Seed Flow Fund
About
The Seed Flow Fund is driven by a clear purpose to empower recipients to address emerging needs, seize opportunities and create immediate impact in their communities through nimble and adaptive funding. Grassroots practitioners are the heart of the program, working alongside local coordinators, representing diverse nature inspired approaches and knowledge systems that build resilience.
The flow funding structure was initially created by Marion Weber in 1991, where donors entrust their money to social innovators and visionaries to give away. It is a funding approach that emphasizes quick and flexible allocation of resources to support grassroots initiatives or urgent needs.
In flow funding, donors or funders provide funds directly to individuals or organizations with a broad mandate to distribute those funds to other projects or individuals based on their expertise and knowledge of the local context. It aims to bypass bureaucratic processes and empower those closest to the issues to make funding decisions in a timely and responsive manner.
East African Youth & Women in Perma(culture) Fund
The East African Youth & Women in Perma(culture) Fund launched with three inaugural teams, leading pathways towards resilience and self-sufficiency through permaculture and entrepreneurship.
The first team, located in the Western region of Kenya and guided by Wegesa Fraser, brings together women who have chosen to learn and embrace regenerative practices like permaculture design, to create a foundation for sustainable livelihoods. Additionally, some women are also resourcing entrepreneurial ventures such as setting up market stalls for locally grown vegetables and second-hand goods.
The second team, led by Alice Mwangi, is made up of passionate young urban permaculturists determined to create impact despite limited access to land in the Northern region of Kenya. Through flow funding, they’re undertaking regenerative farming training and ordered start-up kits to kickstart their own gardens. They’re also looking into opportunities to invest in water harvesting solutions.
Team three, mentored by Bemeriki Bisimwa Dusabe, is supporting and training over 60 refugee youth in Orchinga Refugee Settlement in Uganda and Nyarugus Refugee Camp in Tanzania by leasing land for a demonstration farm and supplying training, materials and tools. After the training period, participants are able to grow their own vegetables and keep learning for the duration of the lease.
Read more stories emerging from the East African Youth & Women in Perma(culture) Fund on our blog or follow us on Instagram.
Indigenous Women’s Flow Fund, Brazil
The Indigenous Women’s Flow Fund empowers indigenous women from diverse ethnicities and regions in Brazil to make a profound impact in their communities.
Thirteen extraordinary women, representing Galibi Kali'na, Karajá, Arapiun, Galibi-Marworno, Kambeba, Wapichana, Tupinambá, Guató, Mebengokre-Kayapó, Kaxinawa-Huni Kui, Tupari, Xerente, and Kadiwéu ethnicities, have been chosen by a commission of esteemed Brazilian organizations and institutions.
Through their visionary projects, these incredible women are working tirelessly to strengthen cultural heritage, address urban challenges, combat violence against indigenous women, tackle indigenous teenage suicide, promote artistic expressions, cultivate medicinal gardens, preserve indigenous singing culture, and create sustainable crafts inspired by nature and their experiences expressed through nature-based materials.
Their chosen themes and ethnicities represent the vibrant diversity of indigenous women's perspectives and their invaluable contributions to Brazil's cultural and environmental landscape. As the the Indigenous Women's Fund moves forward, its commitment remains strong to support projects that embody an indigenous and female gender perspective, fostering sustainable development across all six biomes within the five major regions of Brazil.
Read more stories emerging from the Indigenous Women’s Flow Fund on our blog or follow us on Instagram.