Hi, everyone, it's Sophia and welcome to another bonus episode of Work in Progress. In all of my regular episodes, we get to delve deeply into what my guests are up to, but I don't get to talk as much to all of you directly, or talk to you about what's going on in my head. So that's really been the idea behind doing these episodes every so often, And for this exclusive, I thought I would tell you guys about some of my favorite organizations and activism opportunities. And the reason we decided to focus the whole episode on this is that I get so many amazing questions from all of you about where to start, where to find an organization you're passionate about, or cause your passionate, about how to begin donating time or available funds, or your energy or attention your platform to things that matter to you and that matter to the world. And I thought it would be really nice to answer some of those questions, especially the ones that pertain to specifically getting involved in causes. And I've been keeping a running list of these in my notebook. So all of the questions I'm going to get to first are essentially an aggregate of the things you guys ask me the most. So before I talk about my inspiration, I just want to say how inspired I am by all of you. The fact that so many of you dm me, tweet me, asked me questions on Instagram about dedicating yourselves to your community and making the world around you a better place basically just reinforces the feeling I have that my audience is the best audience. So you guys rock and let's get to it. Okay, So this is a question that comes up a lot. What was it that really inspired me to get involved in politics? And was there a specific moment? So I gotta go back, way back to get to this specific public political moment um, back when I was a kid growing up in Southern California and spending so much time outside. I mean, you guys, this place is magical. And for anyone who lives here, I know you know what I'm talking about, But for anyone who doesn't, Southern California is this incredibly vast, diverse ecosystem. You can be in the desert, literally amidst cacti and uh and desert rock, and two hours later you can be in the canyons of Los Angeles hiking through forests and running into little critters, and then in another hour you can be in the ocean. You could be, you know, diving off of Santa Barbara or Catalina Um, exploring what's going on under the sea. It's it's us such a rich ecological wonderland. And I think it's all of that, the things that I was so lucky as a resident here to have access to as a kid, that made me really passionate about the environment. And in sixth grade, I think it was sixth grade, it actually might have been fifth grade, I tried to start a beach clean up club at school and shocker, there aren't many ten year old who want to spend their days at the beach picking up trash. So my mom used to take me with trash bags by myself to go to the beach with me, and really really leaned in in her encouragement of that passion and just said, look, if this matters to you, it doesn't matter if anybody comes with you, you can do the work. And I think that's probably where those seeds were born in my little brain. And it was the environment that really got me active. You know, Once I was a working lady and I was doing a lot of work with a great organization call Global Green at the time, and when the Deepwater Horizon oil spill happened, they had some attorneys who helped to fight for environmental legislation and protection that were based in New Orleans, Louisiana, and I had lived out there for a summer making a movie actually right before Hurricane Katrina. So the ecological devastation the impacts of climate change on that area really hit home for me because so many of my friends have been affected, and we had the science even then that could trace the effects of climate change to devastation, superstorms, all all of the things that we're seeing. But you know, what's affecting the coasts also through weather patterns, affects our farmers in the heart of America, affects folks in the Pacific Northwest. We see um different kinds of ecological occurrences in each place, but they're all really interconnected. And I think the sooner we can catch up to that reality and and understand that if some terrible thing happens on the West Coast or in the Heartland, or you know, in northern Eastern States, all of it's connected and it's connected to countries around the world as well, and we owe it to ourselves and our neighbors and our neighboring countries to do better. So that's a little side note. But it was those, um, those attorneys who talked to me about what was happening on the ground in Louisiana, and they just said, listen, what's going what you see on the news is not what's going on down here. It's really really bad. And activists and lawyers and scientists are being held out of these beach zones where this oil spill is so devastating, and they're basically being held out by people who were paid by the companies that brought the devastation in the first place. And I remember thinking to myself, you know, you'd never let a murder suspect go into the house where someone was murdered and clean up the crime scene before you let the investigators in. And that's what this felt like to me, And it really didn't sit right with me. So I flew out there, and it was actually gearing up for that trip that I decided to open a Twitter account. I always thought, what do I want to open my life up to? You know, this weird website for and for people to be mean, and I play other people for a living. You know, I don't. I don't do reality TV. I'm not trying to put my life out there. And then I realized, oh, if there's people impersonating me on Twitter, and by the way, like early Twitter days, folks who were pretending to be me and accounts y'all didn't spell check. And my people know me better than that, so that's on