Craig Pollard [00:00:03]:
Welcome back for another episode of the Fundraising Radicals podcast. I'm your host, Craig Pollard. Our exploration of global fundraising continues today with Alvaro Gonzalez, who leads the fundraising at Minga Perú. Minga is a Quechuan word that means collaborative community work, which is at the heart of their work with indigenous communities in the Perúvian Amazon, and has been for more than 25 years. Minga Perú started as a radio station, which still designs its programming and content in response to the 64,000 letters it has now received from women living in indigenous communities within the Amazon basin. These conversations are about health, gender equality, human rights, entrepreneurship, climate justice, and much, much more. Themes that remain central to Minga Perú's work today. I've been working with Alvaro for the past year, as we've navigated some of the challenges and opportunities of connecting donors to the social justice work in these very remote communities.
Craig Pollard [00:01:07]:
And I've come to love his openness when it comes to discussing the nature of fundraising, what it means to be a fundraiser, what the work of fundraising is, and how exciting, but also how hard fundraising can be. This episode is for you. If you're in the early stages of your fundraising journey or if you're wrestling with what it means to be and become a fundraiser. I know you're going to enjoy meeting Alvaro who I know will bring some clarity to some of your bigger questions in this space. Alvaro, welcome to the Fundraising Radicals podcast.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:01:44]:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for having me. First time ever doing a type of podcast. I've heard a lot of them. I've heard a big part of them, so I'm excited.
Craig Pollard [00:01:54]:
Oh, it's wonderful to have you. Because we spoke a few weeks, ago. We've been working together for a little while now, and we were having a conversation about what it means to be a fundraiser, about what the work of fundraising is.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:02:09]:
Yes. It's it's maybe one of the most difficult jobs, occupations to describe, I think. It covers so much, and and I know we're talking about almost, like, describing it as a bridge, which I really enjoyed. But, yeah, I would say it was a good conversation.
Craig Pollard [00:02:29]:
How do you how do you describe it to your friends, your families about the work that you do?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:02:34]:
So whenever they ask me okay, so what do you do as a fundraiser? I mean, going back to what I said about I always like the bridge analogy because and, of course, it varies, you know, not, fundraisers are not one and the same. But how I describe it is you have to be able to be a bridge between the communities you work with and the donors. You are that bridge that many times has to transform the input. For example, we have we feel to transform the requirements of donors, the desires, the dreams, to the dreams, the desires, the requirements of the communities. You're that bridge that has to sort of, like, make them, like, compatible. So and I'd say it goes from as a fundraiser, you need to be able to so, I mean, that's how I would say, a bridge. A a fundraiser is a bridge between the communities and the donor. You're that bridge.
Craig Pollard [00:03:40]:
And being a bridge is not an easy just to extend the metaphor, is not an easy thing to be, especially when your donors and your communities are are so far away from each other? Because you work with some of the remotest communities potentially in the world.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:03:59]:
Yeah. Exactly.
Craig Pollard [00:04:01]:
Can you tell me a little bit more about them and where they are and and who they are, and how do you interact with them, and how do you work alongside them?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:04:10]:
Of course. So, Minga Perú primarily works with indigenous communities, the Perúvian Amazon. Perú, you know, Perú, we have, we have 3 major landscapes. You know, we have the coast, the Andes, the Alps, and the Amazon. And our focus is with indigenous communities, particularly working with women and youth. And, of course, that encompasses the family, authorities, but at the heart of that Paul described it, the women and the youth of the communities. And I think maybe that's why I always see it as a bridge because and this is something that we saw in the fundraising, road radicals, like, seminars and everything. Being a bridge is being able to take that work and how they understand impact the communities and translating it to these reports and terminology that the donors have, which is, you know, that's that bridge.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:05:17]:
And I like how you were saying it's not only like a physical distance. It's also you would call it like a distance or a different way of understanding. And that's where the fundraising the fundraiser comes. But, yeah, that's that's where where we work with primarily.
