The Impact Agenda

Join us as we talk with Erin Baudo Felter, the VP of Social Impact and Sustainability at Okta. With 15+ years of experience at the crossroads of business and social impact, Erin has held key roles in Zynga, Yahoo, and Warner Bros. Erin currently leads Okta for Good, Okta's social impact initiative, and oversees the company's ESG function. 

In this episode, Erin shares her accidental encounter with Warner Bros.' CSR team, which sparked her 15-year career focused on business and impact. Starting as a one-person team, she built Okta for Good and now leads a team of 10 driving CSR operations, including philanthropy, ESG, and climate work. Erin encourages everyone to incorporate ESG into their job competencies, as she believes in the collective role of creating impact.

1:45 - What is corporate social responsibility and why is it important to Erin? 

3:16 - Tell us more about your journey to creating social impact at large corporations. How did you end up in CSR? What experiences were key in allowing you to excel at your job? 

7:20 - We would love to learn more about your role as Vice President of Social Impact & Sustainability at Okta For Good. Can you tell us more about how you founded the program? What were your goals? 

11:20 - What initiatives under Okta for Good have you created that you are most proud of? Can you tell us more about the impact you are making? 

16:54 - How has the idea of corporate responsibility changed over the past decade and what are your predictions for its future trajectory?

23:09 - What advice does Erin give to founders or businesses who want to incorporate corporate social responsibility into their business model? 

26:44 - How do we pierce the curtain of ESG virtue signaling and know if a company is creating actual impact?

28:58 - How can people who are interested in a career in corporate social responsibility put themselves in a position to succeed?

31:19 - Does Erin have any exciting plans for the future relating to Octa for good? Any next big projects that she’s working on?

Join us for an engaging conversation with Manish Bhardwaj, Co-founder and CEO of Innovators In Health (IIH), a non-profit organization dedicated to delivering quality healthcare to India's rural poor. Manish, who holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from MIT, is also the founding director of a transformative initiative at Princeton University's Keller Center, empowering humanities and social sciences faculty to address pressing societal challenges. 

In this episode, Manish takes us on his remarkable journey of relocating to rural India to establish Innovators in Health. He highlights the importance of cultivating moral clarity for individuals pursuing impactful careers and urges entrepreneurial-minded students to understand the systems of injustice that we occupy before working to dismantle them for a more equitable society.

1:44 - When did Manish realize the potential for entrepreneurship for impact, and the importance of cultivating strong morals to do this work? 

3:34 - How did Manish get into teaching? Why do he prioritize teaching this over engineering, the discipline he trained in? 

4:18 - What are the main lessons that Manish hopes his students take away from his class? And what are some of the qualities and skills he's seen in students that allow them to succeed in social entrepreneurship?

5:45 - Manish’s mission is to challenge current social venture thinking & provide counter narrative to traditional narratives of entrepreneurship - can you expand on what these traditional narratives and the counter narratives are? 

7:51 - Manish founded Innovators in Health (IIH) which is devoted to delivering world-class healthcare to the rural poor in India. How did he get interested in healthcare? What was the founding story of IIH?

9:28 - What were the main challenges that Manish faced early on in building IIH and how did he overcome them?

11:15 - How does Innovators of Health deliver world class healthcare to the real poor, and what are the main challenges that it overcomes?

13:45 - What is the impact that Innovators in Health are making, and what remains to be done with his organization and then healthcare solutions in general in rural, poor India and even globally?

15:26 - What are the major goals for Innovators in Health in the next five or 10 years?

17:03 - Why is it important for social entrepreneurs to develop strong morals or ethical mindsets? And what does developing this moral clarity actually look like in practice?

21:16 - How can universities do a better job in helping students develop moral clarity?

23:57 - How do we encourage students to seek out humanities courses and what role do students who are trained in these disciplines have in shaping our future and designing more social ventures?

27:06 - What advice does Manish have for students who are trying to develop their purpose and a strong moral compass?

30:20 - In Manish's experience, what are some qualities and skills that successful social entrepreneurs have?