you. But I I realized that opening a Twitter account, in all seriousness, could be a really excellent way to disseminate information. I could essentially run it like a news channel. I could go down to Louisiana and tell the truth about what was happening to the communities of fishermen and the coastal communities that were so affected by this horrible event. And so I did, And that was really the start of the way. So many of you know me as a an outspoken political activist because I took to social media to do the work I've been doing behind the scenes, to have the conversation I'd been having in like minded communities of activists around my dinner table at home. I took it public with all of you, and you all have been so incredible to do this with, So thank you for caring about the planet and about people, and yeah, that that was my very specific moment. So there's this incredible John Muir quote, and he's one of my favorite writers and thinkers on nature in general, and he says, when we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. And when I think about what that means, I think about the image of you know, pulling a thread in a sweater and then you know, the whole sweater comes undone. The planet is deeply connected. And environmental justice and focusing on issues of gender, and you know, the elevation of women stopping the subjugation of women lead me to everything else. You know, environmental justice is racial justice. Justice for women is environmental justice, It is racial justice. Everything exists in a nexus where it's connected. And so many times places that are harmed have the same types of communities of people that are harmed. And people ask me a lot about how can you be so into all these things? You know, you can't really care this much about all of these things. And the thing I try to luminate for people or teach people, is that all of these things are actually the same. They're all one long, connected thread. There is a through line in all of this, and that that through line is us and the systems that oppress us, and the systems that do more harm to certain communities than others, the systems that don't value the environment, the planet on which we all live as guests, as being as valuable as us in the moment. And I think there's deeper truth to how we can do this better. I think there's a reality of how we can do this better, and it requires a lot of hope, but it also requires a lot of honest observation of what's going on out there. And those things go hand in hand to me, you know, the honesty the revelation of fact can be heavy sometimes. But I'm also very hopeful that as genius little human innovators can figure out better ways to do things. So yeah, it uh, it all feels connected to me, and that's why I try to hustle so hard for all of us and for this place that we live in. Next question, This is when I actually often ask guests on my show, and I will go ahead and uh and take a run out it myself. Um many many of you sent in versions of this question which said, do you have any advice for anyone who wants to give back but doesn't know where to start? Yes, So what I think is incredibly important. If you have the inclination or the spirit to give back, you're you're already doing great. You care about the world around you, You are concerned with equity, um with with human betterment. You have to care about people in their lives to want to give back. So I applaud you for that, and I also will say it's incredibly important for all of us, and it was for myself at the start of this journey, and and always to self interrogate and check in as I'm on it to make sure that we are helping in ways that don't accidentally do harm. And the reason that I say that is it's important to show up but also slow your role. You need to identify what is it that you care about? You know what causes really make you angry when you hear about them. Is it environmental injustice? Is it racial oppression? Is it the pay gap for women? What really bothers you? What do you recognize as being patently unfair? Unjust and if you can recognize it, what do you want to do about it. My suggestion is, first you research organizations, whether it's nationally or in your area, that are working on the issue that you care about out and figure out how to show up when whether you are going to donate some money if you can afford to, whether you are going to donate your time, whether you call up and find out if you can volunteer or help run an event, or you know, contribute some of your skills, whether that's creating artwork for them if you are a graphic designer or an artist, or if it's maybe helping them, uh, you know, with some legal counsel. Whatever it is that you do, figure out what you can offer, and when you start volunteering with an organization or working with an organization, listen to the people who have been in it. Listen to the folks who know so that you can learn from them. It's the whole idea of help the helpers. You've got to show up and learn how to help the helpers to become a helper. So I think it's really valuable to give of yourself and also hold on to the fact that you probably have a lot to learn. And the fun thing is we all do even for me in areas in which I'm now you know, called on as an expert. That feels crazy to me, guys the notion of being an expert. I feel like I have so much left to learn. And I will say, if you can hold onto that curiosity and that willingness to learn, the willingness to adjust your opinions as you learn new information, you will be in such excellent service to the organizations and the people that you care about. Oh, this is a great one. What is an issue that you have come to learn more about and appreciate as a result of hosting work in progress? There are so many issues. I think that this question is meant to ask, is there a cause? Is there an organization that you didn't know about? I think, though, the thing that