Craig Pollard [00:05:33]:
And because these it takes sort of literally 2, 3 days to reach these communities, and and what you say about that that that gap in understanding as well. And and the work you do is is all social justice, all social impact. It is messy work. And how do you you know, the one step forward, 2 steps back, 3 steps forward, 1 step back. How do you make sure that donors understand and appreciate the complexity and and the real challenges of what you do?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:06:12]:
I would say the way we sort of bring the, donors into our world, a lot of it is storytelling, which is, that's what that's something that I really like that you touched upon. I think we look at that same way is you need to be able to tell them the story of the place they are supporting. You know, there are numbers. There are gonna be all those metrics. But in all about transporting them there, also welcoming them to the Amazon. We're like, hey. You can come here. We have everything needed for you to come here and be part of what you're supporting.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:06:53]:
And I think that's how we've been able to create strong partnerships if we have people from our different foundations and donations. They come to the community, and they see it. So I say that's something that I would say, don't be afraid to tell them, why don't you It's a it's a treat, but we can make it happen. You can come here and you can be part of it, and you're gonna talk to the women. And, of course, you know, if that doesn't happen, it's telling the story telling a story. You know? That you can add numbers, metrics, all those things that if you go on Google, you can find, but I would say the story is very important.
Craig Pollard [00:07:35]:
It is interesting because that is the ultimate, isn't it? I guess, is is the connection bringing the community and the donor, connecting them directly to each other. There's something incredibly powerful, and the storytelling helps us to reduce that gap as well and maybe get us to that point and then also maintain that connection as well afterwards. A few weeks ago, you were involved in a really interesting element of Mingapuru's work, which is the impact tourism piece as well, which is actually welcoming a group of people into the community. Can you tell me a little bit more about that?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:08:15]:
Yes. Of course. Yeah. We just came back 2 weeks ago from our trip that we organized with, Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Had a 13 it was 13 participants. And what we did is we created a 7 day trip where they stayed in Tambominga, which is a training center that we have in the Amazon. They were able to stay in Tambominga, and then they would commute to the communities that are nearby by boat, by the by the river. And they got to learn about from sustainability, empowerment, youth leadership in the communities, and talking to them.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:09:00]:
And I think that's and that's important for us because I think a goal for an not for profit grassroots In a point in their lifespan, it's about how can you be self sustainable. You know, how because, yeah, fundraising fundraising is gonna always be a component in this field of work. But it's also good to start seeing, okay. How can we have, like, a constant or as constant as you can income generating activity. And sometimes having this impact to reason or, like, educational tourism can be an option. And we've had good results, and we're trying to see, you know, if this can be sort of like a new branch. Because what we do is the people that sign up for this Minga Tours, apart, it's like it supports they get the experience, but a part of it goes to to to to the communities. So they know, okay.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:10:03]:
I'm having a an interactive different experience, but I'm also supporting.
Craig Pollard [00:10:09]:
And that experience of coming from Dallas, Texas, traveling all the way into the Amazon basin, living in I I'm assuming we're not talking luxurious accommodation, but basic accommodation, basic food and experience and connection. And I imagine that is transformative for these young students as well through their university program.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:10:35]:
Yes. They say you're getting out of the comfort zone. They said you're getting out of your comfort zone, and for them, it's they really enjoyed it because it was very hands on, face to face. And, also, by the end, they can end up enjoying it. They can because, you know, when you are in the in the Amazon away from all the technology and everything that, you know, the other side of the world gets accustomed to can be pre reconnected. So, yeah, they enjoyed it and learned. A lot of them had different interests from development, empowerment, reforestation, all that type of of work. So they all got LEOPs.
Craig Pollard [00:11:22]:
And what's the value flow back to the community and to Minga Perú from these groups? What what do you get out of it?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:11:32]:
For well, one of the aspects is, I think, I can for example, for the youth, when they talk to the youth entrepreneurs. One thing that we one of these Minga Tours is the face to face. So we had a whole day where the youth entrepreneurs, they explained their projects to the group, and they also went and the group learned from them and worked in this, like, youth's, own project. We went and we worked in a fish farm of 1 young he was 14 years old, a young entrepreneur. And that is value because when these youth entrepreneurs explain and they get to direct, like, a work shift with these, students from Dallas, Texas, SMU, that in a way is good for them. It's like they are they are seeing that what they're learning, they can they can create in practice. And these are 40 when I was 14 years old, if you tell me you need to speak to 22 years old from a different country, and you need to be able to to tell them what to do in your fish in your program. I I will be able to do it, but they were able to do it.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:12:50]:
They so in that sense, that's enriching. But also the other side that's enriching is that, like, part of part of what the group's pay ends up going to these projects, so they're busy. So and that way, you know, we can keep working on the project with the youth, with the women community promoters. I would say just out of face value, those are the 2 main, like, like, enriching points.
