Superpowers for Good: Empowering Changemakers for Social Impact via Regulated Investment Crowdfunding from the SuperCrowd.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

We recorded this episode in anticipation of airing it on Giving Tuesday; we had to postpone it due to my injury.

Devin: What do you see as your superpower?

Kishshana: My superpower is the ability to see you. So, one of my strengths is individualization.

Kishshana Palmer, founder and CEO of ManageMint, a consulting practice that supports social enterprises, nonprofits and governmental entities, especially schools, joined me to discuss her work.

She shared insights across a range of topics, but I particularly valued her thoughts about a vexing problem I see occasionally in the impact sector. Changemakers–including me, if I’m being honest–sometimes excuse poor activities in one area as justified by the pursuit of the mission.

For example, it isn’t that uncommon for climate change-focused folks to get caught failing to adequately consider the impact of their work on disadvantaged communities. Solar panels are commonly sold to affluent folks who can afford it. It makes perfect sense on the one hand but excludes or ignores less wealthy folks' desire to go green, too.

Kishshana says, “When you design for marginalized groups, you almost always design for everyone.” By working to help those who might have the most difficulty being a part of what you’re doing, you ensure that everyone can. You expand your audience.

She likes to apply the principle across the board, from volunteers, employees and board members to the folks you serve and others who may be impacted directly or indirectly by your work.

Kishshana has built her success in part by leveraging her superpower–her ability to see individuals.

AI Episode Summary

* Kishshana Palmer is a leader in the world of nonprofit social enterprise and the CEO, founder, and leader of ManageMint.

* ManageMint is a people-focused, equity-centered change management consulting firm that helps organizations run better, achieve their goals, and take care of their employees.

* Kishshana emphasizes the importance of celebrating Giving Tuesday by supporting and investing in local nonprofit organizations.

* She believes in the power of seeing and understanding individuals, which is her superpower.

* Kishshana coaches organizations to cope with the inherent stress of working on big problems by helping them focus on their purpose and long-term plans.

* She encourages organizations to include equity and inclusion in their mission and to design for marginalized groups, as this often benefits everyone.

* Kishshana shares a specific example of using her superpower to turn around a challenging organization by getting to know the team and their needs, redesigning job descriptions, and promoting from within.

* She advises people to focus on their own wellness and understanding their own strengths and weaknesses before trying to see and understand others.

* To learn more about Kishshana's work, visit managemint.co or connect with her on social media at @KishshanaPalmer.

* Kishshana's work makes a difference by helping nonprofits and social enterprises be more effective in their work, ultimately benefiting the people they serve.

How to Develop Seeing Individuals As a Superpower

Kishshana shared the story of working with a troubled impact organization. Folks hadn’t had raises in years, turnover was increasing, and disengagement was rising.

She came into the organization with an eye toward getting to know each person and helping to find or define a role that would suit them, allowing them all to feel greater self-actualization in the work.

That story illustrates the power of seeing individuals. The organization benefited from having everyone individually fill a role that matched their skills, passions and abilities.

To learn to see others, Kishshana says a key is to see yourself more completely and objectively, recommending that you form a personal board of advisors. You need to learn to see how your own behavior contributes to challenges in team dynamics.

As you begin to look at others, it is essential to look past the surface and focus on motivations, like dreams and passions, that underlie people's actions. Kishshana says that when you adapt your approach to individuals, you can be more effective.

By following Kishshana’s example and advice, you can see individuals more effectively. With time and practice, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Remember, however, that research into success suggests that building on your own superpowers is more important than creating new ones or overcoming weaknesses. You do you!

Guest Profile

Kishshana Palmer (she/her):

Founder and CEO of ManageMint; CFRE, Board Advisor for Bloomerang, Bloomerang 

About Bloomerang: Indianapolis-based Bloomerang is the complete donor relationship management solution that helps thousands of small and medium-sized nonprofits deliver a better giving experience and create stable, thriving organizations. Combining robust, simple-to-use technology with people-powered support and training, Bloomerang empowers nonprofits to work efficiently, improve their donor relationships and grow their donor bases. With Bloomerang, nonprofit professionals love their work and have another teammate in the cause.

Website: bloomerang.co

Twitter Handle: @bloomerangTech

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/bloomerangtech

Biographical Information: Kishshana Palmer is an international speaker, trainer, and coach with a 20+ year background in fundraising, marketing, and talent management who helps leaders create high-performing teams.Kishshana is CEO of ManageMint (formerly known as Kishshana & Co.), a leadership consulting firm with a focus in strategy, management and growth. As Founder and CEO, Kishshana works with CEOs, senior leadership teams, organizations, companies and solo entrepreneurs who are looking for real-world solutions and an authentic high-impact experience. She advises social enterprise, non-profit and education management (government) organizational boards & senior leaders on organizational design and scale, strategic visioning, funding, talent management & leadership development in the sector. This includes interim leadership assignments and diversity, equity and inclusion training, as well as targeted coaching and professional development.As a sought-after strategist, speaker, trainer and coach, she combines “book smarts” with real-world expertise and pop-culture savvy to create the unforgettable cocktail that drives innovation and organizational success. This includes key lessons in planning big-picture organizational vision and targeted talent development using core management principles. She has served as a speaker, panelist and conference keynote, including engagements with: Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), OneCause, Bloomerang, US Olympic Committee, Boys and Girls Club of America, Meals on Wheels, AFP ICON, Comcast, Disney and IFC to name a few.She is the founder of The Rooted Collaborative — a global community focused on the growth and development of women leaders of color in the social sector. She’s the host of the podcast “Let’s Take This Offline,” an adjunct professor at Baruch College, a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), a BoardSource Certified Governance Trainer (CGT), A Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, a Q3LC Certified Coach and an AFP Master Trainer. When an organization wants to grow, find and retain people on their team, raise money, and more, she is the fairy godmother they have on speed dial. Kishshana also coaches high-performing leaders.Kishshana is an NYC girl and mother of one wonderful teenage daughter. Kishshana is the epitome of your classic 90’s Queens homegirl and quintessential corner office executive. She is your daily dose of Claire Huxtable with a side of Blanche Devereaux.

Twitter Handle: @kishshanapalmer

Personal Facebook Profile:

I’m not a financial advisor; nothing I write in Superpowers for Good should be considered investment advice. You should seek appropriate counsel before making investment decisions.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What is your superpower?

Jen: My superpower is seeing connections between different topics–different passions that people have. To me, the connection between shopping local and investing local is all the same.

Jen Risley is the operations manager for the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA), a national nonprofit working to advance the interests of local businesses; she also serves as the editor of the Main Street Journal, a publication advocating for local investing, especially via crowdfunding.

Jen’s roles harmonize remarkably well. She simultaneously encourages people to shop and invest in local businesses.

