you can participate in from your desk. To join, you will need a computer or tablet (iPad/Android tablet) in order to watch the online demonstration. To register, please RSVP to Kenneth Hill – kenneth.hill@ariadne-network.eu.

REGISTER NOW: 2016 ARIADNE POLICY BRIEFING, TALLINN: Ariadne will hold its annual Policy Briefing next year from April 20th-22nd in Tallinn, Estonia. All Ariadne participants are invited to the meeting, and can register for the event here. We will create the draft agenda in January. Once again this year we hope to offer free places to attend the Ariadne Policy Briefing. This is a good way for Southern or Eastern European grant-makers from smaller foundations to come to the Policy Briefing. We do not have full details at present but if you would like to be considered for a free place this year, please e-mail Lori Stanciu at lori.stanciu@ariadne-network.eu with your name, job title, organisation and 2 sentences on why the place would help your work as a grant-maker.

alert from wordRESPONSE NEEDED! The planning committee has requested fresh ideas for break-out and plenary sessions for the next Ariadne Policy Briefing in Tallinn. We would be delighted to receive your session proposal. If you would like to send a proposal, please see here for more details.

 

 

The next Thread will go out on Thursday, January 14th. We would love to hear from you! Please contact Lori Stanciu by January 11th if you would like to share announcements, events, or resources for the next issue. 

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New Research, Articles and Judgements

closing space for civil societyFunding local Civil Society: Why funders don’t do more of it: At a meeting hosted by Ariadne, the IHRFG and the EFC in Berlin last June, one of the substantive discussions centred on the need to fund local civil society organisations. This came amidst the realisation that very small amounts of money granted to development, environment and human rights organisations (1% of official aid) actually goes to locally led groups. Here Danny Sriskandarajah of Civicus reflects on the reasons why.

2015 Global Terrorism Index – Report and Inter-active Maps: The Institute for Economics and Peace has published its Global Terrorism Index for 2015 with accompanying interactive maps. These show that in 2014 more than 32,000 people were killed in terrorist attacks, the highest level ever recorded. 78% of loss of life from these attacks occurred in five countries, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria. The economic costs of terrorism have reached nearly $53 billion annually, a tenfold increase since 2000.

The value of mobilising local resources for women’s rights in the Global South and East: The International Network of Women’s Funds, in collaboration with IHRFG and Mama Cash, have launched new research about the local resource mobilisation efforts of women’s funds in the Global South and East. This research shows how local resource mobilisation can be a powerful tool to increase the resiliency of local women’s movements by shifting internalised beliefs and attitudes, social and cultural norms, formal policies, and access to resources.

Roma Early Childhood Inclusion: The Open Society Foundations, the Roma Education Fund, and UNICEF have released the Roma Early Childhood Inclusion, a report on Roma inclusion in early childhood education and care in the Czech Republic. The report found that, while starting compulsory schooling can be a challenge for families, the evidence confirms that these critical first steps are vital for Roma parents and their children.

Traumatised and vulnerable, slavery survivors live with mental health issues: The Freedom Fund and the Helen Bamber Foundation have published a report looking at the mental health needs of survivors of slavery. The report, “Addressing Mental Health Needs in Survivors of Modern Slavery” confirms that slavery survivors continue to suffer from trauma following liberation, and that there is a need for better treatment options. The report highlights the benefits of providing mental health support at the same time as other practical assistance for slavery survivors and it calls for a big research push to identify the most effective ways to address this mental trauma.

New report: Protecting stateless persons from arbitrary detention: A new report from the European Network on Statelessness on the use of detention of stateless persons in Malta reveals that widespread use of administrative detention has a severe impact on stateless persons. The absence of a statelessness procedures to identify and recognise stateless persons results in cases of detention which, in many cases, breach of Malta’s human rights obligations.

European Union Study – Migrants in the Mediterranean: Protecting human rights: This study focuses on the existing and planned EU policies and actions to protect the human rights of migrants before entering the EU by sea or after they have left the territory of the EU. The study offers specific recommendations to ensure a coherent human rights-based EU approach to improve the protection of the rights of migrants aiming to reach the EU.

