INTRODUCTION: A MOMENT OF SELF-REFLECTION

One of the many reasons for the bewildering and tragic character of human existence is the fact that social organization is at once necessary and fatal. - Aldous Huxley

Dear reader,

So you want to establish a non-governmental organization, collective, club or cooperative in Lebanon... That is great and terrible news. It is a positive move because Lebanon is a country where there are a lot of gaps and much work to be done. It is problematic because Lebanon is also significantly saturated by local and international NGOS (there are over 1,300 active NGOs according to Lebanon Support (daleel-madani.org), while official records of the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities have recorded over 8,300 civil society organizations, most focusing on development and social service needs) (Beyond, Reform and Development, 2015), with some whose work leaves much to be desired.

Social organization, while absolutely necessary in the fields of humanitari- anism and activism, politics, economics, culture, among others, can prove more destructive than constructive if it is shoddily planned. A moment of self- reflection is absolutely necessary because so many similar types of institutions have come and gone, all for a variety of reasons, from implosions due to internal squabbles to passions flaming out after months, if not years, of constant setbacks, frustrations, and restrictions. It is usually a thankless job, with little to no profit. But, oddly enough, it can be uplifting and impactful work. It can change lives and spaces to the better, it can challenge power and privilege, and it is so, so imperative in this complicated world.

Therefore, before moving any further, you and your peers must ask yourselves:

How serious are we in this endeavor? Is my NGO, collective, cooperative, or other institution really providing something needed  for and in the communities we are based at? Are we prepared for a series of failures with maybe-sometimes-rare-occasional successes? Is the work we are doing going to perpetuate and shore up problems

and problematic institutions? Have we amassed enough information to fill any gaps in our work? Are we doing this right so far?

Take time and ponder over the answers to these questions, not only for you and your colleagues’ sake, but also for the goals of what you are trying to achieve.

If you haven’t been dissuaded and are still keen on pursuing the establish- ment of an NGO, collective, or cooperative in Lebanon: Welcome to Lebanon Support’s Basic Guidebook!

This is an attempt to provide you with the tools and the basic know-how to help you establish your emergent institution in a climate that is difficult. This will help you navigate certain challenges that tend to arise in this type of work. Mind you, this is not a complete or hardly comprehensive guidebook – but consider it like a lighthouse which can provide the path for you and your peers to do all the hard-work entailed to survive the stormy, foggy sea that is Lebanon. Ultimately, it’ll come down to you to fill in the gaps of this guidebook, to develop your own creative solutions to problems unforeseen here, and to reach the goals you have set for yourself.

Good Luck!

KEY TERMS

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

A civil association dissociated with governments. It is non-profit and often volunteer based. NGOs may seek to provide social or political services, or advocate for policy change.

Collective

A group of people working together for a particular goal, with decisions usually made in a non- hierarchical manner.

Cooperative

An organization or enterprise that is managed and owned by its members and by those who use its facilities and services.

Social enterprise

An organization that applies commercial strategies to prioritize human and environmental well-being over profit.

Profit organization

An organization concerned with making revenue, returns, or proceeds in its work.

Non-profit organization

A non-business entity, which uses its surplus revenue to further achieve its mission, rather than as a means to earn money.

SECTION 1: REGISTERING, OR SURVIVING LEBANESE BUREAUCRACY

The bureaucracy is a circle from which no one can escape. Its hierarchy is a hierarchy of knowledge. - Karl Marx

Remember here that knowledge and  information are your ultimate salvation in dealing with and navigating Lebanese bureaucracy.

Your first taste of bureaucracy will be almost immediate, just right after you and at least three other people have come together and decided to form an organization. It is time for you to regis- ter your organization, both within the state and on other platforms.

The key information that you will need at this stage is mainly legal.

To start off, Article 13 of the Lebanese Constitution states that individuals in Lebanon have the right for “[t]he free- dom to express one’s opinion orally or
in writing, the freedom of the press, the freedom of assembly, and the freedom of association shall be guaranteed within the limits established by law.”

The limits are defined by an array of other laws outlining how local organizations, international organizations, and cooperatives will be administered and which state institution will oversee their registration, and provide the licensing to operate legally. Unfortunately, many of these laws are archaic, and fit awkwardly in our contemporary times.

01/ Local Lebanese-Dominated Organizations

The main law to consider for an organization in Lebanon, established by local (i.e. Lebanese) actors, is the Law of Associations (1325) that was issued on August 3rd, 1909.

According to the Law of Associations, associations, or in our lexicon, non-governmental organizations, that out-rightly seek to “disturb the peace” or “change the standing form of government” will not be allowed to exist.

Members of the organization must: 

• be above the age of twenty,
• not have any felony convictions, and enjoy all their civil rights.

Attempting to establish “clandestine associations” is strictly forbidden by the state, and therefore its founders must submit a signed and sealed statement containing:

•  the organization’s address, goals, objectives, names of its members and copies of their IDs and signatures,
• the nature of the organization’s work,
• its internal regulations and statutes sealed by the organization’s official stamp,
• and records of its financial accounts. There must be active record keeping, of both financial and administrative affairs and structures that can be presented when requested by authorities or the courts.

In other words, you must be prepared to be transparent to the Ministry of Interior, if based in Beirut, or relevant district authority for those establishing their organizations outsideof the capital. There are documents to be filled (refer to Appendixes for template examples), and the best thing to do is to fill them out in Arabic, with two copies for all documents just in case.

If found out, an organization not abiding by these laws would likely be banned, and its members heavily fined, or in specific cases, imprisoned for months.

This law is also applicable to local clubs and political parties. There are special cases, in terms of which Ministries or authorities one should go through, but that will be discussed further below.

02/ International Organizations

As stated by the Law of Associations, an orga- nization is considered “foreign” if it fulfills one of these criteria:

• its founder or director is not Lebanese, / it is based outside of Lebanon,
• or more than a quarter of its general assem- bly members are not Lebanese.

The key difference between an international NGO and a local NGO is that for the former, licensing and recognition must come from a special decree issued by the Council of Ministers, before the organization follows through the same procedures as a local NGO with the Ministry of Interior. As usual, registration of such an organization must include the organization’s name, address, the profes- sions and nationalities of its members, and two copies of the organization’s statutes and bylaws.

Be aware that your license could be temporary, or restricted by strict conditions set by the state. Generally, your international organization may be requested to present all information regarding the location of its offices, the nationalities of its members, and its objectives.

Not following these rules can result in a forced dissolution by the state within a month, and the funds of the organization being liquidated by the courts.

03/ Special Cases

The special cases depend on the type of organization, collective, or cooperative you are trying to establish that involves ministries other than the Ministry of Interior. This is an additional bureaucratic layer on top of everything else for you. Be ready for that.

For example, if your organization is a trade union of any sort, the Ministry of Labor oversees its licenses - after consultations with the Ministry of Interior - as stated in Articles 86-89 of the Lebanese Code of Labor. This can be delicate, as shown in the case of the Domestic Laborers Union, founded in early 2015 in order to offer protection and cover for domestic workers who were not formally recognized under the umbrella of the labor law. To date of this writing, the Ministry of Labor has refused to recognize the formation of this union, but it still operates and is a glimmer of hope for thousands of unprotected, often exploited domestic workers in the country.

Similarly, if you are an organization that involves sports or the youth, you must process your application through the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in tandem with the Ministry of Interior. Interestingly, if you are trying to set up a cooperative, regardless of the fact that it is not involved in the agricultural sector, you are still forced to deal with the Ministry of Agriculture (remember, antiquated laws!).

The best advice in this case is to be very clear about what type of organization you are trying to establish and what type of work it does in order to figure out which institutions you have to directly deal with. One thing is for certain, all roads lead to the Ministry of Interior.

RELEVANT AND KEY LEGISLATION

1—Article 13 of the Lebanese Constitution

2—The 1909 Law of Associations

3—The 1911 Law of Public Assemblies

4—Public utility Organizations, Legislative Decree N.87 of 30/6/1977

5—Foreign Associations, Decision N.369 LR of 1939

6—Section II of the Penal Code

7—The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

8—Decision of the Council of State N.135/2003

04/ The Benefits of Registration/Declaration of Establishment

On the most basic of levels, a group of three people can form an “association” and simply inform the government of the new entity’s exis- tence, in line with the acknowledgment of the freedom to form an association. However, in practice the process can be more complicated.

The reason you should consider going through the registration process is the fact that it creates a legal status for your organization – which is acquired the same day the administration is presented with the legal declaration of establishment.

Having a legal status provides your organiza- tion with legal protection, and the right to:

• manage and dispense funds,
• stand before courts,
• accept donations, grants, and aid,
• work with formal institutions, among other rights as a legal entity,
• be more publicly present in conducting your work and be more accessible for the public at large without great concern from the authorities.

One particular advantage is the fact that as a legal entity, your organization can open up a bank account, which involves providing proof of registration from the Ministry of Justice, in addition to presenting other documents like, the organization’s statutes and bylaws, records of decision to open a bank account, identity cards and credentials, and anything else the bank requests.

