Change Making Women: Recent Episodes
Change Making Women
Change Making Women: The Podcast for Women who make a difference
Change Making Women is a podcast with Ziada Abeid in Tanzania & Mary Ann Clements (formerly Mhina) in London. We make this Podcast for women who want to make a difference in the world through something they do. It could be their business, art, writing, other creative work, their campaigning or community organising, their work in NGOs, social movements and socially minded- businesses, from volunteers through solo-preneurs to those working in and leading large NGOs, social enterprises or businesses. If you are a woman trying to make change happen we are talking to you.
This stuff is complicated so this isn't a simple how to guide (although we will talk about some of the hows we and others have and are trying) and we don't shy away from exploring the problems and discussing the difficult stuff. Nevertheless the things we talk about, the stories we tell and interviews we broadcast are all reflections, observations and pointers towards how we might make this world a better place for everyone living here.
We aim to be topical, thought-provoking and inspirational, to bounce ideas around, trust that change is possible and introduce you to new people, things and ideas.
Because Ziada is in Dar es Salaam and Mary Ann is in London the content is informed by those locations and the links between them, and, at the same time - we are talking to you wherever in the world you are trying to make a difference.
Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Holiday Phillips about her article that recently went viral 'Performative Allyship Is Deadly (Here’s What to Do Instead)'. She tells us about what made her write it, the experience of it going viral and some of her other thoughts about racial justice and anti-racist practice in this time.
Find the article at: https://forge.medium.com/performative-allyship-is-deadly-c900645d9f1f
And Holiday on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/holidayphillips/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/holidayphillips Her website: https://www.holidayphillips.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFIndcHQuGPPv9KLJC2kYQg?view_as=subscriber
Holiday is a sociologist, coach, writer and speaker on the topics of philosophy, spirituality, culture and personal transformation. She is also co-founder of Kula, a consultancy that helps organisations develop conscious leadership and diverse, equitable and inclusive workplaces. All of her work is in service of this question:
“What will it take to build a wiser, kinder world?”
To that end, she is interested in exploring a wide range of topics that touch on soul and society – personal healing, non-violent communication, integral solutions to racial inequality, new economic models, and the practical application of ancient wisdom to name a few!
Some quotes from this episode:
'I'm really, really passionate about anti-racism not recreating the same systems of violence that define racism, which are morality versus immorality, good versus bad, better versus worse.'
'I think one of the things that non-black people can do to be allies is to be able to hold space for that rage to be processed, without taking it personally, without getting defensive. Just understanding that this is something that needs to happen.'
'For the first time, there are so many ears willing to listen and because that space is being cleared, there will be an explosion of rage and rage rooted in grief.'
'And these societal issues are rooted in people having power, needing to have power over someone else, judging people, denigrating people. So we don't want to bring those methods into the new world that we're trying to create'.
In this episode, Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Animah Kosai about her work on Speaking Up in the workplace.
Animah Kosai speaks, writes and advises on workplace sexual harassment & bullying, and speaking up on corporate wrongdoing. She formed Speak Up At Work and is co-founder of Speak Up Academy - a soon to be launched platform of thought leaders and change makers driven to create safe and inclusive work environments in the corporate world.
Animah is Malaysian-British, based in London. She practiced law for 9 years in Malaysia, before joining the oil and gas industry as corporate counsel for 14 years - covering South East Asia (except Indonesia) and India.
She has given talks and training in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Singapore and London, as well as media interviews, on topics ranging from #MeToo to global corporate scandals.
Find Animah's work on her website: www.speakupatwork.com Find her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/animah-kosai/ Or Twitter: https://twitter.com/SpeakUpAtWork
Welcome to the second in a new series of episodes in which we are talking to women making a difference in this time of Covid-19.
Today Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Esua Goldsmith author of a new memoir, The Space between Black and White about writing and publishing a book about her own life, why it was so important to her to share the story of being mixed race and how that has impacted her and the challenges of launching a book in the context of this pandemic.
Esuantsiwa Jane Goldsmith is a writer, feminist activist and development consultant of English – Ghanaian heritage. In 1975 she was the first woman of colour to be elected President of Leicester University Student’s Union, while in 2001 she became the first woman of colour to be elected Chair of the Fawcett Society. In 1977-9 Esua served as one of the first black volunteers to be sent on Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) in Tanzania. During her career she has acted as Commissioner for the Women's National Commission, Chair and Co-Founder of the Gender and Development Network, Vice-Chair of ActionAid UK, a Trustee of the Equality and Diversity Forum and a member of the UK Government delegation to the UN Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995. After reconnecting with her Ghanaian father and heritage in her 40s, she was enstooled as Queen Mother of Development of her village in Cape Coast, Ghana, in 2009.
You can find Esua via https://www.esuantsiwagoldsmith.com/ and purchase the book from Jacaranda Press: https://www.jacarandabooksartmusic.co.uk/collections/jacaranda-imprint/products/the-space-between-black-and-white (please buy directly from Jacaranda if you can as independent publishers like them need support especially during this pandemic).
Welcome to a new series of episodes in which we are talking to women making a difference in in this time of Covid-19.
Today in our first show since the pandemic began Ziada and and Mary Ann talk with Immaculate Mukasa is the Executive Director of The Mentoring and Empowerment Programme for Young Women (MEMPROW), an organisation In Uganda that develops capacity of girls and young women in education and leadership, and advocates for a violence free environment. We hear all about the approach MEMPROW take and how it has been effected by the pandemic, the crisis that many girls and young women are facing as a result of the lock-down and the impact this situation is likely to have for some time to come.
