We’ve been doing this show for a while, and every so often the pieces just elegantly slide into place. In thirtyish minutes, Robert Pérez does this for us. Robert is the founder and Chief Exploration Officer of Wonder: Strategies for Good, a network of experts in messaging, storytelling, psychology and public-opinion research that works with foundations, nonprofits, activists, and advocates to advance progressive causes across the country and around the world.

Wonder has an incredibly exciting framework for message and strategy, called Heartwired, which helps communicators understand how to connect people’s emotions, values, beliefs, identity, and experiences to help bring about change from the inside out. It helps us understand how the “downstairs brain,” which is emotional and reactive, relates to the “upstairs brain”, which is thoughtful and empathetic. Instead of telling people what to think, he helps organizations connect with their audiences on a deeper level to make progress on challenging social issues.

It is a truly amazing conversation that helps us better understand the deep connections between strategy, narrative, messaging, and movement building. Enjoy!

Societies can’t thrive without sufficient levels of trust – trust in our elected officials, in our major institutions, the value of the dollar bill in our wallet, and even in our belief that our fellow motorists will abide by the traffic laws when we enter an intersection.

You know where this is going, don’t you? We have a trust problem that threatens every organization in our country. Kristen Grimm and her colleagues Claire De Leon, Michael Crawford, and Diana Chun at Spitfire Strategies have created a resource called Replenishing Trust: Civil Society’s Guide to Reversing the Trust Deficit™ that is designed to help organizations build trust at a time when it has never been more necessary.

Kristen speaks with Eric about why this matters, and more importantly, how to do it. This is another great resource from one of our field’s true visionaries.

When Chris DeCardy took the reins of the Heinz Endowments last year, he was one of the very few former foundation communications directors to ascend to the lofty heights of president. And Chris has dived in with the energy of a teenager. Indeed, if there is a more energetic – nay, ebullient – foundation president in the land, we haven’t met them.

Chris makes an extremely compelling case about how crucial western Pennsylvania is to our national and even international politics, and while he’s at it he reminds us how important intelligent communications strategies will be to build on important victories (like significant advances on climate, for one example).

Don’t miss this conversation between Eric and Chris, whose friendship dates back to the twentieth century, as they talk about how Chris’s background in journalism, environmental communications, and foundation leadership have led him to this place – the center of the universe!