Editorial - Kosovo, lessons learned; Philanthropy and civil society in Latin America

Latin America is a multi-ethnic society, embracing a large number of cultures and countries. It is now widely recognized that many development failures and disasters stem from an inadequate recognition of cultural and ethnic complexities. Tolerance and respect for -- indeed rejoicing over -- the plurality of cultures, so important in dealings between countries, are also vital within countries, in the relations between different ethnic groups.

As our futures will be increasingly shaped by the interdependence of the world’s peoples, it is essential to promote cooperation between peoples with widely different interests and to make use of the richness of diversity.

The view that increased citizen participation is important, not only in the re-democratization process but also in trying to find solutions to social and economic problems, is quite a recent one. The emerging of a Latin American third sector can therefore be seen as the best expression of a new societal organization which channels citizens' initiatives for the public good.

In the last decade the third sector has grown at an unprecedented pace. Several ideas are critical to its continued growth and sustainability: the idea of accountability of resources and practices, allowing the sector to have a distinctive ethos from that of government and business; the idea of stewardship, as a notion of responsibility between one generation and the other; and finally the idea of leadership, as a constant societal effort to support and emulate the best practices of individuals and institutions.

Such ideas are part of the stories that Alliance includes in this issue. They are shaping a third sector that will be an increasingly important contributor to Latin American society.

Marcos Kisil
Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, W K Kellogg Foundation