Hot Takes with Liana Toscanini
Photo Courtesy of Liana Toscanini
Liana grew up in New York City and New Rochelle, NY where her parents modeled community service and volunteering. She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a B.A. in French. Her work experience included stints at French companies, Newsweek Magazine, and fashion firms where she developed her creative marketing skills on a budget. Her crowning achievement was the creation of the national Ugly Couch Contest featured on Live with Regis & Kelly, CNN, The Today Show, and The Wall Street Journal.
Liana moved to the Berkshires in 1996 and immediately jumped into volunteering. She served in leadership roles at the Sandisfield Newsletter, Sandisfield Arts Center, Sandisfield Historical Society, Friends of Yanner Park, and the Sandisfield Cultural Council, winning an Unsung Heroine Award in 2006 from the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. She is particularly proud of her 6 years working on the Sandisfield Arts Center historic restoration project which won a Preservation Award from the Massachusetts Historical Commission and placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
After running her own linen store for 6 years, and serving on CATA’s board and staff for 14 years, she founded the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires in 2016. During this time, she served as an officer on the board of the Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce and represented the Berkshire region on the board of the Mass Nonprofit Network. She is the recipient of several awards, most recently “Business Person of the Year” by the Southern Berkshire Chamber.
1. How did you first end up working in the non-profit world?
When I lived in NYC, I never had time to get involved as a volunteer. Within a year of moving to the Berkshires I began volunteering for the Sandisfield Newsletter and the Sandisfield Arts Center. I applied my marketing background, learned how to write grants, hold fundraising events, and lead a board of directors. About ten years later I got hired by CATA in the position of development & marketing director where I was able to witness the growth of a nonprofit through its “teenage” years and into maturity. I took my 20 years of nonprofit experience and poured it into the launch of the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshire in 2016.
2. What would you say to someone who wants to get more involved in a cause they believe in but don’t know where to start?
To wrap your arms around all of your possibilities, get a hold of our Giving Back guide which lists every nonprofit by category of interest! I really enjoyed starting in my own neighborhood. Small town volunteering allows you to meet your neighbors and learn how things work in the Berkshire nonprofit world. If you’re an environmentalist, you can serve on your town’s “Green Committee.” If you’re a parent, you can serve on the school committee or help organize fun events for kids. In my case, I love old buildings as well as building community so the Sandisfield Arts Center was the perfect historic restoration project for me.
3. What sort of challenges are you bracing for in 2025 and beyond?
The alarm bells are already sounding for 2025, especially around the topic of fundraising in what is sure to be a competitive environment with many potential emergency scenarios. NPC is very nimble and people seem to understand that support for NPC translates directly into support for all Berkshire nonprofits. We’re ready to pivot to whatever needs doing, just as we did during COVID. So hopefully the community will continue to support the solutions and services we create to meet the challenges of the times. One thing that is always in demand is more networking to foster collaboration, communication, and cooperation. We have a lot of that in the plans for 2025. We’ll also be trying to elevate our advocacy role.
4. Do you have any strategies for combatting the need for instant gratification when lasting, sustainable change often takes so long?
Donating to nonprofits does help fill the need to “DO SOMETHING” when crises and concerns emerge. Hands-on volunteering is a wonderful way to keep busy and focused on improving the world, which does wonders to keep the anxiety associated with the current chaos at bay. Nonprofits are getting better at telling their impact stories but one shouldn’t discount the little guys who often fly under the radar. They, too, have the ability to change the narrative in their grassroots way. Volunteering is a way to witness that for yourself and feel good about your role in making a difference.
5. What are some small, easy activities we could all do to support the initiatives we believe in rather than spending time endlessly doom scrolling?
The Berkshire nonprofit sector is so robust, you could literally pick a different project to support every month. January is ripe with MLK day of service opportunities, especially around food drives. Check in with local agencies such as Berkshire United Way and Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, and civic groups such as Rotary and Kiwanis, and certainly your local library, town hall, and Council on Aging to find out what’s going on and who needs volunteers. Local media is another great way to find out about charity events. It’s fun to get a group of friends together to tackle a volunteer project (think Habitat for Humanity or a charity 5K run). You can even form a giving circle, pool your funds, and research organizations to support. Attending any kind of community event such as a performance, art exhibit, ceremony, festival or roadside cleanup will often open the doors to opportunities to get involved.