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Making Space to Breathe: Values, Identity and Accountability in a Faith-Based NGO

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Making Space to Breathe: Values, Identity and Accountability in a Faith-Based NGO Making space to breathe: Values, identity and accountability in a faith-based NGO Linda Kurti A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Public Health and Community Medicine University of New South Wales December 2005 1 Originality statement “I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked at UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project’s design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged.” Signed....................................................................................... i Abstract This project examines the impact on a Christian mission organisation of the decision to accept government funding and add an explicit international development focus to its work. During the 1980s the Anglican Board of Mission (ABM), the national mission agency of the Anglican Church of Australia, entered into a contractual relationship with the Australian Government which ultimately led to accreditation as a development agency and involvement with the Australian international development sector. This process has significantly influenced ABM both structurally and philosophically, bringing a creative tension within the organisation between two related but distinct approaches to Christian witness. A cooperative inquiry method was chosen with the aim of fostering organisational learning within ABM. The researcher became a participant in a team of five which conducted three cycles of inquiry over a year. This team of staff members and the researcher explored the influence of the growing relationship with government on their faith-based NGO and its implications within the context of Christian mission. Notions of intentionality, accountability and legitimacy within the relationships with their stakeholders emerged as significant foundations for the work of the organisation. The cycles of inquiry generated a body of co-created knowledge which, it is argued, have pointed the way to managing ABM’s dual roles. Its multiple accountabilities - to government, to its Anglican constituency, and to overseas church partners - are understood as offering a framework through which it can continually assess its organisational integrity and fidelity to its value base. Articulating intentionality of purpose and a clear theological understanding of mission and development were identified as crucial if ABM is to maintain its legitimacy as derived from the mandate of the Anglican Church to undertake Christian mission and development on its behalf. “Making space to breathe” became a metaphor to describe the task of the organisation in creating both a ii reflective space which opens possibilities for transformed praxis, and a liminal space between the two Programs of the organisation in which a unifying philosophical ground can be discovered. iii Acknowledgements This research would not have been possible without the cooperation of the staff of the Anglican Board of Mission. Their generosity and their hospitality were extraordinary. Special thanks are due to the Rev. Geoff Smith, the Rev. John Deane, Ms. Sophie Davies, and Ms. Carolyn Kitto for their participation, their feedback, and their friendship. Many people provided help and encouragement during my doctoral studies. Within the School of Public Health and Community Medicine, I particularly want to thank my supervisors Dr. Anna Whelan and Professor Anthony Zwi for their wisdom and encouragement. Ms. Lyn Kemp and Ms. Liz Harris provided useful advice regarding qualitative research. Ms. Gwyn Jones of the Learning Centre at the University of New South Wales provided inspiration at the beginning of my research. My thanks also go to my friends and fellow PhD students who were part of Gwyn’s seminar and with whom I shared the academic adventure, particularly Dr. Apo Demirkol, Ms. Husna Razee, Ms. Effat Merghati Khoei, and Dr. Chinthaka Balasooriya. Dr. Barbara Ulmer was a valued friend and office- mate before her untimely death in early 2005. My parents, Phil and Ann Brooks, have been wise mentors throughout my life and particularly through this academic journey. I honour them and pay special tribute to them for their contribution. My husband Peter has been endlessly supportive and encouraging on so many levels. My thanks go beyond words and this thesis is dedicated to him in gratitude. iv Table of contents Abstract................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements................................................................................................ iv Table of contents..................................................................................................... v List of abbreviations ............................................................................................viii List of diagrams ..................................................................................................... ix List of tables........................................................................................................... ix Chapter One: Introduction ..................................................................................... 1 What this research is about ................................................................................. 1 Background to the research................................................................................. 4 Introducing the Anglican Board of Mission ................................................... 6 Conceptualising the research ........................................................................ 10 Conceptual boundaries of the research ......................................................... 11 Australian involvement in international aid...................................................... 15 The Church Partnership Program...................................................................... 16 Summary........................................................................................................... 20 Key points:........................................................................................................ 22 Chapter Two: International aid and non-governmental organisations................. 23 Defining international development aid............................................................ 23 The evolution of international development..................................................... 27 The place of culture in development................................................................. 29 Globalisation and the discourse of development .............................................. 34 Failures in development assistance................................................................... 37 Australian development aid .............................................................................. 42 Civil society and development...................................................................... 43 Development NGOs as representatives of civil society................................ 54 Summary........................................................................................................... 57 Key points:........................................................................................................ 58 Chapter Three: Faith-based NGOs....................................................................... 59 Introduction....................................................................................................... 59 From missionary organisation to development agency .................................... 61 Faith-based NGOs in a culture-centred paradigm of development .................. 66 Faith-based NGOs as a component of civil society.......................................... 74 Faith-based NGOs and their relation to government ........................................ 78 Summary........................................................................................................... 83 Key points:........................................................................................................ 85 Chapter Four: Cooperative inquiry as a methodological approach to organisational learning.......................................................................................... 86 Introduction....................................................................................................... 86 Foundations of the participatory paradigm....................................................... 89 Ontology ....................................................................................................... 89 Epistemology ................................................................................................ 92 v Methodology................................................................................................. 97 Axiology ..................................................................................................... 105 Validity ..........................................................................................................
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