In this episode of The Audacity Tapes, I sit down with Kind Cotton co-founder Kaitlin Johnstone for a conversation about moral courage, public conviction, and the growing cultural backlash against inclusion, equity, and human dignity.

Before launching Kind Cotton, Kaitlin spent eight years as a kindergarten teacher where she witnessed firsthand how access to books, and whose stories were represented inside them, shaped children’s sense of belonging and worth. What began as quietly purchasing books for students who could not afford them eventually evolved into a nationally recognized mission-driven company that has now donated more than 270,000 inclusive books to children across the United States.

But Kind Cotton is not simply an apparel company centered on literacy.

It is a public declaration that business, values, and justice cannot be separated for the sake of comfort.

In this conversation, Kaitlin shares what happened when parents threatened protests over inclusive books, why she ultimately left both teaching and the state of Florida, and what it means to continue speaking publicly in a culture increasingly rewarding cruelty and silence.

Together, we explore the difference between niceness and true kindness, why silence is complicity, and the responsibility of using privilege to advocate for those whose voices are increasingly under attack.

This episode also marks the launch of the Audacity Impact Activation — a recurring global action initiative designed to align powerful conversations with measurable impact. The inaugural activation will support Kind Cotton’s mission by funding the donation of 100 inclusive books to children.

• Why inclusive books became a lightning rod for cultural backlash
• The difference between niceness and true kindness
• Leaving Florida amid escalating attacks on inclusive education
• Building a values-driven company despite financial risk
• Why silence is complicity in moments of injustice
• The normalization of cruelty and public hate
• The emotional impact of helping children feel seen
• Using business as a vehicle for social justice and human dignity

00:00 — Opening introduction
01:09 — When Kaitlin realized stories shape visibility and belonging
08:10 — The backlash against Kind Cotton begins
11:15 —  Leaving teaching and leaving Florida
14:02 — Private beliefs vs. public conviction
20:15 — Kindness versus niceness
23:15 — Losing customers for speaking out publicly
26:14 — “Silence is complicity”
36:48 — The emotional impact of inclusive book fairs
44:31 — Launching the Audacity Impact Activation initiative

Kaitlin Johnstone is the co-founder of Kind Cotton, a mission-driven apparel company she runs alongside her husband, Kevin, while supporting literacy, representation, and human rights initiatives nationwide.

Prior to launching Kind Cotton, Kaitlin spent eight years as a kindergarten teacher and was honored twice as Teacher of the Year. Their work centers on the belief that kindness is rooted in justice, grounded in action, and open to change.

• https://kindcotton.com/
• Instagram: @kindcotton
• https://www.facebook.com/kindcottonclothing

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:

https://godfreyfinancial.com

Sometimes they begin quietly. With one person recognizing that vulnerable people are falling through the cracks and deciding the existing system is not enough.

In this episode, Sue Ludwig, founder of the National Association of Neonatal Therapists (NANT), explores how one occupational therapist helped transform an emerging specialty into a global movement focused on developmental care inside the NICU.

What began as a deep commitment to fragile infants and their families evolved into an international effort to improve standards, training, collaboration, and long-term developmental outcomes for babies around the world.

But this conversation reaches far beyond neonatal therapy.

Sue shares powerful lessons on leadership, resilience, emotional sustainability, movement building, and what it means to protect humanity inside systems often driven by speed, pressure, and efficiency.

• What happens when you realize the existing standard of care is not enough
• The courage required to build something that does not yet exist
• Why meaningful change often feels painfully slow in real time
• The emotional resilience needed to sustain mission-driven work
• How protecting energy and alignment can transform both leadership and life
• What tiny humans can teach us about purpose, growth, and human connection

This is a conversation about advocacy, systems change, and the quiet audacity of choosing humanity first.

00:00 — Building humanity into high-tech medicine
01:13 — How Sue fell in love with the NICU and neonatal therapy
02:46 — The moment Sue realized neonatal therapists needed a movement
07:00 — The challenges of protecting developmental care inside intensive medicine
09:19 — Sue’s vision for neonatal therapy around the world
11:08 — What the NICU taught Sue about burnout, energy, and alignment
17:17 — Why meaningful change often feels painfully slow in real time
21:51 — Building a movement, emotional resilience, and leading with compassion

Connect with Sue Ludwig

https://neonataltherapists.com/

Tiny Humans, Big Lessons: How the NICU Taught Me to Live with Energy, Intention, and Purpose.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1774580977?utm_source=chatgpt.com

National Coalition for Infant Health
https://infanthealth.org/

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

The next day, Make-A-Wish arrived at her house.

For decades, Erin lived with cystic fibrosis under the shadow of an expiration date — until a devastating doctor’s appointment forced her to confront a painful reality: sometimes the most dangerous thing a patient can lose is not treatment, but hope.

In this powerful episode of The Audacity Tapes, Erin shares what it felt like to be dismissed inside the healthcare system she depended on to survive, the fight to find a doctor who would finally listen, and the breakthrough treatment that saved her life when she was nearing end-stage disease.

We explore medical dismissal, self-advocacy, identity, resilience, and the psychological reality of surviving a future you were never supposed to have.

This is a conversation about voice.
About power.
And about the audacity to keep living.

• Growing up believing she would not live past eighteen
• Why she rejects the phrase “live like it’s your last day”
• The psychological impact of living with an expiration date
• What medical dismissal actually feels like inside the healthcare system
• The danger of being labeled “non-compliant” as a patient
• Finding a doctor who finally listened and refused to give up
• The emotional complexity of surviving end-stage disease
• Rebuilding identity after surviving a future she never expected to have

00:00 — Living with an expiration date
03:12 — Joy, urgency, and the day Make-A-Wish arrived
07:33 — Planning for a future she wasn’t supposed to have
10:51 — What healthy people misunderstand about time
16:08 — “You woke up today”
17:17 — The doctor who took away her hope
20:33 — Finding a doctor who refused to give up
26:13 — Surviving end-stage disease and rebuilding identity

Website: https://erinmark.com/

TEDx Talk:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjjPwKtEhOQ

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinmark/

Continue the Conversation

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

In this powerful and deeply human conversation, Svitlana Salamatova, President of the Geopolitical Alliance of Women, takes us inside the lived reality of Ukraine: a nation fighting not only for territory, but for democracy, dignity, and survival.

This episode is not a geopolitical analysis.
It is a firsthand account of what it means to live through war and to keep building anyway.

Svitlana shares what the world still doesn’t understand:
that Ukraine is not just a conflict zone, it is the center of a global struggle between democracy and authoritarianism.

She speaks to the psychological toll of prolonged uncertainty, the reality of displacement, and the quiet strength of a people who wake up each morning, go to work, send their children to school all while living under the threat of attack.

But at the heart of this conversation is something deeper:

Ukrainian women as builders.

Builders of schools.
Builders of systems.
Builders of hope in the middle of collapse.

From launching refugee schools in Romania within days of fleeing Kyiv, to convening women from opposing sides of global conflict at the United Nations, Svitlana challenges what leadership looks like and who should be at the table when the world is being rebuilt.

She also speaks candidly about the cost of speaking out including the pressure to stay silent while living in the United States without permanent status.

This conversation is not easy.
It is not meant to be.

It is a call to witness.
A call to responsibility.
And a reminder that war is never as far away as we think.

• What the world still fundamentally misunderstands about the war in Ukraine
• Ukraine as the frontline of a broader global conflict
• The psychological and generational impact of living under constant threat
• Why Ukrainian women are uniquely positioned as “builders” in times of crisis
• What happens when women are excluded from peace negotiations
• The reality of displacement and what it means to live without status or home
• The role of the United Nations as both a limitation and an opportunity
• Why strong women rarely ask for help and why that must change
• What people in “peaceful” countries don’t fully grasp about war
• The quiet but profound power of human support, solidarity, and acknowledgment

• 1:33 — Ukraine Is the Frontline of a Global Conflict
• 5:01 — Life Under War: The Illusion of “Normal”
• 7:59 — Ukrainian Women as Builders
• 11:15 — From Bombs to Building: Fleeing Kyiv and Starting Again
• 18:42 — If the System Fails, Build a New One
• 23:21 — The Rooms That Won’t Hold the Truth
• 33:57 — The Cost of Speaking Out
• 46:41 — What War Takes — and What It Leaves Behind
• 50:27 — The Future We’re Still Fighting For

Geopolitical Alliance of Women
https://geowomenalliance.com/

Support their work:

• Advocacy for Ukrainian protections in the U.S.
• Programs supporting children who have lost parents in the war
• Global coalition-building among women in conflict zones

This episode doesn’t end when the conversation does.

Here’s what Svitlana asked of us:

• Acknowledge Ukrainians — as neighbors, as humans, not headlines
• Support advocacy efforts by contacting members of Congress
  • U.S. Capitol Switchboard 1 (202) 224-3121
• Amplify organizations actively supporting displaced Ukrainians
  • https://novaukraine.org/
  • https://worldrelief.org/
• Lead with humanity — not distance

Because indifference is not neutral.
It shapes outcomes.

The thinking continues beyond the mic.
Explore deeper reflections, essays, and conversations:

Substack: https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where confidence and agency aren’t just discussed, but experienced.

Learn more:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

Women, Power, Justice, and the Global Backlash

Each episode builds on the last—unpacking what’s happening beneath the surface, how power operates, and what it means for women across the world and in our everyday lives.

After five episodes examining backlash, power, justice, and the human cost of exclusion, we arrive at the only question that matters:

Now what?

In this final chapter of our special series, we move beyond diagnosis and into action.

This episode explores what it takes to close the gap between rights on paper and rights in practice, why lasting change is built through coalitions rather than lone heroes, what it costs societies when women are excluded from power, and why some systems cannot simply be repaired—they must be redesigned.

From justice access and youth leadership to peace negotiations, global security, and the future of international law, this conversation brings the full arc of the series together with one central challenge:

What role will you play in the world already being shaped around you?

This is not an episode about passive awareness.

It is an episode about agency.

It is about the truth that progress is rarely accidental, power rarely reforms itself voluntarily, and ordinary people have always been part of history’s turning points.

• Why awareness alone does not create change
• The gap between legal rights and lived reality
• How one-stop centers, mobile clinics, and inclusive design expand justice access
• Why coalitions move what individuals cannot
• What young women’s exclusion reveals about who gets to shape the future
• The measurable cost of locking women out of power
• Why women’s leadership is a peace and security strategy
• The push to modernize outdated global legal frameworks
• How listeners can move from outrage into action

• 00:15 — Final episode: Now what?
• 03:01 — Rights on paper, barriers in real life
• 06:38 — Why change takes all of us
• 11:28 — Stop building the future without them
• 15:14 — The price of excluding women
• 19:22 — Rewrite the rules
• 23:23 — No more spectators
• 24:50 — What role will you play?

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:

Substack: https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions—especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind—having the right partner matters.

Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making for decades—not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, they create space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

This 5-part series is also supported by Meier Law Firm, PLLC — a woman-owned, all-women law firm serving New York’s Capital Region since 2011. Founded by Christina W. Meier, the firm provides compassionate, personalized counsel in estate planning, elder law, estate and trust administration, guardianships, and real estate.

Because access to justice should be personal.

Learn more at:
https://www.themeierlawfirm.com/

Women, Power, Justice, and the Global Backlash

Each episode builds on the last—unpacking what’s happening beneath the surface, how power operates, and what it means for women across the world and in our everyday lives.

Episode 4 Summary:

What happens when power stops being political and starts shaping whether you can go to school, leave your house, report violence, protect your children, or simply move through the world safely?

In this powerful fourth installment of the 5-part series Women, Power, Justice & the Global Backlash, we move to the frontlines—centering the voices of women living the real-time consequences of political decisions and systemic injustice.

From Afghanistan, where women’s rights have been systematically dismantled, to women carrying the cost of conflict in Ukraine, Syria, South Sudan, and Iran, to the crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, this episode brings listeners closer to what these systems actually feel like in real life.

This conversation explores not only harm, but what women reveal in the middle of it: courage, survival, leadership, resistance, and the cost of enduring what never should have been demanded of them.

We talk about:

• Afghanistan and the systematic erasure of women from public life
• What war does to women’s bodies, families, and nervous systems
• The realities women face in Ukraine, Syria, South Sudan, and Iran
• The ongoing crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
• Why broken data and institutional failure deepen harm
• The danger of romanticizing survival instead of changing systems
• Why these stories matter to all of us
• What it means to move from awareness to action

0:00 - Introduction
04:12 — Afghanistan: when erasure becomes law
10:31 — Women carrying the cost of conflict in Ukraine, Syria, South Sudan, and Iran
16:25 — Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
24:40 — Stop romanticizing survival
26:35 — Why this should matter to you
29:05 — Setting up the final episode: what comes next

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions—especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind—having the right partner matters.

Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making for decades—not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, they create space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

This 5-part series is also supported by Meier Law Firm, PLLC — a woman-owned, all-women law firm serving New York’s Capital Region since 2011. Founded by Christina W. Meier, the firm provides compassionate, personalized counsel in estate planning, elder law, estate and trust administration, guardianships, and real estate.

Because access to justice should be personal.

Learn more at:
https://www.themeierlawfirm.com/

Each episode builds on the last—unpacking what’s happening beneath the surface, how power operates, and what it means for women across the world and in our everyday lives.

We often assume progress means systems are working.

More women in leadership. More policies. More commitments. Stronger language. Greater visibility.

And while those gains matter, this episode asks a deeper question:

What happens when progress looks convincing on the surface—but fails women in real life?

In Episode 3, we explores the gap between intention and impact, between what systems promise and what women actually experience when they need justice, safety, opportunity, or support.

From global institutions to workplaces, from conflict zones to everyday environments, this episode examines where systems break, who carries the cost when they do, and why visible progress should never be mistaken for finished work.

• Why naming values is not the same as living them
• How visible progress can mask deeper structural problems
• Why representation matters—but is not the full story
• What happens when women closest to the problem are farthest from power
• How systems can fail quietly, not just dramatically
• Why resilience should never become an excuse for poor design
• How these same patterns show up in workplaces and everyday life
• Why partial progress must be protected—but examined honestly

00:00 – Introduction: The Gap Between Promise and Reality
04:30 – Why Progress Can Look More Complete Than It Is
06:50 – Visibility, Power & the Limits of Representation
08:45 – Where Systems Break in Real Life
14:45 – Why Exclusion Creates Costly Outcomes
18:15 – How These Patterns Show Up Closer to Home
22:10 – The Audacity Moment: What We Do Now
25:30 – Next Week: The Frontlines

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:

https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions—especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind—having the right partner matters.

Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making for decades—not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, they create space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

This 5-part series is also supported by Meier Law Firm, PLLC — a woman-owned, all-women law firm serving New York’s Capital Region since 2011. Founded by Christina W. Meier, the firm provides compassionate, personalized counsel in estate planning, elder law, estate and trust administration, guardianships, and real estate.

Because access to justice should be personal.

Learn more at:
https://www.themeierlawfirm.com/

After naming the global backlash in Episode 1, the next question becomes unavoidable:

How is power actually shifting underneath it?

Because on the surface, it looks like progress.

More women in leadership.
More policies.
More visibility.

But what emerged across multiple sessions at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) was something more complex:

Representation is increasing—without a proportional shift in influence.

In this episode, we move beyond surface-level indicators of progress to examine how power actually operates inside systems.

Because power isn’t just about who is visible.

It’s about:

• what gets measured
• what gets funded
• and what gets prioritized

Drawing from three key conversations—women in parliament, the Nordic model, and global data systems—we unpack the mechanisms shaping outcomes in real time.

And why what looks like forward movement doesn’t always translate into real change.

