Erika speaks to Mercedes about her SDP insights across Latin America and the Middle East, and her goal as an IOC Young Leader to facilitate sports for protection activities for migrant children.

Elena Mercedes Haro is a former member of the Women’s Saber National Fencing Team of Guatemala. She holds a Master’s degree in Sports Management and a Bachelor’s in International Relations. Her goal is to generate transformative change in and through sports to accomplish both social and economic development goals in Latin America. Mercedes is currently an active IOC Young Leader, and works in the development sector in Jordan.

Through her IOCYL project, "Talento en Movmiento" (Talent on the Move), Mercedes aims to facilitate sports for protection activities for migrant children to support their psychosocial well-being, especially if they have suffered from family separation or have been returned abruptly to their home country. Additionally, these sports activities will support the inclusion of women or youth in income-generating opportunities.

Mercedes' LinkedIn, Instagram, IOCYL Profile

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Pauline about her experiences as an IOC Young Leader, and how she founded Beyond Sport_Kenya - a youth-led project in Rift Valley part of Kenya that works towards advocating for and promoting gender equality in and through sports.

Pauline Msungu is a football player in the Kenyan Women Premier league and a youth ambassador for the Bundesliga Youth Ambassadors’ project in Kenya. She studied Bachelor of Commerce, Purchasing, Supplies Chain Management, and Procurement, from Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology. Pauline is passionate about football and gender equity and believes that sport is a powerful tool that creates positive social impact. Her ideal world is one where human rights are protected regardless of age, gender and sexual orientation. As an IOC Young Leader, Pauline founded Beyond Sport _Kenya, which is a youth-led project in Rift Valley part of Kenya that works towards advocating for and promoting gender equality in and through sports. Through football coaching mentorship, and community led development, the project aims to develop a more inclusive community where both genders are treated equally regardless of their social status, age, gender and/or sexual orientation.

Pauline’s LinkedIn & IOCYL Profile

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Sophia about her experiences as an Olympian and IOC Young Leader, and how she founded Winds of Change - an initiative that aims to create the first bi-communal Cypriot sailing team that will sail around the divided island together.

Sophia Papamichalopoulos is an Olympic alpine skier who competed at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, together with her brother. After graduating from the Paracelsus Medical University of Salzburg, she is now a resident doctor at the Department of Visceral Surgery and Transplantation of the University Hospital in Zurich. Next to her medical career, Sophia tries to remain engaged in sports and the Olympic Movement. In 2018, she was appointed to the World Sailing Medical Commission. She also contributed to the Athlete365 Space at the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang in 2018. In 2021, Sophia was selected as an IOC Young Leader and founded “Winds of Change”, a project aiming to create the first bi-communal Cypriot sailing team that will sail around the divided island together.

Sophia's ⁠LinkedIn, Instagram, IOCYL Profile

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Dr. Oscar about his experience inspiring the SDP movement in sub Saharan Africa at the turn of the century, the importance of education and knowledge sources, his positionality, and the need to decolonize SDP and higher education. 

Dr. Oscar Mwaanga is an esteemed academic and activist with a long history of accomplishments in the fields of Higher Education, Sports Industry, and International Sport for Development. He currently serves as the Programme Director of International Sport Management at University of London, as well as an Emeritus Associate Professor with Solent University (UK). As a Fellow at the University of London Centre for Online and Distance Education (CODE), Dr. Mwaanga leads CODE's Decolonising Working Group to promote social justice through research initiatives on decolonisation within education systems worldwide. Additionally, he pioneered the Sport for Development movement in Sub-Saharan Africa which resulted in several successful programmes and organizations such as Kicking AIDS Out Movement, EduSport Foundation, Go Sisters Programme, etc. 

Impressively, Dr. Oscar is the first Zambian to receive a PhD in sport and is the first Zambian to be appointed Professor of Sport. He will be a Visiting Professor starting in 2023, focused on decolonization at Kwame Nkrumah University in Zambia.

Oscar's ⁠LinkedIn, Twitter, U of London Profile

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Nicole about democratizing philanthropy, gaming and esports, and how Women Win serves as a global multi-dimensional women’s fund guided by the vision of a future where every girl and woman exercises their rights.

Nicole Matuska is the Global GRLS Director at Women Win, and has been working with Women Win in various capacities since 2011 in the U.S. and globally. Currently, Nicole has taken on the strategic lead of girls’ rights through sport initiative at Women Win, working with implementing partners across the development, sport and women's rights sectors to advance the playing field that empowers adolescent girls and young women to exercise their rights through sport and play. Together with partners, Women Win has impacted the lives of over 4 million adolescent girls and young women in over 100 countries. Graduating with a journalism degree from Northwestern University, Nicole received a Fulbright scholarship in 2006 to study women’s football in Morocco, and ended up staying 10 years in the country working with local and international organizations using sport as a tool for girl's and young women's empowerment.

