EARTHMOVERS, with Alison Mariella Désir, Stefanie Flippin, Verna NezBegay Volker

Hear about memorable moments from the season; surprises, learnings, and joys. Alison, Verna, and Stefanie also discuss what they are looking forward to next.  Remember, we have merch and a Substack. You can also keep up with us @earthmoverspodcast on Instagram.  Thank you to our listeners, supporters, Altra, and everyone who continues to help make this idea into a reality. Changing the narrative i...

The mission of the RIDC is to “unite the running industry to improve inclusion, visibility, and access while creating clearer pathways for people to enter the sport and build meaningful careers within the running industry.” It’s the only organization of its kind in the running industry. Alison and Verna are both co-founders of the RIDC. Kiera is also the co-founder of the running community City Fi...

Additionally, Yuri taught school for 12 years before working for GU. Yuri has always been someone who aims to create welcoming spaces for all, and this has carried over into his work at GU: he has placed an emphasis there on sponsoring and providing opportunities to diverse riders and runners. And, as Stefanie points out when introducing Yuri in this episode: “In addition, in our opinion, he's als...

Harold Benally is Navajo, living in Phoenix, Arizona. He is a longtime distance runner and has run road marathons and now runs ultra trail races. He’s competed in several 100 milers and is currently training for his longest race, the Cocodona 250. Verna, who is also Navajo, and Harold have been friends for many years: that shines through in this beautiful, powerful, and rich conversation. As Harol...

Christina Regalado is an ultra trail runner, physician's assistant, daughter of El Salvadoran and Mexican immigrants, and the co-founder of Wasatch Trails Collective, a local trail running group for BIPOC runners in Utah. Wasatch Trails Collective's mission is to create an inclusive and supportive community for runners of color along the Wasatch Front, empowering runners of all levels to achieve t...

Phoebe brings it in this conversation, shining a light on how she is shifting and reclaiming the narrative through her work. Phoebe Robinson is a standup comedian, best-selling author, producer, actress, and publisher.  Her second standup special, "I Don't Wanna Work Anymore" premiered October 7, 2025 exclusively on YouTube. Phoebe is the author of the essay collections You Can’t Touch My Hair, Ev...

Brandon grew up on the Navajo Nation, in the remote area of LeChee. He talks to Verna about how he was raised in traditional Navajo culture.  He also talks about how sharing his story and representing for his culture and for younger members of his community is important to him. In addition to being a runner and storytelling photographer, Brandon is a high school running coach at Page High School i...

In addition to being a runner and community organizer, Rojas is a biotech scientist. She is also an ambassador for the LA Marathon and the Endurance Race Series, and she was part of the inaugural Broken Arrow Skyrace advisory council 2024–2025, and remains on the council to this day.  This dynamic conversation gets into Rojas’s work in STEM and how she is working toward being a role model in that...

Yes, Schuyler Hall does a lot! Schuyler shares how he first got into running and his experiences on the trails in Arizona, as one of the original media creators for Aravaipa. Schuyler was foundational to what would become Mountain Outpost. The company pioneered ultra race coverage in the US and is now the premier outlet to provide live race day coverage for many of biggest events on the trail raci...

This conversation goes there, in the best ways possible. Katy shares how they first discovered trail running in their adult years and how that eventually led to them having a passion for overseeing ultra races in wild spaces and building community beyond the event space. They also discuss the life and work experiences that have informed their approach to putting on trail events.  Katy and Alison c...

Verna, our resident Minnesotan, who lived for 16 years in Minneapolis, talks about running in winter and the impact of the ICE siege in her area, for herself and her community. And it brings up discussion around how running is political, and Alison questions how races will respond to runners' concerns and fears about ICE presence around events.  Stefanie talks about her work with GU Energy Labs on...

The Runner’s Roundtable with Stephanie Diaz features female runners, run coaches, and entrepreneurs in the running space. The goal is to uplift their voices while being curious about how to make running more inclusive, accepting, and welcoming. Each season Stephanie focuses on a different theme: the theme of the episode featured here is "Conversations with Runners," and the theme of her next seaso...