You can find out more about MEMROW and their work on their website: https://memprow.org/
Prior to leading MEMPROW, Immaculate spent five years as the Programmes Director. In order to address the negative patriarchal mindsets and social devaluation of women and girls, Immaculate engages with multiple partner organisations, various institutions and individuals nationally and globally. She is a proud member of the research community with a number of publications in the area of education and palliative care. She is a Certified feminist leader by CREA (Creating Resources for Empowerment in Action), with a Masters in Economic Policy Planning and a Bachelor in Economics, and a certificate in Public Administration and Management by Makerere University. Immaculate excels at planning, analysis and managing development work. She is a specialist in Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) with proven track record of several years designing and implementing M&E instruments, accountability mechanisms and community-driven development programmes. She has managed many multi-donor projects at grassroots and regional levels.
In this conversation, Melissa Pitotti talks with Nasra Ismail, Director of the Somalia NGO consortium. They talk about wellbeing in the context of the localisation agenda in humanitarian aid and why conversations about wellbeing require us to consider our privilege and to think about our work in radically new ways.
Nasra is the director of the Somalia NGO Consortium and currently lives in Mogadishu, Somalia. She cares particularly about women’s rights, rights of minorities and people of colour, generosity and healing as ways to transform her own leadership and the issues the coalition tackles in the sector she works in.
Her motto this year and decade is for all of us to connect with the communities we serve through the everyday practice of grace, coalition building across differences and laughter. And she loves to shine light on others through her use of social media platforms. You can follow her on Twitter @nas_isms
Melissa Pitotti has been working in humanitarian affairs since 2003 wearing different hats: donor, UN member state, multilateral, NGO coalition, independent. She's also a mom, bookworm, and burnout-survivor. She is currently collaborating with Mary Ann on a project being incubated by CHS alliance looking at building care and compassion in aid and in humanitarian work.
This episode is part of a special series of conversations entitled – Embodying Change: A series of conversations on care and compassion in Aid and Development curated by Mary Ann Clements and Melissa Pitotti and in partnership with CHS Alliance, Global Fund for Community Foundations, Healing Solidarity and Change Making Women Podcast. This episode was produced and edited by Ziada Abeid and the music was written and performed by Eleanor Brown who you can find at eleanorbrownmusic.com
Find out more about ‘Cultivating Care and Compassion in Aid and Development’ an initiative being incubated by CHS Alliance here: https://www.chsalliance.org/get-support/article/compassionate-organisations/
In this conversation, Melissa Pitotti talks with Kate Gilmore the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights. They talk about wellbeing in the UN system and other humanitarian and human rights work, about how Kate sees the connections between personal and political and some tangible ways she has tried, in her role, to do things differently.
Kate Gilmore was appointed United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights on 1st December 2015. She brings to the position diverse and longstanding experience in strategic leadership and human rights advocacy with the United Nations, government and non-government organisations.
Prior to joining OHCHR, Kate was Assistant Secretary General and Deputy Executive Director for Programmes with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Previously she was National Director of Amnesty International Australia and then Executive Deputy Secretary General of Amnesty International.
Kate started her career as a social worker and government policy officer in Australia. She helped establish Australia’s first Centre Against Sexual Assault at Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital and her work over a number of years focused on prevention of violence against women. In Australia, she was granted honorary appointments to provincial and national public policy and law reform processes, including membership of the country’s first National Committee on Violence Against Women.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New England and a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from the University of Melbourne, and has pursued post-graduate studies in social work and community development in Australia.
Melissa Pitotti has been working in humanitarian affairs since 2003 wearing different hats: donor, UN member state, multilateral, NGO coalition, independent. She's also a mom, bookworm, and burnout-survivor. She is currently collaborating with Mary Ann on a project being incubated by CHS alliance looking at building care and compassion in aid and in humanitarian work.
This episode is part of a special series of conversations entitled – Embodying Change: A series of conversations on care and compassion in Aid and Development curated by Mary Ann Clements and Melissa Pitotti and in partnership with CHS Alliance, Global Fund for Community Foundations, Healing Solidarity and Change Making Women Podcast. This episode was produced and edited by Ziada Abeid and the music was written and performed by Eleanor Brown who you can find at eleanorbrownmusic.com
Find out more about ‘Cultivating Care and Compassion in Aid and Development’ an initiative being incubated by CHS Alliance here: https://www.chsalliance.org/get-support/article/compassionate-organisations/
In this conversation, Mary Ann talks with Shuhba Chacko in India and Artemisa Castro in Mexico. They consider together how we might cultivate caring and compassion in our organisations and movements.
Shubha Chacko is a joyful activist who has drawn strength, knowledge, and warmth from strong alliances and friendships forged with people from different walks of life. She is the Executive Director of Solidarity Foundation, an NGO that supports grassroots level organisations of gender/sexual minorities (LGBTIAQ+)and sex workers by building collectives, capacities and connections with resources. The broader goal is to enhance leadership of those currently excluded. Solidarity Foundation also works with companies and other organisations on their LGBT journeys. Shubha is also a researcher and has authored books, reports and articles and has been an invited speaker at many national and international conferences.
Artemisa Castro is Executive Director of Fondo Acción Solidaria(FASOL) in Mexico. She is also a member of the Global Funders Alliance for Social Environmental Action. A biologist by training, she founded a local organization in Baja California Sur in the 1990s to spark and develop community action both to improve the local social and environmental conditions and to empower local women. This led to her collaboration with a group of other environmental activists and ultimately to the founding of FASOL in 2007, the first fund in Mexico dedicated to supporting grassroots community action through a programme of small grants, mentorship, capacity building and networking. Artemisa's dog also makes a special appearance in this episode!
