The European Fundraising Podcast

I receive Today Charlotte Rydh, the president of EFA, the European Fundraising Association and Jan Gregor, who is  a fundraising consultant in the Czech Republic. I have invited them to share with us the “2022 Nonprofit Pulse” report, which is a report on fundraising in Europe, published in 2023 that gives trends about fundraising in Europe.      In this episode, we discussed the findings of this "2022 Nonprofit Pulse Report". We addressed the impact of the economic crisis on philanthropy and NGOs, and how this has increased pressure on our resources while increasing the demand for our work.    We also talked about the importance of operations management and recruitment in the non-profit sector. How effective operations management and strategic recruitment can help NGOs navigate these uncertain times.  Employee well-being was also a major discussion topic. We explored how employee well-being can influence the overall performance of the organization and why it should be a priority for all NGOs.   Finally, we discussed building lasting and meaningful relationships with donors. How a strong relationship with donors can not only aid in fundraising but also strengthen the reputation and trust in the organization.   In addition, we had the opportunity to discuss the role of the European Fundraising Association (EFA) in promoting professionalism in fundraising and how they support non-profit organizations across Europe.   I invite you to listen to this episode for an in-depth discussion on these points and many others.   Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

 Phillip Rothwell is the Director of Development at Warwick Independent Schools Foundation. He is also a CFRE, the famous international fundraising certification.      With Phillip, we speak about fundraising in education : why education is for him the “major battle”, why fundraising is more and more important in most European Schools, how it is now a real career path for a lot of young people, why it’s so important to continue developing fundraising in order to maintain an equality in access to education, and how he fundraises in his schools through major gifts, legacies or telephone fundraising.      Phillip also explains to us what is the CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive), this credential for experienced fundraising professionals aspiring to the highest standards of ethics, competence and service to the philanthropic sector.      But we will also speak about wider subjects related to fundraising : why having or being a mentor changes your life,  what he recommends to manage a fundraising team, why it’s as important to manage your boss as to manage your team, why organization which manage to KEEP their fundraisers as long as possible are the ones which collect the most, why managing a fundraising team should be “leading with kindness”, how to organize yourself to keep curious and learn throughout your career, why managing your personal energy is crucial as a fundraiser…      A very interesting conversation with an experienced fundraiser (who started being a fundraiser at 7 years old😊), which makes you understand how lucky we are to be a fundraiser.    Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Laure Vienot is a French fundraising consultant, specialized in international philanthropy. She learned to fundraise in the US, working for a French cultural organization, and she then moved back to France, where she helps organization from all around the world, to fundraise abroad from their own country. If you are thinking about fundraising abroad, she knows exactly what question to ask yourself, what your first steps should be, how to prepare yourself…. Thinking internationally, mixing cultures, putting in place strategies and techniques….it’s all we like in this podcast, so don’t miss this episode !  Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Birgit Winterhalter is the head of fundraising of Caritas Germany. Caritas is one of the largest non profit organization in the world. Birgit has been working there for 30 years, and as she says, for her: "Working for Caritas is not a job, it’s a mission".  She explains to us where this energy and passion for her job come from, and why for her it is important to have it as a fundraiser.  You work for an NGO and you feel discouraged sometimes by how large your mission is ? Birgit shows you how you are surrounded in NGOs by all these people dedicating their life to making the world better for others, and why it should make you a happy person ! She also gives us an overview of fundraising in Germany, and very concrete aspects on her day to day job.    A very inspiring person to listen to in order to start the year !Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Andreas Drufva is the Marketing Director at The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC), one of the main non-profit environmental organization in Sweden. His organization has been in the center of a big political debate in Sweden in the last months. He explains all this story to us: how it happened, how they handled the communication, and what it tells us about our time, and the new ways to fundraise.     Andreas has a strong character, with a lot of determination. He has managed to turn his old anger of wanting to fix the problem of the world in true collective actions. He explains to us great tips about how to engage your donors in the long term, how to organize your NGO in order to be more efficient, or how to manage a fundraising team.     Once again, he shows us that sharing our experience among us, European Fundraiser, can bring a lot to us all, so you mustn’t miss this episode.  Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

What if, for any non profit organisation in Europe, it was possible to fundraise in other European countries ?      Imagine you are a German NGOs doing great work on research against cancer, why wouldn’t you be supported by a Spanish donor, who would just love what you are doing ?      Well, this is possible !! it is already happening, and will happen more and more in the future. Frederic will explain this to us: how it works, how to understand if it would be a good idea for your organisation, how to find in what country your organisation could fundraise, and how to put it in place.     A possible “game changer” for many non-profit organization in Europe, and certainly the future of philanthropy.     So listen to Frederic Theret who will explain to you how to embrace the future of european philanthropy.    https://www.transnationalgiving.eu/  Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Richard Spencer is the co founder of About Loyalty. He previously worked in many non profits in England. About Loyalty is a unique research-based consultancy specialising in helping non-profits to grow supporter loyalty. In this episode, he explains why fundraisers shouldn’t focus only on the money they got for their organization, and how to maximise at the same time donors experience and the money you fundraise.Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Araba Pillic works in communication & fundraising for Stiftung Menschen für Menschen, a German NGO than also has more than 600 employes in Ethiopia.  Araba’s experience is really diverse, she has lived different lives before working for an NGO, from her youth in a multi cultural family to being the Queen in the Lion King musical in Berlin. She defines herself as a "social activist”, so we discus with her how fundraising and activism are related, and why we should revolutionize our way of thinking in order to adapt our fundraising to a new generation of donors.   Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Eugenia Mazurenko is the CEO of the Zagoriy foundation. The Zagoriy foundation is a Ukrainian organisation that is carrying out nonprofit projects, but one that has also been growing philanthropy in Ukraine for many years, by delivering research, developing institutional philanthropy and training fundraisers, Today, Eugenia is working within a nation at war. She decided to stay in Ukraine, because she thinks this is where she will be able to do more to help the Ukrainian people. Here, we talk about how her work has evolved during the war, why local Ukrainian grassroots organisations need to be helped, and how the foundation is taking action to organise this help. This is a very moving, honest and inspiring account. To contact her: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eugenia-mazurenko-9959b43b/Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.