Alright, Now What?

Canadian Women's Foundation
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  • TWICE MONTHLY

Gender equality and justice, where we live, work, learn, and play is the goal, and it makes life better for everyone. Our podcast, Alright, Now What?, remains a space where we ask How do we move from awareness to action?, but this season we’re also Shifting the Story. Through powerful storytelling, expert interviews, and bold conversations, we’ll highlight community-based solutions, uncover systemic barriers, and explore what true equity can look like, especially for those who are too often silenced or overlooked.

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    Storytelling as a Tool for Connection With Hailey Hechtman

    Today, we're joined by mental health leader, storyteller, and executive director of Unsinkable, Hailey Hechtman. Hailey is a passionate advocate for person-centered, lived experience-driven programming. With over a decade of leadership in the nonprofit sector, Hailey has dedicated her career to building more connected, compassionate systems of care. She founded the Yukon Distress & Support Line in 2014, led interagency disability inclusion efforts across Northern Canada, and championed inclusive employment initiatives rooted in dignity and accessibility. As the Executive Director of Unsinkable, a national mental health storytelling organization founded by Olympian Silken Laumann, Hailey leads the evolution of a unified, scalable storytelling model that centers lived experience as a driver of connection, insight, and change. Through guided storytelling, amplification, and community engagement, Unsinkable supports individuals and organizations to engage with mental health in more human, relational ways. Hailey began her journey with Unsinkable as a storyteller, sharing her own experience before stepping into leadership. She is committed to elevating underrepresented voices, nurturing sector collaboration, and creating safe, stigma-free spaces for reflection and healing. Hailey’s work is grounded in the belief that when stories are heard with intention, transformation becomes possible, for individuals, communities, and systems alike.

    34 min

  2. 8 APR

    From the archives: Call it abuse

    Today, we’re revisiting a powerful episode from our Signal for Help podcast, a special series we produced with award-winning women journalists, Media Girlfriends. In this episode, we hear from Bernadette, a survivor of long-term intimate partner violence who now works as a court advocate supporting women leaving abusive relationships. Through her story, she reflects on the lasting impact of emotional, verbal, and physical abuse, and how those experiences shaped both her journey and her work today. This conversation also explores something many of us don’t often think about, the role we play as responders. Bernadette shares why language matters, how minimizing or dismissive reactions can cause harm, and what it truly looks like to support someone with empathy and care. As we mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April, we invite you to listen with intention, reflect on how we show up for others, and continue learning how to support survivors in meaningful ways. Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and share it with others. If you appreciate this content, if you want to get in on the efforts to build a gender equal Canada, please donate at ⁠canadianwomen.org⁠ and consider becoming a monthly donor. Facebook: Canadian Women’s Foundation LinkedIn: The Canadian Women’s Foundation Instagram: @canadianwomensfoundation TikTok: @cdnwomenfdn

    27 min

  3. 25 MAR

    Learning, Unlearning, Rest, and Reclamation With Selam Debs

    Selam Debs is a Black Ethiopian woman, an antiracism educator, an anti-oppression coach, a social justice advocate, a student in dismantling anti-Black racism, an accomplice in dismantling anti-Indigenous racism, xenophobia, islamophobia, and an advocate for 2SLGBTQ+ & disability rights through an intersectional lens. She is the creator of the Antiracism Course and has facilitated workshops and trainings for organizations all across Canada. Selam is a yoga and meditation instructor, a restorative yoga teacher trainer, a holistic life coach, and a reiki master. First and foremost, Selam is a mother of a 20-year-old son. She is also a singer, songwriter, poet, and practitioner of self-acceptance, self-love, and radical compassion. Selam’s antiracism work is rooted in the understanding that we must acknowledge and identify the insidiousness of racism before we can dismantle harmful beliefs and systems. The process of undoing, unlearning, and re-educating is necessary to embark on and support the healing journey for equity-denied communities.

