Strategic Philanthropy in Barbados

Ian Woosnam’s approach to philanthropy is intentional. As one of the “Big Five” generation of European golfers who made Europe competitive in the Ryder Cup, including winning the 1991 US Masters Tournament and being inducted to the Golf Hall of Fame in 2017, Ian has the networks, money and time to devote significant resources to charity. His strategic approach, and the results it has catalysed, helps us understand how people can pool their unique connections, talents and resources to solve critical issues in Barbados.

In the late 2010s, as Ian settled into making Barbados his second home, he learned about the climbing rate of diabetes in the country. Diabetes, clinically called diabetes mellitus, is a chronic metabolic disease and well-known global epidemic. While Type 2 diabetes is preventable, Type 1 cannot be prevented. Barbados has one of the highest rates of diabetes in the Caribbean, with reports of 1 in 5 adults having the disease. The cost to government for treating and managing the epidemic is estimated to be about $64 million per year, with the need for nuanced treatment options expanding. Solving the problem of diabetes is expensive, demanding both preventative action and effective management of the disease to control its most damaging effects.

Ian has two daughters living in the UK with Type 1 diabetes. Donors with such close ties to a cause they care deeply about sometimes slip into the trend of impulsive, or solely self-directed giving. Though these one-off gifts are valuable, the ad hoc approach is not a successful method of driving long-term, systemic change to solve a social issue. Rather than writing a one-time cheque, or starting up his own initiative, Ian partnered with an existing organisation. He chose to invest in The Barbados Diabetes Foundation, a local registered charity working to solve the issue of limited access to holistic diabetes care. Its current three main sources of funding are Government grants, a support grant from The Maria Holder Memorial Trust, and proceeds from golf tournaments held under the auspices of Ian Woosnam.

The first Woosnam-sponsored golf tournament was at Apes Hill Club in March 2016. Designed as a Golf Cup based on the Ryder Cup, this event and subsequent Woosnam-sponsored golf tournaments at Royal Westmoreland Golf Club in 2018 and 2020, have raised Bds $609,000 for the Barbados Diabetes Foundation. These funds have been donated to the organisation for the ‘specific and restricted purpose’ of the treatment of persons with Type 1 diabetes. This enabled the creation of a Type 1 Diabetes Register in 2017 and establishment of a dedicated fund accessible to anyone with Type 1 diabetes in Barbados. The arrangement filled the Foundation’s need to provide more tailored diabetes care, and a broader national need to prevent and reduce cases of uncontrolled diabetes. This ‘restricted impact’ donation model is one of the ways philanthropists can strategically engage with charities and other social enterprises to solve pressing issues.

We often meet generous people like Ian who have connections to Barbados and who, because of their personal life experiences, decide to use their resources and engage with the local community to provide real help for pressing social issues. This help is often in the form of time, volunteered skills, money or a combination of them all. Ian’s story is important because it shows how philanthropists can grow into social investors, strategically using their own talents and resources not only to give to causes they care about, but to drive catalytic change in a clearly defined and urgent area of social need. This approach, which we are calling ‘strategic philanthropy’, is a useful tool for those with existing giving practices, as well as those facing new circumstances – for example, a change in location, culture and/or unpredictable factors, such as the covid-19 pandemic.

Strategic philanthropy combines heart, thought, awareness and clarity of intent. The approach considers the issues you care about deeply, the evidenced issues that need solving in your environment and who is already working on/interested in the cause you are keen to support. For example, online resources for funders and volunteers, such as the ASIRE Blog & Barbados Charity Map, can help you better understand local needs and identify your giving priorities. The outcome of this focused approach is a more connected philanthropic ecosystem; a clearly identified philanthropic goal that is personally resonant, locally relevant, does not duplicate existing efforts, is connected to collective action and drives impact in an identified area of need.

Founded in 2015 to help charities help, ASPIRE Foundation (Barbados) Inc. is an evidenced opportunity for strategic local philanthropy. For example, ASPIRE’s Incubator Programme is a 12-month business development fellowship for local social organisations. Organisations access pro-bono business support valued at $60,000, a small seed grant of $10,000 and certification in core governance standards. It was created to nurture a hub of the most promising local non-profits and social leaders with systems-changing solutions to local priority issues, help combat the regulatory issues of the sector and connect investors and non-profits with shared goals. By the time of graduation, these organisations are in a stronger position to partner with social investors to solve our biggest issues. The 2021 ASPIRE Incubator Programme cycle is open for applications. The first fourteen non-profits graduated the programme in 2020.