Moreover, as a registered organization, you are expected to submit a number of documents annually to the Ministry of Interior. These include:

• an income statement of the previous year, / the current year’s budget,
• and a list of names of the organization’s members who have their annual subscription fees settled.

Three copies for each of these is perfect, and can ensure no complications on your end.

05/ Considering Realities, or Sometimes the Rules will be Bent

Let’s be honest, even if you follow all the rules to the letter, authority figures may give you a hard time. They may take their time processing your papers or apply intense scrutiny. They may not pay attention to the details of your documents and quickly stamp it. It is hard to predict, so always be prepared for complications.

Indeed, most local and international organiza- tions figure out creative ways to work with the available law. In particular, many international organizations simply do not have the capacity or ability to have sufficient Lebanese presence, and therefore tweak the information provided to the state. Others conduct themselves without registration, and are tolerated by the state for some time. Understanding the law, and how it works, is immensely important. Particularly for Syrians, Palestinians, or other non-Lebanese citizens, you will likely be denied ability to create and develop your organizations, and therefore will be forced to rely on Lebanese allies to help, protect, and perhaps represent your organization publicly before the state.

Remember that not being registered is a risky option, but depending on your situation, it might be an option worth considering. A lack of registration may allow you to operate without the restrictions and surveillance imposed on you by the authorities, or may be a decision born out of an urgent desire to help immedi- ately without waiting for the complex process of getting registered.

Whatever your reasons, know well that the consequences of going about forming an orga- nization without registration can be important, ranging from fines, closure, imprisonment, to at worst, deportation. You must consider all your options, and jointly decide on the steps you want to take.

One tip that this guidebook can strongly suggest in this context: invest in or familiarize yourself with a good lawyer or legal institutions that can help you navigate such technicalities and intricate legislative arrangements.

SECTION 2: DESIGNING LOCALLY- INFORMED PROGRAMS, OR ASSESSING YOUR RELEVANCE

All knowledge that is about human society, and not about the natural world, is historical knowledge, and therefore rests upon judgment and interpretation. This is not to say that facts or data are nonexistent, but that facts get their importance from what is made of them in interpretation... for interpretations depend very much on who the interpreter is, who he or she is addressing, what his or her purpose is, at what historical moment the interpretation takes place. - Edward Said

Before going any further, here is a brief cautionary tale to ponder over:

In an informal Syrian refugee camp within the Bekaa valley of eastern Lebanon, an international NGO came to pay a visit. The INGO had come to help encourage hygiene in these impoverished areas, and so wanted to host a workshop educating Syrian refugees on the most basic practices for keeping one’s self clean. But there was a major problem here. For, as members of the camp heatedly explained to the visiting INGO staff, the community was already aware of the primary standards of hygiene, and notonly was the workshop deemed offensive for its inherent assumptions, but more concerning to the refugees was the fact that neither did the INGO take into account the infrastructures in the camp (i.e. the realities on the ground) which made such endeavors relatively useless, nor did the INGO provide a solution for the communi- ty’s more pressing priorities.

This short story illustrates the most com- mon and typical mistakes committed by organizations, international and local, when working in the Lebanese context. Attributes of this story are echoed in many and different ways and the issue can be summarized as such: It lacked locally-informed or relevant activities, programs, and policies inducing tangible positive changes and positive responses from the targeted communities.

The root of the problem ultimately comes down to how well you design your programs and also how well you know or are familiar with the community you are designing the programs for. The development and implementation processes of programs are vital for the endur- ance and effectiveness of any organization. Essentially, you can think of programs as the beating heart of an organization, and great care should be made in designing these foundations in order to ensure a long, sustainable survival of your entire operation.

There are multiple ways to design well-managed, and more importantly locally- informed programs that have a higher chance of successful impact on the ground. It is encouraged that you take some time to exam- ine the options available.

What follows is a compilation of the classic suggestions and processes used by NGOs, collectives, and cooperatives for that aim. The design of a program follows a generic path that can be presented as shown in the parallel diagram.

Note here that the Arab Resource Collective has produced an impressive amount of resources in Arabic on Planning and Project Cycle Management; all of which can be found in open access on their website, accessed here:

<http://www.mawared.org/ar>

The Cautionary Case of Lebanon 2006-2007 Consider the experiences of Lebanon in 2006-2007, in which various local and international civil society and non-governmental organizations had to deal with two intense crises: The 33-day Israeli attack on Lebanon in July 2006, followed by the 2007 Nahr al-Bared conflict, in which the Lebanese armed forces battled it out with Fatah al-Islam militants residing in the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared, which hosts more than 31,000 Palestinian refugees. Local and international organizations already had their hands full from the fallout of the Israeli attack on Lebanon. The work shifted from emergency crisis mode to post-war reconstruction and healing mode, then back into an emergency crisis mode. Three-months of warfare in Nahr al-Bared resulted in a pressing humanitarian emergency, especially for those who were forcibly displaced by the violence. Dealing with violence, the sensitivity of Lebanese-Palestinian tensions, and needs of people - especially less than a year after the Israeli attack - was naturally immense. In the race to deal with the issue, both local and international NGOs collided at times. The problems further compounded when INGOs arrived without any awareness of context, camp’s culture and politics, which led to duplication as well as random and ineffective aid distribution. According to interviews of various organizations that participated in the aid/relief for vulnerable communities displaced by the conflict in 2007, the most effective work came from understanding what the community wanted and needed, who was still in the camp and who was able to escape, who did not have access to aid and who did, and who was working on these issues. One of the most important contributions in this process was that of the community aid workers. They provided the information, were in tune with the context, and helped shape policies since they were the ones on the ground and understood better the contours of the dilemma. It was the community workers who were able to conduct the necessary surveys on the ground for needs assessment, and it was the community workers’ role that helped organizations formulate and develop the tools and means to do their work. The community workers were, in other words, the harbingers of context. Moreover, local NGOs such as Samidoun, who had previous experience dealing with warfare, most notably the Israeli attack on Lebanon a year prior, had provided more effective, sophisticated, and meaningful responses by the sole fact that they had an awareness of what war, conflict, and displacement entailed. They understood the context. This experience resulted in the creation of shared documentation of the communities’ needs, outlining information on aid communities, the shifting nature of the conflict, and the scale of the emergency. Relying on a narrative-based form of assessment in various locations, community workers covered individual and community needs that, in turn, shaped and developed programs, policies, and action. The outcome from this work encouraged better forms of coordination, limited duplication of efforts, helped predict future challenges, and constituted an indicator of recovery. It was clear that data collection and how it was shared had profound impact on the ground. Source: Lamia Moghnieh, “Nahr al-Bared crisis and local responses of aid: a focus on needs assessment during emergencies”, Civil Society Knowledge Center, Lebanon Support, October 2015. Accessed here: <http://cskc.daleel-madani.org/paper/nahr-al-bared-crisis-and-local-responses-aid-focus-needs-assessment-during-emergencies>

01/ Assessing Needs

Depending on the nature of your organization, collective, and/or cooperative, you should immediately begin to understand the context you will be working in and how it relates to your strategic objectives.

The first step usually is to take measure of the environment you will be working in.

There are many ways to do this, including conducting your own research initiatives, undertaking a baseline study, distributing questionnaires, reviewing previous research made by others to holding focus group meetings with various stakeholders, mapping out the space, among other methods depending on your own human and financial capabilities.You need to understand the breadth and depth of a problem, which basically means taking into account social, economic, cultural, political, and other contexts.

Your research should also look at the setting. This includes: demographics, physical environment including infrastructure, human resources, beliefs and social practices, economic situation, external institutions, potential partners and linkages, and any other relevant statistical information.

Most of this data is made available by academic institutions and resources, research centres like Lebanon Support, governmental and non-governmental agencies, surveys and policy papers, as well as information online such as news articles, critical reviews, think pieces, or digital databases.

But you should complement that informa- tion with your own field work for the sake of fostering familiarity and developing your own conclusions based on your priorities, since nothing beats seeing a situation through your own lens. Make sure to set up meetings with the local communities or actors you will be working with/for and make sufficient time to actually observe and absorb the space you will be operating in. Coordination is a great way to gather information and ensure that you are not duplicating the same work others are tirelessly trying to do. More often than not, the study has been done by someone else already, and it is simply a matter of you finding these reports, conclusions, and resources.

By doing this, you should gradually find yourself answering key questions:

What are the needs, sentiments, perspectives, and capacities of the target group? What are the contours of the problem/gaps you are trying to solve? What approaches are suitable for this issue? Are there similar programs already? If so, what were their failures and successes? What are the chances for the success/failure of your program? Who are the key players in the issue you are tackling? Are there social tools, laws, infrastructures that can help or impede on your goals? Can I, as an NGO, fulfill these needs and how? Can my organization sustain this service? How can I engage the community in a way that fulfills these needs?

Next you can start outlining the different needs in a table, or using other visual methods. The best way is to break them down into categories, for example perceived, normative, and relative to make clearer how your organization can get involved. Rate the issues along themes like severity, magnitude, feasibility, ease, links to actors, impact, and gradually do the homework to fill out your information. Keep in mind that needs are not always normative in their description, they can be contingent, complex, and related to other factors - it would be worthy to note that in your outline.