Craig Pollard [00:13:22]:
Yeah. And I guess you you have 13 very passionate ambassadors heading back to the US. And and that's something that will stay with them forever.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:13:35]:
Yeah.
Craig Pollard [00:13:36]:
And they will always remember that time. They will and I imagine once you start to build up a critical mass of these ambassadors, you you have all sorts of funding opportunities, partnership opportunities as they sort of grow in their careers and in their, with their networks as well. So there's a sort of future potential Yes. There too.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:13:58]:
Exactly. We've we've been in touch with, a lot of them. This is the second group that comes. The first one, we're in touch with a good number of them. We also become strong allies with the faculty because, you know, usually, the programs that wanna be part of these experiences, they are very, like, like, they're very invested. You know? It it it takes for someone for a college or a program or a group to say, we're gonna go to the Amazon, and we're gonna do this. And a lot of the times, the partnership with the faculty, the directors, then we take that and take some time to help us connect with other groups. Other maybe they are not necessarily universities, but it's the group that's interested.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:14:51]:
So, yeah, partnership. Definitely a a strong source for
Craig Pollard [00:14:56]:
And universities tend to be quite a a nice, manageable, accessible types of organizations that, that organizations like Minga Perú can partner with because it's a very as you say, this is a very clear value exchange, and they often have resources and to be able to run these sort of programs, I know, there was a an organization called AfriKids in in West Africa that did that did something similar. And it was an incredible sort of immersive experience for these sort of young people. And the value exchange was very clear in terms of the expertise and the experience that was exchanged as well as the funding. Because these these take a lot of time to set up and initiate. And, so how did that initial sort of partnership come about with the university? How how did that happen? Do you know? Can you remember?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:15:49]:
Yeah. They reached out to first, they reached out to Minga because they had seen our work. They had seen, our the work that we do. It's the it's the human rights program of, SMU. They reached out to Minga and I catch him through networking, first they met with Eliana, our Yeah. Director. Eliana visited them in Dallas in the university, and then it grew to the idea of having this visit. And it takes planning, and that's also something that I know you touched upon before, and we thought is even in this, knowing the value of your time.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:16:36]:
So, for example, we know, okay. We're gonna have to prepare 2 weeks. Just imagine taking 2 weeks just to fully prepare for this trip, and we accompany the group to the Amazon. So you sort of not put on hold, but sometimes the intensity of other activities comes down for that time. And then that's when you go and you set the value. You know? If I am we're putting this much effort, but we're gonna get this much in return. Okay? We're gonna go forward. And, yeah, it's planning, the failure of planning, you know, but once how you're saying, networking, connection, experience Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:17:20]:
It pays off. It it it's a good it's a good balance.
Craig Pollard [00:17:23]:
And that that visibility is incredibly important, and that takes a long time to build as well for organizations that don't have that sort of visibility can be quite challenging to be found. But, also, you mentioned briefly, Eliana. Eliana is very good
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:17:40]:
Yeah.
