Philanthropod

In 2002, Sarah Rejman travelled to Tanzania to work as an occupational therapist at a rehabilitation center for people living with disabilities. The two formative years that followed awakened in her a mission to improve the lives of children living with treatable disabilities by creating a safe and happy home where they would be accepted, loved, valued, and have the opportunity to heal. Thus began the Plaster House, as Kafika House was originally known.Today, Kafika House is an international NGO working in partnership with the Tanzanian government to treat children, transform communities and challenge perceptions of disabilities at a national level. Following a period of growth, Kafika House has also recently expanded from working with one local hospital to five partner hospitals that provide surgeries and aftercare for children. In this fantastic episode, join Anubha Rawat in conversation with Sarah as they discuss the unique approach and impact of Kafika House, and the importance of holistic, community-driven health programs. For Sarah, addressing treatable disabilities goes far beyond physical medical care. Instead, it must also be about wider education and challenging far-reaching stigmas. It is also vital to involve and support both the parents and wider community, such as Kafika House’s parallel “Mamas Education Program”, which provides an opportunity for the Mamas to simultaneously learn about nutrition, first aid, horticulture and microfinance, alongside their child’s medical care. Finally, Sarah also delves into how deep-rooted partnerships, fostering a sense of local ownership, and working with health ministries are crucial factors in determining the success and sustainability of medical programs, particularly in an international development context. For those interested in community-led health, children’s health, disability support or international development - this is not an episode to miss!Find out more about Kafika House here.

In episode 1 of Season 9, meet Andy Bryant, Executive Director at the Segal Family Foundation. The Segal Family Foundation is an American-born but African-led foundation that identifies, invests in, and creatively supports visionary local leaders and organisations tackling development challenges and opportunities in Africa—and they also help progressive donors do the same. Andy takes us through the Segal Foundation’s transformation over the past fifteen years, from Barry Segal’s initial vision of “fighting for the little guys” to becoming the second biggest US grant-maker to Africa, behind the Gates Foundation. For Andy, key to this transformation has been the Segal Family Foundation’s increasing emphasis on local staff and expertise in East and Southern Africa. They’ve also strived to challenge a culture of competition between grantees, often caused by traditional philanthropic sector power dynamics, and instead aimed to foster a safe space for collaboration. Today, their grantmaking team is 100% African—a rarity—and they are hoping to build the most influential network of African leaders on the continent who can share resources and intel to advance positive change. A key question emanating from the discussion includes: what is the role of a grantmaker when they are no longer a funder fiscally? And how can they continue to sustainably support these incredible change-makers? One of the strengths of this episode is Andy’s candidness - he is never shy to admit when the Foundation has encountered challenges along the way - but instead unpacks how these challenges were actively integrated into the strategy moving forward. Join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in conversation with Andy, as they discuss the importance of unearthing and investing in local talent, defining the debated notion of “trust-based philanthropy” and the success of the “Social Impact Incubator”. To learn more about the Segal Family Foundation follow the link: https://www.segalfamilyfoundation.org/

When Isabelle Kamariza founded Solid’Africa in 2010, she started with a simple yet powerful vision: to ensure that no patient in a Rwandan public hospital suffered from a lack of nutrition. Nutrition insecurity is a widespread problem in Rwanda, due to high-cost food, limited access to nutritious meals, and lack of awareness. Since 2010, Solid’Africa has now served over 5 million patient-tailored meals to almost 600,000 patients, and this number is rapidly growing. They now operate out of an industrial kitchen capable of cooking 10,000 meals a day and operate two farms to supply fresh produce. In particular, Solid’Africa addresses nutrition insecurity by recognising the crucial interplay between household income, nutrition awareness, and the availability and accessibility of healthy food. They have three main programs: the Nutrition Access Program, the Nutrition Education Program and the Sustainable Agriculture for Economic Empowerment.Recognising her pioneering efforts, Isabelle Kamariza has received several awards including the Young African Women Leaders Forum Award by Michelle Obama, the Forbes Women Africa Social Impact Award and the Elevate Prize.In this exciting episode, join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in conversation with Isabelle Kamariza, President and Founder of Solid’Africa. From exploring the critical role of initial backers and funders for Isabelle’s vision, to discussing the importance of cost and energy efficiency in NFP operations, to understanding Solid’Africa’s commercial arm, this is not an episode to be missed. With upcoming plans for a culinary and nutrition school, and further aspirations for expanding operations alongside national ministries, Solid’Africa is one to watch. To learn more about Solid Africa follow the link: https://www.solidafrica.org/ 

