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Ben & Jerry on Social Justice and Ice Cream Mar 17, 2021

Show notes

Can you build a successful and fun brand around serious social justice topics? Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream discuss feeding hungry kids, police reform and how businesses can make a difference on social issues. “Passing legislation that is going to reduce child poverty in the US by 40% is huge – it’s pretty much the best news I’ve heard in quite a long time,” says Greenfield about the American Rescue Plan, the latest COVID relief package that includes critical provisions that will help fight the hunger crisis. Ben & Jerry’s is also focused on police reform through the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity. “What we need to seize about this moment is the issue of racial justice… The reality is if we are not able to pivot from protest to policy right now, all those protests were for nothing,” Cohen believes.

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Renee & John Grisham on Fighting for Social Justice Mar 10, 2021

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When is philanthropic giving the most meaningful? Bestselling author John Grisham and Share Our Strength Board member Renee Grisham discuss their partnership, philanthropy and why they have made child hunger and police reform their central philanthropic causes. “There is plenty of food in this country… but the framework isn’t always there to get the food on the table for these hungry kids. You have convinced us that this is one problem that can be solved in this country,” John says. “It takes all of us...We all want to feed children, and I see that as a huge bridge builder in a time when we need it,” agrees Renee.

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Frank Bruni on Civility, Decency and Understanding Mar 03, 2021

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What will it take for Americans to trust each other again? Long-time New York Times columnist Frank Bruni talks about his days as a restaurant critic, his goals as an op-ed columnist and the current state of civic discourse in America. “Based on which [cable news channel] you’ve gone to, you can have an understanding of events and reality that is almost diametrically opposed to somebody else’s. That makes it so much more challenging to find common ground,” observes Bruni. “I always try to return to a plea for civility, decency and understanding,” he concludes.

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Julia Turshen on Creating Equity at the Table Feb 24, 2021

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How can we make the culinary industry more inclusive and accessible? How can we work together to overcome gender and racial discrimination in the industry? These questions are important to best-selling cookbook author and food writer Julia Turshen. In this episode, Turshen shares her approach to cookbook writing and how she achieves her accessible style, including Simply Julia released in March 2020. She also shares the origins of her on-going initiative Equity at the Table, a digital directory that supports women of color, LGBTQ and gender non-conforming people in the food industry.

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Jennifer Steinhauer on How Women Lawmakers Can Fix Congress Feb 17, 2021

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Will women ever be proportionately represented in Congress? Political journalist, novelist and cookbook author Jennifer Steinhauer discusses her book The Firsts: The Inside Story of the Women Reshaping Congress which examines the remarkable group of women elected to the 116th Congress in 2018. This insightful, hopeful conversation about women's political power with one of America's most astute political journalist is an exploration of the ongoing impact of the most racially, ethnically, socially, and professionally diverse class of female lawmakers. As Steinhauer notes, “If women continue to look in the mirror and see themselves as lawmakers, the way men have for generations, women have an endless ceiling.”

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Shaun Cassidy on Helping Those That Are Hurting Feb 10, 2021

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“How can I help? That was the question I kept asking myself,” says former teen idol and acclaimed television writer and producer Shaun Cassidy. Cassidy shares how he is helping during COVID-19 by supporting No Kid Hungry and the Santa Ynez community through his wine label, My First Crush. “COVID came along and I saw a lot of our friends… farmers, growers and winemakers suddenly really hurting. Then I saw our schools close. I saw our restaurants close and I knew a lot of people were going to be in trouble,” explains Cassidy. “I thought, here’s an opportunity to not only help the folks I live with, but to help all of these kids.”

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Mark Bittman on Why Fixing Food Fixes Everything Feb 03, 2021

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How are so many of our most important issues tied to what we eat? What is the relationship between food and issues like climate change? James Beard Award-winning food writer Mark Bittman talks about food, climate change, social justice and his new book, Animal, Vegetable, Junk. “You can’t fix any justice issues, environmental issues, nutritional issues without fixing food. Food is at the center of just about everything,” claims Bittman. “It’s not going to happen from the top down. The push has to come from lots and lots of ordinary people. That push needs to be focused on food, but it also needs to focus on racial justice and gender equality and so on down the line.”

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Bill Novelli on How to Make a Dent in the Universe Jan 27, 2021

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What’s the key to building a purpose-driven career? Author, business school professor and social change pioneer Bill Novelli discusses doing well by doing good and his new book, Good Business: The Talk, Fight, Win Way to Change the World. “Tomorrow’s leaders are in our classrooms today… They want a purpose as well as a paycheck,” says Novelli. “Wherever you are in your career, whatever organization you’re part of, you can make a positive, social difference. The way I like to say it is, you can make a dent in the universe,” he adds. “We are in a tough time. We are a nation divided. We need to find the pragmatic center."

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Biden's Hunger Plan and Kwame Onwuachi on Race and Rebuilding Jan 20, 2021

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How will restaurants survive the economic collapse caused by the COVID-19 pandemic? Award-winning Washington DC chef Kwame Onwuachi (formerly of Kith/Kin) talks about how COVID 19 has exposed the vulnerabilities of the restaurant industry and the fundamental changes needed for independent restaurants to survive. “I would hope we don’t just go back to the same normal, that we create a new normal that really makes sure that we’re taking care of our staff and our community as well as the bottom line,” says Onwauchi. In his memoir Notes from a Young Black Chef, Onwuachi confronts issues of race and diversity in the culinary world. “Investors and owners have constantly pushed me to do what they think is right, instead of what was authentic to me,” he wrote in The Washington Post. “I try to speak my mind and speak truthfully." Billy Shore also shares updates on President Biden's new hunger plan.

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Jake Tapper on Politics, Hunger and the Media Jan 13, 2021

Show notes

How has the role of the media changed over the last four years? CNN anchor and chief Washington correspondent Jake Tapper discusses journalism, politics and his work in support of causes like No Kid Hungry and military veterans. “We’re in a war over facts. Right now, two of the biggest stories are about that - people who deny COVID and the seriousness of it and people who deny the election results. In both cases, the leading purveyor of disinformation is the President,” Tapper says. “There is the potential for journalism to be better. There is the capacity for people whose eyes have been opened during the Trump administration to stay engaged and stay outraged,” he believes.

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