International Relations
Development Department
The Jordan River Foundation initiated an international registration process, and
to date, JRF is officially registered in the United States as a 501(c)3 entity,
in France, and in May 2006, JRF launched its presence in the United Kingdom. Due
to expanding international presence and partnerships, it was proposed to
establish a department that focused solely on promoting the development of JRF's
international entities. Therefore, International Relations Development (IRD) was
established to cultivate channels of cooperation that lead to enhanced JRF
program implementation through exchange of experiences, education and knowledge
transfer, and funding acquisition.
It was envisioned that international registration would establish a network of
supporters for JRF, and encourage donors and supporters to contribute to and
collaborate with a locally registered and credible organization that complies
with laws and regulations of the specific country, while allowing supporters
access to incentives afforded by law. All three international entities have had
an impact in countries of registration – whether through high visibility events
or establishing program-based partnerships.
IRD Themes
Knowledge Transfer
JRF partnerships with international entities will foster an “exchange of
experiences” methodology related to JRF’s development models for social and
economic initiatives in addition to collaboration on regional and international
levels.
Advocacy
Organizations are becoming increasingly aware of the vital role they play in
educating the general public and influencing decision makers in an effort to
affect social and economic reform. JRF has been a “catalyst for change” through
its policies and programs, and will continue to champion pressing issues for
social and economic change in concert with local and international partners.
Education
A fundamental initiative that JRF will be championing is the establishment of
educational links between childcare and family professionals in Jordan and
international entities. Additionally, JRF has made great progress in economic
development models, and endeavors to promote this exchange of expertise and
information related to community empowerment initiatives.
JRF Product Marketing and Promotion
The quality of JRF’s products and designs provides an excellent opportunity to
develop new marketing and export channels for its products internationally,
which translates into increased employment opportunities and income for
Jordanian women living in rural communities. Therefore, JRF envisions
identifying venues and partners to promote its high-quality home accessories and
handicrafts internationally.
Fundraising (events and program-based activities)
JRF foresees organizing fundraising activities and acquiring sponsorships in
collaboration with international partners to generate funding for program
implementation. Moreover, JRF will cultivate program-based partnerships with
foundations, organizations and corporations in the United Kingdom, United States
and France.
International Activities
France
In France, JRF has organized two major fundraising events. In Versailles in
2002, JRF in collaboration with the Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
in Paris raised funds for the construction of the Queen Rania Family and Child
Center.
In April 2007, JRF assisted the Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in
Paris and UNESCO to organize the "Night of Jordanian Treasures," a dance and
musical event showcasing Jordan's culture through traditional and contemporary
dance and musical performances. During the evening, JRF and UNESCO signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) related to implementation of social and
economic initiatives in Jordan.
Moreover, JRF supported the Embassy and UNESCO staff in organizing UNESCO's
fundraising dinner on behalf of JRF, which raised approximately 540,000€ for
JRF's Safe Schools Project.
Most recently, JRF forged a partnership with the Suez Foundation to implement a
25,000€ project for the Child Safety Program.
United Kingdom
After its official registration in August 2005, JRF assembled a 5-member Board
of Trustees to govern JRF activities in the UK. In December 2005, Her Majesty
Queen Rania Al Abdullah led the first JRF international board meeting via
conference call from Amman, allowing JRF UK to conduct its board meeting in the
presence of UK and Amman-based board members. In parallel, JRF exhibited and
sold its handicrafts and home accessories for two weeks at the renowned Harrods
department store.
JRF officially launched its presence in the UK in May 2006. During the dinner
that was slated as a launch, not a fundraiser, JRF raised funds for the Family
Support Line Project that is now housed at the Queen Rania Family and Child
Center. Apart from fundraising, JRF signed two MOUs during the dinner. The first
MOU was signed with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Children (NSPCC) related to child safety issues, which is being followed-up by
the Child Safety Program staff.
Additionally, an MOU was signed with the International Business Leaders Forum's
Youth Career Initiative, and a project to promote youth education opportunities
in the tourism sector is now being implemented through the Capacity Building and
Business Development Services Unit.
JRF also facilitated an MOU signing between two Jordanian universities (Al
Balq'aa Applied University and the Hashemite University) and two UK universities
(Brunel University and the University of Reading). This MOU will address the
lack of social work expertise in Jordan, and develop social work education and
training models suitable for Jordan and the Arab region at both Jordanian
universities.
United States of America
JRF is currently in the process of appointing board members to the US entity and
plans to conduct its first JRF USA board meeting in Fall 2007. In Amman, JRF has
worked diligently to establish partnerships with US-based entities such as
Citigroup, Save the Children, Mosaic Foundation and Mercy Corps, and endeavors
to build upon current partnerships and establish new relationships through its
presence in the USA.
Most recently, the IRD in coordination with the CBBDS Unit worked on drafting an
agreement between JRF and Vital Voices for the Fostering Future Leaders Project,
which led to receiving a grant for $110,000. The project is currently being
implemented by the CBBDS staff.
JRF Endowment Fund
Another achievement of IRD was the submission of a proposal to Jordan's Ministry
of Planning and International Cooperation in 2006 to acquire a 5-million
Jordanian Dinar (JDs) JRF Endowment Fund. At this time, there are negotiations
for JRF to receive 3 million JDs in 2007, and another 2 million JDs as local
currency funds are available for transfer to JRF. It is envisioned that the JRF
Endowment Fund will be utilized to propagate the interventions of the Jordan
River Foundation in line with its mission and vision, and in concert with
national initiatives within the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
JRF aspires to become a self-sustainable organization that has access to its own
sources of funding to facilitate the implementation of its programs and
projects. This does not infer that the Foundation will not continue establishing
partnerships with stakeholders in facilitating projects, but endowment funds
will allow the Foundation to contribute financial support to its projects rather
than continuously being a recipient of donor support.
Apart from having access to funds through the endowment to leverage project
implementation, these funds strengthen the position of the Foundation for the
long-term stability of the organization, and from a donor perspective, allows
for a long-term investment on grants or donations made for project
implementation. Some advantages foreseen in establishing an endowment fund for
JRF include:
-
Providing more resources to
perpetuate the organization’s mission
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Using its income to fund
core expenses that project-based funding may overlook
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Diversifying income and
reducing dependency on external funding sources
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Promoting long-term
strategic and financial planning
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Financial stability that
benefits the organization by strengthening the institution and its
stakeholders, allowing focus on long-term planning objectives rather than
short-term goals
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A catalyst for strategic and
institutional adaptive qualities that can assist in responding to
beneficiaries’ needs
International Board Members
United Kingdom
France
United States of America
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Ms. Nancy Aossey,
President and CEO, International Medical Corps (IMC)
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Mr. Alexander L.
Cappello, Chairman and CEO, Cappello Group
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Mr. Philip Condit
-
Ms. Beth E.
Dozoretz, Executive VP of Business Development, FHC Health Systems Value
Options
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Mr. Earl Glock,
Attorney, O’Connell & Glock, Secretary/Treasurer of JRF USA
-
Ms. Pat Mitchell,
President/CEO, Museums of Television and Radio and the International Media
Center
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