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2019-01-08
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation;
MacArthur Foundation's Population and Reproductive Health Program in Mexico entered a final phase from 2015 – 2019. Since entering the field in 1986, the program aimed to contribute to Mexico's progress in reducing the national maternal mortality ratio. In the 1990s, it helped create and strengthen a national movement that followed two of the field's most important international conferences for reproductive health: the International Conference on Population and Development (1994) and the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995).
The Foundation contracted with Consultores Colibrí an external evaluator, to conduct the evaluation of its midwifery initiative. A baseline evaluation was completed in February 2016. It explores the landscape and baseline information related to the four thematic areas of the final phase of our work: legal and normative framework, recognition and demand, education, deployment and quality of care. And a progress report was completed in 2018. The progress report focuses on the same four areas of work: documenting knowledge and acceptance of the concept of midwifery, professional midwives who attended labor and delivery in the public health care system, evidence-based practices used in midwifery training, and the quality of care provided by midwives and physicians. Both reports represent the use of quantitative and qualitative methodologies and analysis techniques.
2019-01-08
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation;
MacArthur Foundation's Population and Reproductive Health Program in Mexico entered a final phase from 2015 – 2019. Since entering the field in 1986, the program aimed to contribute to Mexico's progress in reducing the national maternal mortality ratio. In the 1990s, it helped create and strengthen a national movement that followed two of the field's most important international conferences for reproductive health: the International Conference on Population and Development (1994) and the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995).
The Foundation contracted with Consultores Colibrí an external evaluator, to conduct the evaluation of its midwifery initiative. A baseline evaluation was completed in February 2016. It explores the landscape and baseline information related to the four thematic areas of the final phase of our work: legal and normative framework, recognition and demand, education, deployment and quality of care. And a progress report was completed in 2018. The progress report focuses on the same four areas of work: documenting knowledge and acceptance of the concept of midwifery, professional midwives who attended labor and delivery in the public health care system, evidence-based practices used in midwifery training, and the quality of care provided by midwives and physicians. Both reports represent the use of quantitative and qualitative methodologies and analysis techniques.
2018-06-01
Center for Economic and Policy Research;
The Pact for Mexico pledged to institute policies that would usher in a new era of growth and prosperity for Mexico, through the implementation of a series of structural reforms. The timeline for implementation of the proposed reforms extended to the second semester of 2018.
This paper examines whether there has been progress toward the Pact's goals since it was signed; and whether any measures taken since then — including current economic policies — are likely to help Mexico break out of its long economic slump and forge a different path toward economic and social progress.
Five years into the Pact for Mexico, it is clear from the available data that the Pact's promises to launch a new era of economic and social progress have not begun to materialize. The authors conclude that the country's persistent sluggish growth, poverty, and inequality are rooted in a set of important economic policy choices that have been made consistently for a long time.
2018-05-30
Foundation Center;
Financial sustainability remains a critical challenge for civil society organizations (CSOs) around the world. Although a variety of toolkits and research papers exist examining specific sustainability strategies, many CSOs continue to struggle to develop and maintain the resources they need to carry out their missions. This constraint limits organizational autonomy by inhibiting long-term planning and flexibility in designing and implementing activities. Financial sustainability is also a key piece of the puzzle to empower local organizations to take greater ownership of the development process, as a robust resource base provides the resilience needed for organizations to experiment with new models that reduce long-term donor dependence. This paper synthesizes the findings from the analyses of both funders and CSOs. This represents one part of the three-part FFS research series, and is best considered alongside the other two papers in the series to give a holistic perspective on CSO financial sustainability: Funder Approaches to CSO Sustainability, which includes a deep-dive analysis of the landscape of strategies used by funders interested in supporting sustainability, and Understanding Factors Driving CSO Financial Sustainability, which lays out the full findings from interviews with representatives from more than 30 CSOs.
2018-05-04
Foundation Center;
Financial sustainability remains a critical challenge for Civil Society Organization (CSOs) around the world. Although a variety of toolkits and research papers exist examining specific sustainability strategies , many CSOs continue to struggle to develop and maintain the resources needed to carry out their missions. The Facilitating Financial Sustainability (FFS) activity was launched in 2017 to develop and test ways that different actors (including donors, policymakers, intermediary organizations, and CSOs themselves) can work together to improve the factors that drive financial sustainability for local organizations in different developing world contexts. This paper synthesizes the findings from the analyses of both funders and CSOs. This represents one part of the three-part FFS research series, and is best considered alongside the other papers in the series to give a holistic perspective on CSO financial sustainability: "Understanding the Drivers of CSO Financial Sustianabiltiy", which includes an analysis of specific factor combinations that support CSO sustainability in different contexts, and "Funder Approaches to Financial Sustainability", which provides an overview of the funding landscape for CSO financial sustainability int he six countries included in the study.