We had the pleasure of chatting with Jessica Marati Radparvar, an entrepreneur and sustainable business strategist on a mission to help impact leaders drive bigger, bolder, and more sustainable change. Over the past decade, Jessica has approached the impact space from a number of different perspectives — as a journalist, as an entrepreneur, as an academic, in-house at a Fortune 300 company and now as the Founder of Reconsidered, an impact strategy and communications studio. 

In this podcast episode, learn about how Jessica navigated her diverse career experiences, and how a social enterprise research stint in Cambodia shaped her career in social impact and sustainability. Jessica is an advocate for career breaks and professional exploration as a way to "connect the dots" in one's social impact journey, and emphasizes the importance of cultivating soft skills and understanding your boundaries as key skills to succeed in the impact and sustainability space. 

Learn more about Reconsidered → http://reconsidered.co Sign up for the Reconsidered newsletter → http://reconsidered.co/sign-up Follow Jessica on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicamradparvar/ Follow Reconsidered on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/reconsidered/

2:12 - How did Jessica navigate her diverse career experiences, including working as a journalist, in artisan sustainable fashion, a tech startup, and ultimately running her own impact strategy consulting firm? 

8:35 - What was Jessica’s experience taking a career break in Cambodia and starting her own social enterprise? 

14:20 - What was Jessica’s mindset graduating from Princeton in terms of taking time off and/or seeking new perspectives versus keeping to a traditional path? 

20:34 - What was the founding story of Reconsidered? 

22:48 - How did Jessica build credibility with Reconsidered to land large brand clients such as Eileen Fisher, Tommy Hilfiger, J.Crew?

27:34 - What are Jessica’s views on incorporating impact sustainability into business? Any major trends that she has noticed working with varied clients in the industry? 

31:20 - What advice would Jessica give to those interested in working at the intersection of impact consulting and sustainability?

33:31 - What are Jessica’s 3 main takeaways from incorporating impact and purpose into her career?

Join us as we engage in an inspiring conversation with Zanagee Artis, a visionary 23-year-old founder and the executive director of Zero Hour, a global youth-led climate justice organization. Zanagee is also co-author of A Kids Book About Climate Change and co-host of 1 Point 5: A Kids Podcast About Climate Justice.

In this episode, we uncover how Zanagee and his co-founders initiated Zero Hour after meeting at a summer camp, and how the organization evolved from a youth-led climate march to an internationally recognized movement. Zanagee shares his insights on the urgency of stopping new fossil fuel development as a critical goal in the fight against climate change, and provides his advice for young founders, emphasizing the power of fearlessness and creating community in driving meaningful change.

2:05 - What sparked Zanagee’s passion for environmental justice?

3:31 - What was the founding story of Zero Hour? 

5:22 - What are the biggest policy demands that Zero Hour is pushing for, and how these demands have changed over the past five years? 

7:57 - Are there specific initiatives that are fundamental to achieving global climate goals and in the future and how will these goals change with time? 

9:30 - What is the significance of Project Willow in Alaska that aims to stop new fossil fuel development? 

11:20 - What are the major milestones since Zanagee founded Zero Hour? 

13:39 - What are the aims of Zero Hour’s educational training program, and why does Zanagee believe that educating youth on activism is important?  

16:12 - How did Zanagee overcome the challenge of making an impact and being taken seriously even though you are a young founder?

18:41 - How does Zanagee manage your time between your day job and activism, and your decision not to work Zero Hour part-time instead of full-time?

21:45 - What were the biggest challenges of starting and actually sustaining a social movement, and how do one make sure and evaluate throughout that the impact they're creating is actually sustainable? 

24:32 - What are the biggest challenges in getting people to care about and advocate for climate justice, and how does zero hour aim to solve these problems, if any?

27:22 - What is Zanagee’s advice for those who are interested in a career in advocacy and environmental justice, and what are the different ways or paths that people can take to create an impact?

30:15 - What are some skills or qualities that Zanagee would recommend to aspiring activists to cultivate? 

