There is an African proverb that goes ‘he who does not trust enough, will not be trusted.’ The word ‘trust’ is sometimes used in philanthropy to describe relationships between donors and their grantees. From the donors’ perspective, the relationship begins with normalized suspicion. Trust is often something that needs to be earned through a process that can include complicated applications and reporting schedules and documents, where external agendas are often in conflict with what the local community or grantee desires; a general lack of appreciation of the unique complexities local leaders and communities navigate daily. Instead of inspiring curiosity and understanding towards community realities, it instead breeds mistrust. Read More
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