683. Why Most Capacity Building Fails — and What Works Instead - Leona Christy, Catalyst Exchange copertina

683. Why Most Capacity Building Fails — and What Works Instead - Leona Christy, Catalyst Exchange

683. Why Most Capacity Building Fails — and What Works Instead - Leona Christy, Catalyst Exchange

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Meet Leona 🤝, founder and CEO of Catalyst Exchange. Leona’s vision is bold and timely: to transform how nonprofits and schools build capacity—so leaders aren’t trying to change the world with a shovel and a dream. Through flexible funding, trusted expertise, and community-centered partnerships, Catalyst Exchange is strengthening the systems and people behind lasting impact.

In this conversation, Leona shares her journey from India to the U.S., and how her experiences shaped a mission rooted in equity, agency, and trust. She challenges traditional, funder-driven models of capacity building and offers a more responsive, mission-driven approach that centers those closest to the work.

Join us for a powerful conversation about sharing power, resourcing resilience, and showing up—especially when it’s hard.

Learn:

  • Why traditional capacity building often fails—and how to redesign it around mission and community
  • The difference between “painkillers,” “vitamins,” and “vaccines” in strengthening organizations
  • How flexible funding models restore agency to nonprofit leaders
  • What effective, equitable capacity building looks like in practice
  • Why resourcing community-based organizations is critical for long-term ecosystem health
  • Leona’s personal journey from immigrant professional to sector innovator—and how it shapes her leadership today

Episode Highlights:

  • The Real Problem with Traditional Capacity Building (06:12)
  • From Program Funding to Systems Strengthening (07:45)
  • Capacity Advisors: Strategy, Therapy + Clarity (10:02)
  • Flexible “Wallet” Funding and Restoring Leader Agency (11:38)
  • Painkillers, Vitamins + Vaccines: A New Capacity Framework (16:05)
  • Place-Based Partnerships + Ecosystem Strength (14:52)
  • Mission-Driven, Responsive + Timely Capacity Building (20:58)
  • The Equity Gap in Capacity Resourcing (23:10)
  • Making the Case: Connecting Capacity to Fundraising Outcomes (26:18)
  • Moments of Generosity + Expanding Who Deserves Funding (29:42)
  • Leona’s One Good Thing: Show Up + Practice Perspective (32:52)

Episode Shownotes: www.weareforgood.com/episode/683

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