Let's Give A Damn

Pedro Andrade is a Brazilian author, journalist, and TV presenter  based in NYC. Pedro has presented on Good Morning America, Nightline, and many other shows like those and he has his own show called “ Pedro Pelo Mondo ” which is based out of Brazil and gets about 7.5M weekly viewers. I had him on the show to talk, among many other topics and issues, about his brand new show on Vice TV called...

This week, we’re bringing back our November 2020 chat with Matthew McConaughey! Matthew is an actor, an author, and a philanthropist. Matthew recently wrote a book  based on 36 years of journaling. In it, he shares incredible stories, tons of wisdom, and he helps us learn the art of catching Greenlights. Remember, no matter how many yellow lights or red lights you may be experiencing in...

This week, a few thoughts and important updates from founder of Let's Give A Damn and host of the Let's Give A Damn podcast, Nick Laparra ! Follow Nick on Twitter , Facebook , and Instagram . Do this at your own risk, of course.  _________________________________________ Reach out to us anytime and for any reason at  hello@letsgiveadamn.com . Follow Let’s Give A Damn on  F...

Taylor Schumann is an activist, writer, and the miraculous survivor of a workplace shooting. In 2013, Taylor was at work (New River Community College) when a former student walked in and tried to Kill Taylor and many others. You’ll have to listen to our conversation to hear the full story. It’s horrifying and incredible at the same time. Taylor has committed so much of her time the last few years...

Carol Mitchell holds a Juris Doctor from Seattle University School of Law, a Master of Arts in Organizational Systems Renewal from Seattle University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Washington Seattle. Mitchell has more than 20 years of public sector leadership experience, having served most recently in Pierce County, Washington.  Her primary responsibility was to...

Bob Dalton is the founder and CEO of Sackcloth & Ashes, a mission-driven company that gives a blanket to a homeless shelter for each one purchased. In 2018 he launched Blanket the United States, a campaign with the goal of donating one million blankets to homeless shelters by 2024. He now travels the United States campaigning to bring awareness and resources to organizations that are creating...

Father James Martin is a Jesuit Priest living in New York City. Additionally, Father Jim is the Editor-At-Large of the Jesuit Magazine, America, and is the author of books like Building A Bridge and Learning To Pray. Father Jim has been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ people inside and outside the Catholic Church. A couple of years ago, he got to spend 30-minutes speaking with Pope Francis. During tha...

Sharon McMahon is an incredible human and my guest this week on the podcast! She is a former high school government and law teacher who earned a reputation as ‘America’s Government Teacher’ amidst the historic 2020 election proceedings for her viral efforts on Instagram to educate the general public on political misinformation. Through a simple mission to share non-partisan information about democ...

Baratunde Thurston holds space for hard and complex conversations with his blend of humor, wisdom, and compassion. Baratunde is an Emmy-nominated host who has worked for The Onion, produced for The Daily Show, advised the Obama White House, and wrote the New York Times bestseller How To Be Black . Read the rest of Baratunde’s bio here. Follow Baratunde on Twitter and Instagram . Listen to How To C...

Leslie Engle Young was born in Oregon to two educators. Her life has brought her many twists and turns that have led her to be in a position where she is now leading thousands of educators all over the world! Leslie is the Chief Operating Officer at Pencils of Promise—a fantastic organization that builds schools and provides quality educational programming to increase literacy rates in Ghana,...

Craig Robinson was born in Chicago to Fraser and Marian Robinson. You may know his only sibling and younger sister, Michelle. Michelle Obama, that is.  He is a former head men’s basketball coach at Oregon State University and Brown University. He was a star player at Princeton University in the early 1980s. He is currently the Executive Director of the National Associ...

This week, you’ll get to hear some of my favorite moments from my conversations with Reshma Saujani. Colman Domingo, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Jedidiah Jenkins, Angie Thomas, and Justin Baldoni! To learn more about Reshma, visit her website and follow her on Twitter . To learn more about Colman, visit his website and follow him on Instagram . To learn more about Priyanka, buy her new book and follow...

Justin Baldoni is a damn good human. He is an actor (Jane The Virgin), director (Five Feet Apart, Clouds), entrepreneur (Wayfarer Studio), humanitarian (Skid Row’s Carnival of Love and much more!), family man, and now…author! Preorder Justin’s brand new book, Man Enough . Watch Justin’s 2017 TEDWomen talk Why I’m Done Trying to be Man Enough . Watch the Man Enough video series . __________________...