Don’t forget to create a list of the various stakeholders involved, and make sure to highlight their level of importance and influence in order to determine if you can/ should work with them. Begin reaching out to the groups through meetings, workshops, conferences, or social gatherings. Don’t forget to be honest, patient, and friendly with as many actors as you can, but also make sure that you aren’t compromising your goals, the beneficiaries of your project, or your own principles during the networking process.

The benefit of doing this is multifaceted. It will help you:

• / determine the contours of the problem and if the problem “fits” into the mandate of your organization;
• / provide the foundations for an outline in creating more suitable solutions, and ensuring that you work in the most effective manner;
• / clarify and strengthen what your organi- zation’s mandate and role is, for yourself and others such as donors, volunteers, and govern- ment agencies;
• / garner acceptance, relevance, and trust from the communities you are working in;
• / determine who your allies or challengers/ obstacles are – this is especially vital because no successful work can be done in a vacuum.

02/ Analyzing the Problem(s)

Once you have identified a particular problem that you want to solve or a gap you want to fill, it is very important that you start deconstruct- ing it. The more you are aware of the nature of the problem, its attributes and the reasons why it exists, the better and stronger your project design can be. Start by presenting the problem clearly and simply, noting the who(s), what(s), where(s), and why(s). Then expand/analyze the problem, taking great care to bring in the con- text and the many factors involved as possible.

You can draw the problem out in the form of a “problem tree”, as a table, or any other method of categorization that presents the characteristics, consequences, and components of a problem clearly and simply. You can weigh each element depending on your own abilities or interests.

Always think critically, and always try to ask yourself “why?”.

Depending on your work, and since no one can really tackle an issue alone, try to concentrate on what is suitable for you. If you are an emergency organization, consequences tend to be your domain, while cultural and developmental projects tend to tackle the root problem of an issue.

Not everyone will agree completely on a particular analysis to a problem (since problems can be subjective or vary), but the importance here is to create a clear consensus with yourselves and the various stakeholders, and this is a good way to remain transparent and be able to review things at the later stages.

A good move would be to identify the available resources in the community you will be working in, what you can offer as an organization, and what other existing organizations offer, and use coordination as a tool to bridge any gaps that hinder your ability to tackle a problem. Ask yourself: Are there local groups, committees, associa- tions that can be partners, guides, or resources for your work? Are there other similar organizations doing the same thing, and can we work together to complement, rather than compete with, each other?

03/ Where and How to Intervene

After you’ve assessed the needs and understood the problem, and its context, it is time to plan how your organization is going to intervene.

Remember to not only take into account your capabilities and limitations, but also examine the previous practices of other organizations with the particular, or even similar, issues you are seeking to challenge. In this case, coordination and communication with communities, other non-governmental organizations, and other actors is a must at this stage because it will help you adapt your plan, and possibly open the door to collaborations with others down the road.

Intervening is, obviously, based on your own goals and strategic objectives. Always try to be as specific, realistic, and measurable as you can be, and don’t forget to start to map out a timeline for your project (is it time-sensitive or a long-term effort?). It is okay to point out that a goal may not be achieved during the span of a project, and being openly honest about limitations will let you gain a lot of credit with communities, partners, and donors.

In essence, you are beginning to focus your ideas, transforming them slowly into prac- tical action. Create a cost-benefit analysis, a Multiple Criteria Utility Assessment, a Pairwise Ranking Matrix, or other tools easily found online or used by similar organizations. (Refer to Appendix I for tools examples).

04/ Designing a Detailed Work Plan

Here’s the fun, yet tedious part: filling out a work plan and a logframe.

The more detailed your work plan is, the better, because it provides your staff and other par- ticipants a clear path of their responsibilities, work, and activities. Don’t worry if the steps in your work plan changes somewhat over time – adaptation can be a good thing – but ultimately this will be your own guide for your initiative. This allows you to start thinking in a focused manner, and helps you determine and articulate your proposed actions.

Generally you can start by describing clearly and concisely what actions are to be undertaken, followed by a step-by-step of how these actions will occur. Remember to indicate these steps in order of priorities, who will be responsible for the actions, who will be involved and who will benefit, what will be measured/monitored and how, what resources are needed, and what the expected outcomes are.

Finally, note down which innovations, models, and initiatives will be conceived and utilized for your goals.

Everything should be presented in sequential order of occurrence, to show your logic and thought process (for yourself and others), and help define your budget needs in terms of staff- ing, nature of implementation, involvement of external forces or technical assistance.

Make sure that your work plan is short in length to indicate that you are focused and not trying to do or say too much.

The main question you, the program/project manager, should always ask yourself at this stage is “how”?

Remember, you aren’t really reinventing the wheel here. There is an abundance of infor- mation and experiences by hundreds, if not thousands, who have preceded you. Read as much as you can. The literature on the topic, the reports, the accounts, and testimonies are a wealth of often untapped expertise. It is always worth your time to see what others have attempted, and perhaps that will inspire you in ways you never considered before.

05/ Implementing and Managing Program(s)/ Project(s)

It is time to start implementing your work.

The project/program manager is vital in this regard. They plan, schedule, control, monitor, evaluate, and report on a project/program. Being in a managerial position means you have a lot of responsibility steering your program/ project to success. An efficient manager is one that is knowledgeable, communicative, aware, adaptable, creative, and, notably, can handle the stresses of running a project. So be pre- pared, and roll with the wild punches that will come, get back up if you fall, and carry on with your objectives.

Remember to not let power get to your head, and always try to maintain a level of respect towards your staff and the communities you work with/for. No one likes working with arrogant, condescending, and domineering persons, especially if the outcomes on the ground are not positive enough to justify it. Don’t be afraid to assign roles and delegate, or in other words, decentralize your power. Involving others that may be or likely are more able to do the social work, run the day-to-day actions, and implement the program is often the best way to go. Micromanaging, especially by a person who does not have the relevant and sufficient expertise, can often be the death of any project.

The Cautionary Case of Lebanon 2006-2007 Lebanon is a space of gaps, or more specifically it is a state that does not function as a state. This was very apparent during the Israeli war on Lebanon in July 2006. The state was not able to provide aid, relief and basic services to the vulnerable. In came Samidoun, a grassroots platform that encompassed multiple and divergent forms of relief, initiatives, expertise, and volunteerism. During and after the war, it engaged in aid provision. Samidoun was born during a collective action, specifically the political sit-in organized against the Israeli military operation on Gaza in 2006, which coincided with the first day of the July war, on the 12th of July 2006. This political sit-in became a space in which the structure and organization of local relief were imagined and practiced. The sit-in took two weeks of preparation among different leftist organizations, political groups, and movements in Lebanon. Then it was transformed into one of the main organizers of local relief initiatives when the Israeli attack began. At first the work was about providing shelter and relief for the displaced, then it began to focus on a general mapping of the numbers and needs of the displaced families. This was vital considering that the state was unable to play a productive role during the emergency. Various meetings were conducted by Samidoun’s members and, influenced by the political atmosphere in the country and by the lack of national unity and solidarity, there was an agreement on the importance of a civil form of resistance to war that could bring people together in spite of divisions. As Samidoun evolved and grew, so did the structure and style of its aid/ relief work. Volunteers were divided into units according to their skills and the direct and immediate needs on the ground as the war progressed and intensified. The different gender, class and political-regional backgrounds that these volunteers came from provided a platform for rich and complementary resources and skills that the relief campaign was based on. Furthermore, volunteers were also divided based on their own academic backgrounds and overall skills, which in turn shaped activity. What resulted were units focusing on logistic-distribution, media and communication, volunteer teams, administration, food-cooking, storage, the internally displaced, medical needs, hygiene-public health, and psychosocial needs, among others. The evolution of the work was also shaped by the ever-changing situation on the ground, oriented towards work, speed, bottom-up approaches, and coordination. When the war was over, Samidoun was faced with the reality of postwar reconstruction. That reality hindered Samidoun’s relief campaign and challenged its very structure. The group slowly transformed from a grassroots collective to a local implementer of international humanitarian organizations’ relief programs. It finally collapsed as a political, independent collective in the face of a increasingly professionalized humanitarian domain, becoming merely “a medium” between local communities and international organizations in the postwar arena. The arrival of INGOs, which enabled a process of NGO- ization, forced independent groups and volunteering forms of expertise to become “professionalized” for legitimacy reasons, thereby opening a market of professionalism for social and political action. The fate of grassroots organizing, and the local data, expertise and forms of aid that emerged from it, became unsustainable within the new humanitarian domain which was dictated by top-down forms of globalized policies, interventions and funds. The standardization, professionalization, and linking of local responses to conflict to the global humanitarian policies and interventions allowed for a gradual disconnection with local knowledge and resources. More specifically, packaged and standardized global interventions seemed to produce a gap in identifying, satisfying and addressing the field- informed needs that emerged during the emergency.  Source: Lamia Moghnieh, “Local forms of relief during the July war in 2006 and international humanitarian interventions: Implications on community preparedness for war and conflict”, Civil Society Knowledge Center, Lebanon Support, June 2015. Acessed here: <http://cskc.daleel-madani.org/paper/local-forms-relief-during-july-war-2006-and-international-humanitarian-interventions

06/ Monitoring/Evaluating the Process

Looking back at your work plan, and as the work moves along, it is time to start monitor- ing and evaluating how things are faring so far. This is important since too many initiatives fail in the upkeep aspect of the work, even when they start off strong.

