Latin America-based Foundations
Focused on Intercultural Efforts/Cultural Diversity
Organization: ABONG (Brazilian Association of Nongovernmental Organizations)
(Brazil)
Description from website (www.abong.org.br):
“With a current membership of 251 associations, the Brazilian Association of
Nongovernmental Organizations was founded in 1991 to collectively represent the
interests of Brazilian NGOs. ABONG promotes communication and connections among
NGOs dedicated to strengthening democracy and civil rights. Members organizations
work in the areas of regional development, human rights, public policy, agricultural
issues, urban issues, and environmental and ecological issues. Site contains contact
information for each of eight regional ABONG centers. Access is provided to online
articles, laws, and other documents related to NGOs, as well as a database of projects and
publications of member associations. Also offers numerous links to governmental,
international, and national organizations whose work impacts the NGOs.”
Contact: abonginfo.uol.com.br
Organization: International Peace Agency (IPAZ) (Brazil)
Description from website (www.ipaz.org.br):
“Ipaz is an agency that promotes the local development, strengthening and giving
visibility to the organizations through communication and mobilizations of its actors. It
gives courses, makes researches, develops projects and events and produces graphic and
audiovisual materials. Everything is intended for the social organizations, their
communities and regions where they are inserted.
IPAZis a social mobilization and non-profit communication agency, founded in 2003 by
more than 70 communication professionals (journalists, researches, film makers,
advertising executives, video makers, photographers, etc.), whose mission is to promote
the local development through communication, mobilization and articulation of its social
actors, in order to build a society more participatory, just, free and happy.”
Contact: Contact through website
Organization: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) (Regional)
Description from website (www.iadb.org):
“The IDB, established in 1959 to support the process of economic and social
development in Latin America and the Caribbean is the main source of multilateral
financing in the region. The IDB Group provides solutions to meet the challenges of
development through partnerships with governments, businesses and civil society
organizations, to serve clients ranging from central governments to municipalities and
businesses.”
Contact: mifcontact@iadb.org
Organization: National Association of Non Governmental Oriented Development
(ANONG) (Uruguay)
Description from website (www.anong.org.uy):
“The National Association of Non Governmental Oriented Development (ANONG),
founded in September 1992, is a civil non-profit which encompasses 90 NGOs
throughout the country. These organizations are engaged in activities in various areas:
agriculture, social sciences, communications, consumer, culture, human rights, drugs,
economics, education, children, regional integration, youth, environment, women, social
promotion, SMEs, health, labor , elderly, violence, housing, and volunteerism.”
Contact: anong@anong.org.uy
Organization: Fundacion Cisneros (Venezuela)
Description from website (http://www.orinoco.org/apg/fundacion.asp?lang=en):
“The Fundación Cisneros is a private philanthropic organization committed to the future
of Latin America. Founded by Patty and Gustavo Cisneros, in association with the
Cisneros Group of Companies, the Fundación Cisneros supports innovative programs that
focus on Latin American issues in the areas of education, culture, health, and the
environment.”
Contact: info@fundacion.cisneros.org
Organization: Foundation Romi (Brazil)
Description from website (www.fundacaoromi.org.br):
“Founded in 1957 in Santa Barbara d'Oeste, São Paulo, the couple Américo Emílio Romi
Romi Gelli and Olympia, the Romi Foundation is to promote the development of
education and culture as part of transforming society.
Taking as the sponsor Industries Romi SA Foundation to plan and operate their own
projects in a perspective of medium and long term but with a focus on results and the
concern to influence public policy, developing technology for other social institutions.”
Contact: Contact through website
Organization: Odebrecht Foundation (Brazil)
Description from website (www.fundacaoodebrecht.org.br):
“Created in 1965, the Odebrecht Foundation is a private, non-profit organization
supported by the Odebrecht Group. Since 1988, the Foundation has been fulfilling its
mission of contributing to promote youths’ education for life, aiming at their
development as responsible, aware, productive, participatory and concerned citizens.”
Contact: fundacao@odebrecht.com
Organization: Fundacion Terpel (Columbia)
Description from website (http://www.fundacionterpel.org/):
“Terpel Foundation was created in 2004 as a Corporate Social Responsibility of the
Organization Terpel to contribute to improvement of education in citizenship in
Colombia, through the development of educational projects aimed at strengthening the
skills, knowledge and attitudes of citizens, making active use of the city.”
