VISIONKEEPERS™ PODCAST
Hosted by Dan Bärham – VisionKeepers™ podcast is the audio companion to the national public television series by the same name.
The podcast is also all about people who dwell in possibilities and try to find ways to leave our world a better place than they found it.
VISIONKEEPERS™ PODCAST
Hosted by Dan Bärham – VisionKeepers™ podcast is the audio companion to the national public television series by the same name.
The podcast is also all about people who dwell in possibilities and try to find ways to leave our world a better place than they found it.
LATEST EPISODE
Equine Assistance for Better Mental Health
The Equine Assisted Growth And Learning Association (EAGALA) incorporates horses to address mental health and personal development needs. “Non-verbal is 90% of all communication, and that’s what the horses respond to.” The horse may become an aspect of a person’s personality, reflected back to them. Lynn/EAGALA provide a space for that person to interact with the horse and in turn the lessons learned from the experience translate into better relationships with others and more enjoyment in life within themselves.
PREVIOUS EPISODES
Land Reclamation
Dustin Morin explains the process of land reclamation, in which he updates and maintains Alabama’s state inventory of abandoned mine land features and conducts environmental assessments prior to the undertaking of mine reclamation projects. Learn what makes Alabama unique, the positive impacts in safety, and how the landscape is being improved.
Shrimp Farming
Marty Williams shares his experience with family-owned shrimp farming and the importance of location and environment to providing a high quality product. Working on saving the mangroves, maintaining water quality, and helping out in the local communities – Sahlman Seafoods has a product they are proud of.
Movement Vs Trend
Jake Danehy, Founder of Fair Harbor Clothing, shares how a beach where he and his sister, Caroline, spent their summers inspired the innovative creation of swim wear made from recycled plastics. Fair Harbor’s mission is to reduce and promote the mitigation of single use plastics is successfully being accomplished through an integral board of advisors and a passion for the cause.
The Complex World of Decision Making
Christina Bicchieri, S. J. Patterson Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics at the University of Pennsylvania and author of “Norms in the Wild,” explores decision theory and all it involves, including fundamental attribution bias, confirmation bias, pluralistic ignorance, time discounting, and the foundational beliefs that shape societies. Working with UNICEF, the Gates Foundation, and the World Bank, Dr. Bicchieri hopes to influence developing countries to adopt small changes that will benefit their communities.
Fostering Childhood Enrichment
Cassie Slone, who started The Foster Care Council in 2012, heads up Studio Thrifty for the Kids with her colleague, Lindy Hester. Many children arrive at foster homes with nothing but the clothes are their back, so Studio Thrifty for offers them an individualized personal shopping experience where everything is free, they feel like celebrities, and they can get the supplies and clothing they need.
Elevated Expectations
Jim Ziolkowski shares how BuildOn empowers youth from some of America’s toughest neighborhoods to be the change they want to see in the world through acts of service with homeless, seniors, and children in their communities. BuildOn lights a fire in the hearts and minds of these youth, who go in search of more opportunities to serve and ultimately achieve their high school diplomas – something that only 60% in these communities accomplish outside of the program.
Keep America Beautiful
Helen Lowman is the president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful, an organization that has been around for 65 years and is well known for its iconic PSAs about litter and pollution. Helen learned at an early age the importance of recycling, so it’s natural for her to be leading an organization dedicated to the cause of waste reduction. Keep America Beautiful, originally started by companies to combat litter, has expanded its operation to include education about proper recycling techniques and the beautification of America. It has 630 affiliates across the U.S. and 5 million volunteers. Keep America Beautiful utilizes social, private, and public organizations to accomplish its goal of reducing America’s garbage output in a consumer culture.
Repurposing the Hard-To-Recycle
Veronica Rajadnya enlightens us on the innovative options available to recycle what we might have thought we couldn’t recycle. Offering many free recycling programs to raise money for non profits and easy solutions for every day individuals – Terracycle is bridging the gaps.