Craig Pollard [00:17:41]:
At at networking, at telling the story. And, you know, she's been doing it for a really long time, but is incredibly engaging in how she communicates. And that's another critical part of this, to be able to talk, to have your leadership talk credibly and passionately and engage people from all over the world in your work and and connect them to that. And that's not easy to do, but it's a fantastic asset to have as a fundraiser. How how do you how do you work with Eliana? Do you do you just just let her do her thing and then sort of and and follow behind and pick up the opportunities and follow things through? Do you direct and choreograph? Is it a mixture of all of that?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:18:25]:
It's I think you know that it's a mixture. We have Eliana and Luis. Luis is our program director, and, Eliana, you can call her, like, our the face. Of course, she knows the projects and the methodology, but I would say, so I call Luis. I call him, like he's like the engine, like, the constant engine. Like, it's it's going. It's going. It's going.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:18:53]:
And I call Eliana, like, an artist because she she's gonna create a spark. And my job is when those sparks come okay. She creates the spark. I have to take it, and I need to keep that spark going. And as a fundraiser, for example, she does that part for opening the door, and then my job is to follow-up. Follow-up is the following up is the name of the game and knowing that it's it's a long game. It's a long game and something that I had to learn to experience. And it's easy to say now, but at the time it was hard, is that, of course, the ideal thing is to see you want to see the approved stamp on the project, and you wanna see a figure.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:19:44]:
That's you know, as a fundraiser, that's, you know, like, that's, like, one of the goals. But something that she has taught me a lot is that if you only see it that way, it's gonna be very discouraging. You're gonna have a tough time. You need to you need to see it as, like, this person knows us. This person knows about us. We're gonna keep in touch, and that's the valuable thing. And that's something that I had to learn to value. Because when I was starting off, I was chasing the approval.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:20:17]:
I was chasing the figure, which is always gonna be important. But you have to know that that's gonna come eventually. And it's about following up, building a relationship. Every connection is a good connection. Every connection is a good connection. And that's something that she has taught me, and trust, and which is something that I I also you're big on, that trust is a switch. If there's no trust, don't even think about that that approval. And the only way you can do that is creating those and following up on those on those connections that that that you make.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:20:53]:
I can put, like, like, an it's not like an an imaginary example, but let's say you made a connection with a, like, a, like, a donor. In that year, a project is not gonna work out. If you see that it's not gonna work out and you immediately just drop it, I'm gonna say, like, that's your first mistake. Just and also that's part of seeing the donor as a person. Yeah. Just like, hey. He's interested. He, she, them, they are interested.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:21:21]:
So you need to keep them as part of your community. And who knows? Maybe 2 years, 3 years, it's gonna turn out into something. But that's something that she has taught me. You see the donor as a person, and you go from there. You don't see the donor as a report. Don't don't see the donor as a you need to be able to see them as a person. That's, I think.
Craig Pollard [00:21:45]:
And everything flows from that afterwards. Right? It's it's the if you're authentically bringing somebody into the community, this you've you've just described the role of a fundraiser beautifully, by the way. I love the spark and the keeping the spark and growing it, and how you work with with Luis and and with Eliana. But this this whole idea of maintaining that focus on people, when often fundraising as a profession can strip some of that out. Yeah. It can it can, you know, prioritize targets, but it can prioritize the money. And that's important because, you know, the causes we have need the resources, but it's always downstream from this authentic connection and this community building. It's wonderful to hear your reflections on this.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:22:32]:
It it's never easy.
Craig Pollard [00:22:33]:
It's not. Never easy.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:22:36]:
Yeah. It's never easy, but, yes. I I was gonna say, how you say it, keeping that connection.
Craig Pollard [00:22:43]:
And you talked about storytelling. That's a a key sort of tactic for that. But it also comes with an emotional toll, storytelling. It's tiring. It's you're sort of making yourself vulnerable when you're talking about your own story to people who you don't really know. You're sort of opening up and offering part of yourself. Can you I think this speaks to a wider challenge in fundraising. But can you can you reflect on that?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:23:15]:
Yes. Yeah. Because that's something that I've really from being in the the world of fundraising, meeting fundraisers, being being 1 you know? If I if I can say that, I would say in order to create trust, in order to create a connection, we we we could be very, like, a failure with this. Just in life, you have to be vulnerable. Like, there's no way to create a genuine connection if you're not vulnerable. And I think this is especially hard, and I saw this Well, MIGA now has 25 years. But I've seen that when organizations, grassroots, are starting off, many times, the program director, the implementator, and the fundraiser is 1. You know?
Craig Pollard [00:23:57]:
Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:23:58]:
Then when you grow, you can get somebody specifically from fundraising program director, but in the beginning, they are 1. And it's not only showing when you approach a new donor, a new person, somebody that might be interested, You need to turn on the how do you say it? You need to not turn on, but show the vulnerability of why you're passionate about what you do. Also, you need to be able to part of storytelling is you need to be able to to transmit what the communities you're working with are experiencing. And and, first of all, I've seen Eliana. It's almost like she gets like, she, like, channels it, and she needs to take them to this place. You know? And sometimes you do that and it works out, and sometimes it doesn't. You know? And when it does, you get the energy right back because you're like, yes. Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:24:56]:
Like, you know? But but then when it doesn't, you need to be able to recoup and then go on. Go to the next thing. Of course, not saying, like but I mean, going on to the next, you might have, like, a new meeting the next day. And that can be I think that's something that we fundraisers know. We sometimes don't talk about that, Like, I'm opening up this opportunity. We get excited because we are humans, and we're like, you know, this is gonna work out. Like, I'm gonna I'm gonna do this presentation, this speech, this this whatever it is, and it's gonna work out. And, you know, when it doesn't, you know, it takes some time.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:25:44]:
You know? You're like, okay. Like, it's okay. We, like, we did good, and this person knows about us, and we're gonna keep connected, and then you have to do it again. And I would say that's a skill that I would say only fundraisers that's a feeling that only fundraisers know. I think it's very, it's very unique. And, I mean, the more you do it, the more, like, a thicker skin you have. And as your organization grows, sometimes you can do it, like, you can do it in, like, with a more pacing, when your organization grows. Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:26:24]:
But I know that maybe I'm speaking to for those that are just, like, starting off, They can be like, wow. Like, today, I had, like let's say, I had to be I had to be vulnerable and open up, like, 10 times. And then It can be it can be I'm I'm tired. I'm tired. But . . .