• The difference between representation and real influence
• Why legal progress doesn’t always translate into lived outcomes
• How data determines visibility, funding, and priority
• The role of measurement as a form of power—not just information
• What the Nordic model reveals about equality as economic infrastructure
• Why systems can absorb change without redistributing control
• How power is maintained through design—not just decision-making
• Where we’re seeing early signs of power beginning to shift

00:00 – Introduction: Power Is Shifting—But Not in the Way You Think
01:42 – The Illusion of Progress: Representation vs Influence
02:29 – The Mechanism of Power: Data, Visibility & Funding
04:35 – What Gets Counted Determines What Gets Funded
06:16 – The Nordic Model: Equality as System Design
07:30 – Following the Money: Resource Allocation as Power
08:55 – Lived Experience vs Policy Reality
13:20 – Where Power Is Beginning to Shift
19:37 – The Pattern: Progress Without Redistribution
22:05 – Next Week: Where the System Breaks in Practice

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

This 5-part series is supported by Meier Law Firm, PLLC — a woman-owned, all-women law firm serving New York's Capital Region since 2011.

Founded by Christina W. Meier, Esq., the firm provides compassionate, personalized counsel in estate planning, elder law, estate and trust administration, guardianships, and real estate.

Because access to justice should be personal.

Learn more at:
https://www.themeierlawfirm.com/

Each episode builds on the last—unpacking what’s happening beneath the surface, how it’s operating, and what it means moving forward.

Episode 1 Summary:

What I witnessed at the United Nations wasn’t subtle.

It was clear.
Consistent.
And happening across regions, ideologies, and systems.

In this opening episode, I take you inside what I saw, heard, and am still processing from the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70).

Because what’s unfolding globally is not isolated.
It’s not reactive.
And it’s not happening quietly.

This is a coordinated, well-funded, and strategic backlash—one that is actively reshaping how women’s rights, power, and access to justice are understood and prioritized.

We talk about:

• Why the backlash against women’s rights is global—not localized
• The difference between reaction and strategy
• How alignment across unlikely actors is accelerating this movement
• Why this moment is about power—not just policy
• The systems and structures driving what we’re seeing
• How narrative, influence, and momentum are shaping outcomes in real time

Key Moments:

00:00 – Introduction: A Global Shift We’re Not Fully Naming
00:20 – The Backlash Is Real — And It’s Coordinated
03:25 – What’s Driving This Moment (Alignment & Structural Forces)
09:00 – How It Operates: Strategy, Narrative & Polarization
14:45 – Why It’s Winning: Power, Resources & Infrastructure
20:30 – What It’s Causing: Real-World Impact Across Systems
26:15 – What Comes Next: Leadership, Strategy & Response
32:45 – Next Week: Who Actually Holds Power?

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:

https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Supporting Sponsors

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table - creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com 

This 5-part series is supported by Meier Law Firm, PLLC — a woman-owned, all women law firm serving New York's Capital Region since 2011. Founded by Christina W. Meier, Esq., the firm provides compassionate, personalized counsel in estate planning, elder law, estate and trust administration, guardianships, and real estate. Because access to justice should be personal.

Learn more at:
https://www.themeierlawfirm.com/

We often talk about reinvention like it’s a choice.  A bold decision. A strategic pivot.

For Sarah Barnes-Humphrey, it wasn’t.

After 20 years working in her family’s business — the only career she had ever known — the doors closed just days before her 37th birthday. In a single moment, she lost not just her job, but the identity she had built her life around.

What followed wasn’t clarity. It was uncertainty, survival, and starting over from scratch.

In this conversation, we explore what it actually takes to rebuild when there is no roadmap — from taking part-time jobs while launching a business, to confronting self-worth, failure, and the pressure to have it all figured out.

Sarah shares how she learned to release perfection, trust her instincts, and follow the signals that led her to create Let’s Talk Supply Chain and the Blended Podcast — platforms now shaping conversations around industry, inclusion, and identity.

This episode is not about starting over. It’s about what collapse reveals.

We discuss:

What it means to lose not just a job, but a version of yourself

Rebuilding from zero after two decades in one company

The reality of starting over while still needing to survive

Why perfection keeps people stuck — and what actually moves you forward

The ongoing battle with self-worth, comparison, and rumination

Why many women wait for collapse before choosing themselves

01:06 — The moment her world fell apart
03:51 — Losing identity along with the job
06:22 — Learning to do things imperfectly
09:20 — Recognizing and acting on “signs”
10:51 — Walking away from the wrong path
12:17 — Rebuilding self-worth from the inside out
17:50 — Rumination as self-punishment
33:18 — Why we’ve lost the art of conversation
34:26 — What it cost to rebuild — and why it was worth it

Website: https://sarahbarneshumphrey.com/

Podcasts:  https://sarahbarneshumphrey.com/content/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahbarneshumphrey/

Book — I Buried Her in a French Press
https://a.co/d/0aNyugTi

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

What does it take to turn private grief into national change?

In this deeply human and unflinching conversation, Robbin Jorgensen sits down with Kristen Christy — a national leader in suicide prevention, military spouse, and the originator of what became the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

Kristen’s story is layered with both love and loss: a life-altering stroke as a teenager, the strength of community in military life, and the devastating reality of losing her husband to suicide. But the story doesn’t end there. She speaks candidly about what families live with in the aftermath — the ongoing weight, the unanswered questions, and the lifelong impact on children.

Out of that lived experience came a radical question, asked in the quiet hours of the night:

Why do we have a three-digit number for medical emergencies — but not for mental health crises?

That question became a decade-long fight through stigma, bureaucracy, and relentless “no’s,” ultimately helping bring 988 to life nationwide in 2022.

This episode is about audacity at a national scale — and the way one woman turned grief into action, persistence into policy, and heartbreak into hope. Kristen also shares her three-step definition of real resilience, why “No” means “Next Opportunity,” and why hope isn’t a feeling — it’s a practice we choose, again and again.

03:12 — A stroke at 15 — and the moment everything changed
07:48 — The night her husband died by suicide
20:53 — Living with uncertainty: her son’s disappearance
24:48 — A voicemail that reveals the generational impact of suicide
04:55 — The 3 a.m. question: why not a three-digit number for mental health?
08:27 — 988 goes live nationwide
12:13 — “No” means “Next Opportunity”
16:39 — The three steps of real resilience

If you or someone you love is struggling, help is available.

Call or text 988 (United States) to connect with trained crisis counselors 24/7.
Free and confidential. Text and chat available.

For LGBTQ+ youth and young adults, additional support is available through The Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 or thetrevorproject.org.

Website: https://www.kristenchristycares.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristenchristy/

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table - creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at: https://godfreyfinancial.com

A clinical child psychologist and founder of Bright Spot Families, Dr. Mata has dedicated her career to going “upstream” — interrupting harm long before it becomes tragedy. Rooted in the personal loss of her brother to violence, her work focuses not on punishment, but prevention, agency, and the daily decisions that shape who children become.

In this conversation, we explore why waiting until a child becomes a headline is already too late — and why prevention is inconvenient for leaders, parents, and systems alike.

Dr. Mata challenges popular narratives around gentle parenting, trauma-informed approaches, and victim mindsets, arguing that high expectations paired with high support create the strongest developmental outcomes — in families and in workplaces.

We discuss:
• Why prevention is harder — but cheaper — than punishment
• The four core reasons children behave the way they do
• The danger of confusing empathy with lowered expectations
• Why consistency forms secure attachment
• How parenting principles apply directly to leadership
• The moral cost of ignoring early intervention

This episode is not about blame.
It’s about responsibility.

01:18 — What it means to go “upstream”
07:28 — The courtroom moment that changed her life
09:01 — “So you have ADHD. What are you going to do about it?”
14:19 — Why gentle parenting doesn’t work
17:04 — High expectations within the context of warmth
18:20 — Process goals vs. outcome goals
25:04 — Why we invest in entertainment but not personal development
29:55 — The three parenting pillars (consistency, understanding behavior, positive ratio)
33:14 — The 5:1 positive-to-negative interaction rule

Website: https://www.brightspotfamilies.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drandreamata/

TEDx Talk — From Murder to Mission: How I Found My Life’s Calling
https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=dr.+andrea+Mata+ted+talk&mid=9D5954EBA66E981217AD9D5954EBA66E981217AD&churl=https%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fchannel%2fUCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q&FORM=VIRE

Book — The No. 2 Parenting Book: Practical Tips for the Pooped-Out Parent
https://www.brightspotfamilies.com/book

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

In this powerful conversation, Army Command Sergeant Major (Ret.) Gretchen Evans — Purple Heart recipient and founder of Team Unbroken — shares what it means to lose your identity and choose to live anyway.

After surviving a 2006 mortar blast in Afghanistan that left her permanently deaf, Gretchen was medically retired from the military after 27 years of service. In an instant, she went from leading 30,000 troops to questioning whether she had a place in the civilian world at all.

She has described that season as feeling like “an oxygen thief walking the face of the earth.”

This episode explores identity interruption, invisible wounds, grit, and the power of a single word: yes.

From the service dog that helped save her life, to competing in The World’s Toughest Race - Eco Challenge Fiji with a mixed-ability team, to founding Team Unbroken — Gretchen’s story is not about overcoming injury.

It is about refusing to let injury define you.

She challenges the idea that catastrophic events are periods at the end of a sentence.

Instead, she offers something different:

What happened to you may be a comma.

And you still get to decide what comes next.

• The moment she learned she was permanently deaf
• The invisible wound of self-doubt after identity loss
• Why grit is a decision, not exhaustion
• The power of the word “yes” when someone is hanging by a thread
• Why Team Unbroken competes to demonstrate possibility, not dominance
  
• The Rope Team concept — and what it means to never leave anyone behind
• Hearing her own voice again after 19 years

01:02 — The mortar blast that changed everything
05:21 — Writing “Forever?” on the dry erase board
10:01 — Feeling like an “oxygen thief”
12:37 — “You can’t do the things you used to do anymore”
17:01 — One word: Yes
38:05 — The invisible wound: self-doubt
43:44 — Hearing for the first time in 19 years

Website: https://www.GretchensRopeTeam.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TeamUnbrokenUSA

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:
https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table — creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

Do we truly see one another — or do we reduce each other to labels?

In this powerful conversation, Gabrielle Claiborne — author, TEDx speaker, leadership strategist, and advocate — shares what it means to live authentically as a trans woman in a world where identity is debated in headlines and policy rooms.

This episode explores dignity, courage, visibility, and the cost of silence — and what becomes possible when we choose to see each other fully.

Gabrielle speaks candidly about the quiet exhaustion of navigating systems that misunderstand you, the accumulated weight of small indignities, and the courage required to stay rooted in truth when your existence becomes political.

She reflects on faith, family, leadership, and the responsibility each of us carries to move closer rather than further away from one another.

This conversation is not about abstraction. It is about humanity.

We talk about:

• What it does to the spirit when your humanity is debated
  • The daily vigilance required to move through public spaces
  • The difference between symbolic allyship and real solidarity
  • The myths surrounding gender-affirming care
  • What bans and erasure communicate to entire communities
  • Why Gabrielle believes trans people model the hardest inner work humanity must embrace

This is not a conversation meant to overwhelm.
It is a conversation meant to humanize.

Some of what you hear may land softly. Some may land hard. But at its core, this episode asks one central question:

Are we willing to see each other as fully human?

7:48 — I am much more than trans

10:59 — It’s like death by a thousand paper cuts

22:24 — Your silence on matters that are personal to me will eventually become personal to you

24:22 — Are you standing close enough to get hit by the same stones?

40:54 — Trans people are the solution to humanity

49:41 — Joy is a choice

52:56 — You have to act on the truth of your heart

Website: https://www.transformationjourneysww.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielle-claiborne/
TEDx Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/gabrielle_claiborne_building_your_courage_muscles_jan_2020
Book — Embrace Your Truth: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735197408

The thinking continues beyond the mic. Explore essays, reflections, and extended conversations on Substack:

https://substack.com/@robbinjorgensen

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Supporting Sponsor:

As a woman navigating financial decisions — especially when the system wasn’t built with you in mind — having the right partner matters.

For three decades, Godfrey Financial has intentionally centered women in financial decision-making — not as an afterthought, but as leaders.

In a field where women are often expected to sit to the side, Godfrey Financial places women at the head of the table - creating space where women don’t just discuss confidence and agency, but experience it in practice.

Learn more at:
https://godfreyfinancial.com

“I want to share this keynote with you because we stand at a critical moment in time for women’s rights. And it is going to take all of us standing up and speaking out in order to stop the erosion that all of the women before us fought so hard for,” says Robbin Jorgensen. In this episode of Women Igniting Change, Robbin reflects on the Seneca Falls Convention, the first women’s rights convention in America held 176 years ago. She shares her experience delivering the keynote at the 170th anniversary in 2018, highlighting the ongoing struggle for women’s rights.

Robbin’s emotional journey through the historical sites of Seneca Falls connects deeply with the bravery of the women who fought for our rights. She underscores the progress made and the work still needed, urging listeners to rise, overcome self-doubt, and make meaningful impacts. With examples of trailblazing women like Rosa Parks, Rachel Carson, and Nancy Brinker, Robbin calls us to action, emphasizing the responsibility to consider the impact of our actions on future generations and continue the legacy of the first wave of women’s rights advocates.

Quotes

• “We’ve come so far since the days that they demanded the right to vote and to be treated as equal citizens. And, ladies and men, we still have work to do. With everything that they created and all of the progress that’s happened, it’s been 170 years and we are still shouting to be heard in boardrooms, in workplaces, and in communities around the world.” (03:49 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “170 years ago, they had pens and voices. And look at the extraordinary milestones that they were able to change, to create, to enact. They did all of this without the telephone, without mass communication, without planes, and without social media.” (04:43 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “We still have these powerful tools of pens and voices, and the resources to use those tools to impact millions of people with our message in a matter of minutes. We can connect instantly to women on the other side of the world, share our stories, and better understand the human experience. In developing countries, women are still fighting for their right to an education, for equal access to decent jobs, and to be able to think, act, and be in the world as themselves, independent of any man.” (05:03 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “Those limiting beliefs are not your truth. Your truth is that you are meant to shine your light and show up as the fullest expression of who you are as a human being.” (08:24 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “This is our moment in history to pick up the mantle and be the next wave, to advocate and fight for women’s rights. We are the next wave who will not allow the opinion of others to drown out our own voice. We are the next wave who will fight for our rights in the U.S. and for women around the world. We are the next wave who will no longer allow gender inequality to define our reality. We are the next wave who will complete the work towards gender equality that began 170 years ago right here where you stand. I say we because I am right there with you. We're in this together.” (09:22 | Robbin Jorgensen)

Links

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Declaration of Sentiments

Women's Rights National Historic Park

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Hey, changemakers! Today, Robbin introduces an invaluable framework to help you organize and realize the social impact you aim to achieve. In this episode of Women Igniting Change, she guides you through a seven-step process called the Theory of Change model, using an organization focused on reducing food insecurity as an example. 

In the links below, you’ll find an accompanying worksheet with various examples of how companies have implemented this model.

Throughout the exercise, you’ll examine the core aspects of your operation and envision your ideal outcomes. You’ll determine the internal changes you want to implement for your beneficiaries, identify the problems and needs your organization will address, and evaluate the resources and activities required. This dynamic framework is designed to evolve with your ongoing research.

Ready to make real change in the world? Let Robbin be your guide as you begin this journey.

Quotes

• “A ‘theory of change’ model helps you, in a snapshot, identify what you’re actually going to achieve. So, it can be seen as both a process—which it is, it’s a seven-step process—and also a product. So, it’s kind of like a road map that helps you articulate the changes you want to make in the world and how you plan to achieve it.” (0:54 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “It links your activities to your outcomes and makes it really clear how and why your program will be effective.” (1:14 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “It’s so crucial to create a theory of change model to begin with when you want to affect any type of social change in the world. It tells a common story. This ensures that everyone involved in your social impact understands the big picture and where their individual efforts fit in. And it also brings together really diverse perspectives.” (2:31 | Robbin Jorgensen) 

Links

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Reproductive health includes so much more than just abortion, yet that’s all people think about because it’s been so politicized,” says Pari, who along with Eve, is working to combat mis-and dis-information about reproductive rights. Recognizing that the majority of Americans under 30 use social media as a legitimate new source, and that there was a lack of pro-choice presence across the platforms, the two women provide education and awareness building about reproductive rights on their social media channel @gemma_talks. This begins with clarifying the differences among reproductive rights, reproductive health and reproductive justice, respectively. It continues by reiterating that, since “the fall of Roe,” the consequences of denying women their reproductive rights are dire, and they affect everyone in ways they often don’t realize. 