She describes AMIBA’s holiday season push to encourage local shopping this way:

From November 1st till the end of the year, we're trying to remind people to shift as much spending as they can to locally-owned businesses. So, from your meals and celebrations to your gifts and gift-making supplies, there are just lots of opportunities to make those decisions to buy locally. It doesn't have to just be those big gifts. It could be what you eat during the day. 

We're trying to make it clear to people that there are just lots of choices over the holiday season. We're here to help remind you to make those shifts in your spending.

The more you spend locally, the more dollars recirculate in your local economy. That means more jobs for your community. It could mean a summer job for your teenager or your grandchild. It means more charitable contributions to the causes that you care about, and it means it could potentially influence what your town or your city looks like in terms of land use. So there are lots of things that happen when you choose to buy local.

Similarly, she makes the case for local investing under the Main Street Journal (a substack newsletter) banner:

The Main Street Journal is through Michael Shuman. He's a local economist and an author. He spends a lot of time looking at how people can move their money from Wall Street to Main Street through investment crowdfunding where they live.

On our website, we have [investment opportunities] allocated by region. So, if you live in the southwest, you could see this huge list. But you can go to the southwest and go, “Oh wait, is there anything in Utah or Arizona?”

Of local investing, Jen says, “Their success means your success!”

In her work, Jen uses her passion for connecting ideas as a superpower.

AI Episode Summary

* The guest, Jen Risley, is the operations manager at the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA) and the editor of the Main Street Journal.

* The focus of the conversation is on the importance of shopping local and supporting locally-owned businesses.

* The initiative, known as Shop Indie Local, aims to encourage people to shift their spending to local businesses from November 1st to the end of the year.

* Shopping local helps to support the local economy, create jobs, and contribute to charitable causes in the community.

* It is easy to be tempted by the convenience and affordability of online platforms like Amazon, but shopping local has a more significant impact on the community.

* Tips for shopping locally include making a conscious decision to shift some spending, asking friends for recommendations, starting small with local food options, and exploring local farmer's markets or co-ops.

* Jen also works on promoting local investing through crowdfunding in the Main Street Journal.

* Local investing through crowdfunding platforms like Wefunder helps to support local businesses and allows investors to make a profit.

* By connecting different topics and passions and sharing them on social media, Jen believes that she can inspire others to learn and make connections as well.

* Jen encourages people to follow hashtags related to their interests on social media platforms, engage with the conversations, and share their own findings and insights with others.

How to Develop Connecting Ideas As a Superpower

Jen’s superpower is connecting ideas. She recalls how she first employed that ability for impact during college:

I wound up going to Kenya, um, for a semester program, which was something I've always wanted to do but never had the opportunity because of living in a household with a single mom. We never really had the opportunity to travel or get exposed to different cultures like that. I was able to go through my university and have that chance to see how different life can be, how different life is to so many people around the world. 

I went from thinking small in my suburban town to thinking huge and realizing that everything I ever thought about the world was completely not wrong but just completely limited. By having that experience and coming back from it with a whole new mind view. One of the things that I took with me from that experience was my relationship to food and just how strange it was when my homestay brother was saying, “You go to school all day, or you go to university, who stays at home and makes the food?” 

I started to explain, “Well, we have grocery stores that we go to…” I realized as I was trying to explain to him what my reality was, how strange the reality became. 

When I came back home and started looking around and going, “Wow, this really seems wrong to me,” I was able to connect with other people who were doing great work in my community. We started working with some of the local farmers in our community. 

Back then, bovine growth hormone was the big topic. It was just thinking about how farmers were producing milk and learning from them, why they weren't happy with going in the direction others were telling them to go in terms of their local food system. 

That was one great opportunity to get frustrated with the system, learn from people who were in the system, and then again, share what I was learning and connect with other people to hopefully change some other people's minds. That was a great experience and taught me a lot that I'm still carrying with me.

Having developed this ability to connect ideas, Jen offers some guidance for developing this skill:

If we're talking about social media or online media, it's just starting with a platform that you're interested in or that you're already using. I use a lot of hashtags, so I'll start following a hashtag that is connected with something that I want to learn. 

So, if it's cooperatives or it's employee-owned businesses, you learn what hashtags people use. Then, every day or so, I start to look at the stream of conversation that's happening around that topic. On Twitter or whatever it's called now, I'll like whatever I want to read later, and then I'll go back to it. So, I'll have all these different primary resources to look at.

Then, something that I've been lucky to be able to do is we have a weekly paper, and so they let me write an article every month. As I'm looking to see what topics are coming up, I know eventually, I'm going to have to write something that is accessible to enough people in my community. So yeah, I'm learning. But then I have to figure out, “Okay, my neighbors, are they going to care about employee-owned businesses? How can I make that a little bit more important to them?”

So it is that kind of like putting your ear up to social media, having questions, but then seeing what other people are talking about and then finding a way, whether it's a blog post or on Substack or something, that's going to hold you accountable for actually producing something that you can then share with others.

With Jen’s guidance and example, you can improve your ability to connect ideas and communicate them. With practice, you may mak…

Originally, I produced this post for Forbes in 2018. During my recovery, I’m sharing it again to refocus a bit of attention on strategies for impact in Haiti.

Resenting the prevailing narrative about poverty in Haiti, Marc Alain Boucicault, 30, a Fulbright Scholar, and a former economist for the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank, is putting his experience to work as a social entrepreneur, hoping to change the story and the economy.

Boucicault recently launched Haiti’s first coworking space for technology entrepreneurs in Haiti. He kicked off Banj, as he calls the new venture, with a tech conference that included representatives from Facebook and Google. He hopes to see technology infuse the traditional economy, giving more farmers and business owners access to international markets, eventually narrowing the country’s overwhelming trade deficit.

Banj already has 100 members with four of 13 available offices rented—and it’s profitable, according to Boucicault. He’s built the business with sponsorships rather than loans or equity. The members and tenants cover the infrastructure costs, and the partners fund program costs.

The business sprang directly from Boucicault’s experience as an economist. “As a young economist, I was frustrated by writing about the macroeconomics of Haiti, marked by a negative real growth over the past 30 years. I saw hope in the young entrepreneurs I was meeting every day but knew there was a long way to go before they can bring a change to the economy. I knew that, if one day, I could find a working model to help, I would want to go and do that full time,” he says. Now he has.

Christine Souffrant Ntim, a Forbes 30 Under 30 winner and founder of the Haiti Tech Summit, hosted her Haiti Tech Summit at Banj on April 26, bringing Facebook and Google to Haiti. She is excited about the impact it will have on the country. “It serves as a true example of entrepreneurial leadership,” she says.

She notes that basics like internet access and electricity remain challenges for many entrepreneurs, and Banj solves that problem for entrepreneurs, allowing them to focus on their projects. In addition, Banj provides entrepreneurs with access to experts and mentors.

