What does the organization do

Estrela da Favela is an education project in the favela Mangueira in Rio de Janeiro and was founded in 2012 by Edwin Roodenburg and Edna Silveira. The tennis teacher and entrepreneur came into contact with Edna in Brazil, who has more than 20 years of work experience in an orphanage. At the start, about 20 children were provided with education and now that number has grown to 100. In the coming period, hard work is being done on a new building to grow that number even more. In addition to education, there is room for sports, music and norms, values and social skills. Together with the teachers, a sports teacher, cook, psychologist and volunteers, a safe environment is created where children from four to fourteen years old attend classes daily. There is extra attention for the development of girls, because these future mothers and educators can bring about significant changes in Brazilian macho society. In practice, this means that more than 50% of the students are girls. Through sports activities such as football and volleyball, the organization helps children with collaboration, goal setting and showing commitment.

What makes FindNFund interesting

Edwin talks about the period when the organization was looking for funds: 'Brazil is not a focus country for funders and there is also a strict selection. It soon turned out to be a jungle of rules, which unnecessarily raises the threshold in the search for funding. For the pilot phase, FindNFund visited our project and they freed up a number of people for fundraising. A platform like FindNFund simplifies the search for a finder or funder and the collaboration is quickly started. The foundation of Estrela da Favela is funded from own resources and when I am in the Netherlands, I focus on finding more funds. By joining the platform, a lot happens automatically and I have an extra channel for interested funders. They are a social enterprise and corporate social responsibility fits well with Estrela da Favela.'

Experiences with FindNFund

During the pilot period, FindNFund organized several sessions for finders and funders: 'Here we met interesting funds that fit within the themes our education project focuses on: education and sports for disadvantaged children from four to 14 years old. During this period, two potential funds came into view and after further research, one fund turned out to be the perfect match. Thanks to this funder, we have already partially furnished the new building for the 200 children we are about to teach. In the preceding conversations, we clearly communicated our story, what we do and what we need. By being very specific, it is immediately clear to the funder what happens with the fund. Now we are looking for extra funding for the completion of the new building and quality textbooks for the children.'

Vision on the sector and added value of FindNFund

According to Edwin, the charity sector will be increasingly needed in the coming decades: 'In areas like Rio de Janeiro, many things are still not going well and if we do nothing, there will never be improvement. That a platform like FindNFund has been developed is a huge gain for this sector. I have not encountered anything like this in all those years. We need each other, and with an honest story and the results so far, funders are willing to support projects like Estrela da Favela. Nothing comes for free and in the meantime we continue to expand the project. In Rio de Janeiro there is a street culture where education plays no role and the mostly uneducated parents do not encourage education. That is why our project is needed and for this we are looking for funds.'

Golden tip for FindNFund

As a golden tip for FindNFund, Edwin focuses on good screening of both Finders and Funders: 'Who is brought in determines the quality and assessment of the platform. I would therefore advise good screening that receives extra attention. Although the pilot phase has just ended, I would like to see FindNFund grow quickly and even break through internationally. The strength of the platform is the unique way in which they have created this marketplace. But the passion and drive behind it is just as visible and that helps too.'