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THE INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THIRD-SECTOR RESEARCH (ISTR) IS PLEASED TO PRESENT AN OCCASIONAL REPORT. THE REPORT IS AN OVERVIEW OF THE THIRD ISTR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN RESEARCH NETWORK MEETING (BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, SEPTEMBER, 2001).

LATIN-AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES ON THE THIRD SECTOR

Inés González Bombal

The International Society on Third Sector Research (ISTR) Latin-American Network of researchers held their third meeting in Buenos Aires on September 12th-14th. In 1998, they had their first meeting in Brazil, and, in 1999, held their second meeting in Chile. The conference received sixty-four abstracts, and thirty-six papers were presented. The meeting was attended by more than 200 academics and practitioners from more than ten countries in the region. Apart from simultaneous panels discussing specific issues, there were special panels and lecturers invited from different countries.

The inaugural panel focused on the status of the debate on the Third Sector in North America, Europe, and Latin America. Virginia Hodgkinson, ISTR's president, addressed the progress of knowledge about the Third Sector in the United States. She stressed its relevance in defining the sector's identity as well as strengthening its organizations and enhancing its capacity to influence public policies. Roger Spear, from the Open University in London, presented an overview of the importance of social economy and the different types of development it has had in various European Community countries. Andrés Thompson, Program Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, outlined the origins of the research on the sector in the Latin American context: the informality and heterogeneity of the sector, the political role of NGOs, their closeness to social movements and collective action, and the struggle for democracy and the promotion of rights.

A special session presented the results of the Johns Hopkins University International Comparative Project. The local associates presented the cases of Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina. Gustavo Verduzco's lecture remarked on the high degree of informality and heterogeneity of the Third Sector in Mexico and the difficulties encountered in efforts to include those more traditional organizations in the methodology proposed by the international comparative project. Felipe Portocarrero's text indicated the importance of organizations for other functions that are not underlined in the initial methodology, such as citizenship development. He also presented an important hypothesis for future research: to link the creation of associations with different spheres of rights: civic, political, economic, social, etc. Leilah Landim's lecture analyzed the impact of Third Sector research on Brazil's public opinion and how this topic sometimes departs from its original academic conceptualization, and discusses with other notions such as civil society, NGOs, social movements, networks, social capital, etc. From the analysis of the Colombian case, Rodrigo Villar demanded a more complex analysis of the impact of the sector, arguing that the sector's size does not indicate the strength of civil society, the development of social capital and a better democracy. Finally, Mario Roitter's lecture suggested new lines for future research in which the pattern of growth of the Third Sector is linked to the general dynamics of Latin American societies economic model, with the aim to establish correlation with significant variables, such as income distribution, level of urbanization and other development indicators.

In the panel on volunteer work, the results of two surveys measuring volunteer work in Peru and Uruguay were presented. In the case of Peru, Cynthia Sanborn elaborated on the difficulties in applying the concept to the Latin American context, and suggested to differentiate it from other frequent practices such as the mutual assistance networks developed by the poorer sectors of the population. Analía Bettoni addressed voluntary work with political participation and civic behavior in Uruguay. In addition, two more qualitative case studies on Argentina were presented. Firstly, Adriana Fassio showed how volunteer work could be an alternative to social exclusion among the elderly, and Cecilia Juárez presented new modes of volunteer work in Argentinean firms.

One session discussed the contributions that faith-based organizations make to the Third Sector in Latin America. Daniel Gropper, from Argentina, proposed a methodology to measure the economic impact of this important and difficult-to-measure sector. Marietta Bucheli described the experience of a social development initiative launched by the Colombian Catholic church that resulted in a successful network of cooperatives. Pablo Guerra, from Uruguay, presented an analytic framework and the initial results of the Catholic religion's contribution to social development in his country.

On the session exploring new experiences in business social responsibility, Adele Queiroz and Vivian Smith presented the indicators developed by the ETHOS Institute to account for this topic in Brazil. Rita de Cassia Guedes, also from Brazil, analyzed social responsibility as a strategic component in the positioning of firms in a globalized market. Soledad Teixidó, Andrea Castro and Reinalina Chavarri analyzed corporate responsibility in Chile and how firms build a new role in society through that responsibility. Carola Conde Bonfil presented outstanding microfinance experiences carried out by NGOs, their relationship with companies and their impact in the struggle against poverty in Mexico.