Is there such a thing as a not-for-profit pharmaceutical company? What are “neglected tropical diseases”?How can you address global health inequities in access to medicines?These are just a few of the many incisive questions that our latest episode of Philanthropod explores. In episode 2 of Season 8 meet Mark Sullivan AO, Managing Director and Founder of Medicines Development for Global Health (MDGH). MDGH is an independent not-for-profit company dedicated to the development of medicines for neglected diseases that primarily affect people living in poverty.The majority of new medicines are developed for diseases that are prevalent in high-income countries as the potential returns on an approved medicine offset the high cost and risk of development. This model disadvantages the world’s poorest populations – according to the WHO, an estimated two billion people do not have access to even the most basic of essential medicines. Responding to this deep inequity in global health, in 2005, Mark founded MDGH. Since its inception MDGH has demonstrated that it is possible to assemble the resources, collaborators and financing required to develop and register new medicines for infectious diseases in a not-for-profit company. In fact, in 2018, MDGH became the first solo not-for-profit company to achieve FDA approval for a novel medicine when they registered moxidectin, the first new treatment for river blindness (onchocerciasis) in 20 years.Join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in conversation with Mark as they discuss Mark’s pioneering journey throughout the pharmaceutical industry, the importance of working with local NGOs, communities and health providers to distribute medicines, and navigating critical regulatory systems with major global health bodies such as the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) and WHO (World Health Organisation).To learn more about MDGH follow the link: https://www.medicinesdevelopment.com/ 

Welcome to our first episode of Philanthropod for 2024! In episode 1 of Season 8 meet Tahina Booth, Managing Director and Founder of Grass Skirts Project (GSP). GSP tackles severe gender inequality and violence against women and girls in Papua New Guinea (PNG) by uniting sport and gender justice. For Tahina, sexual and domestic violence against young women and girls in the Pacific is a key development priority to achieve healthy and happy communities. However, a core ethos at GSP is that this is not a problem just to be solved by women and girls. Instead, GSP sees engaging young men and boys as key to the solution and imperative to fostering a more inclusive and equitable PNG more broadly. Consequently, GSP’s programs, including the Gymbox and 10 Million Strong Leadership program, empower youth of all genders to challenge norms and embrace equity. They are designed to engage men and boys with something they love, sport and fitness, to ultimately heighten gender justice awareness and reduce gender-based violence. Moreover, by providing access to gym facilities and health resources for underserved communities, the programs are also achieving broader goals in the community related to holistic health, education and economic uplift.Join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in conversation with Tahina as they discuss the importance of sport as a platform to empower young people, build confidence and address gender inequalities. Anubha and Tahina also discuss how working with local institutions and networks, such as the Church and schools, is key to fostering long-term sustainable development in the Pacific. Finally, Tahina further provides fascinating macro-level insight into international development governance, gender equality and women’s rights through her role on the Pacific Women Lead Governance Board. To learn more about Grass Skirts Project follow the link: https://www.grassskirtproject.org/about 

