How Change Happens: Stories & Insights from Social Justice Changemakers

This timely episode is, in many ways, a love note to Chicago. Join me as I get to know Shannon Downey (she/they) — an artist, activist, craftivist, community builder, general instigator, founder of Badass Cross Stitch and Seriously Badass Women, and proud Chicagoan. Among other things, our conversation explores community-building; creative practices as entry points into activism; local organizing and what it takes to identify as an "activist"; how to navigate political violence; and how...

In this episode I reconnect with my friend and colleague Miko Lee (she/her) — an activist, storyteller, educator, and Director of Programs at Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality. Miko and I roam through a conversation about ancestry and intergenerational patterns; transformative justice, personal responsibility, and self-care; how the U.S. government is disappearing Bhutanese American Refugees; the power of story and the danger of stories going "MIH (missing in history)"; plus some ...

This inaugural episode features a wide-ranging conversation with my long-time collaborator and friend Aisha Rios (she/they) — a community organizer, "reluctant anthropologist-evaluator," and Learning & Change Strategist at Coactive Change. Aisha and I reflect on a poem she wrote that represents how she believes change happens, their "change lineage" and how it's inspired them to integrate their organizing and consulting, and the practice and impact of centering deep, authentic relationshi...

How Change Happens: Stories & Insights from Social Justice Changemakers is a podcast for those committed to creating a more just and liberatory world. When you tune in, you’ll hear conversations with changemakers who work in all kinds of spaces: organizing, DEI, healing justice, learning and evaluation, philanthropy, narrative change, and so on. We’ll explore the thinking behind their practice, and discuss real stories of the complexity, challenges, and joys of creating change — in the ...