Last week, more than 50 of Greengrants’ advisors and colleagues met in Boulder, Colorado, for our Global Advisor Retreat. Ugandan advisor Sophie Kutegeka, an advisor on the East Africa Advisory Board, took some time to talk to us about why she believes in her work and why we should be optimistic for the future.
In addition to her role as a Greengrants advisor, Sophie is a Program Officer for the Environmental Democracy Programme at the Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE), based in Kampala, Uganda. ACODE is an independent public policy research, analysis, and advocacy think tank that brings cases of environmental human rights abuses to Ugandan courts. Sophie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts from Makerere University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Governance, Democratization and Public Policy from the Institute of Social Studies, the Netherlands.
Sophie, why do you volunteer as an advisor; why is this work important to you?
When we talk about social issues, or economic issues, or whatever issue, the environment is always at the center of our lives. So I volunteer as a person who has a passion for this, and believes that the environment is at the core of our lives, and I would love everyone to be able to enjoy the environment and benefit from it. I also grew up in an area that surrounds Lake Albert, which is one of the areas where oil was discovered in Uganda. To get to the village, you would go through a forest and you would see animals like chimpanzees and other monkeys, and it used to be very beautiful. But now, when I go home, I don’t see animals anymore; the forest has been cut down. We used to go to the lake and fish and play in the water, but now things have changed and the lake is polluted. Because I grew up experiencing a healthy environment, I can’t imagine that my children and grandchildren won’t be able to experience the same environment I experienced.
Why is important to make sure funds reach local grassroots organizations involved in social and environmental work?
Small grants at the local level help the communities to deal with the issues that concern them. Small grants enable them to build support and capacity for their groups to advocate for themselves and their own issues. Greengrants uses an approach where communities are supported to find solutions for the issues that affect them directly; they have their own knowledge and they build on their own networks. So, we have this kind of bottom-up approach which is very unique. We see a much greater impact on the shape of the issue and sustainability of the issue with this approach. Local groups believe in their work and have much at stake in terms of their lives and livelihoods.
What are the advantages of relying on volunteer advisors to identify grant recipients?
What is special about the advisors is that it is completely voluntary, so you know that we are passionate about our work. When you do something that you have a passion for, something where you have experience, you really know the issues that are affecting the community. As a result, you are able to make sure that the grants go to groups that really want to address a real issue that will help improve their lives.
What is your inspiration for the future?
I am optimistic about the future of the world because we, Greengrants advisors from around the world, are coming together as a group of people who acknowledge the challenges that we are going through and also acknowledge the fact that we can do something about it. Greengrants is all about people who have a passion for what they do. We don’t do it for money, but because we believe in it. I am optimistic that things will change for the better.