She also notes that Banj has made so much progress so quickly that it is changing the perception of what is possible in Haiti. “Within a year, Banj has been a partner or space for Google, Facebook, Startup Grind Port Au Prince, Hult Prize Haiti and more.”

Haiti’s history is difficult. The CIA’s World Fact Book describes Haiti as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The indigenous Taino people were nearly wiped out by Spanish settlers within 25 years of Columbus landing on the island. More recently, exports have not yet recovered to pre-earthquake levels, and the country continues to run a large trade deficit.

“But that’s the narrative we’re trying to change. We want people to see Haiti differently,” says Boucicault. From his perspective, technology has the potential to enable even the most basic industries in Haiti to grow. For instance, the agricultural sector can increase output and exports by getting help from technology.

His strategy is to pair the “traditional rich Haitian bourgeoisie who have access to assets, have access to capital and combine them with the lower, middle-class Haitian who doesn’t have access to capital, doesn’t have access to money but have access to ideas.”

There is no question that Haiti needs a new narrative. Here’s hoping that the story Boucicault wants to write in its place proves to be nonfiction.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What is your superpower?

Michael: Looking back, I think that it's making people go, “Oh, yeah.”

Michael Dermer, CEO and founder of The Lonely Entrepreneur, built the company with a somewhat surprising–and yet perhaps obvious–premise. Passion, grit, hard work and a good idea are not enough for entrepreneurial success. Just as medicine, law and plumbing all require training and practice to achieve excellence, so does growing and leading a business.

The Great Recession of provided a testing ground for him at his first startup, Incent One. The company was about a decade old and was thriving when the financial crisis abruptly dried up much of the company’s revenue.

Scrambling, he and his team rebuilt what was lost and, in 2013, achieved a successful exit.

He launched The Lonely Entrepreneur after learning to appreciate how isolated founders often feel. He mentioned the idea to a friend in 2015, who then walked right into a Starbucks and yelled, “Who here is a lonely entrepreneur?” Everyone, he says, raised their hands. 

“Being an entrepreneur is a series of learning a whole bunch of skills that you need; the more of these skills you develop, the better at it you'll be,” Michael says.

Recognizing the sense of isolation and the need for skill-building, at The Lonely Entrepreneur, he’s scaled a business with critical educational resources, coaching and networking for entrepreneurs. 

Over his career, he’s developed a superpower or ability to help others experience an aha moment when he helps them see something vital that they’ve missed.

AI Episode Summary

* Michael Dermer is the CEO and founder of The Lonely Entrepreneur, a platform that helps entrepreneurs succeed.

* He started his career as a mergers and acquisitions lawyer before starting a company that rewarded people for being healthy.

* The company faced challenges during the 2008 financial crisis but was eventually acquired.

* The Lonely Entrepreneur was created to provide entrepreneurs with the resources and support they need to succeed.

* The platform offers a subscription model for individuals and also partners with corporations and organizations to provide it for free to entrepreneurs.

* The first lesson Michael shares is the importance of continuously learning and acquiring the necessary skills to succeed as an entrepreneur.

* He emphasizes the significance of finding a unique and untapped market, or "playground," to differentiate from competitors.

* Michael discusses how his superpower is recognizing existing movements or energy and turning them into something impactful.

* He shares an example of overcoming challenges by getting people to buy into a bigger vision or goal.

* Michael advises others to find their playground, understand the components of a successful business, and work hard to drive success.

How to Develop Illumination of the Unseen As a Superpower

Michael shares the story of guiding Incent One through the Great Recession, highlighting a parallel to home buyers who love the home they have a contract to buy, most often proceed to close after receiving an inspection report that identifies all its flaws:

In the middle of 2008, Devin, you know, some of the story. We literally got built up to 600-700 employees and almost got destroyed overnight. It wasn't like you just woke up the next day and said, everything's going to be fine. We went from being on top of the world to worrying about surviving

What really carried the day was the fact we said, listen, we understand what's going on in the world. We also understand that if we move the needle 1 percent, it's a $100 billion of savings for just the US alone. 

So, the fact that the business is going through some tough times because of what's going on in the world when you get people to buy into buying the house in a genuine and authentic way–when you get people to do that, solutions tend to present themselves. 

People run through walls, and it also gives you your North Star that doesn't really ever waver, which, as you know, when you go through challenges, that sometimes can be more important than anything.

His ability to communicate essential ideas in powerful ways helped get get Incent One back on track–and to build The Lonely Entrepreneur.

By following Michael’s example, you can improve your own ability to illuminate the unseen. With practice, you could make helping others have those aha moments a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Michael Dermer (he/him):

CEO and Founder, TLE Foundation

About TLE Foundation: The Lonely Entrepreneur was born from Michael’s harrowing experience in the 2008 financial crisis. Michael watched the business he built for 10 years to over 500 employees – the first company in the US to reward for healthy behavior – nearly get destroyed in 10 days by the financial crisis of 2008. He not only survived but went on to sell his company and become an industry pioneer. Now, Michael and The Lonely Entrepreneur team are committed to helping 1 million entrepreneurs worldwide learn from his experience and turn their passion into success.

Website:

http://www.TLEfoundation.org

Twitter Handle: @thelonelye

Company Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/tlefoundationorg

Other URL: TLEfoundation.org

Biographical Information: Michael Dermer is an entrepreneur authority, lawyer, speaker and author of The Lonely Entrepreneur®. Michael did not just found a company – he invented an industry – the industry to reward people for being healthy. His wild journey through that adventure is what led to the creation of The Lonely Entrepreneur and its mission to help entrepreneurs turn their passion into success.The Lonely Entrepreneur was born from Michael's harrowing experience of living through the "perfect storm" – watching the company he built from scratch to over 500 people over 10 years – the first to reward people for being healthy – nearly get destroyed overnight by the 2008 financial crisis. Not only did they survive, they sold the company to a health innovator and today are considered the pioneer of the health rewards industry. No one knows more about the journey from struggle to success than Michael. Today, Michael leads The Lonely Entrepreneur through both its for-profit and non-profit 501c3 organizations to serve the mission to help entrepreneurs turn their passion into success.

Twitter Handle: @michaelgdermer

Personal Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/michael.dermer.3

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10268899

Instagram Handle: @the_lonely_entrepreneur

Superpowers for Good is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What is your superpower?

Janelle: I believe it's that I do not shy away from large challenges.

Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) is a “43-year-old national nonprofit created specifically to reach young people who may be facing academic, environmental, social, economic challenges,” says CEO Janelle Duray.

“We wanted to ensure that they were invited to a program, that they could feel safe, that they could tackle those challenges and move beyond them and have the space to dream big about their future, to recognize their interests, their aptitudes, and then connect those interests and aptitudes to relevant opportunities in their communities,” she explains.