We are looking for likeminded philanthropists who believe that strategic investments can accelerate solutions to our most pressing challenges. Our urgent goal is to support 50 important local social enterprises by 2025.

Are you interested in joining our mission to help charities help? We’d love to hear from you. Please give us a call at 1-246232-6043 or drop us a line at admin@aspirebarbados.org.

ASPIRE Foundation (Barbados) Inc. is a local non-profit working to build up the civic sector and non-profits that change lives. ASPIRE is a member of the Barbados NGO Major Group, the WINGS philanthropic network (Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support) and the Caribbean Philanthropy Alliance (CPA). Learn more at aspirebarbados.org.

Transitioning from Extractive to Regenerative

The brainchild of its Director and Founder, Ian McNeel, the Walkers Institute for Regenerative Research Education and Design (WIRRED) was born out of the restoration of a sand quarry that has been owned and operated by the McNeel family for more than 50 years. Throughout that period, Walkers provided an abundance of silica sand to the construction sector of Barbados while managing to steward and protect one of the largest native dune forests on the island. But today, as the quarry’s supply nears exhaustion, a new story is emerging — one of biodiversity, ecological health and regeneration. Working alongside his wife Julie, and a talented team of professionals, Ian is committed to utilizing regenerative agroforestry and permaculture design principles as a framework to guide the transformation of a quarry into a thriving nature reserve, research centre and eco-tourism destination.

Ian McNeel

Thanks to the guiding influence of my parents, I grew up acutely aware that we all have a responsibility to protect the environment and take care of the world around us. But in business, and as an entrepreneur, my real wake-up call came about 17 years ago when I witnessed first-hand the catastrophic damage caused by one of our garment factories in India. Rivers behind the factory were literally running red, yellow and neon pink with discarded fabric dyes. It shocked me to think I might be responsible for all that toxic water flowing downstream. And, knowing India, I thought it was most likely being used for other purposes such as bathing, crop irrigation and drinking water. It was a benchmark moment that forced me to reflect on the fact that our family had once been involved in manufacturing petrochemical products for the agricultural sector, albeit during the 1950s and 60s when people were unaware of the risks involved. After joining all the dots I determined that my next step would be to turn something degrative to the environment into something regenerative. I saw the rejuvenation of the quarry as an impact investment and a way to contribute to Barbados, because the country has an obvious lack of bio-diversity and habitat as a result of centuries of producing a monocrop, sugar cane, and poor land management practices. So I thought, what better opportunity and scalable example for environmental regeneration than the mining industry.

I started by seeking local knowledge from ‘bushmen’ and Parish elders who forage around St. Andrew, connected and collaborated with the organic growers association to better understand what some of the solutions and challenges were in organic farming, and listening within the communities. Next I started building new knowledge and skill sets, engaging with local and international thought-leaders and educators in the regenerative agro-sector space, learning what it really means to observe a landscape with a holistic lens and the importance of restoring ecosystems. When you start at that very basic level, like I did, you quickly understand that ecosystems are biodiverse networks that are inter-dependent and interconnected. The entire natural world is interconnected, but it also very fragile. Start picking at anything long enough and it eventually affects everything else. Clearly it is a lot easier to extract and destroy eco systems than it is to build and protect them. So, in our case, we are transitioning a sand quarry from an extractive business model to a circular economy, which supports multiple forms of capital, a conscious return on investment and greater overall value for the people, environment and businesses involved. We can no longer take small steps toward sustainability. We need to start making bold moves in order to change the status quo.

Julie McNeel

With a background in healing and holistic nutrition, I had always aspired to one day establish a location where people could gather to learn how to connect more with the natural environment, so what we are now doing with Walkers is very near and dear to me. We are healing our 277 acres of land through regenerative agriculture and permaculture practices, such as planting endemic species and food plants. As well as using climate-smart techniques like contour planting on the hillsides and planting Khus-Khus grass (Vetiver) to prevent soil erosion through rainwater run-off. Instead of erecting invasive man-made structures, we let nature do its own Green Engineering. Another important element of the project is to create new habitats for re-wilding and we are already attracting an encouraging quantity and variety of flora and fauna, especially bird life. Ideally located at the crossroads of the north-south and east-west migratory highways, Barbados is one of the few places on earth with both New World and Old World bird species. Happily, Walkers is now benefitting from that fortunate natural advantage.

