The Social Change Career Podcast

For the past 3 years, Jessika Portney was a manager of Leadership Programs at the prestigious Brookings Institution . That is, until 2020.  If this year is a lemon, let's hear what type of lemonade Jessika made.  Far from letting her layoff define her, she used this adversity to fulfill her dreams of becoming a leadership and life coach. In  Episode 16 of Season 7 Jessika shares her story, what ha...

Wai Wai Nu has global notoriety as a champion of democracy and human rights as attested by her many accolades including Time Magazine Next Gen Leader; Hillary Clinton Awards; Young Global Leader; Impact Hero by Earth Company, among others.  In  Episode 15 of Season 7 Wai Wai shares her story as a political-prisoner in her native Myanmar. Far from letting her own personal and her family's ordeal un...

This is a must-hear episode for everyone interested in peacebuilding. Originally from Egypt, and originally trained as a lawyer, Dr. Amr Abdalla has built an extraordinary career as a researcher, academic, teacher, trainer, story-teller and overall good human.   In  Episode 14 of Season 7 Dr. Amr Abdalla walks us through his journey in Egypt as a young lawyer and his move to the U.S.  A remarkable...

Do you know that you can use design methods to solve social problems? Do you wonder how to become a designer focused on bringing positive social change?  In  Episode 13 of Season 7  Sara Cantor, one of the world's leading voices in human-centered design, walk us through her journey from the corporate world to co-founding Greater Good Studio which focuses on inserting design methods to resolve syst...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

What happens when you bring a journalist to the show? The guest doesn't only want to answer questions, she interviewed me [show host] as well. Welcome to a special episode of The Social Change Career Podcast with Kara Andrade and Catalina Rojas. In  Episode 12 of Season 7 Kara Andrade tells the story of how her family immigrated from Guatemala to the U.S; growing up in the U.S; becoming a journali...

Fiona Macaulay works at the intersection of innovation, leadership and global development. She's a serial social entrepreneur, educator and field-builder.    In  Episode 11* of Season 7,  Fiona shares how her leadership experience initiated in her involvement in student-led business.  Fiona talks about her "fateful coffee" that changed the course of her life that took her to South Africa for two y...

Kerstin Tebbe is the networking whisperer. An international development/humanitarian response professional interested in non-traditional approaches to change across all sectors.   If you think networking is just to there to help you get jobs, you are in for a huge surprise.  Networking is skill, a strategy to advance your career and also a tool to affect positive social change.  If you want to hea...

If you ever wondered what is an academic entrepreneur, this is your episode.  Dr. Patricia Marquez, serves in a dual role at the University of San Diego as the Associate Provost for Academic Planning and Innovation and as Dean of the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies. Getting into and completing a PhD is hard. Finding tenure work as an academic is even harder, try being a woman, an immigrant, a...

Forbes30under30, Ashoka Fellow, CEO and co-founder of a social enterprise, brilliant engineer from Carnegie Mellon University, Pablo Santaeufemia is by all measures a bright impact professional. Beyond degrees, languages spoken and accomplishments, Pablo is very intentional of how he wants to expand the space of entrepreneurship for all .    In Episode 8 of Season 7, you hear how his social enterp...

A career in the arts is hard enough, a career in the arts as a tool for positive social change is even harder.  If you are passionate about how to build a successful career integrating the arts into social change, you need to listen to Sara Lahayne's story. A life-long dancer who channeled her love for the arts and created an incredible organization, Move This World , an award winning ed-tech comp...

Frustrated by the field experience requirement? Curious how to get your first field work assignment? You need to sit down and listen to Hana' Abdullah Raja Jum'ah who has accrued over 113 months in humanitarian, fragile and development contexts including Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and Tunisia. In Episode 6 of Season 7, you listen how Hana, while studying Geology, developed a tast...

What do bagels, podcasts and law have in common? Ken Frankel is the right answer.  Fellow podcaster, with an impressive career as a lawyer, 5 years as the OAS (Organization of Americas States) legal counsel, law professor at Belgian and American Universities. Currently the President of the Canadian Council for the Americas , Kenneth N. Frankel "Ken" is equal parts as impressive, as he is grounded...

Frustrated by the field experience requirement? Curious how to get your first field work assignment? You need to sit down and listen to Hana' Abdullah Raja Jum'ah who has accrued over 113 months in humanitarian, fragile and development contexts including Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and Tunisia. In Episode 6 of Season 7, you listen how Hana, while studying Geology, developed a tast...

If you want to listen a no-nonsense approach to systemic change, listen to Satyam . He has spent over a decade in education, skills development and social entrepreneurship in rural India. In Episode 4 of Season 7 hear about Satyam's aha! moment; his deep experience in the nonprofit education system in India and the process of establishing his own social enterprise which focuses on workforce develo...

Author of the Book " The Values String: A book of Transitional Life, Compelling Fulfillment, and Profound Peace ". Ukpeme Akpan Okon is a lawyer, arbitrator, adjudicator, author, mediator, Ambassador for Peace and musician.    In Episode 3 of Season 7 , Ukpeme shares about her 15 year long career as a lawyer.  A pioneer in her work and founder of many organizations including:  GAIN (Guild of Adjud...

Wainright defied the inherent odds of socio-economic inefficiencies, and now works every day to empower the thousands of young people who are vulnerable and victims of the failed education and workforce development systems through his very own edutech incubator: TRIBE . In Episode 1 of Season 7 Wain will tell you how to build not only your career of impact, but how to do so as a West African young...

Opening a brand-new season is a perfect example of career success in the social good space and then some.  Former peace corps volunteer, career coach, PhD student, professional photographer, mother, and also a PCDN. Global advisory member: Jennifer Bangoura.    In Episode 1 of Season 7 Jennifer tells us her time with the Peace Corps living and working in a village of 1,000 people in Mali; her expe...

Closing the best season in the history of the Social Change Career podcast is Ryan Gawn, an award-winning advocacy and strategic communications specialist. Ryan has advised Heads of State and two United Nations Secretary-Generals as well as designed and led campaigns across the globe in corporate, diplomatic and non-profit roles.    In Episode 19 of Season 6 , Ryan shares 9 tips to help you succee...

If you wonder how to combine a career in the private sector and business development with international development and gender inclusion, this is your chance to hear from Ellen Maynes who is part of the Gender and Economic Inclusion Group at the International Finance Corporation , a member of the World Bank Group- which is focused on working with the private sector in developing countries. In Epis...

Is it possible to run your own business firm while simultaneously lead an international peace and development organization? For Bolivian native and Houston resident Ximena Murillo, not only is it possible, it is her life. In Episode 17 of Season 6 , Ximena, a Rotary Peace Fellow (class 24), shares how she has been able to hold positions in the private, non-profit and public sectors, while also wor...