feels really important to highlight, the thing that comes to mind when I read this is the issue of fear and self doubt. Everyone is afraid that they're getting it wrong, and everyone wonders if they're ever going to make it, or if their life is going to fall apart, or if today is going to be the day that everybody figures out. I actually have no idea what I'm doing. Everyone has that. The most impressive people I have interviewed say yeah, I don't know. I'm just still figuring it out. I'm the one who's a work in progress. And I think that's something really important to hold onto, especially because in the world we live in with all of this digital connectivity, we see a lot of people in two D. And what I mean by that is that we see people on a screen, we see them on Instagram, we see them online. We don't see the complexity of their lives or the questions they ask themselves, or the ways that they deal with their insecurities, or their failures because everybody has them. Failures are just part of the road to success. We assume everyone else has it all figured out and no is what they're doing, and then it often makes us feel really bad about ourselves. And to learn that everyone is just a little human on this journey has been really helpful to me, and it has actually given me more grace for myself. But it's also given me so much more grace for people that I patently don't agree with, and even for some of the leaders who I'm so angry at. You know, the people who pedaled disinformation, who have made people feel afraid of science and medicine, who just plain lie. Being part of this experience has given me the ability rather than to say I can't believe you would behave this way, It's given me just enough space to say, I think you want the best for people, and if that's true, why would you lie to them? And the energy of that exchange, I realize is kinder. I realized it allows me to offer someone the room to change or to do better, and it also just makes me less angry, which feels nice because we're all trying to deal with our stress. So for me, I really think that's kind of the issue, really, the truth of the human experience that maybe I thought some people outgrew. You know, we're all just in it and we're all in it together, and that's been a really special thing to learn about and I deeply appreciate it in the time since I've started this podcast. And then in terms of the kinds of you know, quote unquote issues causes, Oh my goodness, I mean, I don't know how I could pick one. I really am so impressed by the things that the folks have come on the show are working on and dedicating themselves to it. It's something that's given me so much hope and appreciation and faith in us being able to, you know, bend that moral arc of the universe towards justice. As Dr King said, this is a really good follow up to is there an issue that you wish people were more aware of or active about in the US? I think a lot of people are aware of what is happening with the attempts at voter suppression in the country. I wish we were much more vocal about it. You know, we should be hitting the streets over these draconian voter suppression laws in the way that we hit the streets last summer. This is a very terrifying moment for us. There are people in this country who are trying to end democracy. They're trying to end the very founding principle of this country that it is for the people. Because they make a lot of money and they retain a lot of power by suppressing the vote. They don't want to see this country become more equitable for the vast majority of us. And that is very scary. You know, when you hear people say that these are the most aggressive voting restriction laws since the Jim Crow era that this is Jim Crow two point oh. That is very very serious. So I would really encourage everyone who's listening, you know, I know that that can feel scary or overwhelming to think about. Don't let it. Let it give you that kind of sacred rage, you know that like fire. Let's think about it like fuel and start calling your elected officials. Call your congress people, call your senators. Jump on the petitions that are circulating around the internet to end this stuff that are calling on the government to take action, Call on senators to end the filibuster so that we can achieve better democratic practices for everyone in this country. That's the whole point of living here is that everyone gets to vote, everyone gets to participate. And the idea that we're trying to disenfranchise our citizens in many areas are most disadvantaged citizens by taking away their right to vote. It's just unacceptable. It's unacceptable, and there's a lot we can do about it, and it's really important to remind people who want to say things like well, if we you know, if we nuke the filibuster for this, then what's going to prevent them from doing it to us? They've already done it. Mitch McConnell rammed through Supreme Court nominees after withholding Merritt Garland's nomination for nearly a year. He rammed through Supreme Court nominees by nu king the filibuster to pass those votes. He just said, nope, on this vote, We're not honoring the filibuster. So they do it to us all the time. It's time for us to fight fire with fire and do it to protect America, not to try to change the electorate and to change who justice applies to. So you know, light a fire under the asses of your elected officials and tell them to get to work. Actually, these are really related to that last point. And uh, what advice do I have for making a habit of social and political activism. I actually have scheduled in my calendar a weekly call to my elected reps. It doesn't take me very long, you know, depending on the issues that I need to talk about to whoever at their office answers the phone to take notes. I'd say, you know, between ten and twenty minutes. And I do it once a week and it's really really great call up and just say