Changing the Conversation

Latest Episodes:

Motivational Interviewing 31: Amy Shanahan and Carol DeFrancesco Pt. 1 Oct 12, 2026

Show notes

"It is a momentum…awe experience invites us into curiosity; it naturally then draws you deeper into the experience. Like for me with leaves, look at those. What are they up to? They're reaching towards sunlight. Why is that? Oh, they're photosynthesizing. Well, it's actually the most important biological process on earth."

MINT trainers Amy Shanahan and Carol DeFrancesco join host Ali Hall to discuss growing our practice of Awe, how it opens us up to curiosity and helps us connect with others.

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Learn More:

Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How it Can Transform your Life by Dacher Keltner (2023)
The Power of Awe by Jake Eagle and Michael Amster (2023)
Eight Facets of Awe
Power of Awe Website
On Being Podcast: Dacher Keltner interviewed by Krista Tipett
On Being Podcast: Mary Oliver interviewed by Krista Tippett
Awe as a Pathway to Mental and Physical Health by Marla Monroy and Dacher Keltner, Perspectives on Psychological Science (2022)
Awe, the diminished self, and collective engagement: Universals and cultural variations in the small self, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Bai, Y., Maruskin, L. A., Chen, S., Gordon, A. M., Stellar, J. E., McNeil, G. D., Peng, K., & Keltner, D. (2017)
The Science of Awe (White Paper), Greater Good Science Center
Awe: a putative mechanism underlying the effects of classic psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, by Peter S. Hendricks, International Review of Psychiatry (2018)

Access a transcript of Motivational Interviewing 31: Amy Shanahan and Carol DeFrancesco Pt. 1

Listen to other episodes in the "Motivational Interviewing" series.

Learning from Recovery Elders: Mark Sanders Sep 28, 2026

Show notes

"Once a person learns how to develop healthy friendships, romantic relationships, then they no longer need chemicals the way they needed them in the past. In fact, I see substance use disorder as a pathological relationship with a chemical that's actually a substitute for true human intimacy."

Speaker, author and educator Mark Sanders explores his personal connection to the history of African American substance use treatment with host Livia Davis, and discusses the challenges facing the behavioral health workforce, from funding and collaboration to what emerging leaders need to know as they enter the field.

This episode is part of a series where we share the wisdom amassed by recovery leaders over the past 5 decades and reflect on the journeys that have laid groundwork for today's recovery movement.

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Access a transcript of Learning from Recovery Elders: Mark Sanders

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Motivational Interviewing 30: Larisa Traga Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

"Clinicians…would learn EMDR, but they didn't know how to necessarily do it…there was a need for the how. So the EMDR is the what you do, and the MI is the how you do it."

Expert Trainer Larisa Traga joins host Ali Hall to explore Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and how it blends with other evidence-based practices like Motivational Interviewing (MI).

This episode concludes our podcast's latest season. We will be taking a short summer hiatus and will return in the fall with new episodes. Thank you for listening!

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Learn More:

Larisa Traga, LCSW, CCDS, MAC; Empower TCT, LinkedIn, Instagram
Ali Hall; website, MINT profile
Motivational Interviewing: resources from the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT)
What is EMDR? Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
EMDR International Association (EMDRIA)
EMDR Training and Education | EMDRIA
Roy Kiessling EMDR Consulting
Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) Model
PACE, the Spirit of MI: Partnership, Acceptance, Compassion, and Evocation
OARS, the core skills of MI: Open Ended Questions, Affirmations, Reflections and Summaries
Ask-Offer-Ask (AOA)
More podcast episodes on Motivational Interviewing
Motivational Interviewing: training opportunities and resources from C4 Innovations

Access a transcript of Motivational Interviewing: Larisa Traga

Listen to other episodes in the "Motivational Interviewing" series.

Building Peer Support Services: Cherene Allen-Caraco Jun 08, 2026

Show notes

"Relationships are complicated. Everybody is surviving. Everybody's trying to figure it out. My thought is if we can't figure it out in our space, how are we going to expect the community to figure it out? We have to dive into some really difficult things and do it through the lens of who we are and where we came from." Innovator Cherene Allen-Caraco considers her experiences and the challenges building peer support services in North Carolina in her live conversation with host Ashley Stewart. Visit c4innovates.com, subscribe to receive newsletter and training updates, and follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube for more resources to grow your impact. Learn More:

Access a transcript for Building Peer Support Services: Cherene Allen-Caraco

Learning from Recovery Elders: Maryanne Frangules May 27, 2026

Show notes

"Most importantly, elevate lived experience. Policy is most effective when it's shaped by the people directly impacted. Remember Faces who are visible, Voices, who are vocal prove recovery is valuable."

Recovery advocate Maryanne Frangules and host Livia Davis delve deep into the history of the Recovery Movement in Massachusetts, from her recovery journey in the 1970's to the founding of the Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery (MOAR) in 1991 to her newest role as Recovery Historian highlighting the giants on whose shoulders we stand.

This episode is part of a series where we share the wisdom amassed by recovery leaders over the past 5 decades and reflect on the journeys that have laid groundwork for today's recovery movement.