Craig Pollard [00:26:44]:
because these are these are hard these the stories you're telling are not easy stories. They're about things like domestic violence. They're they're you know, when you're working in that area, there's a there's a rawness to these stories as well that Mhmm. Sort of intensifies that story itself, the storytelling, but also, sort of that idea of rejection as well is that if you do open up on it's not just you and your feelings. It's like, this is very real Yeah. And you're so close to these communities, part of these communities. You you know these people, so the stakes feel higher as well.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:27:24]:
Yeah. Yeah. And I see that's it's like you're, like, channeling like, you're trying to connect in a double level. Your connection to the work and the work itself. Okay. Eliana always says that that she always puts that that's why it's always good to put a spin of hope and positivity, And that might be, like, a style that we have, but talk about the difficulties, but always add the hope and what is being done. And, also, also being able to disconnect, value your time. Being as a fundraiser, it's important sometimes to put down the email, put down put down the things, and have your own space and be able to reconnect with yourself.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:28:13]:
And I think that's also important, like, value time, because I think you also shared that with me that in fundraising, there's always something more that you can do. You can oh, I can I can send this one more thing? I can do this one more call. I can revise this one. There's always there's always gonna be that one more thing. And you need to be able to say, you know, it's Friday. It's 9 PM. It's time to disconnect.
Craig Pollard [00:28:41]:
It's enough.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:28:42]:
Yeah. So it's Monday's gonna come. Like, you're gonna we're gonna get back on this something that Eliana and Luis have taught me also. Like, you need to be able to pace yourself as a fundraiser. I think that's, yeah, also an important trick of the trade.
Craig Pollard [00:28:59]:
Yeah. And I think it's often it it's as you say, it's difficult in those early days when the when the character of your fundraising, in a sort of new organization or or even, you know, civil society organization cause, whatever it is, to just chase to Yeah. The point that the organization is in its life cycle sort of determines that character. So when you're sort of more established and, you know, Minga Perú has been 25 years. So you sort of get that cadence, that rhythm. And sometimes you dial it up and sometimes you dial it down. It's more difficult to dial down often. But, that makes it easier.
Craig Pollard [00:29:40]:
But for those in the early stages of organizations, it's normal to feel that sort of slightly chaotic, slightly pressured and
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:29:47]:
Yes.
Craig Pollard [00:29:48]:
Putting yourself personally, emotionally into that into those conversations. And that is very difficult period of time.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:29:56]:
Yeah. And, yeah, I I was describing I think I just remember this one time I described this fundraising. Fundraising is not a sprint or a marathon. It's fundraising is a marathon with little sprints. Like, they're gonna be more than It's it's a
Craig Pollard [00:30:16]:
That sounds exhausting.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:30:19]:
Yeah. It's it's you're gonna have to see the pace, and there will be moments that spark where you screen. And then you go back
Craig Pollard [00:30:26]:
Maybe in a different direction as well. So as well. And then come back to the main voice. Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:30:31]:
And and then coming back. That's how I I remember it's not a sprint. It's not a marathon. It's like an in between, like, there you you and a half months where you're just just going with your day to day, with the projects you're doing, with the work, and then you're gonna have a sprint. And you have to use the sprint for the opportunity, and then you go back to it. I think that's I think that's all that can be also like a bridge.
Craig Pollard [00:30:56]:
Yeah. And it's it's interesting what you say because often, I see fundraisers sort of burning out because this sprint is very difficult to come back from
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:31:06]:
Mhmm.
