Developing Leaders and Strengthening Local Organizations

A central obstacle to the advancement of education in Haiti is the weakness of the institutions, agencies, and community organizations that are working to provide education. So, along with Beyond Borders' efforts to promote more and better education, Beyond Borders also works to increase the capacity of local organizations to plan, develop, finance, and improve their own programs. We do this in two ways, through our support of Fondasyon Limyè Lavi (The Light for Life Foundation) and our association with The Experiment in Alternative Leadership. Together we are working to help Haitian organizations increase their capacity to develop, manage, and strengthen the educational projects they undertake by building organizations that are more open and accountable to the people they seek to serve.

Technical Support
Through Fondasyon Limyè Lavi we are helping local organizations develop their capacity to access and manage resources more wisely. Local organizations are supported in their efforts:

• to do participatory planning and evaluation that engages the people being served,
  
• to develop solid accounting methods that provide transparency and build trust,
  
• to develop written proposals that attract support for their work,
  
• to manage income generating activities that make their work more sustainable and reduce their dependence on external funding.

Leadership Exchange
One of the least expensive and most effective ways to strengthen organizations is to facilitate exchanges between their leaders and forge links between communities. By serving as a link between organizations and providing for transportation, food, and lodging, Fondasyon Limyè Lavi and The Experiment in Alternative Leadership make it possible for leaders from a variety of community organizations to meet and interact with their peers.

Open Space Conferences
Our partners also regularly organize conferences in Haiti that bring together local leaders around particular themes of importance. These exchanges allow participants to learn from the experience of others facing many of the same challenges and develop concerted and coordinated responses. We employ Open Space Technology as the principal methodology for organizing these conferences and meetings. >> Click here to learn more about Beyond Borders' effort to promote the use of Open Space in Haiti.