When you are monitoring the process, you are examining if the level in which your resources, capabilities, timetables, and targets are going according to the plan you’ve set for yourself. Evaluation, on the other hand, looks to determine as systematically and objectively as you can what the outcomes and impacts of the project/program are on the staff, the beneficia- ries, and any other stakeholders.

The act of monitoring and evaluating helps in developing your work and covering any gaps, deficiencies, or other issues that have appeared over time. It also ensures that your activities meet the standard requirements of donors, and can provide added value to enhance advocacy and public presentation of your work.

For this aim, you should consider: who will conduct the monitoring/evaluation process? What are their general qualifications? When and where will the evaluation occur? How and when will data be collected and analyzed? How will the monitoring/ evaluation findings be presented externally or internally, and how will the results be used?

Consider visits to the field, using supervisory checklists, focus group discussions with the communities, constant internal meetings, periodic reviews of records and reports, and set up an analysis/measurement framework of the staff members, including yourself, to see if everyone involved is doing the work correctly on a quarterly, mid-term, or at least annual basis.

At the end, conduct a final evaluation of all the outcomes and impacts, as well as the overall cost and management of the process, and how sustainable the entire program/project is.

07/ Deciding What’s Next

At this point it will be clear if you should continue or simply stop working. If your process of work has been negative towards the communities, or even the staff themselves, there is no shame in just stopping and going away – in fact, this is highly recommended, especially if adapting your work plan has no effect.

Here, you are at a crossroads which determines your future. It is a time for self-reflection and self-scrutiny, and sometimes coming face-to-face with harsh truths. Do not simply decide the matter on a question of funding, because there are a number of solutions depending on the nature of your work, and therefore that can be solved. Rather, make sure that your final decision is strongly based on the impact on beneficiaries that your project/program was designed to support, help, or service. They are the fundamental decider of your fate, and it makes no sense to discontinue a project that is having a positive impact on these communities, especially if it’s long-term.

The key questions in this matter are: Are you empowering communities or making them dependent? Are you really building a path to solving problems, entrenching problems, or creating new problems? Is it better to continue or stop?

If you decide to continue, you can consider developing your project to cover gaps wit- nessed or to include better practices. You may also develop new projects based on needsidentified during the course of your work, or you can continue as you did before. Whatever happens, as long as you continue, the aforementioned cycle repeats itself.

Example: The Do No Harm principle

An effective tool in designing a detailed work plan is the Do No Harm principle. This principle can be the guiding framework to keep in mind, and can be outlined in seven simple steps. They are:

Understanding the context in a problem or conflict: Identify which of the problems/conflict is doing the most harm, and how assistance may impact the socio/political differences that can cause or inflame problems.

Analyze ‘dividers and tensions’: Once you have identified the problems and conflicts in a com- munity, the next step is to understand what are their sources and effects. It could be individu- als, demography, politics, religion, economics, and etc.

Analyze ‘connectors and local capacities’: It is not only important to look at the problem, but to also look at what possible solutions are available or potential. These can range from something like infrastructure, history, shared attitudes, and existence organizations or indi- viduals who are willing to play a positive role.

Analyze the assistance program: Next up, a compre- hensive review of all aspects of the assistance program, particularly where and why it is placed, who is doing it, and how it is done. These are all important questions to help you see what has or has not worked out before you step in.

Analyze the impact of an assistance to ‘dividers and connectors’: Is the assistance damaging rela- tionships in communities? Is it reinforcing or eroding positive sources? How is the assis- tance affecting resources and communities on the ground?

Feedback into program design: Going through steps 1-5, if you’ve found that your program has a negative impact, it's time to reshape it to the better.

Test impact and review: Now it’s time for action, which can be the only way to know how things fare, and obviously, if you are doing harm, stop, rework or leave.

08/ Further Considerations for the Lebanese Context

Considering that Lebanon is no stranger to local and international NGOs, collectives, and cooperatives, there are a number of things to keep in mind.

Many of these organizations have operated in a manner that has been detrimental in terms of promoting self-agency for communities, smothering local initiatives, or having reinforced problematic institutions and systems. A big factor behind this is the fact that they have operated in a manner that is mainly discon- nected from locally-informed sources.

In this regard, this guide strongly advocates community-driven or participatory approaches.

The advantages range from accurate analysis, promoting sustainable interaction with communities, encouraging empowerment/ self-agency, strengthening collaboration and coordination, and promoting more tangible relevant solutions. In turn, this will reduce bias and cost, and will catalyze action. However, the challenges of this process are also multiple: it can raise false expectations, generate mistrust if the program fails, lead to conflict between the organization’s goals and mandate and the community’s needs, and become narrow-focused, among other factors.

However, actively including local actors or beneficiaries in the processes, despite the inherent challenges, is still considered the most useful method in achieving positive outcomes in Lebanon, and indeed elsewhere.

The relationship can be organized into a formal or informal structure, catering to the issue of time, and encouraging close personal relationships that will allow networking later on. Members of the community can present innovative solutions based off of limited resources, offer their role as mediators for conflicts, or provide a doorway of access into aparticular community.

Make sure that a participatory practice does not create or reinforce power-structures
or nepotism within these communities, or induces fragmentation and competition between the beneficiaries, and puts the volun- teers in unnecessary risks.

Constant and consistent communication
is pivotal, and therefore you should think
of workshops, exercises, discussions and opportunities of dialogue, or even personal social gatherings for that aim. Some exercises can range from jointly creating a community mapping project, to bi-weekly meetings to dis- cuss issues of importance, or celebratory social events to motivate and nurture relationships in a dignified and humane way.

Be sensitive to bias such as gender, class, sec- tarian, cultural, or otherwise, and attempt to circumvent that for the sake of being inclusive, and particularly in a manner that isn’t patronizing, obtrusive, or heavy-handed.

Language skills are imperative, and in the Lebanese context, Arabic is essential. Make sure you, or someone in your staff, are able to articulate yourself in Arabic – both orally and in writing. Translations from and to English, French, and Arabic is highly encouraged. Make sure that the translation is done in a manner that is not absolutely literal, but follows organically between the various languages. If your budget allows for it, hire a solid translator and editor, or outsource the work to researchers and translators in the country in order to ensure that you are not disconnected from the larger societal discussions.

If you are an international NGO working in Lebanon and have not tried to present or articulate in Arabic, you are in for a world of trouble. Think if the tables were turned and a Lebanese Arabic-speaking NGO had arrived and worked in your non-Arabic speaking country, but this Lebanese NGO does not speak or write in that language. It would not go well, right? The same situation applies here, even though English and French are in common usage, you should take the time and incorpo- rate Arabic if you really want to reach out to most of the population, especially those who are vulnerable.

Always have an exit strategy. You don’t want to stay there forever, and neither do the communities your work is supposed to be directed for. It is best to enter, work right, and leave when the work is done. It is more imperative to have an exit strategy when your work, project, or program is harmful. Mitigate the failure by walking away. There is no shame in acknowl- edging failure and having the maturity to take a step back.

and/KEY TERMS

Stakeholder analysis

A process of systematically gathering and analyzing qualitative information to determine actors whose interests should be taken into account when developing or implementing a program or policy.

Programs

A series of related projects, activities, and/or events implemented in order to achieve objectives and goals. Programs tend to be long-term, with a larger scope and scale in its undertaking.

Projects

A more focused aspect of an overarching program, service, or initiative.

Project (Cycle) Management

Planning, scheduling, controlling, overseeing, assessing, and reporting of a project’s activities to reach predefined ends. 

Stakeholders

Individuals who are affected by the successes or failures of an organization’s actions, objectives, and policies. (Anyone from creditors, staff, government agencies, businesses, community members, etc.). 

Perceived needs

Needs that are perceived to be of importance for a community, may not be actually important.

Normative needs

Needs as determined usually by experts/professional/policies that define what is desirable or acceptable for a community.

Relative needs

Comparing the needs to other spaces, whether in close geographic proximity, or along national, regional, or international levels.