    30 min

  4. 11 MAR

    Building Confidence Through Sport With Olivia Ho

    Today, we're joined by Olivia Ho, founder of The Give and Grow and one of four winners of the 2026 Feminist Creator Prize. Olivia's bio: I am the founder of The Give and Grow and a lifelong advocate for women and girls in sport. For more than 15 years, I have worked with youth through sports camps, after school programs, coaching, and community initiatives, always driven by the belief that sport can build confidence and transform lives. Before launching The Give and Grow, I spent five years at MLSE LaunchPad, where I designed sport programs for girls ages 6 to 18 and saw firsthand the power of safe, empowering spaces for young women. I began my career in health care, but during the pandemic I felt called to build something that blended my passion for sport, creativity, and community. That vision became The Give and Grow, a purpose-driven brand that uses sport and plants as tools for personal growth, wellness, and connection. Through our workshops, creative experiences, and youth programs, I aim to inspire the next generation of girls and women to grow with confidence. A portion of every purchase supports our youth initiatives, ensuring our mission remains rooted in giving back and strengthening communities. Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and share it with others. If you appreciate this content, if you want to get in on the efforts to build a gender equal Canada, please donate at ⁠canadianwomen.org⁠ and consider becoming a monthly donor. Facebook: Canadian Women’s Foundation LinkedIn: The Canadian Women’s Foundation Instagram: @canadianwomensfoundation TikTok: @cdnwomenfdn

    21 min

  5. 3 MAR

    Bonus episode: In conversation with Diana Fox Carney

    In this special bonus episode, Mitzie Hunter, President and CEO of the Canadian Women's Foundation, is joined by Madame Diana Fox Carney, an economist and climate expert whose work has taken her from Africa to the UK to here in Canada, and whose career has focused on tackling some of the biggest challenges of our time. Diana has spent years working at the intersection of climate action, economic decision-making, and social impact, and brings a perspective that's both global and deeply human. Her work pushes us to think differently about leadership and about how we build systems that truly work for people.

    33 min

  6. 25 FEB

    Impact On and Off the Pitch With Farkhunda Muhtaj

    Farkhunda Muhtaj is an Afghan-Canadian football luminary and social activist who unites the worlds of sport, education and humanitarianism. Farkhunda's instrumental role in the evacuation of over 300 people, including the Afghan Youth Women’s National Football Team and their families in 2021, was profiled in the 2024 Cannes Lions winning documentary, We Are Ayenda. Farkhunda currently serves as the Captain of the Afghanistan Women’s National Football team and continues to play professionally as part of the Calgary Wild FC of the Northern Super League, which kicked off in April 2025. Her social activism work champions gender equality, anti-racism education, refugee and newcomer support and humanitarian relief through sport and physical wellness initiatives. Muhtaj is the Calgary Wild’s Community Ambassador and the Co-Founder and Director of the Scarborough Simbas, a non-profit organization that uses sport to help ease the settlement journey of refugees and newcomers to Canada. A prolific and sought-after speaker, Farkhunda brings her voice to stages and spaces around the world to speak on Global Active Citizenship, the Transformational Power of Sport and Capacity Building, Leadership in Time of Crisis, Growth Mindset, Women & Refugee Rights, and more. Off the pitch, Farkhunda is an ambassador for Right To Play, Common Goal, Penny Appeal Canada, and Women for Women International. Muhtaj also serves on the Canadian Child Rights in Sports Advisory Committee, Canada Soccer’s Women’s Development Advisory Committee, and the FIFA World Cup 2026 Toronto Sport, Physical Activity, Health & Wellness Program Advisory Body. Named a Top 30 Under 30 Alumni by her alma-mater York University, Farkhunda has been featured in the BBC, CBC, AP News, NPR, Al Jazeera, People Magazine, Elle Magazine and more. Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and share it with others. If you appreciate this content, if you want to get in on the efforts to build a gender equal Canada, please donate at ⁠canadianwomen.org⁠ and consider becoming a monthly donor. Facebook: Canadian Women’s Foundation LinkedIn: The Canadian Women’s Foundation Instagram: @canadianwomensfoundation TikTok: @cdnwomenfdn