33:00 - What advice would Zanagee give to businesses or corporations that are interested in incorporating sustainability or climate action into their organizations? 

36:25 - Any big future goals or new projects personally and professionally that Zanagee is excited about, specifically for Zero Hour?

Join us for an insightful episode featuring Robert, the Managing Director, Portfolio Management and Chief Investment Officer of Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), a groundbreaking leader in the impact investment movement based in Singapore. 

In this episode, Robert takes us through the founding story of IIX, which emerged in the aftermath of the 2008 Financial Crisis, and the challenges the founding team faced as pioneers in the impact-investing space. Learn more about how IIX’s created award-winning financial instruments that has generated sustainable livelihoods for women in underserved markets, such as the Women's Livelihood Bond Series™, an initiative that has successfully raised over $125 million through five bond offerings. Roberts shares his perspectives on the future of impact investing, and how IIX continues to shape the landscape of socially responsible investing.

1:31 - What was the founding story of IIX and what inspired Robert to join the Impact Investment Movement? 

04:20 - What were the biggest challenges that Robert had to overcome in the early years of managing IIX from the ground up? 

10:31 - What sparked the idea for IIX’s Livelihood Bond series - the world’s first gender lens impact investing security listed on the stock exchange?

15:31 - What is a bond and how does the financial instrument create tangible impact? 

25:51 - How does IIX measure the impact of its work? 

35:38 - What are Rober’s predictions for the future trajectory of impact investing? 

40:00 - What advice does Robert have for students interested in finance who are impact driven to work at the intersection of these two interests? 

42:27 - What are the future goals for IIX and are there any new projects in the term horizon?

33:31 - What are Robert’s 3 main takeaways from incorporating impact and purpose into his career?

Join us as we embark on the Season 2 premiere of The Impact Agenda with renaissance woman, Majora Carter. Majora’s impressive repertoire includes being a real estate developer, urban revitalization strategy consultant, MacArthur Fellow, and Peabody Award-winning broadcaster. 

In this captivating episode, Majora delves into the meaning behind her iconic quote displayed on the walls of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture in DC: "Nobody should have to move out of their neighborhood to live in a better one." Learn more about Majora's visionary approach to reclaiming and transforming low-status communities into thriving, inclusive, and prosperous neighborhoods as we explore project examples like Bronxlandia and the vibrant Boogie Down Grind Cafe, where community engagement and sustainable practices create spaces that empower and uplift.

Find Majora on Instagram @majoracarter / @boogiedowngrind / @bronxlandia 

Connect with Major on linkedin @MajoraCarter

2:18 - How did Majora navigate her impressive career as a real estate developer, urban revitalization strategist, MacArthur Fellow, and Peabody Award-winning broadcaster? What was the trajectory of creating all these different types of projects and did it happen organically?

4:00 - What are the factors that contribute to brain drain in low-status communities and how does Majora’s work aim to help alleviate these issues? 

6:34 - Why did Majora choose real estate development as a pathway to creating justice? 

11:20 - What are Majora’s views on people outside low-status communities coming into these spaces to lead and spearhead change? How do we empower members of these communities themselves to be involved in community development? 

14:47 - How did Majora’s book “You don’t have to move out of your neighborhood to live in a better one” come to be? What does Majora hope readers will take away from this book?

17:31 - What was the founding story of one of Majora’s award-winning redevelopment projects, the Boogie Down Grind Cafe? 

21:21 - What was the story behind Bronxlandia, an old train station in the Bronx, which Majora revitalized to become an event space and an art space for locals? 

28:51 - What are Majora’s most meaningful economic and green infrastructure projects that she has worked on? 

31:28 - How does Majora balance all her commitments? 

32:58 - What is Majora’s advice for entrepreneurial-minded students? 

33:47 - Looking back at the span of her career, what were the biggest challenges that Majora faced and what kind of skills and qualities helped her overcome these hurdles?

32:54 - What are Majora’s 3 main takeaways from incorporating impact and purpose into her career? 

