The Resource Alliance has appointed Mumbai-based activist and campaigner
Ingrid Srinath as its new chair of the board with immediate effect. Ingrid succeeds
outgoing chair Bill Toliver, whose six-year tenure has come to an end.

“I am delighted that Ingrid Srinath has accepted the nomination to transition to lead our
board,” said Willeke van Rijn, CEO of the Resource Alliance. “Ingrid has been a passionate
advocate of human rights, social justice, and civil society for over 25 years, a strong
promoter of trust-based philanthropy in India and across the world throughout her career,
and has been an integral part of our board since early 2020.”

Continuing, she said, “I would also like to extend my sincerest thanks to Bill Toliver
for his steadfast leadership and personal support of our team through the pandemic and
beyond. Bill served on our board for almost 10 years, including six as chair and a stint as
interim CEO. He was a driving force behind the Resource Alliance’s manifesto, our strategic
direction, and in securing the long-term future of the organisation.”

Other sitting members of the Resource Alliance Board of Directors include Nana Asantewa
Afadzinu, Executive Director of the West Africa Civil Society Institute; Naila Farouky, CEO of
the Arab Foundations Forum; Marcelo Iñarra, Director of Club de Fundraising; Pesh
Framjee, Special Advisor to the Charity Finance Group; Astrid von Soosten, Partner at
Brakeley Fundraising Consultants GmbH; Dr Colin Habberton, Co-Founder of the Relativ
Group; and Asha Curran, CEO of GivingTuesday.

We’re looking for a dynamic and detail-oriented professional based in London.

Our new Event Manager will take on a pivotal role in planning, organising, and executing a wide range of impactful events from the Resource Alliance. The role offers a salary of £40,000 – £45,000 (DOE) and is a hybrid role combining remote working with in-person time in a Central London co-working space.

Our successful candidate will work closely with the Director of Programmes to enhance engagement and event success, bringing together a global community of fundraisers, campaigners, and activists. They will be responsible for all aspects of event logistics, from venue selection to attendee registration, and will collaborate with internal teams and external partners to ensure successful event execution. Duties will include managing event budgets, fostering strong relationships with sponsors and vendors, and conducting post-event evaluations to improve future events. The ideal candidate will possess strong organisational and project management skills, excellent interpersonal and communication abilities, and a creative mindset for innovative event experiences.

The Resource Alliance committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. This is your chance to be part of a vibrant international team, dedicated to advancing the mission of building just, equitable, and sustainable societies. If you are passionate about creating impactful events and have the skills to drive our mission forward, we would love to hear from you.

The application deadline is 21 June 2024.

You can download the full job description, and find out how to apply, h ere.

Asha Curran and Astrid von Soosten appointed to the Resource Alliance Board of Directors

Following an extensive recruitment process, we are delighted to welcome Asha Curran and Astrid van Soosten to our board.

Asha, CEO of Giving Tuesday, and Astrid, Partner at Brakeley Fundraising Consulting, bring to us global connections and years of expertise in leadership and movement building. This appointment represents a renewed gender balance, as well as a balance between global majority and minority countries.

Following a period of extended service from our longer-standing board members, which supported the organisation through the pandemic, bringing new faces and fresh perspectives to our team is a return to our usual board rotation process.

Are you ready for a new challenge?

Our new Director of Development will be in a pivotal leadership position at the Resource Alliance, strategically collaborating across the organisation to cultivate and manage transformative, long-term partnerships with a diverse range of entities, including foundations, trusts, and private sector partners.

We are looking for a dynamic and strategic individual with expertise in marketing as well as strong leadership in partnership development and fundraising. The successful candidate will be instrumental in driving income development and in leading fundraising initiatives with a pronounced emphasis on foundations, trusts, key accounts, and business development. This role involves building and nurturing enduring partnerships to advance the Resource Alliance’s purpose, working closely with the CEO to enhance engagement and income growth.

The application deadline is 26 February 2024.

You can download the full job description, and find out how to apply, here.

We’re recruiting for an exciting new role.

As our Global Community Manager, you will play a pivotal role in developing and executing innovative marketing strategies to expand our community of fundraisers, campaigners, and changemakers all over the world.

We are in the process of launching a new digital platform which will bring our 30,000-strong community together to learn, share, and collaborate, and your focus will be on creating a vibrant and supportive environment, engaging with community members and cultivating relationships with key stakeholders, partners, and global key accounts.