This episode is part of a special series of conversations entitled - Embodying Change: A series of conversations on care and compassion in Aid and Development curated by Mary Ann Clements and Melissa Pitotti and in partnership with CHS Alliance, Global Fund for Community Foundations, Healing Solidarity and Change Making Women Podcast. This episode was produced and edited by Ziada Abeid and the music was written and performed by Eleanor Brown who you can find at eleanorbrownmusic.com
Find out more about ‘Cultivating Care and Compassion in Aid and Development’ an initiative being incubated by CHS Alliance here: www.chsalliance.org/get-support/art…-organisations/
Find out more about ‘Pathways to Power Symposium’ being co-ordinated by Global Fund for Community Foundations here: globalfundcommunityfoundations.org/what-we…-doing/
In this conversation, Mary Ann talks with Penelope Sanyu from Femme Forte (https://www.femmeforteug.org/) in Uganda about how she links space and wellbeing in her work. They are joined with Eshban Kwesiga who has experienced the spaces Penelope creates and who also shares his perspective on her work and it's importance.
Penelope Sanyu is Team Leader and Founder of Femme Forte in Uganda. She is a young lawyer, thinker, writer and author, policy analyst, solution architect and Agent of Positive Social Change and Transformation. She has dedicated most of her career to building the capacity of young people to innovatively engage with and influence public policy in various spaces. She has experience using social arts as a tool for socio-political transformation and has organized several social arts platforms at a national level. Penelope has a wealth of knowledge working with Civil Society Organisations, the women's movement and feminist organisations in Uganda.
Eshban Kwesiga is very interested in feminist scholarly thought. He has written on the limitation of economics as a tool to feminist progress. Eshban has also curated conversations for men in consent. His includes advocacy for inclusion of an anti-gender pay gap in the Minimum Wage legislation, legislation against sexual offences, advocacy to have more women in Uganda’s security forces and agencies and access to contraceptives for women and girls.
This episode is part of a special series of conversations entitled - Embodying Change: A series of conversations on care and compassion in Aid and Development curated by Mary Ann Clements and Melissa Pitotti and in partnership with CHS Alliance, Global Fund for Community Foundations, Healing Solidarity and Change Making Women Podcast. This episode was produced and edited by Ziada Abeid and the music was written and performed by Eleanor Brown who you can find at eleanorbrownmusic.com
Find out more about ‘Cultivating Care and Compassion in Aid and Development’ an initiative being incubated by CHS Alliance here: https://www.chsalliance.org/get-support/article/compassionate-organisations/
Find out more about ‘Pathways to Power Symposium’ being co-ordinated by Global Fund for Community Foundations here: https://globalfundcommunityfoundations.org/what-we-stand-for/shiftthepower/a-symposium-on-people-led-development-pathways-to-power-new-ways-of-deciding-and-doing/
In this conversation, Mary Ann talks with Penelope Sanyu from Femme Forte (https://www.femmeforteug.org/) in Uganda about how she links space and wellbeing in her work. They are joined with Eshban Kwesiga who has experienced the spaces Penelope creates and who also shares his perspective on her work and it's importance.
Penelope Sanyu is Team Leader and Founder of Femme Forte in Uganda. She is a young lawyer, thinker, writer and author, policy analyst, solution architect and Agent of Positive Social Change and Transformation. She has dedicated most of her career to building the capacity of young people to innovatively engage with and influence public policy in various spaces. She has experience using social arts as a tool for socio-political transformation and has organized several social arts platforms at a national level. Penelope has a wealth of knowledge working with Civil Society Organisations, the women's movement and feminist organisations in Uganda.
Eshban Kwesiga is very interested in feminist scholarly thought. He has written on the limitation of economics as a tool to feminist progress. Eshban has also curated conversations for men in consent. His includes advocacy for inclusion of an anti-gender pay gap in the Minimum Wage legislation, legislation against sexual offences, advocacy to have more women in Uganda’s security forces and agencies and access to contraceptives for women and girls.
This episode is part of a special series of conversations entitled - Embodying Change: A series of conversations on care and compassion in Aid and Development curated by Mary Ann Clements and Melissa Pitotti and in partnership with CHS Alliance, Global Fund for Community Foundations (GFCF), Healing Solidarity and Change Making Women Podcast. This episode was produced and edited by Ziada Abeid and the music was written and performed by Eleanor Brown who you can find at eleanorbrownmusic.com
In this show Zena Tenga tells us all about the intiative she co-founded, HerAfrica.
Zena Maajar Tenga is a PR and Communication Practitioner with a vast experience in Corporate Social Investment strategy. She has worked for both local and international organisations. Her recent focus is social responsibility and community development; focusing on community engagement and providing sustainable growth and development within her community. Zena is co-founder of the Hassan Maajar Trust an NGO which aims to improve the learning environment in schools for every Tanzanian child as well as co-founder of HerAfrica, which aims to change the African girl child narrative, through sharing os stories, knowledge, skills and tools aiming to elevate one girl at a time. She is a growing philanthropist in her own right, with a passion for writing, art, food and all things vintage. Zena is also a novice blogger, through her Lifestyle blog 'Mint and Tea’. Her free time is always dedicated to her two children Nakazael (8) and Moyo (5). Zena is married to Rashid Karl Tenga and lives and works in Dar es Salaam.
This week we are re-playing Episode 55 which featured a conversation between Mary Ann and Alessandra Pigni who sadly died recently.
In the show, recorded last year before she died, they talk about Alessandra's book ‘The Idealist’s Survival Kit. 75 Simple Ways to Avoid Burnout’, the causes of burnout in the Humanitarian Sector, why you aren’t alone if you are experiencing it and why a mixture of strategies are the best way to address it.
Alessandra Pigni was a humanitarian psychologist, organisational consultant and author of The Idealist’s Survival Kit. 75 Simple Ways to Avoid Burnout. After serving with Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders in Palestine and China. She dedicated her work to understanding the connection between meaningful work and burnout. She was also a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford and her work has a wide following among humanitarian practitioners, activists, and academics.