    31 min

  7. 11 FEB

    Intersectional, Anti-racist, and Feminist Leadership With Esther Enyolu

    Esther is a trauma informed care counsellor, a guest lecturer and a trainer on gender-based violence, diversity, equity, inclusion, human rights and social justice. Her work is grounded in an integrated anti-racist/anti-oppression, and feminist analysis, a holistic approach in which a person's lived experience and realities of life are not fragmented and divided. Esther has been working in the human services field for over 30 years. She is a mentor and mother to many. She has a BA (Hons) in Sociology/Anthropology and Women’s Studies, Trauma Informed Care Counselling Certification, and an MBA. Esther is honoured to be selected by the CWF in 2025 as a delicate to United Nations Conference in New York. She was also selected in 2019 by the WAGE to represent Canadian Women at the International Conference in Vancouver, B.C. Esther is the founder of the Women’s Committee of Durham Region (WCDR). She is also one of the founding members of the Redwood Shelter for Assaulted Women and Children, Toronto, the former past Vice President of the Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses (OAITH). She co-authored “Creating Inclusive Spaces for Women; a Feminist, Anti-racist/Anti-oppression Training Manual”, for organizations working in the field of gender-based violence. As the VP of OAITH, she and some directors delivered intersectionality of gender-based, anti-racist and anti-oppression training to all OAITH member agencies across Ontario. Esther is a Provincial Resource Group Member for the Western University Violence Against Women Learning Network; Past Seneca College Social Service Workers, Immigrant and Refugee Advisory Committee Member, Advisory Member Black Health Matters, Dalla Lama, School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Co-Chair, City of Barrie Anti-Racism Task Force, Advisory Committee Member, Metroland Media, Member Banker Ladies Council, Collective Diaspora Steering Committee Member, and many others. Esther is a co-author for a book “Help Her Recover”. She is a recipient of several professional and Community services awards. Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and share it with others. If you appreciate this content, if you want to get in on the efforts to build a gender equal Canada, please donate at ⁠canadianwomen.org⁠ and consider becoming a monthly donor. Facebook: Canadian Women’s Foundation LinkedIn: The Canadian Women’s Foundation Instagram: @canadianwomensfoundation TikTok: @cdnwomenfdn

    42 min

  8. 28 JAN

    The Power of Storytelling and Hope with Angela Sterritt

    Angela Sterritt is an award-winning investigative journalist, TV, radio, and podcast host, and national bestselling author. She is from the Wilps ‘Wii Ḵ’aax of the Gitanmaax community within the Gitxsan Nation on her dad’s side and from Bell Island, Newfoundland, on her maternal side. Sterritt worked as a television, radio, and digital journalist at CBC for more than a decade. She also hosted the award-winning CBC original podcast Land Back. Her book Unbroken is part memoir and part investigation into the murders and disappearances of Indigenous women and girls. It became an instant national bestseller in May 2023. Unbroken was nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Awards, one of Canada’s oldest and most prestigious literary prizes. It was also nominated for the prestigious Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Award for Best Non-Fiction Book in Canada. In 2024, Sterritt announced her second book, BREAKABLE, which will investigate how racism and colonialism cultivate harmful behaviors in men and how Indigenous men and communities are breaking cycles of unhealthy notions of masculinity. Greystone Books will publish Breakable in 2026. In 2021, Sterritt won an Academy Award (Canadian Screen Award) for Best Reporter of the Year in Canada for her coverage of an Indigenous man and his then 12-year-old granddaughter who were arrested while trying to open a bank account at BMO. Sterritt also won a national Radio Television Digital News Association award for the same reporting. In 2020, Sterritt was named in Vancouver Magazine’s Power 50 list of the city’s 50 most influential people. Please listen, subscribe, rate, and review this podcast and share it with others. If you appreciate this content, if you want to get in on the efforts to build a gender equal Canada, please donate at ⁠canadianwomen.org⁠ and consider becoming a monthly donor. Facebook: Canadian Women’s Foundation LinkedIn: The Canadian Women’s Foundation Instagram: @canadianwomensfoundation TikTok: @cdnwomenfdn

    32 min
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About

Gender equality and justice, where we live, work, learn, and play is the goal, and it makes life better for everyone. Our podcast, Alright, Now What?, remains a space where we ask How do we move from awareness to action?, but this season we’re also Shifting the Story. Through powerful storytelling, expert interviews, and bold conversations, we’ll highlight community-based solutions, uncover systemic barriers, and explore what true equity can look like, especially for those who are too often silenced or overlooked.

Information

  • Creator
    Canadian Women's Foundation
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    136
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Canadian Women's Foundation
  • Show Website
    Alright, Now What?

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