During the pandemic, I dove headfirst into the great wide world of podcasts. Since then, I’ve listened to tens of thousands of hours across a variety of subjects. Here are eight thought-provoking episodes for anyone who works in philanthropy. What are your favorite podcasts and podcast episodes? Please let us know in the comments!

  • Gilded Rage (Future Perfect)
    To put our new age of extreme inequality in perspective, Vox looks back at Andrew Carnegie, who gave America a huge number of libraries so they’d forgive him for his brutal steel mills. They ask: Is the same thing happening now?
  • Move Fast and Break Schools (Future Perfect)
    When Mark Zuckerberg gave $100 million to Newark’s schools, he raised a big question: Who will decide where this money goes? The answer: Not the people of Newark. Vox examines why the people of Newark turned against a gift that Zuckerberg and Cory Booker wanted them to celebrate.
  • What Is E.S.G., and Why Are Republicans So Mad About It? (The Daily)
    The principle behind E.S.G. is that investors should look beyond just whether a company can make a profit and take into account other factors, such as its environmental impact and action on social issues. But critics of that investment strategy, mostly Republicans, say that Wall Street has taken a sharp left turn, attacking what they term “woke capitalism.”
  • Are E.S.G. Investors Actually Helping the Environment? (Freakonomics Radio)
    Probably not. The economist Kelly Shue argues that E.S.G. investing just gives more money to firms that are already green while depriving polluting firms of the financing they need to get greener. But she has a solution.
  • Vu Le, Nonprofit AF (What Donors Want) Rachel Stephenson Sheff and Emily Collins-Ellis chat with Vu Le, founder of @NonprofitAF. They discuss: Self-care for non-profit professionals; Vu’s #CrappyFundingPractices campaign on Twitter; the ‘Tipping Points’ that can change bad donor behavior; the Community Centric Fundraising Movement; fundraiser and donor fragility; racial justice in the non-profit sector; and more.

Read the full article about philanthropy podcasts by Hannah Smith at Exponent Philanthropy.