Take two communities from different continents - one rich, one poor. Invite them to be partners for the next five years to work together for their mutual benefit. And see what happens.

**Take two communities from different continents - one rich, one poor.  Invite them to be partners for the next five years to work together for their mutual benefit.  And see what happens.**
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That is quite simply what the World Connectory Project is all about.

Except that it is also about inviting all the richest and poorest communities in the world to pair up and be partners with each other over the same period. And then to repeat the process again and again but with new partner communities.

In this way, the World Connectory Project has the potential to make a real impact on the problems of poverty across the world. Vast sums are now being spent on top-down international aid, much of which never makes it down to those who need it most, and many worthwhile grassroots projects are reliant upon inadequate and uncoordinated funding. Both top-down and grassroots funding are vitally important if poverty is to be “made history“, but something more is needed, and something, moreover, that doesn’t mean gathering support for new anti-poverty ventures only at the expense of existing ones.

For the World Connectory Project really to succeed, it is essential that everyone continues to support their existing projects exactly as they did before. When this already involves supporting partnerships or twinning arrangements between “have” and “have not” communities, it is vital that the established projects be driven forward with even greater commitment. If that means that those involved have little or no time left to devote to the development of the WCP’s new partnerships in their area, that’s fine. In such cases, the World Connectory Project will primarily be for others in these areas to develop. And since there are approximately half a million people in every partnership, there will be many in each area from whom the WCP can hope to draw recruits, including not just those keen to devote much time to this cause, but those also with an occasional, periodic or smaller contribution to make.

If you think that you yourself may be among this group (italicised above) of potential recruits to the World Connectory Project, this manual is for you. Your response to its message will be crucial to the project’s success; not only by taking the lead in publicising this cause or in starting new initiatives in you own local area, but also by lending your support and making whatever contributions you can.

Participating countries

• List A countries (the poorest 20% of the world’s countries)
• List B countries (the richest 20% of the world’s countries)

Partner area allocation process (explanation of how and why a RNG will be used; trustworthy verification procedures)

Milestone dates

• partner area allocation process commencement date
• partner area allocation process announcement date(s)
• partnership start & finish dates (commencing with 2009/10-2015)

Non-profits list (Central role of NPOs in channelling resources)

• country by country: which NPOs are working where
• WWC area by area listing of NPOs working there

Models of excellence

• organisations
• individuals
• long-term/permanent partnerships

Permanent partners (WWC partnerships are time-limited - but there’s nothing to stop what may start out as a WWC partnership subsequently becoming permanent, but this will be outside the WWC framework)

The Worldwide Connectory is not to be seen as a central organisation with braches all over the world, but as a governing body that sets standards for participation by independent local bodies

Units of Local organisation

(even in city areas, a WWC area that covers a population of half a million people, will be comprised of many localities or districts as well as many distinct communities. To coordinate activities across each WWC area, there will a need to develop internal communication systems at an area, district and community level)

• Connection Areas/Partnerships
• Community Connection Groups
• Community Partners

Suggested programme for 5 year partnerships

(while local areas will ultimately be free to devise for themselves whatever programme of events they wish, a set of guideline activities will be circulated to all partnership areas for their consideration.)

• Year 1: mobilisation & recruitment/publicity events
• Year 2: shared exhibitions & exchanges
• Year 3: expansion of partnership projects
• Year 4: partnership festival - focus on strategies for project sustainability
• Year 5: transition strategies

Step-by-step suggestions for getting started

(a range of situations will be discussed in which readers of the Manual may feel they may wish to respond.)

• acting correspondents
• individuals
• friends & families
• community organisations
• faith groups
• occupational groups

A fivefold approach to getting started for List B partner areas

1. Support the international development aid organisations you already support, but focus particularly on the work they are doing in your partner area

• find out from each of "your usual NPOs" if they can specify precisely how any money you raise for them will be spent within your partner area
• do a sponsored event to raise money for one (or more) of these organisations (use the event to publicise the WWC partnership and recruit new WCP participants)
• get family and friends to share your enthusiasm (i.e. for the WCP and promoting your WWC partner area) by telling them about the work your chosen NPOs are already doing there
• see if family and friends will agree to do sponsored events themselves
• plan an awareness and recruitment event in your community highlighting the work of these NPOs in the partner area
• seek the support of the community organisations to which you belong in promoting the awareness event: see if one might offer a venue, form an event committee, invite other organisations to attend etc
• alternatively, arrange a public meeting yourself: start by sending an invitation to as many community organisations as possible to send representatives to a meeting to plan this
• see if one of the organisations working in your partner area will provide a speaker or publicity material for your WCP recruitment & awareness event
• find out what further plans each of your "usual NPOs" has for development work within your partner area and whether their plans might be extended if they got greater than expected public support

2. Contact people and organisations in your partner area to help identify CBOs worth supporting

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• If you belong to any worldwide organisations (e.g. Rotary, Scouts, YWCA, faith groups etc) that may have "branches" in your partner area, consider contacting them directly or via their national structure. This can be done simply to elicit information or part of a proposed twinning arrangement between the branches/chapters/centres/congregations in the two partner areas
• If there are international students or local residents with family members living in or near your partner area, consider approaching them about how best to make useful contacts there.
• Use the internet or members of the international community to find out how to contact the local media in your partner area. Send messages to explain what you are trying to do and ask for help in contacting CBOs in your Partner area that need support.
• Use the local media in your own List B area to publicise your aim of supporting projects in your partner area and to recruit others to your cause.

3. Look through the list of organisations listed as active in the country in which your partner area is situated. Identify those currently engaged on projects within your partner area. Find ways to support their work.

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• find others to work with you on this (since initially this could involve contacting a large number of different organisations)
• if you are more interested in focusing on one particular area of development (e.g. education rather than agriculture or water supply) pass on any information that might be of greater interest to others. (Each WWC connection area will need to develop its own local structures, but initially at least information of this kind might be passed to the WWC area’s Acting Correspondent)
• where the information is about your own area(s) of concern

4. Join a local team of people interested in researching specific development issues in the List A partner area

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• if you belong to an organisation with a special interest in one particular aspect of development aid (e.g. an educational establishment and literacy; a medical facility and health, a young farmers club and agriculture) you could start a WWC research group centred on that organisation
• run awareness events to highlight projects trying to tackle the issue
• try to develop possible exchanges with your partner area

5. Help develop a totally new project

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• this may be the only option in the absence of any suitable alternative projects in your partner area
• this could be a major undertaking involving many more options or steps in getting started than have been offered for the other four approaches. Exactly what you need to do should be should be governed by the nature of your project itself, rather than by suggestions in this manual
• you are unlikely to complete a totally new project within the five-year span of the WWC cycle, so may need to plan instead to establish a firm foundation on which others may continue to build. Although your own WWC connection area will be allocated a new partner area at the end of the 5 year period, those of you who have got involved in this new project are likely to want to continue with it. Hopefully you will recruit new supporters from your (now) former List A partner area's new List B partner area