Quan Huynh has been described as a mighty warrior, a magician, and a mountain of goodness. He spent 22 years of his life behind bars for murder. In the midst of a life sentence, he found his freedom from within and wishes to share that freedom with others. He is the bestselling author of Sparrow in the Razor Wire: Finding Freedom from Within While Serving a Life Sentence and is also the Executive Director, Southern California at Defy Ventures. Quan wrote his book to share after being pushed by 4X NYT-bestselling author, Tucker Max. He shares how his childhood, his father, his mother, and other experiences shaped his lived perspectives of the world. He also talks about how he supported others during incarceration, by starting Grief &amp; Loss Groups and helping others prepare for their own parole hearings. His book includes the live transcripts of many of these conversations, and how they helped him in his own journey to freedom. "We all live in some type of prison," says Quan. By humanizing those who have an experience of incarceration, he hopes that all of us will be more kind to ourselves and each other. Quan's book, "Sparrow in the Razor Wire", was published by Lioncrest Publishing here: <a href="https://quanxhuynh.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://quanxhuynh.com</a> Be welcome to learn more about Quan's work here: <a href="https://quanxhuynh.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://quanxhuynh.com</a> Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com Watch this full episode on Youtube at <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured</a>

Ep 45 Sparrow in the Razor Wire

25 years after finding herself divorced, a single mom of three kids with a truck, 26 cents, and a grade education, Dr. Paulette Steeves, Cree Métis author of "The Indigenous Paleolithic of the Western Hemisphere", walked across the stage receiving her PhD with honours. She had already been told of her legacy that would shed truth on Indigenous history by an Elder at the time of her divorce, but it was in that moment, she finally understood what it was: to rewrite the history of The Americas. Through her PhD, Dr. Steeves had the opportunity to conduct research on archaeology sites older than 10,000 years, called Pleistocene Age sites, to debunk the standard view in Archaeology that Indigenous people of The Americas had only been here for 10,000 or 11,000 years -- and that they came from Asia. "It was a way that Archaeology erased Indigenous people in The Americas," Dr. Steeves says, combatting "Academic Suicide" that many others in her field faced for publishing research on sites that were older than 11,000 or 12,000 years and pushed back on that aracheological narrative. Her book, "The Indigenous Paleolithic of the Western Hemisphere", offers extensive research debunking this narrative, bringing truth to Indigenous history and identity. The book took over 13 years to write, having to study hundreds of records and archaeological sites that date from 11,200 to 200,000 years and dive into the paleo-mammal record to study human migration patterns between the Eastern and Western hemisphere. Her extensive database and mapping across almost 360 publications provides the evidence to support people were here 11 or 12,000 years ago, challenging the dominant colonial-based 100 year old narrative that suggests Indigenous people were here for only 3,000 years. Her book has also given hope to many Indigenous people across The Americas, just as The Elder had told her many years before. In this episode, Dr. Steeves invites us to decolonize our minds, think critically, and challenge the long history of colonization, including knowledge, reminding us that much what we have been taught in the past has been based on a lot of colonial bias. Beyond that, we need to disprove that knowledge, publish on that, and help to educate people. "When you pushback on any area, you push back on bias, racism, and discrimination," she says. "You help people to become informed to address that. You make the world a better place for all." Dr. Steeves book, "The Indigenous Paleolithic of the Western Hemisphere", was published by University of Nebraska Press here: <a href="https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9781496202178/the-indigenous-paleolithic-of-the-western-hemisphere/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9781496202178/the-indigenous-paleolithic-of-the-western-hemisphere/</a> Be welcome to learn more about Dr. Steeves' work here: <a href="https://www.tipdba.ca/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.tipdba.ca/</a> Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or <a href="http://vanessaferlaino.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">vanessaferlaino.com</a> Watch this full episode on Youtube at <a href="https://youtu.be/55Qg5R16Il8" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/55Qg5R16Il8</a>