Craig Pollard [00:31:06]:
As well. And in those sort of moments of slower work, I think it can be really tempting to fill those spaces Yeah. With doing more of those things. Yeah. To do that extra thing, send that email, reconnect, take that meeting. And maybe part of the art of finding that rhythm is accepting that there will be quieter moments, not panicking, understanding that you're doing the right thing, reflecting on what you've got sort of what you're working on, and not being tempted just to chase things relentlessly and give yourself the space and time and reflect to do other things. Because most of the time, we have a thousand other things that need to be done. Exactly.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:31:52]:
Exactly. And I think you nailed it. It be okay be okay with the moments where you're doing basically the important thing as well, which is doing the work. And that's something that Eliana always says about Louise. Like, listen. I can only be this I can only captivate these audiences because there's impact. It's not what am I talking about, And that's something that, you talked about, that me and I think, like, again, Mamingo would agree is that donations or support will follow impact. You are doing the work.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:32:30]:
You're having an impact. If, like, the the the funding will follow. In those moments where it seems a little bit more calm, it's okay. You you focus. You do it. You have that time to maybe do things better in the work that you're doing. And then when the spring comes, yeah, like, you're gonna be ready for it. Like, you're gonna be ready for it.
Craig Pollard [00:32:55]:
And you have the reserves as well, sort of, personally, to be able to do that sprint and and to and yeah. But, also, I think knowing that the sprint has an end as well and that you will hit a a slower pace again is is important to remember. I guess this this speaks generally to well-being in fundraising as well. And it's maybe something that's being talked about more is that fundraising as a as a is a choice. I think it's important to remember that. But that it's it's a choice that can come with take its toll. It comes with a heavy price potentially. And and that these sort of what we're talking about is finding this rhythm and finding a sustainable pace is incredibly important to maintaining our own personal well-being.
Craig Pollard [00:33:42]:
And, again, it comes to value in you know, we've talked about this as well. Right? The how we value ourselves and our time within this. Because if we fall over often, the cause, the civil society organization also falls over too.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:33:56]:
Yeah.
Craig Pollard [00:33:57]:
If you're enjoying this conversation and would like to hear other global perspectives on fundraising and leadership in the nonprofit sector, then please do subscribe using the links in the show notes. If you wanna find out more about our work, please do visit our website, fundraisingradicals.com. Now, back to the conversation.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:34:20]:
I'll take all about time, putting value to your time and knowing that and sometimes being able to which is like a pretty simple technique to do, but how you were saying before in some of the talk that we had or in part of the program which we do is that, okay, you worked for a month, but you got this thing approved. Go back and put a break that down break those hours into that project that you were approved. It's a step that sometimes we, like, skip. But if you do it, you're gonna be like, hey. This is this is this is worth it. This I think this those weeks that seemed like nothing was moving, it moved. But I think you're right about definitely depending on the cycle and the life in the life cycle that the organization is. You know, like, I'm speaking from Minga now, which is, you know, like, definitely networking is like a big tool after 25 years.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:35:27]:
Networking is a big tool. I can guess if your organization is 4 years in, you're gonna do those mass open calls. You're gonna do those sending, filling out the form, send the project, which we still do, obviously, but, definitely more of that when you're starting up.