The panel on the participation of Third Sector organizations in public policies included the presentation of Romina Miorelli who made a general theoretical overview of civil society and democracy. Rodrigo Junqueira presented a case study on assistance credit policies and sustainable development in Brazil. Kemly Camacho investigated the new opportunities for collective action and policy advocacy resulting from the emergence of the Internet in Central America. Finally, Sandra Cesilini and Roberto Senderowitsch analyzed the scope and constraints for NGOs participation in the consultation processes organized by the World Bank in Argentina.

Another session looked into the performance of NGOs in processes that affect public policies. Graciela Biagini, from Argentina, analyzed the importance of social actors in the public non-governmental space in topics of health and the creation of collective identities. Candelelaria Garay's lecture focused on Argentinean organizations that defend the rights of children and those affected by HIV/AIDS. Cecilia Schneider's lecture dealt with NGO-government partnerships at the municipal level. Cristina Penso reconstructed the dynamics of NGOs participation and collaboration in the implementation of social development policies in Mexico. Finally, Jorge Vergara Estévez analyzed the opening of spaces for civil society participation in a country that exhibits a strong state presence, as is the case in Chile.

The main legal and institutional innovations that regulate the relationship between the Third Sector and the state were addressed in a panel dedicated to the topic. There, Felipe Viveros presented the new act for private foundations and Luis Catalán dealt with the more specific case of the law on cultural grants, with both addressing the Chilean case. Elisabete Ferrarezi reconstructed the process that led to the creation of the new legal framework governing the relationship between the Third Sector and the state in Brazil, where important novelties were introduced, such as the "parcería" (partnership) and "public-interest civil society organizations."

Different case studies on more specific issues were presented in the panel on sectorial analyses. Sandra Rapetti analyzed the cultural organizations sector in Montevideo, Uruguay. Pricila Sosa dealt with the study of organizations in the Mexican Caribbean. Armando Millán and Felipe Portocarrero from Peru presented a survey on institutional activities that promote social responsibility in Latin American universities. Tania Fischer, Paula Schomer, Vanessa Paternostro and Renata Rossi carried out a study on the "parcería" (partnerships) between the state and civil society organizations in a state of Northeastern Brazil.

Another session focused its discussion on the conceptual debates around the Third Sector in Argentina. Hugo Ferullo criticized the Johns Hopkins University methodology and its local application. Marcelo Camerlo, from Argentina, associated the conceptual advent of the Third Sector with the surfacing of neoliberal thoughts, and proposed a new and alternative meaning. Stemming from his knowledge on Argentinean and Latin American organizations, Félix Bombarolo put forth the need to abandon formal definitions, and to study the concrete actions these social actors perform in actual processes. María Angélica Aguilar, Javier Judi and Marta Ves Losada's report focused on the conflictive role attributed to NGOs by international organizations who have implemented targeted social policies focused on poverty alleviation in the region.

In the closing panel, Olga Lucía Toro from Colombia presented the results of the survey she carried out for ISTR, on the state of the art of Third Sector and civil society research in the region. The study reports major projects, the institutions carrying them out, and the most relevant publications. Her presentation introduced more than a mapping of existing research, given that it identified the opportunities and limitations for the future production of knowledge, and suggested strategies for the advancement of research, such as the creation of a Fund to support research in Latin America and the Caribbean. Drawing on the valuable experience of the Information Network on the Third Sector (RITS), Sergio Goes from Brazil analyzed the impact of new communication technologies on the development of the Third Sector.

The Meeting of the Latin American Network in Buenos Aires concluded with the following reflections: research on the Third Sector has achieved an important level of development in the region; a new academic field is emerging and a new topic is gaining ground. Definitely, a new "object" of study has been built. However, it should now undergo the process of legitimization required by the rules of the academic practice. It should ameliorate its accuracy, methodology and theoretical significance.

This new academic space has its own characteristics that are worthwhile to point out. It is a space where the differentiation of functions between researchers and practitioners is still relative in the region. This offers a number of advantages we should preserve, but we should also be aware of tensions it generates. The fact that there is no clear-cut differentiation between researchers and practitioners facilitates mutual exchange and the strengthening of knowledge. There is a space for dialogue, and there are no borders to cross, as it usually happens in already excessively consolidated academic disciplines.

However, as the recognition of this new theme progresses in the academic world, another audience emerges, researchers, who as a group can compete with the practitioners and sector leaders. It is necessary to be prepared to deal with these new tensions since research requires the necessary autonomy to validate itself as knowledge with academic legitimacy. Academic practices have their own validation rules and timing, and the latter cannot always coincide with the demands of the organizations.

