Tina Wahl is the President of the Barra Foundation, a private foundation that invests in innovation in arts and culture, education, health, and human services in the Greater Philadelphia region.

“We’ve evolved over the years, but always have had innovation really at the heart and soul of the foundation and its mission,” says Wahl.

The Barra Foundation was founded in 1963 by Robert L. McNeil Jr., a chemist and chairman of McNeil Laboratories, known best for the creation of Tylenol. As a scientist, McNeil was keen on supporting innovative practices based in the scientific method, which could be empirically evaluated, and used to strengthen communities and drive transformative impact.

As Wahl explains, the Barra Foundation believes in a community-driven approach to innovation, one that's about, “testing something, evaluating it, and then disseminating the lessons learned." They also believe in giving their grantees the space needed to experiment and invent.

In this conversation, she discusses how innovation can be leveraged to build stronger and healthier communities in the Philadelphia region. She also talks about the local impacts of COVID-19, what long-term effects the crisis may have on local philanthropy, and how the region might rebound.