Chasing Impact - The MzN International Podcast 

How do we pay for the climate crisis in developing countries?

Patrick Watt’s insights into Christian Aid’s 75 years of locally-led development, in particular the strategic points on implementing localisation, and the decision to draw back from direct implementation.

<description>&lt;p&gt;Patrick Watt’s insights into Christian Aid’s 75 years of locally-led development, in particular the strategic points on implementing localisation, and the decision to draw back from direct implementation. &lt;/p&gt;</description>

Patrick Watt’s insights into Christian Aid’s 75 years of locally-led development, in particular the strategic points on implementing localisation, and the decision to draw back from direct implementation.  

75 Years of Impact: Christian Aid's Journey in Locally-Led Development with Patrick Watt.

Understanding Humanitarian Narratives: Insights from Zainab Moallin and Hande AkpınarIn a recent podcast, Zainab Moallin, Research Officer at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), and Hande Akpınar explored the complex world of humanitarian narratives. Their discussion, &quot;Patterns and Divergences in the Narrative Landscape,&quot; examined how stories and frames influence beliefs, attitudes, and decisions in humanitarian contexts. Defining Humanitarian NarrativesMoallin emphasized that narratives are not merely stories but constructed frames that justify humanitarian actions. They shape decisions on why, when, and where aid is needed, who delivers it, and who receives it. Media Double Standards and Racialized NarrativesA significant portion of the conversation addressed media double standards, particularly in portraying refugees. Moallin highlighted the racialized narratives during the Ukraine crisis, where Ukrainian refugees were depicted favorably due to perceived cultural similarities to Europeans, contrasting with the portrayal of refugees from the Middle East and North Africa. Neutrality in JournalismThe ethical challenge of journalistic neutrality was also discussed. Moallin noted that many news organizations prohibit journalists from taking stances on humanitarian issues, framing such positions as political rather than humanitarian. The Power of NarrativesMoallin concluded that vulnerability is a construct shaped by narratives, determining who is deemed deserving of protection. She stressed the responsibility of readers to critically assess these narratives. Key TakeawaysMoallin shared three key lessons:<ol><li>Recognize the Power of Narratives: Narratives shape perceptions and actions.</li><li>Critical Thinking and Personal Agency: Evaluate humanitarian narratives critically.</li><li>Responsibility of the Media: Support responsible and balanced reporting.</li></ol>For listeners, she highlighted two key messages:<ol><li>Question the Narratives: Recognize that narratives are constructed and may carry biases.</li><li>Advocate for Fair Representation: Support unbiased representation of all affected by humanitarian crises.</li></ol>This insightful discussion underscores the importance of understanding and critically engaging with humanitarian narratives.

<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Understanding Humanitarian Narratives: Insights from Zainab Moallin and Hande Akpınar&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In a recent podcast, Zainab Moallin, Research Officer at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), and Hande Akpınar explored the complex world of humanitarian narratives. Their discussion, &amp;quot;Patterns and Divergences in the Narrative Landscape,&amp;quot; examined how stories and frames influence beliefs, attitudes, and decisions in humanitarian contexts.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Defining Humanitarian Narratives&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Moallin emphasized that narratives are not merely stories but constructed frames that justify humanitarian actions. They shape decisions on why, when, and where aid is needed, who delivers it, and who receives it.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Media Double Standards and Racialized Narratives&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;A significant portion of the conversation addressed media double standards, particularly in portraying refugees. Moallin highlighted the racialized narratives during the Ukraine crisis, where Ukrainian refugees were depicted favorably due to perceived cultural similarities to Europeans, contrasting with the portrayal of refugees from the Middle East and North Africa.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Neutrality in Journalism&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The ethical challenge of journalistic neutrality was also discussed. Moallin noted that many news organizations prohibit journalists from taking stances on humanitarian issues, framing such positions as political rather than humanitarian.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;The Power of Narratives&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Moallin concluded that vulnerability is a construct shaped by narratives, determining who is deemed deserving of protection. She stressed the responsibility of readers to critically assess these narratives.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Key Takeaways&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Moallin shared three key lessons:&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ol&gt;&lt;li&gt;Recognize the Power of Narratives: Narratives shape perceptions and actions.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Critical Thinking and Personal Agency: Evaluate humanitarian narratives critically.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Responsibility of the Media: Support responsible and balanced reporting.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;For listeners, she highlighted two key messages:&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ol&gt;&lt;li&gt;Question the Narratives: Recognize that narratives are constructed and may carry biases.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Advocate for Fair Representation: Support unbiased representation of all affected by humanitarian crises.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;This insightful discussion underscores the importance of understanding and critically engaging with humanitarian narratives.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Understanding Humanitarian Narratives: Insights from Zainab Moallin and Hande Akpınar In a recent podcast, Zainab Moallin, Research Officer at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), and Hande Akpınar explored the complex world of humanitarian narratives. Their discussion, "Patterns and Divergences in the Narrative Landscape," examined how stories and frames influence beliefs, attitudes, and decisions in humanitarian contexts.  Defining Humanitarian Narratives Moallin emphasized that narrat...