Contact: fundacion@terpel.com
Organization: Euroamerica Fundacion (Spain)
Description from website (http://www.euroamerica.org/english.html):
“The Euroamérica Foundation is an independent organization. Its overriding objective is
to stimulate cooperation and understanding between European and Latin American
institutions, companies and personalities so as to foster relations between the two areas,
primarily from the private sector. The Euroamérica Foundation wishes to reinforce the
excellent opportunities to be had in both directions.”
Contact: fundacion@euroamerica.com
Organization: Group Vidanta Foundation (Mexico)
Description from website (www.fundaciongrupovidanta.com):
“Our main purposes are:
- Generate and disseminate knowledge about the factors that account for the gap in
political, economic and social gap in Latin America, the standards of welfare and
economic growth that characterize the developed countries.
- Promote studies on intra-Latin American relations and on strategies to link Latin
America with the rest of the world.
- Actively influence the formulation of public policies that help strengthen democracy,
promote economic and social development and reduce social inequalities in Latin
America.”
Contact: contacto@fundaciongrupovidanta.com
Organization: The Esquel Group (Regional)
Description from website (http://esquel.org):
“The Esquel Group (EG), a private non-profit organization established in 1984. It is a
member of the Grupo Esquel network, with entities in Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador,
Honduras and Uruguay. It promotes policies and programs for social equity and
sustainable development with special emphasis in democratic citizenship and
strengthening of civil society.”
Contact: esquelbr@esquel.org.br
Organization: Palmares Cultural Foundation (Brazil)
Description from website (http://www.palmares.gov.br):
“Palmares Cultural Foundation (FCP) is a public agency, created by the Law number
7668 (August 22, 1988) and located in Brasilia, Federal District. Subordinated to the
Ministry of Culture (MinC), the foundation has the mission to formulate, promote, and
execute programs and projects in a national level, in the aim to recognize, preserve and
foster values and practices derived from the participation of African cultures in the
formation of the Brazilian society, and in order to support the inclusion of Afro
Brazilians in a context of a plurality of cultures, assuring them the equality of rights and
opportunities and the implementation of the other MinC policies.”
Contact: chefiadegabinete@palmares.gov.br
Organization: Viva Rio (Brazil)
Description from website (www.vivario.org.br/english):
“Viva Rio is a non-governmental organization, headquartered in Rio de Janeiro. Its main
goal is to promote a culture of peace and social development through field work, research
and formulation of public policies.
The NGO was founded in December 1993 by representatives from different sectors of civil
society. It was a response to the growing violence in Rio de Janeiro. Viva Rio has
developed and strengthened a wide range of successful activities and strategies.
Viva Rio works on three different levels – Community Actions, International Human
Safety and Communication.”
Contact: faleconosco@vivario.org.br
Organization: FUNAI (National Indian Foundation) (Brazil)
Description from website (funai.gov.br):
“FUNAI, the National Indian Foundation, is the Brazilian government body that establishes
and carries out policies relating to indigenous peoples.
FUNAI is responsible for mapping out and protecting lands traditionally inhabited and used
by these communities.
It is charged with preventing invasions of indigenous territories by outsiders.”
Contact: deuscreide@ funai.gov.br
Organization: A Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão (FUNAG) (Brazil)
Description from website (http://www.funag.gov.br/):
“Linked to the Foreign Office, Funag is a public foundation with its headquarters in
Brasilia and responsible for promoting research and co-operation in the area of
international relations. For this, amongst other work, it promotes cultural and educational
activities and carries out studies and research on international relations; it publicizes
Brazilian foreign policy in general terms and contributes towards the formation in Brazil
of public opinion that is sensitive to the problems of international relationships.
Funag carries on its activities by means of its own organizations - the Institute for
Research in International Relations with offices in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and a
nucleus of support in Recife - and establishes partnerships with universities, research
centres and national and international financing bodies with the aim of publishing books
and holding seminars, conferences, talks and exhibitions on subjects related to
international relations and Brazilian foreign policy. Its main objective is to stimulate
national academic consideration of matters concerning Brazilian diplomacy whilst
contributing in parallel to the creation of public awareness in relation to the major
contemporary international issues.”
Contact: plublicacoes@funag.gov.br
Organization: Fundación Kine, Cultural and Educational (Argentina)
Description from website (www.fundacionkine.org.ar):
“Is a nongovernmental organization founded in 2003 in Argentina to promote social
inclusion, culture and education of children, adolescents and young people using the
audiovisual language as expressive tool.
Objectives
- Place the culture as an engine of development strategies, taking into account its
contribution to individual and social empowerment of children, adolescents and youth.
