Pangea Giving for Global Change Programs
Grants
We are currently making grants in Latin America, Africa and Asia that range from $2,500 to $10,000. Members choose the focus areas and criteria for each region. We work directly with grassroots organizations that are independent of government or other large institutions and ask communities to contribute in some way to the work.
Education
Our education program supports our grantmaking focus, provides training on grantmaking techniques, and explores the impact of US policies on global problems. We sponsor several educational evenings each year all open to the public, with expert speakers drawn from a variety of environments.
Site Visits
Pangea organizes member trips to visit project sites and scout out new potential grantees. Trips provide an opportunity to build relationships with grantees to help understand their strengths, needs and challenges. Members have visited grantees in Nicaragua, Kenya, Tanzania, Cambodia, Nepal, Thailand, Guatemala and Mexico. Members travel at their own expense allowing us to commit 100% of our grant pool to the communities we support. Our Latin American site visit team travelled to Guatemala in November 2012 and our Asia site visit team visited Cambodia, Thailand, and Burma (Myanmar) in January 2013. A trip is being planned to Kenya in October 2013 by our African site visit team.
Recent Successes and Current Challenges
In March 2013, Pangea's membership approved 18 new grants to small grassroots, community based organizations in Central America, Southern Mexico, SE Asia, & East Africa – including 4 new partners. In all, $138,000 will be awarded at the conclusion of Pangea’s 10th grant cycle, which is the highest amount ever raised by Pangea members!
Examples of programs Pangea's investments in 2013 will support:
- Empowerment of 120 Kenyan girls by supporting workshops where girls learn to differentiate between myths and facts on issues of female genital mutilation (FGM).
- Construction of a Regional Trading Center where products produced by an agricultural women’s cooperative can be cleaned, graded and stored for distribution to large customers like the World Food Program.
- Comprehensive educational, social and employability program to meet needs of 10 deaf families and a total of 15 children in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
- Health, legal and psycho-social services for women victims of violence in Guatemala.
- Training for community members on indigenous land and water rights in Oaxaca, Mexico.
- Training for indigenous women on legal rights and gender equity in Guatemala.
- Legal aid and rights awareness for Burmese immigrants living in Thailand.
- Sewing apprenticeship for young women in rural Cambodia to improve business skills and promote self sufficiency in their local community.
Each year we accept proposals from current grantees, organizations we meet on our site visits, and through networking with others working in international development. Each year we receive requests for funding that far exceed our grant pool. So, a number of our grants are for partial funding. And, in some cases we have to decline funding worthy projects. Our greatest need is additional contributions to our grant pool. Contributions may be made to the general grant pool, a specific region or a specific organization.
A description of all of Pangea’s grants can be found on our website at
www.pangeagiving.org. If you would like to explore how you can become involved in our work please contact us at
info@pangeagiving.org.