How to Find Communities in Need?

Published on by in Non Profit

Hi,

I run a nonprofit that helps communities in Latin America gain access to clean water and proper sanitation, and I was wondering if anyone could give some advice on how to find communities in need? Do I contact the local government? Local community groups/organizations (how would I find these)?

I found our first project very randomly by contacting someone who was an author of a report on clean water, and they put me in contact with someone, who put me in contact with someone else. I figure there's got to be another way to do it, and so I thought I'd as what others have done in the past. 

Thanks!

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20 Answers

  1. Hi! 

    Here something that could be useful: http://oca.unal.edu.co/

    Look for "Gestión de agua" and you might find some places and communities. 

     

    If you need help (language or other) let me know. I am Chilean and could provide some assistance. 

     

    All best

  2. Identify the impact/ influential group of people from the target sites/ area/ region who would let you know the challenges through reconnaissance observations followed by the "Need-Based Assessment" of the target region/area with the clearly defined indicators as per the objectives of the interventions. Then mark the same and select the site.

    We did the interventions in India (rural environs of Rajasthan) following the same steps. In the limited available funds and financial support, we first framed our indicators for the site selection. Then took the reconnaissance surveys and identified the entry points through interested people. Finally, through the participatory appraisal events, we finalized the site.

  3. As Lauren says the responses that focus on partnership are key.  Having said that, the hard thing is to understand the political and social context of the countries. A governments priority for communities requiring interventions may be influenced by politics or economic drivers. NGOs may have particular targets in terms of community structure or geography. We have found in the past that communities with unfavourable hydrology/hydrogeology can fall though the gaps because no-one wants to risk failure, even though they may have a high level of 'need'.

    I would think the best thing you can do is define your own goals clearly -  in terms of technology, scale and issues like poverty -  and then look ,with partners, for communities that fit your own mission and ethos. If you  aren't clear about what you can deliver, and who you want to deliver it to, then it will be hard to enter effective dialogue.

  4. I'll echo and sum up some convos below: Parnership! Please don't just go and try to find communities in need. Find the people who are ALREADY doing the kind of work you want to support- organizations with a local presence (registered with the country you're working on, with national staff not only immigrants. The immigrants I refer to are typically called "expats" in this context, but there's no good reason to use different words based on the privilege of their origin country). Your website has excellent verbiage around your approach- so also look for orgs that highlight those things. The only thing I would add is look for orgs that also mention "service provision", impact evaluation, and partnership. 

    If you want to talk more, I direct a program within an NGO that works in Latin America and Africa, and we work with international partners- donors and service learning volunteers (typically professional engineers and engineering students- even the most expert of us have a lot to learn from locals when working in new contexts.)

  5. Thank you so much to everyone who provided an answer to my question. I'll look into contacting local governments (although I haven't had much luck with this in the past) and local organizations, PAHO, and then take a look at the links provided, organizations named, LinkedIn, and the UNICEF and UNESCO lists.  

    I don't necessarily have any restrictions on which country, however, I don't think Brazil is a good option because I don't speak any Portuguese.  Natalie, I'll keep your information and possibly contact you in the future. I'm currently working in Colombia, and would like to branch out to a different country for our next project. 

    My organization is very small, and right now I'm partnering with a local organization in Colombia to complete the project. This seems to be working well, and I will like to do this for the next project, and for the foreseeable future. Looks like I will be able to find other organizations with the information provided, so thanks again!

  6. The history of these types of assistance has been mixed. The successful ones do not just provide assistance, but they engage the locals so that they  take responsibility and are invested in the results in the long run. Hit and run does not work, beyond short term transient results. It is essential to remain in a supporting role with training, oversight and hands on assistance. The first rule is: keep it simple. Sophisticated equipment ultimately quits, often sooner than later--then what do they do? Passive, low cost,  local source technologies like slow sand filtration are ideal. As soon as a piece of equipment breaks down or supply of a product is lost all can be lost unless the personal access to the supporting organization continues. The distribution system is important. Putting clean water into a decrepit leaking plumbing network is a waste of time and effort.Someone also rightly stated that drinking water and sanitation go hand in hand.