Social accountability presents a unique set of challenges. Whereas traditional advocacy is more focused, Pari and Eve have to design their message for an audience which varies wildly in terms of education and awareness. They work to help build sexual reproductive healthcare ecosystems which include everyone from health service providers to funders to advocacy groups and social movements, all of which remain vulnerable in a shifting political landscape where funding is limited. Still, they are hopeful that through their “vigilante activism” they will reach and transform tomorrow’s change-makers and in doing so, ultimately have a lasting impact on policy. 

Quotes

• “This is an arena where genuine change needs to be made for women to be able to truly self actualize to their full potential.” (05:41 | Pari)
• “Quite frankly, women are tired. We’re tired. Advocacy work is important because it helps reignite people’s energy. It helps them remember their voice again and that they have something to fight for. When you add in the public health lens, it really highlights that nothing exists in a vacuum. Every health issue intersects with race, with income, with environment, just to name a few, and public health makes it clear that women’s issues aren’t just women’s issues. They affect everybody.” (10:48 | Eve) 
• “Social accountability is so important. In regular reproductive health programming, social accountability tools are exceptionally useful for driving civic engagement, building relationships between community members and duty bearers, and facilitating the creation of action plans and generating collective responsibility.” (21:39 | Pari)
• “Advocacy on social media is made additionally complicated by the fact that your audience can be absolutely anyone. Normally, advocacy’s targeted, but on social media, there isn’t a baseline for someone’s awareness of an issue, or level of engagement, or even level of investment, and, frankly, even education level. You have to design your messages in a way that speaks to a broad depth of comfort with that issue.” (24:37 | Pari) 
• “One thing that people don’t think about, though, is how abortion bans make it more dangerous for women who genuinely want to get pregnant. So, some of my friends who very much want a baby are scared to get pregnant because if anything goes wrong, their life may be at risk depending on their zip code.” (27:07 | Eve)

Links

Connect with Pari and Eve

Instagram: @gemma_talks

TikTok: @gemma_talks

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Do you even know we exist? Do you have an understanding of refugee camps?” asks Mary Maker who was once a refugee from South Sudan. Mary never forgot the harsh realities of the Kakuma camp in Kenya. With her firsthand experiences of limited access to higher education and employment, she turned her trials into action. While teaching in the camp, she seized an opportunity to study at Bridge2Rwanda, which enhanced her skills before attending St. Olaf College in Minnesota. Her journey inspired her to co-found Elimisha Kakuma, a college preparatory program tailored for the refugees at Kakuma, using education as a means to empower and rebuild lives.

In today’s episode of Women Igniting Change, Mary joins host Robbin Jorgensen to discuss the formidable challenges faced by refugees, especially young women, in pursuing education. She shares insights from her TED Talk and advocacy efforts that are pivotal in garnering university support for her program. Mary also reflects on the empowering realization of education’s role in transforming lives.

Tune in to explore how Elimisha Kakuma is striving to meet the UN’s “15 by 30” pledge, aiming to enable 15 percent of refugees to access tertiary education by 2030, perpetuating a cycle of opportunity for future generations.

Quotes

• “You would see their eyes light up. Every night in the camp we would sit on a mat and all the older folks would tell us stories of home, something to keep us connected. And our mothers would cook food from home because everything tasted like war, and they wanted us to feel a taste of home.” (6:17 | Mary Maker)
• “I really hated to assimilate, I hated to learn languages, and it should be a fun thing, but for me it was a sign that I might move next. I was never sure that this was going to be permanent. (7:49 | Mary Maker)
• “One time one of the students asked me, ’You talk so passionately in class and about education. Why are you still in the camp? Why aren’t you in college?’ They know the dead end. They know there’s a dead end. A lot of refugees have graduated high school and they don’t have any place to go.” (16:52 | Mary Maker) 
• “The biggest challenge was, ‘How do we reach universities?’ Because, number one, they would say, ‘OK, we don’t trust you.’ There is trust that needs to be built. And this is where my advocacy comes in. I have a Ted Talk. I am a UN ambassador. This is my credential. I will knock at every university door to let them see what the camp is like.” (30:01 | Mary Maker) 
• “I challenged every university; there were 300 universities in the room. I said, ‘Do you even know we exist? Do you have an understanding of refugee camps?’ because we easily can be a part of the monolith of international students, but we’re not. We don’t have a home to go back to. We have ten times the problems that a regular student who is applying.” (30:44 | Mary Maker) 

Links

Connect with Mary Maker:

https://marymaker.org/

https://www.elimishakakuma.org/

https://www.unhcr.org/us/prominent-supporters/mary-maker

https://www.instagram.com/marymaker_43/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-maker/

https://www.ted.com/talks/mary_maker_why_i_fight_for_the_education_of_refugee_girls_like_me?language=en&delay=30s&subtitle=en

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

When it comes to creating real social impact and change, host Robbin Jorgensen explains, “It’s not something that you can do solo.” On this episode of Women Igniting Change, she walks you through her Social Impact Stakeholder Map, an eight-step process designed to help you understand the interconnections and interdependencies within and beyond your sphere of influence. Robbin asks you to rank people, institutions, and organizations in your life by their level of interest—those with whom you could potentially collaborate—and influence—those who can open doors for you that you can’t open yourself. You will also assess the strength of your current connections with each one.

Once you’ve identified your ideal network, the next step is to start reaching out. Robbin explains how to approach people and organizations professionally to lay the groundwork for success and make a lasting impression. Learn who your best points of contact are, the best social media platforms for networking, and the proper research to conduct before initiating contact.

Break out your markers and post-its and get ready to expand your footprint—and have fun in the process.

Quotes

• “You’re going to need a multitude of individuals to help you create real social impact and change - it’s not something you can do solo.” (2:28 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “Always keep in mind that vision that you have for your social change as you’re thinking through these different questions.” (7:55 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “Now, I want you to dive into thinking through the centers of influence. Those are individuals and/or organizations that are really well-regarded in the space that you want to influence and impact, and they have a ton of credibility and potential to provide introductions for you and/or resources that you may not have access to. So, they tend to have really impressive decision-making power, and they have tremendous assets to help you achieve this social impact and vision.” (10:43 | Robbin Jorgensen) 

Links

Social Impact Stakeholder Map

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Change makers—believe it or not, we’re already halfway through 2024. Where are you in your mission toward creating lasting social change? Have you begun? To help you refocus and set your intentions for the rest of the year, Robbin revisits the episode where she introduced The Bigger Game, an innovation model designed to help you map out and intentionally design the change you want to make in the world. She walks you through the nine-square grid model, prompting you to consider essential questions like your deeper “why,” what scares you (in a good way), and what investments are needed for your mission to succeed.

Women, especially, often need a precise roadmap before taking risks. One setback can make us want to give up entirely. At the center of this model is the most important skill: taking bold action. Without it, as Robbin says, it’s all just a nice conversation.

Are you ready to take bold action? Join Robbin as she guides you through the questions that will help you build a long-lasting legacy.

Quotes

• “And for women especially, this is the one that typically stops us—because we can’t see all 15 steps laid out in front of us as to how something is going to transpire, we talk ourselves out of it—’Nope, I can’t possibly do it.’ But when you’re playing a bigger game, you have to lean in and trust that the how is just going to show up as you take steps toward that bigger game and I promise you it does, every single time.” (2:59 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “Give yourself permission to dream and imagine that deep desire for social change that you want to put out there. It’s an invitation to turn that dial back up and dare to want for something more than just you.” (7:37 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “People who say to you, ‘That is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard. You can’t possibly do that. What are you thinking?’ Those are allies, too, and here’s why: When they say something like that to you, I want your response to be, ‘Oh, yeah? Watch me. I’ve got this.’” (11:47 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “This legacy of what you’re putting out into the world lives beyond you. In the United States, for those of you who are familiar with this organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving, if I asked you who the two women were who started it, probably no one would be able to answer it. And we deliver The Bigger Game in workshops inside organizations and no one has known the answer to this. And it’s not that those two women are not important, what’s important is what they put out into the world sustained their involvement in it.” (12:34 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “Without bold action, the rest of it is just a really nice conversation.” (14:56 | Robbin Jorgensen)

Links

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“How do we think about people and create an environment where we see each other as human beings contributing to the work?” C. Marie Taylor, President and Principal Consultant at Equity Through Action, is at the forefront of fostering safer, more inclusive workplaces. Her focus is on empowering historically marginalized individuals to be fully recognized and valued. In this episode of Women Igniting Change, she discusses with host Robbin Jorgensen the critical examination of the 3 Ps: people, policies, and practices. They explore how misalignments between company and personal values can impact workplace culture and the work itself, particularly in the pressing current climate of the U.S.

C. Marie often finds that leaders mistakenly believe they are exempt from needing change, not realizing they might benefit most. She illustrates how a leader’s satisfaction with the workplace culture can falsely imply that all employees feel the same. The episode delves into the complexities of navigating politics at every level and differentiating between policy and personal preference.

Tune in to today’s conversation for insights into the evolving workplace and learn how you can contribute to enhancing diversity and inclusion within your own organization.

Quotes

• “Some of the misconceptions that folks really have going into this is that it can be solved with one or two trainings. That leadership doesn’t need to be part of the trainings. Seriously. They say, ‘Oh, no. This is for the middle level managers and the direct line folks,’ I say, ’No, it’s actually you. Bob. Jamal. Linda. It’s you and the things that you say and how you show up.” (11:44 | C. Marie Taylor) 
• “So there’s this misconception that, ‘Oh, we have this great culture because I’m happy and the leaders are happy. But you haven’t looked at anybody else. And so when I come in and the organization, the team comes in—because it’s not just me—comes in and says, ‘Well, here’s what’s happening from all the individuals, this is the collective culture that’s happening, not the one that you think is happening.’” (13:06 | C. Marie Taylor) 
• “Your humanity is tied up in my humanity, and if we don’t continue to recognize that, we’re going to continue to suffer. So it’s really pulling ourselves back and then just centering my humanity with yours and understanding that it’s tied together in work, in the community, whether I’m crossing the street or in the grocery store. If we could do that, the world would be a better place.” (27:11 | C. Marie Taylor)

Links

Connect with C. Marie Taylor:

Website: www.equitythroughaction.com

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Our goal is to reveal bias, not to tell you what to think,” says today’s guest Alice Sheehan, CEO and CFO of AllSides, an organization focused on strengthening our democracy with balanced news, media bias ratings and real conversations. On today’s episode of Women Igniting Change, she talks with host Robbin Jorgensen about AllSides’ mission to move away from the old ‘Ministry of Truth’ style news to bring people credible and unbiased news. She talks about the value of feedback, and the importance of diversity in all aspects of life. 

She explains the various types of news bias, including the one that can make family members gathered around the dinner table feel like they are living on different planets. For its part, AllSides is working to draw people back toward civil discourse. Alongside the organization Living Room Conversations, it’s launched Mismatch, an initiative to help students in school learn how to have productive dialog with people with whom they disagree. Alice talks about the further impact AllSides has had in schools, particularly in light of the recent push toward including digital literacy in classroom curriculum. 

Alice joined AllSides looking for a new sense of purpose. Her career is an example to so many women who are afraid to pivot: when change is calling you, don’t be afraid to answer. 

Quotes

• “Back in college, I had taken a vocations class and they had introduced me to this idea of asking yourself three questions: What are you good at? What makes you happy? What does the world need?’ And if you can find something that’s in the intersection of those three questions, that’s the sweet spot.” (2:09 | Alice Sheehan)
• “It’s all about how we define ourselves as humans, which is in a multitude of ways. It’s race, it’s gender, it’s age, socioeconomic status, where I grew up, what the composition of my family was. All of that goes into perspective, and some of our perspective gets defined as politics, but a lot of it doesn’t have anything to do with politics.” (10:15 | Alice Sheehan) 
• “Credibility changes constantly with any outlet. So, they might get one story really right and they might get one story really, really wrong and print a retraction, or maybe they never do. And that happens across the board. Whereas we find that bias is more consistent. So, we have consistently focused on bias. Where we get a lot of feedback is people want us to focus on credibility.” (13:56 | Alice Sheehan)
• “We see this a lot, actually, in our current context where the Right-leaning sources will really focus on a story that the Left won’t even mention. And the Left-leaning sources will focus on a story that the Right won’t even mention. And so then when people are talking to each other at their dinner table at Thanksgiving, it’s like they’re in two different worlds.” (17:59 | Alice Sheehan) 

Links

Connect with Alice Sheehan:

https://www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news

www.mismatch.org

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

An early childhood vision test revealed that Chelsea Elliott was partially blind, a discovery that set her on a path to vision advocacy. In this episode of "Women Igniting Change," host Robbin Jorgensen talks with Chelsea, founder and Executive Director of half Helen and a Nexstar Media Remarkable Woman for 2024. Motivated by her own experiences, Chelsea has dedicated her life to advocating for earlier and more frequent vision screening and interventions for children.

Through her nonprofit, half Helen, Chelsea provides essential screening technology, consultations, and eyewear to the Austin community, focusing on mitigating severe vision issues and enhancing the quality of life for many, including seniors and those in underserved populations. She discusses her journey in developing mobile optometry clinics and her advocacy for legislation that supports the use of photo screening technology for all school-aged children across Texas.

Chelsea emphasizes that healthy vision is critical for all aspects of life and is often overlooked until a problem arises. She notes that 63% of children suffer from vision issues that are frequently misdiagnosed as learning or behavioral problems. Vision screenings also serve as vital tools for diagnosing other health issues within the body, such as diabetes, highlighting the importance of integrating eye care into primary health care.

Chelsea reflects on the value of perseverance, the importance of networking, and the power of collective action. She stresses that collaborative efforts ("we") are more impactful than individual endeavors ("I") in creating sustainable changes. Join us to hear how Chelsea's dedication to vision health is opening eyes across Texas and beyond.

Quotes

• “It’s not enough to just give someone a pair of glasses. One of the biggest challenges I combat in my role is—people assume you should just be grateful. Just give them a pair of glasses and that solves their problem but if they don’t feel comfortable wearing them or they don’t like them, they will not wear them so you’re basically wasting resources. So, why not figure out how to offer a service that meets both of those needs and allows us to treat our patients with the dignity that they deserve?” (9:22 | Chelsea Elliott) 
• “I measure success when patients come back and say, ‘I feel safe cooking again’ or ‘I haven’t cut my hand, I haven’t burned myself because I can see now.’ One challenge I have with communicating our changing outcomes to funders is, your eyesight plays a role in every activity from the time you wake up to the time you go to sleep, so it’s really challenging to pinpoint what role your eyesight doesn’t play.”  (14:21 | Chelsea Elliott)  
• “The eyeball is the only organ that allows you to look inside the body without cutting it open, which makes it so cool and makes it such an easy access point to learn. We can tell if you’re hypertensive, if you’ve had a stroke, if you have diabetes, we can tell several health conditions—cancer—by looking in the eye.” (20:31 | Chelsea Elliott)

Links

Connect with Chelsea Elliott:

Website: https://halfhelen.org/

Mission Video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjDlzeAn57E

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“I had to remove the mother aspect and remove the emotion, which was really hard in the beginning,” says Cheryl Marron, founder of Flutters of Hope, whose mission is to spread hope, compassion and understanding and to break the stigma surrounding eating disorders. She joins the Women Igniting Change podcast to tell the story of her daughter, who at the age of 11 began displaying symptoms of disordered eating. She shares the complicated and often frustrating process of finding help for her daughter, how her own background in counseling influenced that process, and some of the telltale signs and symptoms that something might be going on with your child. 

