Love and Courage

Siobhán O’Donoghue is one of Ireland’s leading community change makers. For over twenty years she has been blazing a trail to help improve the lives of others. Originally from County Clare in the West of Ireland, Siobhán is a former nurse who eventually got involved in youth and community work and in advocating for Travellers rights.

She is a founding director of the Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland which she built up over 11 years, and more recently she has become the founding director of the Uplift campaigning organisation which has become one of Ireland’s most influential forces for people power.

I’ve been part Uplift’s founding journey over the past few years and I currently sit on the board and in the course of this I’ve had the good fortune to get to know Siobhan and to learn a lot from her.

She constantly amazes me with her endless energy, enthusiasm, and dedication, and what I really love about her is that she manages to keep smiling and have fun in the midst of taking on so many big campaigns and struggles.

The sound quality in this interview isn’t great so forgive me for this but I can assure you that you won’t regret listening to this fascinating chat with the wonderful Siobhan O’Donoghue.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Robert is an acclaimed artist and draft resister who risked prison for his conscientious objection to the Vietnam War. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1946, Robert is best known for his portrait series “Americans Who Tell The Truth” which he began as a personal response to the U.S war against Iraq.   He has painted 100s of Americans who he sees as beacons for truth. People like Amy Goodman, Edward Snowden, Joanna Macy, Noam Chomsky and Pete Seeger.   Robert has travelled the world as part of the Americans Who Tell The Truth project and he has now started a non-profit organization that encourages students to explore models of courageous citizenship.   I met Robert at the World Fellowship Center, a renowned social justice retreat and conference center in New Hampshire that was founded in 1941 as a place of sanctuary and recreation for people of all religions and races.   Robert, who now lives in Maine, shared his fascinating life story with me including incredible stories of the pressures he faced resisting the Vietnam war, the death threats he received as a young teacher in rural West Virginia, his decision to join the back to the land movement and how he became a self-taught artist.   Robert spends his time highlighting the courage of others and it was a privilege for me to make time to highlight his courageous journey.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:    

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Chaz Jewett, or Red Morning Star Woman, a native American woman from the Lakota tribe in central South Dakota. She has been active in the environmental movement since a young age and during her youth she had to overcome abuse and huge suffering in her community. Chas has been a leading light in the Standing Rock movement that inspired the world with its dignified native led resistance to the Dakota access oil pipeline.

Chas is a community organiser who is passionate about reclaiming and honouring indigenous rights and traditions and ensuring her community finally starts to be heard. I met up with her during her tour of Ireland organised by Donal O’Kelly, Afri and various human rights and environmental groups. Her visit took place on the eve of the republic’s historic ban on fracking. This was a fascinating conversation with a remarkable woman who I think you’re going to enjoy hearing from.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    www.linkedin.com/in/ruairimckiernan
Donate:     https://www.ifundraise.ie/998_ruairi-mckiernan---social-innovations.html
Soundclo

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Irish-Australian peace activist Ciaron O'Reilly was once described by Martin Sheen as his personal hero. Ciaron grew up in Australia and has spent his life in the Christian anarchist pacifist Catholic Worker movement. Ciaron was mentored by the renowned anti-war priests Frs. Daniel and Philip Berrigan and for over 40 years now he has focused on supporting homeless communities and campaigning on Aboriginal, East Timorese, prisoner and refugee struggles. Part of this campaigning is explored in his book Remembering Forgetting: A Journey of Non-violent Resistance to the War in East Timor.

Ciaron has participated in numerous often controversial acts of civil disobedience – including the disabling of a B52 Bomber in New York on the eve of the 1991 Gulf War for which he served 13 months in U.S prisons. His actions also included disabling uranium mining equipment at the Australian Jabiluka mine site in 1998 and a U. S. Navy war plane at Shannon Airport during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

In recent years he has been a friend, bodyguard and solidarity organiser for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and has been a leading light in organising support for US army whistleblower Chelsea Manning.

Now in his late 50s, Ciaron shows no sign of slowing down in his activism.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

A few words of reflection from podcast host Ruairí McKiernan. http://www.loveandcourage.org

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí­ McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí­ to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Kathy Kelly is a renowned U.S peace activist, author, a founder member of Voices in the Wilderness and now Coordinator for Voices for Creative Non Violence. Kathy is a long-time resident Chicago where she is heavily involved in community organizing. She has travelled to Iraq over twenty five times, including during the early days of the Iraq war and she has spent time in war torn Afghanistan and Palestine.

In the course of her activism Kathy has been arrested over 60 times for her non-violent actions and has served several prison sentences. Now in her mid sixties she continues to travel the world as a courageous voice for peace and a justice.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    www.linkedin.com/in/ruairimckiernan
Donate:     https://www.ifundraise.ie/998_ruairi-mckiernan---social-innovations.html
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/loveandcourage
Youtube:     https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1gCuceQXG7rmwRY9PAzBgg
 

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Join the Love and Courage community

This is inde

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Eamon Stack is a former priest who has a background in peace and justice work, including during the northern Ireland conflict. In 2006 he co-founded a charity and social enterprise called Enclude and as chief executive he has led it become the largest IT charity consultancy in Europe and they have now started working in Venezuela and elsewhere.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    www.linkedin.com/in/ruairimckiernan
Donate:     https://www.ifundraise.ie/998_ruairi-mckiernan---social-innovations.html
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/loveandcourage
Youtube:     https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1gCuceQXG7rmwRY9PAzBgg
 

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Join the Love and Courage community

This is independent community supported media. Once off and monthly patron support is hugely appreciated. Donate https://www.ifundraise.ie/998_ruairi-mckiernan---social-innovations.html.

