Exploring the inclusion of beneficiary voices in international development fundraising campaign creation

Charitable fundraising appeals for international development created for potential donors in the Global North are often, if not always, designed without the inclusion of voices and insights from the intended beneficiaries in the Global South. The implications of these appeals, void of beneficiary input, may serve to proliferate poverty porn and racial stereotypes, promote paternalistic and colonial thinking, and strengthen white savior syndrome. This exploratory paper, through a set of interviews and a focus group with fundraising professionals at international development organizations, examines the need for a beneficiary-centered Code of Ethics. A framework, based on the four major findings, is proposed that begins with beneficiary input and considerations offer charities an inclusive method for the design of future fundraising appeals and a way to fulfill their responsibility in how the beneficiary is depicted and the societal understanding of their situation.