We are seeking a dynamic, energetic, and engaging individual to lead our community and relationship management efforts. The role involves collaborating with cross-functional teams, and organising community events to enhance connection.

The application deadline is 26 February 2024.

You can download the full job description, and find out how to apply, here.

The Resource Alliance is inviting potential speakers to submit proposals for next IFC 2024, set to take place in Noordwijk in the Netherlands 22-25 October. We are seeking proposals for long form masterclasses as well as short form workshops aligned with the event theme: WE RISE.

The International Fundraising Congress is a platform to share learnings and best practices from around the world. It is vital to us that our speakers represent a diverse range of voices and experiences and we are excited to receive applications from people keen to join a lineup that has included world-renowned authors, activists, researchers, and thought leaders from all over the globe.

IFC 2024 will once again be delivered in a hybrid format, with over 1,000 delegates expected to attend in person and online. The congress will feature sessions spanning a variety of topics, including leadership & team building, fundraising, storytelling, innovation & transformation, new technology, and more.

The submission deadline for proposals is Wednesday 10 January 2024.

For more information and to submit your proposals, follow this link.

We are recruiting new board members! Our voluntary Board of Trustees is looking for new members to help lead the organisation into the future. This is an incredible opportunity to play a role in supporting organisations globally to build a more just, equitable, and healthy world.

The Resource Alliance is a UK-registered charity with an international HQ based in London, but we are a global organisation, so our trustees can be based anywhere! We work worldwide to inspire sharing and collaboration to create powerful change in the social impact sector. Through our global network, we bring together the very best thinking to harness the human, financial, and intellectual resources to build a better world.

The Resource Alliance exists to strengthen the social impact sector by ensuring it can access the resources necessary to enable just, equitable, inclusive, and sustainable societies. Our ambition is to bring together a highly-engaged global community of fundraisers, campaigners, and activists, and to connect them with innovative thinking, best practices, and collaborative networks to support them in their missions.

If you’d like to apply to be one of our new board members, you can download the full job description here. The deadline to apply is 1 December 2023.

Luda Kryzhanovska is a Ukrainian fundraiser and one of the speakers at this year’s International Fundraising Congress: IFC 2022. She will be speak in a workshop on crisis fundraising and how to prepare for what you hope will never come. You can read more about the workshop here.

Luda spoke with Petra Hoogerwerf for Vakblad fondsenwerving and what follows is a translation of Petra’s article. You can find the original piece here.

Liudmyla “Luda” Kryzhanovska was the last speaker at the fundraising day, speaking about her work in Ukraine setting up an impact hub in an old factory. During her talk, the air alarm went off and the screen went black. People in the room held their breath: this is what it is like to live in wartime. After a few minutes, Luda came back on screen from her hiding place, with her four-year-old son at her feet. As if it were the most natural thing in the world, she continued her explanation of her organisation, Promprylad.Renovation organisation. At the end of August, the Trade Journal asked her how the situation is now in Ukraine.

“Around Independence Day (24 August), there was a lot of panic. There were about 170 bombings from Russia. The situation now seems ‘stable’ again. The good news is that our army has received better weapons to deploy in the occupied territories. We still ask the USA, Europe, UK, and Israel for efficient air protection systems. Cities in the east of the country are attacked so often, every day, that our protection system cannot cope. And even though we are located in the west of Ukraine, more than 1,000 kilometres from the front, there are days when the alarm sounds eight times and we have to go to the shelter. These rockets are fired from Belarus or the Black Sea. This week, civilian targets were also hit, such as a train station. If there were more security through good air defences, we would have more time for our work and the fight.

“We can no longer make long-term plans.”

The first weeks after the invasion we were in shock. I remember a meeting with partners from Europe and Africa and I expected an escalation in the east, but I did not see the scale of the invasion coming.

You ask what has changed since the invasion. It is so much, it is difficult to name. The most important thing is that we can no longer make long-term plans, while at the same time we see that our work is very important for the construction of our country. We were working on the biggest project in the field of industrial heritage, to use it for community building in our city Frankivsk. After this, we planned to set up similar projects in the east of the country because there are a lot of old industrial factories there. That is no longer possible.

The first three weeks, we stopped our activities to establish a local fund to support the military and territorial defence. We did this together with local communities, companies, and NGOs. We bought things that I would never want to buy, such as weapons. These activities have now been placed in a separate organisation.