The Cautionary Case of Lebanon 2006-2007 There is an ideological split regarding the ability of relief/aid to be "neutral." This was apparent in  Lebanon 2006 during the Israeli attack. Relief work organized by different local and political groups was considered to be first and foremost an act of engaged solidarity and popular mobilization against the war, an act of resistance. It was deemed inherently political. This was not entirely shared by international aid framework. As so, there is tension between the two systems. For local actors, aid exchanges with communities transcended its monetary or material value and had a different affective and emotional influence on both the person receiving relief, and the person providing it. This form of aid also established a personal relationship between the affected communities and aid providers which impacted the quality and depth of the needs expressed and satisfied during the war. Building engaged forms of solidarity with war-affected communities also had an effect on the type and complexity of need assessments collected during the war. Moreover, many of the activists, experts and volunteers interviewed saw the politics of postwar reconstruction as a process that required awareness, intervention and mobilization. At the same time, the arrival of international organizations, with their humanitarian ideologies, mainly rendered aid in he form of a “commodity”. The new policies that came with them imposed a political economy of postwar reconstruction in terms of aid that materialized in funding, new concepts and notions that gained economic value, and an overall site for corruption and misuse of aid. Thus, this political economy was literally translated into a ‘market of aid’, where NGO jargon, professionalization and expertise were seen as highly valued commodities on one hand, and as the way to produce rights, development and social change in Lebanon on the other. For international aid and relief organizations, politically engaged relief was perceived to be biased, not professional and overall an improper form of aid. Standardization of aid was seen as the most efficient way to neutralize aid within internal political tensions. What should be understood, and is the ultimate paradox here, is that “neutrality” is in itself a political position, and is often defined by European and North American values, concepts and assumptions. This situation in turn determines the contours of economies, decides who is worthy of being saved and assisted and who is not, and produces a specific politics of suffering from war. Moreover, the transformative history of humanitarianism from the principle of neutrality to the principle of witnessing and “the right to intervene”, have intersected with an increased incorporation of development, advocacy for human rights and gender equality, especially in post-conflict humanitarian programs. This is further compounded by the role of the UN in this minefield, with its humongous bureaucracy and politics, especially when it monopolizes coordination and relief policy initiatives. The outcome of this situation is the realization that there needs to be actions that are more sophisticated. Current humanitarian work and organizations in Lebanon should encourage and collaborate with politically engaged, committed grassroots initiatives of aid and development. These initiatives and groups have the potential to build deep ties and relationships with the serviced communities, understand their needs and be creative in satisfying them outside of bureaucratized and standardized procedure that might not always be compatible. Moreover, further professionalization and standardization of current humanitarian work have transformed it into a business-like act where a humanitarian worker has to detach herself emotionally and politically from the crisis. A de-professionalization of aid and development work should be established in order to ensure a more engaged, and therefore, more efficient support for the serviced communities. Source: Lamia Moghnieh, “Relief as a neutral form of aid or a political- communal mobilization? Doing politics in emergencies and war and the politics of aid in Lebanon”, Civil Society Knowledge Center, Lebanon Support, August 2015. Accessed here: <http://cskc.daleel-madani.org/ paper/%E2%80%9Crelief-neutral-form-aid-or-political-communal-mobilization-doing-politics-emergencies-and-war>

SECTION 3: FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY, OR MAKING SURE THE LIGHTS DON’T GO OUT

Cash, Rules, Everything, Around, Me C.R.E.A.M. Get the money Dollar, dollar bill y’all. - Wu-Tang Clan

Proper budgetary policy and accounting, financial transparency, creative fundraising strategies, among other actions, are essential at this stage for you to function in a positive and enduring manner.

Remember that in Lebanon you have the added challenge that getting funds can be highly difficult. The pool of funds are limited in various ways, and you will find yourself often jostling against a growing number of other organizational competitors for whatever resources that are available.

Let’s go over the basics.

01/ The Budget

Before even trying to secure funds, you should start planning out your budgetary needs. The budget is basically your work plan transformed along monetary measurements and limited timelines, and it illustrates the income and the expenditures of your program or project – with income generated from sources like donations, annual membership fees, and fund-raising campaigns, while expenditures are the direct or indirect costs and expenses.

Overall, the budget is the reflection of your future plans, through the lens of finance, and allows you and others to gauge how feasible your work actually is.

In general, the smaller your operation is, the less complicated the procedures are for your budget plans and the less complex are the contours of its management.

For larger organizations, this requires more layers. This does not mean that smaller NGOs should not do these extra steps, and it is recom- mended if you want to be “ahead in the game”, but, if your initiative is not massive in scope or your financial habits are not considerably comprehensive, then you can most likely sustain yourself with the bare basics.

In this regard, you should first include input from individuals across the organization, from the executive board to members of the general assembly. Make sure to note the varying internal and external factors that will shape the budget (eg: situational analyses or other similar documents), the use of historical and contemporary financial data to inform your planning, and potential future changes, unexpected circumstances, and/or additional expenses that might arise.

Any detailed annual budget plans should be ready at least two or three months in advance from the beginning of a financial year (usually January 1st), while general budget plans can be prepared for the next two to three years in advance for a project/program.

A general budget presents expected revenues and expenditures for a particular time-frame, each divided into different categories.

For example, income can be divided into: 

• / Membership fees,
• / Contributions,
• / Government grants,
• / Academic and other grants,
• / Service charges.

Expenditures can be divided as so: 

• / Operational costs,
• / Equipment costs,
• / Salary, benefits, and other labor costs, 
• / Logistic costs,
• / Administrative expenses.

A more detailed budget does not only account for the whole organization, but narrows it down further for specific programs or projects, with revenue and expenditure clearly outlined for each. It allows one to compare the finances of programs/ projects with each other, making assessments or modifications to them easier. However, it also makes the accounting system more complex and costly, and gives you more paperwork.

02/ Financial Accounting

A transparent, effective, and time-efficient accounting system is essential for positive, well-meaning and uncorrupted NGO, collective, and/or cooperative work.

By having a clear, well-thought-out financial accounting system you will not only make your ability to plan out and implement your work easier, but will also alleviate any concerns by donors and even the communities you are going to be immersing yourself in. If they know where the money is coming from and going, it will solve a lot of headaches and awkward questions in the future. In essence, it is about nurturing trust.

For smaller organizations, the treasurer and accountant tend to be the same person, while larger organizations divide up the roles.

The financial accounting system commonly used follows the generally accepted international accounting principles, meaning that it takes the form of a double accounting system– with all payments and receipts registered in the association’s accounting book.

Receipts should be issued for all types of transactions, and should include:

• / Serial numbers,
• / Three copies – one sent to the payer, second to the accountants, and the third kept on record,
• / It should detail things like: received from, description of what and why, details of how the amount is being received, and the signature of the treasurer,
• / A bank slip after the amount is deposited.

On the most basic level you should have a “cash register” which records all financial operations that bring money in and out of the organization’s funds. This is complemented by payment vouchers which clarify what money is being spent or invested into the program/project. Payment vouchers can be utilized for third parties for their services, or to individuals and company invoices.

A payment voucher should at the very least have: 

• / a serial number (for tracking),
• / two copies (the original given to an accoun- tant, while the copy is filed away).

Each copy should note: 

• / Value used,
• / Date,
• / Name of recipient,
• / Reason for payment,
• / Kind of payment (cash or check) and currency, / Official signatures of recipient and signatory.

Always make sure you are recording all accounting transactions chronologically in a weekly – if not daily – journal. This is catego- rized as ‘items’, and they should be supported by documentation that explains how and what is being utilized.

Make sure your accountant is organized with all documents.

03/ Financial Reports

In addition to the above, make sure to actively produce and share financial reports on a yearly basis to keep everyone up-to-date with your activities, and ensure a spirit of transparency.

There are different versions of such reports, such as:

1/ Trial balance: a detailed statement of accounts recorded in a daily balance sheet. It includes debit and credit amounts, prepared at least every two months, which can then be used to assess your productivity and finances by the year’s end.

2/ Income statements: this document shows the surplus or deficit from your work. It records everything.

3/ Balance sheet, assets, and liabilities: at the closing of a fiscal year, this document shows your balance for each account, ie. the value of assets and liabilities your organization owns. This should be presented in a very clear manner, outlining the assets, liabilities, debit and credit accounts, in comparison with the previous year’s balance sheets. It must be meticulous, honest, accurate, complete, and consistent.

4/ Balance statements: Legally required by the Ministry of Interior, it is a table that outlines actual income against actual expenses for the year, with proposed budgets for the following year.

04/ Taxes

Do not forget the taxes that you have to settle within Lebanon. For smaller organizations, you are mainly tax exempt except for any payroll and indirect taxes, so do the research to see what is relevant for you. Some of the taxes that are applicable and/or mandatory for bigger organizations are:

• / Payroll tax, or income tax for each employee, 
• / Non-resident tax for those working in your organization,
• / Taxes on returns of movable capital and capital profit of your organization,
• / Indirect taxes, like entertainment tax imposed on social events that you may hold,
• / Taxes on imported goods, through customs unless they are of public utility.

Furthermore, as a local NGO functioning in Lebanese territory, you must abide by the social security law – this means you have to subscribe to the National Social Security Fundtwo weeks after hiring your first employee. This helps deal with issues of labor rights that could arise, and ensures that your employees received basic benefits. It is applicable to non-residents too.

05/ Getting Cash

Once you have worked out your budgetary plans and an efficient, transparent accounting system, it is time to get funds. 

This is frustrating work. It is highly competitive, and the drive for it can change your organization in unexpected ways. Be aware.

There are multiple ways of obtaining money. When trying to figure out how to obtain funds, try to think according to what is most suitable for your objectives. Be strategic about it.