Find out more about Alessandra at www.mindfulnext.org And purchase her book at https://www.parallax.org/product/idealists-survival-kit-75-simple-ways-to-prevent-burnout/
This week we talk with Ernee Bee Neeplo from Formidable Initiatives in Liberia about her work with women and girls and particularly their work to address sexual violence and abuse.
Ernree has over twelve years of experience in the nonprofit sector and earned a Master’s degree in Public Health from the Cuttington University and a Bachelors’ degree in Sociology from the African Methodist University both in Liberia respectively. She has a wealth of experience in the public health sector and expertise in program designs, policy formulation, management and systems strengthening.
Ernree is a humanitarian, women’s rights activist, change-maker, an administrator and is evidence-based results oriented. She is an ethical leader, a woman of formidable intelligence, human-centered designer, open-minded and a reliable team player with strong interpersonal skills. She is skilled in organizational and programs development, projects management and implementation, monitoring and evaluation, training facilitation, research, among others.
Over the years, Ernree has founded, volunteered and worked with several community-based organizations, local and international NGOs making contributions aimed at increasing adolescents and young women’s access to sexual and reproductive health information and services including other positive health outcomes.
She is the founder of the Formidable Initiatives for Women and Girls, a nonprofit organization committed to advancing the rights of women and girls and providing them opportunities to rise above their challenges in the areas of health, education and economic empowerment.
She is currently the National Program Officer-Gender and SGBV at UNDP Liberia serving as the focal person for the EU/UN Spotlight Initiatives/Liberia.
Ernree is driven by a strong passion and commitment to youth development, gender equality and women's empowerment. She envisions a society where youth especially girls can grow up to be healthy, socially and economically empowered leaders in their communities.
Find out more about Formidable Initiatives at http://www.fiwgliberia.org/
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk about homelessness and shelter insecurity in Tanzania and beyond.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Christine Gatwiri about the #myalwaysexperience campaign in Kenya in which women used social media to share their expereince of using Always menstrual products.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk to Nicole Lewes-Keeber, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Masters in Social Work who is also a Speaker, Business Therapist, Mindset Coach and Podcaster about her work assisting entrepreneurs to reveal the blocks and blindspots in their businesses. She reveals the importance of the relationship we have with our businesses and how negative experiences in our past can impact the way in which we relate to them. Nicole’s articles about the impact of small t trauma on entrepreneurship can be found on Medium and in her blog.
Find Nicole here: https://nicole.lewis-keeber.com/
Her articles here: https://medium.com/@nicole_22488
And connect with her here: https://www.facebook.com/nicolelewiskeebercoaching
We've released our 75th show today celebrating International Women's Day. Hear us reflect on why our own stories matter, how storytelling might be 'balanced for better' and celebrate some of the shows we have loved in the past year.
BalanceforBetter #IWD2019
Esther Otieno works as Senior Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Manage with IRC Tanzania. She is based in Kigoma in North-Western Tanzania. This week she tells Ziada and Mary Ann all about her mental health work in Refugee Camps and what motivates and challenges her about it.
They talk about the passion Esther has for her work, the successes she has had in encouraging refugee communities to access mental health services and how she deals with challenges and looks after herself in her work.
Esther works with IRC Tanzania: https://www.rescue-uk.org/country/tanzania
Her project runs 5 wellness centres which have, to date, carried out over 14,000 consultations and mental health outreach staff working with the project have visited over 6000 homes to provide information about mental health and support the development of resilience and coping mechanisms. The project has reached over 50,000 people in the community and made them aware of the mental health services and the existing referral pathways through outreach and awareness activities.
In this show, Ziada tells Mary Ann all about her recent trip to Sauti Za Busara, a Music festival held in Stone Town on Unguja Island, Zanzibar. They talk what music really excited her and Ziada gives us some top listening tips as well as telling us which festivals are next on her 'bucket list'!
Ziada and Mary Ann re-introduce themselves for 2019 and give an update on what they have been up to since the last show.
In their first book club episode, Ziada and Mary Ann have been reading Mighty Be Ouw Powers by Leymah Gbowee, the Liberian Peace Activist whose leadership helped bring an end to Liberia's second civil war.
In this episode, the first of season two. Mary Ann tells Ziada all about Healing Solidarity a conference she is currently working on which you can find more about at healingsolidarity.org. They also catch up after the summer and discuss Mary Ann's re-brand.
This week on the podcast Ziada and Mary Ann talk about the women who inspire them personally. They share the characters and moments that inspire them most and why they choose to draw inspiration from a whole range of different women, including the women who they are lucky enough to interview on the podcast!
They also share about something new coming soon on the podcast. The Change Making Women Book Club where they will talk about a book written by a woman who has created change. They also invite listeners to get involved with this. Listen to this episode to find out more!
Ruby is the CEO and Co-Founder of WUKA Wear. She is a passionate environmental scientist who combines her scientific knowledge and passion for lean startup methodology to solve the problems that surround disposable menstrual products. She was born and brought up in Nepal and with WUKA , she wants to break taboos around period worldwide.
This week on Change Making Women we talk to Ruby, who is originally from Nepal about how she developed the idea for Wuka Wear Period Pants and went about testing, developing and launching the product.
Listen to the show to hear more about the process of envisioning an innovative product, the environmental imperative for us to get into the habit of using reusable menstrual products, breaking down the stigma and taboos about our bleeding and the importance of addressing period poverty worldwide.
Find Wuka Wear at www.wuka.co.uk.
