Community Leaders & Nonprofits
Networking to Find Potential Donors for Fundraising
Summary of Today’s Training Many grassroots leaders feel their local relationships are not enough to fund their program, so they need outside donors. The best way to meet outside donors is networking, which means meeting new people through the people you already know. Networking is like building a spider web: you start with close connections,…
Read MoreYour Relationships are the Key to Successful Fundraising
Summary of this Fundraising Training Most grassroots fundraising begins with relationships, not strangers. Large nonprofits often fundraise for years from an existing donor list. If you do not have a list like that, start with the people you already know. Make a simple list of friends, family, and professional connections. Reconnect when needed, share your…
Read MoreHow to Build Confidence in Fundraising
Summary of This Fundraising Training Many community leaders feel intimidated by fundraising or discouraged by past attempts. Confidence comes before skill. It is the foundation of becoming a successful fundraiser. Learn fundraising by observing other organizations. Understand the difference between soft asks and hard asks, and how respectful follow-up works in different cultural contexts. Practice…
Read MoreComing Soon: Trauma, Resilience, and Community-Led Change
As Cultivate celebrates 10 years of equipping local leaders for community-led social change, I have been spending a lot of time reflecting on what comes next. Over the past decade, conversations about localization have gained significant momentum across the nonprofit and international development sectors. More organizations are recognizing what Cultivate has believed from the beginning:…
Read MoreWhat is Localization & Community-Led Development?
Localization is the process of shifting decision-making power, resources, and responsibility to local actors, ensuring that communities have the lead role in shaping their futures. Community-led development empowers local people to be the drivers of change, rather than passive recipients of aid or external interventions. Localization challenges the traditional top-down approach by fostering partnerships that respect local knowledge, culture,…
Read MoreThe Shift Towards Community Ownership: Pathways to Localization
In recent years, the international development sector has seen a significant shift towards what is known as “localization.” This movement focuses on transferring decision-making power, resources, and responsibilities to local actors and communities in the Global South. At its core, localization is about creating agency and autonomy within communities, empowering them to take ownership of…
Read MoreCounterarguments to Localization in International Development (Localization Series, Part 6)
The movement toward localization has been gaining momentum, driven by the belief that community-led development and decision-making should be at the heart of effective aid. However, localization isn’t without its critics. Some argue that certain “Global North” approaches bring necessary standards, expertise, and accountability that could be lost if decision-making is entirely shifted to communities…
Read MorePreparing Local Leaders to Succeed in a Global North-Centric Development Sector (Localization Series, Part 5)
For localization to truly take root, community-led organizations in the Global South must be prepared to operate within the standards, norms, and expectations of the Global North – until they have enough power to change the system. This is a critical but often overlooked aspect of the localization movement. Many funding sources, partnership opportunities, and…
Read MoreLocalization and the Hidden Barriers of Global North Norms (Localization Series, Part 4)
As the movement for localization continues to grow within the international development sector, the emphasis on empowering local actors and transferring decision-making power to the Global South has sparked necessary change. However, there remains a fundamental issue that is rarely addressed: the entire development sector is built upon the values, expectations, and practices of the…
Read MoreLocalization and Decolonization (Localization Series, Part 3)
Localization is not just about improving the effectiveness of aid; it is also a crucial part of the broader movement to decolonize the aid sector. Decolonization, in this context, means examining and addressing the historical foundations of international aid, which has frequently served as a mechanism for exploitation, control, and reinforcing global inequalities. The aid…
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