what are we doing about climate? What are we doing about a green New Deal, how are we prioritizing the ocean, and what's going on with voting, stand Up for Us past the four the People Act. These are the issues obviously that I'm calling about right now. Um, but every you know, every couple months, depending on what's happening in in the political landscape, they might change. But it's a really, really great habit to get into. And it's been really cool to see my friends with young kids do it when their kids are home and say, hey, this is what we do. This is how you participate, This is how you call the people who are supposed to take care of you and let them know what you care about. And I just think it's such a great habit to get into. So if you use any kind of calendar app on your phone, try plugging it in and then report back to us and tell us how it's going. So now, because so many of you ask about organizations to get involved in and about the things that I care about, and for recommendations of what you might be inspired by, I thought it might be really cool to highlight five organizations that are just doing such cool work in the world. The first feels really important to talk about especially a year and a half into this pandemic. You know, so many young people have had their lives turned upside down. School is such an important part of kids lives, their cognitive development and their social skills and all of it. And they've had to do school on zoom. And I will say, shout out to every single teacher out there who has just been doing such great work to entertain the kiddos in your classrooms and to make them feel engaged and loved. It's it's so special. One of which I have to say, Donovan Taylor Hall. You are such an amazing advocate for youth empowerment, So thank you. Um the videos of you and your classroom on zoom really are are some of the things I tune into to brighten my day. UM, So shout out to you and to all the other teachers. One of the things that teachers are talking a lot about and parents are talking a lot about is kids mental health. And I actually think the silver lining of the year. Thank God, kids are so resilient by the way. I think one of the silver linings of this year is a we've seen the ways that kids are managing to continue thriving and be we're finally talking about children's mental health and breaking through that stigma. Kids have struggled with mental health issues since long before this pandemic, and for whatever reason, we seemed really nervous to talk about that. And that's where an organization called On our Sleeves comes in. On our Sleeves is a national movement to break those stigmas around children's mental health issues. No family is supposed to struggle alone in their journey, and their mission is to provide free mental health educational resources to every community in America to educate families and empower advocates, and they also support access to services by connecting families to trusted local resources. On our Sleeves launched an incredible initiative called one Million Classrooms, and they are working on getting mental health tools into classrooms so that teachers can support their students and also let parents know when a student might be struggling, which is so incredibly important considering that kids in school spend so much time in their classrooms away from their parents. So whether you are a parent, a teacher, or you have a friend with a kid, check out on our Sleeves. It is a wonderful organization. And there's a couple of ways to get involved. If you go to their website on our Sleeves dot org, there are links to pledge to do one Small Thing. There are links to plan an event and even to plan a fundraiser. So if you're looking for a way to dedicate your time, this could be a really really great thing. UM The pledge to Do One Small Thing page feels really important. It's all about taking one small action, because that's really all it takes to start your journey to become a mental health advocate. And the first action is to start a conversation. So they have a whole list here of what you can do, and it's about checking in with someone, whether it's sending a text or an email, going for a coffee, UM, unplugging at a dinner, and having a conversation, you know, simple everyday conversations when a child has your full attention can really open doors to them revealing what they're going through. You can resolve not to use stigmatizing language, you know, throwing around casual terms like nuts are crazy, or or even technical terms that seem to have become inappropriate buzzwords like bipolar UM can really do a great deal of harm and so you can watch the words you use and educate yourself about them, and you can perform a random act of kindness. This is one of my favorite things that they do. Um they inspire all of us to go out and just do something like holding a door for someone you know, smiling at a stranger, or striking up a conversation in line, lending someone a hand. Uh. Kindness can really help someone who is struggling. And you can also encourage people well to pass that kindness on to others. So check out the website. Like I said, it's www. Dot on our Sleeves dot org. You can follow them on Twitter as well, and you can check out some resources about the organization in our stories this week next up, and this really relates to the conversation we were just having about activism in terms of defending voting. I am a voter. I am actually incredibly proud to say that I am one of the co founders that I am a voter. We are a nonpartisan movement that is aimed at creating a cultural shift around voting and civic engagement by unifying all of us around a central truth. Our democracy works better when we all participate, and there are ways in which we all describe ourselves, right I am a friend, I am a daughter, I am an actor, I am an activist, I am a podcast host, and I am a voter. Being a voter