Fund the People: A Podcast with Rusty Stahl
Our podcast offers you transformative (yet pragmatic) ideas, data, and tools to help you invest in the nonprofit workforce. This unique show invites you into fun, provocative conversations with a diverse network of funders, nonprofit leaders, authors, intermediaries, and government leaders. Our podcast is a program of Fund the People, an organization founded in 2014, led by Rusty Stahl, that advocates for investment in America's nonprofit workforce to advance equity, effectiveness, and endurance.
Recent Episodes
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Oct. 14, 2026
Don’t Let Fear Shrink Your Mission: Nonprofits and Democracy — with Joe Goldman, Democracy Fund
What happens when fear pushes nonprofits to pull back from their missions, and how can the sector respond? In this episode, you’ll get a framework for understanding threats to American democracy and how nonprofits and funders can push back while staying true to their missions. Democracy Fund President Joe Goldman joins Fund the People CEO Rusty Stahl to examine four tests for democratic resilience: free and fair elections, the rule of law, communities’ ability to resist abuses of power, and sup
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Oct. 8, 2026
The ‘Courageous Operating System’ for Nonprofit Leaders – with Eveline Shen, Author, Choosing to Lead Against the Current
How are you bringing courage and integrity to your leadership right now? What does it take to lead a nonprofit or social movement when the current is pushing hard in the opposite direction? In this inspiring and tactical episode, you’ll get lessons from more than two decades of leadership. Host Rusty Stahl talks with longtime reproductive justice leader and author Eveline Shen about her book, Choosing to Lead Against the Current. You'll learn Eveline's “Courageous Operating System,” an approach
3
Sept. 30, 2026
Upgrading Nonprofit Workplaces: Flourishing with Fewer Hours - with Betsy Leondar-Wright, Ph.D. (Guest Host), Adam Jespersen, and Juliet Schor, Ph.D.
What if one of the most powerful ways nonprofits can strengthen their workforce is to make people spend less time at work? Betsy Leondar-Wright, Fund the People Research Director, guest hosts to introduce new case studies that amplify how nonprofits are improving their working conditions. The episode focus on our case study on work time. Adam Jespersen (Montana Nonprofit Association) describes how his organization moved from pandemic exhaustion to a four-day workweek with no reduction in pay—a
2
Sept. 16, 2026
“We Can’t 5% Our Way Out of This” — with Brenda Solórzano, The California Endowment
Download PDF of episode transcript What does it look like when a major foundation decides that a crisis calls for more than business as usual? Bold but smart!This episode offers amazing insights and inspiration from Brenda Solórzano, President and CEO of The California Endowment. Brenda shares about how philanthropy can respond when nonprofits face rising demand, shrinking resources, and mounting pressure. She discusses how The California Endowment decided to substantially increase its spendin
1
Sept. 9, 2026
Level Up: Helping Funders Give More, Faster - with Jodeen Olguín-Tayler, CHANGE Philanthropy
Synopsis: In this episode, you’ll learn about a current organizing effort to get institutional funders to ‘level up’ their giving in response to attacks on nonprofits and communities. Host Rusty Stahl speaks with Jodeen Olguín-Tayler (CHANGE Philanthropy) about the Level Up campaign and its three-part pledge, in which funders agree to (1) increase giving for at least two years; (2) move money quickly and equitably to support 'frontline' communities; and (3) share how the commitments are put into
Sept. 2, 2026
Find Your People on Fund the People Podcast - New Season Starts 9/9
Hi everybody – this is Rusty Stahl, CEO of Fund the People and host of your Fund the People Podcast. Season 10 starts next Wednesday, September 9th. New episodes will be available every Wednesday throughout the fall. So I wanted to say a quick hello to get you ready! As you probably know, Fund the People is the only national organization dedicated entirely to increasing investment in America's nonprofit workforce. Our podcast equips YOU to invest in the nonprofit workforce! Whatever your role
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