Eating disorder recovery is an ongoing and often isolating process. Flutters of Hope provides baskets full of care items, resources as well as financial support and personalized notes assuring those afflicted–as well as their families–with a message that they are not alone. Cheryl details the staggering cost of recovery, and as a deeply spiritual person, the signs she received along the journey telling her to continue building Flutters of Hope. 

What should a caretaker’s first concern be when caring for someone with an eating disorder, and what would she do differently if she could go back? Find out on today’s episode. 

Quotes

• “We just utilized what little was available to us. We had a counselor, we had a nutritionist, we had what would be called a behavioralist, but really wasn’t. We had the endocrinologist and we had the primary, all of which was unfortunate because they weren’t cohesive, they were not communicating. So each person, each therapy, was very different, different modalities, so we struggled with ‘Who do we listen to?’ Meanwhile, the eating disorder was getting extremely worse. She wasn’t making any progress.” (3:21 | Cheryl Marron) 
• At one point, I said, ‘All right, I’m not a mom. What would I tell my clients? How would I tell my clients to help her?’ So, I had to remove the mother aspect and remove the emotion, which was really hard in the beginning, and say, ‘No, this is what we’re doing, being very matter-of-fact, being very structured.” (7:00 | Cheryl Marron) 
• “You’re fluttering. You’re up and down. That’s where the flutter comes from. You’re never going to be in a straight line. With an eating disorder, there’s no, ‘I take a pill and I’m better.’ It doesn’t work that way. It’s ongoing.” (9:30 | Cheryl Marron)
• “This illness costs a lot of money. It’s not something you budget. It’s long term, it’s ongoing and it does add up.” (15:00 | Cheryl Marron)
• “Our words are powerful, and it only takes one comment or one situation to make that lightbulb go off. So, it’s really important that we try to educate as many people as we can.” (16:29 | Cheryl Marron)

Links

Connect with Cheryl Marron:

Website: https://www.fluttersofhopeinc.org

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“There should be something I can do to make it easier for the girls who had my own experiences so they’re not bumping around in the dark like I was,” says today’s guest Mirna Santiago, lawyer lecturer and “bias-buster” who founded Girls Rule the Law, which provides underprivileged and underrepresented middle and high school girls the opportunity to learn about the law, the legislature and the judiciary. An Afro-Latina immigrant to the South Bronx, Mirna grew up feeling underrepresented and alone in her lived experiences. Only after returning to the Bronx years later, and seeing how little had changed, did she realize it was up to her to show young women what the world holds for them if they’re willing to roll up their sleeves. On today’s episode, Mirna talks to host Robbin Jorgensen about the programs that Girls Rule the Law offers, including the mock trial series that both ignite students’ passion and provide them with the frameworks that will allow them to make their voices heard.

Following the dictum that “your network determines your net worth,” Girls Rule events put students in touch with professional women from across the legal profession. They learn etiquette, interviewing skills, resume building and are granted access to the kind of professional attire that will allow them to move fluidly in a variety of situations. 

How is Girls Rule shaping the future of justice?  Find out on today’s episode. 

Quotes

• “There should be something I can do to make it easier for the girls who had my own experiences so they’re not bumping around in the dark like I was.” (2:39 | Mirna Santiago) 
• “So, we’re trying to create a network of women that are going to help these young ladies, give them internships and jobs and that sort of thing. And that was really the impetus. It was just like, ‘Oh, my God, I ran away from this place all these years ago and it’s still exactly the same.’ And it’s not fair to the kids that are still here that people like me do run away.”  (7:09 | Mirna Santiago) 
• “I don’t feel that the impetus is going to be there when I retire. It’s not going to be there 13,15 years from now because things are happening now. There are rollbacks of our reproductive rights right now, there are rollbacks of other people’s freedoms now, with the LGBTQ. So, for me, I feel like I need to empower women to speak out now, to be in the places that matter now, and not 15 years from now or 13 years from now when it would be easiest for me to do. It’s not always easy to do what’s right.”  (9:01 | Mirna Santiago)
• “If you can see it, you can be it. Initially when I went to the schools, I would try to dress down because I just wanted them to see me as one of the people they see every day. And they started asking me, ‘Well, is that what you’d wear to court?’ and I thought, ‘Oh, wow.’ So, I started going in suits and they were far more impressed with that.” (15:46 | Mirna Santiago)
• “The kids want to feel like they’re having fun even as they’re learning, and I think everybody really wants that.” (22:56 | Mirna Santiago)

Links

Connect with Mirna Santiago:

Website: https://girlsrulethelaw.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mirna-s-95193a10/

Implicit Bias Assessment:  https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“It’s more than just telling of events; it’s really about making connections,” says host Robbin Jorgensen about the importance of effective storytelling to the impact of your message. Today she’ll share three key steps to take to ensure your audience, whether at a large event or in a small meeting room, hears your message, connects to it, and forms a long-lasting relationship with you as a result. She’ll share the three types of audience members that you’ll want to engage and how to ensure your message captivates them all. 

She’ll also share tips for an engaging presentation style that will help you carry your story confidently from the beginning to end. Learn how to determine the best platform and mode of delivery to meet your target audience where they are. 

Your message matters and only you can deliver it in your own unique way. Join today’s episode of Women Igniting Change to learn how to make the world sit up and listen.

Quotes

• “It’s more than just telling of events; it’s really about making connections. And it’s how we turn abstract ideas and emotions into action. Great stories foster that human connection, while making sometimes really complex ideas understandable and relatable at the same time.” (1:02 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “Before you can even begin to craft your story, you need to be really clear about what you want to achieve.” (1:51 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “Just be you. The most impactful stories are those that are told with passion and sincerity—and trust me, your audience can absolutely feel the difference, so be authentic.” (4:55 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “There are so many different ways to get your message and your storytelling out there. So, be really creative in how that happens, and then choose your medium—to the degree that you can—that best suits your message and your audience.” (7:55 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “Command that space and know that you belong in front of whatever room you’re in, and that what you have to say matters.” (10:41 | Robbin Jorgensen)

Links

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“If you’re going to be the face of whatever this social impact is, how do you need to show up differently than you do now?,” asks host Robbin Jorgensen. On this episode of Women Igniting Change, she asks you to think ahead five years about the level of social impact you want to be making, and then tells you what you need to begin doing now to be the kind of leader who will rise to that occasion. You’ll have to dig deep, and even become a little obsessed but with Robbin’s advice, you’ll soon be setting your future goals in motion.

Start with these questions: Who are the key figures in your space and who would you like to emulate? What beliefs do you need to adopt and which do you need to leave behind to become who you want to become? Learn the affirmation statement she recommends writing down to bolster your conviction and sense of self, as well as which question is so crucial she asks it twice. 

Quotes

• “As you step out and put your talents and your expertise and your guidance and your passion out there, it is going to require more and it’s going to require that you step into the leader that you need to be in order to make that happen.” (0:43 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “Begin to think through the skills that you’re going to need five years from now based on where you would like your social impact to be and who you need to be to run it at that time.” (3:18 | Robbin Jorgensen)
• “If you’re going to be the face of whatever this social impact is, how do you need to show up differently than you do now?” (4:34 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “What do you expect of yourself to make your social impact happen? This is a really big question. And I will tell you, for us, when we started working in Rwanda seven years ago, I really had to step back and ask myself that question. What was I going to expect of me, what was I going to expect of my team that was greater than where we were at the time? Really embody that and put yourself in the spirit of that.” (6:48 | Robbin Jorgensen) 
• “Who are some of the leaders that you deeply admire in the world? These can be part of your family, your community, or famous people you know who are leaders in your mind? Why do you admire and respect them as a leader?” (9:25 | Robbin Jorgensen)

Links

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Businesses should have a social conscience,” says Lorna Davis, former CEO of Danone North America and a fervent advocate for using business as a force for good. “They need to be held to account for their impact on the people and the planet whose resources they use.” On this episode of Women Igniting Change, Lorna recounts her eye-opening experience in China, which pivoted her career towards sustainability and social responsibility. This shift led her to champion the B Corp movement, where businesses commit to high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.

Lorna shares the challenges she faced while integrating Danone with WhiteWave, steering the newly formed conglomerate toward B Corp certification, and establishing a mission that encourages employees to pursue a purpose larger than their daily tasks. She shares insights from her TED Talk on collaborative and purpose-driven leadership, emphasizing the role of impactful work that leaves a legacy to be proud of.

By discussing practical steps that businesses can take—such as starting with a single unit and employing tools like the B Corp impact assessment to gauge their societal impact—this highlights the importance of local action and legislative influence in the regions where businesses operate. It also foresees the varied evolution of the B Corp movement across different geographies.

Lorna urges listeners to let their heartbreak fuel their actions towards meaningful change. Join today’s discussion to learn how you can contribute to a sustainable future and tackle the issues that resonate with you.

Quotes

• “I think much less about purpose than I used to just because I see that impact is not really up to me.” (09:29 | Lorna Davis)
• “The days of a corporation saying "It's not my business to get involved in the legislation in the jurisdiction in which I operate" are over. If you are in a territory in which you are using resources, you are paying taxes, and you are benefiting from the resources that you're using, you are responsible for influencing the legislation in that area.” (24:30 | Lorna Davis) 
• “Collaboration allows so many things that you can't do while you're on your own. That's one area that I would really focus on.” (26:54 | Lorna Davis)
• “We did a big study of this in Union Square in New York City where you partner with the local council and work out how to actually solve this problem in real life. What that leads you to do is a whole lot of things. It leads you to make relationships with people you don't normally make relationships with. It leads you to do some trials and tests and to learn a whole lot of things that you didn't know before. Then, maybe you'll find a solution that's actually really useful for the planet. I just made one small example, but think as small as you possibly can for your first step.” (29:44 | Lorna Davis)
• “It's important for you to hang out with people who you want to be like and who challenge you. Because the thing about being in your own little frame is you can be really pleased with yourself.” (35:00 | Lorna Davis)

Links

Connect with Lorna Davis:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorna-davis-3366ab14/

https://www.ted.com/talks/lorna_davis_a_guide_to_collaborative_leadership?language=en

https://www.bcorporation.net/en-us/

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“People want to come along with you as long as they know you’ve designed an outcome that genuinely changes the world,” says Liza Henshaw, president of Global Citizen, an international organization dedicated to advocacy and education. Under the motto “actions are our currency,” 12 million citizens have committed over 33 million acts of service—ranging from reading articles to contacting legislators to committing to a week of plastic-free living. With its “Power Our Planet” campaign, Global Citizen rallied its community as well as several big-name artists like Billie Eilish and Lenny Kravitz to petition the World Bank to allow the country of Malawi a debt pause clause in the wake of Cyclone Freddy. On this episode of Women Igniting Change, Liza explains how this campaign has changed the approach to natural disaster relief going forward. She’ll also explain how Global Citizen, known for its music festivals, aims to pioneer a world class touring circuit across the continent with its Move Africa initiative. 

By returning to the same markets over a five-year period, Move Africa will invest in and build relationships with local markets, businesses and entrepreneurs. Creating jobs and skills, it will attract the capital needed for these businesses in order to support the touring market and the creator economy that bolster a world class tour, ultimately, driving investment in the African entertainment industry. Liza tells the story of Christian, a small business owner in Rwanda, whose business and skillset were expanded exponentially after being approached by Global Citizen to produce a show featuring hip hop artist Kendrick Lamar. 

This is the difference made when an organization creates sectors versus merely creating jobs, Liza explains. Join today’s discussion to learn how Global Citizen plans to continue to create systemic change on a global scale, and how you can get involved. 

Quotes

• “Just because you don’t know it, doesn’t mean you should be afraid of it. It just means go and embrace it and it’s pretty fun. It still is.” (8:35 | Liza Henshaw)
• “You’d be surprised. People want to come along with you as long as they know you’ve designed an outcome that genuinely changes the world.” (19:15 | Liza Henshaw)
• “A lot of people want to talk about investment in Africa and job creation in Africa, but when you create the sector, which is what this touring business will do, it makes it a lot easier to create the jobs because now the sector and that economy can support it.” (24:48 | Liza Henshaw) 
• “We don’t do any of that on-the-ground work. I don’t want a single local charity to say, ‘Oh, no. Global Citizen’s coming in and it’s going to suck the oxygen out of my…’ I need those people. We are not the traditional charity that builds the schools and the water wells. We need those groups on the ground. I want to take the Global Citizen spotlight and shine that right on what you’re doing and hope that more donations come to you from that.” (29:01 | Liza Henshaw) 

Links

Website: https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glblctzn/

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“The way we do things is really about letting people know that they’re seen, heard and loved,” says Danielle Gletow, founder and executive director of One Simple Wish, which works to fulfill gift requests for those—of any age— who’ve been through the foster care system or are in crisis due to childhood trauma. For those who’ve been denied so much in life, even asking for something small is an act of bravery. In stark contrast to the many videos across social media where donors exhibit themselves giving flashy gifts to unsuspecting recipients for the sake of clicks and drama, One Simple Wish works to foster community by empowering a person in the recipient’s life to fulfill the recipient’s specific and personal request in a comfortable and private environment.

On today’s episode of Women Igniting Change, Danielle explains how her own experiences fostering and adopting children ignited in her a fierce desire to protect children across the world. She describes the shocking responses she’s received as a passionate advocate for children’s rights and the prejudice to which children in the foster system are subjected. These children are not just statistics, she reminds us, but humans who want what we all want—love, hope, joy, a sense of home and the freedom to just be kids. 

Working with more than one thousand organizations across the United States, Danielle has helped fulfill hundreds of thousands of wishes to date. She’ll tell you how you can get involved in impacting the life of a child, one simple wish at a time.

Quotes

• “They really wanted just a few things, which is what most people want: they wanted to be back home, they wanted to feel loved, and they wanted to just be a kid. And that really struck me.” (2:52 | Danielle Gletow)
• “I wanted to create something that made it easy for people to not see statistics but to see people, and then to do something for them, not to do something they wanted to do, or they thought someone needed, but to actually hear somebody saying, ‘This is what would bring me joy, this is what would make me feel seen,’ and then empowering others to give them that.” (3:51 | Danielle Gletow)
• “I know people love these Instagram, Youtube, Tiktoks where somebody goes and surprises somebody with a grand gesture, and they have a camera on them and there are all these expectations of gratitude being expressed. Not that we’ve never done that but I find it kind of icky... This isn’t about you as a donor, about what you want to give someone and it’s not your experience.”  (15:35 | Danielle Gletow)
• “The act of wishing itself is difficult. It’s not something that everybody feels comfortable doing, because life has not been that way for them where there is a comfort level. There’s been a lot of disappointment. There have also been a lot of people who have told them, ‘You get what you get and you don’t get upset,’ or just be glad you have anything.’ So, when individuals trust us with a really, unique, personal wish, it’s not lost on me that it was hard to even ask for that.” (26:55 | Danielle Gletow) 

Links

Connect with Danielle Gletow:

Website: https://www.onesimplewish.org

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/onesimplewish

Instagram: One Simple Wish

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“I was blown away. I’d never seen that concentration of students of color being met with high expectations,” says Lacey Robinson, of an encounter early in her teaching career.  This experience would serve as the impetus for her career-long mission: to promote equity in education for underserved and socio economically disadvantaged students, particularly students of color. As president and CEO of UnboundED, she works to enable educators to disrupt system inequities in their school districts and classrooms. In a world where people of color are the global majority, students need to be met— engaged with, supported and affirmed—where they are, and their circumstances—such as coming from a home where a second language is spoken exclusively—should be treated as learning assets rather than learning deficits. In this episode of Women Igniting Change, Lacey discusses the impact of bias in education and the most common challenges most teachers face in promoting equity in teaching and learning. 

Focusing on students in the margins ultimately benefits all students as well as the community at large. Lacey explains the U.S. is in a security crisis with K-12 students graduating en masse without the mathematical skills to keep up in the technology, innovation, and defense sectors. Teachers, in turn, need the kind of steady professional development and career support that is available to most other professions.

