Podcast Episodes

Episode 42 -- The END Fund

Ellen Agler, the CEO of the END Fund, and Mark Stoleson, the CEO of Legatum, are this episode’s guests. In 2006, Legatum realized that millions of people in Rwanda and Burundi were needlessly suffering from treatable neglected tropical diseases, such as intestinal worms, so it decided to fund programs to address this huge problem. After its work demonstrated the feasibility of scaling these programs, Legatum created the END Fund. As Ellen and Mark discuss, these diseases affect hundreds of millions of people each year in Africa, devastating so many lives, but they are all potentially curable at very little cost per life affected.  To date, the END Fund has already provided over a billion treatments, and it has set the ambitious goal of eliminating these diseases entirely within our lifetimes.  (0:37).

Website:  https://www.end.org/

Episode 41 -- Instiglio

Siegrid Holler, a partner and founding member at Instiglio, joins Charity Talks. Instiglio is based in Bogota, Columbia, and its mission is to ensure that every dollar spent on social programs in low and middle-income countries has the greatest possible impact. By focusing on three areas — systems strengthening and performance management, outcomes-based and innovative financing, and thought leadership — Instiglio is partnering with nonprofits and governments to make a substantial impact. From improving institutional child education in Peru, to working with the government of Uganda to create an innovative financing strategy to help public sanitation there, Instiglio’s wide-ranging projects are catalyzing more effective public and development spending around the world.  (0:26).

Website:  https://www.instiglio.org/

Episode 40 -- The Taimaka Project

Parth Ahya, the cofounder of The Taimaka Project, is this episode’s guest. Taimaka works hand-in-hand with rural communities, primarily in Africa, to tackle hunger and malnutrition. The problem it is addressing is post-harvest food insecurity arising from farmers being forced to sell their crops right after the harvest, leaving them with no food or money as the year goes on. Taimaka helps these farmers by providing post-harvest loans and food storage so that they can spread the benefits of the harvest over the full year. As Parth and Brooke discuss, Taimaka is a relatively small nonprofit, but it is making a huge impact.  (0:25).

Website:  https://taimaka.org/

Episode 39 -- Faunalytics

Brooke Haggerty, the Executive Director of Faunalytics, joins Charity Talks. Faunalytics’ mission is to empower animal advocates by providing them with access to research and strategies that maximize their effectiveness in reducing animal suffering.  It does so by conducting essential research, maintaining an online research library, and directly supporting advocates and organizations in their work. The data it offers also helps people think about and respond to outreach, providing advocates with the best strategies to inspire change for animals.  Faunalytics’ work is helping animals around the world in so many ways.  (0:25). 

Website:  https://faunalytics.org/

Episode 38 -- Humanitix

Joshua Ross, the co-founder of Humanitix, is this episode’s guest.  Humanitix is an online event ticketing business that Josh and his childhood friend founded when they realized that there was an opportunity to disrupt the ticketing business. But their real innovation was their decision to donate 100% of the company’s profits to effective charities, primarily those focused on child education in underdeveloped areas.  During the podcast, Josh and Brooke discuss Humanitix winning the Google Impact Challenge (for which it received $1 million), the trials and tribulations of being a startup company (particularly when the pandemic struck), how they decided to become philanthropists, and how they see Humanitix making an even bigger impact on the charity sector in the future.  (0:20).

Website:  https://www.humanitix.com/us

Episode 37 -- Giving Multiplier

Joshua Greene, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University and co-founder of Giving Multiplier, joins Charity Talks.  During the podcast, Joshua and Brooke discuss the “heart” versus “head” dilemma surrounding charitable giving, and the behavioral research his team at Harvard has been doing that led to his founding of Giving Multiplier.  Giving Multiplier allows donors to pick two charities — their favorite one and a super-effective one recommended by experts — and divide their donation between the two.  Giving Multiplier then adds a 9% to 90% match.  And for listeners of Charity Talks, Giving Multiplier has created a code (CharityTalks) which will add another 10% to Giving Multiplier’s match, so there is no better time to make the charitable donation that you may have been contemplating.  (0:31).

Website (and code):  https://givingmultiplier.org/CHARITYTALKS

Episode 36 -- New Incentives

Svetha Janumpalli, the Founder and CEO of New Incentives, is this episode’s guest.  New Incentives is an innovative nonprofit that uses small cash payments to boost childhood vaccinations in North West, Nigeria, which has some of the lowest childhood vaccination rates in the world.  In partnership with local governments, it provides these cash transfers, typically around $11, to caregivers after their infants receive vaccines, and uses rigorous data and monitoring to ensure that the dollars it spends are making the largest possible impact.  Its programs have already doubled the rate of childhood vaccination, leading to huge gains in the health of the communities involved, and New Incentives is constantly looking for ways to make an even greater impact.  (0:19).

Website:  https://www.newincentives.org/

Episode 35 -- Hearing Health Foundation

Timothy Higdon, the President and CEO of Hearing Health Foundation, joins Charity Talks.  HHF is the largest nonprofit funder of hearing and balance research in the United States, and for more than 60 years, HHF has awarded scientific research grants to foster the development of cochlear implant technology, more effective hearing aids and successful ear surgeries.  During the podcast, Timothy and Brooke discuss what causes hearing loss, what one can do to prevent it, and what HHF is doing to help.  By partnering with innovative scientists who work to reduce hearing loss and tinnitus, as well as balance related disorders, each year HHF is getting closer to its goal of finding cures for these conditions, which affect millions of people.  (0:28).

Website:  https://hearinghealthfoundation.org/