REGIONAL NGOS IN RUSSIA: Charitable Foundations, Social Service, and Policy-Advocacy Organizations Linda J. Cook Brown University Elena Vinogradova State University-Higher School of Economics – Moscow The National Council for Eurasian and East European Research 910 17th Street, N.W. Suite 300 Washington, D.C. 20006 TITLE VIII PROGRAMii Project Information* Principal Investigator: Linda Cook Council Contract Number: 819-10 Date: March 16, 2006 Copyright Information Scholars retain the copyright on works they submit to NCEEER. However, NCEEER possesses the right to duplicate and disseminate such products, in written and electronic form, as follows: (a) for its internal use; (b) to the U.S. Government for its internal use or for dissemination to officials of foreign governments; and (c) for dissemination in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act or other law or policy of the U.S. government that grants the public access to documents held by the U.S. government. Additionally, NCEEER has a royalty-free license to distribute and disseminate papers submitted under the terms of its agreements to the general public, in furtherance of academic research, scholarship, and the advancement of general knowledge, on a non-profit basis. All papers distributed or disseminated shall bear notice of copyright. Neither NCEEER, nor the U.S. Government, nor any recipient of a Contract product may use it for commercial sale. * The work leading to this report was supported in part by contract or grant funds provided by the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research, funds which were made available by the U.S. Department of State under Title VIII (The Soviet-East European Research and Training Act of 1983, as amended). The analysis and interpretations contained herein are those of the author.iii Executive Summary The Working Paper reports mainly on two groups of NGOs: Charitable Foundations and Social Service NGO’s; and Policy-Advocacy Organizations. It draws on more than seventy interviews with NGO and political leaders in Tula and Samara Regions and the Chuvash Republic during 2004 to assess the contribution of these NGOs to the development of civil society and formulation of social policy. We find that in all three regions, NGOs have developed domestic sources of financing, mainly from business, and improved personnel. Institutional infrastructure for access to state executive and legislative authorities (i.e., round tables, councils, etc.) have been built. They provide for some participation of NGOs in social policy, but not (yet) a systematic or effective role in policy formulation. Rights-Defense Organizations and Resource Centers show the strongest potential for establishing civil society and governmental accountability. The NGO community should build on current achievements, though new restrictive legislation complicates this task.1 Introduction The present report continues the analysis of research materials collected for the project “Formulation of Social Policy in Russia’s Regions: Is There Evidence of Civil Society’s Participation?” It looks at two main groups of NGOs: Social Service, Charitable, and Ecological/Cultural Preservation NGOs; and Policy-Advocacy Organizations.1 The focus of the research is on the behavior of these organizations in the sphere of social policy: their projects and programs, political priorities, and role in the formulation of social policy. The report covers NGOs’ relations with legislative and executive authorities, political parties and trade unions, as well as other civil society organizations. It also discusses social sector NGOs’ functions, financing, structure and personnel. Our assessment draws on more than 70 interviews with NGO, trade union, political party, and governmental leaders, carried out in Tula and Samara Regions and the Chuvash Republic during 2004. (Interviews are listed in the appendix.) The main goal of the project is to analyze the behavior of Russian NGOs in terms of their contribution to the building of civil society, and their influence on social policy. NGOs are classified according to their basic function. The first main group, Social Service, Charitable, and Ecological/Cultural Preservation NGOs, which we designate as Grass Roots 2, engage in activities that are related to the social needs of defined groups of people or the resolution of specific social problems. Surveyed social service and charitable organizations include those that work with the elderly, orphans, children from poor families, people affected by AIDS, substance abuse, and domestic violence. Ecological/cultural organizations seek to preserve the environment or Russia’s historical-cultural heritage. The second main group, Policy-Advocacy NGOs, are concerned with defense of legal and political rights, and 1 The first report to the National Council, “NGOs, Civil Society, and Social Policy in Russia’s Regions,” discussed findings about self-help and self-organized NGOs, those with activities that are directly related to the problems and needs of their members. (designated Grass Roots I).2 development of the third (i.e., non-governmental) sector. We divide them into organizations that are mainly committed to protecting basic rights, including human and social rights, election monitoring, etc; and “Infrastructural” NGOs, including resource centers for other NGOs, groups defending the legal rights of civil society, and organizations for civic initiative. (see Table 1) Grass Roots 2 NGOs vary in their relation to politics, from those that consciously refuse to participate, to those whose leaders use the NGO primarily as a path or stepping-stone to political office. Policy-Advocacy NGOs are generally oriented toward participating in the legislative process, and developing civil society itself. Grass-Roots 2 NGOs NGOs providing charity and social services were surveyed at all three research sites. Interviews showed that Charitable Funds and Social Service NGOs often represent corporate philanthropy. They are organized by businesspeople or boards of businesses, industrialists, political or religious leaders, with activities reflecting the particular goals or priorities of these leaders. Sponsorship of the NGO is often associated with an individual (‘under a concrete name’) or small group of leaders, local notables who focus on particular