Navigating Complexity and Challenge Right Now: Nonprofits’ Needs and Funder Responses

About

Nonprofits and philanthropy are operating in a new and complex environment shaped by a polarized and unpredictable political climate. As nonprofit leaders report difficulty pursuing their missions, fears both for the communities they serve and for their financial futures, and continued struggles with burnout and staffing, they are asking for more from their funders. How can funders respond in this moment of complexity? What shifts in practice are called for to respond to the extraordinary challenges of the current environment? What role does listening play, and how can funders ensure they are hearing from both nonprofits and the communities they serve?

In this webinar, CEP will host a conversation informed by both CEP’s 2025 “State of Nonprofits” report, which reveals the stark challenges nonprofits are facing in this moment, and “Voices That Matter: How Foundations and Nonprofits Engage With the Communities They Support,” a forthcoming report that examines the listening practices of both funders and nonprofits, and how funders support these practices.

Panelists

• Elisha Smith Arrillaga, Vice President, Research, CEP
• Melinda Tuan, Managing Director, Fund for Shared Insight
• Shelly Prichard, President & CEO, Wichita Community Foundation
• Candice C. Jones, President & CEO, Public Welfare Foundation
• Gregg Croteau, CEO, UTEC, Inc.
• Phil Buchanan, President, CEP (moderator)