Ep 44 Rewriting the History of The Americas: Decolonizing Archaeology

In this episode of "The Human Challenge", an Amazon Music x ACAST Indie Podcast Amplifier, Vanessa sits down with Robert Gil Jr, Re-entry Manager at Prison Entrepreneurship Program in Houston, in this inspiring and vulnerable conversation to breakdown barriers for returning citizens. From drug dealer to case manager, Robert showcases his journey through incarceration, including personal revelations, post-release anxieties, and his continued support for returning citizens. "You cannot spell community without unity," he says, highlighting the power of brotherhood he discovered while going through Prison Entrepreneurship Program as a returning citizen himself. Now, he supports these same people who are where he once was. Prison Entrepreneurship Program offers boot camp and re-entry programs as proven solutions for preventing recidivism, maximizing self-sufficiency, and transforming broken lives. Their holistic approach to prison rehabilitation begins inside the prison and continues post-release. Learn more here: <a href="https://www.pep.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.pep.org/</a> Vanessa is a volunteer sponsor for the Prison Entrepreneurship Program, supporting returning citizens with business and personal mentorship. This episode is presented as a collaboration between The Human Challenge and Prison Entrepreneurship Program. This episode is part of our "New Beginnings" segment, supported by The Being Human Foundation. Learn more here: https://vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com

Ep 43 Returning Citizens (New Beginnings) ft Robert Gil Jr (PEP)

"Refugee is a title, given to someone who is a displaced person, but it does not change the right to [their] data", says Mathew Lubari, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Community Creativity for Development (CC4D). Mathew joined the show from Rhino Refugee Camp in Uganda. Mathew's passion for technology repair, and what is know as the "Repair Movement", a movement that increases awareness of repair of everyday items, started as a young boy watching his father tinker with repairing technology in his own home. After his own experiences, including the locking of his mobile device, and a computer repair technician who removed the hard drive disk, RAM, and the network card instead of repairing the computer, he decided to learn to do it himself and to teach other people how to repair things and make repair accessible. This includes teaching people to be ethical, while providing repair services. In 2016, he fled his home country with a zip lock of repair tools (a screwdriver, a cutter and a toothbrush) and started repairing but never knew repair protects the environment by reducing carbon emissions and landfill until 2021 when he joined the Restarters community, a global forum for repairers. The idea of bridging the gap in repair of everyday items and making repair open led to the founding of CC4D. His roles at the CC4D include helping develop the repair café and women inclusion in tech/repair culture programs. To showcase the impact of repair cafe practices, repair knowledge as self-sufficiency and professional development in displacement settings, Mathew partnered with The Maintainers to publish “THE ESSENCE OF REPAIR, CARE AND MAINTENANCE CULTURE IN DISPLACEMENT SETTINGS IN UGANDA: A Sense of Direction and Hope to Rebuild Lives”. The report aims to highlight circular economy as a means of survival, and highlights the leadership of refugee-led work within the global repair movement. Be welcome to read more here:<a href=" https://themaintainers.org/essence-of-repair/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> https://themaintainers.org/essence-of-repair/</a> Connect with Mathew and CC4D here:<ul><li>CC4D email: info@cc4duganda.org</li><li>CC4D Facebook: <a href="www.facebook.com/CCC4D-Uganda" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.facebook.com/CCC4D-Uganda</a></li><li>Mathew Lubari Instagram: @mathewdukson</li><li>Mathew Lubari's LinkedIn: <a href="https://ug.linkedin.com/in/mathew-lubari" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://ug.linkedin.com/in/mathew-lubari</a></li></ul> This episode is presented in partnership with the Migration Technology Monitor, on a mission to monitor surveillance technologies, automation, and the use of Artificial Intelligence to screen, track, and make decisions about people on the move. Learn more here: <a href="https://www.migrationtechmonitor.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.migrationtechmonitor.com/</a> This episode is part of our "New Beginnings" segment, supported by The Being Human Foundation. Learn more here: <a href="https://vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation</a> Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com Watch this full episode live on Youtube here: <a href="https://youtu.be/-DiN2Oz4xNc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/-DiN2Oz4xNc</a>

