What role can NGOs play as “learning labs” for public policy in the Majority World?

How can Community Health Workers (CHWs) help scale locally-led health programs?

And why are leadership succession plans so vital for founder-led organisations?

In this episode of Philanthropod, host Anubha Rawat sits down with Jennifer Schechter (Co-Founder & CEO) and Emily Benson (Chief Partnerships Officer) of Integrate Health. Founded in Togo in 2004 with a focus on HIV healthcare, Integrate Health has since expanded to partner with the Togolese and Guinean governments to improve access to quality primary care by integrating CHWs into national systems. Holding over 700 community meetings each year, Integrate Health uses community-led data and digital tools to strengthen health outcomes. They collect 13,000 household surveys and track 150,000+ CHW visits annually, creating a vital feedback loop for continuous improvement - from maternal health to child mortality to vaccine delivery.

Throughout the episode, Anubha, Jennifer and Emily discuss the role that NGOs can play as “learning labs” for governments. Often facilitated by philanthropic funding, NGOs can take more risks, test ideas and generate evidence in ways governments can't. In turn, this provides evidence-based models that governments can adopt, ensuring long-term sustainability in line with national health policies.

The episode also explores the importance of leadership transitions in founder-led NFPs. After two decades as CEO, Jennifer will step back to join the Board in December 2025 and Emily will step in as CEO. This has been a deliberate and strategic decision to demonstrate both Integrate Health’s organisational resilience but also commitment to employee growth.

👉 Learn more about Integrate Health here: integratehealth.org

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In this episode, Anubha speaks with Dr. Benjamin Wachira, Kenya’s first emergency physician and the visionary behind the Emergency Medicine Kenya Foundation (EMKF).

Ben reflects on his journey from a bright-eyed medical student eager to save lives, to recognising a devastating gap in his training: there was no structured preparation for handling patients in life-or-death situations. During his years studying in South Africa, he witnessed trauma cases from stabbings, shootings, and road accidents being treated every day - cases he realised he had never seen in Kenya. The reason was stark: most Kenyan patients in emergencies never made it to the hospital at all.

That realisation set him on a mission to transform emergency care back home. Through EMKF, Ben has worked alongside government and healthcare providers to build a system that was once non-existent. From drafting Kenya’s first national emergency healthcare policy (now enshrined in law) to creating emergency protocols, training frontline providers, and expanding public ambulance services from zero to ten, his work has started to reshape the system. Emergency departments in counties across the country are being renovated and equipped, and thousands of patients are now receiving lifesaving care each year who otherwise would not have had a chance.

As EMKF has grown, its work has reached beyond Kenya, offering research, tools, and lessons to support neighbouring countries as they develop their own systems. Ben’s story is one of persistence and vision, showing how one determined physician can not only save lives at the bedside, but reimagine an entire nation’s approach to emergency care.

Tune in to hear how emergency medicine is being transformed in Kenya, and why Ben believes access to timely care must be recognised as a basic right.

Philanthropod is powered by the Australian International Development Network and hosted by Anubha Rawat.

Thank you to Compact Sound for editing and mixing.

For more information about AIDN, and for more episodes, visit: www.aidnetwork.org.au.

For more information about Emergency Medicine Kenya Foundation, visit: https://www.emergencymedicinekenya.org/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when two entrepreneurs turn decades of business grit into bold, practical philanthropy? In this warm and engaging conversation, host Anubha Rawat sits down with Dave and Kerry Rickards, founders of the DAK Foundation and the DAK International Network. Having worked alongside them for more than a decade, Anubha brings out both the personal and practical sides of their remarkable journey.

Dave and Kerry married in 1971, dropped out of university, and soon after started a small market stall in Sydney. By 1973 they had moved into opals and jewellery, and in 1979 with another couple they co-founded Clints Crazy Bargains. Over the next two decades the discount variety store grew to more than 100 outlets before being sold in June 2000. With four children and a lifetime of entrepreneurial lessons behind them, they turned their attention to giving.

The Rickards then spent ten years travelling the world, meeting hundreds of NGOs across dozens of countries. They saw duplication, wastage and an overemphasis on capacity development rather than capacity utilisation. Most of all, they realised the striking difference in costs, where meaningful change in low- and middle-income countries could be achieved at a fraction of the price. Those insights shaped their philanthropic philosophy: find existing infrastructure, resource it, and get the job done.

Today, through the DAK Foundation and the DAK International Network, their giving focuses on restorative eye surgery, essential medical equipment, women’s health and family planning.

In this episode, Dave and Kerry reflect on how they got started, the lessons they learned along the way, and the people who inspired their giving, including the legendary Chuck Feeney. With warmth and humour, they show that philanthropy can be bold, deeply human, and guided by a simple truth: it’s not just about where your money goes, but how it can create lasting change.

Thank you to Ian at Compact Sound for recording and mixing and our host Anubha Rawat.

Philanthropod is powered by the Australian International Development Network - www.aidnetwork.org.au

To find out more about the DAK Foundation and DAK International Network, visit: https://dak.org.au/ and https://dakinternational.org/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.