“If used effectively, one of the most accessible resources for fundraising and resource mobilisation that propels or assists organisations in moving from the foundational or infancy stage to sustainability.”
-- Abduselam Abdella, Al-Nahda Foundation / Faysel community school - Cairo, Egypt
If you are struggling to find the funds for the important work serving your communities, we have the answers within this 10-module self-paced learning programme on Resource Mobilisation for Refugee-led Organisations. This training was designed by Fundraising Training Ltd. with Mobilisation Lab Collective and delivered via WhatsApp to over 90 refugee leaders in August-November 2023.
Here we are making all resources of the training publicly available to all Refugee-led Organisations and refugee leaders across the globe. By following this journey, you will gain access to a massive set of tools and techniques that have secured funds for hundreds of organisations across the world, from UNHCR to Tumaini Letu in Malawi.
Each module of the training includes a 20-minute video and a handout including a number of reflection questions and exercises for you to work on individually or with your team. You can explore the training content at your own pace, focus on any modules that are most relevant for your organisation or initiative based on your needs, and use the tools and techniques provided to build your own resource mobilisation plan and activities.
After an introductory module (The Three Sources of Funding), there will be four sections, drawing you across the journey from starting up to long-term sustainability.
Building a funding community: gaining commitment of close constituents
Reaching out to funders and partners
Breaking boundaries
“The training was very powerful and useful from a personal level and organisational level. It enabled me and my team to be able to understand key factors to consider when we’re seeking for funding as an organisation and how we can create value by considering and making use of the community around us. In general it has been a struggle to earn such high quality skills for free and also provided a platform to share our understanding and how to relate to our RLOs.”
-- Kesiya Stamili Ramazani, Transformation Innovation Hub, Zimbabwe
Module 1: The Three Sources of funding
This first module will equip you to develop a resource mobilisation strategy which is uncomplicated and practical. We will guide you on the likely sources of funding for your cause and explain how your resource mobilisation should change. This module explains that there are three sources of funding and four phases to the evolution of your organisation or initiative.
Watch the video for module one below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module one below.
English
Arabic
Module 2: Building social capital & mapping your network
This is the first of three modules about gaining support from your own community, your close constituents. In this module we explore what is social capital and how to build social capital in your wider community. We offer tools and techniques that can help you tell a compelling story about your organisation / initiative and to map your existing network of contacts, friends and potential allies.
Watch the video for module two below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module two below.
English
Arabic
Module 3: Building and managing your community
In module three we are exploring different options for creating your community of supporters and how to establish structures to manage your community. Here we are looking at both physical and online communities, how to manage relationships and engagement them in your work.
Watch the video for module three below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module three below.
English
Arabic
Module 4: Resource mobilisation of your community
In this module we explore different options for securing cash and non-cash gifts and donations from your wider community, physical or online. We also look into a range of techniques to mobilise resources from your community using social media. We are drawing from an analysis of hundreds of community fundraising activities to identify ten successful ingredients that might act as motivations for people to support your organisation or initiative.
Watch the video for module four below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module four below.
English
Arabic
Module 5: Fishing for donors
In module five we present a proven process of successful networking. You can use the ideas presented here to find new funders and partners and identify the best places for you to network with potential donors and partners. We will explore what resources you will need for effective networking, how to keep in constant contact with potential partners and funders, as well as when we need to focus on listening and when to try and impress.
Watch the video for module five below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module five below.
English
Arabic
Module 6: Instant research for funders and partners
You’ll come to a point where the generosity of your friends and family and the deep commitment of the community around you isn’t providing enough funding for your cause to grow and thrive. At this point, most emerging organisations find an external partner or funder to transform their dreams. In module six, we explore key considerations when researching and trying to identify potential funders and partners that can support your organisation or initiative to grow.
Watch the video for module six below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module six below.
English
Arabic
Module 7: Building rapport - The three-step conversation
In this module we are sharing tips that will change your whole approach to conversations with potential funders – and any other valuable contact. We will explore a technique that can work over the phone, face-to-face, across an email or WhatsApp conversation. This technique based on three simple steps, works across cultures, as it's based on our common human experience. Using it can help you build rapport and cease to be a stranger when making the first contact with a potential funder or partner.
Watch the video for module seven below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module seven below.
English
Arabic
Module 8: What makes a successful proposal
Module eight focuses on funders - those you could never have predicted would support you when you started your funding community. In this module we will explore how to successfully present our causes to external funders and partners by understanding what to communicate to them and will share the five elements of a well-designed proposal. In addition, we will look at the key questions funders ask when assessing your proposal. This will increase your ability to build proposals that succeed.
Watch the video for module eight below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module eight below.
English
Arabic
Module 9: Managing negotiation and asking for a commitment
In this module we explore key ideas, principles and techniques for managing negotiations and asking for a commitment of funders and partners. We are drawing upon decades of resource mobilisation experience and proven sales and fundraising theories. We will explore five different options of approaches you can use to ask a funder or donor to support your cause, organisation or initiative.
Watch the video for module nine below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module nine below.
English
Arabic
Module 10: Developing a social enterprise
In this last module of the training we will offer practical skills and information to build and execute enterprise plans as alternative social income stream supplementing partners contributions and funds. We will explore what a social enterprise is and how it can act as a possible avenue for income generation allowing you to achieve social impact in your community. In module ten we will also explore how we can leverage existing infrastructure in our context to support social enterprise thinking.
Watch the video for module ten below.
You can download the handout and exercises for module ten below.
English
Arabic
“This training is wonderful, powerful, full of information, comprehensive and appropriate, it brought up topics that we did not know and highlighted points that were invisible to me, and I am proud to have been a part of it.”
-- Mayada Zaza, Together for Justice Initiative, Lebanon
Resource Mobilisation Training for Refugee-Led Organizations © 2023 by Fundraising Training Ltd with Mobilisation Lab Collective is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/