Partnerships Give Strength in Lean Times

There is no secret trick to surviving a recession. When the stock market crashes and people lose their jobs, household budgets have to be rearranged and some expenses get cut. Unfortunately, some cuts may include the cost of a membership or a donation to organizations like UUSC, which depend on the generosity of members and supporters to carry out their work.

But downturns in the economy do not mean that the need for critical human-rights work decreases. On the contrary, a global recession causes a rise in need that organizations like UUSC must work hard to meet, though with reduced funds.

It should come as no surprise that UUSC has also been affected, seeing lower giving levels over the past year. The question becomes, how does an organization stay true to its core mission of advancing human rights and social justice during an economic downturn?

For UUSC, one answer lies in its eye-to-eye partnership model, the way that it works alongside, and in close collaboration with, its global partners.

Effects on global partners

There is a saying, "If the United States sneezes, the whole world gets a cold." In many ways, UUSC's partners are experiencing this firsthand. From Kenya to Ecuador to Afghanistan, each of UUSC's global partners has a different account of how the recession has affected their day-to-day work; but there are common themes: decreased wages, sharp inflation, and dwindling resources.

In Peru, at a time when repression against workers and unions has reached a 20-year high, when the need for cohesion, resources, and support is at its most critical, the Federation of Water and Sanitation Workers of Peru (FENTAP), a long-time UUSC program partner, is seeing its organizers handling a crisis with significantly diminished capacity.

The cost of oil, which reached a historic high of $147 per barrel in July 2008, led to a crippling inflation that meant a sharp rise in FENTAP's costs for necessities, such as paper for flyers and transportation to rallies.

When the devalued U.S. dollar is added to this equation (the dollar hit its lowest value in 12 years in March 2008), it means that UUSC's funding to FENTAP, which was already reduced, is worth less now than the year before.

This triple economic challenge — inflation, dollar devaluation, and dwindling resources — has meant that UUSC grant support to FENTAP has effectively diminished.

Still, FENTAP's work continues through its partnership with UUSC's Environmental Justice Program, organizing to halt privatization of water services and offering plans to modernize Peru's water and sanitation sector responsibly.

Added hardship for Kenya's street vendors

In Kenya, the effects of the economic crisis were exacerbated by the 2008 post-election violence, and vice versa. UUSC partners the Kenya Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders (KENASVIT), the Rock Women Group, and SoilFarm Multi-culture Group are reporting sharp levels of inflation, in particular for basic needs, such as food, housing, and fuel.

The daily struggle for a decent income for Kenya's informal street vendors, many of whom lost their entire inventory during the post-election crisis, continues. Vendors are seeing their costs rise and their income dwindle — with no end in sight.

Crisis calls for closer ties

The situation is challenging, but because of the way UUSC approaches its human-rights work — through eye-to-eye partnerships, of which grant making is only a part — the work continues, albeit with a new balance between providing financial support and technical support.

Technical support, always a cornerstone of UUSC's partnership model, has become even more critical to fulfilling UUSC's mission. This support comes in a variety of forms, including co-strategizing on funding sources, organizing trainings and conferences with partner staff, and introducing partners to each other as collaborators and allies.

"UUSC's partnerships are based on far more than just UUSC's ability to provide seed grants," explained Atema Eclai, director of UUSC's Programs Department. "They're built on the support that grows between two organizations that are working together towards a common goal."

Collaborating along free and open lines of communication, UUSC and its partners are able to create a clear picture of the impacts of the recession and strategize together on how to mitigate them.

So, while funding for many of UUSC's projects has been reduced and while funding does play a critical role in achieving the goals of social justice, there is still crucial work that can be done, and is being done, based on UUSC's relationships, forged through equal partnership.

Written by UUSC's Anna Bartlett for Rights Now, Spring 2009.