Understanding Humanitarian Narratives: Insights from Zainab Moallin 

The pace of advances in AI is faster than anything we&apos;ve ever seen in human history. Nathan explains how this can create a lot of overwhelm for leaders, leading to a disparate kind of view, with leaders saying, “I don&apos;t know what the future looks like if I use AI but I know what it looks like if I don&apos;t.” The sentiment is that we know we have to do something with AI, we just don&apos;t know what.If it sounds familiar to you, tune into the episode. Chris Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director at MzN, and Nathan Chappell, Senior Vice President at DonorSearch AI, discuss:<ul><li>What AI can do for a nonprofit organization, not tomorrow, but today.</li><li>The difference between predictive AI and generative AI, and how NGOs can use both together to serve their mission in a much more strategic and precise way.</li><li>The steps every leader needs to take with AI. “I would identify where my biggest gap is, I wouldn&apos;t look at AI as this umbrella thing that could solve all my problems, I would get very specific on one gap or challenge that I have in my organization and then and only then would I look at the types of AI technologies.” </li><li>Why Nathan believes that AI is the only scalable solution to reverse declines in charitable giving. There is a systemic decline in the number of people who are giving to charity in almost most developed nations, but Nathan describe two ways that AI can work to reverse this:<ul><li>It can create so much efficiency that an organization can now offload mundane tasks and instead spend more time human to human.</li><li>By using AI at scale, nonprofits organizations will more intimately know their audience by using thousands of data points and will be able to identify those donors that will have the greatest lifetime value. </li></ul></li><li>Could AI actually make us more human and more empathetic by cutting through the dead digital overload that we are exposed to every day? </li><li>What responsible AI looks like for humanity, and the outsized responsibility that the nonprofit sector has for ensuring we prioritize safety over scalability. </li></ul>Nathan closed by quoting Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett&apos;s business partner, who said “show me the incentives and I&apos;ll show you the outcome”. If we look at the AI arms race, scale has been prioritized over safety almost every time. What do we think the incentive is for the nonprofit sector? Resources<a href='https://www.amazon.com/Generosity-Crisis-Connection-Humanitys-Challenges-ebook/dp/B0BLX8CL1Y'>The Generosity Crisis</a> The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity&apos;s Greatest Challenges, by Nathan Chappell, Brian Crimmins and Michael Ashley.Sgn up for MzN’s free webinar on proposal writing and AI - link to the webinarMore on Nathan:Nathan Chappell is a Senior Vice President at <a href='https://www.donorsearch.net/donorsearch-ai/'>DonorSearch AI,</a> where he leads AI deployments for many of the largest nonprofit organizations in the United States. With over 10 years of experience in nonprofit leadership and fundraising, he is a co-author of the award-winning book, The Generosity Crisis: The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity’s Greatest Challenges. He is also an inventor of multiple AI patents and a certified fundraising executive.Nathan is passionate about the responsible use of AI for social good and the ethical implications of AI for philanthropy. He is the co-founder of Fundraising.AI, a collaborative initiative that aims to guide best practices and accelerate the impact of AI on advancement. He is also a frequent public speaker, a Forbes Technology Council member, and a recipient of the 40 Over Forty Award for his contributions to the nonprofit sector. Nathan&apos;s mission is to reignite generosity and transform the future of fundraising through AI.

