Should We Cancel Capacity-Building?

Fund the People: A Podcast with Rusty Stahl

Have you ever thought that funder-sponsored organizational ‘capacity building’ may be detrimental to nonprofit workers and their communities? Today we talk about concrete ways we could improve the framing and practice of capacity building to better support the brilliance and resilience of diverse nonprofit workers and organizations.

Today's guests are Melissa DeShields and Marcus Littles from Frontline Solutions, a Black-owned and -led social change consulting firm. We discuss our guests recent Nonprofit Quarterly articles about why the term “capacity building” should be retired, and ways to improve the practice itself under whatever title it goes by.

How can funders think and act differently regarding grantee capacity?And how can nonprofit leaders respond to funders, and/or proactively design their own efforts? Learn more about these questions and more on today’s episode.

Go to our website for a transcript of the episode and links to the resources discussed in the episode. While you’re there, browse our library of amazing guests and conversations from Fund the People - A Podcast with Rusty Stahl at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fundthepeople.org/ftp_podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find the podcast, our blog, free tools, and other resources on our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fundthepeople.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Season 6 is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Loftis Partners⁠⁠⁠⁠. They've launched the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Pay Equity Collective⁠⁠⁠⁠, a supportive community for nonprofits seeking pathways to pay equity. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠payequitycollective.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more! Loftis Partners – Empowering organizations and advancing equity, one collective step at a time!