Strategy
Chapter 3 describes major shifts in the strategic orientations of TNGOs that represent a concerted movement from their historical roots as charitable conduits to social and political change agents seeking sustainable impact and long-term transformations. Three illustrative strategic shifts—from direct service delivery to championing rights and supporting entrepreneurship; from reactive advocacy to proactive global campaigning; and from capacity-building to systems thinking—underscore the growing mismatch between the inherited institutional and normative features of the architecture and the sector’s contemporary ambitions and strategies. The evolution in TNGO strategies over the past several decades suggests new future roles for TNGOs, but future-oriented change is complicated by the need to overcome architectural challenges and confront past legacies.