Blue Sky

Stacy Palmer leads The Chronicle of Philanthropy , the leading journal in the world of nonprofits .  In this Blue Sky conversation, she talks about the evolution of nonprofits into sophisticated organizations that do remarkable work around the world .  She describes the role of donors large and small, and how they're helping address challenges created by cuts in government funding .  Stacy also sh...

Shirzad Chamine experienced a traumatic childhood, raised in Iran by a father who was full of a frightening rage .  Following high school, Shirzad decided to move to the United States and make his future there .  Along the way, he heard an inner whisper telling him to make a positive influence on a worldwide scale .  After a variety of education experience, he developed innovative theories that re...

Losing her mom to cancer reminded Bree that life is fleeting .  Working as a consultant, she also saw how many people are miserable in their jobs .  Connecting these dots, she decided to help people find more joy and meaning in their work and rather than count the days to the weekend, turn things around and actually look forward to getting to work, perhaps even embrace a "TGIM" mentality .  In her...

Erin Cain didn't grow up around horses but eventually was exposed to them and the remarkable abilities they have to facilitate healing for a wide range of individuals .  A series of life events caused her to move from her native northeast to the Colorado Rockies and today, she's the co-founder, owner, and operator of Grace Reins Equine Therapy . In this episode she describes the personal hardships...

Meghan Riordan Jarvis was a practicing psychotherapist when she found herself devastated by the loss of her two parents .  She suddenly saw she was no different from those she helped, but she still needed outside support to recover .   In this Blue Sky episode, she describes how this realization led her to become an expert about grief and an advocate for all of us to learn about this important and...

Tricia Rose Burt had done everything right, according to the way she was raised .  She went to a "good school," had a "good job" and all seemed to be going great on the surface .  But inside, she was miserable and decided to make a change .  She left her career in public relations, took classes at art school, and began to explore her own creativity in a way that, as she describes it, "filled her c...

As a personal trainer and wellness coach, Stacey Garcia was doing everything right.  She ate well, exercised, and took great care of herself.  That's why her cancer diagnosis came as an extra shock, and in this episode, she explains how she dealt with this news and found strength and resilience as she battled her disease.  Now in recovery, Stacey helps guide others through similar challenges both...

Nicole Stott had a remarkable career with NASA, logging more than 100 days in outer space .  Her time on the International Space Station drives her appreciation for the importance of cooperation across cultures and national boundaries .  On this Blue Sky episode, she describes lessons learned from her time as an astronaut, and the inspiring work she does today through the Space For Art Foundation,...

Host Bill Burke thinks back to his own back to school days and offers thoughts on what he might study were he an incoming student this fall .  He also discusses what he might teach if he were a faculty member and encourages us all to keep learning in our lives, whether we are enrolled students or not.  

Marcy Syms has led a remarkable life, full of triumphs and tragedies .  Through a discussion of her new book, Leading w ith Respect: Adventures of an Off-Price Fashion Pioneer, host Bill Burke and Marcy cover subjects ranging from Marcy's upbringing, to overcoming bigotry and bullying in high school, to running her father's company and keeping it on track through the loss of two of her siblings . ...

Mike Goodwin grew up with a difficult and volatile father.  As a child, he decided that one way he could help his mom would be to help make her laugh.  He soon realized he had a talent for humor, but it wasn't until after time in the US Army and a career in higher education that Mike made comedy his career.  Host Bill Burke and Mike Goodwin share a lot of laughs and life lessons in this fun episod...

In this Blue Sky conversation, Kristine Michie describes her path to a career marked by sparking joy in people and organizations to facilitate positive and impactful change.  Earlier this year, she hosted Bill Burke on her PlayFull podcast and with this episode, the tables are turned and the result is a fun, inspiring conversation on the power of fun, joy, and optimism.   Chapters: 02:05 Meet Kris...

Bill Burke reflects on an idea presented by Niren Chaudhary in episode 107. Niren described curiosity and resilience as two master skills required to successfully run the marathon of life. In this "A Bit of Blue Sky," Bill underscores Niren's belief and relates these qualities to optimism, providing examples through past Blue Sky guests.  

Niren Chaudhary has led a remarkable life while overcoming intense personal tragedies .  He describes his success in running global business as stemming from a foundational belief in putting his employees first and leading them with love, gratitude, and respect .      Chapters: 01:36 Meet Niren Chaudhary   Niren Chaudhary , a visionary leader and CEO, shares his impressive career journey, highligh...

Heidi Johnson was in a great spot in life . She had a great family, good job , all she could reasonably ask for. But when her mother was killed in a shocking accident, that all changed .  After suffering from intense grief, Heidi's life changed when she was asked to start a new initiative at her local children's hospital. This led her to create and lead her own nonprofit and to a life today of ser...

As a West Point graduate who had completed his required service, Tom Deierlein was well into a successful career in digital advertising when he was called up once again to serve in Operation Iraqi Freedom. There, while working to help struggling Iraqi families meet their basic needs, a sniper's bullet would change his life's trajectory .  In this Blue Sky conversation, Tom shares his remarkable li...

Many years ago, Jodie Jackson found herself in a deep depression .  As she worked to identify the causes her deteriorating mental health, she realized it had a lot to do with her excessive and indiscriminate consumption of news and information .  In the years since, she's become a recognized expert on media literacy and a passionate advocate for understanding and managing our intake of news to pro...

In honor of this year's 4 th of July celebration, host Bill Burke discusses some bits of US history through the lens of this country's remarkable sense of optimism .  He describes that despite our many setbacks and shortcomings, we remain a place of possibility and hope and encourages us all to keep working towards "a more perfect union."  

Nichole Argo describes the work she's doing to bring communities together by assembling people with different viewpoints around one table to discuss their challenges and formulate solutions .  After great success in her hometown , she's now pursuing similar models across the country , and s he's optimistic that combining a growing desire for belonging with proven methods for bui lding community wi...

Over the course of his remarkable career, Harry Smith interviewed six US presidents and numerous celebrities including Julia Roberts, Cher, and Madonna .  But on this Blue Sky episode Harry shares that his favorite people to cover were the ones we've likely never heard of, the everyday heroes that he describes as the glue of our society .  Harry shares some of the wisdom he's earned and now share...

Blue Sky host Bill Burke, along with several past guests, have described today as the best time to be alive in all of human history .  On this episode, Bill explains some data-backed reasons why and provides hope that even better days lie ahead.  

Mary McManus has never had it easy .  As a kindergartener, she was a victim of polio just a short time before the vaccine was introduced .  She also faced trauma in her home life but somehow managed to persevere and overcome these and still more obstacles throughout her life .  Today, Mary is an inspiring author, poet, motivational speaker, and finisher of the Boston Marathon.     Chapters: 01:05...

Political division in the United States is an issue often cited as contributing to the pessimistic outlook so many of us have. Blue Sky guest Lindsey Cormack believes that our government will only improve if we begin to understand it better and get involved ourselves .  As a college professor, when she found that many of her students were remarkably ignorant about how our government works, she dec...

Sam Pressler has a strong track record of bringing people together and working to rebuild the civic infrastructure of the United States. In addition to being a researcher and writer, he is also the founder of the Armed Services Art Partnership and Connective Tissue , a collection of projects designed to help people understand how they might go about creating connections in their own towns and civi...

On the heels of the "Arts Educators Save the World" feed swap episode with Jonathan Groff and his elementary school music teacher, Linda Tough, Bill Burke reflects on the role of teachers and mentors in helping us all be optimistic .  He shares his own influences and those of many Blue Sky guests, while encouraging us to think of our own and consider being mentors ourselves.