Latin American Companies Actively Seek to Deepen Social Impact

Achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a common agenda for the public, private, and social sectors in Latin America, and while partnership is recognized as a critical component toward this end, there has been no obvious pathway for cross-sector engagement and collaboration. Nevertheless, the will to take the necessary steps exists, and companies in the region are expressing interest in engaging with nonprofits and governments for social progress. PYXERA Global, in collaboration with the members of the Global Pro Bono Network, is promoting Global Pro Bono as a gateway to purposeful engagement. In late March, the two organizations teamed up to host the first Global Pro Bono Network Summit for Latin America in Mexico City.

Over the last 10 years, PYXERA Global has worked with US and European-based companies to implement over 100 global, regional, and local pro bono projects in 12 Latin American countries. These programs invite corporate employees to leverage their professional skills to assist social mission-driven host clients such as nonprofits, social enterprises, and government entities. In other words, corporate employee work as skilled volunteers, or pro bono consultants, for short-term engagements to support social causes important to the company they represent.

The pioneering work in Global Pro Bono (GPB) from companies like SAP, IBM, and 3M laid the foundation for new ways to partner, however GPB is still a nascent practice brimming with potential. Engaging companies with strong regional ties will support the paradigm shift from traditional volunteering, philanthropy, and development to a broader, skills-based approach benefiting not only the community, but also the corporate employees and the business—or, as the goal is commonly referred, the triple impact.

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