The Catalyst

Founder and Execute Director of the sustainable gemstone company, INONGE ZITA, Patricia splits her time between Denmark and Zambia where she employs her innovative framework, “Design Thinking for Extractive Communities," to add value to Zambia's natural resources. In doing so, Patricia plays a major hand in creating economically viable value chains that lead to sustainable job creation for the youth and women who are disproportionately affected by unemployment within Zambia. 

Like Swanee, Oana, and Arielle, Patricia is a female powerhouse and it was an absolute honor to have the opportunity to interview someone so inspiring.

Wunderkinds, by definition, are rare. A synonym for child prodigy, a "wunderkind" is someone who succeeds in a competitive or highly difficult field or profession at an early age. For this episode of The Catalyst, I interviewed the woman who was the youngest SVP at Edelman and is now one of a handful of Black C-Suite executives on Wall Street. Who is this wunderkind? None other than Arielle Patrick, Chief Communications Officer at Ariel Investments. 

One of my greatest lessons from my first year in investment banking is the necessity of trust within relationships, so I was in deep resonance with Arielle when she spoke of the importance of cultivating relationships from a foundation of value as opposed to a lens of transaction. Focusing on what we can give to others, as opposed to what they can give to us is really what leads to unmatched success. Achieving this success is simply the outcome of consistently demonstrating, and giving, value which Arielle credits as one of the reasons she made it into the C-Suite in under 10 years—eight to be exact.

With this interview, I had in mind young women like myself who are ambitious, starting out their careers and are seeking inspiration on their journeys. In Arielle, I find inspiration that the success I am working towards is indeed possible. Throughout our conversation, we spoke about our humanities training being helpful background for our careers in financial services, the importance of giving value in relationships, and what young, professional women should think about when considering motherhood. We also spoke of Arielle's passion for art collecting, which relates to the ethos that has marked her entire career: relationships over transactions. 

An architect by trade and an artist by birthright, Oana Stănescu is a multi-hyphenate whose work inspires musings of community and play. Raised in Romania amidst the revolution that ousted Nicolae Ceausescu, Oana grew up understanding a fundamental truth: worlds can, and do, change—often when you least expect. This reality taught her to create her own world. Utilizing architecture as her domain, Oana has created several worlds, often bridging the gap between a discipline known for its permanence with several others. This ability to work across cross-disciplinary lines has lead to iconic projects. Notably, the 50-foot stage-prop volcano that eclipsed Kanye West during his Yeezus tour. 

In our own conversation, Oana and I spoke of pushing the boundaries of what one can do. Principally we focused on doing so through one's own work. What struck me most is when she noted that "it’s a privilege to take subjects of interests, things that are on your mind, and just pursue them." In the context of work, this remains the supreme dream, and what I loved most about this interview is that Oana reminded us that this dream remains a possibility: it's very much possible to create your own world—to take subjects of interests and just pursue them. 

Listen to Episode 011 of The Catalyst now, Changemakers and hear more conversations with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around on The Catalyst's website. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter here.

As always, Changemakers, welcome.

Before The World Ended, I took a course on the economic life of women which demonstrated to me that, historically, marriage has been an economic booster for all parties involved but especially for women (many reasons for this but consider the system of primogeniture as well as the cultural and economic consequences of patriarchy and their adverse effects on the economic lives of women). Curious to discover how this economic booster functioned contemporarily for black women in the United States, my research and final paper led me to one Ralph Richard Banks—a professor at Stanford Law School and the author of a rather controversial (for that time, and perhaps even for our current times) book on the African American marriage decline.

"Is Marriage For White People?: How the African American Marriage Decline Affects Everyone" is set among a broader trend of marriage decline overall in the United States, but acutely focuses on how this decline impacts the black community and African American women in particularly.

This is an important conversation and one I hope you'll join us for, Changemakers!

You can listen to more interviews with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around on The Catalyst's website. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter here. As always, Changemakers, welcome.

Do you know those people who laugh easily, put you at ease and who seem to recognize you, not as who you necessarily are, but as who you could be? For Episode 009 of The Catalyst, I had the honor of sitting down with such a person: United States Ambassador Swanee Hunt. In conversation with her, one notices that Ambassador Hunt is a woman with a wealth of wisdom and a sense of humor that is clever in its delivery and Texan in its candor. By that, I mean not only will the Ambassador make you smile, but she'll make you laugh as well.

