Future for Us Founder and Leadership Incubator Fellow Sage Ke'alohilani Quiamno sat down with host Alyse Nelson to discuss her passion for equity and her fight to get more women of color in leadership within the modern workplace. Sage shared how dealing with her own experiences of discrimination in the workplace motivated her to put her passion for equity into action. In this dynamic conversation, Sage makes it clear the importance of rooting advocacy and workplaces alike in an intersectional pe...
Apr 21, 2021•36 min
Outspoken Congolese radio journalist and co-founder of the South Kivu Women’s Media Association Chouchou Namegabe sat down with host Alyse Nelson to discuss Chouchou’s efforts enacting cultural change surrounding sexual assault and gender-based violence. Throughout her career, she has focused on bringing the stories of survivors to light by leveraging the radio industry, breaking down the culture of devaluing and silencing women’s voices. Listen in to learn more about Chouchou’s journey to chang...
Apr 14, 2021•30 min
Owner of the Amar Singh Art Gallery, Human Rights Activist and Solidarity Council Member Amar Singh, sat down with Host Alyse Nelson to discuss men’s critical role in the fight for gender equality and his work in bridging the gender gap and championing women within the art space. As an art gallerist, Amar saw the blatant lack of representation of women in the arts and continues to pioneer a culture change by uplifting and showcasing women artists. Tune in to hear how Amar embraces his allyship t...
Apr 07, 2021•22 min
Civil rights activist and the CEO and founder of Rise, Amanda Nguyen sat down with host Alyse Nelson to discuss the recent rise in hate crimes against the AAPI community and how she uses her activism to advocate for more informed and collaborative change. Amanda reflects on how she got involved in activism, her work with Rise Justice Labs and the impact of social media in democratizing the voices of the voiceless. A strong believer in collective action, Amanda has constantly worked to use her po...
Mar 31, 2021•26 min
Advocate and disability and inclusion expert Sara Minkara sat down with host Alyse Nelson to discuss her approach to framing inclusivity as a value-based proposition and how we can all lead with empathy and without assumption. Sara, the founder of the non-profit Empowerment Through Integration (ETI), draws from her experience as a blind, Lebanese-American woman who, despite barriers intent on blocking her way to success, has refuted the need for societal validation and instead created her own na...
Mar 03, 2021•24 min
Activist, Social Impact Strategist, co-founder of Freedom March NYC and all-round icon Chelsea Miller joined Host Alyse Nelson for a special Black History Month episode of the Vital Voices Podcast series: Power to Empower. Tune in to hear Chelsea share her thoughts on everything from mobilizing youth last summer following the murder of George Floyd to what’s happening on the frontlines of change, to her priorities to cement change and more. Listen to share in Chelsea’s share passion for investin...
Feb 26, 2021•24 min
‘Leap and the net will appear.’ Vital Voices network women Jessica Hubley, CEO of AnnieCannons, and Leah Lizarondo, co-founder of Food Rescue Hero, sat down with Alyse Nelson to discuss the power of pivoting. In both of their careers, Jessica and Leah each took leaps of faith, changing their trajectories to make an impact in their communities. Despite uncertainty and barriers, they were able to transform fears of failure into positive learning experiences that helped them create new and exciting...
Feb 24, 2021•40 min
President of the non-profit Reinserta, Saskia Niño de Rivera, and social worker and co-founder of the non-profit Prerana , Priti Patkar, sat down with Vital Voices Podcast host Alyse Nelson to discuss current barriers to achieving human rights for children around the world. Saskia and Priti explain their efforts to break the cycle of intergenerational violence by working directly with the children and parents involved, striving to ensure the balance of human rights is kept in line with the conte...
Feb 17, 2021•48 min
Young women will lead the way. That much is clear when speaking with women like Faith Florez, founder of the Latina Legacy Foundation and creator of the Calor App. Faith reconnected with podcast host Alyse Nelson to discuss the way that Faith’s family inspired her work protecting farm workers and informing them of their rights through technology. Faith explains how, through mentoring, seizing opportunities and passionate dedication, she’s grown her initial efforts into a platform educating peopl...
Feb 10, 2021•23 min
Donna Langley, Chairman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, joined Vital Voices Podcast host Alyse Nelson to talk about her journey from intern to Chairman, and how she forged her way through challenges by making a plan and pushing herself to the next level. Donna shares stories from her childhood, catalyzing moments from her career and how she uses compassion and empathy to lead others through crisis. Listen in to hear more about the intentional choices she’s made to keep the entertainment...
