Marvin L. Smith

Funding Bravely

Business EN ↓ 3 episodes

A podcast about courage in philanthropy - what it looks like, why it matters, and how we grow it. This series shines a light on leaders who are working at the edge of change, disrupting entrenched power dynamics, and seeding new collaborations in service of justice-rooted, values-driven philanthropy. It also challenges philanthropy’s outdated models of risk and pace, pushing the field to move from slow strategy to bold action.

Author

Marvin L. Smith

Episodes

Funders Say They Understand. Nonprofits Strongly Disagree 29.01.2026 33:00

93% of funders think they understand the challenges their grantees face. Only 53% of nonprofits agree. That 40% gap isn't just a number—it's an existential threat to the sector. And Dr. Elisha Smith Arrillaga has the data to prove it. In this episode of Funding Bravely, host Marvin Smith sits down with Dr. Elisha Smith Arrillaga—Vice President of Research at Center for Effective Philanthropy—to ta...

Torchbearers Shine When It's Dark Out featuring Darren Isom 23.12.2025 35:50

"I don't know if we're going to win, but we got our best people working on it." Darren Isom grew up as part of "Generation Integration" in New Orleans, the only generation between legal segregation and white flight. Now, he's helping philanthropy understand that it's not the strategist. It's the servant. This conversation will change how you think about courage, joy, and who gets to build the futu...

Silencing Truth Is a Red Flag. Dimple Abichandani on the Courage Philanthropy Needs 10.12.2025 44:39

What if everything you've been told about philanthropy is actually designed to preserve inequality? Dimple Abichandani spent 20 years inside the sector and she's here to tell you how it really works. This conversation will change how you see wealth, power, and who gets to decide what justice looks like. In this episode of Funding Bravely, host Marvin Smith sits down with Dimple Abichandani, philan...