Ep 42 Repair Movement & Displacement (New Beginings) ft Mathew Lubari

Moroccan-Yemeni artist, AŸA, is back on The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier", with new music, new live tracks on vinyl, and new stories! This music is deeply personal to AŸA, as she navigates grief from the loss of a dear friend of hers and the ongoing horrors the world is witnessing in Palestine, where she has family and friends. She shares how music has helped her through this journey and how she believes music is the way to capture time and stories in history. Listen to her new single, Talking Deep, here: https://paradise.ffm.to/talking_deep?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZfmRWnJ09xUokDD0ipTz9AJAECIC5J9gZtPvJRFKJABy1LZGStWHVlY4Y_aem_Rk_g75mWM3O9-_N-hcYO0A Pre-save her vinyl here: https://ayaloveu.bandcamp.com/album/a-a-live-in-berlin Watch this episode on Youtube at https://youtu.be/cDOhUJNKKoA Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com, AŸA on Instagram @aya.loveu

Ep 41 Real Talk with AŸA ft AŸA

You might know Matt Edwards as your jack-of-all-trades actor/producer/writer and Doug Jones from one of your favourite franchises like Hocus Pocus, Hellboy 1 &amp; 2, Star Trek, and&nbsp;Fantastic Four -- but get to know them in a more human light in this episode of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023. This budding Hollywood friendship will warm your hearts as they come together in their next project, Pretty Boys, a comedy short film about a washed up Hollywood Star, his estranged son, and the disastrous road trip that just might bring them back together. While the intention is to entertain and amuse, they also touch on their own experiences with mental health, loss, and grief -- topics not often talked about amongst men. There are less than 40 hours to contribute to the film's Kickstarter!!!! Support the film here: <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/prettyboysfilm/pretty-boys-comedy-short" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/prettyboysfilm/pretty-boys-comedy-short</a> Watch the full episode on youtube https://youtu.be/DW4YNNAo-6I or listen on your favourite podcast site! Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com; Matt Edwards on Instagram @mattedwards and Doug Jones on Instagram @actordougjones

Ep 40 Pretty Boys ft Doug Jones & Matt Edwards

** Please be welcome to note sensitive content is discussed, including sexual violence in relation to corrective punishments experienced by trans peoples. ** "Solidarity is power," says activist, Judith Cabrera, Co-Director of Borderline Crisis Center, a shelter for migrant women and kids on the border of US/Mexico. Borderline Crisis Center started as a call-center for migrants to connect with their family as soon as they crossed the border. But after Judith's partner and founder of the center, Daniel Ruiz, was targeted by organized crime who burned down their location, they were forced to move where they then expanded into the shelter. In this conversation, Judith walks us through the history of migrant policy in the USA since 2016; the increasing discriminate and racist policies faced by migrants seeking asylum, which is their right under international law; and the role technology plays in this discrimination. In partnership with the Migration Technology Monitor, Judith and the team are building a kiosk outside the shelter, 3 minutes away from the border, to provide information and resources to people on the move, as well as to serve as a counter-monitoring tool, to monitor human rights violations by the Mexican Authorities. Judith also shares how the shelter is tackling the largest problem faced by women in their shelters: the lack of income. By starting a Feminist Solidarity Economy Network, organized and independently led by the women in the shelters, Borderline seeks to empower women to come together and create opportunities for income with one another's support. Borderline Crisis Shelter also prides themselves on having a close relationship with the LGBTQ community; Judith, who identifies as a bisexual woman herself, says there is a lot of overlay with migration. There are only three shelters that accept lesbian and/or trans community members in their area. She tells us two stories of two of the many trans peoples who have come through the shelter, some with children, the abuse they faced before getting there, and how the Crisis helped them through their asylum. Given increased militarization by the US, digitalization at the borders, the drug war in Mexico, the increasing dangers for both migrants and human rights defenders, there are a lot of things to fear. "But I strongly oppose living in fear," Judith says. "We really need to take care of each other and build strong networks for protection." Be welcome to learn more about Borderline Crisis Center:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/borderlinecrisisInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/borderlinecrisiscenter/&nbsp;Direct donation: www.paypal.me/borderlinecrisiscent&nbsp; This episode is presented in partnership with the Migration Technology Monitor, on a mission to monitor surveillance technologies, automation, and the use of Artificial Intelligence to screen, track, and make decisions about people on the move. Learn more here: https://www.migrationtechmonitor.com/ This episode is part of our "New Beginnings" segment, supported by The Being Human Foundation. Learn more here: https://vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com

Ep 39 Feminism x Migration (New Beginnings) ft Judith Cabrera / Borderline Crisis Center

