Rust Belt Startup is a podcast full of long-form interviews with entrepreneurs, artists, educators travelers, and change-makers. They’re people who have built a business, a movement or a life outside of a major city and the confines of a 9-5.
We’ll reconstruct what paths they chose (or how the paths chose them), the stories behind their success, and pick apart the tools and tactics that you can use improve your life.
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Rust Belt Startup is a podcast full of long-form interviews with entrepreneurs, artists, educators travelers, and change-makers. They’re people who have built a business, a movement or a life outside of a major city and the confines of a 9-5.
We’ll reconstruct what paths they chose (or how the paths chose them), the stories behind their success, and pick apart the tools and tactics that you can use improve your life.
A Sustainable Fundraising Playbook for Non-Profits with Lara Sepanski Pimentel (Osa Philanthropy)
Rust Belt Startup
1 hour 9 minutes 14 seconds
4 months ago
A Sustainable Fundraising Playbook for Non-Profits with Lara Sepanski Pimentel (Osa Philanthropy)
Fundraising expert Lara Sepanski Pimentel, founder of OSA Philanthropy and former Peace Corps volunteer, joins me to unpack what makes a nonprofit—and any mission-driven venture—truly resilient. Drawing on field lessons from community-development work in rural Central America and a decade inside U.S. nonprofits, Lara explains why “capacity” — the people, processes, and systems behind the programs — must come before the next big grant push.
In this conversation you’ll learn:
Peace Corps principles in practice – how asset-based thinking, local ownership, and radical resourcefulness translate into stronger donor relationships and staff culture.
The “capacity first, cash second” framework – diagnostic steps to spot operational gaps before chasing new money.
Fast vs. slow money – a pragmatic playbook for raising six figures quickly through warm individual donors while laying groundwork for longer-cycle institutional funding.
Reframing the ask – shifting from “begging for help” to “offering investment” so donors see themselves as partners, not patrons.
Running a location-independent consultancy – Lara’s approach to managing global contractors, Zoom-first client work, and family life across continents.
Nonprofit earthquake preparedness – why diversified revenue and data-driven dashboards are the new insurance policy in a volatile funding landscape.
Rust Belt Startup · A Sustainable Fundraising Playbook for Non-Profits with Lara Sepanski Pimentel (Osa Philanthropy)
Rust Belt Startup
Rust Belt Startup is a podcast full of long-form interviews with entrepreneurs, artists, educators travelers, and change-makers. They’re people who have built a business, a movement or a life outside of a major city and the confines of a 9-5.
We’ll reconstruct what paths they chose (or how the paths chose them), the stories behind their success, and pick apart the tools and tactics that you can use improve your life.
