The Human Challenge

There are two main narratives we are told about welcoming immigrants into our countries: that they harm society by taking jobs or that it is our "moral responsibility" to support immigrants. But are these truly representative of the value immigrants offer our society?Is there a third narrative that tells us otherwise?Zeke Hernandez, Professor at Wharton School of Business and author of "The Truth About Immigration: Why Successful Societies Welcome Newcomers", joins Vanessa on The Human Challenge to share more about this third narrative, the data behind it, and his own personal story about immigrating into the USA. "The Truth About Immigration" is available now where all books are sold. Check it out on Amazon here.Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.comWatch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

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.orgWatch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino

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

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.comWatch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featuredw grace

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=enWatch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

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

In this episode of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023", Vanessa speaks to Co-founder and Chocolate Scientist of Seven Summit Snacks, Kristyn Carriere.Getting ready for International Women's Month, Kristyn shares the 4 year journey of Seven Summit Snacks and their NEW FLAVOURS; what it's like to start a business with your sister and partner; and navigating starting a business, while starting a family.Learn about the science of chocolate for both endurance athletes (like Kristyn, who is heading off to Japan for business and to "squeeze in" the Tokyo Marathon, and her sister and co-founder Leanna, who is training for a 30K bike ride to raise awareness for bird migration) and regular every day people like Vanessa who just need to get past that "afternoon low" :) And if you haven’t yet pre-ordered your NEW flavours (Dark Chocolate Espresso Vanilla and Dark Chocolate Mint), now is the chance to get on the list! Backers will receive their new flavours before they are released in-stores, so this truly is an exclusive product drop! Pre-order now! https://igg.me/at/Z6bSa1nNDYI/x/36693073#/Be welcome to follow 7 Summits Snacks at:https://sevensummitssnacks.com/https://www.instagram.com/7summitssnacks/https://www.facebook.com/7SummitsSnacks/be welcome to follow Kristyn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristyncarriere/be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.comWatch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured

"When you can live in the outer world, but also marry that with the inner world, than you're a new space, a new world."These are the wise words of Grammy-nominated artist, Valerie June, hailed by the New York Times as one of America's "most intriguing, fully formed new talents". Hailing from Tennessee, Valerie is a musician, songwriter, poet, illustrator, and author, who honourably served as a "Turnaround Artist" working with students for the President's Committee for the Arts and Humanities, and continues serving through The Kennedy Center. She has recorded three critically claimed best selling solo albums and has also written songs for legendary artists such as Mavis Staples and The Blind Boys of Alabama. She just published "Light Beams" an interactive workbook that builds upon themes of mindfulness and authentic connection presented in her debut poetry collection, Maps of the Modern World. Be inspired to choose a path of kindness and love in every moment, every dark day, on every page. In this episode of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" 2023, Valerie offers invaluable insights around "radical imagination" and its power to create a new humanity. Touching on her new book, "Light Beams: A Workbook For Being Your Badass Self", she shares how we can harness both softness and hardness in our light, the light of the spirit that we embody, and the lightness to just being a human, and standing and speaking in your truth, in your power. Lastly, we learn how the practice of staying grounded contributes to what she calls "Joy Activism", bringing people together to have constructive spaces for disagreement, with R-E-S-P-E-C-T (like Aretha Franklin says!), and to do so mindfully."We have to be alchemists," she says. "We have that power."Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com, and Valerie June @thevaleriejune on Instagram or https://www.valeriejune.com/.Watch this full episode on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@vanessaferlaino/featured