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About This Episode

Greg Tehven runs a $5.5 million nonprofit with 40 teammates in Fargo, North Dakota. His advice to other leaders is to stop working on problems they can solve alone.

That's the thinking behind Emerging Prairie, the nonprofit Greg co-founded on a simple thesis: create the community you want to be part of. It's also behind Grand Farm, the agtech initiative he launched with a launch party and almost nothing else figured out, and TEDx Fargo, an event more than 1,000 people build their year around.

Guest co-host Stacy Huston, CEO of SixDegrees.org, brings Greg on to talk about tolerance for ambiguity, designing for generosity, and why the most valuable thing his organization does has never fit inside a grant application.

In this episode, you'll hear:

Why "make the problem bigger" is the fastest way to get more people working on it — and more fun besides
The business model Greg borrowed from a Buddhist teacher: if a tree adds value to the community, the community waters it
How Emerging Prairie designs for radical inclusion — childcare, food choices, time of day — and why those small barriers decide who shows up

You'll walk away with a way of building that doesn't require permission, a finished plan, or a bigger budget. 🩵

Episode Highlights:

(4:05) Gravel roads and good neighbors: the making of Greg
(7:38) From burnout to the Fargo thesis
(11:17) Designing for generosity: the business model
(14:09) Tolerance of ambiguity (and the TEDx story nobody saw coming)
(21:43) Fighting for self, team, and community
(26:50) The gift shop in India: learning to receive
(30:21) Serving the board before asking the board
(34:50) What doesn't show up in a grant application
(37:55) One good thing: make the problem bigger

Episode Transcript

Meet Greg: The Community Builder Betting That Fargo Is the Middle of Everywhere

Greg Tehven is the co-founder and CEO of Emerging Prairie, a Fargo-based nonprofit that has become the heartbeat of North Dakota's entrepreneurial ecosystem. He's also the co-founder of Grand Farm, an agtech initiative advancing technology in agriculture, and the curator of TEDx Fargo. Before Emerging Prairie, Greg co-founded Students Today, Leaders Forever, which brought more than 30,000 young people on multi-city Pay It Forward service trips.

He grew up on gravel roads outside Fargo in a farm family where helping a neighbor didn't require being asked — an instinct that still shapes how Emerging Prairie operates. Greg speaks openly about his own mental health journey and the changes he's made as a leader and father.

Powerful Quotes

"I think a mistake leaders make is they work on things they can solve themselves. If you can make the problem a little bigger, you get more people to work on it." -Greg

"It's not about the perfect graphic design. It's not about the perfect program. Sometimes it's about the power of the invitation." -Greg

"When folks need to start, they need to have a little more tolerance of ambiguity." -Greg

"We don't want to be the next Austin, Texas, or the next whatever trendy city. We want to be the first Fargo." -Greg

"Some would say we live in the middle of nowhere. I like to think we live in the middle of everywhere." -Greg

"If a tree adds value to the community, the community will water it and nurture it." -Greg

"You don't wait for somebody to help. If your neighbor needs help, you help." -Greg

"I spend a lot of my time trying to be the giver. I need to learn how to receive." -Greg

"Our biggest value doesn't show up in a grant application. How do you put an SROI on transformation?" -Greg

"As you serve us, we will serve you, and that's how the mission will live." -an Emerging Prairie board elder

"I'm enough. I'm not better than. I'm not worse than." -Greg

Resources Mentioned

Emerging Prairie: Fargo-based nonprofit energizing the region's entrepreneurial ecosystem
Grand Farm: agtech initiative co-founded by Greg, advancing technology in agriculture
TEDx Fargo: annual event drawing 1,000+ community members, curated by Greg
SixDegrees.org: nonprofit founded by Kevin Bacon fighting disconnection through storytelling, service, and community-first campaigns; led by guest co-host Stacy Huston
Students Today, Leaders Forever: social enterprise Greg co-founded in college; Pay It Forward service trips for 30,000+ young people
ServiceSpace / Nipun Mehta: source of the "designing for generosity" philosophy behind Emerging Prairie's mode
The Boulder Thesis (Brad Feld): the framework Emerging Prairie adapted into the Fargo thesis
Never Quitters by Howard Dahl: forthcoming book from an Emerging Prairie board member
Connect with Greg: LinkedIn / gregfromfargo@gmail.com

Join fellow changemakers, share takeaways from this episode, and keep collaborating in a space built for connection, inspiration, and real impact: ww w.weareforgoodcommunity.com

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