In our new segment, New Beginnings, supported by <a href="vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Being Human Foundation</a>, Vanessa speaks to CEO/Founder of FreeWorld, Jason Wang, a tech non-profit that trains and places people with criminal histories into the trucking industry. At the age of 15, Jason was incarcerated for a 1st degree felony (Aggravated Robbery) and given a 12-year sentence at a maximum security prison in Texas. Even though he was released early due to prison reform work he did with Texas senators and went on to obtain 2 masters degrees in four years, no one would hire him. When he started his own businesses, he faced similar issues when a lead investor pulled out of his deal last minute because of his criminal history. In this candid discussion, Jason talks about his upbringing, trauma, and poverty as a contributing factor to mass incarceration of children -- and how all of this led to the launch of FreeWorld. Now, Jason's life mission is to end mass incarceration by equipping 26 million formerly incarcerated people across the nation with the tools, education, and the jobs they need in order to live positive, productive lives. Be welcome to learn more about FreeWorld here: https://freeworld.org/ Be welcome to learn more about The Being Human Foundation at vanessaferlaino.com/thebeinghumanfoundation 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

Ep 38 Decriminalizing Poverty (New Beginnings) ft Jason Wang CEO/Founder of FreeWorld

Lama Cynthia Jurs' commitment to healing Mother Earth began in the 1990s in the Himalayas, visiting a a 106 year-old Tibetan Buddhist in the Himalayas where she was told to bury Earth Treasure Vases. Since then, Cynthia has buried almost 100 vases across the world, including Libya, Congo, Australia, New Mexico, and more! The journey is meticulously documented in her new book, "Summoned by Earth", released in March 2024. Her commitment to this mission resulted in her being officially ordained as an honourary lama. In this episode of <a href="vanessaferlaino.com/thehumanchallenge" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Human Challenge</a>, an Amazon Music x ACAST Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023, Cynthia talks to Vanessa about her journey; her training with well-known Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh; being accepted into The Order of Interbeing; and her 8 year journey in writing the book, "Summoned by Earth". Weaving her experiences and topics of sacred activism, the book also highlights major issues with climate change, violence against women, and Indigenous rights. Be welcome to follow Cynthia on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/cynthiajurs/ and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/earthtreasurevase.org. Be welcome to learn more about her mission at&nbsp;<a href="http://gaiamandala.net/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://GaiaMandala.net</a> and&nbsp;<a href="http://summonedbytheearth.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SummonedbytheEarth.org</a>. Cynthia is also hosting the below session:<ul><li>Tues Sept 17th:&nbsp;Tibet House, 6 pm — Talk on Summoned by the Earth; Becoming a Holy Vessel for Healing Our World&nbsp;with Full Moon Meditation &amp; Book Signing. </li><li>Fri Sept 20th: The Village Zendo, 7 pm — Talk on A Dharma Path for Our Times; Introduction to the Practice of the Earth Treasure Vases</li><li>Sat Sept 21st: Daylong Earth Treasure Vase Pilgrimage to the World Trade Center &amp; Inwood Park</li><li>Fri—Sun Sept 27th–29th: Refuge &amp; Renewal in the Sublime Mother Gaia; Finding Support on the Path of Sacred Activism at Menla Retreat Center in Phoenicia, NY</li></ul> Registration links below:<ul><li>https://events.thus.org/programs/summoned-by-the-earth-becoming-a-holy-vessel-for-healing-our-world-with-cynthia-jurs/</li><li>https://menla.org/retreat/refuge-and-renewal-in-the-sublime-mother-gaia-finding-support-on-the-path-of-sacred-activism/?mc_cid=ce3e54dd31</li><li>https://www.dharma-gates.org/nyc-earth-treasure-vase</li><li>https://www.dharma-gates.org/sacred-activism</li></ul> Be welcome 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

Ep 37 Summoned by Earth with Honourary Lama Cynthia Jurs

Hosted and produced by multi-award-winning author, artist, and activist, Vanessa Ferlaino, The Human Challenge combines topical issues, interviews, wellbeing, and human-interest stories to break down barriers and reinvigorate humanity. Airing exclusively on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Youtube</a>, explore the human challenges in today’s world, the challenges of being human, and how we can challenge ourselves to be more human for the greater good. Catch the replay on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/streams" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Youtube</a> or on-demand on all major podcast sites.

The Human Challenge

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