This week Mary Ann talks to Julie Daley about her life and work. They talk about Julie's exploration of Awakening Eros and how we might flourish in our essential nature at this time, overcoming our conditioning to do otherwise. They explore what it means to feel deeply connected and to experience joy and wonder. And they talk about how the work Julie does support people with a whole range of backgrounds to embrace more of who they truly are.
In this week’s show Ziada and Mary Ann speak to Marcie Goldman about her approach to coaching and supporting women around food and nourishment. We hear about why she does the work she does, why she believes that flourishing is feminist and how she helps women unpick restrictive dieting and eat what they want.
In this show, we talk with Nicole about her book 'The Heart of the Labyrinth' about a woman who takes a journey to rediscover her lost connection with Mother Earth and the sacred feminine. We find it what motivated her to write the book, how she created the conditions in which it could be written and the impact she hopes the book will have on those who read it. Find out more at http://nicoleschwab.com.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Wambui JL the creator of Hairpolitian Lifestyle, an online magazine that focuses on African women who have or want to return to their natural hair. Wambui, who is based in Nairobi Kenya is also a Graphic Designer with a passion for women in Business. We talk following your gut as a way to do business, almost giving up (but not quite), sharing your struggles to inspire others (and also get support) the way that creative ideas emerge at 3 in the morning (we don’t know why!)
Today Mary Ann talks with Sara Lim Bertrand about Proteknôn, a consultancy group and foundation she co-founded which is focused on the protection, care, and wellbeing of children internationally. They discuss how the group came together, the strategies they use to enable flexible working across many geographies and how they blend consultancy work with activism about the issues they care about.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann speak with Ilana Landsberg-Lewis about how she become so interested in talking with Grandmothers, building global solidarity between them and sharing their voices. Ilana also shares with us why she is passionate about a feminist, egalitarian and anti-colonial model of the solidarity work and the significant - and often undervalued contribution that older women have made to the world of humanitarian assistance and development.
In this episode, Mary Ann talks to Jo Casey about how she supports people to run meaningful businesses that reflect their values and make a difference in the world. We talk radical approaches, challenging accepted wisdom and re-making our work in a way that feels true for us.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Madeleine Forbes one of Mary Ann's collaborators in www.jijaze.com about her life in Portugal, her own project www.theseasonedyear.com and why she believes that leaving seasonally is a choice that can sustain and nourish us all.
This week we spend some time talking with Chelima in the middle of her European Tour which marks the release of her first EP, The Beholder. She tells us about her love of singing and how she discovered, after many years working in the business with other artists, that she wanted to become an artist and create and perform music of her own. We talk the evolution of our work in the world, the things that sustain us and taking the difficult path of following our dreams.
Chelima in action Live: https://youtu.be/MwiNayt_1cA The beholder video: https://youtu.be/6Vsgp2V9p7k
Our guest this week is Beverley Glick the 'Story Archeologist' who Co-Founded the Story Party with Mary Ann. She shares with us her process for supporting people to share and tell their stories and why it can have a profound impact on both them and their audience.
One from the archives! The Replay of our show from this week in 2017 when we talked about International Women's Day - why it is celebrated, what it means to them and why we should think about women and their rights each and every day of the year!
This week we have a rich, deep conversation with Sophie Macklin about what it means to grieve, not only the loss in our lives, but our pain and sadness about things in the world and in our particualr cultures which we feel sad and angry about. We explore what it means to express our grief and how we think that doing so can enrich our lives and help us to support one another.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann discuss their perspectives on the recent Oxfam Scandal about sexual abuse and aid workers. They talk about the reaction whilst this story has been high profile in the UK and what needs to change on International Aid and Development in future.
This week Mary Ann talks to Alessandra Pigni author of 'The Idealist’s Survival Kit. 75 Simple Ways to Avoid Burnout' about the causes of burnout in the Humanitarian Sector, why you aren't alone if you are experiencing it and why a mixture of strategies are the best way to address it.
This week we talk to Carrie Brownlee about financing international work for non-governmental organisations. We discuss the challenges of growth, sustainability and future planning, why fundraising and finance are part of the work and what she thinks needs to change in the sector in relation to resourcing.
A replay of one of our favourite shows from 2017 with Tanya Geisler, coach and reluctant expert in the Imposter Complex. In this episode we spoke with her about about why you shouldn't let your own self-doubt stop you from making the difference you are passionate about making in the world. We talk some common signs of the Imposter Complex, why if you feel it you definitely aren't a fraud and concrete strategies for moving through your fears and getting on with the work you long to do.
On the podcast this week Ziada and Mary Ann look forward to 2018 and share some of their hopes, plans and dreams for the year to come.
On the podcast this week Ziada and Mary Ann look back over 2017 and share some of their own reflections about the year gone by, who and what inspired them, what they have been reading and listening to and their own most important personal learning and challenges.
Revisiting an episode from early on 2017 in which Mary Ann talks to Pamela Brannon, Executive Director of Children of Uganda. They speak about the experiences that inspired her to make a difference, the work of her organisation and their belief looking after ourselves is an important part of how we make a difference.
This week Mary Ann talks to Hannah Thompson about mothering and humanitarian work, the challenges of travelling and risky contexts when you are a mum and how becoming mothers has affected our approach to our work in the international development sector.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk with Rachael Maddox a trauma resolution educator, coach and guide about how she supports people to heal from sexual trauma in their lives, the new book she is currently writing and raising funding for and why healing our trauma is such important work in the world right now.
This week we talk to Liz Remande-Guyard about her work as a Shadow Work Facilitator and Coach. Mary Ann, also a Shadow Work Coach shares her experience as well while Ziada asks the questions this week. We find our what Shadow Work is and how it can help us to create change from the inside out.
