Needs Assessment and NGO Profile for Baja California Released

A first complete guide for cross-border charitable giving opportunities and volunteerism

Social Venture Partners Fund and Give2Baja Campaign also announced on the eve of border area funders meeting

April 8, 2003 (San Diego, Ca.; Tijuana, B.C.) The International Community Foundation (ICF) and its Baja California-based sister foundation, Fundación Internacional de la Comunidad (FIC) jointly released the English edition of a community-based needs assessment and profile of the non-profit sector for Baja California. The two newly released publications seek to better inform potential donors and civic leaders from both sides of the border about the critical and emerging needs in Baja California as well as the opportunities for cross-border charitable giving and volunteerism. A Spanish language edition will be available in late June 2003.

In the first volume, “Baja California’s Community Based Needs,” specific needs in the areas of education, health, community development, environment, economic development and culture are highlighted for each of the state’s five municipalities: Ensenada; Mexicali; Rosarito; Tecate; and Tijuana stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Cortez. Among the survey’s key findings is that Baja California’s influx of migrant workers from the interior of Mexico is creating a growing unfunded mandate for infrastructure and social service, particularly in the areas of heath and education, which can not be adequately met by government alone. Here, the report highlights specific opportunities for giving, volunteerism and innovative binational partnerships for each of the communities and areas identified.

“Survey of Baja California’s Non Profit Organizations” provides an analysis of the non-governmental sector for Mexico’s second fastest growing state, providing current trends in philanthropic giving in Baja California; highlights current laws and regulations governing NGOs in Mexico; and provides tax considerations for U.S. donors wishing to give to Mexico. This volume provides a comprehensive review of Baja California’s NGOs with a comparative analysis of current funding priorities and needs gaps across the state. This survey also provides detailed profiles of 106 of Baja California’s leading community-based non-profits.

With the release of these two documents ICF and FIC seek to address a long-standing need among many U.S. and Mexican donors wishing to learn more about specific needs in Baja California as well as providing details of worthy non-profits that are making a meaningful impact in the communities that they serve. In doing so, ICF and FIC are seeking to dramatically increase the total level of charitable giving and volunteerism to Baja California over the next five years.

As part of these efforts, ICF is launching its Give2Baja campaign which will proactively reach civic leaders and potential donors, with an emphasis on those communities in California with existing sister city relationships with municipalities along the BajaCalifornia peninsula. An effort will also be made to reach out to affinity groups throughout Southern California with an interest in Baja California: campers, beachgoers, sport fishermen, divers, naturalists, timeshare owners, and retirees.

To appeal to donors seeking to become more actively involved in the projects they fund, ICF is also establishing the Baja Social Venture Partners Fund, which aims to support innovative charitable projects in the Baja California peninsula with a high social impact.

According to Richard Kiy, ICF’s President & CEO, “one of the key ways that we seek to expand charitable giving south of the border is not just by increasing donor awareness about Baja California but similarly increasing the level of transparency and fiscal accountability among non-profits. The publication of the NGO profiles is a step in that direction.” As Kiy contends, “the more that donors know about a specific non-profit and its overall impact in the community, the more they are willing to give.”

Yolanda Walther Meade, a board member of both ICF and FIC noted “the publications highlight the benefits of cross-border collaborative partnerships among community foundations.” ICF and FIC are members of the U.S.-Mexico Border Philanthropy Partnership and are co-hosting a meeting of this funder collaborative April 9-11, 2003 in San Diego.

Funding for the ICF- and FIC-sponsored needs assessment and NGO profiles was made possible through the generous support of the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation; The Walton Family Foundation; Alliance HealthCare Foundation; Sempra Energy; the Reinhart Family Foundation and the Synergos Institute. ICF’s planned Give2Baja donor outreach campaign, to be undertaken in partnership with FIC, is made possible through the support of the Ford Foundation and a grant from the Packard Foundation, which is underwriting philanthropic outreach specific to environment and conservation priorities along the Baja California peninsula including the Sea of Cortez.

About the International Community Foundation (ICF):
Established in 1990, the San Diego, Ca. based International Community Foundation (ICF) is committed to fostering lasting philanthropy to benefit people and communities throughout the Americas and Asia in the areas of education, community development, health, the environment, and culture & the arts. ICF works with U.S. donors (individuals, corporations, family foundations) interested in making a difference beyond our borders. During fiscal year 2002, ICF grantmaking totaled $895,000 with 67% specifically targeted to non-profit organizations and charitable causes along the Baja California Peninsula. For more information on ICF visit our web site at: www.icfdn.org

About Fundación Internacional de la Comunidad (FIC):
Established in 2000, Tijuana-based Fundación Internacional de la Comunidad (FIC) is a community foundation committed to improving the quality of life for people and communities in Baja California. FIC is a grantmaking organization committed to strengthening the organizational capacity of area non-profits. It also works with institutions of higher education to provide training for non-profit leaders and works to promote a culture of philanthropy throughout Baja California. For additional information on FIC, please visit http://www.fundacionicomunidad.org.mx/.

About the U.S.-Mexico Border Philanthropy Partnership:
The U.S.-Mexico Border Philanthropy Partnership is a funder collaborative of nine regional, national, and international funders that have committed approximately $10 million to the new US-Mexico Border Philanthropy Partnership that will benefit 21 border community foundations. The mission of this bi-national and cross-border collaboration is to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged border communities. The Synergos Institute has been hired by the collaborative to serve as managing partner of the initiative.

The partnership began with a coalition of nine regional, national and international funders: Houston Endowment, McCune Charitable Foundation, Meadows Foundation, Fundación Gonzalo Río-Arronte, Annie E. Casey Foundation, The C.S. Mott Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Inter-American Foundation and The Ford Foundation's Mexico and New York offices.