The Giving Black Podcast
The Giving Black Podcast promotes Black philanthropy and spotlights generosity in all its forms in the global Black community.
Listen to interviews that honour the culture and tradition of giving among Black people from the African continent, to the Caribbean, Europe, the Americas and across the globe.
I am your host, Olumide Akerewusi. Here's a bit about me: I am Founder and CEO of agentsC Inc., an international company delivering fundraising, philanthropy, and social change solutions to organizations across the world. I've spent 30 years working with major philanthropists, corporations, and grant-making foundations as well as charities to grow their impact. I am also a Black philanthropist.
I hope you enjoy this podcast, which will serve as an archive of wonderful and inspiring stories about Black generosity.
You can learn more about Giving Black by visiting our website at: www.givingblack.ca.
Philanthropy Is The Heartbeat Of The World!
The Giving Black Podcast
Michelle Renée Jackson's Inspiring Journey
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
At Giving Black, we say that "philanthropy is the heartbeat of the world". A conversation with Michelle Renée Jackson made me feel those words more deeply than ever.
Michelle Renée Jackson is a frank, fearless, and deeply inspiring woman. She is the founder of Simuel + Murray. She is a filmmaker, artist, fundraiser, and host of the Black Philanthropy: Our Stories podcast. Throughout her work, Michelle tells the stories of Black people, Black generosity, and Black community with honesty and grace.
Our conversation begins where many great stories do, with a life redirected towards our true passions. While studying for her Masters in Divinity at Harvard University, Michelle discovered that ministry was not her calling. Like many in our generation, she fell into fundraising backwards. What followed was a journey of reclaiming purpose, pursuing new dreams, and finding the courage to follow her heart, even when it unsettled her.
In this conversation we talk about what happens when perceived purpose gives way to real purpose. How to settle. How to find direction again. How to dare to dream.
Michelle States: The person who knows anything knows they don't know anything. Michelle Renée Jackson knows a great deal, and she is generous enough to share it all.
Our conversation moves into territory that felt as natural as two friends making sense of their realities together. We explore the war on DEI and its devastating impact on Black communities. We ask hard questions; is there a meaningful distinction between Black philanthropy and Afrocentric philanthropy among Black immigrant communities? Is there an imperative for Black philanthropy to support Black causes, or is that an unreasonable expectation?
We speak, we listen, we learn, and we reshape our understanding together. That is the true essence of dialogue, and that is what makes this conversation one I know I will return to over and over again!