The Power of Local
The Power of Local

Shift The Power

We founded WeRobotics to counter the foreign-first, top-down, and techno-centric approach that pervades the social good sector, from aid and development to health and the environment. As others have said before us, the goal of the social good sector must be to end need, not just meet need. This means, for example, that international organizations (including small ones like WeRobotics) must have a transition plan that is “centered around devolving power, money and voice to local organizations.” Here we share our progress on the transition plan we started the same day WeRobotics was founded. This plan is evidenced by the fact that we created two different identities from day 1: WeRobotics and Flying Labs. Flying Labs are independent knowledge hubs run by local experts. Our transition plan is to shift power from WeRobotics to Flying Labs.

This plan resonates with calls from leaders in the Global South: we exchange knowledge and connections with and between local experts across Flying Labs, helping them reinforce their capacity, credibility and visibility; driving new funding, technologies and leadership opportunities to local experts while actively crediting and building their human resources based on their priorities. We are actively ceding market share to local experts. Our impact metrics reflect these priorities. Together with country-level Flying Labs, we’re co-creating FlyingLabs.org as an independent legal entity to further expand direct South-to-South collaboration. The dot org will be an international organization deeply rooted in the Global South, headquartered in the South and led by experts from the South. The new entity will take over the coordination of the Flying Labs network from WeRobotics. As for WeRobotics, we will press forward by offering “Shift-the-Power as a Service” to international organizations, donors and companies that seek to become more effective by adopting a genuine local-first approach. In sum, we will enable the adoption at scale of the true, tried and tested Flying Labs Model to drive systems change across multiple sectors and emerging technologies. If we can decolonize ourselves, then others can too, along with entire sectors and industries. This is the systems change we seek, nothing less. Follow our progress below!

Read our blog posts on “Shift the Power”

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