Community development from the bottom up
We use the term “grassroots development” to describe the process by which disadvantaged people organize themselves to improve the social, cultural and economic well-being of their families, communities and societies. This concept is based on the premise that the key to sustainable democracies, equitable societies and prosperous economies is a people-oriented strategy that stresses participation, organizational development and networking.
As funders of sustainable development, we offer small investments directly to civil society organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Because many of these groups are at the beginning stages of their growth, we also facilitate opportunities for building capacity and organizational strength.
Additionally, our approach to foreign assistance is distinct among U.S. Government agencies. Having worked with more than 5,000 community partners across the region, our credibility and contacts among civil society groups are a valuable resource for the U.S. and other development organizations.
Multiplying our impact
We multiply impact with peer-to-peer learning, grantee exchanges, networks, capacity building and community asset mobilization.
Flexible, effective U.S. foreign assistance
Our distinct model of foreign assistance incentivizes community ownership and leadership of development solutions, implementation and sustainability in important ways.
Talk about community-led development!
Recent News and Stories
New partnership aims to benefit Latin American and Caribbean farmers
The IAF, Fairtrade International, and the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Fair Trade Small Producers and Workers (CLAC) are partnering to boost income and food security for small-scale farmers in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The IAF in the Making
In a Guatemala City hotel in late 1968, Marian Czarnecki and Robert Culbertson talked late into the night about creating a new, independent agency for social and civic development in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Meet Juan García Salazar, the Man Who Championed Black Identity in Ecuador
Behind the very first artifact to enter the African American History Museum’s collections resides a story about recovering the Afro-Ecuadorian experience.