06/ Donors

The most common avenue for funds are from donors. Donors can be governmental, academic or cultural institutions, private sector, busi- nesses, and artistic organizations. Try to best partner up with donors who jive with your identity. Research is your key here.

Lookup directories online, local and interna- tional. The online civil society directory of Lebanon Support’s Daleel Madani is an excellent example of a source for donor organizations in Lebanon, but do not limit yourself to just that website. Look for other sites and directories. Once you get into the habit of research, you’ll gradually find a lot of potential opportunities. Many of the funding and grants have a dead- line, so be aware of these limitations. Do not try to appeal to many organizations for money: try to be selective and target a select few.

Once you’ve found possible sources. Familiarize yourself with who they are, how they operate, and learn to understand their language. This is essential when you get to the funding proposal writing phase.

When writing a funding proposal there are a few things to keep in mind:

• / Be concise, clear, coherent, creative and confident,
• / Be engaging, transparent, factual and intelligent,
• / Know your organization and the stakehold- ers your work is targeting well, and share that. State your SWOTs (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats),
• / Show that you are new, innovative, and fresh.

The structure of how your funding proposal looks like may already have been defined explicitly by the donors themselves. If not, the basic structure should look like this:

• / State the problem,
• / Explain why your project is necessary to deal with the problem,
• / Outline your goals and objectives,
• / State your strategies and activities,
• / Share your results, or expected results, 
• / Present your budget.

Do not be afraid to spice up your proposal with quotes, data, articles, and other documented experiences, but always remember to be brief and punchy, as to not be verbose. Try to be polished using visually pleasing formatting and design. Be smart about your analysis in explaining the problems you are tackling – show that you understand the complexities, nuances, and dynamics at play.

Always remember the communities you are working for: this money should ultimately benefit them, right? Therefore, do not hesitate to bring their voice into the proposal, but you must be respectful and non-exploitative about the problems they are facing.

When discussing your objectives in a fund- ing proposal, a useful tool is to remember to be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This simple type of detail will not only convince the donor of your cause, but will also help you refine and under- stand why you are doing this work.

Make sure you have an active, confident voice in your writing always.

An extra necessary step is to ensure that you have a system of accountability and transpar- ency for the donor. Tell them exactly the amount of funding you need, and prove why and how. This will alleviate their concerns because they will know where and how the money is being used. Consider providing performance indi- cators and evaluation results, and commit to providing them with such data consistently. 

This written proposal should be packaged along a professional format, based on their requirements or by your own initiative. Include sections like a title page, table of contents, glossary, project summary, organi- zational overview, page numbering, footnotes and headings, appendices, bibliography and reference page, as well as a cover letter.

Once your proposal is approved, and a relation- ship has been built, keep the donors in the loop as best as you can. Make time for meetings, keep an open line, be willing to absorb any constructive input they provide you, send them information and news of your operations or of the space you are working in, and speak to them as equals, even if they do pay for your bills.

Caution: Be wary of donor power. Certain donors may try to shape you according to their vision and ideologies, which could negatively impact your own work and goals. Remember to be as autonomous as you can be, and always remember that you are working for the communities and not the donors.

07/ Non-Donor Funds

As hard as it is to imagine, donors are not the only source of funding. There are other means, and you should diversify the flow of capital coming in.

Crowdsourcing may be a good option for you; in other words, appeal to the public-at-large to financially support your cause.

Running a successful crowdfunding campaign requires you to be creative, captivating, and clever. You need to prove yourself in the public court, and on the most simple level you need to understand and utilize common languages and terminologies, through a mix of audio-visual tools that are shareable online through various social media platforms (ie. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Vine, YouTube, etc). You must also clearly explain what you are trying to do and why you need the money. The more transparent you are about the financial needs and process, the more trust and support you will get from the public.

Make sure your funding campaign is capti- vating, not melodramatic, and respectful of the subject you are dealing with. Treat the audience as intelligent, rational beings and they will reward you in surprising ways when you show them that your actions have positive impacts and dividends.

Tap into digital crowd-funding platforms like Zoomaal or Indiegogo, and try to define a spe- cific, reasonable monetary figure for the public to support. Each of these platforms have special requirements, so make sure you have read the guidelines before launching your campaign.

Study how other successful campaigns were conducted on these platforms, and use their experience to create a campaign that is unique to your identity. Try to set up digital payments on your website, so that contributors can immediately send you their donations.

Never ignore the traditional means of fundraising, which include donations boxes strategically placed in spaces that will reach a

variety of target audiences, or having volun- teers going door-to-door in the community explaining the work and appeal for modest donations. Even if the results are small, in the long term, they will come in handy.

Similarly, organize social fundraising events, whether it is relevant to the type of work you are doing or whether it is simply to bring people together for a fun time – particularly consider holding these events in the target communities. Their involvement will go a long way in building trust and access for the future. Hold a week-long festival, an art show, film screenings, and music events, among other gatherings that attract crowds.

Use your network and contacts. Bring your family, friends, and acquaintances into the fold as a source of income. Work and cooperate with other similar organizations to discover their experiences and challenges, and figure out other avenues for money.

07/ Income-Generating and Sustainable Projects

Another way to ensure a continual flow of funds is by developing and implementing income-generating or sustainable projects.

These are projects that generate their own cash flows that can cover some of your costs, and can allow you to be more autonomous and independent. Income-generating and sustain- able projects are not easy, they are as risky as setting up your own business, and funds are not likely to arise immediately. But if it works, the payoffs are incredible.

Depending on the nature of your work, think of what type of sustainable or income-generating projects are possible. For example, if you are trying to help Syrian refugees in Lebanon, why not try to develop a bakery, a collective farm, or work that involves the talents, expertise, and crafts of the Syrian refugee community,

in which they are involved productively as part of their own solution and receive modest amounts of money to survive?

Income-generating and sustainable projects are innovative because they have to circumvent low-costs and can reach a wider target group since its strength is based on how well you have gotten local actors and agents involved.

Like before, there is no sense in trying to “reinvent the wheel”. Rather, try to make the wheel fit into the local context and dynamics in a way that is not detrimental to the commu- nity and other stakeholders. You will need to understand the space, people, resources and infrastructure, and that will take quite a bit of work, but when done right, will have a strong multifaceted impact for the target groups, larger community, and yourselves. Understand if you need to train the actors or if you just need to provide the raw materials, and always be clear over what your role will be in this endeavor to avoid any pitfalls on ownership, administration, and control.

KEY TERMS

Fundraising

The process of gathering voluntary contributions of money or other resources through requesting donations from individuals, businesses, and others by a variety of means.

Sustainability

Sustainability means taking the long-term view of your actions and how they may continue and positively impact future target groups.

Income-generating projects

The ability to be sustainable in a way that generates funds, goods, or investments that feed into the project to achieve financial autonomy from donors.

THE CASE OF A SUSTAINABLE PROGRAM: DALEEL-MADANI.ORG BY LEBANON SUPPORT Daleel Madani is a civil society portal created and managed by Lebanon Support. It is an online collaborative platform for civil society. The platform aims to enhance the availability of, and accessibility to information about civil society and state intervention, as well as to strengthen civil society coop- eration in Lebanon. It was first launched in 2006, then in a more user-friendly interface in 2011. Daleel Madani is the most visited portal on civil society in Lebanon, and it gathers more than a million and a half page views per year. Daleel Madani is the hub for approximately 1300 organizations in Lebanon: from large scale organizations to donors institutions and UN agencies, to local or specialized smaller organizations. The portal is membership based: after registration, members can have an individual profile and upload their logos, post job vacancies, post news press releases and events, publish resources, post their projects online, post calls for proposals and requests for tenders, create online polls and surveys, host their mailing lists among others. Although the directory includes non-registered organizations as well. After years of running on a volunteer basis, and increased demands from organizations to widen the services offered by Daleel Madani, Lebanon Support came up with a sustain- ability strategy for the portal that included membership fees for international organizations and agencies. These charges are vital for the sustainability of the portal, and they also allow Lebanon Support to provide Daleel Madani’s services free of charge for local organizations, as it is Lebanon Support’s mission to strengthen local civil society. Today, Daleel Madani is in large part self-funded by Lebanon Support, making it more autonomous and independent from donor funding. Sources: Lebanon Support: http://lebanon-support.org/ Daleel Madani: http://daleel-madani.org/

SECTION 4: HUMAN RESOURCES, OR PLUGGING INTO PEOPLE’S POWER

One hand does not clap. - Egyptian Proverb

No group or person can operate in isolation. You will need help. That means you’ll have to consider setting up a vol- unteer and training program in order to bring people into your fold and to prepare them for work in your respective project/program(s).

The nature of your recruitment and training is obviously predicated on what type of goals you are trying to achieve and what exactly you are doing. By now, you should be absolutely clear on what your vision and goals are and how you are planning to go about doing things. If you aren’t at that level... Why are you reading this?! Quick, go over the previous sections and come back, we will wait for you...

Excellent, now we are all caught up. You are now ready to plug into people’s power, also known as “human resources”.

In the most basic terms, human resources is your workforce, and a work- force, to use a cliché, is your engine: it is people who are part of your organization and who carry out tasks and responsibilities that are necessary to propel your project/program forward to its goals.

