ECOLOGIA
Ecologoists Linked for Organizing Grassroots Initiatives and Action (ECOLOGIA) was founded in 1989.
About
Originally based in Northeastern Pennsylvania, ECOLOGIA moved its US headquarters to Middlebury, Vermont in early 2000.[1]
Mission
ECOLOGIA's mission statement is found on their website:
- " ECOLOGIA’s programs bring international perspectives and resources to local sustainable development projects, and bring locally based ‘on the ground’ experience back to the world of international decision making. Our programs combine a practical focus on local projects with direct involvement in international policy-making arenas. We believe that local leaders create the best, most sustainable long-term solutions to problems, and that this local experience should shape the development of national and international decisions. ECOLOGIA works by creating direct people-to-people connections. By linking individuals to one another, we foster the emergence of a global civil society — a worldwide network of individuals and organizations sharing common interests, information and resources. With staff, colleagues, and partners around the globe, ECOLOGIA is building global connections to create civil society and support sustainable development initiatives."[2]
History
ECOLOGIA was founded by grassroots environmental activists from the United States, in 1989, in order to support grassroots environmental initiatives across the Soviet Union and eastern Europe. Non-governmental organizations, especially environmental ones, were playing an important role in the political, social, and economic transitions of the time. From our base in Northeastern Pennsylvania, ECOLOGIA's founding staff and board members traveled frequently to these countries between 1988 and 1991. Working without any pre-determined agenda, they found common ground with leaders of emerging environmental organizations. They designed programs that responded to practical needs identified by their new-found colleagues, and initiated partnerships with various other projects.[1]
The Virtual Foundation
The Virtual Foundation is ECOLOGIA's philanthropy program. This enables eligible grassroots organizations to list projects on the Virtual Foundation website, and provides funders with the opportunity to find projects they want to support.
Board of Directors & Staff
As at June 26, 2008, the following served on the board and staff of ECOLOGIA:[3]
- Randy Kritkausky - President and co-founder
- Dr. Aleg Cherp - Board Member
- Dr. Rachel E. Golden - Board Member
- Carolyn Schmidt - Board Secretary
- Ed Shoener - Board Treasurer
- Paul Soler-Sala - Board Member
China Program Director:
- Du Heng - Sichuan Program Office, Chengdu
Advisors:
- Diana Barnard, Middlebury Family Health, Vermont
- Alene Case, North Branch Land Trust, Pennsylvania
- Christina Pease, University of Washington Affiliated Hospitals, Seattle
- Scott Smith, Cedar Ledge Family Practice, Vermont
- Giedre Tang, Vilnius Lithuania
Consultants:
- Julia Bonde, Web Design - Hoor, Sweden
- Green Mountain Access, Web Host - Waitsfield, Vermont
- Nan Miller, The Miller Group, Auditor - Washington DC
Funders
The following organizations have supported ECOLOGIA projects:[4]
- Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
- Colombe Foundation
- Dreyfus Health Foundation, New York
- Ford Foundation
- The Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund
- John Merck Fund
- The Moriah Fund
- Open Society Institute
- Open World Program of USAID, through ISAR and Pacific Institute
- Rockefeller Brothers Fund
- Rockefeller Philanthropy Initiative
- Trace Foundation
- Trust for Mutual Understanding
- Turner Foundation
- UNICEF
- United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX)
- USAID, through the Academy for Educational Development (AED)
- Wallace Global Fund
- W. Alton Jones Foundation
Some of ECOLOGIA's projects in the 21st century have been supported by educational and corporate entities, including:
- ALCAN Canada, for work in China
- MESPOM, Erasmus Mundus Program, European Commission
- Middlebury College, Vermont
- NRG Systems, Hinesburg, Vermont
- Shoener Environmental, Scranton Pennsylvania
- United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (UNFAO) Rome, Italy