There may never have been a scarier time to enter the workforce, with artificial intelligence threatening to dramatically change or eliminate many traditional roles, from truck drivers to the practice of law and journalism.

Janelle says that preparing youth for lifelong learning is the antidote, enabling youth to have confidence in their ability to succeed in the long run.

JAG operates with three pillars that support what it calls the JAG advantage: trauma-informed care, project-based learning and employer engagement.

JAG was founded by state governors working closely with Fortune 100 companies, giving the organization a unique role as an intermediary between some of the best career opportunities in the country and the youth otherwise least likely to find them.

“What I love about working so closely with leading companies, Fortune 100, is that when we develop these intentional partnerships across multiple locations across multiple states, they will say they learn just as much from our students as our students learn from them,” Janelle says.

Since joining the organization, Janelle has worked to elevate the students, making them the focus of the work, moving corporate executives from the limelight–while strategically keeping them in the loop.

Janelle uses her superpower, her ability to tackle large challenges, to make a difference in the world.

AI Episode Summary

AI Episode Summary

* JAG stands for Jobs for America's Graduates, a national program that supports young people in graduating high school and launching successful careers.

* JAG's mission is to empower young people with the skills and support to succeed in education, employment, and life.

* The program was created to reach young people facing challenges that hindered their success in high school and to connect them with opportunities in their communities.

* JAG focuses on trauma-informed care, project-based learning, and employer engagement to support students in their education and career development.

* Janelle Duray has been with JAG for 13 years and recently became the CEO, bringing her experience in the public and nonprofit sectors to the organization.

* JAG works closely with Fortune 500 executives, governors, and employers to provide opportunities for students and build diverse talent pipelines.

* Lifelong learning and adaptability are crucial in preparing young people for a future influenced by AI and technological advancements.

* Janelle's superpower is not shying away from large challenges and being driven to be part of the solution. She emphasizes the importance of balance and enjoying the present while working towards future goals.

* JAG has focused on positioning students as the flagship of the organization, investing in their leadership skills, and giving them a platform to advocate for themselves and their future.

* To learn more about JAG, donate, or get involved, visit their website at jag.org or follow their social media channels at JAGNational.

How to Develop Tackling Large Challenges As a Superpower

Janelle grew up in a tiny town in rural Minnesota. “There were no stoplights in my entire county,” she says. Significant challenges appealed to her despite–or maybe because of–her situation. 

At JAG, she faced a big challenge. She wanted to shift focus and attention from the corporations to the students, making them the stars of the show. It was a big challenge in the context of a national nonprofit organization led and sponsored by the people she wanted to move out of the spotlight. A dozen years later, however, she can say, “mission accomplished.”

For developing the ability to tackle big challenges, she offers a simple formula: “increments, increments, increments.” She adds that looking back can allow you to see progress and measure it.

By following her example and advice, you can strengthen your ability to tackle large challenges. With time, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Janelle Duray (she/her):

President & CEO, Jobs for America's Graduates

About Jobs for America's Graduates: Our mission is to empower the nation's young people with the skills and support to succeed in education, employment, and life.

Website: www.jag.org

Twitter Handle: @JAGnational

Instagram Handle: @jag.national

Facebook Page: facebook.com/jagnational

Biographical Information: Janelle Duray has over fifteen years of experience in education and workforce development consulting and nonprofit management. In October 2023, she was named as the second President & CEO of Jobs for America's Graduates, a national nonprofit that has served 1.6 million youth since its inception 40+ years ago and currently serves over 75,000 youth across 1,500 communities. In her role, Janelle is charged to cast JAG's future vision by blending her passion to serve others and innovating and elevating organizations to bring JAG services to a broader scale. Janelle has served in many roles at JAG since 2012. In January 2020, she was named Executive Vice President and subsequently led the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic, making critical investments in technology, student engagement programming, Federal procurement infrastructure, and overall organizational development for the JAG National Office and its national network. Her leadership throughout the pandemic led the Board of Directors to adopt JAG’s Youth Opportunity and Outcomes 2024 Strategic Goals – the most ambitious goals in JAG’s history. Prior to her commitment to JAG, Janelle has consulted with leading Fortune 500 companies and national nonprofits, including ADM, HCA, United Way Worldwide, the AARP Foundation, the National Urban League, and more, to grow their fund development, external affairs efforts, and overall strategy. Janelle received her Master of Arts in Public Administration from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and her Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Throughout her post-secondary education, Janelle held positions at the Association of American Law Schools and former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty’s office.Outside of JAG, Janelle enjoys traveling, concerts, musing about the cosmos, and her first passion, playing piano.

Twitter Handle: @JanelleDuray

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/janelle-duray

Superpowers for Good is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What do you see as your superpower?

Mona: Luckily, I have an answer for you because I asked that question with my advisors a couple of weeks ago. We are all in agreement that my superpower is the ability to see the big picture, and I end up working on these big problems with big solutions.

Mona DeFrawi is a visionary entrepreneur with a high-impact track record, making history with her fourth startup. She describes Radivision as the “ESPN for entrepreneurship.”

“It's more than time for an entire network to focus on the genre of entrepreneurship, and Radivision for the radical visionaries is here to help support the growth of this community and for everyone to understand and participate in the new economy,” she says.

Mona has a grand vision for the network and sees it covering all aspects of the industry. She is working deliberately to keep impact at the center of her work with communities called SHEconomics for women-led companies, and Black Is the New Green for African American-led companies. She explains her vision for those communities, saying:

We're also building communities like SHEeconomics for women founders. We've also started a show and are curating a community for Black is the New Green for Black founders so that more voices are heard, more innovation can come to market, more role models are available so people can see others who are just like them, who are succeeding and finding ways despite a lot of the hurdles that are currently in today's entrepreneurial economy.

What makes Mona unique is her ability to see the big picture in a genuinely visionary way; she’s the sort of person who can see the enormous gap that needs to be filled and then fill it.

AI Episode Summary

* Mona DeFrawi is the CEO and founder of Radivision, a platform aiming to be the Discovery Channel for entrepreneurs.

* The platform provides curated content and resources for entrepreneurs, including original series, newsletters, books, and podcasts.

* Radivision is building communities for women founders (SHEeconomics) and black founders (Black is the New Green) to provide more support and representation in entrepreneurship.

* They are planning a live conference during Women's History Month in March 2024, featuring female founders, investors, and 100 companies in the Pitch Planet series.

* Radivision aims to be a platform connecting entrepreneurs, investors, and crowdfunding platforms, helping them find the best opportunities that fit their interests.

* Mona's superpower is the ability to see the big picture and come up with big solutions to problems facing the venture industry.

* She has successfully created solutions for the IPO crisis and private markets and now aims to do the same with Radivision.

* Mona has a unique perspective as an immigrant, questioning rules and thinking outside the box.

