1: From Funder to Funding-Seeker: Lessons from Both Sides of the Table with Helen Anderson
What happens when someone who spent years making funding decisions becomes the person seeking support? In this episode, Helen Anderson reflects on a career spent moving between philanthropy and community organisations, offering a rare perspective on what each side often misunderstands about the other. From assessing grants and supporting systems change work to leading volunteer-powered organisations and co-creating The Boring Fund Aotearoa , Helen shares lessons about trust, fundraising, generosity, and the everyday realities facing community organisations. Together, we explore whether philanthropy is designed around what communities actually need, why operational funding can be difficult to secure, and what becomes possible when funders place greater trust in people closest to the work. We also discuss the future of volunteering, the pressures facing the community sector, and what a more human-centred funding system might look like. This conversation speaks to anyone interested in the future of philanthropy and how we can build funding relationships that are less transactional and more transformative.
