Sounds Good with Branden Harvey

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How to Make the World More Generous and Thoughtful with Sharon McMahon Mar 01, 2021

Show notes

This teacher has turned to Instagram to combat misinformation. Sharon McMahon — who describes herself as “America’s (not boring) government teacher” — and her highly engaged Instagram community (self-described as Governerds) — just joined forces and raised enough money to forgive $50 million in medical debt — breaking records in just a matter of days.

Sharon is a former high school government and law teacher on a mission to confront political misinformation and conspiracies. She uses her popular Instagram account to spread non-partisan information about government and democracy. Through her account and her workshops, called Government for Grownups, she teaches how to spot bias and decipher facts from conspiracies.
In this episode, Sharon talks about paying attention to facts, how she carved out the best and most positive corner of the internet, and how we can actually make our country and world as thoughtful and generous as her community.
Guest: Sharon McMahon, host of Government for Grownups
Follow Sharon on Instagram to learn more about government and democracy
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Environmentalism Must Care for People and the Planet Feb 22, 2021

Show notes

Activist Leah Thomas created a platform to address the ways environmentalism impacts not only the planet, but the people on it, too. She calls the platform Intersectional Environmentalist, a movement that addresses and incorporates lawyer and scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw’s feminist framework of intersectionality.The platform Leah co-founded is now home to resources, information, and action steps to dismantle systems of oppression in the environmental movement.

In the first half of this episode, Leah lays out how environmental issues affect different communities uniquely and how intersectional environmentalism addresses these differences. In the second half, Leah explains how we all can embrace intersectional environmentalism through simple, everyday actions.
Guest: Leah Thomas, co-founder of Intersectional Environmentalist
Follow Intersectional Environmentalist and Leah on Instagram
Visit IE’s website to learn more and explore resources
Background reading:

Interview with Kimberlé Crenshaw and explanation of intersectionality
Intersectional Environmentalist resources by community
Intersectional Environmentalist resources by topic
Minority and low-income communities are more likely to live in areas exposed to toxic waste, landfills, highways, and other environmental hazards (American Journal of Public Health, 2011).
People of color have less access to clean air than their white counterparts (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2019).

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This Organization Is Helping Young People Get Elected Feb 15, 2021

Show notes

After working on Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaigns, Amanda Litman founded Run for Something, an organization dedicated to helping young and non-traditional candidates successfully run for office.

Run for Something removes barriers to entry by providing assistance with behind-the-scenes mechanics, tactical and strategic support, advice, mentorship, training, and everything in between. Between 2017 and 2020, they’ve helped elect nearly 500 candidates in 46 states.

In the first half of this episode, Run for Something co-founder and executive director Amanda Litman explains why anyone can run for office and why it truly makes a difference. In the second half, she lays out the steps for running for office — even if you aren’t sure what you want to run for yet.
Guest: Amanda Litman, co-founder and executive director of Run for Something
If you want to run for office, explore your options and get more information. You can also support people running for office by making a donation.
Read Amanda’s book (with a foreword from Hillary Clinton) and listen to the Run for Something Podcast

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Positive Peace and How We Can Get More of It Feb 08, 2021

Show notes

Is the world becoming more peaceful? Or less? How would we know if it was? In an effort to measure peace, entrepreneur and philanthropist Steve Killelea founded the Institute for Economics and Peace, a nonprofit global research institute that measures peace levels around the world.

The Institute created the conceptual framework for “positive peace,” which describes the attitudes, structures and institutions that underpin and sustain peaceful societies. Hint: Peace includes more than just an absence of violence. The Institute’s work now informs influential institutions such as the United Nations and the World Bank.

In the first half of this episode, Steve describes the difference between “positive peace” and “negative peace,” plus how the Institute developed the framework for positive peace. In the second half, Steve and Branden share good news from data the Institute has collected.
Guest: Steve Killelea, founder and executive chairman of the Institute for Economics and Peace
Read the Positive Peace Report and dive into stories about peace
Read Steve’s book, Peace in the Age of Chaos
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[Unedited] Jedidiah Jenkins on Finding Your Purpose Feb 01, 2021

Show notes

This is the full-length, unedited version of our conversation with Jedidiah Jenkins. Jedidiah was one of our first-ever guests on the show when we launched Sounds Good five years ago. His episode remains one of our most popular episodes, so we thought it would be fun to release the full unedited conversation of our latest conversation together. Enjoy! Check out the previous episode in your feed for the shorter, edited version of this episode.

