Black Lives Matter
I’ve tried writing this a few times, only to realize that race is difficult to write about because of my own limitations in understanding what others experience. Racial inequality affects so many of the social
Social Change
The Joy of Social Change: It’s Not What You Get
In life, when you focus on what you get, you’re going to lose eventually. It’s an easy game to get sucked into because there is a belief we carry around, that we control what happens.
Fair Chance Employment
2019 Aspire Social Entrepreneur Awards On Wednesday, September 18th, I attended Aspire – the 7th annual social entrepreneurship awards for central Ohio. We were honored that Wild Tiger Tees was nominated and picked as a
A Story of Human Trafficking with April Thacker
Recently, we spoke with Paul Haines of Freedom a la Cart – a social enterprise bringing hope to survivors of human trafficking so they can build a new life of freedom and self-sufficiency. In this
Tackling Human Trafficking with Freedom a la Cart & Paula Haines
Human trafficking is a complicated social issue — it’s difficult to speak about, which makes it harder to raise awareness, but it’s even more challenging for one to survive and get back on their feet.
Empowering Dreamers through DACA Time | with Brook Kohn and Nathali Bertran
Brook Kohn and Nathali Bertran brought their frustration with the DACA application process to the Columbus Give Back Hack — a 54-hour hack-a-thon aimed at developing sustainable social enterprises. There, they put together a team
Overcoming Addiction with Yoga & Taylor Hunt
Three percent. That’s your chance of recovery, once you’ve stuck a needle in your arm. Where does this story start? Taylor Hunt had a rocky start – alcohol & drugs – to the point that
Coffee That Makes an Impact & Kenny Sipes
Kenny Sipes started the Roosevelt Coffeehouse in 2013 to make a social impact. He knew from the start that he wanted to build the coffee shop without any loans so that they would be able
Racing with VETMotorsports & Pete Cline
Pete Cline was racing at a semi-professional level in motorsports when an accident forced him to take a different turn. An event in the UK had inspired Pete to enlist some veterans to show some
Transforming Lives of Homeless Youth with the Star House & Ann Bischoff
When you walk around Columbus, one population you don’t encounter are the homeless, but they are here behind the backdrop of the city. The organization Star House reaches out to specifically help those who are
Uncommon Insight into Changing the World with Dr. Srikumar Rao
Join me as I speak with my longtime mentor, Dr. Srikumar Rao — TED speaker, author, consultant, and creator of the Creativity & Personal Mastery course. I took his course at the London Business School
John Rush, Clean Turn & Passion Purpose Profit
I recently met John Rush, President, and CEO for Clean Turn enterprises, right before their Passion Purpose Profit conference. Their mission is to strengthen communities with an empowered workforce by creating profitable social enterprises, and
Growlers Dog Bones & Amy Noltemeyer
I recently met Amy Noltemeyer at the Aspire 2017 awards, where her social enterprise, Growlers Dog Bones, took first place for Emerging Social Enterprise of the Year. Growlers Dog Bones is a nonprofit whose goal
Kiva in Columbus & Lily Vail
I recently met Lily Vail, the Program Lead for Kiva in Columbus, Ohio. I’ve known Kiva for years as the icon for social lending abroad, making loans accessible for businesses and projects that were outside
GRIT, Building a Career with a Criminal Record & Harley Blakeman
I met Harley when he interned in our company. I knew he was a relative of my parents’ friends from college, but had no idea of his story or his social mission to help ex-offenders
Saving the world from extinction with permaculture farming
Disclaimer: I am not a farmer… this is my green thumb attempt to understand farming. Technically, I didn’t even to travel to a farm (I do have one almost in my back yard if that counts).
Moroccan Social Entrepreneurship
One of the first observations when traveling through the Moroccan countryside is the lack of billboards and advertisements. A US highway has so many signs, billboards and noise constantly grabbing for your attention that you