In order to make Walkers as sustainable as possible, we have adopted a number of enterprising ways to help finance our work. At the basic level, we are aiming to localize organic food and agro-forestry production so that we can feed people coming to work or do tours and the guests that stay here, as well as supplying ‘Local & Co’, our new Farm To Table restaurant in Speightstown. But we are also experimenting with new options like growing and roasting cashew nuts or making wine from Sea Grapes, as well as planting other value-added, nonfood crops such as Tropical Indigo for fabric dye. A good example of our holistic approach is that we are growing different types of grasses to learn which ones work best for making baskets and other weaved products. Importantly, as part of that process, we are also discovering where, when and how to plant the grasses; what growth cycles do they undergo; when is the best time to harvest; how should the grass be dried and treated before weaving; and so on. The overarching goal encompassing all of that is to promote the island’s culturally relevant arts and crafts as a practical and productive way to arrest the loss of important elder knowledge. To help preserve that collective expertise for future generations, we have built a Knowledge Centre to facilitate on-site learning. The Centre hosts training programmes around the main themes of Permaculture, Wellness, Weaving and Art, all of which are accessible for locals and tourists alike. We also offer certification courses in collaboration with the Caribbean Permaculture Research Institute (CPRI). Ultimately, we want Walkers to be a zero-footprint tourism product, with the capacity to provide completely green accommodation facilities. As such, I am keen to add Wellness Gatherings and retreats to our activities. Barbados has a long history as a health inducing location, so I want to connect with other healing centres and practitioners around the world and attract them here. We’d like Walkers to become a leading Caribbean destination for holistic wellbeing.

Ian McNeel

We are living in vulnerable times. From the pandemic to climate change and vulnerable inrastructure, we are currently undergoing a radical transformation where every nation, particularly small island developing states, must reimagine and reconstruct our current systems – social systems, financial systems, energy and infrastructure systems, distribution systems, food security resilience and economic productivity. We can no longer use the same thinking that got us here. It’s not business as usual. I win and you lose is a zero-sum game. Look at climate change, for example, and the staggering loss of habitat and biodiversity we are experiencing, which is not only threatening the stability of the Caribbean but the entire planet. I truly believe that we in Barbados are at a pivotal point where we must decide what kind of economy will best serve and futureproof the nation, especially with regard to tourism. What kind of tourism will attract visitors, be financially viable, and still be beneficial for people, environment and our local economy? In my opinion, the answers to those questions revolve around our willingness to become a more sustainable and resilient nation. One solution could be to engage more with the modern traveller and ‘Digital nomads’ who tend to be more environmentally and socially aware. Let’s invest in tourism products and solutions that invite visitors to plant trees and offset their carbon footprint, volunteer for Slow Food programmes, experience alternative energy solutions, take farm tours, dine with farm to table culinary experiences, participate in a beach clean-up with local ecogroups, or enable visiting divers to help regenerate our reefs by planting new coral. And, through offering a combined package that embraces cultural, social, ecological elements, we could convert past problems into future solutions. Give people a chance to enjoy a vacation in Barbados with more environmental, cultural and wellness based experiences, and the satisfaction of ‘giving back’ to the island. Let them reinvigorate themselves, while contributing to the regeneration of our environment. There are endless opportunities for entrepreneurs, business leaders and our youth in the new regenerative tourism economy. One thing for sure is that whatever WIRRED can contribute towards the regeneration of Barbados, we can't do it alone. We have to get everybody on board, from individuals and communities to businesses and government, all working towards the common outcome for a sustainable island and indeed the planet. Our only way forward is through collaboration and the sharing of information, skills and resources. And while the foundational skills needed to run a business are still important, companies need to come to grips with existential concerns and provide solutions that go well beyond the old-school balance sheet.

wirred.org slowfoodbarbados.org cpribarbados.com thelocalbarbados.com