Craig Pollard [00:35:47]:
I think it's important as a as a sort of comparison as well as if we're looking to other organizations to compare our fundraising too, which I I always caution against because, you know, this unique foundations of every organization, unique opportunities, networks. But if we're looking to other organizations to to learn from, when it comes to funding, it's important, I think, this point of recognizing where they are and where in the journey they are as an organization, but also where we are. Because often that comparison can be harmful and unhelpful to our confidence and and clarity as well. And I think there's often a temptation to look to these big successful fundraising operations and to try and replicate their results. But the reality is these are huge organizations with long histories at a completely different point in their lives. And and, you know, when they started off, they were small, chaotic. It feels important to compare with the right sorts of organization at the right point in their life cycle as well.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:36:54]:
Exactly. Yeah. I think I think comparison can be very sometimes dangerous in a way because you don't know everything that went behind. Like, you know, those I know sometimes, you know, when you can go into a website of any organization of any field and you see the list of supporters. You see, wow. They pay how? We have Yeah. 2025. Like, how am I? And and then you you're like, I don't know how I, and that's you know, don't do that because you don't know all the background work that went into that.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:37:34]:
And I think how you said it. Look at maybe organizations that are doing something similar to what you're doing and, you know, focus on the process, on your process. Obviously, it's always good to take advice. You know, like, look at strategies. That's something that I think I learned as a as a fundraiser or somebody working in the projects that we have is that, I think, organizations, it's always good to self reflect because you might be doing things that you don't realize. Because in your day to day or as the organization grows, for example, in, we started to see a strong youth component because the women community promoters that started 25 years ago, many times they brought their kids to the training workshops. And these kids now have 14, 15, and they've also become involved. So we realized, wait.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:38:32]:
Minga doesn't only do you know, we make community, but now we're working with you because this is, like, the 2nd generation. But that came through, and I think that's something that's an advice that I would give to organizations is sometimes look at what you're doing. Look at the areas. Talk to your team in the field. See what you're doing. Sometimes you might have an entire new you can call them, like, area or or possibilities that you are not showcasing because you sometimes with the busy work, you don't see it. So and now it means that we're working a lot with youth entrepreneurship, which is new. It's it's new.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:39:14]:
But, I mean, new, you know, I mean, we've we've been doing it for years, but it wasn't at the time.
Craig Pollard [00:39:20]:
It's such a lovely example as well. Those sort of I'm imagining those kids coming, you know, sort of, you know, a decade and a half ago. And and that speaks to the impact and the credibility and the connection that Minge Perú has with that with those communities, which is the foundation for everything as you say.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:39:39]:
Yeah. I think we always say, like, the foundations, the stars, the agents of change are the women the women promoters, the youth, the communities. We are going alongside them, but that's something that and I think that's also something that we talked about, like, as a fundraiser. Like, you're not the star. You you're not the star of the show. The star of the show is the communities, the people you work with. You know? You are the bridge. You are the bridge.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:40:13]:
You're responsible to bring to transmit this, but take yourself out of it. You know? Like, no egos. And
Craig Pollard [00:40:20]:
Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:40:21]:
That's something that I've learned from observing that the foundation is the people. That's the foundation. They are creating the change. Like, the women, like, their kids now, I particularly enjoy the all of our youth programs because I love seeing, like there's so much talent. There's so much talent that this that's Yeah. These these kids have. And I see them so many times talk to them. For example, we had Esther from Ashmore, and she came and she visited.
Craig Pollard [00:40:51]:
And that's one of your funders, the Ashmore Foundation. Right?
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:40:54]:
Yes. Ashmore Foundation. And Esther came I've also learned a lot from Esther. And Esther came, and we had the kids talk to her. And we we made the kids. The, youth, they did, a before and after of before the entrepreneurship project and after, the training and the workshops. And you're seeing these kids that are 13, 14, talking to somebody they don't know from a different country, a different not a different country, like, from a from across, basically, across the world. And I couldn't I could barely speak in my class when I was 14.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:41:34]:
And these kids are talking to to Esther and telling her, yeah, I make these many kilograms of fish, and I sell them, this many months. And I'm making this much and saving this much. And I'm like, that's funny. Those are the stars. You know?
Craig Pollard [00:41:52]:
Yeah. It's it's interesting because because you you mentioned Esther Arthur at Ashmore Foundation. She she used to work in fundraising. So I think it's incredibly helpful to have a funder, the the director of a funder, who understands how fundraising works in the program side as well. That must make that partnership much easier.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:42:16]:
Yes. Yes. It's always helpful because I think when you have a somebody has worked in fundraising, when they've gone through the through having to able to take the numbers and the field work to these reports, they know that sometimes it's it's best when you see it before, like, when you see it there. And I think extra job that, for which she went and she got to see and it's that part of storytelling. And that's why, like, in MINGA, we always look to make to bring the communities to the forefront, either through videos, to calls, through different media. We look to bring them to the forefront because if you only read in a report, yeah, we will import with you can put a number like 30, like, 30 gigs. Okay. You know, like, that has a certain impact.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:43:10]:
But if you can see a video of them speaking to you, of them showing it to you. If you have the foundations visit, that number of 30 has a different weight, has a different weight to it, different impact.