2018-05-04
Foundation Center;
Financial sustainability remains a critical challenge for Civil Society Organization (CSOs) around the world. Although a variety of toolkits and research papers exist examining specific sustainability strategies , many CSOs continue to struggle to develop and maintain the resources needed to carry out their missions. The Facilitating Financial Sustainability (FFS) activity was launched in 2017 to develop and test ways that different actors (including donors, policymakers, intermediary organizations, and CSOs themselves) can work together to improve the factors that drive financial sustainability for local organizations in different developing world contexts. This paper covers an analysis of funder strategies to support CSO financial sustainability. This represents one part of the three-part FFS research series, and is best considered alongside the other papers in the series to give a holistic perspective on CSO financial sustainability: "Understanding the Drivers of CSO Financial Sustainability", which includes an analysis of specific factor combinations that support CSO sustainability in different contexts, and "Facilitating Financial Sustainability: Synthesis Report", which brings together the key findings from the other two papers in the series.
2018-05-04
Foundation Center;
Financial sustainability remains a critical challenge for Civil Society Organization (CSOs) around the world. Although a variety of toolkits and research papers exist examining specific sustainability strategies , many CSOs continue to struggle to develop and maintain the resources needed to carry out their missions. The Facilitating Financial Sustainability (FFS) activity was launched in 2017 to develop and test ways that different actors (including donors, policymakers, intermediary organizations, and CSOs themselves) can work together to improve the factors that drive financial sustainability for local organizations in different developing world contexts. This paper covers an analysis of the drivers of CSO sustainability based on interviews with CSO representatives. This represents one part of the three-part FFS research series, and is best considered alongside the other papers in the series to give a holistic perspective on CSO financial sustainability: "Funder Approaches to Facilitating CSO Financial Sustainability", which provides an overview of the funding landscape for financial sustainability in the six countries included in the study, and "Facilitating Financial Sustainability: Synthesis Report", which brings together the key findings from both other papers in the series.
2018-04-05
Commission for Environmental Cooperation;
Policies and programs on food loss and waste (FLW) are gaining momentum across North America as awareness of the issue continues to grow. The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) established the North American Initiative on Food Waste Reduction and Recovery as part of its Green Economy and Climate Change project areas. This white paper characterizes FLW in Canada, Mexico and the United States and identifies opportunities for the industrial, commercial and institutional (ICI) sector, governments, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to take action across the three countries. The scope of this research included post-harvest to pre-consumer stages of the food supply chain (i.e., post-harvest food production; processing; distribution; retail; and food service). Pre-harvest food production and the consumer stages of the food supply chain are beyond the scope of this study. This project complements the CEC's North American Initiative on Organic Waste Diversion and Processing, which examines composting, anaerobic digestion, and other industrial processes (e.g. rendering, biofuel) for FLW and other organic waste. The content of this white paper was compiled from primary and secondary sources of information in Canada, Mexico, the United States and countries outside of North America. Primary sources included interviews and email exchanges with 167 stakeholders representing various locations, organization types and sizes, and stages of the food supply chain. Secondary sources included reports, white papers, academic papers, news articles, media recordings and government databases, as well as a review of on-the-ground programs and projects implemented by the ICI sector, governments and NGOs. North American and international experts on the subject matter also vetted key findings during a three-day stakeholder session held in Canada, in February 2017.
2018-04-01
Center for Biological Diversity;
Mexico is one of the world's most biologically rich nations, with diverse landscapes that are home to a treasure trove of wildlife, including plant and animal species found nowhere else. Sadly, in Mexico and around the world, species are becoming extinct because of human activities at rates never seen before.
In this report we highlight the threats facing Mexico's 10 most iconic endangered species to help illustrate thebroader risks confronting the country's imperiled plants and animals. These 10 species -- which in most cases are protected only on paper -- were chosen to reflect Mexico's diversity of wildlife and ecosystems and the wide range of threats to the country's biodiversity. New awareness of these unique animals and plants is critical to inspiring a nationwide demand to protect these critical components of Mexico's natural heritage.