There are many ways one can develop a workforce, and to discuss them would be far beyond the scope of this guidebook.

But, we insist that you take a significant amount of your time to examine these strategies and to make sure to develop a space that nurtures diversity of membership, talents, and thoughts, and a structure that positively supports and rewards merit, mutual respect, creativity, and intelligence.

Of all the types of workforce you’ll be tap- ping into, one of the most essential and most likely is volunteerism, and that is what will be highlighted in this section.

01/ Volunteerism 101

Volunteers are individuals who are willing to work together for a specific goal for “free”. They are doing the work because it provides them with expertise and experience and/or they want to do something positive for society in the spirit of altruism. Of course this is a very simplified description of why someone becomes a “volunteer” for an organization, collective, or cooperative.

Maybe they just want to meet like-minded peo- ple, maybe they are doing it for selfish reasons. Whatever their driving force, what you can do is harness this energy in a way that is win-win for both parties. A volunteer, and especially one who works in a positive environment, offers many benefits for your organization.

They can:

• / Provide greater exposure through their own word of mouth,
• / Be a never-ending stream of fresh energy and different perspectives,
• / Hold you accountable,
• / Bridge you organically with the community at large,
• / Open up new avenues through networking opportunities,
• / Reduce cost in terms of logistics and salary.

02/ Who To Recruit

Ask yourself: Why you need the extra hands? What will they be doing? What talents do they need to have to complete the tasks correctly?

Once you’ve rationalized and thought deeply about these series of questions, you can start developing and writing out the job descrip- tions/responsibilities for the volunteers.

A job description should be simple and clearly state the responsibilities and expectations of the volunteer, outlining how the volunteers will be assessed. Show where the volunteer will fit along the organizational structure of the team, and what their title will be (ie. Assistant, intern, caseworker, etc). Be clear on what your responsibilities are towards the volunteer too, which means ensuring that you have a system of incentives and benefits that will motivate them to join the organization. If all these terms are plainly understood by both parties, it should reduce any tensions or problems at later stages.

In terms of “who” you should be recruiting, you’ve got a variety of sources for human capital in Lebanon and any decision should be shaped by who you are and what your work is about.

In most cases, the common sources for volunteers are:

Students: Primary and secondary students, from both private and public institutions, are a valuable asset. They are young, energetic, and tend to have much passion when motivated. They are great for small or one-time tasks, and help increase you visibility and presence in the student community. University students tend to have skills and knowledge for more sophis- ticated or research-based work, and their sense of curiosity and skepticism can be great assets in holding you, and your work, accountable.

Community members: Getting members of the community, particularly if they are recruited from the target communities you are trying to provide a service for, is not only important in opening up pathways for access, but these volunteers can also ensure that your work is relevant, locally-informed, and has actual impact on the ground. They might also provide ideas or solutions that take into account the local context, and shape the work in a more meaningful manner.

Activists: Local activists, often adults, are individuals who may or may not be from the community you are functioning in, but they want to help in some way. They tend to have a history and a kind of expertise in undertaking projects/programs, and are linked to other networks that can be useful for collaborative or joint initiatives.

The unemployed: They are individuals of adult age who are not engaged in full-time employment for a number of reasons. Because of the mere fact that they might have time – a key factor in sustainable volunteerism – they can be brought in for short- or medium-term projects/programs.

03/ How To Recruit

Recruiting volunteers follows the same principle as hiring employees. That means advertis- ing where your potential volunteers congregate.

The traditional way of hanging a poster at schools, at popular cafes, on the bulletin boards of research institutes, distributing flyers, or renting out billboards on the street are all sound tactics to get noticed. Advertise positions during presentations in society, during social events, workshops, or during the process of your work. Any opportunity allowing you to publicize your needs is worth exploring.

The most common way to advertise is on the internet or social media. Announce your needs on your website, through a posting on your Facebook page, a tweet from your Twitter account, or/and a posting on online platforms like Daleel Madani or Reliefweb.

In bringing in people, attempt to establish a screening process to assess a volunteer’s ability and suitability for the work at hand. A basic screening process in the form of a questionnaire, or more preferably, a one-on- one interview can go a long way in helping you decide if the person is really passionate and up for the job.

Keep the communication channels with the volunteers always open during their employment, and especially during their post-employment phase. This means having direct contact with former volunteers, having them write testimonials about their experiences in your own newsletters or elsewhere, and exploring new forms of collaborations with them in their new jobs.

04/ Training your volunteers

The role of the volunteer within an NGO, collective, and cooperation tends to fall under the framework of organizational development or the provision/delivery of services. This means that the training you provide the volunteers grants them the knowledge and ability to facilitate these acts.

The success of this type of work is predicated on people’s ability to work cooperatively and creatively together. Any training system should cater to the mentality of synergy – the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Make sure you have an induction process that explains the organization’s identity, vision, mission, structure, and strategic goals, and what the volunteer’s responsibilities and activities will be, as well as what the workplace’s rules and procedures are. Having a supervisor or a mentorship system is an added bonus, but this is time-consuming and really depends on your capabilities.

Workshops or training programs that utilize group thinking, brainstorming sessions, and team building exercises are beneficial, but do not forget to nurture the means for volun- teers to share their own ideas and solutions to a problem.

Have your volunteers commonly meet and discuss a variety of issues related to the objective, and allow them to develop small-scale solutions that can complement your greater objective.

Provide them with a level of autonomy and develop a relationship that is more equitable, and less of a “classroom” dynamic. “Icebreaker” tactics are tried and true during the initial phases of training, and they are often used in order to encourage the volunteers to open up by introducing themselves to each other and the rest of the staff. It is about developing a comfortable environment in which people are less hesitant and more confident about sharing their thoughts.

Successful training methods also include props, visual aids, role-playing, and contex- tual discussions on things like basic history or other themes relevant to your work. A lot of NGOs and CBOs conduct trainings with each other, so it’s important to know who is doing what and send your staff there. Make sure your volunteers leave these training session armed with the tools they will need to do their work. The sessions should range from teaching specific terminologies used in the sector to technical computer skills (like Excel or other software used by the organization), or even group discussions on ethical, political, or other theoretical notions.

One important thing to note with these train- ing sessions is keeping their length limited. Anything that takes more than an hour could be tedious and tiresome for the volunteers and staff, so best think of activities and sessions that are at most two hours long, and have sufficient moments of recesses during the process.

The underscoring point here is to always have the volunteer thinking, questioning, and tackling the problem, as a group, from different fronts. Not only does this type of environment allow them to learn from you but you can also learn a lot in return. Such sessions must be enjoyable or you are going to lose your audience.

There are many types of training modules and templates online, a quick search will lead you to inspiring suggestions, and can guide you in designing your own suitable training session based on your needs.

Don’t be afraid to run training session ideas by friends or peers who work in the field to see if it is appropriate, a second pair of eyes is useful in many unexpected ways.

AND REMEMBER: Your goal here is to establish an environment that is informative, respectful, enjoyable, efficient, and inclusive. Allow space for debriefing and sharing of experiences by members of the team. The more you nurture and actively encour age volunteers, the better your presence, reputation, and impact will be on the long run. In other words: a content, supported, respected, and valued workforce is a solid and productive one.

KEY TERMS

Staff

The infrastructure of your organization. They are the people you will hire, and work with towards your goal. They are often paid.

Board members

A body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversees the activities of an organization.

Volunteers

Like staff, they are individuals who decided on their own to work for your organization, and often do so for free.

Interns

Often young individuals and students who work for the main purpose of gaining experience, or fulfilling class requirements.

Salary scale

A system that determines how much an employee is to be paid as salary based on the rank or status within the organization, as well as length of time, difficulty of work involved as well as other variables such as education and experience.

