The name of this podcast is Nonprofits Are Messy, and it seems really appropriate in 2025. It’s not just nonprofits that are messy. The world is pretty messy right now.
There is growing hostility toward the nonprofit sector. Federal policies weaken nonprofits, such as defunding USAID, and stoke the fire of troubling public misconceptions that paint nonprofit professionals as overpaid, unnecessary, or even dishonest.
All of this is especially frustrating because the truth is, nonprofits are essential to the nation’s social safety net, because nonprofits can often step in where government services fall short.
But what truly infuriates (and disappoints) us is this:
1 – Nonprofit leaders who are not standing up to the federal administration, even though they have the power to do so.
2 – How misinformed the public is about the real impact of what the nonprofit sector brings to the world. Nonprofits are everywhere doing amazing work and bridging the gap where the government doesn’t have the resources or interest to care for the community.
3 – Nonprofit boards that are focusing on fear, scarcity, and risk management as strategies to get through these tough times, instead of thinking creatively about how to generate new revenue for the organization.
Even so, we remain hopeful because we see nonprofit leaders banding together, doubling up on community, and carrying on with the mission. Such as how Keshet found a way to provide interest-free loans for relocation expenses so that an under-attack youth community can feel safe.
Never forget that nonprofit work saves lives.
Now, more than ever, it’s important for leaders and boards to stand up and lead with strength and community. Because the world is counting on us.
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES:
“It is not hyperbole to say that when you actually weaken the nonprofit sector in this way, when you remove federal funding, when you close down USAID, that lives are in jeopardy.” (Joan Garry)
“I’m just totally gobsmacked that anybody would do that and that people would allow it to happen.” (Joan Garry)
“I see the nonprofit sector as the social safety net of our society.” (Glennda Testone)
“Nonprofits are messy. It’s not a perfect sector. I mean, perfection is bullshit. Can we just agree on that? There are bad apples everywhere, but the vast majority of nonprofit folks are good people trying to help, Period.” (Glennda Testone)
“It really feels like we’re in a moment where the nonprofit sector, government workers, and nonprofit workers are under attack, are really being painted as the bad guy. Their jobs are being eliminated, funding is being taken away. Our very identities, values, and safety are being threatened. I refuse to believe that we can’t do anything.” (Glennda Testone)
TUNE IN TO LEARN:
- Find out how Keshet found a way to provide interest-free loans for relocation expenses so that an under-attack youth community can feel safe.
- Learn about why one nonprofit leader of the Association of Fundraising Professionals made a video and told attendees of an upcoming conference: “We’re going to refund your money because we understand you. We support our members.”
- Plus, hear Glennda’s inspiring quote that kept her going through the Pandemic and that continually inspires her now. “I want us to get together and figure out how to take care of each other in a way that is more sustainable.”
ABOUT GUEST:
Glennda Testone is a nonprofit leadership expert who spent 14 years as the Executive Director of New York City’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center. Over the course of her tenure at The Center, she tripled the organization’s budget, strengthened its programs, and completed a $9M capital building renovation to transform the LGBTQ community’s home on West 13 Street.
Additionally, she partnered with Google to launch the virtual reality experience of Stonewall Forever, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, and helped lead a racial equity transformation of the organization. Glennda previously served as Vice President at The Women’s Media Center and Senior Director of Media Programs for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).
RESOURCES:
- Hebrew Free Loan Society
- Glennda Testone LinkedIn
- Nonprofit Leadership Lab
- Joan Garry’s Guide to Nonprofit Leadership – 2nd Edition by Joan Garry
- FREE WORKSHOP: Let’s Build the Nonprofit Board of Your Dreams!
- FREE WORKSHOP: The 5 Practices of Outstanding Nonprofit Leaders
- Music by Jukebox the Ghost
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