Chasing Impact - The MzN International Podcast

The pace of advances in AI is faster than anything we've ever seen in human history. Nathan explains how this can create a lot of overwhelm for leaders, leading to a disparate kind of view, with leaders saying, “I don't know what the future looks like if I use AI but I know what it looks like if I don't.” The sentiment is that we know we have to do something with AI, we just don't know what.

If it sounds familiar to you, tune into the episode. Chris Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director at MzN, and Nathan Chappell, Senior Vice President at DonorSearch AI, discuss:

• What AI can do for a nonprofit organization, not tomorrow, but today.
• The difference between predictive AI and generative AI, and how NGOs can use both together to serve their mission in a much more strategic and precise way.
• The steps every leader needs to take with AI. “I would identify where my biggest gap is, I wouldn't look at AI as this umbrella thing that could solve all my problems, I would get very specific on one gap or challenge that I have in my organization and then and only then would I look at the types of AI technologies.”
• Why Nathan believes that AI is the only scalable solution to reverse declines in charitable giving. There is a systemic decline in the number of people who are giving to charity in almost most developed nations, but Nathan describe two ways that AI can work to reverse this:
  • It can create so much efficiency that an organization can now offload mundane tasks and instead spend more time human to human.
  • By using AI at scale, nonprofits organizations will more intimately know their audience by using thousands of data points and will be able to identify those donors that will have the greatest lifetime value.
• Could AI actually make us more human and more empathetic by cutting through the dead digital overload that we are exposed to every day?
• What responsible AI looks like for humanity, and the outsized responsibility that the nonprofit sector has for ensuring we prioritize safety over scalability.

Nathan closed by quoting Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's business partner, who said “show me the incentives and I'll show you the outcome”. If we look at the AI arms race, scale has been prioritized over safety almost every time. What do we think the incentive is for the nonprofit sector?

Resources

The Generosity Crisis The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity's Greatest Challenges, by Nathan Chappell, Brian Crimmins and Michael Ashley.

Sgn up for MzN’s free webinar on proposal writing and AI - link to the webinar

More on Nathan:

Nathan Chappell is a Senior Vice President at DonorSearch AI, where he leads AI deployments for many of the largest nonprofit organizations in the United States. With over 10 years of experience in nonprofit leadership and fundraising, he is a co-author of the award-winning book, The Generosity Crisis: The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity’s Greatest Challenges. He is also an inventor of multiple AI patents and a certified fundraising executive.

Nathan is passionate about the responsible use of AI for social good and the ethical implications of AI for philanthropy. He is the co-founder of Fundraising.AI, a collaborative initiative that aims to guide best practices and accelerate the impact of AI on advancement. He is also a frequent public speaker, a Forbes Technology Council member, and a recipient of the 40 Over Forty Award for his contributions to the nonprofit sector. Nathan's mission is to reignite generosity and transform the future of fundraising through AI.

In this episode, we sit down with Christina Bennet, CEO of Start Network, to explore the crucial question: how do we truly accelerate the global shift towards locally-led development, and not just commit to it?

In this conversation, Hande Akpinar, a Senior Consultant at MzN International, discusses the dynamics of localization and trust-based giving with Wendo, the Founder and Executive Director of Dandelion Africa. While the podcast provides the full experience, here's a sneak peek at what you can expect:

Founding Dandelion Africa: A Path Filled with Unique Challenges and Successes

Wendo reflects on the inception of Dandelion Africa, highlighting the numerous challenges she faced as a founder, a woman, and a villager. Her journey led her to a leadership role she hadn't initially anticipated - The challenges of gaining trust in a grassroots organization, coupled with imposter syndrome and cultural biases against women in leadership, posed formidable obstacles. Nevertheless, the defining moments and the unwavering belief of an exceptional team in the organization's vision have been pivotal to Dandelion Africa's success.

Exploring the Essence of Localization

Wendo explains what localization means to her, and how to empower local communities to take ownership of their development. It's not just about freedom, but the freedom to be authentically creative and innovative without the fear of failure. She explains how transparency and open dialogue between donors and the NGO is crucial for effectively structuring localization. This core principle shapes the quality of partnerships, work, and innovation within the organization. She explains the steps that will allow for this to happen.