Feb 03, 2021•36 min
Artist and activist Tronja Anglero joined Vital Voices President and CEO Alyse Nelson to disucss the new portrait of Kamala Harris Vital Voices commissioned from Tronja. The two discussed the power that art like this has to showcase the positive and strong side to women and their contributions, the deep impact representation at high levels can have on the next generation, the way Tronja uses her art to empower and much more. To learn more about Vital Voices, visit www.vitalvoices.org . This seri...
Jan 20, 2021•16 min
Last month, we gathered our network of supporters– virtually – to celebrate and recognize the launch of our book, Vital Voices: 100 Women Using their Power to Empower. At that event, we brought together two women leaders, Global Leadership Awards Honoree, humanitarian and CanDo founder Dr. Rola Hallam and VV Board of Directors member, Cameroonian politician and entrepreneur Kah Walla, depicted in the book for a moving discussion about women’s leadership, their journeys, and much more. Tune in to...
Jan 06, 2021•39 min
Secretary General and co-founder of the Council of Women World Leaders, Laura Liswood joined Vital Voices Podcast host Alyse Nelson to talk about her leadership journey, the lessons learned along the way and how she uses ethics and empathy in leadership to empower others. Tune in to hear how Laura’s theories on power and leadership that can exclude – and include – historically minority groups from positions of power. Listen in to hear more about her compelling theories and insights on leadership...
Dec 23, 2020•50 min
VVEngage Fellow and current Interim President of Peru’s Council of Ministers, Violeta Bermudez spoke with host Alyse Nelsonabout building a career fueled by a passion for creating change. The staunch gender equality advocate discusses her goal for gender parity in politics, and the cascading impact of seeing women in leadership positions. Tune in to hear how Violeta’s background as a constitutional expert and gender equality advocate made her known as the “RGB of Peru” and how she uses her power...
Dec 16, 2020•25 min
Human rights advocate Ravi Kant joined the Vital Voices Podcast series: Power to Empower with host Alyse Nelson to talk on the importance of men’s allyship and his fight in breaking the silence around violence against women and children in India. In this episode, Ravi shares how his mother raised he and his brothers to be advocates in the fight for gender equality as an ally for women and girls in the community. Tune in to hear Ravi dive into the impacts of COVID-19 on the fight against GBV. Lis...
Dec 09, 2020•24 min
Author and Activist Chessy Prout joined the new episode of the Vital Voices Podcast series: Power to Empower with host Alyse Nelson to talkabout her journey as a survivor of sexual assault and how critical the allies around her were as she and her family worked through the draining process of seeking justice. Chessy reflected on the importance of connecting with and encouraging other survivors to assert their most important, basic rights – and how those connections drove her to use her voice so ...
Dec 02, 2020•28 min
VV Woman Leader Kiran Bir Sethi joined the new episode of the Vital Voices Podcast series: Power to Empower with host Alyse Nelson to talk about the turning point for her leadership journey: becoming a mother. In this episode, Kiran shares how - through role as a mother - she learned the importance of empathy, ethics, excellence, elevation and evolution in shaping schools’ educational curriculum to build humanity in children, rather than just preparing them for tests. Tune in to hear how Kiran’s...
Nov 25, 2020•29 min
Biologist, entrepreneur and founder of Wakami, Maria Pacheco, joined the Vital Voices Podcast new series: Power to Empower with host Alyse Nelson to talk about her work as a bridge between communities and the larger world. Maria spoke about her focus on channeling positive energy to make change happen for people and the environment, and how the 20-year Guatemalan Civil War inspired her work to build connection between communities. Hear more about her experience working with makers and businesses...
Nov 18, 2020•28 min
Climate change and indigenous rights activist Hindou Oumaru Ibrahim joined the Power to Empower series to discuss the way she brings the unique perspective of the Mbororo community to the international stage to inform global climate change efforts with on-the-ground experience. With Host Alyse Nelson, Hindou shares her path to leadership, her connection to her community and its impacts on international dialogue. She reflects on how critical it is that she uses her voice to bring humanity to the ...
Nov 11, 2020•20 min
Managing Director of Sosai Renewable Energies, VV GROW Fellow, Global Ambassadors alumna, WE Empower Awardee and Global Leadership Awards Honoree Habiba Ali joined this episode of the Vital Voices Podcast new series: Power to Empower. Habiba joined host Alyse Nelson to talk about her work in the renewable energy space in Nigeria, how her past has been a stepping stone to what her future has become and the barriers she’s worked through that have led her to use her voice and empathy to become a fl...
