We Are For Good Podcast - The Podcast for Nonprofits 246. The Kiva.org Story + Leveraging the Power of Crowdfunding - Chris Tsakalakis
Meet Chris. This CEO and son of a journeyman is taking what he learned in for-profit finance to nonprofit's most progressive microfinancing loan organization - Kiva - and the story is truly fascinating. Hear Kiva's mission story and understand this brilliant business model of this nonprofit that's powering its movement through crowdfunds loans benefitting underserved people in more than 70 countries.
💡Learn:
👆Going beyond charity to rethink giving through crowdfunded microloans
👆The future of philanthropy in tech (👈 don't miss this!🎧)
👆Mission Story of Kiva
👆How Kiva remains future-focused & is reaching the next generation of givers
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
- Chris’s story and journey to where he is today (2:30)
- An overview of Kiva (4:30)
- What these loans unlock for people around the world (7:00)
- Chris’s past experiences in the tech space and his approach to philanthropy and leadership (9:00)
- The future of philanthropy and embracing technology for deeper impact (13:00)
- Engaging + activating Gen Z (18:00)
- 1. Putting your money where your mouth is.
- 2. Younger generations are interested in specific causes.
- 3. Make it easy.
- Kiva’s subscription model (19:20)
- Leveraging storytelling at Kiva (23:00)
- Chris’s lessons learned in the first year of leading Kiva after leaving the for profit sector (25:00)
- A powerful moment of philanthropy in Chris’s life (28:00)
- Chris’s One Good Thing: Secure your mask before helping others. (30:00)
For more information and episode details visit: www.weareforgood.com/episode/246
The We Are For Good Podcast is co-hosted by Jonathan McCoy, CFRE and Becky Endicott, CFRE and welcomes the most dynamic nonprofit leaders, advocates and philanthropists to share innovative ideas and lessons learned 3x a week!
Want to hear insider details and to get our best roundup of tips, freebies, resources and show notes from each episode? Join the Good Community - it's free! Visit www.weareforgood.com/hello
About Our Sponsor Virtuous
We’re partnering up with our friends at Virtuous to co-host this year’s FREE Responsive Nonprofit Summit on April 20-21… and we want to see you there! Join thousands of like-minded, forward thinking nonprofit leaders for two days of fresh insights, helpful workshops, and genuine conversations as we gather virtually from wherever you find yourself in the world. We’re curating some amazing p
📅 Don't Miss These Free Upcoming Events! 👇
APRIL 29: Working Session Live: Forecast Your Monthly Giving Growth in 2026 with Dana Snyder (and the pathways to get you there!)
MAY 14: ImpactUp: Story This quarter, we're going deep on your most powerful (and underused) tool - Story. Local meetups happening worldwide. Find one near you.
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