2018-03-30
European Center for Not-for-Profit Law;
Non-profit organizations (NPOs) around the world are impacted by issues of financial access – inordinate delays in cash transfers, onerous due-diligence requirements, inability to open bank accounts and arbitrary closure of bank accounts – collectively classed as 'de-risking' activities by financial institutions. This study examines the drivers of this de-risking, situating it at the intersection of frameworks for security and regulation. It looks at how global regulations on money laundering and terrorism financing, for instance, permeate policymaking, influencing institutions (perversely, at times) and negatively impacting humanitarian and development work. By delving into the practices and perspectives of relevant stakeholders – NPOs, financial institutions, governments, regulators and international organizations – the study unpicks the mechanisms of governance and accountability involved in and through the chain of decision-making, underscoring the policy incoherence that is manifest along the way. The three country contexts chosen for the research – Brazil, Mexico and Ireland – help amplify the complexity of the issue and the potential search for solutions. Ongoing remedial measures addressing the financial exclusion of NPOs are highlighted and potential remedies that could challenge the current practice of de-risking are explored in detail.
2017-11-16
IIE Center for Academic Mobility Research & Impact;
The third report from our 10-year tracking study of the Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program (IFP), Leaders, Contexts, and Complexities provides an in-depth look at the lives and careers of IFP alumni in three Latin American countries: Brazil, Guatemala, and Mexico. Drawing on interviews and focus groups with 268 alumni, former IFP staff, community members, and other stakeholders, the fieldwork paints a complex picture that highlights the opportunities of the IFP experience against the challenges posed by local social and political realities.
Myriad examples emerged from the fieldwork of ways the IFP fellowship has helped boost the individual lives and social justice careers of many members of Brazil, Guatemala, and Mexico's most disadvantaged communities. IFP alumni in these countries are serving in leadership roles, most often in academia, government, and civil society organizations. They are directing research centers, serving as vice ministers of education, and leading organizations that work on a wide range of social justice issues such as cultural preservation, indigenous and human rights, and youth development. At the same time, home country contextual challenges have limited the extent to which some alumni have been able to advance their careers, their organizations, and social progress more generally. Several alumni have faced significant challenges because of continued discrimination and difficult labor market conditions in their home countries. In contrast, some alumni in Brazil have been able to leverage the introduction of affirmative action programs and other policies aimed at addressing inequities to advance their social justice aims. Taken together, these findings show that local environments matter.
2017-09-01
Institute of International Education;
The MacArthur Foundation's Fund for Leadership Development (FLD) was created and launched two and half decades ago, as an initiative of the Foundation's Population and Reproductive Health (PRH) Program. First implemented in Brazil, and later in Mexico, Nigeria and India, the program aimed to promote innovative solutions to the population‐related problems facing each country, and to foster new leadership by enhancing opportunities for individuals to make lasting contributions to the PRH field. Although the local circumstances and population issues addressed through the FLD varied widely among and within the four focus countries, its overarching goals remained constant.
Our decision to commission a retrospective evaluation of the FLD at this particular point in time was spurred by renewed interest at the Foundation in "investments in people" as complements to more traditional grants and impact investments. The Foundation is well known in the United States for its MacArthur Fellows Program, which awards no‐strings‐attached fellowships to exceptionally creative individuals across a limitless range of endeavors. Though different in scope and duration, the FLD program explored a related approach to investing in people, one focused on building a particular field in four distinct national contexts outside of the U.S.
The purpose of this evaluation was to better understand the long‐term outcomes of the FLD program, as well as the experiences and trajectories of its grantees. Alumni of the program, PRH experts in each of the four focus countries, and those who administered the program shared not only what they consider to be the program's strengths and challenges, but also insights as to how effectively the various components of the program supported the program's goals. Given the time that had lapsed since the implementation of the FLD program, this evaluation necessarily relied heavily on self‐reported data from program participants and their recollections of activities from many years past. As such, the findings of this report have their limitations. We do not wish to attribute the accomplishments of FLD alumni directly and exclusively to the program itself. Nor should we interpret the responses and statements of those surveyed and interviewed to represent the entirety of the FLD grantee population. Rather, the lessons that have emerged offer useful guidance that may inform the design of future investments‐in‐people endeavors.
