Date: Friday, October 15, 2021
Time: 12:00pm – 2:00pm
Location: Online (registrants will be sent details on how to connect closer to the date)
Cost: Free to members and non-members

One of the consistent and critically important challenges in the charitable sector, particularly for charities working with vulnerable populations, is the tension between the drive to fundraise in a way that will maximize donation dollars vs. the vital importance of demonstrating need in a way that supports the communities we work with in the long term. Frequently, this comes from a feeling that the most “powerful” images are the ones that generate feelings of sadness, pity or guilt — which are often the images that simultaneously perpetuate cultural stereotypes, reinforce white savior complexes or remove agency. The drive to raise donation dollars can feel at odds with how we must operate to support the communities we work with, which means that what many fundraisers and charitable organizations face becomes a functional and an ethical dilemma which can lead to inconsistent and ineffective fundraising marketing. So, the question is, how can we, as fundraisers, reconcile this dilemma within ourselves and our organizations? How can we create and curate content that is effective and also responsible? Because responsible fundraising does not need to come at the expense of strong fundraising results.

Join Mo Waja, marketing storytelling expert and Fundraising Strategist & Digital Integration Specialist at Blakely, and Jess Myers, Fundraising Content Officer at Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) for a practical exploration of an intentional, responsible approach to fundraising storytelling, including an approach to help charities develop content in a way that avoids exploitation and a functional tool to help charities self-assess their own material for exploitative content.

Organized by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) of Greater Toronto for Ethics Awareness Month and sponsored by TD Bank. We are looking forward to a stellar event.