The Cautionary Case of Lebanon 2006-2007 Of the most important lessons learned of groups like Samidoun during the July 2006 war is the  important role played by volunteers. During that period, Samidoun acted as a portal for a volunteer-based national solidarity and relief campaign which included different forms of groups, organizations and collectives, such as university clubs, radical leftist groups, Palestinian groups and organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), socialists, political party organizations and human rights groups. It inherently was reliant on individuals who volunteered their time and effort to the cause. The volunteers came from different political, national and social backgrounds. Some had previous experiences following the Israeli attacks in 1996, others were Palestinian refugees with a specific understanding of conflict and crisis. Some lived in the suburbs of Beirut or had families in the South, both mainly targeted by Israel during the war. Moreover, the volunteers also came from different backgrounds in terms of social class, gender, sexual orientation and region of origin. This sometimes caused clashes and problems on a daily basis during the relief process. These had positive outcomes as some volunteers changed their attitudes and behaviors, learning to accept different opinions, lifestyles and beliefs, change their own gendered stereotypes, and work with others with an opposing political or socio-moral worldview to their own. A feeling of ‘belonging’, and a sense that volunteerism was a personal and political act that engaged these volunteers in responding to the war, turning them into active actors that possessed both consciousness and skills, and in turn, informed their professional future. The volunteers played a notable role in defining and shaping policies in two particular circumstances. The first had to do with the Reconstruction Unit (RU), composed of architects, planners and academics from the American University of Beirut and other independent professionals. The unit was informed by the specific local expertise of its members, based on their insights and experiences regarding the politics of global projects of postwar reconstruction in Lebanon. The unit sought to “envision new ways of going about reconstruction that would avoid pitfalls of past practices”, as well as influence international reconstruction projects by asking for more participatory approaches in the rebuilding of cities and villages, while sharing their knowledge on urban planning and society. Ultimately, being diverse and rich, the RU put forward different visions and forms of reconstruction projects, like the restoration plan that took into consideration the effect of reconstruction on social life and identity, thereby challenging and influencing existing global projects of reconstruction. The second involved the Psychological Unit (PU). Composed of social workers, psychologists, students, theater majors, animators and independent volunteers, among others, the PU pushed forward a comprehensive psychosocial and community-based mental health approach, especially during emergencies and war, that seemed fundamental for alleviating the psychological distresses of displaced families. What emerged challenged traditional international notions of relief in this vein, with the unit presenting a more ‘holistic’ approach, and culturally and politically appropriate interventions. Moreover, the very concepts and indicators used by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UN agencies on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and its treatment were redefined: in particular, PTSD was criticized for its use as a valid universal form of psychological suffering during wars, especially within a historical context of recurring conflicts. These experiences played a role a year later during the Nahr al-Bared crisis, where multiple types of similar resources and actions were used. Independent forms of volunteering and volunteering initiatives are important because they bring about an active community possessing a set of skills and consciously committed to supporting affected communities, steering global forms of aid to the right places. Source: Lamia Moghnieh, “Local expertise and global packages of aid: The transformative role of volunteerism and locally engaged expertise of aid during the 2006 July war in Lebanon”, Civil Society Knowledge Center, Lebanon Support, July 2015. Accessed here: http://cskc.daleel-madani.org/ paper/local-expertise-and-global-packages-aid-transformative-role-volunteerism-and-locally-engaged

SECTION 5: STRUCTURE, OR DESIGNING THE CONTOURS OF YOUR ORGANIZATION

Rules of taste enforce structures of power. - Susan Sontag

There are many ways to design the structure of your organization, with various types of entities that you can establish in Lebanon. Each variation can be subtle or blatant, but what uni- fies them is the fact that these entities are non-state actors – meaning they are not a government agency.

You have the choice between a traditional non-profit non-governmental organiza- tion, cooperatives, or collectives. If that was not enough, within each of these entities is an array of styles shaping the structure. This will affect how you conduct your work, and perhaps more importantly, will define the power relations and decision-making process within your organization. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, which will be noted below. Take note, you are not limited in your choices and it would be interesting for you to explore which of these entities are best fitting for your cause. Why not mix and match as you see fit?

Let us go through the differences between these types of groups.

01/ Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)

NGOs are organizations that have been established beyond government administration. They generally emerge from communities, civil society organizations, religious organi- zations, academic institutions, and private individual initiatives.

NGOs tend to be local or international organi- zations centered on providing a public service along the international aid, relief or develop- ment system. They have a specific legal desig- nation in Lebanese law. They can be charitable or service-oriented, and seek to encourage partic- ipatory or empowering projects to induce change along social, political, or economic lines.

NGOs tend to have a mission statement or charter, with by-laws, and are structurally akin to a corporation. This means that a typical NGO has a certain type of hierarchic pattern, but this is not necessarily true for all NGOs. Most, however, do follow this pattern.

In general, the organizational structure of an NGO looks like this:

The Board of Directors is often brought in on a voluntary basis and serve as a trustee body for the NGO. Members of the Board are not supposed to get financial rewards and play the role of extending the NGOs reach in society through their relationships and networks. The structure and activity of Boards of Directors vary widely from NGO to NGO, and the weight they project onto the decision-making process is equally in flux.

Everyone else answers to the Top Management, specifically to the Board of Directors, but that can be balanced out during the General Assembly meetings, which occur on an annual or bi-annual basis.

As detailed in Section 1, an NGO has to clarify to the Lebanese government who is a member of the Board of Directors, of the General Assembly, and Executive Director (also called the Chief Operating Officer [CEO]). The NGO is also defined by international guidelines, rules, and expectations, set by donors or carved out by larger international NGOs in history.

Top Management tends to hold decision-making power and inform policy, which is then dictated to the rest of the staff through managers. There are many positions that can be created along the bottom level of the organization as you see fit for the day-to-day functions, and the managers are the ones who make sure the process is working smoothly.

On a most basic level you have an Administrative Manager. This role tackles issues like administration, finance and human resources. This is then complemented by a Communications Manager, who takes care of public relations and how the organization is communicating to the public and other stakeholders. The final basic position needed in this system is a Program Manager, who runs the project(s)/program(s) of your organization – this is the operational hub, with its trainers, assistants, field staff, and consultants.

An NGO tends to work in cooperation with the state, and therefore is expected to document its audited and accredited records, and have strict financial, legal, and organizational structures that abide by the specific rules of the state. As legal entities, NGOs have the ability to open up bank accounts, accept donations, buy insurance, and establish relationships with other entities, governments, and organizations – local and international.

02/ Collectives

Collectives are organizations that are managed without a hierarchy. Every member or sub-committe has equal decision-making power, however there are no managers, board of directors, or director with a final say. In other words, everyone plays the director in this system and the organization is sustained through discussions in regular meetings.

A collective may be of any size, exist for any length of time, and is commonly based on voluntary participation of its members. There are many forms of collectives, from publishing, arts, cafés, to labor.

One of the most common forms of collectives is a work collective, which adopts a horizontal management structure, with every worker considered as co-manager, and delegated sub-committees who take on specific tasks in the operation of the organization. Everyone is ultimately involved in major management or governance decisions.

03/ Cooperatives (Co-ops)

While a collective details how members participate in the management of an organization, a cooperative on the other hand dictates the ownership that the members have. On its most basic level, a co-op is created after a group of people come together to voluntarily cooperate for their mutual social, economic, political, or cultural benefit.

A cooperative can be, among others, a consumer cooperative, worker cooperative, housing cooperative, multi-stakeholder cooperative. It is a jointly operated enterprise in which the production, distribution, supplying, and operations are run and owned by its own members.

Each member owns part of the organization and has one voting share on major decisions. There can be, in specific cases, managers and board of directors, elected by everyone else, which makes the system semi-hierarchical.

Most often, co-ops have social goals, seeking to protect or enhance a community of people in an environment making it hostile or difficult for them to flourish as individuals. It has a legal status and may evolve into a company at a later point of its development.

The basic rules of a cooperative fall under what is known as “the seven cooperative principles”:

1/ Inclusive and voluntary membership,

2/ Democratic control,

3/ Economic participation by members,

4/ Independence and autonomy from state and business sectors,

5/ Educational, training, and informative attributes,

6/ Team-work and cooperation,

7/ Strong sense of concern for the community.

The structures of a cooperative can follow a centralized structure, with a central office overseeing the work. It can also employ subsidiary companies to perform tasks that would have been done by a central office. Moreover, a co-op can work with another co-op, individual, or commercial firm in joint ventures when needed.

In terms of structure, a cooperative’s chief managers are the general assembly, the highest policy-making body. Therefore, a co-op’s power-structure typically follows this format:

Artists and workers tend to like creating cooperatives because it provides a sense of security, allows more access to resources, increases earning potential, and allows more control and organization than a traditional structure, in addition to following a more equitable decision-making process. Like NGOs, co-ops have their charters, by-laws, internal regulations and guidelines, voting requirements particularly in terms of a quorum (the minimum number of members needed to hold a meeting and make decisions).

In both cases, collectives and cooperatives live and die according to the passion, will, and motivation of its members. When that falls apart, the collective and cooperative will implode. That is the double-edged sword of a non-hierarchical system; when it works, it is a fantastic form of democratic practice, but when it fails, it becomes sluggish, paralyzed, and ineffective.

The choice of your structure, and if it is hierar- chical or nonhierarchical should not be made quickly. But know that you have that choice to make. Be wise about it, and explore what each structure offers your skill-sets and goals.

CONCLUSION: FINAL WORDS

You have reached the end of this basic guidebook.

Along these pages, information was provided in the hope of giving the simplest and most basic tools needed to establish a non-governmental organization, collec- tive, or cooperative. More importantly, we hope that the information here will inspire you to create something unique, fresh and absolutely relevant to communities in Lebanon. They are the ones who matter in all of this, and their well-being is the main priority.

There are many similar organizations here, and as previously stated, many of them have been failing in their duties for one reason or another. Yet, the need for them continues to be more and more imperative in the Lebanese context. There is much work to be done in this country on multiple levels, countless issues and endless needs. If you are going to do it, as the saying goes, do it right.

Before we leave each other, dear reader, keep in mind these final words:

When the situation becomes frustrating and hard, do not give up. This is a tough world we all live in, but we live in it together. You have allies, networks, and means of solidarity at your disposal. Collaboration, the spirit of complemen- tation, and teamwork are powerful in how they open up doors.