Revisiting another of our favourite shows in this show Mary Ann talks to Claire Mahon, a human rights lawyer based in Geneva who consults, coaches and mentors others to do human rights work as well as running her own not-for-profit human rights legal work. We talk about how she got in to human rights work, what motivates and inspires her, what she has learnt along the way and how she has learnt to look after herself as well as the crucial work she undertakes.
In this episode Ziada and Mary Ann discuss '#MeToo', the hashtag that went viral recently as a means of identifying our experience of sexual harassment and assault. They talk about whether 'hastag's matter and what the impact of this one has been and might be in future. They also discuss the phenomenon of things going 'viral'.
Mary Ann asks Ziada about the Kipilipili Expose that will take place on Sat 4th Nov. They talk about how the event has changed from last year, what Ziada and her business partner have learnt in the process and all the exciting things that will be happening during this years event.
Revisiting another of our favourite shows. In this one Mary Ann talks to Aisha Hannibal about their work together establishing the Red Tent Directory and how it has organically grown now lists dozens of Red Tent Circles for women across Europe. They talk about what they have learnt in the process about sustainable growth and leadership, what is important to them about attending Red Tents and other women's circles and the part they think they have to play in making a difference in the world
In this episode, Ziada asks Mary Ann all about her latest work with Jijaze and particular about the concept of a regular Away Day to take time out. They also discuss the recent public event the Replenish: Away Day and how you can get access to the material from that.
Revisiting one of our favorite Shows. In this podcast, we talked to Kimberly Weiss, a Body Neutral Writer, Speaker and Coach about what it means to truly believe in the possibility of health at any size, why she is so angry about the public health obsession with obesity and why we each need to start with defining what health means for us and our own unique body. We so enjoyed this show and we hope that you will too.
In this episode Mary Ann and Ziada talk with Eunice Baguma Ball founder of Africa Technology Business Network about her work creating an event for aspiring and upcoming African tech innovators in London after being in the city for only a few months and about taking the world back to the continent she comes from with Her Future Africa which offers African women entrepreneurs the support and inspiration they need to start and technology-based businesses.
In this show Ziada and Mary Ann celebrate the first year of this podcast, Change Making Women, They discuss some of the interesting and inspiring guests they have had on the show and look forward to the future PLUS Eleanor Brown plays the title track from her new album, Meet You There, live for us.
This week we talk to Doris Mollel about her Foundation which seeks to raise awareness about premature birth in Tanzania and to better equip public hospitals to provide the care which premature babies need. We talk about her own story which was her inspiration, what motivates her and how she has dealt with the challenges she has encountered along the way.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk to Emily Waithira Founder of Awali Shea Butter, a business exporting natural organic shea butter harvested in Uganda to Kenya and beyond. She tells us about the challenges of starting up, the importance of having a Team alongside her and why we shouldn’t let fear of failure jeopardise our dreams.
Replaying one of our favourite shows. In this one we talked with the musician Shishani about her project Shishani & The Namibian Tales. We discussed making music and her quest to discover the music of the San people in her homeland of Namibia, and the discussion led us to explore authenticity, going you own way, love and power.
In this show Mary Ann talks to Christina Lynch about why she got interested in exploring sexuality in a new way, how it has helped heal the wounds of her past and why Tantra and ritual need not be mysterious or scary, instead she explains, they can support us in connecting to ourselves and one another more deeply.
This week Ziada asks Mary Ann to tell her all about the work she has been doing around having clear boundaries and how it relates to change making work. We talk about our own experiences of wishing we had more clarity and saying YES when we wanted to say NO and Mary Ann shares more about what the Boundary Challenge, which runs in the Jijaze Community until the end of August.
This week Mary Ann and Ziada talk to Majo (Marjorie Angella Athurra) of the Gejja Women's Foundation in Mpigi in Central Uganda. We hear about her own story, her work with women in her own community and how she is working to end shame and secrecy around menstruation
This week on Change Making Women we talk to Kelly Diels, a writer and marketing consultant whose approach is based upon the marketing strategies of movements and revolutionaries. We find out why she is so passionate about the Feminist Marketing School she recently launched, what it means to market as a feminist without selling out, how she defined and critiques the Female Empowerment Lifestyle Brand and how she thinks we can both market our work and stay true to our values.
This week, in one of our occasional rants, we talk about how we feel about hairdressers cutting off too much hair - and also what we think about institutions that try to do that! It's all about natural hair, and your right to choose how you wear it, freedom & equality and stuff like that.
Revisiting one of our favourite shows. In this episode Maria Magembe and Hellen Lawuo-Meena tell us about their business, Daughters of the Soil, a premium skincare brand of African Heritage with a social purpose. We talk about the inspiration they have taken from Maria’s Great Grandmother, putting Africa on the map in a positive way through the products they are creating, the challenges of starting the business, their tips for working with a friend and their dream to develop a platform that supports rural women in Africa.
Revisiting one of our favourite Shows. In this podcast we interviewed Lilly Oyare, the Director of Little Rock, an Inclusive Early Childhood Development Project in Kibera, Nairobi. She tells us about how she gave up her job to start this project to provide education to children from the informal settlement and how her vision has grown from the five children she originally wanted to help in 2003 to the hundreds, including many disabled children, whose lives have been changed since. Along the way she explains how she accidentally became a passionate advocate for inclusion, how she has been able to develop and expand the project and gives us her advice about getting your own change making project started as well.
This week we talk with Jennifer Lentfer, Director of Communications from Thousand Currents and the woman behind the blog how-matters.org about her and in particular the recent book she co-edited with Tanya Cothran, Smart Risks (and which can be found at www.smartrisks.org). It leads us into a fascinating conversation about how aid and development are viewed, why we should refocus our efforts on challenging power and inequality and how we can lead and facilitate in new ways to create the positive change which the world needs right now.
