May 2005
December 2002
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December 2002
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Issue 21
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In this
issue
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10 C&F resolutions to make in the New Year! Here are 10 resolutions from Fundraising-India that are bound to give your C&F efforts a shot in the arm. Stick with them consistently and we guarantee success won't be far away! I will… 1. Ensure my organisation has a budget for local fundraising 2.
Get to know my board better, work more closely with them and more
actively solicit their help 3.
Make a practical fundraising plan and stick to it - NOW!
(Procrastination kills!) 4.
Visit programmes and get to know people at all levels 5.
Upgrade my skills and get tech savvy 6.
Set up a donor database and keep it regularly updated 7.
Network more professionally, make social & media contacts and call
at least one person a day 8.
Refuse to let a 'NO' get me down - I need to remember that it's all
about persistence 9.
Be systematic about monitoring FR income/ expenditure every month and
do my paperwork on time 10. Create a folder of my organisation's communication materials (including a brochure, an annual report) and make sure I always have some at hand to give away And
here's one for the road! Work on getting together a team of "friends"
with professional abilities that will help with the writing, editing,
design etc of your communication materials. It's a mutually beneficial
proposition since they will have an opportunity to support a good cause
and you will be able to acquire professional assistance gratis or at
very affordable rates. |
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What's happening in communication & fundraising? A pitch for change! There are cricket matches and some more… and they are mostly the same. Eleven players, two teams, playing for a cup, for country, for state, for money, for fun! So what’s different about a match played on 15 December 2002 at Brabourne stadium, Mumbai? Everything! Six teams, 24 players and no trophy… played to save lives, educate young children, empower women, help handicapped children and assist poor farmers. Quite different you’d have to say! The match organised by GIVE Foundation with the support of six corporate sponsors (Templeton, JM Mutual Fund, Kotak, Prudential ICICI, Zurich and ICICI bank) starred many current and retired cricketers from the Indian national side as well as many top level corporate executives. This charity match was GIVE’s first large scale fundraising event and helped to raise an average of Rs 3.5 lakh each for six organisations (Assist, AWAG, IICP, Saikripa, Sampark and Tanker) representing six different causes from as many parts of the country! More about these organisations can be found on the GIVE website at www.givefoundation.org. Perhaps more important than the money raised, was the fact that the work of these organisations and the sector itself were highlighted to those with the power to help… certainly the need of the hour! Trainers learn how to train, at RA workshop Ten
trainers from across South East Asia found themselves facing the
blackboard for a change, in a unique weeklong workshop held in
Bangalore from 9-14 December 2002. Organised by the Resource Alliance
and facilitated by mcas, the programme brought together a distinguished
panel of resource persons who shared their expertise with the select
trainers from the region, evaluated their presentation skills, gave
them feedback and other tips to hone their craft. The workshop started
with a three-day session on Transformational Presentation Skills by
UK-based management consultants Bernard Ross and Clare Segal of The Management Centre.
This was followed by a Curriculum Development Workshop to look at ways
to improve fundraising training in Asia, define standards for that
training and to discuss and take forward the issue of recognition for
courses and trainers.
Society for Service to Voluntary Agencies (SOSVA) held a workshop on 11 December 2002, to present the findings of a feasibility report it commissioned A.F Ferguson to conduct. The report probed into the need for an accrediting and rating agency dedicated to the Indian voluntary sector, provisionally named the National Evaluation, Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (NEMA). The study sponsored by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare revealed that 84% of voluntary agencies, donors and the government thought such a body was essential. Those invited to be a part of the daylong workshop were presented with the key findings of the study and asked to discuss various concerns of NEMA such as determining its activities/ services, governance structure, funding mechanism and evaluation parameters.
'Have
fun while you give!' That seems to be the core sentiment behind the
food festival 'Tastes of India', being organised by The Akshaya Patra
Foundation, which feeds about 42,000 school children across Bangalore
through its midday meal scheme. The novel event, an attempt to raise
awareness and funds for the extension of the 'Akshaya Patra' scheme,
was held on 31 December 2002 and 1 January 2003 at the ISKCON
auditorium, Bangalore. Expert chefs werel flown in to toss up a lavish
spread of vegetarian cuisine from different parts of the country. "The
fundraiser festival was an invitation to Bangaloreans not only to
sample some excellent cuisine, but also to exercise their concern for
the underprivileged," says Ashesha Govinda Dasa, media coordinator for
the programme. The event is expected to raise the profile of the midday
meal programme among the general public and also catch the attention of
corporates. Oasis India taps Christmas spirit with novel FR idea Oasis India, an organisation working with street children, has devised an interesting way of harnessing the goodwill of the season. 'Plateful of Christmas,' a fundraiser lunch held on 25 December 2002 gave people the opportunity to share a meal with a street child. Passes were priced at Rs 100 each and provided a meal for the donor and one street child. This fundraising idea is special because it taps the festive spirit of the season and more importantly brings the two worlds of the donor and the child together over a meal. This personal interaction is likely to be remembered and even encourage the donor to get involved again in future.
