On this episode of Good Trouble, we talk with Jeff Thielman, President and CEO of the International Institute of New England and a longtime leader in youth development and immigrant advocacy. Jeff shares his journey from leading youth workforce initiatives to advancing opportunities for newcomers and families across the region. Together, we examine the connection between education, economic mobility, and belonging — and what it takes to build systems that truly serve the next generation. This conversation explores leadership, access, and the long arc of creating opportunity in Boston and beyond.

Good Trouble is a podcast from Embrace Boston, produced in partnership with NBC10 Boston, featuring the thinkers and leaders reshaping our civic and cultural landscape.

Best,

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

In this episode of Good Trouble, we sit down with Rev. Liz Walker — pastor, public theologian, and longtime advocate for justice — to explore the intersection of faith and social change. From her years as a journalist to her leadership at Roxbury Presbyterian Church, Rev. Walker reflects on what it means to guide a community through division, grief, and renewal. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

What does it mean to build belonging — not in policy rooms, but in people’s lives?

In this episode of Good Trouble, we sit down with Bishop William E. Dickerson II and Lady Luella Dickerson, co-founders of Greater Love Tabernacle and longtime anchors of Boston’s faith and civic landscape. For more than three decades, the Embrace Honors 2026 honorees have led a ministry rooted in healing, justice, and radical compassion — walking with families through trauma, violence, recovery, incarceration, and transformation.

Bishop Dickerson traces his journey from youth minister and educator to senior pastor and civic leader. Lady Luella reflects on decades of quiet, powerful work supporting women navigating abuse, addiction, and life’s heaviest burdens — offering safety, dignity, and restoration when few others could.

Together, they’ve shaped the emotional and spiritual fabric of Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan, and beyond. This conversation explores faith as action, leadership as service, and belonging as a daily practice.

Good Trouble is a podcast from Embrace Boston, produced with NBC10 Boston, spotlighting leaders who move systems, shift culture, and expand what’s possible.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

How do you build a monument that changes how a city sees itself? And what does it take to move systems that were never built for everyone?

In this episode of Good Trouble, we sit down with Marie St. Fleur — the inaugural Executive Director of King Boston (now Embrace Boston) and a 2026 Embrace Honors awardee. Marie takes us inside the origin story of The Embrace memorial on Boston Common, unpacking the political hurdles, emotional stakes, and community vision behind honoring Dr. King and Coretta Scott King’s legacy.

We explore her three decades in public leadership: as the first Haitian-born person elected to state office in the U.S.; a driving force for early education reform; a cabinet chief in the Menino administration; and now a national strategist shaping policy, equity, and opportunity.

This is a conversation about courage, persistence, and the quiet, essential work of building a more just Boston — one decision, one partnership, one act of faith at a time.

Good Trouble is a podcast from Embrace Boston, produced with NBC10 Boston, featuring the thinkers and leaders reshaping our civic and cultural landscape.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

Who gets to tell the story of a city — and who gets left out? In this episode of Good Trouble, we talk with Amber Payne, Publisher and General Manager of The Emancipator, a reimagined newsroom. Now as an Embrace Boston Fellow, Amber shares her path as a journalist committed to reshaping narratives, elevating marginalized voices, and building media that serves community — not just headlines. We explore the challenges and possibilities of leading a newsroom in a polarized climate, the responsibility journalists hold in shaping public understanding, and what it takes to tell Boston’s story with depth, accuracy, and cultural fluency. This conversation is about narrative power, representation, and the work of building belonging through the stories we choose to tell. Good Trouble is a podcast from Embrace Boston, produced with NBC10 Boston, spotlighting leaders who challenge systems, elevate community, and expand what’s possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

What does it mean to make art that studies us back?

In this episode of Good Trouble, we sit down with playwright, anthropologist, and director Hortense Gerardo to explore the space where culture, movement, and meaning collide. From her roots in Boston’s creative community to her work leading the Anthropology, Performance & Technology program at UC San Diego, Hortense reveals how art can be both research and resistance.

Together, we unpack how stories become data, why performance can reveal truths science can’t, and how artists hold power in a world that often asks them to disappear.

Good Trouble is a podcast from Embrace Boston — produced in partnership with NBC 10 Boston — exploring the people, ideas, and movements shaping a more just and joyful future.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

In this episode of Good Trouble, we sit down with Jay Vilar, Executive Director of The Fountain Fund, an organization working to dismantle the barriers formerly incarcerated people face when reentering society.

Jay shares his personal journey, the powerful mission of The Fountain Fund, and how financial justice is deeply linked to racial and economic equity. From restorative lending to policy change, we dig into the bold, necessary work of returning citizens building new futures.

Hosted by Embrace Boston, Good Trouble brings together the voices of leaders, change-makers, and culture-shapers who are re-imagining what equity, justice, and community look like.

Like. Subscribe. Share. Join the movement.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

What does it take to design a city where everyone feels they belong? On this episode of "Good Trouble," we sit down with architect, artist, and changemaker Jha D Amazi, Principal at MASS Design Group. Jha D’s work challenges Boston’s legacy and uplifts stories that demand space, dignity, and justice.

We explore how memory and design intersect, how public spaces can heal trauma, and why collaboration — not performative allyship — is key to systems change. Jha D shares her personal journey, the power of community in shaping memorials, and what “making good trouble” looks like when you’re designing for the future.

Whether you're an artist, student, neighbor, or city builder, this episode is for you. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

In this powerful episode of "Good Trouble," we sit down with two generations of change-makers: José C. Massó III — legendary cultural leader and voice of "¡Con Salsa!" — and his son, José F. Massó, Chief of Human Services for the City of Boston.

Together, they unpack what it means to build community across decades, lead with love and accountability and carry the weight of legacy into new civic frontiers. From Latinx heritage and public service to the evolution of Boston’s cultural landscape, this is a conversation rooted in pride, purpose and possibility.

Tap in to hear how the work continues — one rhythm, one policy, one people at a time. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.

If you don't know Nia, you haven't been around Boston long. She is the executive director of the Boston Ujima Project, which brings together the people, businesses and investors to help create a community-based economy. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

for information about our collection and use of personal data for

advertising.