Many of us reach a point where we want our time, wisdom, and resources to go toward something that matters, but knowing where to start (and how to be genuinely useful) isn’t always obvious. In this conversation, Aila Malik draws on more than twenty years of nonprofit leadership to talk about the many ways people support social-good organizations, from board service and volunteering to mentorship and giving, and how to find the role that fits your strengths and season of life.

She’ll then take us inside her current work as Interim CEO of Hope Services, sharing who the organization serves, the scope of its work across the region, and where it’s headed next. Expect a practical and warm discussion, with plenty of time for questions about how each of us might lend our experience to the work of building stronger communities.

Aila Malik is a nonprofit practitioner, executive coach, and the founder of Venture Leadership Collective, where she helps social-good organizations, boards, and funders build the kind of capacity that lasts well beyond the next grant cycle. She currently serves as Interim CEO of Hope Services, Silicon Valley’s largest and oldest provider for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental health needs, which has supported individuals and families across the region since 1952.

Over more than two decades, Aila has led and advised organizations working in homeless services, mental health, foster care, juvenile justice, and education, guiding many of them through leadership transitions and periods of significant change. She is a Presidential Leadership Scholar, a recipient of the American Bar Association’s Child Advocate of the Year Award, and the author of three books, including Love in Action: A Social Justice Cookbook. She holds a JD from Santa Clara University and a BS from UC Santa Barbara. A mother and the daughter of immigrants, Aila writes and speaks widely on leadership, trust, and what it really takes to support the causes we care about.