Changemakers, I invite you to listen to Episode 009 of The Catalyst. However, I must warn you: Ambassador Hunt and I touch upon the topics of sex trafficking and prostitution and the subsequent social impacts our choices make on those two issues. If these topics are a bit much for you, no worries! That said, I advise you to skip 28:48 to 47:25 of Episode 009.

You can listen to more interviews with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around on The Catalyst's website. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter here so that you may join the conversation with people who are catalyzing impactful moments within their careers, communities, and countries.

"I can raise a million dollars in ten minutes." These were the words the ladies of The Synergist and myself heard as we listened, intently, to everything The Most Powerful Woman in the Room had to say. Well, it was a Zoom room, but, alas, this is our new reality. When I finally got the opportunity to tell Lydia Fenet how powerful I found her statement to be and inquired on how she could possibly raise a million dollars in ten minutes, she smiled and said, "I could raise a million dollars in five minutes if you let me." Talk about a Rainmaker.

In episode 008 of The Catalyst, our Chief Conversation Curator, Audrey Dilgarde, spoke with the Global Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships and the Lead Benefit Auctioneer at Christie’s Auction House, Lydia Fenet, on all things auctioneering and the importance of giving up our fear of hearing the word "no."

Lydia Fenet is in a league of her own and we at The Catalyst thank her again for making the time to share her wisdoms and truths.

You can listen to more interviews with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around on The Catalyst's website. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter here so that you may join the conversation with people who are catalyzing impactful moments within their careers, communities, and countries.

As a lover of art myself, I was delighted to have the opportunity to speak Kim Heirston, a Yale-educated international art advisor whose love for art is just as profound as her desire to share it with the masses.

Speaking with her on a host of topics, from the Culture Wars of the 1980s to the importance of nature to the need to take time and give art the viewership it begs, this episode of The Catalyst was curated with art-lovers in mind and especially for those who appreciate art for art's sake.

Kim Heirston is a titan in her industry and we at The Catalyst thank her again for making the time to share her wisdoms and truths.

If you're interested in following Ms. Heirston's journey as she realizes her mission of bringing art to the masses, please follow her on Instagram and stay tuned for NOTES ON A PAINTING. Be sure to visit her website as well to learn more about her private art advisory.

You can listen to more interviews with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around on The Catalyst's website. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter and join the conversation with people who are catalyzing impactful moments within their careers, communities, and countries.

“Impact is multifaceted," Zemedeneh Negatu said as he passionately spoke of the ripple effects that home-grown Ethiopian Airlines has had, not only in Africa but beyond the continent as well.

In this episode of The Catalyst, Audrey Dilgarde spoke with Zemedeneh Negatu about all the moments of impact he's been able to catalyze while at the helm of his global private equity firm, Fairfax Africa Fund. A true global citizen, Negatu comes from Ethiopia and has been able to raise through the ranks of the business world to a great position of influence, which he utilizes to showcase the investment opportunities in Africa.

To find out more about Mr. Negatu, visit our website, now and signup for our newsletter so you never miss an episode with some of the most interesting and inspiring people around.

Changemakers, welcome.

"Nearly 50 years after coming into this world, I began my life for a second time." This profound reflection is how Anne Devereux-Mills begins her new book, The Parlay Effect: How Female Connection Can Change the World.

For this episode of The Catalyst, Audrey Dilgarde spoke with Anne Devereux-Mills, Founder and Chief Instigator of Parlay House, a series of salons that have created a global community built upon connection, about her life's journey and the power of small, positive change. To find out more this modern-day salon, visit the Parlay House website here.

Be sure to keep up with The Catalyst by visiting our website, and signing up for our newsletter so you never miss an episode.

Changemakers, welcome.

"Medicine is not exclusively biological." This nuanced statement intrigued me as Dr. Joia Mukherjee spoke of her years in global health during a guest lecture in a recent class I took, Infectious Diseases and Social Injustice.

Beyond being a professor at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Joia also spends her time as the Chief Medical Officer of Partners in Health––a Boston based international nonprofit and charity dedicated to providing a preferential option for the poor in health care. Although she's extremely busy with her professorship and CMO role, Dr. Joia was quoted in a recent feature as saying she has “a day job, a night job, and a weekend job.” Nothing else is to be expected from someone who is both a Human Rights activist, author, professor, and Chief Medical Officer of an international non-profit.

Aside from her amazing accomplishments, the reason I needed to host Dr. Joia Mukherjee on The Catalyst was to have a nuanced and eye-opening conversation about the intricacies of global health, her passion for social justice and medicine, and to get to the heart of her statement, "medicine is not exclusively biological."

To find out more about Partners in Health, visit their website here.