Funds help pay for production, post-pro

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Ellen Dorsey is the Executive Director of the Wallace Global Fund, a private foundation focused on progressive social change in the fields of environment, democracy, human rights and corporate accountability. It was set up by Henry A. Wallace, a former visionary vice President of the United States who championed what he called the ‘common man’ in the struggle to prevent financial elites attempts to control politics and the planet’s resources.

Wallace once said the following words: “I am committed and do renounce the support of those who practice hate and preach prejudice; of those who would limit the civil rights of others; of those who would restrict the use of the ballot.” 

The world needs this type of leadership more than ever and as you’ll hear now, Ellen is a worthy torchbearer of Wallace’s legacy. A former political science professor, she is a leading campaigner in the movement for divestment from fossil fuels and has helped steer over 155 foundations to divest from coal, oil and gas. She previously worked for Amnesty International and at one stage was Chairperson of Amnesty International USA. She also served on the board of Greenpeace USA and various other leading progressive organisations. Based in Washington DC, Ellen is a powerful voice of hope and justice and I found her take on politics, philanthropy and people power to be refreshing and uplifting. I hope you enjoy this interview with Ellen Dorsey.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Link

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

My guests in this episode are Senator Lynne Ruane and Joe Caslin, recorded at the Body&Soul music and arts festival in front of a live audience.

Senator Lynn Ruane

From Tallaght in Dublin, Lynn is a senator and campaigner for drug reform and other social justice issues, as well as being a powerful voice for many of those unrepresented in our political system. An early school leaver and single mother of two, she got away from a life of drugs and went on to set up addiction programmes before becoming a mature student, a student union leader, and more recently, entering the world of politics as an independent senator. Now in her early 30s Lynne is a passionate force for change.

Joe Caslin

Also in his early 30s, Roscommon born Joe Caslin is a street artist and school teacher who lives in Tullamore. He made international news with the Claddagh Embrace, a giant street art work featuring two men embracing, which he launched during Ireland’s 2015 marriage equality referendum. Joe is a tireless educator who goes above and beyond for his students. The loss of several of his students to suicide motivated him to create works for a project he called Our Nations Sons. His latest project, The Volunteers, uses large scale provocative street art to draw attention to drug addiction, mental health and the issues affecting Asylum Seekers in the Direct Provision system.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.

Hyeonseo Lee was born in 1980 in North Korea, a country she thought was the best on the planet’ until she witnessed great suffering and starvation.

At the age of 17, she left her family behind and escaped alone to China. Hiding her identity for ten years, her life in China was far from easy and she eventually decided to flee for South Korea.

There she faced further challenges when the authorities initially didn’t believe she was North Korean. Some time later she returned to China where she met her family and travelled to Laos in order to bring them to join her in South Korea. However the family were caught and imprisoned in Laos until an Australian backpacker helped pay for their release.

Hyeonseo is the author of an acclaimed book, the Girl with Seven Names, and her TED talk has reached well over 10 million people. While still struggling to adapt to her new freedoms, she travels extensively sharing her story and telling the world about what is happening in North Korea.

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About the podcast

The Love and Courage podcast features interviews with inspirational people who are making a real difference in the world today. Guests are typically people passionate about social justice, and who have demonstrated courage and conviction in their lives.

Host Ruairí McKiernan is leading Irish social innovator, campaigner, writer and public speaker. He is the founder of the pioneering SpunOut.ie youth organization, and helped set-up the Uplift and the A Lust For Life non-profits. In 2012 the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins appointed Ruairí to the Council of State, a national constitutional advisory body whose members include all current and former leaders of the country. Ruairí is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Fulbright fellowship, and he contributes regularly to the media on youth, health, community and social justice issues.

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Subscribe, download, rate and review via iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, YouTube and please spread the word. If you are new to podcasts and have an iPhone, simply use the podcast app on your phone. On Android phones, using the Google Play App download an podcast app such as Podcast Republic and search for 'Love and Courage' and then click subscribe. Download each episode individually, subscribe for updates and sign-up for email announcements about new guests and episodes.  

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Web:         www.loveandcourage.org
Twitter:     @loveandcourage 
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/hopehitching
Instagram: ww.instagram.com/ruairimc/
Linkedin:    www.linkedin.com/in/ruairimckiernan
Donate:     https://www.ifundraise.ie/998_ruairi-mckiernan---social-innovations.html
Soundcloud: 

Subscribe, share, rate, review and donate to support this podcast. Thanks to patrons who chip in at www.loveandcourage.org Host Ruairí McKiernan is a well-known social innovator, charity founder, campaigner, counsellor, consultant, and author. Find out more via:  Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn and check out his book Hitching for Hope. He also has another podcast called Creative Souls of Clare.