This engaging and dynamic trio talked about Evans' running journey, creating the 40K+ strong Slow AF Run Club, how he’s dealt with criticism–both online and in person, and how he’s navigating being a new dad, and a lot more. It’s an inspiring, uplifting conversation, with some laughs along the way.  A huge thank you to our presenting sponsor Altra for making this conversation possible for us. And...

Hear about memorable moments from the season; surprises, learnings, and joys; and what Alison, Verna, and Stefanie are looking forward to next. Oh, and yes, they do talk about their pets!  Also announced: EARTHMOVERS will be live at the NYC Marathon Expo, Jacob Javits Center, on the Main Stage, Sat., Nov. 1, 1pm, featuring special guest Martinus Evans, resilience speaker, marathoner, and author of...

Deo Kato is a runner, coach, and racial equity activist. He was born in Uganda, and at age 10 came to London, where he still lives. Today he is best known for being the first person to run from Cape Town to London. This trek began on July 24, 2023: it took Deo 518 days and he covered 8,230 miles.  Previous to this huge undertaking, Deo created the 381 Days Running For Justice movement. Starting Ju...

"You cannot act in a different way in the mountains," says Zagdaa. "You have to be yourself."  The Bataars have a lifetime of experience in the outdoors, but their way of living changed dramatically when they came to the US: time in the outdoors gave way to working long days to establish their family in the States. Over time, they recognized the need to get back out into nature. Their own journey...

Ellie sat down with EARTHMOVERS co-host Verna to talk about her running background and how she developed into a running community leader. Their conversation touches on Ellie's experiences navigating and claiming her own identity as a Korean woman who was adopted from her home country and raised by a white family in a predominantly white community in Pennsylvania.  Ellie also talks about her evolut...

Alison and Alysia get deep, and they also share some laughs, covering a range of topics. Alysia brings her vast experience as a world-class athlete and a ground-breaking advocate for mothers and women, especially women of color. She has experienced racism and misogyny, and cheating in competition. Throughout, Alysia has followed her heart and held firm to remaining vocal and taking brave steps tow...

Yolanda, known as “Yo,” is a marathoner, hybrid athlete, and community builder. She ran her first marathon after just five months of training and then went on to co-found Sin Miedo with her husband, Antoine, not long after.  Sin Miedo, which means without fear, is a fast-growing trail running community, founded by people of color, centering people of color, with the aim to uplift cultura, courage,...

Both Missy and Wynonna, who are themselves native as well–Mescalero Apache and Navajo, respectively–were introduced to ultra trail running through NWR. Previous to Cocodona, the furthest they’d ever run was 100 miles.  Verna talks to these runners about their running history and what inspired them to want to take on this huge challenge. They also discuss how they prepared for this event and what r...

Stefanie and Verna dive into all that went into Verna reaching her 100-mile goal, a process that's been years in the making, as well as how the race went down. Several years ago, Verna attempted this distance and over 90 miles before having to end her bid. She vowed then that she had no interest in going after 100 miles ever again.  But then Verna changed her mind.  Verna had the opportunity to ru...

In this conversation between EARTHMOVERS co-host Alison Mariella Désir and Dora Atim, Atim shares how she got started in running, and what got her out on the trails, running ultras. She also gets into how the running group she founded, Ultra Black Running, came to be, and why she's so passionate about carving out space on the trails for other Black women and nonbinary runners.  Atim goes deep, sha...

Miki Sawada is an ultra trail runner and professional pianist who focuses on bringing classical music to community spaces through her nonprofit Gather Hear. Sawada is Japanese, and she’s been living in the US for the past two decades. She calls the Boston area home. Sawada was chosen as one of the two recipients for the 2025 GU Energy Labs’s Diversity Initiative. In this episode, Sawada talks to E...

In this premier episode, EARTHMOVERS hosts Alison Mariella Désir, Stefanie Flippin, and Verna NezBegay Volker get on the mic. They catch up on their recent outdoor and life adventures, including Alison’s second summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and putting on her first trail race, the We Out Here Trail Festival.  Stefanie shares about her busy coaching season and about her own training, which has includ...