Today we have the pleasure of chatting with the outstanding Meg Garlinghouse, leader of the Social Impact programs at LinkedIn. In this role, she is responsible for identifying partnerships and programs that leverage the LinkedIn platform to create positive social impact for the world. Meg has more than twenty-five years of experience working in the technology and philanthropy sector. She currently serves on the Boards of VolunteerMatch and KQED.org. 

Meg shares why serving in the PeaceCorps in West Africa for two years was single handedly the “best professional experience she has ever had” and dives into three key skills: grit, agility, and gratitude. Meg inspires us to join her in envisioning a world where there ceases to be “impact and ESG'' titles and instead everyone comes to work with the impact mindset. She encourages listeners to seek out opportunities that encourage thinking and learning in new ways. 

Listen in as we learn how and why corporations should be taking on increased responsibility for what they’re doing, instead of just leaving the work of picking up the pieces to nonprofits. She encourages the cultivation of key skills needed to create impacts at corporations. Meg’s team at LinkedIn is looking up the river to tackle systemic problems in addition to helping the individuals who have already fallen in.

1:39 - Meg, will you walk us through your path to LinkedIn and lessons learned along the way? Previewing some of the big highlights: growing up in Kansas, studying at Duke, going to the PeaceCorps right after college, the Harvard Kennedy School for your Master in Public Policy, your dream job at the World Bank, moving to the Bay Area during the Internet boom, and everything since then. 

8:50 - Meg, what is your reason for Impact? When did that develop and why?

11:13 - What is the Peace Corps exactly? Who is a good fit for the Peace Corps and what did you learn?

15:38 - Meg, how would you advise our audience to follow in your footsteps and trust their gut to take the non-linear path, when that often leads to uncertainty? What was your strategy?

18:52 How has the role of corporations evolved over the last 30 years in terms of creating an impact? How has this created new opportunities for young people to get involved in impact careers today?

21:29 - You’re at the intersection of Internet, tech, and philanthropy. Is there a sense of responsibility that comes with that? What are the biggest social impact initiatives at LinkedIn that you are working on? 

29:00 - Let’s talk about your dream: where social impact jobs cease to exist as separate jobs. How do you envision this happening?

31:21 - How can young impact-driven individuals succeed in a variety of roles?

34:48 What are three highlights that you would like for us to take away from your journey of integrating passion and impact into your career? 

We have another incredible episode in store with Bauhinia Lee, Founder of Anima Ventures, a Venture Builder. Bauhinia focuses on teams with at least one female co-founder and helps build out and invest in these early-stage startups based in Hong Kong. 

Bauhinia walks us through the inspiration for her venture, how she built a whole new network in Hong Kong and integrated herself into the startup ecosystem. Bauhinia is a venture builder and for the next 5 years, she aims to impact 5+ female founders earning sustainable revenue and having sustainable growth in the areas of impact and technology. Bauhinia is also passionate about raising the voices of women and youth empowerment. 

Bauhinia shares abundant nuggets of wisdom pertaining to building a strong network, creating a motivating timeline and reverse engineering career ambitions, and cultivating healthy, unstoppable mindsets. She inspires listeners to always have a side hustle for skill acquisition and exploration, and to bring curiosity everywhere. We also touch on the startup scene in Asia compared to the U.S., and how to navigate your career and personal values to ensure they align.

1:17 - Bauhinia, you have worked in different industries all over the world. How have these experiences shaped you as a person and your decision to create Anima Ventures? 

7:09 - What are unique challenges that female founders face?

9:24 - How can successful women in this space empower fellow women?

12:56 - How does the startup scene in Asia (HK) compare to the U.S.? What do you think are some advantages and opportunities for growth in Asia that make it a great place to start a venture? 

15:37 - What are some qualities that youth who want to enter VC/entrepreneurship should cultivate to succeed?

20:58 - How did you build your network completely from scratch in a new city? 

25:12 - How do you recommend building a brand of being an impact-driven entrepreneur? How did you get the word out about Anima Ventures?

28:49 - How do you recommend developing and aligning personal and professional values?