- Contribute to the development of learning experiences that promote the expression of
their views with freedom, autonomy and decision making, stimulate creativity, diversity
of expression and critical thinking.
- Raising awareness on human values and the pursuit of a socially responsible
citizenship.”
Contact: valeria@fundacionkine.org.ar
Organization: Fundación PROEIB Andes (Bolivia)
Description from website (fundacion.proeibandes.org):
“The Foundation for Education in Contexts of multilingualism and multiculturalism
(FUNPROEIB ANDES) is an international civil organization, based in Bolivia, which was
newly created socio-implemented projects that benefit, consistent with its system of goals
and objectives, primarily to indigenous peoples and organizations.
Our mission is to help improve the quality of life of indigenous peoples through education
that is socially relevant and culturally and linguistically relevant. To achieve this we focus
on intercultural bilingual education quality across the different levels and types of education
systems in Latin America.”
Contact: fundacion@proeibandes.org
Organization: Fundación de Expresión Intercultural, Educativa y Ambiental –
FUNDAEXPRESIÓN (Columbia)
Description from website (www.fundaexpresion.org):
“FUNDAEXPRESIÓN is a Colombian non-profit organisation founded in 1999 to promote
participatory educational and investigation work within local communities. Its aims are to
empower marginalised groups of society towards achieving improved living conditions,
social organisation and conservation of their environmental and cultural heritage.
FUNDAEXPRESIÓN has been recognised at regional and national level for its innovative
work with peasant farmers, indigenous communities, micro-enterprises, school teachers,
youth and women groups.”
Contact: Roankine@telecom.com.co
Organization: Fundación Pachamama (Ecuador)
Description from website (www.pachamama.org.ec):
“Fundación Pachamama, through its accompanying political, technical and financial support
to the peoples and nationalities Amazon tries to respond to the real needs and interests of
them. Supports innovative policy proposals that promote new patterns of development in
Amazonia and the Andean region with emphasis on recognition and respect for collective
rights of indigenous peoples and the rights of nature.”
Contact: fundacionpachamama@pachamama.org.ec
Organization: Konex Foundation (Argentina)
Description from website (www.fundacionkonex.com.ar):
“...Section 2: The purposes of the Foundation shall be: to promote; stimulate; support, and/ or
participate in any manner possible in cultural, educational, intellectual, artistic, social,
philanthropic, scientific or sports initiatives, works and enterprises, in their most relevant
aspects.”
Contact: info@fundacionkonex.org
Organization: Fundacion Judaica (Argentina)
Description from website (www.judaica.org.ar)
“To coordinate educational, religious and social development activities among the various
Jewish community institutions working with us, acting and interacting with Argentine
society, in a dialogue of interchange and growth.”
Contact: info@judaica.org.ar
Organization: United Chile Foundation (Chile)
Description from website (http://www.chileunido.cl):
“United Chile Foundation was founded in 1998 as a forum for meeting, discussion and
dissemination of those values that are essential for national coexistence, over and above any
political or religious position, and beyond all divisions of the past or present. Diversity is
one of the key values for social coexistence, but it must be lived on the basis of a set of
principles and values that are rooted in our cultural and social being, it is important to share
and promote in order to progress not only from an economic standpoint but also from the
human point of view. Otherwise, instead of forming a diverse society, which will be a
fragmented society.”
Contact: fundacion@chileunido.cl
Organization: Fundación Intercultural NOR SUD (Bolivia)
Description from website (http://www.norsud.org/):
“Fundación Intercultural NOR SUD is a non-governmental, non-profit, free of all partisan
politics and religion. Bolivia was established in the February 2, 1992, from the first
movement of indigenous Quechua women in their early years as a group-based interindigenous.
In 1995 consolidated an alliance between women, environmentalists, professionals from
various disciplines and techniques and is established as an NGO in order to have greater
access and representation in civil society, seeking an ideal that is responsive to social justice,
biodiversity conservation, freedom, self, and gender equity, racial and cultural survival.”
Contact: norsud@norsud.org
Foundation: Avina Foundation (Regional)
Description from website (www.avina.net):
“MISSION
To contribute to sustainable development in Latin America by encouraging productive
alliances based on trust among social and business leaders and by brokering consensus
around agendas for action.
VISION
We seek a prosperous, integrated, and democratic Latin America, inspired in its diversity,
built in solidarity by its citizens, and known globally for its own model of sustainable and
inclusive development. We want to be recognized as an effective and innovative
organization that contributes to the sustainable development of Latin America.”
Contact: comunicaciones@avina.net