Nicole's ⁠LinkedIn 

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Cathy about leadership, gender based violence in Papua New Guinea, and how sport can lead to multiple positive developmental outcomes in society. 

Cathy Neap works for the National Rugby League (NRL) in Papua New Guinea managing the NRL-run, DFAT-funded League for Life sport for development program in PNG, and has worked for the program since 2014. Cathy has represented her country in both codes of rugby, and was the inaugural captain of the PNG Orchids (the country’s national women’s rugby league team) when it was formed in 2017, leading her nation at the world cup that year. She also stars in the internationally-released documentary about the team, Power Meri (Powerful Women). Cathy is from Kapomanda Village in Wabag District of Enga province in Papua New Guinea, located in the highland's region of PNG.

Cathy's ⁠LinkedIn

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Steve about building the sport for good organization Kick4Life, the potential of social enterprise as part of a balanced fund-raising approach, the importance of representation in the sports sector, and his book Radical Football. 

Steve Fleming is co-founder of Kick4Life FC, a multi-award winning charity, social enterprise and football club based in Lesotho in Southern Africa. K4L delivers a range of Football for Good interventions for children and young people covering health, education, gender and climate action, as well as providing structured training and employment opportunities for hundreds of young people via its hospitality enterprises – No. 7 Restaurant and the Hokahanya Inn & Conference Centre. The organization’s Academy program also supports vulnerable youth with progression to scholarships at international universities, alongside developing young players for Lesotho’s national squads, with Kick4Life Women becoming national champions in 2021. Steve is author of Eleven: Stories of Development through Football, published in 2010 and shortlisted for the Peace & Sport Special Jury Prize, and Radical Football, published in 2022. Steve was named in the Beyond Sport Inspirational 50 in 2015.

Steve’s LinkedIn

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Sana about the relationship between sport and self-esteem for women in Pakistan, insights gained from a randomized data study at Right to Play, and how building community ownership may ensure program sustainability. 

Sana Mahmud is a multi-sport athlete and sport-for-development expert, currently working as a Program Manager at Right To Play International in Pakistan. She is the former Captain of the Pakistan National Women's Football (2010-2012) and Basketball (2016-2019) teams, having represented the country in several International events. She is also an alumna of the Fulbright Program, through which she completed a M.A in International Development Studies from Ohio University in the United States, with a focus on Sport, Gender and Development, and a certificate in Women’s and Gender studies. Sana is a champion for women's and girls' rights, particularly in sport, and has served as UNICEF's Menstrual Health Management Champion (2017) for their "No Chutti" Campaign. She also holds an honorary position at the Islamabad Basketball Association where she overlooks the women’s and Mini Basketball program.

Sana’s LinkedIn

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Samia about her experiences as a GIZ master facilitator building capacity of local leaders through sport on the topics of health, employability, and gender in the Middle East, Northern Africa, and Central Asia. 

Samia K. Khatib was a Peace and Sport Young Ambassador, holds a MSc in sport and exercise psychology from Loughborough University, and has used her background in psychology and her passion for sport to work in Sport for Development and Peace. She has occupied multiple positions in the SDP practitioner field as a coach, instructor, master trainer, project conceptualiser, and capacity developer. Her roles have leveraged her language skills in English, French and Arabic, and she has worked with the GIZ and other organizations in Lebanon, Indonesia, Philippines, Morocco, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Egypt.

Samia’s LinkedIn  

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.

Erika speaks to Etsuko about the Sport for Development landscape in Japan, her experience working for UNOSDP in Switzerland, and the importance of bringing a business perspective into SDP programs.

Etsuko Yamada earned a Master of Public Policy at Graduate School of Law, Tohoku University in Japan. From 2014-2016, she worked for the United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) based in Geneva as a Programme Officer, assisting the Special Adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace. Coming back to Japan, Etsuko now works for Japan Sport Council as the Head of International Sport for Development, trying to integrate SDP into its policy, suggesting measures and strategies to the Japanese national and local governments. She has been leading the project that JSC and Swiss Academy for Development (SA4D / sportanddev.org) launched in 2018, seeking to build capacity for policy makers and practitioners in how to use sport as a tool for sustainable development when designing, delivering and evaluating initiatives by developing comprehensive and practical guidebooks in English and in Japanese.

Etsuko’s LinkedIn  

Erika’s LinkTree: ⁠https://linktr.ee/erikamchen⁠

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Episode Info:

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed by the Guests of the Inspira Podcast do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of any Agency of the United States Government, or any organization public or private.