In Tanzania, there are 20,000 primary schools. However, there are only 800 high schools. This means that each year hundreds of thousands of young Tanzanians compete for every single spot at the available high schools. When a child misses out they are denied access to education, opportunities, and more often than not - their ticket out of poverty. Unable to ignore this deep inequality, Gemma Sisia established The School of St Jude in Tanzania in 2002. Twenty years ago, The School of St Jude opened with one teacher and a handful of students. Today, The School of St Jude provides free, quality education to 1,800 bright primary and secondary students from disadvantaged backgrounds. 100% of these students are on scholarships which are 100% donor-funded, and 97% of St Jude’s secondary graduates go on to access higher education.The “Beyond St Jude’s” program has also been launched - where 100s of recent graduates volunteer as teachers in government schools. Not only does this program fill an urgent gap for teachers in Tanzania but is an extremely formative year for the graduates - where they navigate becoming an adult and giving back to their community.In this episode, join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in discussion with Gemma who takes us on her inspiring journey - from her childhood in regional Australia to the founding and growth of The School of St Jude. Along the way, Anubha and Gemma also discuss timely international development themes such as the importance of localisation and maximizing impact for both donors and students. Finally, the episode ends with incredible moments of circularity as Gemma shares how the impact of her work is starting to emerge in wonderful and unexpected ways: from running into two former female students working as doctors to meeting with an alum who is the first Tanzanian referee in the English Premier League. With such encounters only representing the first generation of graduates - the journey has only just begun. To learn more about the School of St Judes follow the link: https://www.schoolofstjude.org/ 

Audette Exel is a lawyer by profession, managed one of Bermuda’s biggest banks and has a sprawling list of banking, leadership and business awards to her name. However, Audette does not think of herself as primarily a businesswoman. Instead, Audette identifies as a social activist who decided to pursue social justice and equality through leveraging traditional business, power and capital.At 35, she stepped away from the world of law and banking and embarked on her greatest challenge yet: setting up Adara Group - a global organisation that believes in the power of business and partnership to change the lives of people living in poverty. Today, Audette is the Chief Executive Officer of Adara’s two corporate advisory businesses: Adara Advisors and Adara Partners. The Adara businesses were established to help fund Adara’s health and education work with women and children in extreme poverty in some of the world’s remotest places (Adara Development). Knowledge sharing sits at the heart of their model, so that programs such as the Adara Newborn model in Uganda, can be stretched to remote regions and other countries in order to maximise impact. Since 1998, the Adara Group has had a profound impact on hundreds of thousands of people in poverty. In this episode, join Philanthropod’s host, Anubha Rawat, in discussion with Audette who takes us on her incredible Adara journey, from Bermuda to Uganda to Nepal, and introduces the listener to inspiring characters along the way. Audette also reflects on the changing international development sector more broadly. She believes that over her 25 years in the Development sector, she has witnessed watershed changes in the role of power dynamics and the addition of new, much-needed actors, such as private and public companies, joining the ecosystem. Audette's warmth, passion and leadership shines throughout the episode.To learn more about Adara Group follow the link: https://www.adaragroup.org/ 

In this episode of Philanthropod, Anubha chats to Dave Everett, the CEO of the Nadia and Alf Taylor Foundation. Founded in 2002, the Nadia and Alf Taylor Foundation is an Australian PAF dedicated to breaking down barriers to education across 40 different countries. Throughout the episode, Dave shares his unique journey, from co-founding the School for Life Foundation in Uganda to joining forces with Nadia and Alf Taylor.Dave weaves in his observations and stories, recounting his formative years living and working in East Africa, where he witnessed the unyielding determination of children seeking education. These experiences propelled the decade he spent building the School for Life in Uganda, alongside Annabelle Chauncy, and completing both an undergrad and masters in International Development.Dave then highlights his career shift from the "doing" side to the "giving" side. This involved formalising the giving process at the Foundation plus seeking out partners with the potential for transformative impact. This shift also offered him the chance to work more broadly in the sector and collaborate on diverse projects across 40 countries.  Listeners will gain insight into the Foundation's broad remit, which encompasses various fields from social enterprise, healthcare, social welfare, and poverty alleviation across Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. Dave describes the Foundation as agile, allowing them to build deep relationships with grant partners and witness the remarkable work being done on the ground.Finally, Dave and Anubha chat about balancing family life with a career that involves a busy international travel schedule - along with sharing some of his favourite travel destinations. Dave’s down-to-earth approach shines through in this episode along with his dedication to living a life of purpose. Links: Nadia and Alf Taylor Foundation: https://nadiaandalftaylorfoundation.org/School for Life Foundation: https://www.schoolforlife.org.au/ Annabelle Chauncy’s Philanthropod episode: https://shows.acast.com/philanthropod/episodes/a-passion-to-educate-poverty-out-of-existence