Last semester I read a book called “Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits.” As implied by the title, the authors, Crutchfield and Grant (2012), set out to identify the key qualities/practices that set high-impact nonprofits apart from their peers. They identified 12 organizations that have created “real social change…in just a few decades.” These are the “Google or eBay” of the nonprofit world, and were identified via peer surveys, field-expert interviews, and case studies (Crutchfield & Grant, 2012). From their research, Crutchfield and Grant identified six common lessons that almost all of the nonprofit organizations employed. These lessons allowed the organizations to excel, grow, and continue to experience success. The lessons are listed, as follows:
- Advocate and serve.
- Make markets work.
- Inspire evangelists.
- Nurture nonprofit networks.
- Master the art of adaptation.
- Share leadership.
Although Crutchfield and Grant’s work centered around nonprofit organizations, I think their findings hold true for any group of people striving to create impact; the two authors more or less constructed a recipe for social change. My largest critique of their findings is that they did not highlight the power of the local community, and the importance of local knowledge. The success in the Intag region can be assessed in terms of these six lessons, and it is clear that most of these lessons have been met with fervor. Moreover, the integration of the local community at each step of the fight against mining has enhanced the power of the forefront organizations in Intag.
Before launching into a brief discussion of the six practices, first and foremost the key ingredient to a successful social movement/organization is unification behind a central cause. It is evident from the readings of this week that the economic state of Ecuador is dire. According to Linda D’Amico, 94.9% of the population lacks basic necessities due to an underemployment rate surpassing 50%. Due to the nature of its economy, the only sure-fire ways to increase money supply in Ecuador are to increase exports or borrow money (Kuecker, 2007). Copper is an extremely valuable product to export, and it so happens that Intag rests upon an enormous amount of copper (Kuecker, 2007). On the pro-mining side, economically, it makes a lot of sense to mine this metal, and increase national income. Moreover, the mining process would require jobs and improve the unemployment rate. However, on the anti-mining side, the open-pit mining process is extremely invasive and will destroy livelihoods for generations to come. An environmental impact study for a mining project in the Intag region predicted “widespread destruction,” “extensive deforestation,” pollution of rivers and displacement of over 100 families (Kuecker, 2007). Experts debate economic growth for countries like Ecuador in the Journal of International Affairs, and discuss the benefits of some mining, while aiming to increase revenue elsewhere simultaneously. In Intag however, residents are not interested in any mining. Community members have decided that the consequences are intolerable, and have unified to stop the mining process and identify a new idea/s for economic development.
Once a cause has been identified, the six lessons come into play, leading a group of individuals to success. The first is advocate and serve. What this lesson speaks to is the power of working both on the political scheme as well as on the ground. The leaders of the movement in Intag have certainly been making a splash on the political front. DECOIN (Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag, a local NGO in the Intag region) is a wonderful example of a key player partaking in both political and ground level work. For example, in 1999, DECOIN sued the World Bank for improper conduct in their development study in Ecuador. The appeal was ruled in favor of DECOIN (Kuecker, 2007). At the same time, however, DECOIN has also engaged in a lot of direct community outreach and education.
The next lesson, make markets work, is of particular importance to the Intag region. In Crutchfield and Grant’s book, they use this section to discuss the importance of partnering with for-profit businesses and other money-making entities to create impact. The situation in Intag is no different, however the stakes regarding money are even higher because poverty rates are so high. In order to make markets work, Inteños have identified valuable economic areas in their communities which can be developed further to increase exports and thereby improve the economic state of the country. Three of these areas have been identified for this class, including shade-grown coffee, handicrafts, and community-oriented conservation.
Third is inspire evangelists. Early on, anti-miners spread information to get everyone on the same page. Still today, the spread of information is crucial to keeping support. The circulation of the local newspaper Periôdico INTAG is one of the key ways that leaders have been able to keep community members informed (D’Amico, 2012). Interestingly, attack on evangelists has been a key strategy for industries interested in mining, who have been seeding lies about local leaders and attempting to sway people to see mining as positive for the region (Kuecker, 2007).
The fourth and sixth lessons, nurture nonprofit networks, and share leadership I see as joint lessons. The best ideas occur in environments of collaboration, and efficiency increases when workload can be shared. In Intag, Carlos Zorilla, Mayor Tituaña, Giovanni Paz, and others can all be identified as key leaders working in collaboration to oppose copper mining. Working together, they have been able to achieve success.
Finally, lesson number five is achieve the art of adaptation. This is the hardest lesson, and also the only one that it seems Intag is still struggling to meet. Crutchfield and Grant (2012) discuss the power of adaptation in an organization in terms of the ability to change economic and leadership strategies at the last second. The organizations identified in their book all survived the economic crises of the past decade, and not only survived it but actually grew, due to their adaptive capacity. Although Intag has achieved the other 5 lessons, it appears to me that it has not yet mastered the art of adaptation. In recent years, the price of copper has gone up, making the metal all the more desirable (Kuecker, 2007). It is no longer clear if the alternative modes of development currently being cultivated in Intag will be strong enough to fight off capitalism and keep miners away. The community requires a more adaptive strategy so that it can change with the fluctuating economy, and continue its fight.
Crutchfield and Grant (2012) conclude their book, claiming “greatness is about working with and through others, as counterintuitive as that might seem. It’s about leveraging every sector of society to become a force for good.” I think Intag is doing just this, and if they can enhance the degree of innovation in their fight they can continue to stave off mining for a long time to come.
The Color of Coffee 