Craig Pollard [00:43:26]:
Well, because it because they're no longer these sort of it's no longer a number. It's 30 people. It's 30 individuals, 30 stories. It's suddenly that's connecting. That's the number itself is is sort of just a statistic. It's dry. But when you start putting, fit, can put faces to those names and and break that number down into sort of real families and impact, then that becomes incredibly powerful.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:43:56]:
Exactly. It's storytelling. Storytelling
Craig Pollard [00:44:00]:
We keep coming back to this.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:44:01]:
Exactly. It's so important. It's so important.
Craig Pollard [00:44:05]:
But but but well, I just I I guess we're coming to the end of this now, but but I just come back to the start of Minga Perú. Right? Because the whole organization is built on storytelling because you have you had this letter writing where the the Quechua communities would write letters on local materials on and and ship them on boats into Minga Perú, and that would you would design your radio station episodes around those letters. That would all be content coming from the community. You'd reflect back and and and equip communities to manage things like domestic violence, entrepreneurship, etcetera. So that storytelling is such so rich and, in some ways, natural to Minga Perú.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:44:56]:
Yes. It's it's definitely part of the DNA, and it's when and it was part of it's something that we put an an an emphasis on. When you're gonna work with a group, the community, first look at what do they do great. So I think sometimes maybe it's about fixing or sort of, like, strengthening the things that are, quote, unquote, lacking, you know, as if as if we are able to, you know, always know what it's lacking. But, for example, we learned that in the Amazonian culture, in the Oklahoma culture, there's the main way that they get information is through radio, and in the culture, storytelling is important. So this is a very oral culture, very oral, like, part of the world. So okay, if we this is part of the identity of the culture, let's let's use that. Let's not let's not try to impose, like, a word document.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:46:00]:
I mean, let's let's
Craig Pollard [00:46:02]:
Yeah.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:46:04]:
Let's let's use this that they don't need you comfortable with. Let's do it to its potential. And that's how Minga started. Minga started with the radio program, the, and we received the letters from the listeners. And how you were saying, sometimes sometimes they were, like, reading in leaves in the barks of trees. They were ridden, and they were taken to the offices that we have in Iquitos. And from there, it grew. And the women community promoters, we saw that we had, like Minga had rep rep recurring people that broke, women that broke.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:46:46]:
So when we saw them writing and writing and writing, we were like, okay. Why why did you come to a training? And from from there, the women community promoters component team. And then then I can select the 3rd component, before we run out of time. But when we were talking with them, they were saying that one of the things that came up in the conversation was income generating. Income generating because a lot of the times in the community, the the the person that had the control of the money was the man. And through working with the women community promoters, we learned that if you have income, you also have independence power, and that's how the third component came of income engineering projects. So you would say that was like that. But it all came from what? From stories, the letters.
Craig Pollard [00:47:38]:
Yeah. It's it's a it's an amazing organization. It's an amazing story as well. Thank you, Alvaro. Because I think this has given a really clear you know, we started with that question of what fundraising is. I think you've given us so many wonderful metaphors and images about what being a fundraiser means and and how to do it, some really helpful tactics. So keeping going. So thank you so much for sharing today.
Craig Pollard [00:48:04]:
It's massively appreciated.
Alvaro Gonzalez [00:48:06]:
No. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be part of the podcast, but also for, like, being able to know that fundraising is different for everyone. You know, I have my perspective, but what I like about this podcast and what you're doing, Craig, is that there's diversity in fundraising, and we need to be able to look at all of them. And, yeah, in this in this world that we are of fundraising, I'm glad that I you know? This was a great conversation.
Craig Pollard [00:48:37]:
Thank you so much, Alvaro. As always, this was a lovely conversation with Alvaro. For me, his metaphors of the bridge and nurturing those sparks describe beautifully what it means to be a fundraiser, and the nature of the work. He's also offered us lots of practical ideas to help us all become better and more authentic fundraisers, and importantly, how to ensure that we value our own well-being and build our resilience in what can often be an unforgiving work. This has made me reflect a lot on what matters in fundraising, and I hope this conversation has been helpful for you and has brought a new perspective that might help to shape your own unique practice. As always, if you wanna find out more about us and our work, please do visit fundraisingradicals.com. If you've been inspired by Alvaro or any of our other guests, please do subscribe and leave us a review so we can grow our reach and impact. But for now, thanks again for listening, for joining our exploration of global fundraising and we'll see you back here soon for the next episode of the Fundraising Radicals
