"Following the Trump administration's cuts to foreign aid, two-thirds of Mercy Corps' U.S.-funded programs have been rescinded. CEO Tjada D'Oyen McKenna shares how she's leading her team amid immense pressure-scrambling to find new ways to help those in need, even as she resorts to layoffs to keep the business afloat. McKenna reveals what she's hearing from her team of aid workers on the ground in Gaza, and why she isn't running away from burnout but embracing it."
"Rapid ResponseAbout two thirds of your programs were rescinded. I mean, it's like an existential crisis, a true existential crisis for the organization. So what did you do? I mean, you faced a slew of urgent decisions, hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast CompanyI mean, the irony is your organization is all about responding to crisis when it emerges and now the crisis becomes you."
Tjada D'Oyen McKenna leads Mercy Corps through severe funding loss after U.S. foreign-aid cuts removed roughly two-thirds of U.S.-funded programs. U.S. government support accounted for about half of Mercy Corps' funding, creating an existential organizational crisis when programs were rescinded. The organization is scrambling to find alternative funding and program models while making layoffs to preserve core capacity. Field teams remain active in Gaza and report dire humanitarian conditions, including famine risks. Leadership is balancing immediate response needs with long-term survival, confronting burnout while weighing options that include fight, flight, or freeze amid political uncertainty heading into 2025.
Read at Fast Company
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