The Power of Parity – McKinsey Global Institute: The report from the McKinsey Global Institute shows how much gender party in the work-place would add to global growth. Their conclusions are that in the next 11 years, if gender parity was achieved, this would add $28 trillion to the world economy, or economic output equal to the economies of the US and China together. The report also demonstrates for the first time a clear link between gender equality in society, attitudes and beliefs about the role of women and gender equality at work.

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Blogs and Other Sites of Interest

yazidi-refugees-flee-iraq

Author: Elena Rasenko

LISTEN TO: Life as a Refugee: During a Chatham House event held in London, Gulwali Passarlay, Afghan Political Refugee and author of ‘The Lightless Sky: An Afghan Refugee Boy’s Journey of Escape to A New Life in Britain’ reflected on his 12-month odyssey across Europe from Afghanistan to Britain as a young asylum seeker. Besides Gulwali’s experience, the panel also considered what is needed in terms of engagement and action to deal with the humanitarian challenge of responding to many others like him.

WATCH: French authorities are enforcing “unprecedented restrictions on civil society” at the UN climate change talks in Paris: French undercover police sought to suppress anyone publicly criticising the sponsors of a corporate “Solutions 21” event in Paris. According to Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate, ongoing talks were a victim of austerity as the French government had failed to provide adequate state funding, leading to heavy sponsorship by corporations. Meanwhile authorities have imposed a ban on mass protests around COP21, as the conference is known, in the wake of last month’s terror attacks in Paris.

CALAID-IPEDIA: Calaid-ipedia is a go-to resource for everyone involved in the grassroots movement supporting refugees in Calais (and beyond). The tool categorises and organises the multitude of information being provided across various forums/sites.

Civil unions to become a reality in Cyprus: The Cypriot parliament has voted in favour of the Civil Partnership Bill, meaning that same-sex couples in Cyprus will be legally recognised for the first time. The legislation, which has generated a national debate, will offer couples the same rights as civil marriage.

Heat, Light and Power for Refugees: Saving Lives, Reducing Costs: Drawing on open-source data, interviews and field surveys, this Chatham House report offers the first global overview of the state of energy use among almost 60 million people forcibly displaced by conflict. It considers the increasing financial and human costs of their current methods of obtaining energy, and assesses the economic, environmental and human case for change.

Russia – Civil Society Under Siege: According to Tanya Lokshina, Russia Programme Director for the Human Rights Watch, Russia’s Ministry of Justice has recently accused a leading human rights group of undermining the country’s “constitutional rule” and using foreign funding to harm Russia. According to the ministry, Memorial was fostering negative public attitudes toward the government, specifically through its criticism of the government’s actions and policies.

WATCH: Anti-discrimination clause rejected in Ukraine: The Ukrainian Parliament did not pass a clause which would have banned discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity in the labour code. The adoption of the clause is required by the EU in order to grant visa-free travel to Ukrainians. Moldova and Georgia have already adopted such clauses. Here is a video of the director of the LGBT organisation Fulcrum discussing the matter.

Grant-Making

Philanthropy road mapPhilanthropy Roadmap: Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors  have recently  launched the Philanthropy Roadmap, a multifaceted international campaign to engage and educate donors in planning, implementing and sustaining effective philanthropy programmes with a long-term goal of creating a new culture of great giving.

How UK funders are responding to the arrival of new refugees? Survey: This autumn, Ariadne, with the help of Global Dialogue carried out a brief survey of how UK funders are responding to the arrival of new refugees across Europe. The report looks at the strategies funders are prioritising, the funding models they have been considering and the opportunities to carry out aligned and collaborative funding.

