The COVID-19 pandemic, despite being a relatively new phenomenon, will certainly change the world. We see the beginning of the global economic crisis and the accompanying political and social changes. All this will also change the situation of NGOs and the activities they are offering.
The changes in the activities of non-governmental organisations in Poland became very noticeable already in the first days of restrictions related to preventing the spread of the virus. Many, especially local organizations, started to organize aid groups. They joined initiatives such as "Widzialna ręka" (Visible Hand) - facebook groups containing offers and requests for help in everyday matters, such as shopping or walking with a dog. Other organisations have started actions related to sewing face masks for hospitals and groups at higher risk. It is also visible that the networks of organisations are sharing their potential and working together in the face of the crisis, including sharing their resources and taking coordinated, larger scale actions.
Apart from direct involvement in aid activities, a very visible, and probably permanent, trend is moving some of the organisation's activities to the Internet. Various types of workshops and meetings, which would traditionally take place at the offices of the organisation, are possible in isolation thanks to Internet communicators. Also the internal activities of the organization have moved to the Internet in large part. As a consequence of the virus crisis, this form will probably be more popular also in the future. While it is ideal for technical meetings to discuss practical aspects of the activities, it is hard to imagine that it can replace creative face-to-face meetings in the long term.
In the long-term perspective, the effect of the crisis will be a cautious attitude of participants to exchange programmes and training, because of their concerns about their own health. Unfortunately, the effects of closing not only borders but also societies are already visible, manifesting themselves in increased xenophobic sentiments and closing in on their familiar and safe group. This will require NGOs to focus on intercultural and global education as well as human rights promotion. The challenge will be to transform the social energy visible in the multiplicity of aid initiatives into sustainable structures to strengthen social coherence.
The "virus" perspective will require us to be more active in order to open societies closed for months of isolation. We are not sure that civil society institutions will be supported in the anti-crisis laws proposed by the government. This will probably cause a difficult situation among people involved in civil society, often working as freelancers or under civil law contracts. Let's hope that the daily solidarity demonstrated at present will allow for effective action and will be able to minimize the losses that the crisis will bring, both to society and to non-governmental organizations.
Agnieszka Janik - Member of the IYMC Council
