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Home Blog Challenging the Traditional Approach to Philanthropy – Weh Yeoh’s New Model for Making a Difference
1Jan

EP#46 – Challenging the Traditional Approach to Philanthropy – Weh Yeoh’s New Model for Making a Difference
By Claire Wescombe | Blog, Podcast, Real Talk With Outperformers, The Outperformer, Brad Eisenhuth, Charity, Charity work, Helping society, Weh Yeoh | 1 Jan 2024 |
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On this week’s episode of Real Talk With Outperformers, Brad welcomes Weh Yeoh, a social entrepreneur and the author of "Redundant Charities," a book that challenges the traditional charity model and proposes a thought-provoking approach to philanthropy. Weh and Brad discuss the complexities of social issues and the organizations that aim to tackle them as well as the relationship between charities and government, the motivations behind individual donations, and the challenges of balancing emotional responses with strategic action.


Here are some highlights of his conversation with host, Brad Eisenhuth:


Weh’s Journey to Entrepreneurship

Weh's journey began with his experiences in visiting impoverished countries, which led him to question the effectiveness of traditional charity work. Additionally, his time volunteering in an orphanage during a natural disaster was a pivotal moment, sparking the realization that good intentions aren't always enough. This moment inspired him to start a charity in Cambodia focused on establishing the speech therapy profession, with the ambitious goal of training 100 speech therapists by 2030 and then shutting the charity down, leaving a sustainable legacy – creating a new model of charity with an end-point in mind.


What is the Role of a Charity?

Weh discusses the role of charities in addressing complex social issues, using homelessness in Australia as an example. Weh continues to question whether it is realistic for a charity with a $100 million budget to solve such a multifactorial problem entirely on their own. Instead of this, Weh suggests that the role of charities may be to instigate change and create the necessary conditions for solving the problem.

This interesting perspective challenges the traditional ‘norm’ of charities as entities that exist solely to provide ongoing assistance. Weh instead emphasizes the importance of leaving a lasting legacy and creating sustainable change. Charities should perhaps aim to create sustainable solutions, empower communities, and establish systems that can continue to address the issue even after the charity's involvement ends. By shifting the focus from immediate relief to long-term impact, charities can play a crucial role in addressing complex social problems and creating lasting change.


Balancing ethics and fundraising goals

Balancing ethics and fundraising goals is a critical challenge for many charities all over the world. On one hand, charities have a moral obligation to address social issues and make a positive impact on the world. On the other hand, they need to secure funding to support their programs and operations. This tension between doing good and raising funds can often lead to ethical dilemmas and compromises.

Weh highlights the conflict between, for example, program teams, who focus on doing the actual work and monitoring its impact, and fundraising teams, who are responsible for attracting donors and securing financial resources. The fundraising team often pushes for strategies and messaging that may not align with the values and mission of the charity, but are more likely to generate donations. This can include using exploitative and sensationalist imagery, to evoke pity and sympathy from potential donors.

One of the key challenges in balancing ethics and fundraising goals is the pressure to solve complex social issues with limited resources. Charities often face unrealistic expectations from donors who believe that their donations alone can solve world hunger or eradicate poverty. Weh and Brad discuss how charities need to be realistic and honest about what they can achieve within their scope and resources.


The Idea of ‘Redundant Charities’

Currently, many charities are incentivized to grow and maintain their operations, rather than working towards their own redundancy. This cycle of dependence can hinder progress and prevent meaningful change from occurring – as if the change was occurring, the charity might not need to continue to operate.

To combat this issue, Weh introduces the topic of ‘redundant charities’, which is essentially a charity that sets itself up with the goal to be redundant at the end. Weh’s own charity in Cambodia is an example of this format. Within Cambodia, there are zero speech therapists present, yet it affects nearly half a million people. Weh and his team have the goal to train and establish a hundred speech therapists by 2030, all the while creating an eco-system for speech therapists to continue to grow and thrive, and then they aim to shut the charity down.

By staying focused on the purpose and avoiding mission drift, as Weh is doing with his work in Cambodia, charities can create positive change and contribute to a better society. By thinking about the end goal and working towards creating sustainable change, charities can ensure that their work has a lasting impact and builds up more methods for success even after they are gone.

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