The IHF was founded more than five years ago to make a difference – but to do it differently. We saw ourselves as different in three ways:
- Focused on communities’ goals: we feel that putting communities in the lead on setting goals and executing projects would increase the sustainability of the IHF’s projects.
- Minimizing administration: we send donations directly to our partners abroad, and with volunteers contributing the vast majority of our labor, our administrative fees are lower than two cents per dollar – which means more resources for those who can best use them.
- Creating new leaders: by giving college students and young professionals experience with grassroots approaches to development, and giving them leadership opportunities within the IHF.
All of this sounded good on paper when the IHF got started. And it still sounds pretty good today. But how has this approach worked out on the ground?
What have we done well?
Reaching its fifth birthday is significant for any organization, but particularly for one that takes an innovative approach. The IHF’s continuous growth has been driven by three factors. First, all that we have accomplished is driven by the incredible hard work of our volunteers in the US and abroad. Second, our ability to learn and execute well has supported our ability to carry out an increasing number of increasingly complex projects. And throughout this, adherence to our model – what makes us different – has led to success on the ground.
Some numbers begin to tell this story – 300 families who don’t have to worry about indoor air pollution in India, two dozen Guatemalan kids who can attend school, a clinic in Costa Rica and dozens of graduates with exposure to grassroots development work. Working with the IHF has been genuinely life changing for many student volunteers who have gone on to focus on public health and economic development. We continue to influence students to take on the challenges of development in partnership with local communities through our work at Dartmouth and Haverford, and now at Brown.
So, there is much that we have done well. But where can we improve? More on that at the end of the week…
Working with partners is hard. It can be very difficult for a group of volunteers to find the time to come together, unite around a common vision and work effectively together. To have that group of people extend their work out and create a meaningful relationship with a whole other group of people adds on new layers of challenge and complexity. It can be tempting for organizations to say they can accomplish their goals on their own and think they can move forward faster if they don’t have to take the time to develop partnerships. However, despite the challenges, work in partnerships brings much more benefits than working alone if the time is taken to build strong, lasting relationships. This belief is a core foundation of the IHF model.
Can you imagine sitting in your house on a Saturday when you hear a knock on the door? You open the door and find someone who is obviously not from the community who is there to tell you that they can see a real problem in your community and they are here to solve it for you. They tell you to come to a meeting they are having about improving the hospital in town so you don’t have to wait as long to see the doctor. You go to the meeting and listen to all of the great things these people are going to do to improve the hospital. Things seem to get better in the hospital over the next couple of weeks, but then the strangers leave and things at the hospital go right back to the way they were before.
This scenario is often the case when groups of students travel to other countries to do projects. They come with really good intentions, and they may see some improvements for a little while, but without their continued presence, the improvements don’t last. However, if projects are done in partnership, the chances are better that improvements will last. Both because it is more likely that someone will be there to follow up and make sure the project continues, but also because it is more likely the project will be something the community actually wants and needs, making it more likely to be supported. The university students in IHF chapters only have a limited time available when they can be physically present in the communities they partner with, so in order to make sure the IHF projects are sustainable and have a lasting impact, it is essential that the work be done in partnership with a local organization.
The IHF was founded after a group of college students decided they wanted more out of the volunteer experiences they had abroad- they wanted to be able to continue the relationships they had established and the work they had started. They also didn’t want to be seen as people who were here today, gone tomorrow. From this foundation, the IHF has grown to have established partnerships with organizations in five countries. This growth and the benefits that have come with it are all the result of our firm belief in the power of partnerships and our willingness to nurture them.
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