EFC refugee crisis mapping summary: The European Foundation Centre surveyed its members and other philanthropic organisations regarding the refugee crisis to ascertain what they see as the most critical issues and how they plan to address them. The objective was to improve awareness of what is going on, share this with the philanthropy community, make sense of it and stimulate thinking and action on what funders can do to move beyond urgent and immediate needs. 65 organisations responded to the survey.

Five guidelines for successful funder collaborations: A short and concise report from the Packard Foundation together with the Bridgespan Group looking at ways on how funders can effectively work together to amplify their resources and impact. The report identifies five types of collaboration (from simple to complex).

The New Beginnings Fund – Support for refugees and their communities: The New Beginnings Fund is a pooled fund for frontline organisations working in response to the refugee crisis. The Fund is open to UK organisations only. To find out more please contact Cristina Andreatta at ACF (Cristina@acf.org.uk).

Building trust through formal and informal networks: King Baudouin Foundation shares how being a part of networks helps their small team manage a large portfolio, informs their grant-making, and connects them to partners that align with its mission: to help to improve living conditions for the population.

Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative spells out action plan on Closing Space: The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative has issued a report on the closing space for civil society and what the Commonwealth can do to address this. This will be debated at the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Malta later this month. The report sets out a plan to create, ‘in consultation with civil society, a specific policy for engagement that is modern, inclusive and holistic and which includes a time-bound action plan with internal goals and standards’.

 ‘Filantropie in Nederland’ (Philanthropy in the Netherlands): A donor study carried out in the Netherlands by the Jazi Foundation which aims to enable major donors and NGOs to connect more effectively, so they can create more impact together. More than 60 organisations active in philanthropy in the Netherlands were involved in this study.

Global Gender Gap Report 2015: The annual Global Gender Gap report from the World Economic Forum ranks 145 economies according to how well they are leveraging their female talent pool, based on economic, educational, health-based and political indicators. The report offers a directory of resources and it includes a number of heat maps and info-graphics. The report shows that there is progress on health and education towards parity, but much less progress on economic participation and almost none on political participation.

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Jobs and Tenders

Screen Shot 2015-06-07 at 23.47.28Two Programme Officers – Oak Foundation: Oak Foundation is recruiting two Programme Officers: one for the Housing and Homelessness Programme and another for the International Human Rights Programme. Both are full time positions and are based in central London. The Housing & Homelessness Programme Officer will assist in the management of a substantial portfolio of grants to a diverse range of organisations. The International Human Rights Programme Officer will manage and develop the Ending Impunity portfolio. Location: London. Deadline for both positions is 4th January 2016.

Policy Officer – Open Society Foundation: Based in London or Budapest, the Policy Officer for Equality and Inclusion will work with a high degree of autonomy, developing and implementing projects, largely in Europe with some work in other regions. Location: Budapest or London. Deadline for applications is 7th January 2016.

Director of Strategic Learning, Research and Evaluation (SLRE) – AJWS: AJWS is looking for a Director for its SLRE department to lead the annual organisational planning and reflection process, analysis and reporting, to produce analysis and written reports on AJWS’ contribution and to lead the monitoring and evaluation of institutional grants. Location: New York. Deadline: Ongoing

Consultant for Trans* Funding Working Group – Global Philanthropy Project: Global Philanthropy Project seeks to engage a Consultant who will work with the GPP Trans* Funding Working Group to develop and then implement, a targeted funder outreach strategy. The aim of the strategy would be to provide specific funders with compelling information and arguments for why they should start to fund, or increase their funding, in the field of trans* rights. Location: New York. Deadline for applications is 28th December 2015.

Programme Officer for the Andes – Fund for Global Human Rights: The Fund is seeking applications for the position of Programme Officer for the Andes. He/She will have the responsibility of refining the initial areas of focus for the grant-making programme, developing a trusted network of advisors in the region, and launching and managing the Fund’s inaugural grantee portfolio in the Andes. Location: Washington, DC, the Andean region, or an alternate location depending on the winning candidate’s work authorisation and location. Deadline for applications is 18th December 2015.