* She believes there is a need for change in the venture industry and is motivated to make a difference.

* To learn more about Mona and Radivision, visit Radivision.com and MonaDeFrawi.com or connect with her on LinkedIn.

How to Develop Seeing the Big Picture As a Superpower

As I’ve gotten to know Mona over the past few years, collaborating on SuperCrowd events and chatting for this show, it has become crystal clear that she does have a unique ability to see the big picture. She’s one of those people. The rest of us operate in the world they create.

For instance, she shared a powerful example of her credibility around this topic. As the global economy slid into a recession in 2007, big venture capitalists called on her to organize an event that would bring the venture community back to life, creating a path for initial public offerings (IPOs). The event was a big success.

With that said, it feels particularly urgent for us to learn how to better emulate her ability to see what is generally invisible–to see what isn’t there so we can create it.

Mona offered two essential tips:

First, she says, “Get out of yourself, like, get out of those sides of the box and think about it differently to get the big picture.”

Second, she offers a profound insight: you make the rules! She explains:

I was, you know, a political refugee at age six and lived in several different countries for over a year before my parents made it to the United States. So, I had to learn different languages. During that very critical year, between ages six and seven, I learned that there are no rules. When the Egyptian government told my father, “No, you can't leave the country,” he found a way. That's part of being an entrepreneur, realizing that you're making the rules.

By following Mona’s example and advice, you can expand your vision and improve your ability to see the big picture. With practice, you may develop it as a new superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Mona DeFrawi (she/her):

CEO & Founder, Radivision, Inc.

About Radivision, Inc.: Radivision is the premier streaming network for the Startup World – like an "ESPN for Entrepreneurship" – that entertains, informs, and connects viewers to amazing startups, founders, investors, and their investment and other opportunities. Radivision produces original series, curates resources for a "First Gateway to Entrepreneurship," and is a platform for startups and experts to showcase their own content. 

Website: radivision.com

X (Twitter) Handle: @radivisionTV

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/radivision

Biographical Information: Mona DeFrawi is a serial entrepreneur who has been a team member of a dozen startup teams and organizations over three decades ––serving as Founder & CEO of the last four – including pioneering the first PrivateMarket platform that restored VC IPOs and liquidity (acquired twice and spun out as the standalone Nasdaq Private Markets in 2021).  Mona has been telling the stories of startups her entire career, and now Radivision tells them at scale while reconnecting consumer audiences and retail investors to the startup ecosystem and its wealth-generation potential. Mona has been recognized as one of Forbes’ “Most Powerful Women in Technology” and as one of the “Top 100 Women in Fintech.”Mona's career accomplishments also include managing 4 venture-backed IPOs & their investor relations and comms over 10 years; establishing two tech commercialization offices; authoring and lobbying legislation that has delivered over $20B of new VC LP funding; and writing and teaching the first entrepreneurship curriculum at The Johns Hopkins University School of Engineering's pilot business program that launched their business school. Mona is a humanitarian at heart who believes that entrepreneurship and its equity creation are the most powerful ways to improve the world and grow wealth for everyone.

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/monadefrawi/

Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=100068553527590

Instagram Handle: @radivision

Superpowers for Good is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

I’m not a financial advisor; nothing I write in Superpowers for Good should be considered investment advice. You should seek appropriate counsel before making investment decisions. I own a few shares of Wefunder.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What do you see as your superpower that is enabling all of your success?

Jonny: I think my superpower, my Slack bio, which is quasi-cultivated and has, I think, been my Slack bio since I joined Wefunder, is “relentless positive energy.”

Connecting with Jonny Price of Wefunder was fun. Wefunder is one of the leading investment crowdfunding sites by any measure and, I believe, has completed the most offerings.

Recently, Substack–the company that hosts this newsletter and the podcast distribution of the television show–completed a $5 million Regulation Crowdfunding offering on Wefunder–in a single day. Over 6,000 people invested. Let that sink in for a moment. 

There are some easy answers anyone can posit for why Substack was so successful and why others are less so. It was fun for me to put the question to Jonny. Here’s his response (edited lightly):

I think the secret is building an incredible company and an incredible product that has millions of users that are just so passionate about the brand of Substack and what they stand for in the world–which is independent, decentralized journalism and good writing and promoting that. 

So, they built an incredible product over many, many years and built an audience of millions of people. So, when they sent an email to that audience saying, “Hey, you can invest in Substack alongside Andreessen Horowitz and other VCs,” their writers and readers jumped at the chance to do that.

If you look at all the companies that have raised $5 million in a day on Wefunder–Mercury is another one–awesome kind of banking stack, mostly for startups and early-stage businesses. Same thing. They raised $120 million Series B in 2021 and then opened up a $5 million allocation to let their customers invest–and their customers jumped at the chance.

So, if you're a coffee shop with one location opening to a second, or if you're a restaurant or if you're an early stage consumer packaged goods company, you know, and you're doing $500 K in, annual revenue, and you have a much, much smaller audience, you're not going to be able to raise $5 million in a day, because you have a smaller audience.

In those cases, let's talk about how you're going to maximize it because you're going to need to pull out all the stops and put in a lot of effort, execute on a marketing plan and come up with a great profile page and all that good stuff. 

But with these explosive $5 million in-a-day raises, you have a product, you have a company, you have a huge audience. For a very, very small number of companies, it's, yeah, push button, raise $5 million from 5,000 fans that are now even more supercharged as brand ambassadors and loyal customers for  Mercury or Substack or whoever it might be.

While most crowdfunding raises won’t raise $5 million in one day, it is great to see what it takes. The rest of us will have to “put in a lot of effort and execute on a marketing plan” to make our offerings successful.

In all he does, Jonny leverages his superpower: relentless positive energy.

AI Episode Summary

* Devin Thorpe interviews Jonny Price, VP of Wefunder, on the topic of investment crowdfunding.

* Jonny has been with Wefunder since 2018 and has witnessed the growth of the company and the industry.

* Jonny reflects on the progress made in the industry, citing the increase in the cap, new SEC regulations, and the rise of community rounds.

* Although investment volume in the market has decreased, Wefunder has remained steady and continues to grow, contributing to the vision of expanding the market for crowdfunding.

* Jonny acknowledges that while the potential for market growth is significant, it may not reach a thousand-fold increase, but a hundred-fold increase is achievable.

* Jonny emphasizes the importance of crowdfunding for small businesses and Main Street SMEs, as they often have limited access to capital and can benefit from raising funds from their community.

* Substack's success in raising $5 million in 24 hours on Wefunder is attributed to the company's large and passionate user base.

* Jonny suggests that building an incredible product and company with a loyal customer base is the key to successful crowdfunding campaigns.

* Jonny believes his superpower is his relentless positive energy and resilience, which has helped him overcome challenges in his career and personal life.