Join today’s discussion to learn what needs to be done at the legislative level to support the mission of UnboundED, and what role technology and digital tools will play in contributing to it. Lacey explains the real reason people are afraid of Artificial Intelligence, and why, actually it’s here to help. 

Quotes

• “This justice thing went off in me. I cried, then I got mad, then I thought, ‘What is going on? Why can’t all students—everywhere, regardless of who they are, where they live—why aren’t all teachers being prepped to do this?’ That was the beginning of my justice seeking.” (4:30 | Lacey Robinson)
• “Teachers aren’t magical beings. They don’t walk into the classroom with dust that they sprinkle around, and all of a sudden all the kids are learning how to read, write, do math and have science inquiry. Teachers need, like every profession, a high-quality professional development that supports them in their career trajectory.” (13:42 | Lacey Robinson) 
• “I think it’s just absurd that we live in a moment where you have a public school educator who’s working in a school community in which there’s a variance of a global majority, there’s a variance of cultures and people and you’re actually asking them to ignore that.” (16:47 | Lacey Robinson) 
• “Our goal is to reach all students. We focus on the students on the margins because if we focus on the least of them, the ones who’ve received the least amount of belief, we know we’re going to capture all of them.” (20:12 | Lacey Robinson) 
• “We’re scared [of AI] because we haven’t done a sufficient enough job of evolving our authentic intelligence. Authentic intelligence wouldn’t lend itself for you to say, ‘I’m not a math person,’ or to say you’re shy about reading books, or learning about nonfiction topics that aren’t in your realm.” (31:35 | Lacey Robinson)

Links

Connect with Lacey Robinson:

Website: www.unbounded.org

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mslaceyrobinson/

Justice Seekers Book: https://www.unbounded.org/justice-seekers-book?hsCtaTracking=e2802317-b0a4-4d82-a5a7-99de0910d25f%7Cfdd0cff2-9c17-47c3-a06e-0c3bda27c5fe

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“We’ve inherited a narrative,” says today’s guest Nikki Lanier, “that Black and Brown people matter in certain contexts and White people matter almost all the time, and we don’t realize how much of that plays out subtly at work.” As Founder and CEO of Harper Slade, a strategic advisory firm dedicated to helping people of color thrive in the workplace, Nikki works to reset how humans engage with one another in the workplace by unearthing, challenging and transforming deep-seated beliefs around race. Through conversations, and using a Racial Equity Index, she diagnoses and addresses inequities within organizations. People of color are often not in close proximity to decision-makers and opportunities, are criticized publicly whereas White coworkers are criticized privately, and are made to feel responsible for others’ feelings. 

Nikki learned her gracious and patient approach to change from her parents, who were active in the U.S. Civil Rights movement. Her role is not to blame or even to fix, but to advise and help build a company’s overall success. She discusses the impact of racism on the economic landscape, as Black and Brown people transition into the majority population in the U.S., as well as the middle class, and why we might be potentially be looking at an economic apartheid state. 

The goal is not to condemn or blame anyone. Racism is a lie told to all of us and we’re all responsible for changing the way we engage with each other. Join today’s episode of Women Igniting Change to learn more about the RAARE Woman Collective, which teaches white women how to have empathetic and productive conversations which promote real and long-lasting change within families and communities. 

Quotes

• “We’re coming into the workplace, we walk into any kind of social construct already believing something about something. But we spend so little time really unearthing and understanding that belief, and in my opinion, that’s really where the work lies.” (7:24 | Nikki Lanier)
• “It’s not so much about the ‘safe,’ because I don’t know if I can ever create a safe environment. But what we do want is a courageous environment. We want you to move the work forward in spite of feeling unsafe because everything about this work is disruptive.” (8:58 | Nikki Lanier)
• “Most of our employers are well-meaning, well-intended but, to be blunt, fairly myopic. We’ve been conditioned to know a singular way to think about how work is navigated and how work is experienced.” (16:15 | Nikki Lanier) 
• “Now for the first time ever, in just 21 years, we will be relying on Black and Brown people to be in the middle class, represented in the middle class, well, all throughout it, so that the formulas, the thinking, the presumptions and the theories around monetary policy and fiscal policy can work.” (25:44 | Nikki Lanier) 
• “What I worry about sometimes in the name of racial equity or DEI is that we reduce the work to harm swapping. ‘I’ve suffered for so long; now it’s your turn to suffer.’ Or, ’The only way I can get you to wake up is to yell at you and to cuss at you and to condemn the “who” of you.’ We’ve lost sight of the art of critical thinking, of dissecting arguments, to compartmentalize the person from the issue.” (36:02 | Nikki Lanier) 

Links

Connect with Nikki Lanier:

Website: https://www.harperslade.com/

Nikki’s personal website:  www.nikkilanier.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-nikki-r-6a106a8/

RAARE Woman Collective:  https://www.raarewomancollective.com/

Federal Reserve of San Francisco Report:  The Economic Gains From Equity

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Heather Robertson Fortner epitomizes two pivotal values: congruence and authenticity. As the leader of Signature FD, she emphasizes the significance of personal growth to provide unparalleled financial guidance, aiming to impact her clients' family legacies profoundly. Recognizing the importance of unity, Heather believes in a team's collective commitment to each other and the firm's goals, even in the face of disagreement. She advocates that earning trust from clients and team members alike hinges on genuine care and mutual respect.

Heather's counseling background informs her approach to leadership, prioritizing personal development and support for individuals to reach their full potential. She highlights the critical role of diversity within any organization and shares her experiences as a woman in a male-dominated field, especially during a significant wealth transition to female leaders.

Tune into this episode of Women Igniting Change, where Heather delves into purpose-driven leadership, her innovative approach to change, and her aspirations for creating a different future for her daughters.

Quotes

• “Coaching is different than managing; it’s different than just leading. You are in the trenches, you are with, you are along side. You are probably pushing people to a place where they’re a little bit uncomfortable because a coach’s job is to help you grow.” (3:51 | Heather Robertson Fortner)
• “My philosophy has always been that as a leader you should be willing to do the same thing that you are asking other people to do.” (14:21 | Heather Robertson Fortner) 
• “You want to lead well? Then you’re going to have to do it not only in this seat but it’s going to have to be congruent to the seat you hold at home.” (24:10 | Heather Robertson Fortner)
• “There’s going to be this massive movement in money. And more than we have ever seen historically, women will be in decision-making positions with money.” (32:08 | Heather Robertson Fortner)
• “I have no time, or space, or energy or desire to sit in a room with a bunch of people who want to maintain status quo. I’ve got too much stuff to do, too many things that I want to do and I sure don’t want it to be status quo for my girls.” (41:16 | Heather Robertson Fortner)
• “I would say to leaders today, you have got to be excellent at discerning about what is noise and what is important, and you have got to be willing to not be perfect and to let go of the things that don’t matter in pursuit of the thing that does.” (44:45 | Heather Robertson Fortner) 

Links

Connect with Heather Robertson Fortner:

Website: https://signaturefd.com/

NetWorthwhile: https://signaturefd.com/#networthwhile

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherfortner/

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Reproductive health includes so much more than just abortion, yet that’s all people think about because it’s been so politicized,” says Pari, who along with Eve, is working to combat mis-and dis-information about reproductive rights. Recognizing that the majority of Americans under 30 use social media as a legitimate new source, and that there was a lack of pro-choice presence across the platforms, the two women provide education and awareness building about reproductive rights on their social media channel @gemma_talks. This begins with clarifying the differences among reproductive rights, reproductive health and reproductive justice, respectively. It continues by reiterating that, since “the fall of Roe,” the consequences of denying women their reproductive rights are dire, and they affect everyone in ways they often don’t realize. 

Social accountability presents a unique set of challenges. Whereas traditional advocacy is more focused, Pari and Eve have to design their message for an audience which varies wildly in terms of education and awareness. They work to help build sexual reproductive healthcare ecosystems which include everyone from health service providers to funders to advocacy groups and social movements, all of which remain vulnerable in a shifting political landscape where funding is limited. Still, they are hopeful that through their “vigilante activism” they will reach and transform tomorrow’s change-makers and in doing so, ultimately have a lasting impact on policy. 

Quotes

• “This is an arena where genuine change needs to be made for women to be able to truly self actualize to their full potential.” (4:57 | Pari)
• “Quite frankly, women are tired. We’re tired. Advocacy work is important because it helps reignite people’s energy. It helps them remember their voice again and that they have something to fight for. When you add in the public health lens, it really highlights that nothing exists in a vacuum. Every health issue intersects with race, with income, with environment, just to name a few, and public health makes it clear that women’s issues aren’t just women’s issues. They affect everybody.” (10:05 | Eve) 
• “Social accountability is so important. In regular reproductive health programming, social accountability tools are exceptionally useful for driving civic engagement, building relationships between community members and duty bearers, and facilitating the creation of action plans and generating collective responsibility.” (20:55 | Pari)
• “Advocacy on social media is made additionally complicated by the fact that your audience can be absolutely anyone. Normally, advocacy’s targeted, but on social media, there isn’t a baseline for someone’s awareness of an issue, or level of engagement, or even level of investment, and, frankly, even education level. You have to design your messages in a way that speaks to a broad depth of comfort with that issue.” (23:53 | Pari) 
• “One thing that people don’t think about, though, is how abortion bans make it more dangerous for women who genuinely want to get pregnant. So, some of my friends who very much want a baby are scared to get pregnant because if anything goes wrong, their life may be at risk depending on their zip code.” (26:23 | Eve)

Links

Connect with Pari and Eve

Instagram: @gemma_talks

TikTok: @gemma_talks

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“For me, the achievement is experiencing the journey,” says Naila Kiani, who in just a few short years has become the first Pakistani woman climber to summit ten peaks above 8,000 meters, and the only Pakistani person to ascend seven peaks above 8,000 meters in six months. In that brief span of time, she has experienced both the zenith and the nadir–witnessing great tragedy and being—almost literally—over the moon. Though she started her journey simply to fulfill a personal ambition and act as a role model to her daughters, showing them that they could do anything, she soon became an inspiration to many–particularly to women. 

Naila, like many women of her background, grew up feeling restricted. Like many parents, once she had children, she was expected to give up adventuring in order to provide and sacrifice for her family. Yet, as notice of her climbing grew, she began to receive more and more messages from people in Pakistan and throughout the world saying that she had inspired them to follow their own passions and to break barriers. Despite receiving her fair share of criticism from people who doubted the legitimacy of her achievements, she has kept moving forward with determination. Such a sense of mental toughness, which she says is even more important to climbing than physical toughness, was forged at an early age. 

On today’s episode of Women Igniting Change, Naila explains how mountaineering has fundamentally changed her approach to life. 

Quotes

• “My friends were telling me, ‘Why are you climbing it? What if you don’t reach the top? It’s not an achievement. Why don’t you climb a 7,000 meter peak, reach the top, raise the country’s flag, that will be an achievement. I disagreed because for me, achievement was actually experiencing the journey.” (2:53 | Naila)
• “Even when I started this, I was already mentally super strong, because I had a tough life, a really, really tough life growing up. I had a very difficult childhood, I had a very, very difficult university life. My early adulthood years were quite tough. I went through that, and I think I’m a strong person because of my challenging life.” (6:08 | Naila)
• “I wanted to inspire my daughters. I had a very restrictive life, I’m from a very conservative family, or I was. I want my daughters to grow up with the mindset that they can do anything that they want to do. I want to be their role model.” (9:23 | Naila)
• “When I first started mountaineering, climbing, it was just for me and my daughters. It was a personal reason why I was climbing. But I started getting messages from a lot of females, mostly from Pakistan, but also from outside of Pakistan, and a lot of men, too. They thought it was incredible that a married woman with two very young children, a full-time working professional, was climbing high peaks. And they were very inspired because I was not from the mountains.” (9:45 | Naila)
• “Why should I give up just because of someone’s perspective or someone’s perception? So, I continued.” (14:51 | Naila)
• “Before, adventure was really not associated with, not just married women but even married men. Eventually they stop doing adventurous activities after having kids, because you now have to be responsible for your family and sacrifice for your family. I love my children, but I think after seeing my journey a lot of women especially tell me they’ve started to do whatever they were always passionate about.” (16:59 | Naila)
• “I could be judgmental. Not in a negative way, I would never go and tell somebody, ‘You shouldn’t do this or that, but deep down, I used to judge people. But being in the mountains, I was very close to death, I saw people dying. I think that helped me to be a non-judgmental person.” (20:22 | Naila)

Links

Connect with Naila Kiani:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/naila._.kiani/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nailakianik2/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nailakiani

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naila_Kiani

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Using laughter to create human connection, that’s always been my game,” says Dani Klein Modisett, founder and CEO of Laughter on Call, a company which runs interactive workshops in workplaces and caregiving communities to foster connection and relieve stress through the power of humor and laughter. 

The idea for this company was born when Dani’s mother, who was battling Alzheimer’s disease, was having trouble adjusting to her new surroundings in a memory care facility. Dani hired a comedian to cheer her mother up. She observed how the comedian's warm, interactive humor, which Dani terms 'affiliative humor,' not only uplifted her mother but also helped her integrate into her new surroundings.

Needless to say, building trust, and learning to be vulnerable and to make mistakes are invaluable to building strong relationships in the corporate setting. This is particularly true when many companies are international, and most people work at least partially from home. Dani explains how Laughter on Call’s in-person and remote workshops use humor to bridge communication and cultural gaps, as well as promote creativity, innovation and empathy in the workplace. 

Humor also helps create resilience in corporate and caregiving environments by providing the perspective that even a tough moment is not forever. In this episode, Dani shares one of her most embarrassing stories of performing and how she handled it. She also explains how 8 proven comedian’s tools support self-care and create more capable caregivers.

Quotes

• “It lit my mother up. Even when she wasn’t with the comedian she started joining in her community and being more engaged and even singing.” (4:18 | Dani Klein Modisett)
• “Letting go of the moment before is so important. As a comedian, you know if you say a joke and it bombs, you can’t go in the bathroom and cry, you have to go to your next joke. It’s the same thing in caregiving, especially in cognitive decline, every moment is different. So, you have to be able to let go of a moment so you can be available for the next moment.” (5:53 | Dani Klein Modisett)
•  “Laughter is the overarching umbrella under which human connection can live.” (7:13 | Dani Klein Modisett)
• “It’s about engagement. That’s always where we’re headed. That becomes the most important thing, but from there, you create the connection and create the trust. That woman knew she could trust me because I said, ‘Yes,’ to what she was saying, which is unusual in dementia care.” (9:34 | Dani Klein Modisett)
• “It’s a hybrid world. A lot of companies even gave up their commercial space. So, how do you keep people engaged and connected to each other and create relationships and mentoring. That’s very, very hard. For the younger generation, it’s very, very challenging.” (15:17 | Dani Klein Modisett)
• “Something we talk all the time about is making mistakes. It’s OK. That can be a launch point for a new creative idea that you wouldn’t have even ever had. So, once you establish that, in a safe space, and people are laughing, then they’re that much more likely to bring an idea forward because they’re not afraid they’re going to get mocked, or people are going to put them down for it. It’s all good.” (17:03 | Dani Klein Modisett) 

Links

Website: https://www.laughteroncall.com/

Resources: https://www.laughteroncall.com/resources

FACEBOOK

LINKEDIN

INSTAGRAM

X / Twitter

TikTok

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“We are reclaiming it. Philanthropy is love of humanity. We all can, and should, be philanthropists.”  

Sara Lomelin is determined to democratize and demystify the world of philanthropy and the image of philanthropists as benevolent billionaires who save the day by bestowing their riches on those in need. As the CEO of Philanthropy Together, Sara promotes “giving circles,” whereby a group of people with shared values gather together to create change. Together, they pool not only their financial resources but also their time and their talent. 

