Q: What is Groundwork Opportunities (GO)?
A: GO is a nonprofit organization that designs and manages development projects in developing nations.

Q: What separates GO from other nonprofits doing development work in the third world?
A: There are many nonprofits doing development work in underprivileged communities around the globe. What sets GO apart is our small size and our ability to maintain personal relationships with our donor base as well as local organizations in the countries we serve. Additionally GO ensures that 100% of all donations go directly to our projects, not to administrative overhead. So if you prefer personalized correspondence explaining exactly how your donation is helping, quick feedback and updates from the field, and 100% of your donation to go to the cause you specify, then GO could be the organization for you.

Q: How can GO give away 100% of the money raised while other nonprofits only give around 65%?
A: GO is supported by a network of corporate donors and private sponsors who have agreed to cover our day to day expenses so that your donation can go directly to the cause. For example, our business cards, silent auction items, airfare, and transaction fees are all donated, allowing us to give away a true 100% of all donations. Additionally, GO maintains an all-volunteer staff from our directors on down the ranks, meaning that all services rendered for GO are done so free of charge. So when you donate to GO you can be sure that 100% of your donation will go exactly where you specify.

Q: What does GO do with the money it raises?
A: GO uses 100% of the money we raise to fund development projects in neglected communities worldwide. In the past this has included sponsoring a local doctor through medical school in Ghana to provide health services to a community of 30,000, providing vocational training and services to Sudanese refugees living in Israel, and buying back women and children from servitude in Cambodia. GO makes every effort to ensure that the projects we fund are both sustainable as well as beneficial to the greater community.

Q: How can people be certain that the money goes where it’s supposed to?
A: At GO we operate all of our projects on a grassroots level. This means that we are the ones personally traveling to the countries we support, establishing partnerships with trustworthy local organizations, and overseeing the purchase and use of all materials. Finding efficient and productive local partners is an important first step in this process and we spend a great deal of time ensuring that these organizations have a verifiable track record and are doing beneficial work in their local communities. Once a project is completed, we follow up with our partner organization multiple times per year to obtain progress reports, updated photos, and the occasional video. Our volunteers are also encouraged to visit previous projects in order to provide personal updates.

Q: Why should I donate to GO instead of donating directly to local organizations?
A: GO offers many distinct benefits for our donors that are not offered through direct donations to local organizations First, GO uses a strict screening process to bring you only the most honest and deserving causes. Developing-world nonprofits are often not regulated as strictly as those in the West and in some cases giving blindly can support poorly managed projects or even corruption. Second, GO guarantees that 100% of personal donations go directly to the cause, so you are not actually losing any money by using GO as your proxy. Finally, GO provides our donors with a comprehensive project blog including how your funding was spent, background information for all local organizations, and entertaining travel anecdotes.

Q: Should I continue supporting existing GO causes or donate to new causes?
A: GO currently features two types of cause that you can support: approved organizations from prior projects and upcoming projects. Approved organizations are organizations that GO has worked with on previous projects and which GO will continue to feature for a select period of time for additional fundraising (e.g. our partner organizations in Ghana and Rwanda). Upcoming projects will be held in different parts of the world and will feature new organizations awaiting verification. In both cases 100% of donations will go directly to the cause, leaving you only with the decision of what most interests you. Alternatively, if you would like to suggest a cause or location that GO is not currently featuring, please feel free to visit our get involved page to suggest a new project and we will look into it.

Q: How does GO decide what causes or locations to support?
A: GO encourages everyone to suggest any causes and/or locations that they find appealing. By having you actively participate in the selection and promotion of your own projects we hope to create a motivated and invested team capable of affecting change on a global level. Once GO receives a suggestion, we will conduct a thorough investigation of the feasibility of the project as a whole as well as determine any candidates for local partnerships. GO will then contact qualified directors to ask for written grant proposals which we will post to our website. Donors and volunteers can then decide how they wish to pledge their support, as well as keep themselves informed via our blog.

Q: How do I see where my donation to GO actually went?
A: If you elect to donate to an approved organization from a prior project then your donation will go directly to the organization and cause you select from our projects page (e.g. if you pledge $700 to Sovereign Global Mission for electricity, this is exactly what you will be funding). If you choose to donate to an upcoming project, GO will keep you informed of the details of your donation via our blog by continually posting photos, videos, and stories from our volunteers on the ground. If you find that you would prefer to donate more to a specific cause featured in one of our upcoming projects simply contact us and let us know your preference. In all cases GO will publish a comprehensive post-project summary of how all donations were distributed as well as projects expense details and any other points of interest.

Q: This all sounds great. How do I get involved with GO?
A: You can start by checking out our get involved page, which will provide you with some basic steps on where to go from here. Or you can contact us directly and we can give you further advice on where to start. Remember, donations aren't the only way to get involved - you can volunteer, host an event, participate in our Holiday Giving campaign, or find volunteer opportunities anywhere in the world. To read more about our current staff anf volunteers check out our about us page. We look forward to having you join our team.