Richard Lee is Director of Advancement at Asian American Christian Collaborative , Global Officer of Public Engagement at International Justice Mission , Podcast Host of The Pursuit with Richard Lee , and advisory board member of One Days Wages . Watch his TEDx talk “Slavery still exists. Here’s how to end it” here . It’s fantastic! _________________________________________ Reach out to us anytime...

Harris III (“the third”) “began his career at a young age, traveling the world as an award-winning, professional illusionist.  He has performed for and spoken live to more than two million people in more than 30 countries on five continents. His performances have been televised to millions more on the Travel Channel and ABC Family. After traveling the globe and making a million...

Tiffany Bluhm is an old friend and a damn good human! Tiffany is the author of She Dreams , Never Alone , and her newest book Prey Tell: Why We Silence Women Who Tell the Truth and How Everyone Can Speak Up . She is cohost of the podcast Why Tho and speaks at conferences and events around the world. Her work has been featured in World Vision magazine and on the YouVersion Bible app, the Hallmark C...

Jedidiah Jenkins is an incredible storyteller, a master wordsmith, and an all-around damn good human. We cover a wide range of topics during this conversation—the pandemic, death, work, books, free will, calvinism, broader theological ideas, travel, his two best-selling books, and so much more! Buy his first book—the NYT best-selling To Shake The Sleeping Self —now! Buy his second book—the NYT bes...

Adam Met is 1/3 of the 6x Platinum band AJR and the Founder/Executive Director at Sustainable Partners . He is also getting his PhD in International Human Rights Law right now and he’s the host of the Planet Reimagined Podcast .  Follow Adam on Instagram and Twitter. And make sure to follow the band on Instagram to find out more about their new album coming out on March 26 ! _________________...

Thad Cockrell is a singer-songwriter based in Nashville, TN. After almost two decades making music, he was ready to give up. Then, Jimmy Fallon heard one of his songs in a hardware store and…well, the rest of history. This is a must-listen conversation! Follow Thad on Twitter , Facebook , and Instagram . Watch Jimmy Fallon share the story of how he heard Thad’s song and then watch Thad perform on...

Colman Domingo is a 2021 Film Independent Spirit , NAACP , SAG and Critics Choice Award nominee for his work in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and is a Tony, Olivier, Drama Desk, and Drama League Award nominated actor, director, writer and producer. Read the rest of Colman's bio here . During our conversation, we talk about Colman’s upbringing, what it means to be a joyful disruptor, why this Black Liv...

Angie Thomas is an absolutely amazing human. She was born, raised, and still lives in Jackson, Mississippi. She is a former teen rapper and a current best-selling author. Like, she has sold a shit ton of books. Her first book, The Hate U Give , has sold millions of copies and has been on the NYT bestsellers list for 206 weeks. And it was turned into an incredible feature film ! Her latest book, Co...

Priyanka Chopra Jonas is an award-winning actor and producer. Without a doubt, she is one of the most recognizable entertainment figures in the world. Here’s a weird and incredible fact for you—she is the 43rd most-followed person on Instagram ! Priyanka won Miss India and Miss World in 2000 and has gone on to star in countless films and shows. AND she joins me on the show today to talk about her...

Tina Tchen  is a mom, an activist, and an advocate. She is the president and CEO of  TIME’S UP Now  and the  TIME’S UP Foundation . In 2017, Tina co-founded the  TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund  which has connected thousands of people with legal or PR support for sexual harassment across dozens of different industries. Before leading TIME’S UP, Tina worked in the Obama W...

Prof. Yaneer Bar-Yam is the founding president of the New England Complex Systems Institute . He received his SB and PhD in physics from MIT. Since the late 1980s he has contributed to founding the field of complex systems science, introducing fundamental mathematical rigor and real world application, ranging from the global financial crisis to stopping the 2014 Ebola outbreak. He has advised the...

Reshma Saujani is the Founder and CEO of Girls Who Code , the international nonprofit organization working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a computer programmer looks like and does. She is the author of the international bestseller Brave, Not Perfect and the New York Times bestseller Girls Who Code: Learn to Code and Change the World. Reshma’s TED...