Sustainability is as sustainable giving

By Victoria Sullivan

I studied abroad in Brazil the summer of 2015 and while there I learned about human rights and sustainability. One way to think about sustainability is as sustainable giving. We learned about this specifically when each participant on my trip did research and presented a different NGO that does work in Brazil. One of the things we realized as a class when examining these NGO’s was that not all of them had a spokesperson from the community of which they are giving. We wondered if because most were foreign NGO’s that they might not be giving back as effectively as if someone from the community of which they are giving was included in their processes. This idea of including a native voice in a foreigner’s giving back program (NGO, for profit, or otherwise) is something I will definitely remember and incorporate when I become a cooperate philanthropist after college. I want the service and giving back that the company I work for does to be the most effective giving back possible. What I learned in Brazil is that to be the most effective in giving foreign aid you must include the perspective of those you are trying to service especially in another country.