Another characteristic feature of this new "object" of research is its strong multi-disciplinary character. Researchers coming from different disciplines, such as sociology, economy, political science, anthropology, and fields linked to organizational administration and management, come together to analyze the sector. The combination of diverse disciplines and the open and unconventional character, with which the study of the Third Sector is approached, are undoubtedly particular features to be highlighted and preserved.

A problem is that the excessively multi-disciplinary character of this approach can cause too much empirical knowledge with mid-scope hypotheses. In this way, we might run the risk of producing a long list of case studies with no theoretical significance, because we do not circumscribe it in a major paradigm. It is necessary to produce knowledge with an empiric base as well as case studies, but if we only do that, we won't be able to dialogue with the big questions of the classical disciplines nor to participate in the most important debates of our times.

Let's turn to some questions that show my concern on this: How meaningful is the knowledge on the Third Sector for the sociological debate on social integration-exclusion? In terms of the specificity of the nonprofit sector: What is its contribution to the economic theory in relation to production efficiency and resource distribution? What are the new forms of participation in organizations telling us about the crisis of political representation? Would it be interesting for social anthropology to know what are the types of social bonds developed in these spaces? Etc., etc., etc.

There is a lot to be done with regard to research, but important progress has been made in this field. In the last decade, the entrance of this new field of knowledge into Latin American universities has been key to this process, given that the University is still the classic realm for the recognition of knowledge. And also because the entrance of the issue in the universities has a legitimizing effect that, in turn, consecrates specific competencies though the accreditation of degrees for the labor market. There is a circuit, not always clear and distinct, that links research, knowledge systematization, curricula development, human resources development and eventually, the birth of new professions.

As a participant in this process, my personal assessment is that research has been successful in its foundational expression of giving birth to a new theme, in the creation of a new object, and in showing something that was not visible before. However, it is time to move a step forward. Today we must reflect upon the meaning of this issue in light of the major schools of thought of our age and within their corresponding disciplines. We must overcome the descriptive stage of our research, prove explanatory hypotheses, design methodologies that allow us to carry out impact analyses. It's not only a matter of measuring the size of the Third Sector, but to see if it has been effective in reducing poverty, in favoring social equity, and in creating citizenship in our societies. We must begin to be critical even about the object we have helped to illuminate, given that this is the only way to see it growing. Regarding this, in 1996, when for the first time Third Sector research in Latin America was analyzed, Catalina Smulovitz assessed the production of knowledge in this field as "a corpus of research in search of a theory." If we do not approach this object with a critical view, this comment, perhaps, will still hold true.¹

List of selected lectures

Plenary Session
Different approaches in the Third Sector study: The European, North American and Latin American perspectives

• Virginia Hodgkinson, President, ISTR - Georgetown University (USA)
• Roger Spear, Open University Milton Keynes (UK) - Researching the social economy in Europe
• Andrés Thompson, Latin America and Caribbean Program Director, W.K. Kellogg Foundation (Argentina)

Panel Session
International Comparative Project on the Non-Profits Sector coordinated by Johns Hopkins University

• Felipe Portocarrero, Universidad del Pacifico (Perú)
• Gustavo Verduzco, Colegio de México (México)
• Rodrigo Villar, Harvard University - EEUU (Colombia)
• Leilah Landim, Universidad Federal de Río de Janeiro (Brazil)
• Mario M. Roitter, Centro de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad (Argentina)

