This blog originally appeared on the LinkedIn page of Madonna Vicky Ainembabazi.    David McCullough reminds us that “history is a guide to navigation in perilous times.” As I made my way to the Serena Kigali Hotel for the 9th East Africa Philanthropy Conference, I found myself reflecting not just on the journey that had led us to Kigali’s crisp urban air, but on the longer journey of civil society. How did we get here? Civil society was once indistinguishable from community. It lived in cooperatives like Banyankore Kweterana, or the Ghana Marketing Association, in women’s groups like the Women’s National Coalition, in student...

  This blog originally appeared on the #ShiftThePower Treehouse. It is the second piece in a two-part blog series, and follows Colouring outside the colouring book: Seeking out the alternative systems for movement organizing.   A funder recently told me how they do not work on ”identity politics.” I was confused by this because we both acknowledged that civil society is in crisis. Most especially, with the recent economic reprisals experienced by civil society. Including to my organization Success Capital that have led us to take a government health agency to court. The pushback against identity politics means being colour blind and “objective”, and inevitably implies centering privilege...