9 Questions - Prof.Dr.J.Christopher Daniel
In this latest 9 Questions interview, we learn about Goodwill. One of the bigger charity organisations in India. Prof.Dr.J.Christopher Daniel elaborates on his Goodwill Social Centre and Helpalot.
1. Can you give a quick introduction of yourself and Goodwill?
The Goodwill Social Work Centre, a professional social work organisation deeply committed to the development of children, youth and women was founded by a Prof.Dr.J.Christopher Daniel,M.A.,Ph.D,a professionally qualified social work Educator and a Practising Social worker in November 1981 in the temple city of Madurai, India with the prime objective of performing a wide spectrum of roles in the development of children, youth and women and undertaking a comprehensive action through professional approach with a preventive, curative and rehabilitative perspective. It aims at utilising positively the scientific methods of Social Work for problem identification, problem solving and problem prevention for the multifaceted development of children, youth and women who are at a disadvantage.
It is a Non-governmental organisation registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act 27 of 1975 and Foreign Contributions (Regulations) Act 1976. Our Centre is a Member of the International Forum for Child Welfare, [IFCW], Child Rights Information Network [CRIN], U.K and ENSCW, Belgium and World Association for Non-Governmental Organisation (WANGO),USA .
It is included in the NGO database of the websites: www.idealist.org (Action without Borders), www.enscw.org, www.euforic.org and www.glinet.org. Our Society’s Registration number is: 112/1981 and our FCRA number is: 075940124. Please take a few moments to visit our website at http://mfcs.malianfoundation.org/goodwill/
Aims and objectives:
The centre aims to promote the overall development of children, youth and women in rural and urban areas in India, who are socially and economically deprived; to provide family centred home based intensive services to children, youth and women in dysfunctional families in slums and backward areas in India; to sensitise rural and urban children and women on various environmental issues and concerns through education, training and communication; to create public awareness on the rights of the child and women and to work for the promotion, protection and defence of children’s and women’s rights. It focuses education sponsorship; home based care and school placement for children in dysfunctional families; referral services to children for problem children; family counselling; environmental education for children and children and women rights education. It is operational in service provision, training, advocacy, research and information.
Our project activities:
1) Home and School placement, 2) Functional Literacy and Value Education, 3) Educational Support & Sponsorship, 4) Material and Financial Aid to Children, 5) Childhood Enrichment Services, 6) Family Fellowship Programmes, 7) Crisis Intervention and Counselling Services,
Parent Education and Support Services 9) Resourcing and Advocacy, 10) Health Promotion Programmes for Children, 11) Job Search and Placement for Parents, 12) Capacity building and Training for youth, women and men, 13) Income Generation Activities for Families, 14) Non formal employment training for children and young women, 15) Environmental education and communication, 16) AIDS Preventive Education and training for young men and women workers, 17) Children’s rights campaigning, 18) Networking with Local Support Systems and International organisations
OUR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CENTRE (A children’s Human Rights unit of GOODWILL)
The GOODWILL has set up a Children’s Rights Centre with a prime objective of promoting, protecting and defending children’s rights as affirmed in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child(1989).The intervention strategies include, 1. CRC education and training, 2. CRC communications, 3. CRC research, 4. CRC information networking and, 5. Provision of support services especially endangered children-street children, working children, girl children, children of Dalits (socially oppressed caste groups) and children in dysfunctional families.
2. What do you see as the most important problems for a charity like Goodwill?
One of the most pressing problems that our centre has been facing is financial crunch to run projects for children, youth and women and men in dysfunctional families in and around Madurai city and its neighbouring villages. Though we are ambitious and professionally competent enough to implement innovative projects for a various target groups, mobilisation of financial resources internally becomes difficult and as a result we have to depend on resources from foreign based funding organisations and individual donors. We have been more successful in raising funds from international funding organisations for various development and research projects. GOODWILL has more innovative ideas which can be translated into action provided we have the financial resources flowing from potential funders.
3. Do you have big community of supporters? How do you keep in touch with them and reach out to win over new supporters?
Most importantly, GOODWILL has a big community of supporters namely Family Focus International,Australia, Oz Child-Children Australia Inc,Australia, SIMAVI,The Netherlands, Population Concern,UK, International Development and Research Centre, Canada, The Malian Foundation, Australia, Panda Software International S.L,Spain , Jai Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)-Ministry of Human Resources Development, Government of India (Madurai office) New Delhi, India and other local Governmental and non-governmental organisations who have been extending their valuable financial support and professional assistance to implement various development projects for children,youth,women and men in rural and urban areas in Madurai region,Tamilnadu, South India.
Most of our programmes and activities are community based and therefore our programmes and activities are planned and implemented in consultation with the target population. GOODWILL has enabled communities of people youth and women to form as self help groups, youth forums, women groups, and grassroots level civil society groups in rural and semi urban areas and it has gained credibility of the target populations. The communities whom we serve at the grassroots level in our project areas are the main source of support, which enables us to implement programmes and activities.
GOODWILL is able to get in touch with its supporters and other networking organisations locally and around the world through its official website.
4. Helpalot will be a charity social network site with evaluation, with the goal to be a guide for people to make it easier to find a charity they like and can trust. What do you think would be the most important aspect of the site?
The site, I believe will foster practical links among donor based organisations and civil society organisations and NGOs around the world as well as promoting partnership for sustainable solutions. It will also encourage organisation –to-organisation links and facilitate learning and exchange and sharing of practical knowledge and experience. The site will be a powerful IT tool for NGOs in developing countries to get connected with International organisations in the developed countries .What’s more, it will help people working in social sector to register on the website, which will maximize opportunities for information exchange and collaboration on practical projects.
5.What do you see as the most important clues that make someone trust a charity?
To trust a charity, first of all it should have a legal status registered under appropriate enactments. It should have its own website setting forth clearly the mission statement, purposes, activities etc.
6. If Helpalot existed would you use the site, if so, how would you use the site?
GOODWILL will greatly benefit from having a webpage, which could be used for information sharing of its programmes and activities and making appeals and requests for project partnership to potential international funding organisations who might be interested in project collaboration. In addition, it will serve as a means for networking with various international NGOs, networking organisations, human rights organisations, professional research and development agencies.
7.Do you have contacts with other charities? Would you encourage them to join a site like Helpalot?
YES. GOODWILL is linked with international charities as an Institutional member. It is registered with various networking organisations and already in the process of networking with professional human development organisations around the world. Efforts could be initiated by our centre to invite them to join Helpalot.
8. What do you see as the biggest problem and opportunity for my project?
Having said earlier that resource mobilization for development projects is a greater responsibility and big challenge posed by GOODWILL, there are opportunities which could be availed of by way of getting connected with international funding organisations through the fine efforts initiated by Helpalot.
9. Thank you for your time, is there anything else you think is important to mention?
Helpalot can extend its professional service and act as a linking pin between International donor based organisations in development countries and NGOs in developing countries who directly work with the community. It can help in linking NGOs in developing countries with Corporates /Businesses in developed countries and promoting Business-NGOs partnership for sustainable development.
I’d like to thank Prof.Dr.J.Christopher Daniel for his time. Here you can read more 9 Questions interviews.