Before the war, we had about 6,000 square metres that we used in the factory; at the end of the year it will be 17,000 square metres, for companies and NGOs. We decided to help them move from eastern Ukraine and Kiev to our premises. The companies in the east are losing their markets, including those in Russia. They need advice on exporting to and cooperating with other organisations in Europe. At one point, we had as many as 500 requests. The staff of US Aid, the big aid organisation, is also housed with us. We also support employees in finding housing, for example. We look for work for people who have lost their jobs and who may be able to do freelance work. There is a lot of IT expertise here, for example. We do stay true to what we can and cannot do. We are a platform and know many organisations that we connect. For example, the Office for the Promotion of Export of the Ministry of Economy is also based here and gives advice on exports.

“If we leave, we lose our country.”

In that first period, there were quite a lot of officials from organisations who wanted to convince us that all of Ukraine would be occupied in a few days and we should go abroad. We think we should stay in Ukraine to keep the economy going and to keep our knowledge. If we leave, we will lose our country. We want to stay here and we want to win the war. We have to keep going.

We found out that we have to keep doing the same thing but work faster. We wanted to bring together companies and organisations as an impact hub for issues in society and we were already working on the Ukraine that we dream about. About the new economy, new forms of urban development, and creating meeting places. In short, we want to help people in their development. The new economy is no longer about the mentality of factory workers, but about other skills such as learning English, learning to work in teams, and setting up other forms of education.

One of our activities is to promote book reading, especially among children. Now we organise discussion groups for refugees and people living here, which contributes to their integration. Some of them only speak Russian and therefore still have to learn our language. We help veterans returning from the front by getting better physically in our gym and we provide mental support through psychologists who work at the university.

Our fundraising approach has changed due to the situation. There are many international organisations in Ukraine that now give grants to NGOs for basic needs. But we are not an NGO. We are a platform and revitalise an industrial factory. We need ten million dollars for this. For the reconstruction and heating, for example, but also for our impact goals such as a makers space and food hub. Before the invasion, we appealed to corporations but we realised we couldn’t do that anymore because they want to support the military. We are working on a new case for support. We appealed to the European Union, but such a process takes two years. That’s why we don’t have the time for that. Our course now is to raise funds internationally from major international organisations and foundations. We discuss our plans with them and see if their policy is in line. We are also looking for partners for joint applications. We started with online fundraising, but we have little experience with that. And for material we are looking for sponsors in kind.

“Large NGOs should work with local organisations.”

People and NGOs from abroad can help us in different ways: we seek cooperation with similar or complementary organisations in Europe for applications. Keep talking about the war, don’t let it become ‘normal’. I call on humanitarian organisations to buy resources here because the money must stay here and people must continue to work here. Do not send water or food: we have no shortage of them. Large NGOs should work with local organisations. These better understand the needs of our people. People do not want (emergency) help, but rather support to be able to continue to take care of themselves.

We are optimistic about winning the war. Everyone is very willing to commit themselves to the military forces and people follow various training courses to prepare themselves, for example on the use of weapons or the provision of medical care. We fight for freedom and development of our country and are prepared to die for it.

Hear Luda speak and meet her in person at IFC 2022 this 18-21 October. Find out more and register here.

Wanted: Radical thinkers, community advocates, & passionate changemakers

The Resource Alliance exists to support and inspire resource mobilisers to develop the knowledge, tools, and connections necessary to fuel their purpose.

We support a highly engaged community through access to the innovative thinking, best practices, and collaborative networks necessary to ensure they are constantly growing in their ability to resource the causes they serve.

The Advisory Panel is a small group of experienced, motivated volunteers who care deeply about our work and about the sector as a whole. The panel provides insight and advice and helps to ensure the services we provide, including FRO and our Global Community, exceed the expectations of our community. The panel also leads on curation for the International Fundraising Congress.

We are seeking a small number of volunteers to join the panel.

Panel members should have:

Experience working in the social impact sector
Expertise in particular subject areas (such as fundraising or comms)
A broad network of contacts in the sector globally
Experience of attending & contributing to Resource Alliance events

Volunteers must be able to commit to six four-hour virtual meetings annually, as well as time outside of these meetings for planning, strategy, & support.

If you are interested in joining the Advisory Panel, please email ruby@resource-alliance.org with your name, organisation, a description of your role, and a summary of your skills & experience. Tell us why you’re interested in being part of the panel, and what you think you will bring to the role.