<description>&lt;p&gt;The pace of advances in AI is faster than anything we&amp;apos;ve ever seen in human history. Nathan explains how this can create a lot of overwhelm for leaders, leading to a disparate kind of view, with leaders saying, “&lt;em&gt;I don&amp;apos;t know what the future looks like if I use AI but I know what it looks like if I don&amp;apos;t&lt;/em&gt;.” The sentiment is that we know we have to do something with AI, we just don&amp;apos;t know what.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;If it sounds familiar to you, tune into the episode. Chris Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director at MzN, and Nathan Chappell, Senior Vice President at DonorSearch AI, discuss:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;What AI can do for a nonprofit organization, not tomorrow, but today.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The difference between predictive AI and generative AI, and how NGOs can use both together to serve their mission in a much more strategic and precise way.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The steps every leader needs to take with AI. “&lt;em&gt;I would identify where my biggest gap is, I wouldn&amp;apos;t look at AI as this umbrella thing that could solve all my problems, I would get very specific on one gap or challenge that I have in my organization and then and only then would I look at the types of AI technologies&lt;/em&gt;.” &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Why Nathan believes that AI is the only scalable solution to reverse declines in charitable giving. There is a systemic decline in the number of people who are giving to charity in almost most developed nations, but Nathan describe two ways that AI can work to reverse this:&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;It can create so much efficiency that an organization can now offload mundane tasks and instead spend more time human to human.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;By using AI at scale, nonprofits organizations will more intimately know their audience by using thousands of data points and will be able to identify those donors that will have the greatest lifetime value. &lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Could AI actually make us more human and more empathetic by cutting through the dead digital overload that we are exposed to every day? &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;What responsible AI looks like for humanity, and the outsized responsibility that the nonprofit sector has for ensuring we prioritize safety over scalability. &lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;Nathan closed by quoting Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett&amp;apos;s business partner, who said “&lt;em&gt;show me the incentives and I&amp;apos;ll show you the outcome&lt;/em&gt;”. If we look at the AI arms race, scale has been prioritized over safety almost every time. What do we think the incentive is for the nonprofit sector? &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Resources&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href='https://www.amazon.com/Generosity-Crisis-Connection-Humanitys-Challenges-ebook/dp/B0BLX8CL1Y'&gt;The Generosity Crisis&lt;/a&gt; The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity&amp;apos;s Greatest Challenges, by Nathan Chappell, Brian Crimmins and Michael Ashley.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Sgn up for MzN’s free webinar on proposal writing and AI - link to the webinar&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;More on Nathan:&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Nathan Chappell is a Senior Vice President at &lt;a href='https://www.donorsearch.net/donorsearch-ai/'&gt;DonorSearch AI,&lt;/a&gt; where he leads AI deployments for many of the largest nonprofit organizations in the United States. With over 10 years of experience in nonprofit leadership and fundraising, he is a co-author of the award-winning book, The Generosity Crisis: The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity’s Greatest Challenges. He is also an inventor of multiple AI patents and a certified fundraising executive.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Nathan is passionate about the responsible use of AI for social good and the ethical implications of AI for philanthropy. He is the co-founder of Fundraising.AI, a collaborative initiative that aims to guide best practices and accelerate the impact of AI on advancement. He is also a frequent public speaker, a Forbes Technology Council member, and a recipient of the 40 Over Forty Award for his contributions to the nonprofit sector. Nathan&amp;apos;s mission is to reignite generosity and transform the future of fundraising through AI.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

The pace of advances in AI is faster than anything we've ever seen in human history. Nathan explains how this can create a lot of overwhelm for leaders, leading to a disparate kind of view, with leaders saying, “I don't know what the future looks like if I use AI but I know what it looks like if I don't.” The sentiment is that we know we have to do something with AI, we just don't know what. If it sounds familiar to you, tune into the episode. Chris Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director at MzN, ...

How NGOs Can Truly Benefit From AI

Darina frames equitable partnerships as the key to locally-led development. However, achieving such partnerships requires us to rethink the conventional project management model as we know it.

<description>&lt;p&gt;Darina frames equitable partnerships as the key to locally-led development. However, achieving such partnerships requires us to rethink the conventional project management model as we know it.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Darina frames equitable partnerships as the key to locally-led development. However, achieving such partnerships requires us to rethink the conventional project management model as we know it. 

Localisation In Practice - Rethinking the Project Management Model

The MzN International podcast “Chasing Impact” is dedicated to all leaders out there who are busy building a better world. We are here because we know that building a better world is not only necessary but possible. That pushing our business or nonprofit organisation to the next level means acting with purpose over short-term goals. That “success” means not simply chasing the next grand donation or quarterly profit target but - chasing impact.&nbsp;

Chasing Impact - The MzN International Podcast

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