This week we talk to Janelle Hardy about the importance of our life stories, how getting in touch with how we feel in our bodies can help us transform our lives and the lessons she has learnt as an apprentice carpenter. Janelle teaches memoir-writing as transformational work and lives in Vancover Island, Canada.
This week we talk to Tanya Geisler, a coach and reluctant expert in the Imposter Complex about why you shouldn't let your own self-doubt stop you from making the difference you are passionate about making in the world. We talk some common signs of the Imposter Complex, why if you feel it you definitely aren't a fraud and concrete strategies for moving through your fears and getting on with the work you long to do.
This week Walker Thornton speaks with Mary Ann about her work as an educator, public speaker and author advocating for women’s sexuality and encouraging women to ‘step into their desire’. We talk midlife, women’s right to stay focused on their own wants and needs and why being in touch with our own sexuality is important and vital at every age.
This week we speak with Kimberly Weiss a Body Positive Health Coach about what it means to truly believe in the possibility of health at any size, why she is so angry about the public health obsession with obesity and why we each need to start with defining what health means for us and our own unique body.
In this episode of Change Making Women Ziada and Mary Ann talk about women in politics and to what extent we can expect women in positions of power to represent the needs of women.
This week we talk with Ronna Detrick about how writing, both for herself and for others has helped her to delve deep in to her true nature. We talk about how writing can help us to uncover more about our deep fears and desires and in doing so identify our power and potential as women. Ronna also tells us about the support she is now offering to other women who want support and witness with their own writing.
This week Mary Ann talks to Pamela Brannon, Executive Director of Children of Uganda. They speak about the experiences that inspired her to make a difference, the work of her organisation and their belief looking after ourselves is an important part of how we make a difference.
This week we talk to Sarah Lloyd-Hughes from Ginger Public Speaking about her passion for supporting women to use their voices to share a message that really makes a difference. We talk about what holds us back from speaking our truth, how we can use imperfection to our advantage and why she's committed to work with 100 leading women to support them to create change in the world.
This week Mary Ann gives Ziada an update on the changes that have been happening in her Jijaze project explaining what they are about and how you can get involved.
This week Mary Ann talks to Gwynn Raimondi, a an electrical engineer turned therapist about trauma and how we process it. Gwynn shares how she works not only with her clients own lived experiences of trauma but also both cultural and intergenerational trauma and we discuss why this kind of work is so closely connected to our desire for Social Justice.
On tonights’ podcast we talk with Elinor Predota about story telling, being a pagan and why listening matters so much when you want to both tell stories and work for social justice.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann reflect on Brexit in the UK and Ziada asks Mary Ann to share her views about the process and what the triggering of Article 50 this week will mean for the UK & beyond.
This week we talk with Shishani about her project Shishani & The Namibian Tales. We talk about making music, about her quest to discover the music of the San people in her homeland of Namibia, about authenticity, going you own way, love and power.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk to Eva Baguma, a Business Development Manager with the Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited. She tells us about her path towards her purpose, working in change making organisations, going with the flow and trusting her ‘big work’ will find her if she keeps on showing up.
This week Ziada and Mary Ann talk about International Women's Day - why it is celebrated, what it means to them and why we should think about women and their rights each and every day of the year!
Mary Ann talks with Clare Cooper a Mum, Writer and Yoga teacher about the importance of looking after ourselves and the approach to self-care and replenishment that she uses for herself and in her classes.
This week Mary Ann talks to Claire Mahon, a human rights lawyer based in Geneva who consults, coaches and mentors others to do human rights work as well as running her own not-for-profit human rights legal work. We talk about how she got in to human rights work, what motivates and inspires her, what she has learnt along the way and how she has learnt to look after herself as well as the crucial work she undertakes.
This week we talk to Julika von Stackelberg , a parenting educator based in New York working with the Cornell Co-operative Extension about how she discovered the peaceful parenting approach that she now promotes, what it entails, how it has challenged her and the parents she works with and why she thinks that changing our approach to parenting could, in the long run, change the world.
This week Ziada asks Mary Ann about her own personal experience of miscarriage and we talk about how it is one of a number of issues that deeply after women & their partners that we so often simply don't talk about.
This week on the podcast we talk to Lilian Galinoma (Makau), who is a Talent Manager at Tanzanian Breweries (recently taken over by AB InBev) about what it means to pursue a feminist agenda in the workplace and how she has developed a forum for women within the company to support female employees and help the company to engage with the issues that matter to them.
Ziada interviews Mary Ann and our guest Annalisa D'innella about the London March last weekend. We find out why they both decided to participate in it, what it was like and we discuss the impact and questions that arise from so many women choosing to demonstrate in this way.
This week Grace Mdemu tells us how mentoring a girl who was at risk through the Global Giving Circle has enriched her life as well as that of her mentee. She explains how the programme works, why she's so committed to it and the change that it creates and how she would love to see the programme grow and reach more girls. We also talk about how she fits being a Mentor in to her busy life as a Auditor, Mother, Entrepreneur and Poet.
A special edition of the podcast in which Mary Ann reads her poem, Three Habits: A Fierce Love Letter to Change Making Women released today for the launch of her Jijaze Project.
Ziada asks Mary Ann all about her new Jijaze project which is launching next week on 12th Jan.
Ziada and Mary Ann talk about 2016. Was it a terrible year? What's been happening in Tanzania? The UK? on the world stage? And in their own lives. They also look forward to 2017 and to what they hope it has in store, including on the podcast!