Collective giving is just as beneficial to the givers as it is to the beneficiaries. They become more engaged, educated and informed. They also experience a sense of community which is a boost to both mental and physical health and needed more than ever in a society in which citizens are suffering increasingly from loneliness and isolation. It also fosters communication among a diverse group of voices in a world that is more divided than ever. 

Diversity is something that’s severely lacking in the philanthropic world, Sara explains, with causes related to women of color and the LGBTQIA community getting a combined total of about three percent of all charitable funds. This is only further proof that we can’t wait around for a billionaire to support the causes most important to us and to our communities. 

Diversity is not just relegated to gender or sexual orientation, young people are also left out of the philanthropy conversation. Sara gives listeners advice on how they can encourage their children to get involved and why it’s important. She also shares stories of some impressive young people and the changes they are already making in the world. 

All of us, at any age, can get involved in philanthropy, and there is no better time than now. The key is to get out of our heads and stop expecting perfection. In giving circles, we all come to the table with something to share and leave with something to learn. 

Quotes

• “The whole idea of collective giving and of giving circles is to really change the narrative of who gets to be called a philanthropist. You don’t have to be a millionaire, a billionaire, or a 65-year-old white man to be called a philanthropist. You could be in your 20s, you could be living anywhere, and you have the power to really change your community and the reality of those around you.” (2:26 | Sara Lomelin)
• “In a giving circle, because of the social aspect of it, because of the community that you build with your giving circle members, you are really being intentional. You are really learning about different causes and different organizations. There is research that people who participate in giving circles and collective giving groups are incredibly well-informed and engaged and educated.” (7:41 | Sara Lomelin)
• “Collective giving is an exercise in democracy. These giving circles are min- labs of civic engagement, of dialog, of being in a space where you and I may not see eye to eye in many ways but we can still get together and rally behind a cause that is close to both our hearts.” (15:06 | Sara Lomelin) 
• “It is infuriating; it should get all of us mad. And in terms of women and girls, when you think of women and girls of color, the percentage of money allotted to them is tiny, tiny. So, that is why, again, we cannot wait for a billionaire to decide that those causes are worthy of getting money. It’s why all of us need to do something about it.” (22:12 | Sara Lomelin)
• “And that’s life, life is diverse, and we need diverse voices. And when we think about diversity, it’s not only about race or gender, or sexual orientation, it’s also about age. I feel that a lot of times we leave young voices outside. And this model, for those listening who have children,  is the perfect model for young people.” (29:02 | Sara Lomelin)

Links

Connect with Sara Lomelin:

Website: https://philanthropytogether.org/

Resources: https://philanthropytogether.org/programs-resources/resource-library/

TED Talk:  https://www.ted.com/talks/sara_lomelin_your_invitation_to_disrupt_philanthropy?language=en

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saralomelin/

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“One in eight people or over 41 million Americans lack consistent and reliable access to nutritious and affordable food. One in four people in a food line is a child,” explains Ambassador Ertharin Cousin, CEO and Founder of Food Systems for the Future, who is on a mission to end hunger and malnutrition and to promote food security both in the U.S. and around the world. Ensuring that all people have consistent access to affordable and nutritious food requires the complementary aspects of advocacy, awareness and capital. Food Systems for the Future achieves its investment impact by taking a 360-degree, wraparound approach, addressing the needs of everyone on the food value chain from the consumer, whose demand for supply is crucial, to the farmer, more and more of whom are being pushed off of the land because they can’t afford to farm.

Despite the many environmental issues–particularly greenhouse gases—linked to food production, it is still barely mentioned in the ongoing conversation on climate change until very recently, and only receives 4% of the funding allotted to combat climate issues. Ambassador Cousin discusses her work to support the poultry value chain in Rwanda–where 30 percent of children are chronically malnourished—by working to create a system which is the first of its kind in the Global South. By providing an alternative feed source to the poultry, not only will this system make eggs more affordable but lessen environmental impact, lower production costs and upcycle food waste, creating a fully circular, sustainable, and affordable alternative to traditional methods. It is an example of global investment and tailored local needs, addressing the macro as well as the micro implications. 

Having grown up in a family of community-minded changemakers, Ambassador Cousin recognizes the power of citizen involvement to create impact. She explains how businesses and individuals can get involved to help promote food systems transformation, which, contrary to popular belief affects both urban and rural communities.

Quotes:

• “We need to recognize that as we work with affected people, we must build awareness of the need for consumption of more diverse nutritious diets, as well as providing the access to the financial resources and the foods for changing those diets.” (9:36 | Ambassador Cousin)
• “Communication, credibility, honesty and integrity, and emotional intelligence—everybody is different and the willingness to understand and accept everyone, that everyone brings different perspectives, requires listening and consideration. It is the only way you can lead. If you can do those things, that’s the start of a really good leader.” (13:53 | Ambassador Cousin)
• “There are a lot of people out here doing advocacy but the challenge is the change is not occurring just because we’re saying the right things. Unless we can move the capital that is necessary to actually scale the change that is required, it’s just talking.” (18:29 | Ambassador Cousin)
• “Too often when we talk about those who lack access to affordable and nutritious food, we talk about urban communities. Yes, there is a problem in urban communities; there is also a problem in rural America. We are seeing main streets close all across rural America. Those same populations–those with limited incomes, lack of access to transportation, the infirm, the elderly, are affected whether they live in rural Iowa or in the urban center of Chicago.” (31:29 | Ambassador Cousin)
• “Citizen involvement and engagement  is what helps make this country great.” (50:24 | Ambassador Cousin)

Links

Connect with Ambassador Ertharin Cousin:

Website: https://www.fsfinstitute.net/

Ambassador Cousin's Bio: https://www.fsfinstitute.net/ertharin

FSF LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/food-systems-for-the-future/

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“I think a lot of people feel really alone,” says Susannah Wellford, Founder and CEO of Running Start. They have dreams but they have no idea how they can make those dreams happen, so you need to create these groups of people in their corner to support them.” For young women with dreams of running for office and making political impact, Running Start provides the skills and preparation to do so by helping them find their passion, cultivate their sense of leadership and learn to communicate in a way that will inspire change.

Around the world, despite cultural differences and varied lived experiences, women’s desires and challenges remain universal. They have ideas and passions but may not have the platform or the belief that anyone will hear them. With programs in thirty countries across the globe, Running Start teaches participants not only to make their voices heard but to actively listen to those with whom they disagree. 

As the U.S. becomes increasingly polarized, and with women’s rights on the line, representation, parity, and women’s voices matter more than ever. In today’s discussion, Susannah and Robbin discuss the need for civil discourse among diverse voices, how female leaders behave differently than their male counterparts and the importance of getting young people engaged in politics. 

Quotes

• “Wherever I go, whenever I’m speaking to women, the problems are the same. The obstacles are the same. It’s just so fascinating to me. And, of course, it’s true, some of those external factors that keep women out of leadership are very different around the world, but the internal hesitancy toward leadership, or that feeling of, ‘I don’t know if I’m right for this’--because nobody’s ever told them that they’re right for this, they don’t have a lot of role models–you see that all around the world.” (6:15 | Susannah) 
• “You sometimes need other people to believe in you before you figure out how to believe in yourself. And if you think about the things that create a successful life, resiliency is absolutely one of them, and that’s the path to resiliency. Sometimes you need somebody to say, ‘Robbin, I think you’re really good at this and I think you should do this thing.’ And once you feel solid in your sense of self, you’re sort of unstoppable.” (14:44 | Susannah)
• "If we close ourselves off and say I know what I know and I don't want to hear what anybody else knows, you never get smarter, you miss so many things and that leads to all of the walls that we build not just in politics but in society in general." (25:05 | Susannah) 
• “If there aren’t women who can be catalyzed by even enormous seismic shifts affecting women’s rights, we need to start earlier getting young women to see that politics is a place for them.” (28:08 | Susannah)

Links

Connect with Susannah Wellford:

Website: https://www.runningstart.org/

About Susannah: https://www.runningstart.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susannah-wellford-405110/

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“When we are doing something that benefits all, rather than benefits just ourselves,” explains today’s guest Masami Soto, founder and CEO of B1G1,”it unlocks an amazing experience and sense of connection.” B1G1 is a global business giving initiative that allows businesses to provide “giving impacts” to deserving people throughout the world. At the same time, it helps businesses foster a culture that redefines how they think of giving, as a series of small daily acts.  Since its founding 16 years ago, B1G1 is responsible for 335 million giving impacts worldwide. 

As a young woman, Masami experienced profound generosity and grace from strangers—often those who had the least–who looked out for her as she backpacked across the world. After giving birth to her daughter she realized she wanted to ensure that all children had the same access and opportunities. She soon realized that most businesses are eager to find creative solutions that will make the world better for others. B1G1 helps create a synergy between its network of businesses great and small, so that they can work together to elevate a mission greater than themselves. 

The act of giving is, Masami explains, actually a gift we give to ourselves. In this episode she explains how B1G1’s mission has evolved since its inception, what individuals can do to create impact in their own lives, and the many ways companies can do business for good. 

Quotes

• “I couldn’t make sense of why everybody was working so hard to try to get more, but at the same time our purpose, our endeavor, of getting more didn’t lead to a sense of fulfillment. At the same time, sometimes there were people who had so little but they seemed to be happy and smiling and generous and giving.” (5:09 | Masami)
• "The only way we can really transform our future and ensure every child has access to wonderful opportunities in the future is for all of us to take action." (15:27 | Masami) 
• “If we really think about kindness as doing things for others, it feels like losing something. Giving away means losing something, whether it’s money or time or effort, then it feels like an extra chore. But if we saw that kindness and caring as something that adds to ourselves, it’s a gain.” (18:13 | Masami) 
• “When everyone comes together to try to do something, that’s bigger than themselves, not just about them but about people they might never meet, about the involvement in ensuring a sustainable future for the next generation.” (22:59 | Masami)
• “There is that sense of “doing together.” My company is small but these impacts are impacts I create, but I’m doing this together with many other businesses, which means collectively we can create a much greater impact. We no longer need to be disempowered by being small.” (24:00 | Masami)

Links

Connect with Masami Sato:

Website: https://b1g1.com/

Masami's Bio: https://www.dropbox.com/s/57nyv7io2gd60jn/Masami%20Sato%20Profile.pdf?dl=0

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/masamisato/

Connect with Robbin Jorgensen (She/Her):

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“This is an investment in your people,” explains Cheryl Thompson, Founder and CEO of the Center for Automotive Diversity Inclusion and Advancement (CADIA), which works to address the systemic disparities around diversity and inclusion in the automotive industry. Cheryl gained her first insights into how true leaders operated while serving as wait staff at Ford World Headquarters. After rising in the ranks at the company to a position of global leadership, she realized how many talented people were overlooked and underestimated due to lack of inclusive practices within the automotive industry. Through her organization, CADIA, she is working to double the number of diverse leaders within the automotive industry by 2030, and as a member of the CEO Coalition for Change, she works with fellow leaders to bring similar change across a variety of industries.

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) practices not only benefit the employee, their families and their communities, but employers as well, by accelerating company as well as industry progress. As the population changes and a new generation of workers demand new standards and practices, leaders can’t afford not to infuse an equitable and diverse mindsets into everything from recruitment practices to performance evaluations. 

DEI is an ongoing practice and the work is never over. Join today’s discussion to learn about the challenges the automotive industry still faces, the progress that has already been made, and the many invisible aspects of diversity in the workplace that often get overlooked. 

Quotes

• “When I got to that table, I sat around and thought, ‘Wow. I thought y’all had it all figured out.’ And that was my big ‘aha!’ that I had been underestimated, I had been underestimating myself. That’s when I really started to have more awareness about how things work, and how some people are just overlooked and they just have so much more to contribute.” (4:12 | Cheryl Thompson)
• “This is an investment in your people, giving them time to participate in something like this is going to help your productivity through communication and being more effective and efficient, with fewer quality mistakes, and that psychological safety to call out when something isn’t OK.” (24:32 | Cheryl Thompson)
• “I’d like to see even more progress in terms of representation overall, and have that carry through to the very senior levels of C-Suite. I’d like to see the same with racial and ethnic minorities, representation increased there. And I’d like to see companies have cultures that are a lot more psychologically safe so that people can self-identify.” (25:22 | Cheryl Thompson)
• “A lot of the companies see the demographics changing and this next generation coming into the workplace– boy oh boy, they are not putting up with the stuff you and I tolerated. Leaders want to know how we attract and retain talent and they’re starting to realize if we aren’t more inclusive with our recruiting, we’re going to miss out on 61% of the workforce.” (27:26 | Cheryl Thompson)

Links

Connect with Cheryl Thompson:

Website: https://www.cadia.org/

About Cheryl: https://www.cadia.org/team-members/cheryl-thompson/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryl-thompson/

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Everybody’s brain is different,” says Elaine Taylor-Klaus, co-founder of Impact Parents and author of “The Essential Guide to Raising Complex Kids,” “And different is not bad.” As a young mother of neurodivergent–or as she likes to call them “neuro-spicy”- kids, she realized there was very little support for parents in a similar situation. This led to co-founding Impact ADHD, which, like Impact Parents, provides neurodiversity inclusive coaching. There, parents learn to meet kids where they are in any challenge, set the expectations from there, and allow kids to meet their potential. Parents “should” on their children too much, thinking they should be able to handle the challenge on their own. Connecting to others with similar experiences reminds parents that they’re not alone.

Elaine’s “coach approach” is effective not only for kids with ADHD, but for a generation facing a slew of unprecedented challenges. Not only have they just come through a global pandemic but they are being bombarded with more information–more quickly–than ever before. What’s more, they are attached to devices that are designed to be dopamine stimulators.  

Many educators, doctors, and even high-profile psychiatrists are still woefully ill-informed about neurodiversity in young people. Too many people wait too long to seek help for fear of embarrassment, or hoping the issue will go away. On today’s episode of Women Igniting Change, Elaine will break down many lingering myths about neurodiversity, provide incredible resources for our listeners and what parents can do to advocate for themselves and their communities. 

Quotes

• “The modality, this approach is every bit as useful for any child, because it’s really about meeting them where they are and helping them play to their strengths and empowering them to take control of their lives. Really, we’re not raising children, we’re onboarding adults.” (6:59 | Elaine) 
• “Parents have the sense that ‘I should know how to do it because parents have been parenting for eons.’ But parents haven’t been parenting in this environment, in this world, with these expectations, with these stresses and pressures and we need help.” (9:47 | Elaine Taylor-Klaus)
• “Our kids are getting bombarded with more information in an hour than many of us got in a month or in our lives growing up. The way that people are exposed to information has changed.” ( 11:42 | Elaine Taylor-Klaus) 
• “Expectations are “shoulds.” What we really want to do is enroll our kids in setting their own expectations for themselves rather than ‘shoulding’ all over them.” (17:40 | Elaine Taylor Klaus)
• “I’m a huge advocate for finding community. I think there’s probably nothing more important that a parent can do.” (22:18| Elaine Taylor-Klaus)

Links

Connect with Elaine Taylor-Klaus:

Website: https://impactparents.com/

Resources: https://impactparents.com/resources/

Free Gift:  https://impactparents.com/ignitingchange

About: https://impactparents.com/about-impactparents-our-story/about-impactparents-elaine/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elainetaylorklaus

Book: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Elaine-Taylor-Klaus/author/B00AAQ9RN0?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Why are we quoting Winston Churchill all the time?” While judging an annual speech contest, Dana Rubin, an award-winning journalist, speech writer and speech coach, noticed that writers were continuously citing speeches from the same handful of famous men. Similarly, speech anthologies barely featured women in their pages, and so she set about seeking out and compiling speeches by women–many of whom had been largely ignored by history. Eventually, she launched the online speech bank,` Speaking While Female. This portal, and the book of the same name, focus on expanding diverse voices and viewpoints in the public discourse. 

Despite being vastly underrepresented, there was a wealth of female voices from which Dana chose. Women, particularly indigenous women, were leaders in all sectors of their communities. They spoke out regularly on major political, social and religious issues. Men and women are largely similar in the way they communicate, Dana explains, they are just often relegated to the less visible (and audible) domestic sectors, or aren’t raised with the message that women’s voices matter. 