Nov 06, 2020•26 min
Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, joins this week’s episode of the Vital Voices Podcast new series: Power to Empower! President Lagarde joined host Alyse Nelson for a thoughtful and dynamic conversation about being the first woman in a role – and both the responsibility and motivation that comes with the title. She offered insight on how she’s leading the international body through COVID-19, and shared her advice for women leaders to own what makes them different and fee...
Nov 04, 2020•19 min
Tunisian human rights activist, global technology entrepreneur and founder of Mos.com, Amira Yahyaoui joined the second episode of the Vital Voices Podcast new series: Power to Empower. Amira joined host Alyse Nelson to talk about her past, present, and future as an advocate for change and what it means to be a trailblazing human rights advocate, a woman leader, and immigrant. To learn more about Vital Voices, visit www.vitalvoices.org . This series is inspired by our book, Vital Voices: 100 Wom...
Oct 30, 2020•29 min
Inaugural US Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman joined the debut episode of the Vital Voices Podcast new series: Power to Empower. Amanda joined host Alyse Nelson to talk about building her confidence as a poet and leader to overcome her speech impediment and raise her voice as an agent for change. Amanda talked about the lessons she’s learned as she works to bring about conversations around race and her recently launched Vote for the future Initiative – calling everyone to cast their vote in the...
Oct 28, 2020•29 min
Street artist, human rights advocate and survivor Panmela Castro gave us a first-person update from Brazil on how the country is handling the pandemic - from concerns of inequitable healthcare and crowded housing, to increased domestic and gender-based violence. But despite it all, Panmela is energized by the artistic options still available and the community that advocacy can build. She spoke with Vital Voices President and CEO Alyse Nelson about her portrait in the new Vital Voices: 100 Women ...
Sep 04, 2020•23 min
Former Marine and Congressional Candidate Claire Russo joined Vital Voices' Alyse Nelson to share her harrowing story of sexual assault, and discuss the deeply difficult journey she had to undertake to fight for justice within the armed forces. Claire's courage didn't stop there - she not only shared her story to get justice, but also as a part of her Congressional campaign, bravely discussing her personal account to continue her right to right wrongs around her. Tune into this powerful discussi...
Sep 02, 2020•38 min
In this conversation, Data2X's Emily Courey Pryor outlines the crucial points as to why gender data matters in building a more equal world. Biased data leads to biased policies, which widen economic and opportunity gaps and leave women behind when pushing for progress. From the way data is gathered to how questions are structured to how it's analyzed, gender bias can creep in throughout the data collection process - and deliver negative results. Tune in for an important conversation. To learn mo...
Aug 28, 2020•26 min
For Women's Equality Day and the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage in the United States, we're joining RepresentWomen's Cynthia Richie Terrell to discuss voting access and best practices for election systems to bring better gender balance and representation into politics. Find out more about RepresentWomen: https://www.representwomen.org/ See the letter Alyse and Cynthia discuss here: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/08/women-group-warns-media-against-sexist-coverage-biden-veep To learn ...
Aug 26, 2020•34 min
VVEngage Fellow Joelle Abou Farhat spoke with VV President and CEO Alyse Nelson about the devastating impact of not only the explosion in Beirut, but the lack of formal response in the country. She offered perspective on the government's response, and shed light on why Lebanese women - at the center of recovery efforts today - are always ready to serve their community at a moment's notice. And while her city recovers from the shock of the explosion, she discussed how this crisis demonstrates yet...
Aug 21, 2020•24 min
Business leader and philanthropist Mona Sinha joined Vital Voices President and CEO Alyse Nelson for a passionate conversation about women's role investing in causes that matter and why authentic representation will make the world a better place for more people. Mona discussed her journey and drive to prioritize issues that advance equality, and what her career has shown her about the importance of embracing your voice and amplifying the issues you work on. From guidance on navigating hardship t...
Aug 19, 2020•45 min
Last week, the world lost an unparalleled human rights activist, Dr. Hawa Abdi. Hawa gained international attention when she was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2012, but spent a life long before that committed to overcoming obstacles so that she could care for those around her. After losing her mother at a young age to maternal mortality, Hawa became Somalia's first female gynecologist. She built her one-room clinic into a refugee camp that would ultimately serve more than 90,000 people - ...
Aug 14, 2020•39 min
