Reimagining global giving through trust and partnership

Описание: As questions grew about whether traditional charity grant-giving truly served communities, Professor Nicola Banks realised she needed to get radical. What if funding models were built on trust? And what if communities shaped them from the start?

Rather than working alone, she turned to long-standing partners to listen and learn. Through collaboration, One World Together was born – a model that pools small, regular giving to redistribute power, not just money. Or as Bernard Sudlow of Aquarius Community Savers puts it: “Real impact begins when people have control over decisions that affect their lives.”

Part of Research impact, shaped together, this story shows what can happen when researchers and communities design solutions side by side from the beginning.

Communities in the UK and Kenya are already benefiting from funds, as ideas are tested, refined and strengthened through shared decision-making. As Professor Nicola Banks reflects: but there’s a real buzz of excitement across the whole team. “I feel in some ways like this is why I was an academic in the first place.”

This film is part of Research impact, shaped together – a collection exploring how impact emerges through collaboration, shared purpose and trust.

Discover more stories: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/shaped-t...

Explore the full case study at: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/research...

One World Together: https://oneworldtogether.org.uk/

Discover more about our social responsibility work: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/about/so...

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Get in touch with the Research Impact Team by emailing [email protected].