* He suggests practicing gratitude and focusing on one's zone of genius to maintain a positive mindset and achieve success.

How to Develop Relentless Positive Energy As a Superpower

Jonny sees his relentless positive energy as something he inherited or learned at such a young age that it is now second nature. He explains how he uses it at Wefunder:

It's like all startups are a roller coaster, especially when you're doing a hard thing and disrupting an industry. So, I've been on a lot of phone calls with entrepreneurs, VCs, angel investors, entrepreneurial ecosystem builders–people like you–hundreds and hundreds of calls every month for five and a half years. 

A lot of people would just get burned out by that. It's just hard–the startup grind. Right? I'm more optimistic and positive about Wefunder and the direction we're heading in the future of this industry than I've ever been. I have more energy now than I've ever had five and a half years in.

Jonny offers two tips for developing relentless positive energy.

First, he suggests a gratitude journal that could help you develop the pattern of seeing the positive. 

Second, he suggests following the advice of Matt Mochrie, who recommends leaders focus on their “zone of genius,” the things they do well. What do you do best? Focus more energy and more time on doing that. You’ll be happier and add more value to your organization that way. 

Following Jonny’s example and advice can strengthen your ability to exude positive energy even in challenging times. With practice, you may even make relentless positive energy a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Jonny Price (he/him):

VP of Fundraising, Wefunder

About Wefunder: We help founders raise capital from their customers and community, as well as rich people.

Website: wefunder.com

Twitter Handle: @wefunder

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/wefunder

Instagram Handle: @wefunder

Biographical Information: Jonny has led the fundraising team at Wefunder since he joined in 2018. Prior to Wefunder, Jonny founded the U.S. lending team at Kiva.org, where he worked for seven years. Originally from the UK, Jonny now lives in Nashville with his wife, Ali, and their three children, Felicity, Carlyle and Margot.

Twitter Handle: @jonnycprice

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/jonnyprice

I’m not a financial advisor; nothing I write in Superpowers for Good should be considered investment advice. You should seek appropriate counsel before making investment decisions.

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What do you see as your superpower?

Kenyatta: My superpower is my grit and my persistence.

Chef Kenyatta Ashford is so talented he won the Food Network’s Chopped. He’s primarily been working as a caterer for the past seven years, but his success is leading him to pursue his vision for a restaurant that serves food from his roots, combining African and Creole flavors.

When I look at investment crowdfunding, I focus on three flavors of impact: local or community-based businesses, social entrepreneurs and diverse founders. I love opportunities to consider investments in one business that represents all three. I think of these as impact trifectas.

Obviously, a local restaurant is the epitome of a community-oriented investment. As an African American, he is also a diverse founder. Kenyatta explained his social mission:

I want to be able to lift as I climb. It's really important to me to do that for anybody, but in particular underserved communities. One of those is local high school culinary arts programs that I try to support through my four-courses initiative, where we have celebrity chefs of color come to Chattanooga.

We put on a four-course meal for people to dine with us and to also just talk about different subject matter and bring awareness to culinary arts and also allow the young people from those programs to come and rub elbows and participate in the event so they can see the options and opportunities that might present themselves that they may not have thought about.

With that social mission, he brings the third part of that impact trifecta.

Kenyatta shared his request for support for his Wefunder campaign:

Restaurants are expensive, and capital is very hard to raise. Any business venture is expensive to begin, because you're starting from nothing most times. We have a goal of raising $450,000 as capital to help us open our own brick-and-mortar restaurant. 

trying to be wise and looking for places to open our brick-and-mortar, but also want to bring attention to what we're doing with our campaign and make people aware that our business is worthy of the investment that we're asking you to put into it.

We're more than just a restaurant. We want to be a really integral part of the community and not just reap the benefit of doing business with the community but also to pour back into the community.

Pouring back into the community is the thesis for local investing. Having Kenyatta open a restaurant that keeps profits in the community rather than having a national chain open one where profits are pulled out of the local economy is a big difference.

In his past successes, Kenyatta has demonstrated his superpower: grit.

AI Episode Summary

* Chef Kenyatta Ashford is launching his first brick-and-mortar restaurant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, called Neutral Ground.

* The restaurant concept was born during the pandemic as Chef Kenyatta was furloughed from his previous job and used the opportunity to pursue his dream of owning his own restaurant.

* The restaurant is influenced by Chef Kenyatta's upbringing in New Orleans and his African and Creole culture.

* Neutral Ground recently collaborated with a local family-run farm called Sequatchie Cove to host a dinner event showcasing their high-quality products, like grass-fed ribeye and lamb meat lollipops.

* Chef Kenyatta's vision for the restaurant goes beyond just serving food and aims to become an integral part of the community, supporting local culinary arts programs and offering opportunities for underserved youth.

* Neutral Ground is currently raising $450,000 through a crowdfunding campaign on Wefunder to open their own brick-and-mortar restaurant.

* This investment represents a trifecta opportunity for impact investors as it supports a local business, social mission, and a diverse founder.

* Chef Kenyatta's superpower is his grit and persistence, which has helped him overcome challenges and reach his current level of success.

* He advises others to live in the present, stay focused, and take one step at a time to strengthen their mental resilience.

* To learn more about Neutral Ground and Chef Kenyatta Ashford, visit their Instagram and Facebook pages, and consider investing in their Wefunder campaign to support their vision and mission.

How to Develop Grit As a Superpower

Kenyatta says, “My dad told me a long time ago that, ‘You know, son, you got to learn how to curve with life.’ I believe I've taken that to heart”

He credits his wife and kids with supporting him and enabling his grit. As he’s made the transition from being a full-time teacher to a chef, his family has had his back. That includes the stretches when he was working as a line cook for just $9 per hour. With their help and support, he muscled through the most challenging times to build a thriving business.

He says the key to building grit is to live in the present. That helps you build your mental strength. Focusing on the past or the future tends to create anxiety that can be self-defeating. “Put one foot in front of the other to continue the path because it will get better,” he says.

