The Samdhana Institute is a group of activists and practitioners focused on supporting indigenous peoples and local communities in Southeastern Asia on social and environmental issues, including land rights and governance of natural resources. The Institute has locations in the Philippines and Indonesia. ¹

Background

Samdhana was formed in 2003 by a group of conservationists and development experts known as the Samdhana Fellows. ² It is a duly organized, registered, and accredited nonstock, nonprofit organization operating in Southeast Asia with offices in the Republic of the Philippines and the Republic of Indonesia. ³

As of February 2023, the institute had 51 full-time staff members. ⁴ As of 2019, there were 60 fellows at the institute. The fellows are individuals with years of experience as environmental and social advocates that bring skills, knowledge, and experience to the organization. ⁵

The group focuses on providing support to indigenous peoples and local communities in Southeast Asia for natural resources research and utilization strategies, conflict resolution on land rights, advocating for community-based property rights and governance, and training local indigenous and community groups in the management of natural resources to create a sustainable environment. ⁶

Programs and Memberships

The small grants program provides grants to local communities and indigenous peoples who may have difficulty obtaining funding to combat climate change and promote local environment efforts.  Donor partners for the program are Global Greengrants Fund and environmental advocacy organization Both ENDS. ⁷

The capacity development program supports the development of leaders and activists in the indigenous and local communities. A key project within this program is the Women Environmental Defenders (WE-Defend) which is focused on supporting women’s leadership and advocacy for environmental issues. ⁸

The policy support program assesses policy gaps associated with land rights of the indigenous peoples and local communities and provides policy support and advocacy to support their rights in the region. ⁹

Samdhana Institute is a member of the grassroots justice group Legal Empowerment Network, a group of international advocacy organizations hosted by left-of-center legal advocacy group Namati. ¹⁰ The Legal Empowerment Network was originally created in September 2021 with funding from the Fund for Global Human Rights, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and MacKenzie Scott (Bezos). ¹¹

Samdhana Institute is a member of the Rights and Resources Initiative, ¹² a coalition of over 150 organizations advocating for land, forest, and resource rights for indigenous peoples, local communities, and women. ¹³ Rights and Resources is funded by several left-of-center organizations including Environmental Law Institute, Ford Foundation, Growald Climate Fund, Resources Legacy Fund, and Schwab Charitable Fund. ¹⁴

Financials

Samdhana Institute 2020 tax year financial statements reported in the Philippines indicate $612,795 in revenues and $622,072 in expenses (converted from Philippine pesos to U.S. dollars). ¹⁵

Samdhana Institute 2020 financial statements reported in Indonesia indicate $2,369,990 in revenues and $2,341,755 in expenses (converted from Indonesian rupiah to U.S. dollars). ¹⁶

Donors

The Samdhana Institute was one of 465 funding recipients from left-wing billionaire MacKenzie Scott (Bezos) in 2021 and 2022. ¹⁷

The Institute’s 2021 Annual Report identifies grants from left-of-center Global Greengrants Fund, the World Bank, Tides Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and Rudolf Steiner Foundation (RSF Social Finance). ¹⁸

Leadership

Sumatra Afiff is the chairman of the board of trustees. Afiff is a director of KARSA Institute, which works with community leaders, non-government activists, and progressive individuals within the government and academics to promote activism and reform associated with land rights and governance. ¹⁹ Afiff is a senior lecturer at the Department of Anthropology, University of Indonesia. ²⁰

Cristi Nozawa is executive director. She is a director at conservation organization Birdlife International and a senior advisory board member of the Foundation for the Philippine Environment, ²¹ a grantmaking organization focused on conservation and sustainable development. ²²

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3. “Caring for Natural, Cultural, and Spiritual Diversity…” Samdhana Institute Strategic Plan 2019 – 2028. Accessed February 10, 2023. https://www.samdhana.org/sites/default/files/publication/Samdhana%20Strategic_summary.pdf#:~:text=SAMDHANA%20INSTITUTE%20STRATEGIC%20PLAN%20%282019-2028%29%20Mission%20For%20communities,support%20for%20their%20own%20development%20and%20well-being.%20Vision
4. “Fellows.” The Samdhana Institute – About Us. Accessed February 10, 2023. https://www.samdhana.org/about-us/fellows
5. Caring for Natural, Cultural, and Spiritual Diversity… Samdhana Institute Strategic Plan 2019 – 2028. Accessed February 10, 2023.
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16. The Samdhana Institute Statement of Financial Position. December 31, 2020. Accessed February 9, 2023. Converted from Indonesian rupiah to United States dollars. https://www.samdhana.org/financial-statements/2020-indonesia-financial-statements
17. MacKenzie Scott. “Helping Any of Us Can Help Us All.” March 23, 2022. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://mackenzie-scott.medium.com/helping-any-of-us-can-help-us-all-f4c7487818d9
18. “Nurturing Connections for IPLC Rights and Resilience Annual Report 2021.” The Samdhana Institute – Annual Reports. Accessed February 10, 2023. https://www.samdhana.org/annual-report/annual-report-2021
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20. ^[1] LinkedIn – Sumatra Afiff. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraya-afiff-7a49299/?originalSubdomain=id
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22. “About PFE.” Foundation for the Philippine Environment. Accessed February 9, 2023. https://www.fpe.ph/about-fpe.html