# This post is not to make harm to anyone, these are my thoughts, that may make you think and look on life maybe now in other ways too.
To give you small background on my NGO experience, then since I was sixteen, i remember myself being socially active and enrolling in different projects and NGOs in Latvia and even European level. I could not just stay home and do nothing. this NGO life is part of me since first steps into it and i really enjoy it.
while doing research on how to better develop and which direction to go with my future NGO, i came across couple of facts that makes me feel how broke thinking may have some or more than some of NGOs in Europe, they have become like robots withing European Union grant System and Youth in Action projects. And I see it not because NGOs have developed the new inside language with all those thousands of numbers of different grants to remember nor because of abbreviations of the titles, but more on the way of the thinking in BOX.
Why do I think so?
But once in my mail box arrives Part III form, completed, signed - although i never ask for it and my message had nothing to do with it - it make you start thinking - have they even read your message? And ok, one time happen, I would not care, not even notice, everyone makes mistakes or not read. it`s normal...but when it repeats with more than one NGO, there have to be something wrong.
the second part of story happen recently, and made me double amazed. I wrote e-mails again. This time there was still nothing at all about EU grants or whatsoever anyhow related with EU, just a message with information, just a bit different than the first time. Now i do believe that by just picking up the first lines of my message and not reading the message, they may got thinking on wrong way, but once the short message is read, there is no misunderstanding to be.... luckily this time no Part III forms arrive, however it turn out more interesting than before. i got a replies, telling me more or less like this.... we have not participated in your project... we do not see you in our project database, when we did the project? And no, my message stated nothing about project that is even happened, not even telling there is any project at all.
To conclude with something positive, then I can tell that i did get back normal and great replies as well, bunch of them, so there is small chance that something is or was wrong with my way of communication.
However i still keep the questions. What is happening with NGOs in Europe? Too busy to write projects for EU grants and complete Part III forms and see nothing else?
Are NGOs created to do good in local communities or are they created because of fact that EU is giving HUGE amount of money?
I do have some topics to think over before i start my own NGO,
and I hope this post will help at least few of you to look with a different perspective on things next time you receive e-mail you have no clue about.
S.
2 comments:
Sandra, very nice post and good question for discussion. It is true that organizations are too much focused on ''Youth in Action'', that's why there is also all this big action and worries around ''Erasmus for All''. Actually there are a lot of other funding opportunities and no organization should depend on ''Youth in Action'' grants. ''Youth in Action'' is a simple program to start with, with simple applications and simple reporting, but, I believe, once you've learned enough, it is time to give space to other organizations.
Also my organization is still very active in ''Youth in Action'', because we're rather enthusiastic and passionate about this program, we have a lot of still not realized ideas and, as mentioned, it is easy to work with it, but we're already looking for ways to grow up and become independent. Social entrepreneurship might be one of ways how to do this:
http://www.change-lab.eu/
Hi Inese, thank you for reading my blog ;) Happy to meet my readers.
And your comment gives a nice explanation and couple of good advice for future of NGOs :)
Thanks.
S.
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