The Business of Giving

How do you find a competitive edge when the obstacles feel insurmountable? How do you get people to take you seriously when they're predisposed not to, and perhaps have already written you off? My next guest recommends creating your own edge by confronting the factors that seem like shortcomings and turning them into assets that make others take notice. She is Laura Huang , a Professor at the Harv...

Rinku Sen is a widely-read and respected theorist and practitioner of racial justice organizing, advocacy and media. She co-founded and served as publisher of the groundbreaking media outlet Colorlines , has led a number of organizations, and written a couple of books including Stir It Up: Lessons in Community Organizing and Advocacy . And she's with us now.

The United States is showing signs similar to some of the most corrupt countries in the world, and this corruption is determining the shape of our government and affecting all levels of society. This is a topic of a brand-new book by prizewinning journalist Sarah Chayes  titled On Corruption in America: And What Is at Stake .

Misinformation, disinformation, and fake news abound, and it's increasingly difficult to know what's true and who to believe. What we could all use is a field guide and, thankfully, my next guest has provided us with one. He is Jevin West, Director of the Center for an Informed Public at the University of Washington, and Co-author of Calling Bullshit: The Art of Skepticism in a Data-Driven World.

With the pressures, stresses and uncertainties of the current moment, emotional intelligence has never been more important. And it's a pleasure to have with us today the foremost expert in the field. He is Dr. Marc Brackett , the Founding Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and Author of Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help our Kids, Ourselves, and our Soc...

It was some 33 years ago that Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart, and his wife, Helen started the Walton Family Foundation. It has gone on to be one of the most highly regarded and thoughtful family foundations in the country, with three major areas of focus and a never-ending commitment to learn and get better. And it's a pleasure to have with us Caryl Stern , the Executive Director of the Walto...

Have you read and studied and thought about what you need to do to be a more effective leader? My next guest suggests that a good place to start would be thinking a bit less about you and more about the people around you. She is Anne Morriss, Executive Founder of The Leadership Consortium and Co-author of Unleashed: The Unapologetic Leader’s Guide to Empowering Everyone Around You.

Every day, we make hundreds of decisions. Although many of these choices don't seem to contain an ethical component, we would be well-served to examine that carefully. In so doing, we just might find ourselves doing more good and creating greater value for the world around us. This is the subject of a new book by award-winning scholar and Harvard Business School Professor Max Bazerman titled Bette...

When a society becomes as polarized and, in many ways, dysfunctional, as America has become, there comes a point when more and more citizens begin to look around and wonder: Is there a better way? My next guest answers that with an emphatic "Yes!" and has started a movement where citizens committed to finding solutions can work together to address our biggest challenges. He is Bill Shireman , the...

Philanthropy can only be as effective as the ecosystem in which it operates, whether that's a community, the nation, or the world, and those ecosystems are under tremendous stress at the moment. So, to help provide us some context to better understand what is happening. It's a pleasure to have with us a person who's a master of connecting dots that help explain where we are. She's Anne-Marie Slaug...

And it's indeed a pleasure for me to welcome to the show the Chief Executive Officer of one of the eight semi-finalists of the MacArthur Foundation’s 100&Change competition. She is Beverley Postma, the CEO of HarvestPlus

And this evening’s semi-finalist is the Human Diagnosis Project, also referred to as Human Dx. And here to tell us about it is their President and CEO, Jay Komarneni.

And tonight, it's a great pleasure to have with us the Founder and Digital Librarian of the Internet Archive, Brewster Kahle, and Wendy Hanamura, who serves as the Director of Partnerships and the project lead in the 100&Change challenge of the MacArthur Foundation.

And this evening, we'll be joined by our second semi-finalist, Catholic Relief Services , who is looking to change how society cares for children and orphanages with the aim of getting them into family settings. And with us to discuss it is their President and CEO, Sean Callahan .

And this evening, you’re going to hear from another one of the semi-finalists in the 100&Change initiative of the MacArthur Foundation. He is Dr. Geoffrey Tabin, the Co-founder of the Himalayan Cataract Project.

And we have reached the midpoint of featuring the eight semi-finalists of the MacArthur Foundation’s 100&Change competition. And tonight, it is a great pleasure to have with us Dr. Rebecca Richards-Kortum , the Founder and Co-director of Rice University’s 360°: Institute for Global Health .

And this evening’s semi-finalist of the MacArthur Foundation’s 100&Change initiative is Sesame Workshop, teamed together with the International Rescue Committee to educate children displaced by conflict and persecution. And here to discuss their proposal with us is Sherrie Westin, Executive Vice President of Global Impact and Philanthropy for Sesame Workshop, and Sarah Smith, the Senior Direct...

And our semi-finalist for this evening in the MacArthur Foundation’s 100&Change Initiative is The Carter Center, and their proposal is to eliminate river blindness in Nigeria. And here to discuss that with us is Dr. Frank Richards , who is the Director of the River Blindness Elimination Program at The Carter Center .

The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance is a field-building organization committed to raising awareness of impact investing in the United States, fostering deployment of impact capital, and working with stakeholders to help build the impact investing ecosystem. And here to tell us about all of that, as well as what's happening in this field during this time of crisis is Fran Seegull, the Executive Dire...

Although the pandemic and getting back to school and work are at the top of everyone's mind, this nation's policy on immigration remains a key issue heading into the 2020 presidential election. And here to discuss that with us is Mark Krikorian , the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies or CIS.

For nearly two decades, The Libra Foundation has done significant grantmaking in progressive causes and movements, with multigenerational families being closely involved with the foundation, setting its strategy, and interacting with many of the foundations' grantee partners. And here to tell us more about this work and how the foundation has changed over the years is Crystal Hayling , the Executi...

Exceptional government programs and the outstanding work of nonprofit organizations can help address the most vexing social problems facing us, but perhaps, there is no greater force for good than business when that force is channeled in the right way. B Corp is leading the movement to see that happens. And it’s a pleasure to have with us, Lorna Davis , the former CEO of Danone Wave, and currently...

The mission of the Citizens Committee for New York City is to help New Yorkers, especially those in low-income areas, come together and improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. That's a big mission in the best of times, and these are not the best of times. And here to discuss his work with us and what they're doing now in the midst of this pandemic is Dr. Rahsaan Harris , the CEO of the...

Girls Inc. offers programming to girls ages 6 to 18 in more than 1,500 sites throughout the United States and Canada. The organization focuses on what it calls "strong, smart, bold outcomes." And to tell us some more about their work, along with some new research as to its effectiveness, it's a pleasure to have with us, Dr. Stephanie Hull , the President and CEO of Girls Inc .

COVID-19 has unmasked many societal problems such as racial inequity and our fragile public health system. While there all along, they were somehow hidden in plain sight. So now that our powers of observation have been heightened, it is a perfect time for my next guest. He is Blair Sheppard , the Head of Global Strategy and Leadership for PwC and author of the just released book, Ten Years to Midn...