Inside PEPFAR: What’s at Stake and How Churches Can Engage
Release Date: 05/16/2025
The Better Samaritan Podcast
What if giving could be joyful instead of guilt-driven? In this episode, Jamie Goodwin, professor at Wheaton College, shares how her background in global churches, journalism, and teaching led her to a deeper view of generosity. We talk about practical ways to give—like giving circles and hybrid nonprofit models—that engage communities and reflect diverse cultures.
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What’s on the horizon for foreign aid and humanitarian response strategies, especially in light of ongoing funding cuts to foreign aid around the world?
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Veteran humanitarian leader Roger Sandberg joins us to discuss how NGOs can lead effectively in the midst of funding cuts and uncertainty. As political shifts tighten budgets, the gap between global needs and available resources continues to widen. Roger shares practical strategies for assessing risk, strengthening communication within teams, and re-imagining sources of funding.
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How do federal and foreign aid cuts impact anti-trafficking work, both directly and indirectly?
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What happens when churches, governments, and communities work together across differences in opinion for the common good? In this episode, Dr. Walter Kim, President of the National Association of Evangelicals, joins us to talk about how different parts of the evangelical church are responding to shifts in humanitarian aid and funding, and why these varied responses matter.
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How do advocacy and policy help combat child hunger and malnutrition, both in the U.S. and around the world? In this episode, Rev. Eugene Cho, president and CEO of Bread for the World, joins us to talk about what’s needed to tackle food insecurity around the world, what’s working, what’s not, and why surface-level solutions won’t cut it.
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What happens when humanitarian aid gets pulled, but the needs don’t stop? In this episode, we talk with Dr. Beth Stuebing, a missionary surgeon in Malawi with the Christian Health Service Corps. She shares what it’s like on the front lines of healthcare when funding disappears—and why faith-based organizations working on the ground can’t do it alone.
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This episode, we talk with Jenny Dyer, founder of the 2030 Collaborative, about her involvement raising awareness for HIV/AIDS - from working with Bono and the ONE Campaign to championing global health in Washington and beyond.
info_outlineThis episode, we talk with Jenny Dyer, founder of the 2030 Collaborative, about her involvement raising awareness for HIV/AIDS - from working with Bono and the ONE Campaign to championing global health in Washington and beyond.
Jenny breaks down how U.S. programs like PEPFAR have saved millions of lives—and why hardly anyone talks about it anymore. We dig into what’s at risk as funding dries up and how churches can step in to advocate.
If you’re curious about how faith communities can make a real impact in global health, this episode is packed with practical ways to speak up and get involved.
LINKS -
(10:08) Haunted by Hopelessness: 12 Zambians share their stories as HIV drugs run out -
Haunted by hopelessness: 12 Zambians share their stories as HIV drugs run out
(15:57) Find your senators to contact - senate.gov
(17:04) Contact your legislators through One.org and receive a template of what to say - one.org
Read More From Jenny Dyer:
The aWAKE Project : Uniting against the African AIDS Crisis
The Mother and Child Project: Raising Our Voices for Health and Hope
The End of Hunger: Renewed Hope for Feeding the World
About Jenny Dyer - Jenny is the founder of The 2030 Collaborative, which focuses on promoting awareness, providing education, and encouraging advocacy for the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She also directs the Faith-Based Coalition for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. She has previously worked for former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist to mobilize advocacy for PEPFAR and other HIV/AIDS intervention from Christian leaders, and written many different pieces on the intersection between religion and global health. She lives in Franklin, Tennessee with her husband, John, and two boys, Rhys and Oliver.
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The Better Samaritan podcast is produced by the Humanitarian Disaster Institute at Wheaton College, which offers an M.A. in Humanitarian & Disaster Leadership and a Trauma Certificate. To learn more and apply, visit our website. Get your application fee to the HDL M.A. program waived with code TBS25.
Jamie Aten, Ph.D., and Kent Annan, M.Div., co-direct the Humanitarian Disaster Institute at Wheaton College and are the Co-Founders of Spiritual First Aid.
This episode was produced by WildfireCreative
Theme Song: “Turning Over Tables” by The Brilliance
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(Note to the listener: In this podcast, sometimes we'll host Evangelicals, and sometimes we won't. Learning how to “do good, better” involves listening to many perspectives with different insights and understanding. Sometimes, it will make us uncomfortable; sometimes, we'll agree, and sometimes, we won't. We thi
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