Brazilian society faced in the 1990s 1990 a profound process of modernization in some of its basic structures, something that exposed contradictions between relatively well-organized groups. Economic reforms – especially those linked to the increase in Brazilian exposure to the international economy – served as pressure promoting a new position adopted by the State towards society.
Among other consequences, What we saw was the emergence of highly organized groups in civil society that seek to achieve their objectives through alternative means to the practice of lobbying. These groups, gathered in so-called Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), focus on topical issues and seek to provide the necessary resources to resolve them.
As NGOs grew in quantity and quality of action, the idea of forming a Third Sector was developed. Like this, NGOs found a space in the socio-economic and, in front of your profile, gained significant prominence in the media.
Today there is no shortage of examples of NGOs and foundations providing portions of public good. From publications of commendable social reports to advertisements exposing the results achieved, What can be seen is the fetishization of the actions of this sector.
The dissemination of social results is not in itself problematic, unless it reaches the pyrotechnic level seen today. Much more than publishing the result of an action, What we are looking for today is to increase the prominence of an NGO (enabling it to receive other resources) or create a good image for the company that supports a foundation.
Thus, which was initially conceived as a way of contributing to improving the social framework, soon find yourself transformed into a marketing piece.
The equally commendable professionalization of the Third Sector is certainly leading to much more professional and rationalizing action in the Sector.. However, there is no discernible progress in ethical discussions of the obligations and functions of NGOs and foundations. Thereby, the Sector increasingly finds itself a prisoner of the socio-economic behavior that characterizes most contemporary societies: the competition.
Those who work in the Third Sector find themselves in constant competition for sources of resources and media space, transforming actions that should be collaborative into individualistic actions restricted to parts of the administrative staff. This competition between NGOs breaks with the initial logic of the Third Sector, transforming it into yet another new economic field.
Before anything else, the Third Sector must be seen as a space for learning what the true exercise of citizenship is. Its logic teaches us that a society is made up of more than taxes and elections. It is done through the active participation of its citizens and the awareness that the society we have is everyone's responsibility.
Focus exclusively on the professionalization of the Sector, discovering and exploiting the means to inflate it, not only will it be harmful to your long-term development, but will also deepen the mistaken conception according to which the Third Sector must occupy those areas in which the State is unable to do so.
Daily: at the time of publication of social reports, It is worth remembering that in modern capitalism today's marketing differential is nothing more than an obligation tomorrow, when new differences should emerge.
Moral of the Hist & oacute; ria: when the alms are too much, the saint is suspicious.
Council Liter & aacute; rio:
The imbalance between the ability to figure out what the problem is, or at least a hint of it, and the ability to discover what must be done to alleviate it is not limited to, in research on new countries, to the issue of agrarian reform: she is general.
New light on anthropology – Clifford Geertz
New light on anthropology – Clifford Geertz
Yes IV – nº 31 / January 2004
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