Public
Affairs Centre (PAC), a voluntary agency dedicated to the cause of
improving the quality of governance in India through public initiative,
released ABC…of Voting. The booklet is a voter's guide to the Indian
electoral process and is meant to demystify this important right to the
average voter. The booklet answers common queries and is written in a
simple and lucid style. Copies are available at PAC for a subsidised
cost of Rs 10 per copy. For details on how to acquire a copy contact
them at pacindia@vsnl.com.
If you have any news or announcements pertaining to communication and fundraising, do write in to us. Thank you. |
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The hundi system of MMHRC, Madurai |
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The Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Centre (MMHRC), Madurai, adopted the hundi system four years ago in an effort to bolster its local fundraising drive. The hundi is a collection box that is set up at a shop or any other place frequented by the public. People who visit a local general store, grocery or pharmacy often get back small amounts of change that they wouldn't mind giving away to a good cause. The hundi (which is usually placed at the cash counter of the shop) capitalises on this fundraising opportunity, by presenting them with a cause they can be involved in without having to go out of their way. Over the last four years, MMHRC has set up a total of 620 hundis, with 40 in the hospital premises and 580 spread across 8 districts in Tamil Nadu, including Kodaikanal, Kutrallam, Kanyakumari, Erode and Tirupur. Each hundi is fitted with a card that records relevant information like the name and address of the shop, date of installation, collection details and contact numbers. Though the first boxes were made of tin, MMHRC has now installed better boxes made of fibre and equipped with a tray and locking mechanism. Each hundi costs about Rs 240 to purchase and remains in good usable condition for about two years. The hospital puts its official sticker on the boxes to make them easy to identify and facilitate recall among contributors. MMHRC enlisted mcas' help to create a hundi database and management system that enables collections to be made promptly and therefore minimises the space for human oversight. A register is maintained in each district and updated every Saturday. Collections are remitted to the finance department of MMHRC through the resource & development department. The hospital has hired two boys to look after the collections and pays them an honorarium of Rs 1,500 per month. It also undertakes their travel, board and lodging expenses which are approximately in the region of Rs 3,000. Making collections for five days every week, they cover about 200 hundis in a month and are able to make a complete collection of all 620 hundis in a little more than three months. The money from a hundi is always collected and counted in the presence of the respective shopkeeper. A voucher is given and the signature of the shopkeeper recorded on the card attached to the hundi. A receipt is given on the spot and a counter copy submitted to the hospital for checking. MMHRC
has now seen its collections from the system rise from Rs 10,000 in the
early days to an average sum of Rs 45,000 every month...a very helpful
sum indeed! |
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The Book Nook |
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Old fashioned or not, we've got to admit that books still offer the most effective way to learn. Fundraising-India suggests some books (in no particular order of merit!) that will prove very useful resources to tap in your C&F efforts. 1.
Getting Started in Fundraising 2.
Corporate Fundraising Made Easy 3.
Investing in Ourselves - Giving and Fundraising in India 5.
A guide to Resource Mobilisation for Voluntary Organisations in India |
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Seva Sethu 2003 to be held this month Rotary Bangalore West and Bangalore Cares in association with Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore are organising Seva Sethu 2003 - an initiative to bring voluntary organisations, government agencies, corporate bodies, media, funding agencies and academics together on a common platform. The aim of such a confluence is to establish a long term campaign that will build bridges and so strengthen voluntary initiatives throughout Karnataka. The two day programme will be held on 17-18 January 2003 at the JN Tata Auditorium, IISc, Bangalore. This follows up on the success of Seva Sethu 2000, which drew 750 participants and was the first ever initiative of its kind. Those interested in obtaining more details may call KS Nagendra at 080-338 6530/ 335 1643 or email him at sevasethu@rediffmail.com. Workshop on creative report writing coming soon! Learn
to
write reports that people will actually want to read at our upcoming
short-term workshop on 23-24 January 2003. Subtopics that will be
discussed include creative briefs, headlines, captions and blurbs,
organising content, layout and photographs, stories of change,
achievements, effective writing and editing and writing reports for the
web. This is a great opportunity to hone your skills with the pen and
make your organisation's communication material accurate, articulate
and friendly. For more information, drop us a line at training@fundraising-india.org
or visit our website. |
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Please feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends, associates and anyone who might be interested. And do send in your queries and suggestions to training@fundraising-india.org mcas -- MURRAY CULSHAW ADVISORY SERVICES -- Bangalore, serves the voluntary sector in India. We offer training on communication and fundraising, undertake research on related issues, publish books and maintain a database of about 8,000 organisations in India. Contact us at: 2nd Floor Vijay Kiran Building 314/1 7th Cross Domlur Layout Bangalore 560 071 India Tel: 91-80-535 2003/ 415 0580 email training@fundraising-india.org website: www.fundraising-india.org |
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