Season 7
What is philanthropy’s responsibility in protecting democracy? That’s the question we are asking some of the sector’s most influential leaders in season seven of the Social Change Diaries. This season, Vanessa, along with her guests, explores the idea of Righting & Writing History. Righting history: the act of correcting what is being distorted and recovering what is being erased. And writing history: the act of authoring what comes next and using philanthropic power in ways that expand rather than constrain who gets to be part of that authorship. These conversations examine democracy not in the abstract, but as a specific set of conditions that are under threat right now.
Righting and Writing History: Episode 6, Vanessa is joined by Jen Ford Reedy, President of the Bush Foundation. In conversation, they explore the importance of long-term thinking, strategic communications understood as programs work, and the way that multiple narratives enrich our understanding of our democracy.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 6
Righting and Writing History: Episode 5, Vanessa is joined by Stephen Heintz, who has led the Rockefeller Brothers Fund since 2001. Together they explore the need for our democracy’s fourth founding and the role that philanthropy and each of us can play in bringing that to fruition.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 5
Righting and Writing History: Episode 4, Vanessa is joined by Keenya Lambert, President and CEO at the Chicago Foundation for Women. Together they explore the incredible change that has been advanced to this moment through our democratic history, and what it will take to build the infrastructure for lasting change for women and gender expansive people.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 4
In this episode, Vanessa is joined by Alesha Washington, President & CEO of the Seattle Foundation. In her role, Alesha leads efforts to inspire transformative philanthropy to foster a joyful region of shared prosperity, belonging, and justice. During her tenure, the foundation has set a refreshed strategic direction, elevated its leadership on key issues like affordable housing, transit, and childcare access, and strengthened its operations for greater community impact. In this wide-ranging conversation, they discuss what community foundation work can do when it fixes joy as an objective, the immense opportunity that foundations have in this moment of profound change for the social sector, and the value of taking learnings from one region and considering how they might play out in a new place.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 3
Righting & Writing History: Episode 2 Vanessa is joined by Kevin Walker, President of the Northwest Area Foundation, to discuss what is at stake for our democracy today when philanthropic organizations pull back. From misinformation and the challenges of past crises to what philanthropic organizations can write for the future of the social change sector—this conversation covers it all.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 2
Vanessa kicks off season seven with Supriya Lopez Pillai, President of the Libra Foundation. As a philanthropic leader with nearly three decades in social movements and 20 years in institutional philanthropy, Supriya contributes to an inspiring discussion about how philanthropic leaders can meet the challenges we face today. Their conversation touches on the importance of reflection on the origins of wealth that is being deployed through philanthropic organizations, and the stories we tell ourselves about how it was generated. They discuss living and practicing the kind of social systems we want to exist in the future, remembering that our work today is one piece in a long line of people fighting for a better world.
LISTEN TO SEASON 7 EPISODE 1
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