Pro Bono Perspectives

2021 was a year of transformation, defined by society’s continued reckoning with racism, the pandemic, climate change, and the Great Resignation. These issues underscored how pervasive inequity is and why centering the voices of those impacted by social challenges unlocks the most effective, sustainable solutions. In the Season 3 finale of Pro Bono Perspectives, host Danielle Holly highlights three ways you can be a force for good in the new year.

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Episode mentions:

Get an inside look at the tactics top companies are using to build more inclusive, equitable culture and support the fight against racism in their communities. Find out how your organization can move from transactional to transformative change and strengthen employee and customer loyalty in the process. Plus, as we approach the end of year giving season, learn what equity-minded philanthropy and service look like and how they drive stronger results for nonprofits and their causes.

Guests Teresa Pelletier, Vice President of Community Relations at Fidelity Investments, and Wendy Matheny, Vice President & Principal with Ichor Strategies, a national social impact and community engagement consultancy, cover these topics, their racial equity listening tour, community-first partnerships, and more.

Nearly two-thirds of workers are considering leaving their jobs. As the Great Resignation continues with no signs of slowing down, we explore the challenges and opportunities it brings for the nonprofit sector, which was already under significant capacity constraints exacerbated by the pandemic, especially in HR and talent development.

Host Danielle Holly speaks with Melissa Madzel, Managing Director, Equity Initiatives, at Koya Partners about nonprofit turnover and retention, disruptions to the way we work, and how the growing focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is changing hiring practices and the way individuals from historically underrepresented backgrounds search for new roles.

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Unless companies take immediate action on climate change, we will quickly surpass the 1.5 degree Celsius global temperature increase that will have catastrophic implications not only on the environment and severity of natural disasters, but on human health, livelihoods, and security. But there is cause for optimism: more than ever, the private sector – which accounts for the vast majority of carbon emissions – is listening and stepping up sustainability commitments.

Corporate mandates have changed. Customers, employees, and even investors are increasingly pushing companies to move from shareholder to stakeholder capitalism. What does this look like across companies and sectors? Are companies moving fast enough when it comes to making good on their commitments to social change? Carolyn Berkowitz, President & CEO of the Association of Corporate Citizenship Professionals (ACCP), shares her insights, plus the importance of diversity and inclusion within CSR departments.

This week, as we reflect on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, host Danielle Holly and New York Cares Executive Director Gary Bagley have a conversation on how era defining moments from the 9/11 attacks to the current pandemic and racial reckoning bring on new waves of service and activism. They also talk about New York Cares’ increased focus on food insecurity, taking meaningful action on DEI, and why companies actually benefit more from designing service programs around nonprofit and community needs rather than their own business results.

CSR and social impact expert Susan McPherson talks about her new book, “The Lost Art of Connecting,” and signature “gather, ask, do,” method for meaningful networking and lasting business relationships. She and host Danielle Holly discuss the Great Resignation and how employees having more power will democratize companies’ approaches to CSR. Plus, Susan explains why even though companies are not moving as quickly as they need to on social and environmental issues, we should be encouraging – not disparaging – those that are making efforts to deliver on their goals.

One of the biggest takeaways from the past year and a half has been that the “old normal” wasn’t working – like the digital divide. In this episode, host Danielle Holly welcomes Lina Klebanov, Head of CSR at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a global leader in IT services, consulting & business solutions, to share some of the solutions for digital equity and inclusion from TCS’s brand new report in partnership with the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation: “Digital Empowers: Technology as a Catalyst for Empowering Communities.” Learn how the current digital revolution is transforming education, employment, and access to basic needs, plus hear about TCS’s proven programs and partnerships to increase access to technology for all.

Join us for a conversation with Dr. Rahsaan Harris, CEO of Citizens Committee for NYC (CitizensNYC), a micro-funding organization that provides support to community leaders on the front lines of change in their own neighborhoods. Hear what it was like for Rahsaan to assume his position as CEO in March 2020 right as New York went into lockdown, how he drove meaningful change during the pandemic, and why he believes many elements of pandemic era philanthropy and work culture should remain in place.

Hear from Yusuf George of JUST Capital, the only independent nonprofit that tracks, analyzes, and engages with large corporations and their investors on how they perform on the issues Americans care about most.

Yusuf recaps findings from JUST Capital’s Corporate Racial Equity Tracker and recommendations for how corporate leaders can act on DEI commitments as outlined in the CEO Blueprint for Racial Equity. One of the most crucial steps companies can take toward racial equity is tracking and reporting on the state of pay equity within their organizations, says Yusuf, who believes measurement, transparency, and accountability are all key to achieving meaningful change.

Yusuf and host Danielle Holly discuss other trends in CSR including shareholder versus stakeholder capitalism, the need to shed short-termism in DEI work, and why leaders must push past discomfort in order to make real progress on racial equity.

This Pride Month, we welcome Lena Ballantine, COO of The Trevor Project, which does life-saving work in mental health and suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth, and Jen Carter, Head of Technology & Volunteering at Google.org and founder of the Google.org Fellowship Program, a pro bono program that matches Google employees with social impact organizations full-time for up to six months.

Since the beginning of COVID-19, the volume of youth reaching out to The Trevor Project has increased significantly, at times as much as doubling. The recent political climate and racial injustices have also contributed to a mental health emergency where 42% of LGBTQ+ youth have “seriously considered” suicide.

In this context, Lena and Jen recap The Trevor Project and Google.org Fellowship Program’s work on the Crisis Contact Simulator, which leveraged cutting-edge AI technology to better equip volunteer counselors to support LGBTQ+ youth during a mental health crisis. Hear about the impact of this project and best practices for ensuring pro bono partnerships are set up for success.

Chef, cookbook author, and activist Julia Turshen operates at the intersection of food and social justice. Her highly acclaimed cookbooks share deeply personal and meaningful narratives on LGBTQIA+ representation, racial equity, body positivity, and more. Here, Julia talks about food insecurity and how the pandemic put the spotlight on systems that were already broken, plus what each of us can do to promote social justice and equity from our kitchens.

Controversy over the tech sector’s role in society, democracy, and philanthropy has been making headlines for years. Recently, some tech companies have leaned into these areas even further while others have made statements that they are specifically staying out of political and social issues. In this episode, get a frontline perspective from Platypus Advisors Founder Caroline Barlerin, a leader in CSR and skills-based volunteering with experience at companies like Twitter, Eventbrite, and HP.

Caroline and host Danielle Holly discuss the changing nature of tech CSR through the lens of systemic inequity, diversity, and evolving approaches to philanthropy, especially amongst billionaires. Hear their thoughts on how skills-based volunteering and “platypus professionals,” those who span both business and social impact, will be some of the biggest drivers of meaningful social change in the years to come.

Dr. Mai Nguyen talks about the power of design thinking and how it’s being applied to financial institutions like credit unions to advance economic empowerment and social justice. Director of the Design Lab at UCSD and a Filene Research Institute Fellow, Mai has dedicated her career to addressing systemic discrimination and policies that create inequities in access to capital, housing, and more.

Currently, she is focusing on the study and expansion of credit unions as a catalyst for community transformation. Listen for a fascinating take on the social responsibility of credit unions, the significant community investments they’ve made in recent years, and how design thinking can transform them into a true force for equity.