The Human Challenge Vanessa Ferlaino

Have you ever felt so passionate about a cause that it made you swim the English channel?
Well, Poppy Mason-Watts, Chief Growth and Impact Officer of WaterBear, has!
What is WaterBear? It is more than a streaming platform; it is a community! WaterBear is the home of captivating films and thought-provoking series that empower you to lead a meaningful life. You can watch this powerful social good content for free (always!) and without ads.
Poppy joins The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" and shares all about WaterBear's impact in diversity, film, media, and technology from both their content and business operations; their first time at Sundance.
Poppy also gets personal, divulging the challenges of being a woman in tech, media, and impact; the project that inspired her to swim the English channel to bring awareness to refugees; and some of her other favourite female protagonist
She is most excited about the upcoming series from United Nations Women called “Unsilenced” - a docu-series (3x20') about gender based violence that will be exclusively released on WaterBear!
Be welcome to review the trailer about Unsilenced here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNLvecL6vVk
Learn more about Waterbear here: https://www.waterbear.com/
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com and Poppy at https://www.linkedin.com/in/poppy-mason-watts-b7753219/
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured


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On this episode of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" 2023, Vanessa speaks with producer, author, activist, Frank Barat; Yara Jamal, co-founder of Free Palestine Halifax; and Paula Sahyoun, founder of the Palestine Impact Collective to learn about how we can move toward collective liberation.
Touching on their own endeavours to support the Palestinian cause, they also discuss the lack of accountability of the media, human rights vs political agenda, how fear has played a huge role in suppressing the voices of Gaza, and most importantly, how it is shifting -- and how YOU can be part of that shift!
We live in a very important moment; Gaza serves as a litmus test for the rest of the world. "Palestinians were kicked out of Israel... they held onto their key," Frank reminds us. "It's a key through our activism and love and everything else this world could be... when you realize you have this key, it changes everything."
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com; Frank on Instagram @4frankbarat; Yara Jamal on Instagram @yarajamal._ or @freepalestinehalifax; or Paula Sahyoun at palestineimpactcollective.org
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino

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After witnessing her son's challenges with reading, Canadian Olympian-turned-entrepreneur, Julia Rivard, started Shoelace Learning to create engaging applications to improve reading.
Julia shares about her upbringing from Northern Ontario, her journey to the Australian Olympics, and how she approached her "athlete retirement" as an opportunity to reinvent herself -- which led to Shoelace Learning. Julia is particularly passionate about inclusive learning in schools for educators and students; she shares Shoelace's JEDI content review process to maintain their commitment to DEI in education.
Recorded during International Women's Month, Julia and Vanessa get incredibly vulnerable around the challenges of being a woman, the role of shame in society, and how they believe there is a shift in society toward a more matriarchal society.
The Human Challenge is an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" 2023.
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com.
Learn more about Shoelace Learning here.
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

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Nicole White, founder of Moontime Connections, joined Vanessa on "The Human Challenge", an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023" to talk about period inequities in the remote communities. Moontime Connections, along with their partner True North Aid, collects and distributes period products for women in remote communities across Canada.
Nicole also talks about their new research, completed in partnership with the Department of Psychology at the University of Saskatchewan, a first-of-its-kind study offers vital and much-needed insights into menstrual-related needs in remote northern communities as well as the experiences of Indigenous menstruators. Moon Time Connections (MTC), with the help of USask and Dr. Karen Lawson (PhD, Professor and Head) and Adriana Cashwell (Masters student researcher) of the Department of Psychology and Health Studies, surveyed menstruators 15 years old and over in remote northern communities across the country to collect data on the experiences of menstruators in the north, and generate a better understanding of the unique challenges faced by these communities.
Key among the findings is the glaring stat that 74% of Indigenous respondents living in remote communities and 55% of Indigenous respondents living in non-remote communities “often” or “sometimes” have issues accessing menstrual products. Read the report here.
Moontime Connections is the first charity partner of "The BeHuman Collective: a mindfulness circle", a donation-based mindfulness program led by Vanessa Ferlaino, part of The Being Human Foundation.
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured
w grace

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This week on The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023", Vanessa Ferlaino sits down with JUNO nominee for "Reggae Recording of the Year 2024", Jah'Mila.
In this episode, Jah'Mila shares her journey from Kingston, Jamaica to Halifax, Nova Scotia, touching on her religious and cultural influences in all aspects of her life, from her music to her own personal philosophies. She also talks about balance between her artist world and corporate world, offering a unique perspective on how the two spheres are more blended than we realize.
Jah'Mila is a reggae singer originally from Kingston, Jamaica, now based in Atlantic Canada. She blends traditional Jamaican roots reggae with jazz and modern soul. She has shared the stages with renowned reggae musicians like The Wailers, Black Uhuru, and Groundation. Her award-winning debut album "Roots Girl" was released in November 2022, focusing on reggae soul with a message of social justice. She has worked with various institutions and special projects, including the National Arts Centre, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, and more.
Tune in to the JUNO's on CBC Saturday March 23rd and Sunday March 24th to catch Jah'Mila live! 
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com or Jah'Mila at https://www.jahmilamusic.com/
or https://www.instagram.com/jahmilasings/?hl=en
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

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Vanessa co-hosts episode 25 of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" 2023, with Victor Beausoleil, Executive Director of SETSI, in their first co-branded episode.
Vanessa and Victor talk about shining light cross-sectionally in society from capital flow, equitable communities, the relationship between values and what is considered valuable, and framing what prosperity and abundances from looks like from a colonial, capitalistic, and imperialistic lens.
They talk about historical context around money, economy, settler colonialism, and gratitude, compassion, mercy, etc, -- topics that are often not talked about together. Moving into a final discussion around survival of civilization, they weave in spiritual concepts and practices, including Buddhism, knowledge of Self, cultural imperatives, across current events and other social dynamics.
"The moral arc of the universe bends towards justice," says Victor, quoting MLK, and its ties to equity, and hopes for humanity. "There is no way we came this far to come this far; there will be the point where the right people come together in the right circumstances to defeat the things that have been holding us back for centuries, which are not just people, but an ideal of hoarding."
How can we embody our intentions to bring civilization and humanity together?
The Social Economy through Social Inclusion (SETSI) model aims to tell a story, change minds, shift perspectives, and grow communities. Our coalition was developed as a response to some of the emerging trends and challenges we have collectively witnessed in the social economy, social finance, impact investing and cooperative ecosystems. We are a broad coalition of young executives, social entrepreneurs, community organizers, economists, researchers, lawyers, and social justice advocates.
The Being Human Foundation is a 501c3 in Los Angeles, founded by Vanessa Ferlaino, combining mindfulness, arts/culture, and community engagement to create a more "human" world. Visit vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation to learn more.
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com or Victor on LinkedIn or www.setsi.ca.
Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

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