IR Global Founder, Tom Wheeler, was our latest guest on our podcast, hosted by Jennifer Riggins. He discusses the early days of IR Global and the desire to make a difference, not only in the business space but within the world around it, which ultimately formed the blueprints of the Sinchi Foundation.
What is the Sinchi Foundation?
The Sinchi Foundation is an NGO, launched in early 2016 and focused on preservation of the environment, specifically working with indigenous communities. It has run projects all over the world supporting indigenous people with on-the-ground actions to defend their territories.
Indigenous people protect over 80% of the world’s biodiversity despite making up only 5% of the world’s population, making them the obvious people to work with to protect our environment. Despite this, just 0.15% of money to tackle the climate crisis goes to indigenous communities. The Sinchi Foundation ensures that these communities get the support that both they, and the planet deserves.
What does ‘Sinchi’ mean?
Sinchi is a word that means courage, but not physical courage; it means to stand up against injustice and for what you believe in.
What does the Sinchi Foundation do?
Sinchi is a platform to redirect environmental funds to the gatekeepers of vital ecosystems. They partner with indigenous communities where the biggest challenges arise and the biggest impact is possible.
One such example is helping communities with their land rights via an ‘access to social justice strategy’. From enabling the demarcation of their land and getting it legally recognised to providing technology to allow them to petrol and protect their territories, the Sinchi Foundation is able to prove and prevent illegal actions (such as deforestation) which harm the planet.
The new ‘Treesistance’ platform
Treesistance is a movement and an impact blueprint centered on the protection of the Amazon and other forests around the world, creating disruptive models with a tangible impact. It is a platform which accumulates all the work of the foundation over the last seven years, acting as an indigenous led ‘public face’ of the combined activities of the Sinchi Foundation and another organisation in the Netherlands. Launching this summer, it aims to revolutionize how the world looks at forest crime prevention and handles environmental preservation.
How does IR Global help?
There are a number of ways that the IR Global Network can and does contribute to the Sinchi foundation.
Each year, the network donates a large sum towards the upkeep of the charity. This covers all administration costs, so that any external funds raised go directly to those who need it, making the maximum impact.
Members of the network can also contribute directly. We run a ‘1 billable hour’ program whereby members donate the equivalent cost to one hour of their time that they would charge a client. This has funded the building of a new secure HQ for the indigenous council of a region in the Amazon which rivals the size of France!
There is also the opportunity for individual members to directly sponsor the formation of new forest guardian groups, as well as a co-sponsorship model for the upkeep of various guardian units.
Even if you’re not an IR Global member, there are ways you can get involved. All you have to do is get in touch!
For more information, listen to the full podcast ‘Getting to know IR Global and the Sinchi Foundation’ here
To learn more about the Sinchi Foundation, go to www.sinchi-foundation.com
