93% of funders think they understand the challenges their grantees face.

Only 53% of nonprofits agree.

That 40% gap isn't just a number—it's an existential threat to the sector. And Dr. Elisha Smith Arrillaga has the data to prove it.

In this episode of Funding Bravely, host Marvin Smith sits down with Dr. Elisha Smith Arrillaga—Vice President of Research at Center for Effective Philanthropy—to talk about what happens when data meets courage.

Elisha's story begins in Mississippi. Her mom filed a lawsuit against the city for employment discrimination—and won. Those anti-discrimination laws are still in place today. Her dad worked at the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission in Birmingham during the civil rights era. Her grandmother was the first Black worker in a factory in a small Mississippi town.

"I stand on the shoulders of my parents and grandparents," Elisha says. "It's a privilege to do this work."

And she's doing it with urgency.

Because the data is screaming:

• 81% of nonprofits have experienced or anticipate increased demand for services
• 68% of nonprofits say the current context has negatively impacted their ability to do their work
• 61% of nonprofits face moderate to significant risk to their ability to continue operating

Meanwhile, funders think they understand. But there's a 40% gap between how funders perceive their understanding and how nonprofits experience it.

"If we're all trying to solve the same societal issues," Elisha says, "it's a problem if we have different understandings of what those are."

This conversation unpacks:

• Why data is a mirror—holding up truths we may not want to see
• How CEP turned around survey data in 10 days (not 6 months) to make it actionable
• The 40% perception gap between funders and nonprofits
• Why funders need to listen AND act, not just listen
• How to make data a conversation starter, not an endpoint
• Why joy is essential to leadership (even in dark times)
• How to think about data as movement infrastructure
• What distinguishes courageous foundation leaders right now

"Data is only powerful if people engage with it in the moment they need it," Elisha says.

This episode is a call to action. Not just to look at the numbers. But to do something about them.

TIMESTAMPS

• 0:00 - Data as a mirror: Holding up truths we don't want to see
• 3:00 - Civil rights legacy: Her mom sued for discrimination and won
• 6:00 - Why she fell in love with data as a tool for equity
• 10:00 - CEP's bold move: Making data public and moving conversations out of closed doors
• 14:00 - Navigating pushback: "Are you being too hard on the sector?"
• 18:00 - As a Black woman in data: Why she feels the need to show more evidence
• 22:00 - Data as a conversation starter, not an authority
• 26:00 - Turning data around in 10 days (not 6 months): Why speed matters
• 30:00 - THE NUMBERS: 81% increased demand, 68% negative impact, 61% existential risk
• 34:00 - The 40% gap: Funders think they understand. Nonprofits disagree.
• 38:00 - What distinguishes courageous foundation leaders right now
• 42:00 - How she leads with joy (even in crisis)
• 46:00 - Data as movement infrastructure
• 50:00 - Her call to funders: Listen AND act