Trust-Based Philanthropy: A Game Changer for Local NGOs

Trust-based philanthropy has been instrumental in enabling Dandelion Africa to put localization into action. With unrestricted funding, this approach allows them to think outside the box, make mistakes, and communicate openly without fear of losing funding. In doing so, the organization can better serve the communities it is dedicated to.

Bridging the North-South Divide: Trust and Capacity Building

Wendo reflects on the global division between the North and South when it comes to funding and operations. In a world where some international partners might doubt the capacity of local organizations in the South to handle funding, project monitoring, or policy development, the need for trust and capacity-building becomes increasingly vital. Wendo emphasizes the importance of trust and capacity building, both among local organizations themselves and in partnerships with international NGOs.

A Call to Action: Walk the Talk on Localization

Wendo concludes with a passionate call to action. She insists that organizations should not just talk about localization; they need to put it into practice, and she explains how. By truly understanding the needs and capacities of local actors and trusting them to lead their development efforts, a profound transformation can occur.

Find out more about Dandelion Africa’s mission to improve health and livelihoods for women in rural Kenya now

When we think of development, we often conjure images of aid budgets and financial assistance to lower-income nations. While aid is undoubtedly a vital part of the development landscape, it's just the tip of the iceberg. In this episode, Ian Mitchell, Co-Director, Europe and Senior Policy Fellow at Center for Global Development (CDI) sits down with Christian Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director of MzN. Together, they unravel the recently published CDI's Commitment to Development Index, revealing a comprehensive assessment of what governments are doing for development beyond aid.

This podcast episode explores the Commitment to Development Index, which looks at a spectrum of policies that influence the pace of growth for developing countries such as investment, migration, trade, environment, technology, health, and security. By expanding the dialogue to include these factors, we can shape more comprehensive strategies that lead to sustainable development. Using quantitative measures, this index compiles a ranking of the countries in their commitment to development across various dimensions.

During this podcast, we'll explore real-world examples from countries such as Sweden, the UK, the United States and explore the deliberate policy choices that have contributed to their consistent successes or shortcomings.

The conversation won't stop there. We'll transition into the realm of climate and development overlap, highlighting the urgent need to integrate climate considerations into development strategies. Climate finance, a substantial component of global aid, is poised to undergo the rigorous evaluation that development finance has experienced. This knowledge gap is of critical concern as it could affect the argument for climate action within development efforts.

As we wrap up, we'll touch on the essence of trust in global efforts to reduce emissions and tackle climate change. Trust among countries is integral to forging collective commitments to emission reduction. Without it, nations might opt for cheaper, less sustainable technologies, creating economic advantages without sufficient accountability. We'll also discuss the pivotal role of carbon taxes in addressing climate change, offering a realistic alternative to subsidies and bans.

Join us in this podcast as we journey through the multifaceted world of development, exploring how the Commitment to Development Index and climate considerations are shaping the future of global growth. This episode promises fresh insights and perspectives that will encourage you to reevaluate what development truly means.

Explore the CDI

In this episode of Chasing Impact , MzN interviews Sam Worthington, CEO of InterAction, the largest U.S.-based alliance of INGOs focused on people around the world (we recommend watching this video with closed captions and you can find the transcript below). Sam shares his experiences and insights looking back at two decades of leading InterAction, elaborating on the following topics:

• why local and INGOs need to work together to deliver the greatest impact possible
• when the emphasis should be on local and when global aid is necessary
• why organizations should challenge the expectations and limitations that come with the resources donors, such as the government, foundations, etc., give
• what successes InterAction has had challenging the US government in the Supreme Court on behalf of civil society
• how to unite and manage a diverse group of actors under a common goal
• reminding (I)NGOs of their purpose in this world and warning them not to be disconnected from their values
• why the size of an NGO does not matter when it comes to the impact it is able to deliver
• what the NGO leadership of the future will look like

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