Brown, Brainy & Beautiful

This episode is about how art can be used as a platform to address critical topics. In this particular case, with an ongoing, and by experts confirmed, genocide of the Palestianian people, I spoke with a London based American artist who continuously speaks out on the matter. 

Not too long ago I bumped into content he made, where he does a typical Get Ready With Me tutorial video. And each step of the way as he applies his make up, he advocates for the liberation of the Palestinian people. 

And so, in this episode I am joined by the one and only Andrew Burt aka ⁠@the_virgin_X⁠ on social media.

Following up on a Watermelon Liberation episode where the focus was on how important educating oneself is on Palestine and the power boycot, this episode sheds light on an example of resilience and community building. 

A special place in central London, in the middle of Holborn, will transcend all your senses to the middle east. I would cycle past it on my way home from work time and time again. And the part that I noticed was a Palestinian restaurant. Never being aware that the entire building in fact is the Palestine House. It serves as a community and creative space, inspired by Palestinian culture. A home-away-from-home for those who have faced displacement and oppression, and a centre for collaboration and meaningful community building work.

In this episode I’m joined by the founder of Palestine House and creator of Gaza cola:, Osama. This conversation took place just before phase 1 of the most recent ceasefire.

www.Palestinehouse.org

www.gazacola.shop

In this episode we will be talking about culturally competent care, because with generational shifts and increases in mental health demand across the board, it is an uncomfortable and exhausting thing to have to explain your values, culture, religion, or any other trait that you identify with, to your therapist.

I have experienced it myself more than a decade ago, where I felt there was an unnecessary overemphasis and even a judgement towards parts of the culture I inherited. Being much younger at the time, I just went along with it and may have been a little bit of an ostrich about it - of which I mean: played along and convinced myself that it is better to view certain topics from a Western perspective. Now, of course this is just a simple and low impact example I can assure you of. But the point of this matter is that with more and more people of people choosing to take matters in their own hands and seeking counselling, this misunderstanding or mismatch in values can seriously form a barrier to build a trustworthy client-patient or coach-coachee relationship fuelled by psychological safety.

And so, in this episode I am joined by Sonia Kaurah - CEO and founder of mental health platform Tala Thrive. Sonia is on a mission to make people thrive in their lives through care that acknowledges cultural dimensions.

In this episode we will be talking about liberation, specifically Palestine. The horrors  we have been and unfortunately still are witnessing on our screens leave many of us heartbroken, furious and uncomfortable. The topic of the occupation of Palestine and its struggle for liberation has been an ongoing one for many decades. There are many opinions fuelled by underlying assumptions and misinformation on the internet.

The purpose of this episode is to talk about liberation struggles from several historical contexts, dissecting the concept of objectivity and exploring the power of boycott. I am conscious there is a lot of division already. Subsequently, every peaceful ceasefire protest I have attended here in London is filled with people from all walks of life, recognising the oppressor and oppressed. This episode is for you if you perceive that the atrocities that have been going on for decades and the current genocide are immoral and wrong - and yet, you don’t really know what to do on individual level. Perhaps, you feel slightly uncomfortable bringing this topic up in the spaces you are in. Maybe you, with many others, look at this as a complex war’, when in reality it is a deliberate man-made complicated and powerful system of oppression.

This episode is your companion and a holding hand to say: I see you and now let’s inspire you on what you can do to educate yourself, make better consumer choices and, ultimately, to liberate the oppressed Palestinians. This episode is no invitation for a back-and-forth debate on who is wrong and who is right. This is about humanity and the right for a Palestinian liberation 🍉. As Nelson Mandela rightfully said: Our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians. 

And so, in this episode I am joined by presenter, writer, journalist and filmmaker Dr. Myriam Francois - who is on a mission to highlight complex stories which challenge assumptions and engage our shared humanity.

