Author Archive:
Elaine Smith
The two faces of Brazil – the rich and the poor
Jornal o Estado de Sao Paulo posted some enlightening data in an editorial late last year. A translation of the data can be found below, followed by my two cents’ worth: ‘The higher income that …
Discussing progress, growth and development
When most of the year is gone, it is easy to look back and try to see what worked and what did not. We keep on trying to evaluate our actions, maybe in order to …
Getting up to speed on social entrepreneurship
Not just the Olympics, but all of the fun we’ve had with sports over the vacation makes me think that if we are not prepared for challenges, hurdles and extremes, it is hard to cope …
A learning journey through the Amazon (part 2 of 2)
Last week, I started to write about a recent trip to Rio Arapiuns in northern Brazil organized by Projeto Saude e Alegria for social investors to learn more about this complex area. Today I will …
A learning journey through the Amazon (part 1 of 2)
‘The dream of Projeto Saude e Alegria is to become needless’. That’s how Caetano Scannavino Filho, general coordinator of Projeto Saude e Alegria (PSA), started his presentation to a group of people that had just spent …
Who cares? A teaser about a film that can change the world
What is the title for an activist that protests so much that he ends up changing everything around him? Or what can you find in common between a Belgium monk that trains rats and a …
A very upbeat tone at GIFE Congress in Brazil
The 7th GIFE Congress took place in São Paulo, Brazil, from 26 to 30 March with 927 participants, including journalists and press, and over 100 panellists. I will highlight some themes I had the chance …
Collaboration is key to addressing innovation needs in global philanthropy
An extra day making a longer February sounds especially good and prosperous in the Year of the Dragon. I’ve learned a lot during the 2012 Family Philanthropy Conference, organized by the Council of Foundations that …
Who should make the social investment of financial education for the population in emerging countries?
What is the healthy balance between giving poor communities access to services and goods and teaching them not to consume more that they can afford? Who is paying attention to the debt level of the …
What to expect from Brazilian corporate social investments in 2012 – hoping for the best, but shouldn’t we be prepared for the worst?
Trying to analyze corporate social investment in Brazil, Comunitas launched the 2011 report of Benchmarking the Corporate Social Investment (BISC) on 7 December. Figures in the report are related to the 2010 fiscal year and rely …