Holden

On Dec. 12th, 2008 Holden wrote a piece on The GiveWell Blog about stuff to know before you make your holiday giving.  Holden raises a good point about programs that "just don't work at changing people's lives."

Investing in social capital means that there are inherent risks associated with your donations.  In previous posts I have highlighted some of those basic accountabilities and transparency issues.  What Holden is referring to, is investing in social programs that are stop-gaps or band-aid solutions to major problems.

Where I think that Holden has fallen short is that he is looking for one-off solutions to major problems.  The solutions to major problems require multiple responses from multiple directions.

His first example is education, and how disillusioned he was about the impact that his personal donation had in the school system.  I am not sure what project he invested in, but here is an example of the ripple effect of not investing in extra-curricular programs in our school system.

School Music Program: Alberta government several years ago cut funding for the music programs in elementary and junior high schools.  Our province now has an entire generation growing up that doesn't know, understand or appreciate the need for a local symphony.  Big deal, right? 

 Here's what has since transpired:

 Photo Credit: art4linux.org/node/465 

That means that when this generation ages and is able to make their own financial contributions the symphony will struggle.  Good for the symphony???  It means that it will have reinvent itself.  It also means that it might have refocus its mission to provide music programs where the government has cut the program (once again, the non-profit sector picking up where the government has fallen short).  Okay, so let's assume that the symphony has the resources to provide a rotating music program around the city, does this make for a strong base of musically inclined, and educated students? 

So, now to the next ripple.  We have a group of kids who have had limited or no access to music, the impact so far has been increased expenses on the local symphony (which they have to fundraise for) to provide that education if they can (further drain on human resources and increased mission drift).  We have now created a generation that is void of, or has limited knowledge of music education, which means that other cultural opportunities are lost (musical theatre, creation of new music, loss of cultural memory, etc.). 

How do we know this, because history has repeatedly shown how when cultural assets are diluted from society, the social memory of that cultural disappears (most drastic case in recent memory - the Native Americans and First Nations people).  First the European settlers took away their language which meant that the music of the people was lost.  We are reaping the "rewards" of our own actions.

So, while the symphony might not be changing the lives of people directly like fresh water.  It holds a purpose in society, as part of our collective cultural memory.  If we do not fund the extra-curricular programs in our education system, like music, we run the risk of impacting future generations at a very basic, social level.

This goes back to the very first premise of why I do what I do - find your core values.  If music is at your core, then start asking the organization what the ultimate impact is going to be of your gift.  It ultimately is up to you to shape the direction of where you want your society to be.