Recommended material:

- App to navigate what brands to boycott: No Thanks

- Book: Pedagogy of the Oppressed

- Book: Freedom is a constant struggle

More about Myriam:

- Instagram: @myzfrancois

- Website

Have you ever sensed something when you engage with another individual and you can’t really pinpoint what it exactly is? This could be in the relationships you have in your life, communities you engage with or at work. When you have two people in the mix interacting with each other, dynamics occur - which basically is a pattern of behaviour between two people that impact the way they interact and relate. 

Now, looking at dynamics in organisations specifically, academic researchers and authors Hans van Dijk and Stefan Cloudt have written a comprehensive book identifying 9 destructive dynamics in organisations.

I really enjoyed reading the book, learned how to make sense of those dynamics and it gave me a language and tools for congruent interventions. This book has been written in Dutch and I genuinely think a wider audience can benefit from its learnings. So, in this episode Hans and I unpack those destructive dynamics for you to benefit from.  

Show notes:

There is a lot said about gender in its broadest sense in society. Specifically here, the focus is on what it takes to be a woman in this world in the first place? When do you know whether it is your intuition guiding you or a voice in your head being comfortable with what is familiar to your nervous system?

A lot to cover, so tune into this conversation where holistic coach Valentina and myself unpack and explore the topic of womanhood. 

This episode is part of a 3-episode special, dedicated to a sex education topic that has been and remains a taboo or even unknown amongst many people: the topic of vaginismus. In this short series of three episodes, you will learn about this psychological condition which contracts pelvic floor muscles in the vagina so that absolutely nothing can enter the vagina - or it can in a very painful way. You will learn what the impact of it is, and most importantly this series will give you hope on how you can overcome it. 

The third episode of this special is a conversation with sex educator and expert by experience who overcame vaginismus and is coaching women to do the same: Amirah Zaky.

This episode is part of a 3-episode special, dedicated to a sex education topic that has been and remains a taboo or even unknown amongst many people: the topic of vaginismus. In this short series of three episodes, you will learn about this psychological condition which contracts pelvic floor muscles in the vagina so that absolutely nothing can enter the vagina - or it can in a very painful way. You will learn what the impact of it is, and most importantly this series will give you hope on how you can overcome it. 

This second episode of the special is a conversation with gynaecologist and sex therapist dr Wafaa. We unlock what vaginismus is from a medical point of view, the myths and contradictions and what you can do to overcome it. 

This episode is part of a 3-episode special, dedicated to a sex education topic that has been and remains a taboo or even unknown amongst many people: the topic of vaginismus. In this short series of three episodes, you will learn about this psychological condition which contracts pelvic floor muscles in the vagina so that absolutely nothing can enter the vagina - or it can in a very painful way. You will learn what the impact of it is, and most importantly this series will give you hope on how you can overcome it. 

This first episode of the special is a conversation with Hans van Dijk, one of my uni Associate Professors who I always knew had totally different subject matters, mostly on dynamics and diversity in organisations. I found out he did a longitudinal study amongst Christian students about their sexuality. This intrigued me to find out more about sex education in religious communities and what possible relationship there is with vaginismus. 

Normaal gesproken wordt deze podcast in het Engels gemaakt. Dit keer een uitzondering, omdat het een authentiek gesprek is tussen 3 bekenden, die al jaren zich hard maken voor een eerlijke transitie om klimaatverandering tegen te gaan.

De aanleiding voor dit gesprek is dat één van de drie (Ralien), recentelijk een boek heeft geschreven over het thema en wat er nodig is voor échte verandering richting een duurzamere wereld. 

Het gesprek is met Marjan Kloosterboer, Ralien Bekkers en mijzelf. Vanaf 2011 kennen we elkaar via de NJR (nationale jeugdraad). En binnen die organisatie hebben we naast onze studies ons ingezet om campagnes en acties op te zetten voor meer bewustwording over klimaatverandering. 

Nu, 12 jaar later, reflecteren we op de afgelopen jaren en maken de balans op. Hoe duurzaam zijn we nu en wat hebben we nodig voor de toekomst? Luister verder voor een open gesprek tussen Marjan, Ralien en mijzelf.