  8. Hello everyone..Guy  you make some good points. I am based in Cape Town South Africa.

    I would not know how to get in touch with communities needing your assistance but we have a tool that might help you..

    It is a technology called EMADO (electro mollecular activated direct oxidation). basically it uses ultrasound to purify water..it is a world leading technology that runs of very low power compared to conventional RO. if the communities have streams or gravity fed water sources, our tech can run off solar. One of the biggest challenges in rural villages in Africa is the power needed to purify water. I would assume the same to be true in South and latin America.

    Our systems require almost no maintenance and are quick to install. we have containerised solutions, virtually plug and play.

    If you would like to know more, please email me at hugh@cybercom.co.za

    Helping other is the greatest persuit.

    Have a great day

    Hugh Ingpen

     

  9. The capacity of man and especially our Linkedin members here is a very powerful tool. There is only one rule to helping these communities. You must know what you are doing or run the risk of making a bad situation worse. There are obvious pitfalls to avoid. 1. Know the science before you try to teach others. 2. mimic nature in all things for best and least expensive solution. 3.no government interference at any level or you might live to regret it.  The reason for this is they are the least educated in all things environmental. Just politicians, banks, and business profiteers. People are sustainable, banks are not!. Never be shy. If you ever have a question just ask. These groups have a very strong data base to work with. 

    1 Comment

    1. If someone uses the advice in this comment it could have detrimental effects. 1. There is not "only one rule to helping these communities". It is incredibly complex. Someone can be an expert in water treatment technology and still cause unintended harm in the process. I agree with your numbered pitfalls except the last. Government partnership is a component of nearly every sustainable project. Government in the US and every other country i know if is tasked with providing basic services like water and sanitation to all people, and they delegate that in different ways (down to the municipal level, contracting out certain parts of the work, etc). Though some countries are not able to sufficiently provide those services today, and non-profits and humanitarian work can fill in the gap, the end goal should be for countries to manage this for themselves. I agree it can be tricky to work well with governments in any country, that's where local partners who do this type of work professionally are key. 

  10. Most all the suggestions I read here are appropriate. Yet there's no mention of the need for sanitation marketing, which is essential for sustainable sanitation and sustainable water supply in vulnerable and poor communities. 

     

  11. Hi,

    There are organizations that recruit professional water resources volunteers which you can search for online. A google search will connect you to some. But if you want a direct connection to volunteer with a third world group you might identify such groups then connect with US reps. 

    I made one connection on Linked In that led to helping a project in Nepal. You must specify on LinkedIn that you are looking for such projects. Then wait.

    Another time I introduced myself to a missionary who spoke at my church on Mission Sunday. I left her my card and heard back several months later. Keep a card and/or a homepage for reference.

  12. Hi Brian, 

    Here in Colombia, Tolima. We have communities that need that kind of projects. So if you want we can get in contact and talk more about plans here. Also here in my city which is part rural, we have issues with the small aqueducts, and some others can not access to water because it is too dry.

    I would like to get in touch with you my email is

    natalia.montoya@unibague.edu.co

     

  13. Brian, in this hemisphere, WHO is represented by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). They have an office in every capital city at minimum. In the past when I was with a medical aid NGO we found them to be extremely helpful in navigating all aspects of our in-country work - often much  more responsive than the Ministry of Health or other government agencies.

  17. Hi

    I would ask the local Government to help out e.g  in Suriname it would be the ministry of regional development. They would know which community or village needs clean water and proper sanitation.

    That's what I would do.

    Cheers

     

    Jill 

  19. Hi Brian,

    There's no shortage of potential targets.  Depends on your strategy.  Do you want to focus on certain countries?  Will there be a potential to be limited due to language barriers (ie. Spanish, Portuguese).   In Brazil, you may want to start with http://www.aesabesp.org.br/diretorias/ , they look to be an independent governing body focused on sanitation.  If you need help finding these types of orgs for your target countries, let me know.

     

     

     

  20. My suggestion is that you can conduct community needs assessment survey of several communities. You can get lead information about the communities from reports and also state officials working in the water sector.

    1 Comment

    1. It's important to evaluate the community-level and regional *resources*, not just needs. This facilitates building long-term capacity and creates a better likelihood that you facilitate meeting those needs with a solution that is appropriate for the given context.