By following Kenyatta’s example and advice, you can strengthen your grit. With practice, you can make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Kenyatta Ashford (he/him):

Chef/Owner, Neutral Ground Chattanooga

About Neutral Ground Chattanooga: Neutral Ground Chattanooga

Website: www.neutralgroundchatt.com

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/neutralgroundchatt

Other URL: wefunder.com/neutralground

Biographical Information: Raised in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans as one of seven siblings, Kenyatta Ashford found his love for food at a young age over lingering family meals hosted by his mother, Sharon, and Uncle Walter. Never one to follow a typical path, Ashford became a high school teacher after playing basketball at Lee University. After building a robust teaching and coaching career, Kenyatta’s summer sessions spent helping in a catering kitchen awoke his childhood passion for the tastes of home. Lead by the memories and the tastes of his childhood. With a constant commitment to excellence, Ashford happily accepted his admission into the Culinary Institute of America, where he built technical expertise and interests in the foodways of his ancestry. After continued study in top-tier culinary institutions in New York, Rhode Island, and Louisiana, he went on to study scaled preparation techniques in the hospitality industry through the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Like much of the hospitality industry, Kenyatta’s role was furloughed early during the pandemic, leaving him with a sound set of skills and a family to help feed. Within weeks, he created the concept for Neutral Ground and set up a shop in Chattanooga’s Proof Incubator. The name Neutral Ground is an homage to the strip of land between neighborhoods in New Orleans that originates as the trade and gathering area across identities. Ashford carries this spirit into creating common spaces where people can come together across backgrounds and beliefs. The menu at Neutral Ground is a product of Ashford’s “afro-creole” identity and vision, where he’s constantly reflecting on and reimagining cuisine that reaches back to his ancestors who were enslaved in West Africa and brought to the Americas and journeys through the rich and often over-simplified culinary traditions of his hometown New Orleans. Dishes on the menu range from bean and rice dishes with African influences to interpretations of working-class staples from New Orleans, like po’boys and yakamein, which reflect his understanding of Afro-Creol…

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: What is your superpower?

Gordon: My superpower is a built-in desire to help, a built-in desire to do good in the world.

Rotary International President Gordon McInally is using his one-year term at the helm of the global service organization to advocate for mental health programs. While there are zero countries on the globe with no mental health problems, there are a few with virtually no programs to support those who struggle.

Rotary has over 40,000 clubs in about 200 countries around the world. “We're in more countries than McDonald's,” Gordon says, without noting that the organization has more chapters than McDonald’s has restaurants.

During his one-year tenure, Gordon will spend much of his time traveling. He’ll visit many more countries during his tenure than a typical president of the United States visits during a four-year term.

“The work of Rotary is not done in my office in Evanston, just outside of Chicago,” he says. “The work of Rotary is done in each and every one of the 46,000 clubs around the world. So, it's so important for me to get out and meet these people and be able to say ‘thank you’ to them, ‘thank you’ for what they're doing. Thank them for everything that they've done in the past and everything that they'll be doing in the future.”

All Rotary presidents have some latitude to set something of an agenda, formally creating themes and mottos for their year of leadership. Gordon’s passion for mental health is unusual, not in the nature of his focus, but in his commitment to it. When we scheduled the interview, the staff made clear we couldn’t conduct the interview if mental health weren’t a topic. I eagerly agreed.

He shared some examples of the mental health initiatives Rotary is undertaking:

One is in India. I was in India before I took office. I was in India in April and saw a wonderful project there called Wellness in a Box. Essentially, that is a program that's delivered to 12-year-olds and over in schools in Nagpur, India. It's giving these children coping skills with anxiety and depression symptoms. It's teaching them how it's important to open up and share about things. 

It's teaching them to be aware of the trigger signs that may lead to more serious mental illness. It's also training the teachers of these children to be able to spot the signs and to be able to help seek intervention where intervention might be necessary. So, it's a wonderful project that is replicable, and we're seeing it being rolled out in other countries as well, in Nigeria and Puerto Rico and also in the US, in Florida, in New Zealand. 

There's a wonderful project, again, working with young people, recognizing that young people are often the most challenged. Working with young people who are being given skills and cognitive behavioral therapy and being helped to improve things and recognize where they're headed and hopefully intervene before things become too serious. 

In Colorado, here in the US, we have seen a group of Rotary clubs establish a scholarship for a psychologist to study, and this will then increase the capacity for intervention from a psychologist in the future. 

So everywhere you go, you're seeing an interest in addressing the issue. Everywhere I go, I'm hearing people tell me about personal experiences that have led them to want to support this issue as well.

Mental health is a global issue exacerbated by COVID. With Gordon’s leadership on this challenge, I believe lives will be changed, and some lives will be saved.

Gordon deploys his superpower enthusiastically in this role. His great strength is a built-in desire to help.

AI Episode Summary

* Devin Thorpe interviews Gordon McInally, the President of Rotary International, on the Superpowers for Good show.

* McInally shares his passion for mental health and how Rotary has been quietly working on mental wellness for years.

* He highlights the challenges that have arisen from the Covid-19 pandemic, especially for young people.

* McInally discusses the importance of addressing mental health, which is often treated as a taboo subject.

* He mentions Rotary's flagship project, the Global Eradication of Polio campaign, and the progress they have made in reducing polio cases worldwide.

* McInally talks about his role as President of Rotary International and the privilege of meeting Rotarians around the world.

* He emphasizes the importance of collaboration and partnerships in Rotary's work.

* McInally shares specific examples of Rotary projects focused on mental health, including initiatives in India and Zambia.

* He reflects on his personal experience with Rotary's impact, particularly in helping orphaned children in Rwanda find hope and build better lives.

* McInally encourages individuals to activate their desire to help by joining Rotary and participating in acts of kindness.

How to Develop a Built-in Desire to Help As a Superpower

As the president of a global service organization, it is fitting that Gordon would have a built-in desire to help as his superpower. He shared an example of how he’s deployed that with Rotary in the past:

I want to take you back to the mid-1990s when Rwanda, a small country in central Africa, underwent a genocide that saw up to a million people killed in the space of 100 days. A whole generation was ripped out of that country, and there was a whole generation of young children who were left as orphans of that genocide and were at rock bottom. They had no hope for the future.

Rotary got involved, and I was spearheading a project out of Rotary in Britain and Ireland to help in partnership with an organization called Hope and Homes for Children to work on a project to help these orphans of the Rwandan genocide.

I remember going out to scope out the project the first time, which was probably about 2000, maybe 2001, or 2002. I remember going to a village and meeting a young girl and her brother–Claudette and Francoise. Claudette was 16, Francoise was about 10, and they had been orphaned by the genocide of 1994.

Their father had been killed in the Civil War, and their mother had been sexually assaulted by the soldiers, contracted AIDS, and she had subsequently died. These two young kids had absolutely nothing. They were living in a hovel. You could hardly call it a home. They were living in a hovel. They just had no future whatsoever. 

They were taken under the wing of the project that we called Rotary's Africa Hope. Over the ensuing years, they got back into education. They had the opportunity to get a new, secure home. Even today, we still hear from them. They've gone on to do well. 

Gordon offered a critical tip for developing your own desire to help, noting the inherent benefits that result. “The first thing I would say, and this is recognized and borne out by university studies, is that one of the best ways to feel good about yourself, one of the best ways to improve your own sense of worth, your own well-being, is to perform acts of kindness.”

He adds enthusiastically that joining a Rotary Club is a great way to find opportunities to help.