Small Changes, Big Impact
Democrats to Republicans, conservatives to liberals, old to young – one this is for sure, we all desire things like clean water, energy efficiency, and air quality but we often find ourselves at a fork in the road. Amy Sohner and Bluegrass Greensource are working to figure out a path we can all agree on and walk down it together.
Building Up Young Men
Lawrence Sheffield , a teenage entrepreneur, firefighter/paramedic, and now Founder of Magic City Woodworks, joins us today to share the moving story of his humble life up to this point. Creating a space for social impact where young men who may be stuck in a rut can become apprentices, join a brotherhood, and learn tangible skills to take with them the rest of their lives.
Sharing in a Cultural Legacy
Ely Folk School brings young and old together to teach and be taught traditional skills passed down from the ancestors who founded their beloved town. Paul draws from his lifelong interest in outdoor adventure to remind us that our daily encumbrances pale in comparison to the magnificence of the natural world around us.
Poetic Transformations
Suma Rosen, Executive Director of InsideOut in Detroit, MI offers a window into the souls of our youth and gives them the means to express it through poetry. InsideOut Detroit nurtures creative thinking and creates a space for possibility.
Stepping Off The Treadmill of Life // Biophilic Design
Steve Nygren, chats about how a farm purchased near Atlanta, Georgia inspired a community filled with hope to live out life comprised of free range children, home grown food, butterfly bushes, edible gardens, and diverse community – welcome to Serenbe.
Lynn Thomas – Eagala
Lynn Thomas, LCSW is Eagala’s founder and CEO. Under her leadership, Eagala advanced the first professionalized standards for equine-assisted psychotherapy, developing Eagala’s certification program into the industry’s global standard. Her efforts developing the Eagala Model, while spearheading operations both domestically and abroad, have augmented Eagala’s global presence. Lynn Thomas received her Master’s of Social Work from the University of Utah and has over 16 years’ experience working with adolescents, families, individuals, and groups in various settings including youth corrections, wilderness and ranch programs, private practice, and mental health agencies. Lynn served as Executive Director for the Aspen Achievement Academy, a wilderness therapy program.
Colin Tomkins-Bergh – Copia
Colin Tomkins-Bergh educates consumers and businesses on the issues at the nexus of food and sustainability by working with startups across the country. He has an education in sociology, entrepreneurship and scientific communication with a specific focus on sustainability throughout the food value chain. Colin’s career demonstrates his ability to bring innovative ideas to market to make a more equitable and sustainable food system.
Amanda – Savannah Litter Pickup
Amanda is a college biology instructor living in Savannah, GA who began picking up litter in September, 2017 in an effort to mitigate flooding from oncoming Hurricane Irma. Amanda continued removing litter from Savannah streets, sidewalks, and parking lots after the 2017 hurricane season ended. Her goals include single-handedly clearing 200 thirteen-gallon bags of litter from her community every year and increasing scientific literacy via social media.
Susan Schader – Southern Research
Highly driven and articulate biomedical scientist and educator with expert knowledge in HIV/AIDS virology, clinical disease/pathogenicity, drug treatments and drug resistance development. Exceptionally gifted in communicating abstract concepts to audiences of diverse education backgrounds whilst effectively advocating an idea, product and/or organization. Strongly pursued for advisory, communication and training skills throughout career with success targeting large groups impacting direction and perception of new HIV infection prevention strategies and technologies. Skilled writer as demonstrated by impressive publication record with an intrinsic passion to empower others with knowledge.
Brynne MacCann – Southern Research
Brynne MacCann joined Southern Research in 2016. She is responsible for providing administrative and tactical support associated with the organization’s fundraising strategy, in addition to public relations responsibilities associated with the fund development activities.
Disclaimer
All views, ideas, and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the individuals and organizations featured in this podcast and do not necessarily reflect the views, ideas, or opinions of VisionKeepers Media Productions, LLC, (“VisionKeepers Media Productions”) and their owners, officers, and employees.