Bird

At the time of recording Tanya Robinson OBE was the head of Diversity & Inclusion at Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. She shares with us insights around the growing non-white population in the UK prison system, her ongoing charity work with sex workers in east London, and how we are all links in a chain – creating opportunities for change.

Caroline Wyatt’s job is to share other people’s stories but her own story is the one worth sharing. She was adopted by a British diplomat and spent much of her childhood traveling the world, a passion which lead her to journalism. Her 30+ years at the BBC have seen her in many roles including that of a war correspondent. She shares with us those experiences, the incredible people she met along the way, and how she reconnected with her biological parents who in turn reunited and married after several decades apart.

The most important role of a CEO is to empower those around them, according to Anna Brozek, CEO of Big Cartel. She put that belief to the test when her personal life took a turn — At the same time Big Cartel asked her to take a leadership role, she discovered she had developed Graves' disease. Realizing she needed to invest in her health and family, Anna has fostered a company culture that enables her employees to make better choices for their own lives, as well.

Growing up in Communist Poland, Magda Walter had an instilled desire to travel. Her fascination with the outside world led her down a path engrossed in world politics through the lens of a journalism career. Now semi-retired, she spends her time consulting, volunteering at a helpline for survivors of domestic abuse, and contemplating our path to extinction...

When Anna Mey moved from communist Poland to Australia at the age of seven, she found a world of abundance and a new language — but she always held onto the promise that she’d one day return home. Years later, when it became clear her family was going to remain in Australia, she decided to return to Poland on her own. What follows is a story of strength, perseverance and independence, as we hear how Anna adapted to her new reality after years of expectations.

When Pat Samaddar moved from India to Krakow 11 years ago, she experienced a one-woman cultural revolution—she’d left all her friends and a high-powered career in software, and didn’t speak a word of Polish to boot. But living outside her comfort zone proved to be a personal awakening. Now, she’s the president of the International Women’s Association Krakow, works only on her own terms, and has raised kids who love pierogis as much as her dal. For Pat, culture is a tool, not a rule.

Writer Nicole Campoy Jackson loves home cooking so much, she can’t resist putting her own spin on her dishes. She figured others were doing the same—so she decided to launch a site, To Taste, where enthusiastic cooks can tweak recipes and share them with others. Nicole tells us about how having a baby gave her the courage to branch out on her own. (Oh yeah, and about the role OJ Simpson has played in her life.)

Jolly Nguyen’s incredible joy and energy is captured by her name. In Vietnam, few people travel beyond their hometown, but Jolly knew there is a world waiting for her to see. After an impromptu solo trip to the north of Vietnam, she embarked on a journey of travel, volunteering, and giving back to the community. She's now completing her master’s degree while running an NGO that brings together local communities with organic farms.

As a migrant who moved from Poland to Australia in the ‘60s, Mira Stanisławska treats the whole earth as her home. She doesn’t see borders or barriers — which may explain her insanely eclectic career. Besides raising a family in Melbourne, she has worked as a publicist, bought and sold a restaurant, became an art consultant, opened an Aboriginal gallery, designed gardens, and finally launched an environmental cleanup foundation back in Poland. Her fearless outlook starts with a simple premise: “I’m nobody, but I have a terrific idea!”

The realest talk comes from those who’ve lived the most. That’s why we loved our editor Magda’s candid phone call with her grand aunt, Thea Paoli. Thea has lived all over the world, speaks several languages, and never married—though she’s unexpectedly fallen in love at age 80. What would she tell her 30-year-old self? “Get your act together and make your own decisions!”