Rachael Jarosh & Suzanne Ehlers: Women-led philanthropy for refugees

In this episode we talk to Rachael Jarosh and Suzanne Ehlers, Chair and CEO respectively of USA for UNHCR, the US-based support organisation for the United Nations refugee agency, about their new women-led philanthropy project Building Better Futures. Including

• What is the aim of the Building Better Futures campaign and how did it come about?
• Why was it decided to focus on access to education? What makes that such an powerful catalyst for wider change?
• Why do female refugees face particular challenges when it comes to accessing education?
• Does fundraising from female donors need to be done differently? If so, how?
• Why is narrative and storytelling so important?
• What impact does applying a gender lens to funding have?
• Do female donors put more of an emphasis on collective approaches? What additional value can this bring?
• Is it easier or harder for a large organisation like the UNHCR to fundraise from donors than for a smaller organisation?
• Are there particular challenges right now for organisations working with refugees and migrants? How can these be overcome?

Further Resources:

• USA for UNHCR
• The Building Better Futures campaign
• Jessica de Rothschild talking about her involvement with Building Better Futures in Spears Magazine
• Suzanne and Jessica de Rothschild's article for Inside Philanthropy, "Fundraising Wasn’t Built for Women. So We Built Something New"
• WPM article "Philanthropy at a time of chaos"
• Philanthropisms podcasts with Sarah Jeffrey, Victoria Tayler & Lonnie Hackett; Lisa Greer, Farahnaz Karim; and Elizabeth Barajas-Román