Lebanon, once again, finds itself in a place it knows too well.
But worse.
Another moment that demands response.
Another wave of mobilization.
Another call for support.
And alongside it, something we don’t speak about enough: fatigue.
Not only (but especially) for those living through it,
but also for those who have stood by Lebanon, again and again, over the years.
So before anything else: Thank you!
To those in the diaspora who continue to show up, even from afar.
To those who have chosen to support local efforts, not once, but repeatedly.
We see it.
And it matters more than we can articulate.
We also understand the weight of repeated calls.
The hesitation that comes with yet another crisis.
And still, this moment invites a different question:
What would it mean to support not only the response, but the continuity and resilience that carry communities through and beyond it?
The reality we’re navigating
There is a pattern many local organizations know too well, in Lebanon and across the Global South.
It reflects a broader global funding dynamic. One that is too complex to unpack fully here, but too important not to acknowledge.
As Kevin L. Brown recently highlighted, 95% of philanthropic foundations are still based in North America and Europe, while local NGOs receive only 0.4% of international humanitarian assistance. It’s a striking reminder that while crises evolve, the structures around funding often remain the same.
Funding arrives when crises peak.
It is structured around urgency.
Often restricted, short-term, and tied to predefined outputs.
And then, as attention shifts, so does support.
What remains are local organizations.
Still present. Still accountable.
Still navigating the long-term consequences of short-term funding.
This is not about intent.
It is about a system that was never designed to prioritize continuity at the local level.
And yet, continuity is exactly what contexts like Lebanon require.
Local organizations are often described as “grassroots.”
But in reality, we are not implementing for communities.
We are part of them.
And yet, those closest to the ground are often the furthest from flexible funding.
By the time resources reach local actors, they are reduced, pre-allocated, and bound by frameworks that do not always reflect lived realities.
Leaving little room for what is actually needed: adaptability, responsiveness, and long-term investment.
Where nafda stands
At nafda, we navigate this tension every day.
Because while emergencies demand response, responding alone is not enough.
Communities do not only need support in moments of crisis.
They need the ability to shape what comes after.
This is why our work remains focused on something simple, but powerful: schools.
Not only as places of learning, but as anchors of stability, continuity, and community life.
Through this work, we invest in:
principals and educators as local leaders who can guide their schools through uncertainty
students as active participants who engage, question, and contribute
schools as shared spaces where trust, dialogue, and responsibility can still exist
Even in moments like this.
Especially in moments like this.
Because what we are building is not designed for a moment.
It is designed to last beyond it.
What your support enables
When you support nafda, you are not only funding activities.
You are enabling:
continuity, even when funding cycles fluctuate
flexibility, so responses reflect real and evolving needs
investment in people, not just short-term outputs
Yes, accountability matters.
But what matters just as much is where the impact lives.
In our case, it lives within communities.
In strengthened leadership.
In agency.
In systems that continue long after the funding cycle ends.
To be clear:
We are not trying to resolve the global funding dynamic in this message.
But we are naming it, because it shapes what is possible.
We also recognize that many organizations are responding in different ways, each within their mandate, each playing a necessary role in this moment.
What we are choosing to focus on is this:
In a context like Lebanon, it is not only how we respond today that matters.
It is what we are able to sustain tomorrow.
To those who continue to stand by local efforts, consistently and over time:
Thank you. Again, and again.
Your support makes this work possible.
Not only in moments of urgency,
but in everything that comes after.