This is changing, however, as more and more women start to speak up. Dana offers women–including young women–tips on how they can begin to make their voices heard across their communities and beyond. 

Quotes

• “I collected 230 speech anthologies. This is from the United States, Canada, Ireland, South Africa, the Philippines, of course, the United Kingdom, anywhere and everywhere English was spoken and they published speech anthologies. I just started when going through the table of contents with a pencil and counting how many speeches by men and how many by women. And the more I saw, the angrier I got, and the angrier I got, the busier I got.” (5:46 | Dana) 
• “It is eye-opening. I put them in categories, thematic categories, and you can, starting from the top, look at the category of anti-slavery, and see how many women spoke out about slavery all over the world. And you go down from there: health and medicine, religion and belief, temperance, all kinds of categories.” (7:07 | Dana)
• “It's a message that we all imbibe, as we grow up, that it's men's voices that are important, and valued and women's voices are secondary or expendable. We grow up and then we become adults, and we’re reluctant to speak out. We don't think that we have the expertise to share even though we may have a PhD or have written five books, women still don't want to speak in public. We don't stand up nearly in the same proportion as men.” (8:44 | Dana) 
• “A good speech, a powerful speech takes the audience from one place to another. You begin in one place and you take them to another and by the end, you have asked that audience or compelled, inspired, that audience influenced that audience, to do something different, whether it's vote for legislation–‘Vote for me as a candidate!’–Get behind a cause, donate to a cause, even think about it, even if it's a sermon.” (14:26 | Dana)
• “We've seen this movement towards inclusivity, in including more voices, because we recognize that everybody's voice counts, matters, and has an important role to play.” (18:27 | Dana) 
• “Start small. Speak in your communities, speak in your house of worship, go to toastmasters speak at a rotary club meeting. Just get out there and speak. Because it is a fact undeniable that the more you speak, the better you get.” (21:52 | Dana)

Links

Connect with Dana Rubin:

Website: https://speakingwhilefemale.co/

Website: www.danarubin.com

Dana’s Bio:  https://speakingwhilefemale.co/speaking-while-female/

Book: https://speakingwhilefemale.co/book/

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

A major part of taking on this framework is to accept that you won’t know what you’re doing at first. Too often, women especially, stop before they start if they feel like they are not in control of every step of the process. This game is not business as usual, and that’s kind of the point. Follow the steps Robbin has laid out for you and watch change unfold more quickly than you can imagine. 

Not everyone will be your cheerleader as you continue along this journey, but as Robbin explains, even naysayers will provide you with value. Take bold action–join today’s episode of Women Igniting Change and take the first step toward becoming the leader and social changemaker that you want to be!

Quotes

• “You have a deep desire to create meaningful change. It's so much bigger than you, that you know you're meant to put out there.” (5:46 | Robbin) 
• “When we were all little girls, if you equate a dial on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 is low 10 is off the charts, when we were little, our hunger dial literally was 11. We knew we could be anything we wanted to be, do anything we wanted to do. But here's what happens: As we become grown adults, we tend to take that hunger dial, and we turn it down to a dull simmer, and that's how we live our lives.” (6:00 | Robbin) 
• “Give yourself permission to dream and imagine that deep desire for social change that you want to put out there.” (7:00 | Robbin)
• “Allies can be your biggest champions, your biggest cheerleaders, they’ve got your back in this bigger game that you want to put out into the world. Those are your cheerleaders. Allies can also be people that say to you that is the dumbest idea I've ever heard, you can't possibly do that, what are you thinking? Those are allies, too.” (11:01 | Robbin)
• “Especially as women, what we tend to do, if we take a step forward, and it goes a little sideways, we're automatically beating ourselves up that we did something wrong, or we should have done something different.” (13:02 | Robbin)

Links

Bigger Game Board: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ugo8-rYhN4CjoANWShujtRyOB9UxIXPs/view

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“There are actually more people that want to be unified, that want to figure out how to hear and see each other, than not.” 

In the immediate aftermath of the death of George Floyd, when the US was in a state of social unrest, friends and fellow theater artists Marci Duncan and Kerry Sandell decided to have a conversation about race and what it is like, as a Black and a white woman, respectively, to raise young men in this climate. Marci came to realize the power dynamic at play in previous conversations and relationships with white women, while Kerry realized that her white son had freedoms and protections that she had until then taken for granted. These courageous conversations–which were uncomfortable and messy as well as revelatory and grounded in love–became the basis of their debut play “Dissonance.” 

“Dissonance,” they explain, is not a prescriptive or preachy exercise in “How to Have a Conversation About Race,” and no one is there to “win.” As the play has traveled across the country, audiences consistently report that the play makes them feel seen, validated, humbled as well as challenged. For the two women, the play has confirmed that despite all the messaging suggesting a country at war with itself, the vast majority of people want unity. 

For Marci, the play was physically cathartic and she shares her body’s unexpected reaction to confronting truths in front of an audience. Both on stage and in life, this is a story of race and friendship and what happens when we seek to truly understand each other. 

Quotes

• “I've never had such an in-depth conversation about some of these things with a white person. And throughout the process, I had learned that there were some trust issues there between myself and white women because the situations or relationships that I had been in previously, it always felt like a power dynamic existed in the relationship.” (15:12 | Marci Duncan)
• “One of the things that this play continues to do is to show us that there are so many more people who want unity than there are people who don't. It has debunked that myth and that belief system that we are so divided beyond repair. That is not true.” (19:47 | Marci Duncan)
• “‘Dissonance,’ we always say, is not prescriptive. This is not  ‘Six Steps on How to Have a Racial Conversation.’ But it does model what's necessary in these difficult conversations– the friendship, the intimacy, the vulnerability, the humility–that need to take place.” (22:01 | Kerry Sandell)

Links

Connect with Marci Duncan and Kerry Sandell:

https://dissonanceplay.com/

https://dissonanceplay.com/team

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Joining today’s conversation is Jenny Malseed, VP of Strategy and Talent at GlobalGiving, a United States-based nonprofit organization which provides funding for grassroots charitable projects across the globe. As Jenny puts it GlobalGiving was “crowdfunding since before crowdfunding was a thing.” International aid and nonprofits, she explains, can be very paternalistic and inequitable, telling those in need what’s best and, through their practices, attracting only nonprofits from developed countries with English as a first language. GlobalGiving’s Pathways Program focuses on making the platform accessible to those who could benefit most and mapping out journeys which ensure that the organization is solving problems that really need to be solved and not just those that are easiest. Central to GlobalGiving’s mission is community-led change, putting resources and power in the hands of the people closest to the problem, so that communities can drive their own progress. 

Equity and community are just as much a part of the organization’s internal mission. A company is only enriched and strengthened by its diversity of backgrounds, skillsets and experiences, and part of Jenny’s work is to oversee the company’s Race Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. REDI is committed to ensuring that every voice contributes to shaping the company. Jenny highlights how transparency, including the acknowledgment of mistakes, has been instrumental in aligning GlobalGiving closer to its mission. Moreover, fostering a culture of humility and kindness has leveled the playing field between employees and executives. This approach has cultivated a unique culture of recognition within the company, which notably includes a taco-based reward system.

A company’s greatest asset is its employees. On today’s episode of Women Igniting Change Jenny shares how her time spent in the Peace Corps shaped her leadership skills and values and how to ensure even the most difficult conversations are productive.

Quotes

• “There is so much richness in different perspectives, and every individual brings unique skills, expertise to all the problems in the world or anything that we're trying to do.” (4:38 | Jenny)
• “It can be very tempting to start focusing externally and say, ‘We need to go do programs, we need to support racial justice,’ which we do, absolutely. But if we don't work on ourselves, that lacks authenticity.” (5:32 | Jenny)
• “It sounds like a cliche, but how true is it that your employees are your greatest asset, and particularly in a social service organization or nonprofit? Our employees are what we have. That's it. That's the entire value that we deliver.” (7:10 | Jenny)
•  “There are so many terrible things happening in the world all the time and yet I know I’ve got my people working and helping to make it a little bit better.” (15:07 | Jenny)
• “When we talk about community led change, just to be clear, as I said, we're talking about communities being the ones that are driving change. And in particular what that means is that we need to put resources and decision-making and even power in the hands of those who are closest to the problems.” (19:47 | Jenny)

Links

Connect with Jenny Malseed:

Website: https://www.globalgiving.org/

Jenny's Bio

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“It hit me upside the head: how can a whole society be lacking in sports?” 

When Marina LeGree arrived in Afghanistan, she was struck by the lack of sport and outdoor physical activity available to Afghan citizens, particularly young women. A dedicated athlete in her youth, Marina understood the power of sport to transform a person emotionally as well as physically, and to bring out the best in oneself.  She knew she wanted to create opportunities for girls in Afghanistan to get out and enjoy their environment, and in 2015 she founded Ascend: Leadership Through Athletics, which began by taking a group of 20 girls on a mountaineering adventure, inspired by Malang Daria and Amruddin Sanjar, the first Afghan citizens to summit the country’s highest mountain. Today, the program, which has since extended its mission to Pakistan, rests on five pillars: mental health, physical fitness and nutrition, leadership and community service. The fifth element, rock climbing and mountaineering, has ceased to be a part of the program in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. 

For those young women whose safety and future are threatened by this change in power, the program has proven a lifeline in more ways than one. Ascend Athletics has worked to relocate 134 alumni from the program to other countries. And the program instilled in them hope for the future, expectations for their lives and the courage to pursue it, at the risk of their very lives. Marina tells the story of Mina, who crossed through the city of Kabul in the dark alone, in danger at every turn, to board a bus for a 10 hour journey bound for what would be her new home away from her family.

However grim the circumstances for the young women in Afghanistan, the Ascend Athletics program is not meant to change or circumvent policy. Rather, it works to give girls the tools to succeed in their own context and to make change in their own societies. Join today’s conversation for more tales of bravery, resiliency and above all, hope. 

Quotes

• “We need exercise, we need to play, we need to use our bodies and girls are totally deprived of that in a lot of places.” (4:23 | Marina) 
• “That was the biggest challenge, to figure out how to make this not a symbolic activity that would just happen once or twice for some lucky girls, but really building a program around it that could sustain and involve a lot more people.” (7:46 | Marina) 
• “I really wanted to equip girls with the internal tools so that they wouldn't need Westerners propping anybody up, they would have the stuff and they would think about themselves as the change makers. So I think when you asked about successes, I think the biggest successes came when I saw the light go on, in certain girls in the program that they wanted that too.” (10:00 | Marina)
• “I kept thinking of those mothers, those mothers trusted enough that in us as an organization that we would look after their girls, and they knew, like you said they knew what the future might hold. So they were giving the girls their blessing.” (21:03 | Marina)
• “What impressed me about a lot of the girls is their eyes were on the prize. They wanted to get an education. That was the main thing. And a lot of them were already through high school. And they were in their university studies. They had plans and they didn't want to lose that. So yeah, it was a lot of bravery.” (33:22 | Marina)
• “We could have easily filled up all of the visas and plane seats that we had with just a few lucky families. We instead chose individual girls who could then transform the lives of themselves and help their families in the future. I could hear the woman who is now our board chair saying, ‘Who is at risk?’ Dads are not really at risk. The brothers aren't. It's the girls.” (43:19 | Marina)

Links

Connect with Marina LeGree:

https://www.ascendathletics.org

https://www.ascendathletics.org/ourpeople

Ascend: Forced to flee the Taliban, Afghan women find a home in climbing | Patagonia Films

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbtc3je_GUE&t=144s

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Kay McMahon, often hailed as the most influential figure in the world of golf, holds a distinguished position as a Ladies' Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Hall of Famer. However, her true passion lies in teaching, and through her company, Edukaytion Golf, she's determined to change how golf is taught. She believes that the golf industry has perpetuated the misconception that golf is a challenging sport, deterring many, especially women, from ever starting.

This hesitation to embrace golf can put women at a disadvantage, given that golf courses often serve as venues for valuable business networking. Kay aims to encourage more women to confidently take up the sport and open doors to business opportunities.

To achieve this, Kay emphasizes the importance of introducing girls to golf at a young age and providing them with female role models who engage in the sport casually and professionally. Despite the support Kay received from her male teammates during her time as a female pro golfer, golf remains predominantly male-dominated, with slow progress in women's inclusion. Even golf course designs favor men. Kay thoughtfully discusses how men can serve as allies to women in golf.

In today's episode of Women Igniting Change, Kay introduces her Golf 8.5 method, simplifying the steps involved in forming a golf swing. According to her, it's the first step toward confidently stepping onto the golf course.

Quotes

• “We don't always listen to ourselves. People say, ‘Go do this; this is what you're good at,’ and you say, ‘No, that doesn't sound like it's right.’ It's hard to sometimes sit back and just listen and say, ‘I'm pretty good at this.’” (6:29 | Kay)
• “The interesting thing was that they were very supportive, all the men when I was out there. They were very supportive.” (8:26 | Kay)
• “If we change how we teach it, we're going to get more golfers, especially more women, into the game.” (13:01 | Kay)
• “When you walk into that boardroom, you might not know what you're doing, but you’d better walk in like you know what you're doing and you own it. I'm going to say this about women: we get to this point where we might be strong in the boardroom, or in corporate America, or globally corporate, but all of a sudden, we get on the golf course and get meek again.” (17:43 | Kay)
• “Golf courses are really designed for men.” (21:29 | Kay)
• “I think we really need to encourage high school girls to start playing earlier, too…Not every girl is going to get on the LPGA Tour. But every girl doesn't have to be left at the office as they get into corporate America.” (25:44 | Kay)
• “I was offered one of my first jobs with IBM because of two things: I was a woman; I could play golf. And that makes a big difference. People think the deals are made on the golf course. No, what you're doing is you're developing those relationships, you're out there doing something with somebody else. And I think that's a big deal.” (26:28 | Kay)

Links

Connect with Kay McMahon:

Website:

https://www.edukaytiongolf.com/

Blog on website:

https://www.edukaytiongolf.com/blog

Other social links:

https://www.facebook.com/kay.mcmahon.1447

https://www.facebook.com/eduKaytiongolf/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/edukaytiongolf/

https://www.youtube.com/user/EduKaytionGolf

https://www.instagram.com/edukaytiongolf/

https://twitter.com/edukaytiongolf

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“If you want to be known for some type of social change and social impact, what does that look like for you?” 

In recent years especially, we’ve watched as major corporations use their profiles and platforms to bring attention to key issues affecting our world. To help promote climate justice, U.S. clothing brand Patagonia contributes 1% of their profits to organizations working to save the environment. American ice cream manufacturer Ben & Jerry’s adorns the walls of its headquarters with information on U.S. voting laws. P&G (Procter & Gamble) has launched campaigns promoting gender equality and helping to eradicate stereotypes. 

You, too, are a brand, and as a female leader you have an unrivaled power to affect social change. Yet, many women keep the causes they’re most passionate about to themselves. On today’s episode, Robbin offers a series of tips for engaging in your own personal brand activism. She explains how to let the world know more about your cause, strengthen your professional association to it, amplify your voice, and deal with the inevitable criticism you’ll receive when you do.

Take a stand with your brand. Not only will you experience a deeper sense of purpose and meaning in your life but you’ll raise awareness around what deeply matters to you.

