The power of collaboration

Money alone is not the solution to the challenges we have today. The solution is to get us to change how we how we act.” That is one of many messages shared by Maria Ahlström-Bondestam, a fifth-gen Finnish philanthropist, in the latest episode of Circle’s podcast, Shaping Philanthropy.

Speaking down the line from Helsinki, Maria shares her family’s journey into philanthropy, why the focus on women and girls, how she measures impact, and why she takes collaboration so seriously.

A co-founder of the Eva Ahlström Foundation, and the Ahlström Collective Impact inititive, Maria makes the case for influential families to speak up to right wrongs and calls on fellow philanthropists to use their networks and power to speak up for forgotten people.

“We all are role models,” she says. “Either good ones or bad ones and that is somethig we have to remember as members of society. People can be inspired by us, but they can also be put off by us.”

Maria, who trained as a pediatric nurse and went on to work for UNICEF, recalls how her family’s first investment of Euro 200,000 into a village-level water and sanitation project in India, went on to be scaled by the government to impact 10 million children.

She also talks legacy, values, and finding a cause. “Think about what really matters to you,” she says. “What are your passionate about? What would you like to change?  And then have a go… Don’t overthink it.”

During the interview, our host, Anissa Punjani, also asks Maria about her inclusion in a recently-released study into next-gen wealth and impact.

Maria was was of more than 60 people from across 30 countries who was interviewed for LGT Philanthropy Advisory’s Wealth for Impact report, which explores themes of privilege, responsibility, and personal values, and how wealth is created, invested, spent, given, and transferred.