33:00 - What are your goals for the next 5 years for Anima Ventures? What are you most excited about?
35:48 - What are the takeaways from your journey of integrating your passion into your career and driving an impact?

Welcome back to another episode of the i-Impact Podcast! We are so excited to share another inspiring conversation with the founder of the Enneagram Prison Project, Susan Olesek. The Enneagram Prison Project uses the Enneagram tool to bring self awareness education to those imprisoned. To date, they have graduated 3000 students and taught 320 courses. Happy 10 year anniversary to the project!

Join us as we sit down with Susan to discuss the power of the Enneagram as a tool to understand ourselves and use our unique strengths for good. Susan shares how teaching the Enneagram at a Texas Prison changed her career and life trajectory and led her to start her NGO the Enneagram Prison Project. She talks about her experience working and learning from people who have done time and how she aims to free people from the prison of their own making and empower others to become teachers of the Enneagram themselves. Susan highlights how the Enneagram Prison Project Ambassadors spread the spirit of service and are proof of the project’s instrumental success.

1:41 - Susan describes herself as a “Human Potentialist.” Why and what does that term mean to her?

2:38 - What exactly is the Enneagram system? How and when did Susan learn about its potential for change?

6:24 - How did getting invited to teach in a Texas prison change Susan’s life trajectory?

11:45 - How does Susan “connect the dots,” using expertise & passions to help others realize their full potentials. What was the hardest part of this process? Any advice for listeners who would want to do similar social justice work?

14:24 - Working closely with incarcerated people, what is the largest misconception people have about those who are/have been incarcerated? How does the Enneagram Prison Project work to change that?

20:13 - How are Susan’s two organizations centered around the use of the Enneagram tool similar and different?

23:01 - What has been a moment that has reaffirmed the impact Susan is making?

25:28 - Congrats on the Enneagram Prison Project 10 year anniversary! What is Susan’s vision for the impact of the Enneagram Prison Project for the foreseeable future?

We are so excited to welcome Puja Kapai onto the i-Impact Podcast! Puja is a multi-award winning researcher, academic and community justice advocate who is also a 3-time TEDx speaker. She is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law and Convenor of the Women’s Studies Research Centre at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Puja’s work has influenced policy development and advocacy across legal and service sectors in Hong Kong especially in respect of racial equality and violence against women.

Join in as we talk to Puja about her experiences as an ethnic minority woman in Hong Kong and how that fueled her desire to break boundaries and pursue a successful career in law. Now as Hong Kong’s most prominent social justice advocate, law professor and researcher, Puja shares how her aim of having an holistic approach to social justice has led her to advocate for educational justice, protecting women against domestic violence and the importance of intersectionality as a core lens in social justice work.

Puja began her impact work locally, and it organically expanded to global impact. Puja challenges future social advocates to become informed by our own contexts, learn our spheres of influence, and think intentionally about solving local problems first. We discuss the importance of doing the right thing for the right reasons, doing our work ethically, reflectively, and selflessly.

2:17 - Puja, you are one of Hong Kong’s most accomplished social justice advocates for marginalized groups in Hong Kong.  We would like to start off by asking how has growing up in Hong Kong shaped this passion and your career into law? Can you tell us more about your journey?

3:40 - Why and when did you realize that law and academia was the right path for you?

6:01 - What were the largest challenges of being a woman and ethnic minority and how did you overcome them?

13:20 - You are very passionate about advocating for your community and improving the lives of marginalized individuals in HK and this mission has led you to becoming an multi-award winning researcher, academic and community justice advocate. When you talked about your career earlier you described it as “multidimensional” - can you talk more about the different facets of your impact work and how you create a “holistic” impact with each of them?

23:05 - What does using an intersectional lens look like in human rights work?

26:08 - For those who are interested in getting involved in similar social justice focused careers to Puja, what are the skills and mindsets students and young professionals should cultivate?

30:53 - What are Puja’s next big projects?

32:12 - What are takeaway lessons for integrating impact into one’s career?