Quotes

• “Now more than ever, consumers are choosing to purchase from brands that align with their own personal values and what they believe. And they're really voting with their wallets for the type of businesses that they want to see in the world. It's just something that's really evolved over the last couple of years.” (4:43 | Robbin) 
• “Brand activism exists at the intersection of what people want, what the world needs, and what a brand uniquely offers.” (5:00 | Robbin)
• “Here's the thing: You are a brand. What you value, what you believe, how you position yourself out into the world, how you position yourself in the marketplace. And this is regardless of whether you are still inside an organization or whether you own your own business on the other side of the fence.” (5:14 | Robbin)
• “One of the things I believe to my core is that every woman on this planet has some type of idea for social change or social impact that could revolutionize her community, her organization, her industry, or the world. We all have that. There's just a fear around putting that out there. But we are the key to solving some of the most pressing global challenges of our time. It is women, it is us, and it is getting ready to put ourselves out there in a larger way, and take a stand for what matters for us.” (6:08 | Robbin) 
• “I want to give you a little bit of a caveat: When you do start doing this, you are going to have people who completely align with what you have to say, you're going to have people who think you're nuts, and you are going to have detractors who are going to poke holes in what you’re saying.” (7:52 | Robbin)

Links

Patagonia Climate Justice: https://www.patagonia.com/actionworks/campaigns/climate-justice-is-social-justice/

Ben & Jerry’s - Silence Is Not An Option

https://www.benjerry.com/about-us/media-center/dismantle-white-supremacy

Together, We Can Reimagine Criminal Justice Reform

https://www.benjerry.com/values/issues-we-care-about/justice-remixd.html

P&G - The Best Men Can Be

https://gillette.com/en-us/about/the-best-men-can-be

https://us.pg.com/lgbtq-visibility/

Widen the Screen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUHop5i8-f4

#WeSeeEqual

https://in.pg.com/gender-equality/

Run Like a Girl

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=P%26G+like+a+girl

Website: https://womenignitingchange.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-igniting-change/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbinjorgensen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robbin.jorgensen/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Women’s ability to adapt, to transform their lives and the lives of their families and communities, I've seen that all over the world.” As an international women’s rights advocate for the last 30 years, Karen Sherman has not only seen women transform their lives, she’s helped them do it. In her latest venture as founder and CEO of Virunga Mountain Spirits, she is creating jobs for Rwandan women as alcohol-makers, a profession women have turned to support themselves since the beginning of time. She has created a sustainable production process in conjunction with a local chip factory to make vodka from the region’s “unloved” potatoes. The process also gives back to the land and to local farmers by turning all refuse into livestock feed and fertilizer. 

When a woman earns her own income she gets to voice decisions in her own life and make choices about where her money goes and to whom. Once this level of empowerment is established for women in Rwanda, they have potential to then start their own businesses and to lead their own communities toward change. A large part of Karen’s job as a womens’ rights advocate is to be a humble and respectful champion, recognizing that no outside force can create sustainable change in another country.

Women are survivors–of everything from war to violence to lack of opportunity–and have the power to rebuild their lives, as the title of Karen’s book suggests, “Brick by Brick.” Listeners of today’s episode will learn what they can do to get involved and support global women empowerment, misconceptions about social change and why cynicism and pessimism are luxuries. 

Show keywords: #femaleempowerment #sustainablechange #creatingchange #RwandanWomen

Quotes

• “Men would come in, and say, ‘I just need a million dollars, because I've got this great idea, and it's gonna be amazing.The women would come in and say, I've got this great idea, and I need $50. And I can run with that. And that is really the fundamental difference.” (2:54 | Karen)
• “I'm not Rwandan, I can't pretend to be Rwandan, I'm not an Afghani woman. I really feel like the women in their countries should lead. It is really up to them to drive change. Where I feel like I can be helpful and when I'm wearing my development hat, is really as a champion, an advocate, really a catalyst, if you will. It isn't for me to drive change in another society.” (5:59 | Karen)
• “We've all had to survive something in our lives, whether it be violence, or abuse, or just a lack of resources or opportunity, the lack of schooling. So to me, it's sort of what do you do with that? How do you rebuild your lives a brick at a time?” (8:37 | Karen)
• 12:25 - "While education gives women voice, it's really the income piece that gives women choice. One without the other is really insufficient for transformation and social change." (12:43 | Karen)
• “You don't have to do everything, you can pick a thing that really means something to you. And you can start small, just pick something: a place, an area that you feel like you want to make a difference because it resonates with you. And you know, let your passion drive you forward.” (23:13 | Karen)

Links

Connect with Karen Sherman:

Bio: https://www.karensherman.org/about

Book - Brick by Brick: https://www.karensherman.org/brick-by-brick

Virunga Mountain Spirits: https://www.karensherman.org/virunga-mountain-spirits

UN Women:  www.unwomen.org

School of Leadership Afghanistan (SOLA): https://www.sola-afghanistan.org/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“People can’t conceptualize what they don’t see,” says Deshanna Wiggins, CEO of the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) and Social Club, who was recently nominated into the Power 50 list for the Albany Business Review. Growing up in the capital region, Deshanna felt that her only opportunities lay in the public sector and left for Atlanta to pursue a career as a communications executive and director of courtroom operations. She has since returned to the area to help create platforms and spaces for Black and minority businesses and to inspire Black entrepreneurship and economic development. With 35 percent of the area population being over 65 and 30 percent of the area population under 18, she hopes to help that middle demographic who are enterprising and innovative and setting up businesses. She wants to show the rest of the country that the city is a formidable player on the national stage, and that diversity is a major contributing factor to its success. 

No matter how much a majority-white organization is focused on inclusivity, representation is important, and emerging Black entrepreneurs need to see people who look like them running a variety of businesses. Deshanna describes the four pillars upon which her programs are built to establish equitable business in the bipoc community and the biggest challenges she faces as a leader. She explains the importance of collaboration and the benefits of promoting opportunity over charity, the latter of which often catches people in a bad cycle. More important than giving everyone a piece of the pie is creating opportunities for everyone to get their own pie with the flavor of their choice. 

Staying true to your mission is crucial to yielding the results you want. Deshanna remains true to herself in every room she enters, and she discusses the importance of authenticity in leadership. 

#blackentrepreneurship #diversity #representation

Quotes:

• “White men are great. They've set up the enterprise for this country but there are other people here…if we don't give them those opportunities, then we'll see the same that we've always seen.” (6:43 | Deshanna)
• “When I walk in the room, and I'm the only one, it’s a problem because people want to be in spaces with other people that look like them… if those environments aren't created, then we have issues.” (13:44 | Deshanna)
• “It is important because this area is not going to survive…in order for an area to exist, it has to embrace diversity, it has to embrace businesses of all colors and backgrounds, in order to really thrive.” (21:32 | Deshanna)
• “A lot of time, if you go to a majority white organization, and they're wanting to be inclusive and do programming, yet, the vendors that they use are not of color…I think the chamber will be that middle ground of bringing those conversations where people come and feel safe enough to open up to be able to foster those relationships.” (28:19 | Deshanna)
• “Investment is the biggest piece. We've got the time, we've got the talent, but…capital is certainly necessary to get us there.” (39:53 | Deshanna) 

Links

Connect with Deshanna Wiggins:

Website: https://bfg.org/what-we-do/albany-black-chamber-of-commerce/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlbanyBlackChamberofCommerce

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/albanyblackchamber/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/albanyblackchamberofcommerce/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@albanyblackchamber

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“If you looked at my life, you would say this person has life by the tail. But in reality, I was living a life of turmoil because of this internal gender dilemma,” explains Gabrielle Claiborne, co-founder and CEO of Transformation Journeys Worldwide, a transgender-focused inclusion training and consulting firm. 

Through her work, she helps organizations around the world create cultures of belonging for trans and gender expansive individuals and those who live beyond the binary. On today’s episode, of Women Igniting Change, she addresses some of the common misconceptions organizations have around working with transgender, gender nonconforming, and non-binary individuals and provides tips for creating a more inclusive and respectful work environment.

She shares the lessons she has learned about the power of authenticity, lessons that are included in her book “Embrace Your Truth: Our Journey of Authenticity” and her TED Talk “Building Your Courage Muscles.”  Living authentically, she says, is not easy but it’s directly and proportionately related to our life purpose. 

Educating people about the lived experiences of gender non-conforming individuals includes meeting your audience where they are, and helping them to recognize that we have more in common than not. It’s important not to just be an ally but a “heart ally.” 

Gabrielle offers advice to listeners as to what they can do to support trans and gender nonbinary people in their own communities, especially as legislation continues to pass that will eventually affect all of us. 

Quotes

• “I moved through life the way culture expected a straight cisgender man to move through life.” (2:06 | Gabrielle)
• “We invite our clients to understand that this is a journey, not a destination.” (7:19 | Gabrielle)
• “You not only have to be personally culturally competent, but you also have to be organizationally, culturally competent.” (7:45 | Gabrielle)
• “To folks who are listening, you don't understand the ripple effect that you are setting, that ripple effect of doing nothing, or that ripple effect of standing up and speaking up on someone's behalf. You don't know what kind of wake you're leaving behind you or permission you’re giving to other folks.” (24:09 | Gabrielle)

Links

Connect with Gabrielle Claiborne:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielle-claiborne/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GabrielleClaiborne/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gaby.claiborne/

Website: https://transformationjourneysww.com/

TedX Talk: Building Your Courage Muscles

Book: Embrace Your Truth:  A Journey of Authenticity

Bio: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AtHcOJQEnqDB7wYlVnbeDyl4sufYaZpQ/view

Resources: https://transformationjourneysww.com/resources/

Equality Act: https://act.americanprogress.org/page/27164/action/1

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“I was blown away by how much symmetry and how many implementable lessons there were, from what I was doing every day when I was working with babies, that I could weave that into my own life and share with others.” - Sue  Ludwig

Sue Ludwig is a speaker, consultant, and author of the award-winning book “Tiny Humans, Big Lessons”.  She is a licensed occupational therapist, certified neonatal therapist, and serves as the media expert in neonatal therapy for the American Occupational Therapy Association.  

She is also the president and founder of the National Association of Neonatal Therapists (NANT).  NANT was founded as a way for occupational therapists, physical therapists and speech therapists to find community and connection and share information and resources about the very specific work they do for premature babies in the NICU. Aligning three such specific fields of study into a common mission can be challenging, as is raising funds for ongoing research, and bringing NANT’s holistic approach to the NICU’s high-tech environment, as Sue explains. 

Like premature babies, we all can feel fragile and small at times. Sue shares lessons from her book which she gleaned from her work that we can all apply to our ongoing emotional development, such as being mindful of every ounce of energy we expend. She also offers advice to fellow and aspiring changemakers about the importance of a shared purposeful mission, mentorship (official and unofficial) and self care. Change won’t happen overnight, and she shares how to get specific about your mission and how to develop emotional resilience. 

Intention itself is not enough, and you must have compassion for yourself when things inevitably go wrong. Hear Sue discuss her big future vision for NANT and what listeners can do to advocate for better neonatal care and therapies in their communities. 

Quotes

• “I was blown away by how much symmetry there was, and how many really implementable lessons there were from what I was doing… it was so transformational in my own life, I had to share it with other people.” (13:01| Sue)
• “‘You can have the greatest mission statement in the world, but it's pointless unless you have people who are on a mission.’ …it will not get off the ground without people with you who are on that same mission.” (26:13 | Sue) 
• “One really important thing… is just really believing that taking care of ourselves isn't selfish.” (27:45 | Sue)
• “A lot of times, they're real reactive situations, and I try to just say, ‘Wait, pause…whatever that reaction might be. I try to always just pause first because there's a lot of natural intelligence in the pause.” (29:39 | Sue)
• “Our intentions aren't guaranteed, it's just how we keep showing up for them, that matters.” (33:26 | Sue) 

Links

Connect with Sue Ludwig:

NANT: https://neonataltherapists.com/

Website: https://sueludwig.com/book/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/thesueludwig

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sueludwig

IG: https://www.instagram.com/sue.ludwig/

LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sueludwig/

Bio: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pvqPXPNDLQ21H4QSmNn1N7xJTOoIawKo/view

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

On today’s solo episode, Robbin is going to help you narrow down and organize your social impact ideas–by literally throwing them up against the wall and seeing what sticks! One of the many brainstorming methods she’ll walk you through is creating a post-it board wall. With this method, you’ll arrange your ideas for making an impact and creating social change–around such issues as race and the environment–into affinity groups and columns of descending order of importance. Another method she shares for gathering ideas is to have an “awareness week,” tapping into the world around you–your environment, your social circle, your reading materials–to gather topics that really speak to you. 

She’ll also help you to determine “hunger type” to determine your true motivation and method for making change. Additionally, you can conduct mini-interviews with those around you, asking them to tell you what actually lights you up inside. Turning the interview on yourself, you can ask what Robbin calls “The Warren Buffett question,” about what you would do with a large sum of money if it were magically gifted to you. Whatever exercise you choose, you must first suspend any judgment of your ideas and let them flow freely. Too often, as women, we overanalyze, dismissing our ideas before they even have a chance to take off. 

The challenge you are passionate about was given to you for a reason. Grab your post-its, pens and journal, get ready to brainstorm your ideas and share what you came up with at support@womenignitingchange.com! Soon you’ll be on your way to igniting change of your own!

Quotes

• “Don't prejudge any idea or category that you come up with based on how hard or easy you think it might be to execute. Just let your ideas flow, do a major data dump and don’t prejudge anything that comes out of your head.” (1:22 | Robbin)
• “Identify your unique type of hunger. So for those of you that know Women Igniting Change, you know that one of the workshops that we deliver is called “The Bigger Game.” It's a tic tac toe board with nine squares and one of the squares is The Hunger Square. It's that deep desire and yearning for something more, something bigger than you.” (7:57 | Robbin)
• “What do other people observe in you around a social impact category that totally lights you up?” (10:14 | Robbin) 
• “Every single woman has an idea around social impact and around social change that can revolutionize her community, her industry, her organization, and/or the world.” (12:00 | Robbin) 

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Given the nature of social justice and social impact challenges that we're facing as a country and as a world, this is the perfect time to launch this podcast,” explains Robbin Jorgensen, Host of the Women Igniting Change® Podcast. The podcast is based around the core belief that women have the untapped ability to solve the world’s most pressing issues, both within their own communities and in the larger world. Every woman has her own unique contribution to make and an inner spark which–even if it’s been extinguished–once reignited can change the world. 

Robbin shares the story of traveling to Rwanda, first in 2017 with Mercer on Mission, led by Professor Etienne Musonera of Mercer University in Atlanta. There she worked with women who became widows as a result of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. In 2019, she began organizing the building of an economic empowerment center for women in Huye in the Southern Province of Rwanda. 

Of course, with so many changes taking place in the last few years, the needs and goals of all involved have changed, but Robbin’s mission remains the same. Her story proves that no matter what anyone else has to say about your mission, by following your own inner voice, you, too, can ignite change. 

Quotes

• “I want to serve women who deeply care about social justice and social change, and want to make the world a better place. I want to provide a platform for you to be inspired by women who are changing the world, leveraging their passions and their gifts. I want to provide tips and trainings on how you can affect change in your own community in your own lives.” (1:02 | Robbin) 
• “Belief number one is that unleashing the contribution of women is a critical catalyst to solving some of the most pressing global challenges of our time…every woman has an idea around implementing social change or social impact that can revolutionize her community, her industry, her organization and or the world.” (1:48 | Robbin)
• “We all have those moments in our lives when we have to make a decision that doesn't always make sense to the outside world and might seem a little nuts. But inside you know it's something that you are meant to do. And through this podcast, I want to invite you to pay attention to those whispers a little bit more, especially around social justice, and social change ideas and ways that you want to affect change. I want you to start paying attention to those whispers and take action when you hear them and when they show up.” (5:49 | Robbin) 
• “Any social impact idea that you have, give it permission and breathing room to grow, evolve and change as you do…it doesn't have to look just one way.” (9:20 | Robbin)

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Each episode explores moments that demanded courage, beliefs that fueled transformation, and the real cost of speaking up when silence would have been safer.

These are sustained, unfiltered conversations about what it actually takes to cross a threshold — to rebuild, to lead, to endure, and to create change when the stakes are real.

We highlight the many ways audacity shows up — sometimes loud and visible, sometimes quiet and unseen — but always deliberate, grounded, and costly in ways we don’t often name.

With listeners in 59 countries, The Audacity Tapes™ is a global platform for women leading with truth, courage, and consequence.

Join us every Monday.