Although collaboration is an old practice among philanthropic organizations, the idea of “collaborative philanthropy” in Brazil is relatively new and is a concept still under construction. Here in Brazil, collaboration is creating new relationships in the field of philanthropy for social justice. It all started in 2021, when three fund in Brazil, the Baobá Fund for Racial Equality, the Brazil Human Rights Fund, and the Casa Socio-environmental Fund came together to create the Alliance of Funds. During the COVID-19 crisis, members of the Brazil Network of Philanthropy for Social Justice – now the Comuá Network – had to turn to each other for solidarity. It was then that the three Funds joined together in alliance. Since then, this alliance has marked the emergence of a new identity linked to a commitment to collaborate on philanthropy for social justice in Brazil.

Out of the pandemic, a solidarity emerged that mobilized civil society to support people, especially in the large urban centres of the country where the most severe effects of the pandemic were being experienced. Isolated in locations difficult to access, indigenous peoples and Quilombola communities remained alone in the worst moments of the health crisis. “Quilombo” is the denomination for communities of black slaves who resisted the slavery regime that prevailed in Brazil for over 300 years and was abolished in 1888. It was only in 1988, a century after the abolition of slavery, that the Brazilian Constitution recognized the existence and rights of contemporary Quilombos for the first time. The 1988 Constitution guaranteed Quilombo communities the right to own their collective territories – but enforcing Quilombola’s rights to their land is still a huge challenge to this day.

Read the full article about collaborative philanthropy in Brazil by Allyne Andrade e Silva, Angélica Basthi, Cristina Orpheo and Fernanda Lopes at Shift the Power.