On this episode of Change Making Women we interview Eleanor Brown, the singer and songwriter who both wrote and performed our theme song. In the show we talk about how Eleanor got started writing music at a young age, where she draws her song writing inspiration from, the link between personal transformation and making a difference in the world and Eleanor's passion for connection to and the protection of the natural world, We also get an amazing performance of Eleanor's song 'A Call to Stand'
In this episode Mary Ann asks Ziada to give her some advice about using social media to promote your work, be it a business or charitable enterprise. Ziada gives some useful tips on how to identify what you are trying to achieve and where to focus your energy.
Maria Magembe and Hellen Lawuo-Meena tell us about their new business, Daughters of the Soil, a premium skincare brand of African Heritage with a social purpose. We talk about the inspiration they have taken from Maria’s Great Grandmother, putting Africa on the map in a positive way through the products they are creating, the challenges of starting the business, their tips for working with a friend and their dream to develop a platform that supports rural women in Africa.
Ziada tells Mary Ann all about the upcoming Nywele Natural & Beauty Expo which Kipilipili are part of organising in Dar es Salaam. We find out what visitors can expect at the show and why the organisers have chosen to focus on natural products made as locally as possible as well as offering women a chance to learn from exhibitors and experts about the natural hair and beauty challenges they face!
Ziada and Mary Ann reflect on the recent US election and the fear and sadness many are feeling about the result and ask how we might turn use our fear and anger to galvanise effect action for change? They talk about co-ordinating movements for change and inspiring ourselves to focused action towards the change that we believe in.
On this weeks show we interview Noelah Msuya, Founder and Director of Child Support Tanzania, an not-for-profit organisation based in Mbeya which promotes educational inclusion through their early childhood development centre and a range of activities with local schools and communities. Noelah tells us why real inclusion matters and how she has coped with leading a growing change making project alongside being a Mum.
This week Mary Ann talks to Aisha Hannibal about their work together establishing the Red Tent Directory and how it has organically grown now lists dozens of Red Tent Circles for women across Europe. They talk about what they have learnt in the process about sustainable growth and leadership, what is important to them about attending Red Tents and other women's circles and the part they think they have to play in making a difference in the world
Ziada and Mary Ann talk about motivation and how they personally pick themselves up with they fall. They share their experiences, speak about some of the things that haven't gone so well for them, where they turn when things feel impossible in the projects they are engaged in and their top tips to stay motivated no matter what happens.
In this weeks show we build on Epsiode #2 where we talked about taboos around Menstruation and talk with Chiedza Muguti about her experience with Fibroids. She tells us about her symptoms, how they were finally diagnosed and what solutions she was offered. Cheidza was keen to come on the show and tell us about her expereince so that other women experiencing this common condition can identify their symptoms and find help.
Please be aware that we had some challenges with telephone lines when we were recording this episode.
Ziada quizzes Mary Ann about fundraising; how to get started, what you need to have in place and how to go about proving what you have achieved afterwards. This episode is full of practical tips and ideas if you want to get a charitable, NGO or not-for-profit project off the ground.
In this podcast we interview Lilly Oyare, the Director of Little Rock, an Inclusive Early Childhood Development Project in Kibera, Nairobi. She tells us about how she gave up her job to start this project to provide education to children from the informal settlement and how her vision has grown from the five children she originally wanted to help in 2003 to the hundreds, including many disabled children, whose lives have been changed since. Along the way she explains how she accidentally became a passionate advocate for inclusion, how she has been able to develop and expand the project and gives us her advice about getting your own change making project started as well.
On todays show Ziada and Mary Ann discuss attitudes to entrepreneurship in Tanzania and the UK and how the internet is changing how entrepreneurs work all over the world. We ask whether people in rural areas are being left behind as entrepreneurship gets easier for those who are well connected? We also talk cash economies, chutney and what happens when you have too many tomatoes? We ask each other what we think is innovative in business right now? Discuss how companies like Uber and Air BnB are spreading their reach by solving our problems and Ziada wisely tells us that being an entrepreneur simply means giving people the solutions they are looking for and then not giving up!
In this episode Ziada and Mary Ann speak about about menstruation and how the taboos about it affected our lives growing up both in Tanzania and in the UK. They reflect on the fact that having periods is such a normal part of our expereince as women, even if we can't talk about it and how not talking about how menstruation and our cycles affect us it makes things harder. We do some honest talking about the particular challenges we each expereince when we bleed and Mary Ann talks about how you can start to get more in tune with your menstrual cycle and plan you work and life accordingly. We also share something about how we experienced our first bleed, about the fact that the number one reason for girls dropping out of school is because they can't afford sanitary products and Ziada speaks about why that needs to change and what the Tanzanian government is doing about it. We conclude that the change should start with us breaking the taboo and talking about our bleeding with the women and men in our lives.
The second of our two part launch episode in which we introduce you to the women behind Change Making Women. Today we talk about Mary Ann and the different ways in which she has tried to make a difference through her work on childhood disability, mental health and even the Nia movement practice which she teaches. We find out what happened when she got 'burnt-out' change making and how she has picked herself up and is now creating a community for change making women offering them support, connections and learning to help them stay well resourced in their work. We also find out what food she says she could eat for the rest of her life!
The first of a two part launch episode in which we introduce you to the women behind Change Making Women. Today we talk about what Kipilipili means and why Ziada believes it is so important to love your natural hair, how Kipilipili has grown organically from a simple idea about sourcing products to a business with a change making mission behind it. Ziada also talks about how she works on the project with a close friend and gives us some tips about how to make a business partnership work if you are already friends, the huge importance and benefits of listening to your audience, how she is maximising social media channels to expand the impact of Kipilipili and mixing making a difference with a business that provides what real women actually want.
Coming Soon: Change Making Women is the podcast for women who make a difference with Ziada Abeid in Tanzania & Mary Ann Clements (formerly Mhina) in London.