In this episode, Branden and Jedidiah talk about the nuance of purpose, how it’s different from what we imagine, and how we can find it — or at least get started in the right direction.
Guest: Jedidiah Jenkins, author of “To Shake the Sleeping Self” and “Like Streams to the Ocean”
Pre-order Jedidiah’s new book (out tomorrow!) and follow him on Instagram
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Jedidiah Jenkins on Finding Your Purpose Feb 01, 2021

Show notes

Jedidiah Jenkins is a travel writer who lives with life with intention and purpose. He worked a dream job as a lawyer for the nonprofit Invisible Children before quitting to bike 10,000 miles from Oregon to Patagonia. He wrote a New York Times-bestselling book about his experience and has inspired thousands of people to engage their own lives with similar curiosity and passion. He is also the executive editor of Wilderness magazine.
In this episode, Branden and Jedidiah talk about the nuance of purpose, how it’s different from what we imagine, and how we can find it — or at least get started in the right direction.

Guest: Jedidiah Jenkins, author of “To Shake the Sleeping Self” and “Like Streams to the Ocean”
Pre-order Jedidiah’s new book (out tomorrow!) and follow him on Instagram

Sponsor: Get 10% off your first month at BetterHelp.com/GOOD
Sponsor: With Libro.fm, get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 with the code GOOD

Can Wearing a Dress Change the World? Jan 25, 2021

Show notes

Dressember founder and CEO Blythe Hill is on a mission to use fashion to end human trafficking. What she started as a style challenge in 2009, she turned into a nonprofit with global reach. The challenge is simple: Every December, wear a dress (or tie) every day. It’s a great conversation starter, and it works to raise funds for trafficking prevention, intervention, and survivor protection.

In the first half of the episode, Blythe tells the story of how she started Dressember and how it works so effectively as a fundraiser and conversation-starter. In the second half, she gets to the bottom of QAnon, trafficking misconceptions and misinformation, and how you can make a difference.

Guest: Blythe Hill, founder and CEO of Dressember
Sign up to participate in or donate to Dressember, and learn more about Dressember and human trafficking on their website. You can also follow Blythe and Dressember on Instagram.

Sponsor: Get 10% off your first month at BetterHelp.com/GOOD
Sponsor: With Libro.fm, get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 with the code GOOD

How To Combat Your Media Echo Chamber Jan 18, 2021

Show notes

Echo chambers are a real problem in our news and media consumption. We follow, listen to, and read news from people who tell us what we already believe, so we run the risk of missing out on the truth or valuable perspectives. Our guest, Harleen Kaur, co-founded Ground News, a news comparison platform that promises to uncover your media blind spots by offering news for people from all political ideologies through their website, app, newsletters, and browser extension.

In the first half of the episode, Harleen explains how our current media landscape came to be and the importance of uncovering our own blind spots, and in the second half she shares three things each of us should do every time we consume news.

Guest: Harleen Kaur, co-founder and CEO of Ground News
Visit Ground News on their website and download their app, sign up for their newsletters, and install their browser extension.

Sponsor: Get 10% off your first month at BetterHelp.com/GOOD
Sponsor: With Libro.fm, get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 with the code GOOD

Shane Claiborne on Abolishing the Death Penalty Jan 11, 2021

Show notes

Shane Claiborne is an outspoken critic of the death penalty. He’s a well-respected justice system reform activist and Christian faith leader, and he believes capital punishment needs to go for good in the United States — a country that’s in company with China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Egypt for countries with the highest execution rates.

In the first half of today’s episode, Shane shares how he came to believe so passionately against the death penalty, lay out the most important facts, and celebrate progress that’s already been made, such as the abolition of the death penalty in some places and the growing conversation on the topic. He also casts a vision for what a future without the death penalty could look like. In the second half, Shane lays out how each of us can get involved.

Guest: Shane Claiborne, activist and author
Get involved in protesting against the death penalty at deathpenaltyaction.org, and learn more about Shane and his work at shaneclaiborne.com.

Background reading:

The Guardian wrote this article about Lisa Montgomery, whose execution is scheduled for tomorrow, January 12
Visit The Marshall Project’s ‘The Next to Die’ page for great journalism about death row and the death penalty
Shane’s book, Executing Grace, talks about the death penalty from a faith perspective
And Bryan Stevenson’s book, Just Mercy, is also a great and important read on the subject. He’s the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative.
Learn why and how to abolish the death penalty

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This Nonprofit Helps Kids Grow $100 Into Thousands For Charity Jan 04, 2021

Show notes

The nonprofit Kids Boost empowers kids to become philanthropists and social entrepreneurs. With $100 in start-up funding, kids work with a one-on-one coach to raise funds for a charity they love. On average, participants turn the initial $100 into $1,850 for deserving charities.

In the first half of this episode, Kids Boost founder Kristen Williams tells the story of a 12-year-old named Jared, who inspired her to start Kids Boost, and how participants creatively raise money for the causes they care about. In the second half, Kristen shares how everyone — kids and grown-ups alike — can make a difference by doing what they love.

Guest: Kristen Williams, founder and executive director of Kids Boost
Donate to Kids Boost and follow Kids Boost on Instagram

Sponsor: Get 10% off your first month at BetterHelp.com/GOOD
Sponsor: With Libro.fm, get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 with the code GOOD

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