Project Officer – The Marshall Institute for Philanthropy and Social Entrepreneurship: The Marshall Institute for Philanthropy and Social Entrepreneurship in partnership with Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors are looking for a project officer. The Marshall Institute is a newly established Institute at LSE with the purpose of increasing the global impact and effectiveness of private contributions to the public good through a range of teaching and learning opportunities, research, convening and public outreach and engagement. Location: London. Deadline for applications is 11th December 2015.

Advisory Board Member, The Youth Initiative – Shiva Foundation: Shiva Foundation is looking for a member of the advisory board for a youth awareness campaign on human trafficking & modern slavery. The Youth Project is led by a group of 16-18 year olds who are looking to expand their projects globally. The board member will guide the group on creating the project proposal, managing the organisational details of the project and ensuring that they reach their project objectives. Location: London. Deadline: Ongoing.

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Public Meetings

BRUSSELS

December 14th–18th
The first ever complete picture on philanthropic support to Research and Innovation in Europe: The European Foundations for Research and Innovation (EUFORI) will present the result of its first mapping of the overall financial contributions of foundations supporting research and innovation across Europe. One of the most salient conclusions of the study is that foundations account for at least €5 billion in annual investment in research and innovation. However, the foundation landscape is fragmented and assets are concentrated in a relatively small amount of organisations. The event will look at institutional barriers between actors financing research and innovation, but also at what can be achieved for these institutional barriers to be overcome. The event will take place on December 14th, 2015 in Brussels, Belgium.

February 8th -12th
European women shareholders demand gender equality: While 40 per cent of women hold first-line management positions, at mid-management, female representation dramatically declines. The decision-making bodies of European listed companies are still dominated by men and men only. The conference will look at the next steps for action and whether there is a need for the implementation of European legislation with regard to women in decision making positions. The event will take place on February 11th, 2016, in Brussels, Belgium.

February 22nd – 26th
Training Reporting & Management: How to successfully manage an EU funded project? This one day training  will look at the reporting rules and obligations related to the management of an EU-funded project. Some of the objectives of the training are: to discover the allowed flexibility between the original project and its implementation, to understand the European Commission’s payment procedure and to master the subcontracting rules, etc. The event will take place on February 26th, 2016 in Brussels, Belgium.

COPENHAGEN

December 14th–18th
The Human Rights Council at 10: Achievements, shortfalls and prospects: As the HRC looks towards its 10th anniversary in 2016, Marc Limon from the Universal Rights Group will, in his presentation, reflect on the body’s achievements and challenges since its creation, and offer thoughts and ideas to equip the Council to better meet those challenges in the decades to come. In her presentation, Anna-Luise Chané from Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies will zoom in on the relationship between the EU and the HRC. Using Social Network Analysis as a tool, she explores EU member state relations and dynamics in the HRC, analysing which thematic human rights issues the EU prioritises at the HRC and how they are received by other countries or blocs. The event will take place on December 18th, 2015 in Copenhagen, Denmark.

GENEVA

March 4th-13th
Festival du Film et Forum International sur les Droits Humains: The FIFDH brings together filmmakers, human rights defenders, policymakers, media and citizens around leading violations of human dignity to promote and amplify strong voices and build public support for human rights. The event will showcase international cinema, documentary and fiction films on human rights and it aims to amplify the voices and work of human rights defenders, connect change-makers from all kind of horizons and strengthen international protection networks. The event will take place between March 4th-13th, 2016 in Geneva, Switzerland.

KAMPALA, UGANDA

December 7th-11th
Manya Human Rights International Film Festival: This annual festival organised each year in Kampala Uganda is focusing on the subject of human rights. The festival presents ethically and collectively committed productions from different parts of the world, which combine recognised quality films with human dignity values. The festival includes retrospectives, workshops and debates, discussion with festival guests (local and international), concerts/performances, exhibitions and educational screenings. The event will take place between December 7th-11th, 2015 in Kampala, Uganda.