Lectures

• Cynthia Sanborn, Harvard University - USA (Perú), Volunteers and Citizens in Peru: Reflections on two surveys
• Anabel Cruz - Analía Bettoni - Graciela Vázquez, Instituto de Comunicación y Desarrollo (Uruguay), Volunteer work in Uruguay: profiles, impact and challenges
• Adriana Fassio, Centro de Estudios Organizacionales Facultad de Ciencias Económicas (Argentina), Solidarity networks between peers. A social inclusion alternative for the elderly?
• Cecilia Juárez, Universidad Católica Argentina (Argentina), Volunteer work in the firms: what do employees know and think about it?
• Vivian Smith, Instituto Ethos - Adele Queiroz, CETS - Fundaçõo Getúlio Vargas (Brazil), Business Social Responsibility Indicators: How can the Third sector contribute to improve business social performance?
• Rita De Cassia Guedes, Mastercard (Brazil), Social responsibility and Business Citizenship: strategic concepts for companies in face of globalization
• Soledad Teixido, Andrea Castro, Reinalina Chavarri, Fundación PROhumana (Chile), Business Social Responsibility in Chile: Innovation and challenges
• Carola Conde, El Colegio Mexiquense (México), Cooperation, competition and conflict relationships between microfinancial OSCs and the Mexican state>
• Romina Miorelli, London School - UK (Argentina), Civil society and democracy: between argument and collaboration
• Rodrigo Junqueira, Universidade de Sõo Paulo (Brazil), The Social building of trust in Family Agriculture: Participation, Assistance Credits and Sustainable Local Development. The case of the Cresol Credit Cooperatives System with Solidarity Interaction
• Kemly Camacho, Fundación Acceso (Costa Rica), Internet, a big challenge for Central American civil society organizations
• Roberto Senderowitsch - Sandra Cesilini, World Bank (Argentina), The assistance strategy from the World Bank to Argentina: How to prevent a "representative chaos"
• Daniel Gropper, ECLAC (Argentina), The Religion Sector in Argentina: its importance as employer and economic activity generator
• Marietta Bucheli, Institución Université de Sherbrooke y Pontificia Universidad Javeriana - Canada (Colombia), Local development and cooperativism: The case of the experience of the Social Pastoral Secretariat of the Diócesis de Socorro y San Gil, Department of Santander, Colombia
• Pablo Guerra, Universidad Católica del Uruguay (Uruguay), Catholic Church and the Third sector in Uruguay: Steps for a historical-sociological understanding of its social action
• Felipe Viveros, Independent researcher (Chile), Agenda and legal perspectives of Private Foundations in Chile
• Luis Catalán, Consultant (Chile), Cultural grants Law in Chile: history, facts and profile of an unsolved issue between the Society, Third Sector and the State
• Elisabete Ferrarezi, Conselho da Comunidade Solidária (Brazil), New Legal Framework for the Third Sector in Brazil
• Sandra Rapetti, Universidad de la República (Uruguay), First Descriptive study on Cultural Organizations in Montevideo. Their management, funding, institutional relationships, services and problems
• Pricila Sosa, Universidad La Salle Cancún (México), Civil society organization in the Mexican Caribbean: a distinct history
• Armando Millán Falconi - Felipe Portocarrero, Research Center, Universidad del Pacífico (Perú), The third sector and social responsibility in Latin American universities: an inventory of activities and publications
• Vanessa Paternostro Melo - Renata Rossi - Tania Fischer - Paula Schommer, Núcleo de Estudos sobre Poder e Organizações Locais (Brazil), Inter-organizations and institutions from Bahia: building partnerships between the state and civil society
• Marcelo Camerlo, CEDES (Argentina), Notes on a Silent Dimension: the political materiality of the Third Sector relationships
• Felix Bombarolo, Organización Poleas (Argentina), Myths, and misery and epic poems of social organizations ...cultural construction and social conflict do not know about sectors...
• María Angela Aguilar - Raúl Javier Yudi - Marta Ves Losada, Facultad de Humanidades Universidad de Salta (Argentina), Solidarity or Efficiency? Notes on issues related to the role of the third sector in Social policies
• Hugo Ferullo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán y Universidad del Norte Santo Tomás de Aquino (Argentina), Challenges of the third sector for economic thinking
• Candelaria Garay, CEDES (Argentina), Effect of NGOs on public policies: the case of VIH/AIDS treatment and prevention and children rights organizations
• Graciela Biagini, FCS-UBA - Departamento Ciencias Sociales, UNLU (Argentina), Non-governmental public space and health: talking about self-identity
• Cristina Penso, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (México), Development with participation. Collaboration between civil organizations and governments
• Cecilia Schneider, Universitat Pompeu Fabra - España (Argentina), Associative participation in the local agenda: diagnosis and perspectives
• Jorge Vergara Estévez, Universidad Bolivariana y Universidad de Chile (Chile), The Chilean State and the Third Sector

Plenary Session
New modes of knowledge production and dissemination. Issues for a future research agenda

• Olga Lucía Toro, ISTR consultant (Colombia)
• Sergio Goes, Rede de Informações para o Terceiro Setor (Brazil)
• Beatriz Balian de Tagtachian, UCA (Argentina)
• Inés González Bombal, CEDES - UNGS (Argentina)

Inés González Bombal is professor of Sociology at the National University of Gral Sarmiento and Researcher of the National Council of Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET). She is Program Director at the Civil Society Department of the Center for the Studies of State and Society (CEDES), and member of the Academic Committee of the Graduate Degree in Nonprofit Organizations (CEDES-UDESA-UTDT).