By following Gordon’s example and advice, you can make a built-in desire to help a strength. With practice, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Guest Profile

Gordon McInally (he/him):

President, Rotary International

About Rotary International: Rotary brings together a global network of volunteer leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. Rotary connects 1.4 million members of more than 46,000 Rotary clubs in almost every country in the world. Their work improves lives at both the local and international levels, from helping families in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world.

Website: www.rotary.org

Twitter Handle: @Rotary

Company Facebook Page:

Remember, you can watch the Superpowers for Good show on e360tv. To watch the episode, download the #e360tv channel app to your streaming device–Roku, AppleTV or AmazonFireTV–or your mobile device. You can even watch it on the web.

Devin: Amanda, what do you see as your superpower?

Amanda: When Josh first reached out to me, he graduated from NYU Stern Business School. He brought in a few of his middle school friends. I was actually very self-conscious because I didn't really know anything about business. I didn't have a business background or anything like that, but I realized pretty quickly that my superpower is not necessarily the financial, logistical, the minute hard skills but more of the soft skills, more of the way that I relate to people, the way that I can understand people, the way that we're working with teenagers.

Devin: Amogh, what do you think is your superpower?

Amogh: I think my superpower lies in the fact that I am young, and I drive youth empowerment, youth leadership.

Devin: Gavin, what is your superpower?

Gavin: I wanted to use my superpower and engage students. So actually, with the organization I helped with, with their first-ever networking workshop. So, I show students how to use LinkedIn, how to send messages to politicians, industry professionals.

Years ago, I had Joshua’s Heart Foundation’s founder, Joshua Williams, on the show to talk about his remarkable organization. At the time, he was a young teenager and had already been at work feeding people who were hungry and food insecure for nearly a decade. When he launched the effort, he understood he was creating a movement to feed those who need help but likely didn’t fully appreciate the more radical impact he was having by empowering children and teenagers to lead.

Recently, we reconnected, and he introduced me to some of the young people who lead the effort today.

Amanda Aviles serves on the newly constituted National Advisory Board. Members of the board are Joshua’s Heart alumni volunteers scattered around the country. Some participated with Joshua as peers in the earliest days when their little hands and arms couldn’t carry much food but when their minds could immediately grasp the impact of providing food to someone who needed it.

Gavin Poore and Amogh Baranwal are both in high school. They are members of the Junior Advisor Board, which has the primary responsibility for leading the organization. They are two of the day-to-day leaders.

Both trace their roots in the organization back in time for years. Amogh shared his recollection of volunteering at age six:

The one memory that I have that has always stuck with me is that when I was in line, we used to have people come to us, and we would shop with them like a grocery store, so they would get to choose exactly what they wanted to take home. 

A family came with another six-year-old, and this was the first time I had seen someone who looked like me–we're the same age, we might have gone to the same school, or we might have had similar life experiences at that age. 

When I gave his family that box of food, I saw his smile brighten up. I was shocked. Something that I take for granted. I never think, “When's the next food going to be on the table?” Or when the next family dinner is going to be. It's something that just happens.

So, to see someone my age see so much joy from something that I took for granted really opened my eyes to the many problems that many people face–even at six years old. 

So, it is cool to tell people that I started volunteering when I was six, but it's sad to know that there are six-year-olds who didn't get that same opportunity because of the circumstances they were put in. So ever since that day, I have been grateful for our Foundation for giving me these opportunities and allowing me to experience giving back firsthand.

His story represents well the experiences of other young people who volunteered regularly with Joshua’s Heart. The truly remarkable things about the nonprofit founded by a four-year-old may not be the people it feeds but the leaders it builds.

AI Episode Summary

* This is an interview with three young people involved with Joshua’s Heart Foundation: Amanda Aviles, Gavin Poore, and Amogh Baranwal.

* Joshua’s Heart Foundation was started in 2005 by a young boy named Joshua who had a passion for feeding the hungry.

* The foundation’s primary mission is to fight hunger and engage and empower youth in that fight.

* The organization is facing the challenge of keeping its founders and early participants involved while preserving the youth-led nature of the organization.

* The organization is split into three parts: core volunteers, a junior advisory board, and a national advisory board.

* Amanda Aviles believes her superpower is her ability to connect with people and understand them, particularly younger individuals.

* Amogh Baranwal believes his superpower lies in his youth and the ability to empower and inspire other young people.

* Gavin Poore sees his superpower as youth engagement, helping other young people find their voice and engage in positive change.

* The organization can be supported through donations, and volunteers are accepted, but mainly from the South Florida area.

* The best way to stay in touch with the organization is through its website and social media platforms, particularly LinkedIn.

Guest Profiles

Amanda Aviles (she/her):

Director of Strategy, Joshua's Heart Foundation

About Joshua's Heart Foundation: Joshua’s Heart Foundation (JHF) was founded in 2005 in Miami Beach, Fla. by Joshua Williams when he was four years old. Joshua’s Heart is dedicated to the fight against global hunger and poverty. JHF is a 501(c) (3), not-for-profit, youth-run organization, which empowers needy people to improve their quality of life by providing necessities like groceries and personal items. JHF also effectively engages and educates youth on committing to fight hunger and poverty on a global basis.

Website: joshuasheart.org

Twitter Handle: @joshuasheart

Instagram Handle: @joshuasheart

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/joshuasheartfoundation

Biographical Information: At 12 years old, Amanda Aviles participated in her first food distribution with Joshua’s Heart and fell in love with the foundation. She became a regular volunteer and later joined the first Junior Advisory Board, a board of youth volunteers charged with overseeing food pantry operations. Today, Amanda serves as the Director of Strategy, proudly advancing a new youth-led model and establishing a mentorship network for JHF members as they grow their volunteer base and open more food pantries around the country.

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/a-aviles/

Gavin Poore (he/him):

Head of Finance, Joshua's Heart Foundation

Biographical Information: Gavin Poore is a high school senior from Hollywood, FL. A member of the JAB and Head of Finance, he has a deep-rooted passion for youth engagement and activism. Gavin loves working congruently with others to develop real, white-glove solutions to reduce friction within societal pressures. Gavin is interested in the worlds of business and law, striving to gain opportunities that add to his already versatile skill set.

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/gavin-poore-9a60a9245/

Amogh Baranwal (he/him):

Chair of the Junior Advisory Board and Head of Outreach for the Foundation, Joshua's Heart Foundation 

Biographical Information: Amogh Baranwal is a current senior at Pembroke Pines Charter Highschool serving as the Valedictorian for the current graduating class. His academic accomplishments are synonymous with his passion for health advocacy, youth empowerment, and sustained social work. He has been a volunteer for Joshua's Heart Foundation for 11 years, starting his volunteer journey when he was 6 years old.  He serves as the Junior Advisory Board Chair and heads the Outreach Branch of the foundation, which consists of Intel, Partners and sponsors, Social Awareness, and recruitment teams. From leading Youth Advocacy Conferences for thousands of youth to going to o…