If change is hard, massive and meaningful change can seem impossible. But my guest on this episode of What the Fundraising is up to the task. As head of Community Impact and Partnerships for Patagonia, Whitney Clapper is innovating strategies designed to accelerate a paradigm shift in the way we live together and treat the planet. In this episode, much of our discussion focuses on the partnership dynamic between nonprofits and Patagonia, and what Patagonia looks for in its non-profit partnerships. You’ll find out the four specific areas that are currently the focus of Patagonia’s grantmaking and how, outside of grantmaking, Whitney acts as a conduit among different communities – expanding and binding together a network of activist organizations and the environmental and human causes they serve. 

Whitney’s marketing experience positions her perfectly to grow a community engagement platform based on communication, empathy, inclusion, and education. But, as Whitney points out, the work actually starts with the most basic of connections: Sharing stories. It’s what knits us together in all our diversity, and is our best hope. 

“We’ve got to get out of our own way and figure out how to be in partnership with one another if we are ever going to survive this world and climate change,” says Whitney. 

Listen now to join us in this boundary-pushing conversation about business partnerships, human connection, and what it will take to actually tackle the challenges ahead of us - like climate change