LONDON

December 14th – 18th
Human Rights Defenders and Business: The event is organised by the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) in conjunction with the Centre for the Study of Human Rights. The Institute for Human Rights and Business will launch its latest report, which is published jointly with Civil Rights Defenders and Front Line Defenders. The report showcases recent cases of human rights defenders challenging economic policies or business operations and the consequences they have faced. The report also includes essays outlining the importance of human rights defenders, the role of governments, what companies should do, and offers recommendations to the business community. It also argues that a wide civil society space is in the interests of companies. The event will take place on December 14th, 2015, in London, UK.

December 14th – 18th
Migration and Sustainable Development Goals: The Migration Symposium will highlight the nexus between migration and development and explore ways of implementing the SDG migration-related targets. The event will also consider the mechanisms and processes that could help review progress in the development potential of migration, such as the potential indicators and monitoring tools. The event will take place on December 14th, 2015, in London, UK.

ONLINE

December 14th – 18th
Webinar: Planning for Refugee Resettlement in the U.S.: What Funders Need to Know: The event is organised by Grant-makers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees. The webinar will look at how national security concerns and the volatile political environment may affect U.S. efforts to protect and resettle refugee families fleeing violence in Syria and other parts of the world; understand how the U.S. refugee resettlement programme works, its extensive and rigorous screening process, what supports it provides refugees, and lessons from different waves of resettlement over the years; learn about the process and timeline for resettling Syrian and other refugees, in which U.S. regions they are likely to be placed, and how the backlash may affect these placement plans; and discuss what funders can do to plan for resettlement efforts, address anticipated challenges, and support the long-term integration of refugees into local communities. Register by Friday, December 11th. This webinar is free and only open to grant-makers. The dial-in information and webinar link will be sent out a day before the programme. The event will take place on December 15th, 2015, online, at 14:30-16:00 EST.

PARIS

December 7th-11th
Routes of migrants through the Aegean and Mediterranean seas: On 11th December, Gerald Knaus of the European Stability Initative will speak on the Syrian refugee crisis at the Paris office of the European Council on Foreign Relations. This follows similar events organised by ECFR in Berlin and Warsaw. The event will be chaired and moderated by Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, head of ECFR Paris. The event will take place on December 11th, 2015, in Paris, France and will be held in English.

PRAGUE

March 7th-16th
One World – International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival: One World will present more than 110 documentary films from around the globe, focusing on social, political, environmental, media and human rights issues. The event provides a platform for exchange of views and experiences and offers the audience an opportunity to discuss subjects of films during Q&As and debates with filmmakers, producers, distributors, protagonists as well as with experts, policy makers, media and NGO representatives. The event will take place between March 7th-16th, 2016 in Prague, Czech Republic.

THE HAGUE

March 18th-26th
Movies that Matter Festival: Movies that Matter screens and promotes films that draw attention to human rights and situations in which these are at stake. The Movies that Matter Festival is a platform for engaged cinema, with over seventy documentaries and feature films from filmmakers being screened every year. Movies that Matter promote human rights film screenings worldwide, offers advice and assistance and stimulates the exchange of knowledge and experience. The event will take place between March 18th-26th, 2016 in The Hague, The Netherlands.

TRIER, GERMANY

December 14th – 18th
EFC & ERA Annual conference on rights of persons with disabilities 2015: The Academy of European Law (ERA) in cooperation with the European Foundation Centre (EFC) are organising the annual conference on the rights of persons with disabilities which will take place on the 14th and 15th December in Trier Germany. The event will also include a guided walking tour of Trier, Germany’s oldest city situated at the heart of the Mosel wine region and featuring UNESCO World Heritage sites. This event is intended for judges and lawyers working in the area of anti-discrimination or employment law, member state officials, representatives of NGOs, equality bodies and national human rights institutions and disability rights advocates.

Ariadne is supported by Zennstrom Philanthropies, Oak Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Ford Foundation, Sigrid Rausing Trust, MacArthur Foundation and the American Jewish World Service.

Ariadne is also supported by voluntary contributions from its participants

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