Inside the Minds of Young Social Impact Workers (Part 2): "The Field Must Change for Youth to Come"

Editor’s Note🖍🖉

 

Not long ago, I had a conversation with an acquaintance. We remarked, "If someone asks who is currently working in the social impact sector, there used to be so many people, but now it feels like there are only a few left." "There used to be many, but they must have all moved on to other industries." Just a few years ago, there was a relatively large presence of young people in the social impact field. Now, however, it is difficult to find them—as if they have all migrated to other sectors.

 

This is precisely why creating an environment where young people actually want to work is crucial. While attracting new talent is important, it is equally vital to retain the young professionals who are already in the sector so that they can protect their places and continue their work without leaving.

 

This post is the second part of our anonymous interview series featuring young professionals working in the social impact sector. The series will be published in three parts.

 

To protect their privacy, only their nicknames and ages are listed.

Our interviewees are Cherry (27), Apple (35), and Orange (46).

 

Q. As a practitioner, what do you see as the role and defining characteristics of intermediary organizations (support organizations)?

 

🍊Orange: Intermediary organizations bridge the gap between government administrative bodies—which approve budgets and projects—and the beneficiary enterprises that receive support. As organizations that deeply understand field operations and design support initiatives, they play a crucial role as intermediaries, planning annual budgets and communicating closely with the approving government agencies.

 

🍎Apple: The roots of intermediary organizations lie within the stakeholder enterprises themselves. Their role is to translate and mediate between the languages of administration and the actual field.

 

Ultimately, the most important element of an intermediary organization is not its structural form, but its people—specifically, the expertise of those working within it. By expertise, I don't mean just knowing the administrative procedures for establishing a cooperative. It requires a blend of diverse networking skills, deep understanding, and execution power. To be honest, though, as someone who is still learning, defining this feels like a difficult task (laughs).

 

🍒Cherry: Intermediary organizations serve as a bridge connecting the public and private sectors. They convey the current status and demands of on-the-ground enterprises to the government. Conversely, they deliver policy trends back to the field and work together to find ways for those organizations to become sustainable. However, if an intermediary organization takes on too many roles, it can ironically weaken the self-reliance of the field organizations. This is an issue that all intermediary organizations must constantly ponder.

 

Q. The reason for the previous question is that when a political administration changes, intermediary organizations are often heavily downsized or consolidated, leading to job losses. A similar situation occurred a few years ago. Could you share your personal experiences or examples regarding this?

 

🍎Apple: Luckily, I dodged a direct hit at first because the intermediary organization’s outsourcing contract came to an end right around that time. But that luck didn't last. As the evaluation rolled around, no matter how hard we worked, the organization got the lowest score possible. The budget was cut, and we were suddenly hit with the grim reality of having to lay people off.

 

When that happens, an internal guessing game begins over who gets to stay and who has to leave. The collective mindset of working together for a better society vanishes, and individual self-interests begin to tangle. Someone is about to get married, someone is a primary breadwinner, and someone needs to pay immediate rent; everyone has their own pressing circumstances. Tragically, the very employees who work to support social impact organizations end up engaging in the ugliest internal battles. Yet, I believe this phenomenon is less about politics or budget issues, and more about the inherent fragility of any workplace driven by people.

 

I don't think the downsizing of intermediary organizations necessarily equates to the shrinking of the social impact sector itself. However, a structure where professionals who have accumulated deep expertise cannot survive due to poor compensation—that is a critical flaw we must resolve, even if it takes decades.

 

🍊Orange: It is truly disheartening. Seeing social impact organizations framed merely as entities draining tax money, followed by unilateral budget cuts and project terminations, left me with a heavy heart.

 

I believe we need to reflect on the years we spent raising public awareness and understanding of the social sector. The social impact ecosystem, or the social and solidarity economy, is not just a simple economic system; it is globally recognized and carries a distinct prestige as a framework for solving social issues. Seeing this ecosystem destabilized every time political administrations and government officials change in our country is a source of great regret.

 

🍒Cherry: Situations where professional talent loses their livelihood due to shifting government directions represent a massive loss—not just for the individuals involved, but for the entire social impact ecosystem and society as a whole. The social impact sector is an area where it is difficult to build true expertise in a short time; thus, once it is dismantled, it takes double the time and effort to restore it to normal.

 

To prevent this from repeating, we must break free from political influence. We shouldn't just hide inside the protective fence of 'social impact'; instead, we need to naturally integrate into various social problem-solving processes and deliver tangible, undeniable results. We must transform from entities that rely solely on financial subsidies and government funds into active agents that independently solve social issues and create new value. Once our necessity and institutional justification are firmly recognized, we will be less shaken by political transitions.

💓💖💕💗

People often say that the social impact sector is a place dedicated to creating good jobs for others. But are the young professionals working within the social impact sector actually employed in good jobs themselves? They, too, are workers. High-quality jobs must be provided for them as well. It is a profound irony—and a deeply saddening reality—to work in an unstable position while constantly telling field enterprises to "create good jobs for their workers.“

 

👉👉To be continued in Part 3!