Visit c4innovates.com, subscribe to receive newsletter and training updates, and follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube for more resources to grow your impact.

Show Notes:

"A 'mythical' voice for recovery community reflects on career ahead of retirement" | Boston Globe 2024

Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery (MOAR)

MOAR | Our History and Milestones

MOAR | Who We Are

Massachusetts Association of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Counselors (MAADAC)

Leroy L. Kelly (1941-2016) Obituary

William L. White

Slaying the Dragon: The History of Addiction Treatment and Recovery in America | William L. White 2014

Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Addiction Services (BSAS)

Bay State Community Services

Faces and Voices of Recovery (FAVOR)

National Recovery Month

Mental Health Peer Support Workforce Designline | Jessica Wolf, PhD

Access a transcript of Learning from Recovery Elders: Maryanne Frangules

Thank you for listening to this important conversation honoring the history and voices of the recovery movement. Check out more episodes in the "Learning from Recovery Elders" series!

Care Farming: Andrea Barnhart & Kate Mudge May 11, 2026

Show notes

"The core idea is the growing itself of food and working with the animals. It's there on a farm, it's building connection, it's building skills. It's empowering people, providing oftentimes a real dignity of work in ways that other more traditional services sometimes don't."

Host Livia Davis chats with Andrea Barnhart and Kate Mudge, the co-directors of the Care Farming Network, about the potential for farms as community anchors nurtured by social purpose.

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Access a transcript of Care Farming: Andrea Barnhart & Kate Mudge

Learning from Recovery Elders: Laura Van Tosh Apr 27, 2026

Show notes

"There are people that have created those pathways for themselves. We have national leadership now. That national leadership may not have occurred if it were not for the local programs that were funded…10 years earlier." Long-time mental health peer activist Laura Van Tosh and host Livia Davis discuss the history of peer-run programs, the development of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and her hopes for the future of the recovery movement.

This episode is part of a series where we share the wisdom amassed by recovery leaders over the past 5 decades and reflect on the journeys that have laid groundwork for today's recovery movement.

Visit c4innovates.com, subscribe to receive newsletter and training updates, and follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube for more resources to grow your impact.

Learn More:

Access a transcript of Learning from Recovery Elders: Laura Van Tosh Thank you for listening to this important conversation honoring the history and voices of the recovery movement. Check out more episodes in the "Learning from Recovery Elders" series!

Motivational Interviewing 29: Kristin Dempsey Apr 13, 2026

Show notes

"I love those chapters that are about genuineness, hope and empowerment. Those were just so beautiful to approach in terms of how to have such goodwill towards those we serve." Host Ali Hall and co-author Kristin Dempsey discuss their book Advancing Motivational Interviewing: An Experiential Skills Guide for Mental Health Providers.

Kristin Dempsey; website, MI Trainings
Ali Hall; website, MINT profile
Advancing Motivational Interviewing: An Experiential Skills Guide for Mental Health Providers by Kristin Dempsey and Ali Hall
William "Bill" Miller
More podcast episodes on Motivational Interviewing
Motivational Interviewing: training opportunities and resources from C4 Innovations
Motivational Interviewing: resources from the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT)
PESI Trainings from Ali & Kristin

Access a transcript of Motivational Interviewing 29: Kristin Dempsey

Listen to other episodes in the "Motivational Interviewing" series.

Learning from Recovery Elders: LaVerne Miller Mar 30, 2026

Show notes

"People like Howie the Harp and Sally Zinman... laid that fertile soil for those of us that have come after them, for us to really grow". Attorney and rights advocate LaVerne Miller joins host Livia Davis to discuss her experiences in the recovery movement, the lessons she has learned, and her hopes for the future of the movement. This episode is part of a series where we share the wisdom amassed by recovery leaders over the past 5 decades and reflect on the journeys that have laid groundwork for today's recovery movement.

Visit c4innovates.com, subscribe to receive newsletter and training updates, and follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube for more resources to grow your impact.

Learn More:

Howie the Harp

What Are the 4Cs of Mentorship: A Comprehensive Guide

Cultural Humility (complete)

Project Liberty Peer Support Initiative

What is Servant Leadership?

How to Build Partnerships with Community Organizations - Visible Network Labs

Creating and Maintaining Coalitions and Partnerships | Community Tool Box

Helen "Skip" Skipper

Access a transcript of Learning from Recovery Elders: LaVerne Miller Thank you for listening to this important conversation honoring the history and voices of the recovery movement. Check out more episodes in the "Learning from Recovery Elders" series!

Next Generation Recovery Leaders: Tymber Hudson Mar 16, 2026

Show notes

"Data is qualitative. Data is conversations...Data is lived experience." Policy advocate Tymber Hudson drops knowledge on the world of policy, how young people can become involved and how to avoid burnout as a person with lived experience in this conversation with host Rowan Willis-Gorman. This episode is part of a series featuring youth peer workers and recovery innovators discussing how to improve and uplift behavioral health systems for youth.

Visit c4innovates.com, subscribe to receive newsletter and training updates, and follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube for more resources to grow your impact.