november 12, 2024

FORGE Announces Democracy at Work Fund Grantees and Welcomes Funders to Join the Initiative


Funders Organized for Rights in the Global Economy (FORGE) are pleased to announce the first round of grantees have been selected for the Democracy at Work Fund (DAWF), coordinated by Fundación Avina. The DAWF is a collaborative fund to support workers’ organizations leading efforts at the intersection of labor rights, democracy, and a just energy transition, and is the first multi-donor pooled fund supporting workers’ organizations in the Global South.

Nineteen organizations from 11 countries were selected to receive awards up to $100,000 to support worker-led initiatives. The selected projects focus on diverse impacted groups, ranging from informal workers, domestic workers, and rural laborers to professionals in specialized sectors like journalism and health care. These projects focus on issues like unionization, digital inclusion, climate action, and safety - working to empower and amplify the collective voice of marginalized groups across diverse countries and contexts. 

These initiatives span diverse contexts, such as supporting migrant content moderators in Kenya, protecting banana workers in Ecuador, promoting the rights of sanitation workers in Bangladesh, and strengthening trade unions' voice in Brazil's climate discussions. Additional projects focus on improving the conditions of waste pickers and domestic workers in South Africa, as well as advocating for the rights and safety of migrant fishers in Indonesia. Together, these efforts advance FORGE’s mission to build up worker resilience and lay a strong foundation for long-term impact.

Congratulations to the inaugural recipients of the Democracy at Work Fund, including:

  • African Content Moderators Union - Kenya

  • South African Waste Pickers Association - South Africa

  • Uganda Nurses & Midwives Union - Uganda

  • Union of Informal Workers Associations - Ghana

  • Forum Silaturahmi Pelaut Indonesia - Indonesia

  • Parittran - Bangladesh

  • Sembada Bersama Indonesia - Indonesia

  • The New Factory Coop - Indonesia

  • ASTAC - Asociación Sindical de Trabajadores Agrícolas Bananeros y Campesinos - Ecuador

  • Astradomes - Costa Rica

  • Confederação Nacional de Trabalhadores Assalariados Rurais – CONTAR - Brazil

  • Cooperativa de Trabajo "Ladran Sancho" - Argentina

  • CUT Brazil/ITUC Just Transition Centre - Brazil

  • Federación Internacional de Periodistas (FIP) - Argentina

  • Frente Sindical de Acción Climática - Argentina

  • Fundación Urdir - Argentina

  • IZWI Domestic Workers Alliance - South Africa

  • Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) - South Africa

For details on the projects to be conducted under the fund, please visit: https://democracyatworkfund.org/ 

The Democracy at Work Fund, a FORGE initiative, is co-funded by the Ford Foundation, Humanity United, Laudes Foundation, and Porticus, and includes seed funding contributed from Open Society Foundations. FORGE extends its gratitude to Fundación Avina for their dedicated co-design and coordination of the DAWF's inaugural round. We invite new funders to join us in supporting future rounds of this impactful collaborative fund.


About FORGE: 

FORGE is a collaborative of philanthropic donors working to advance a global economy that works for all. By pooling expertise and resources, we enable community and worker-led movements to catalyze change at the intersections of the world’s most pressing issues. 

We work to support reforms that are grounded in the rights and power of communities and workers, strengthen accountability and address underlying flaws in the financial system. 

CONTACT
Elias Hakim, FORGE Program Associate
elias@forgefunders.org