is actually a huge part of our identity, and it's actually the part of our identity that gives us the strongest representation and also a guarantee that we can uphold democracy, that we can live in a society that functions. And I hope that you guys feel really really inspired about being civically engaged. I hope that when you describe yourself, you all would say I am a voter too. You can get involved in a couple of ways. The way that I'm probably the most proud of is that we built a chatbot. And you guys, there's nothing I hate more than getting a bunch of messages that A, I don't need, be are repetitive or c or honestly just annoying. So I helped do this because I wanted it to be great, and I wanted it to be really, really, really clean and effective. All of us at the team really oversaw how this thing would communicate with you, and it is literally the easiest. You just text the word voter v O t e R two to six seven nine seven. Voter to to six seven nine seven. Are you doing it right now? I mean, if you're driving, don't do it. But if you're like sitting somewhere listening to this podcast, open your phone, open your text app and text voter to to six seven seven. You will get a quick text message and the text sign will remind you when elections are coming up in your area. It will let you know if you're pulling place is changed. You can check in and make sure you have not been purged from your voter roles, which, by the way, huge scandal happening right now. Our chat line will make sure you have exactly the information that you need and none that you don't, so make sure you sign up for your election reminders. You can also go to the website at I Am a Voter dot com and you can follow us on Instagram at I Am a Voter. And if you're feeling inspired and you love democracy as much as I do, you can go to the website and donate anything that you're able to. Next up and many of you know that this is an issue that is incredibly close to my heart. I want to talk to you all about every Town and Mom's Demand. Every town is on a mission to change gun violence in America. Gun violence touches every town in America, and for too long, life saving laws have been thwarted by the gun lobby and by leaders who refuse to take common sense steps that will save lives. But something is changing. More than six million mayors, moms, teachers, survivors, gun owners, students, and everyday Americans have come together to make change in their own communities and make their own communities safer. Every town starts with you, and it starts in your neighborhood. By introducing evidence based solutions in every town, we can end gun violence. And the ways that you can get involved. Go to the website every town dot org. You can download their volunteer app, which happens to be the same as the Mom's Demand app, and I'm just about to tell you about Mom's Demand. You can, of course donate or this is one of my favorite things to do because I love to help print phone banks. You can volunteer on their text or their call team so is. Check out every town dot org online, go follow them on Twitter and on Instagram. At every Town and one of their partner organizations run by my dear friend, Shannon Watts, who is literally a Mamma Warrior. She is so impressive and committed to her advocacy. Mom's Demand Action is a grassroots movement for Americans fighting for public safety measures that can protect people from gun violence. We can pass stronger gun laws and work to close the loopholes that jeopardize the safety of our families. We can also work in our own communities and with business leaders to encourage a culture of responsible gun ownership. We know that gun violence is preventable, and we are all committed to doing what it takes to keep families safe. That is the mission statement of Mom's Demand and I am slow clapping over here, except you know not so that I don't ruin the sound. Please go to Mom's Demand Action dot org and if you want to get involved, you can also download their volunteer app. Same as every Town, they share an app. It's incredible. You can email to become on volunteer. You can call your senators, which, like I said earlier, makes a huge difference. There are events and virtual events, and there is even a Student's Demand Action network for younger listeners and students who are fed up with going to school, terrified of gun violence. Mom's demand is just unbelievable, you guys, I don't have enough good words to say about them. I could talk about them for ages. I really really believe in their mission, and I really believe that there is a solution for all. So let's do it. Next up, I want to talk to you about the Urban Ocean Lab. The Urban Ocean Lab was co founded by Work in Progress guest and dear friend dr Ianna Elizabeth Johnson, and they cultivate rigorous, creative, equitable, and practical climate and ocean policy for the future of coastal cities. Now, coastal cities are leaders in climate and ocean policy, obviously, as they're on the coasts, in plementing science based and forward thinking strategies, ensuring environmental justice for coastal communities, and serving as a laboratory for state and federal initiatives. Now, even if you don't live on a coast, and we were talking about this earlier, I think you would love to get involved with the Urban Ocean Lab because, as we discussed before, if there is a weather event on the coast, it also affects our inland communities. We're seeing changes in weather patterns and extreme heat and droughts that are affecting our farmers. We saw those daio's last year that ravaged Middle America and destroyed crops and upset the economy. All of this is connected and if we can protect our oceans, we can protect our country and we can protect our planet. Ianna and some of the episodes that she's done for us here at Work in Progress has really explained how this works. You can check out our episode from earlier this year and our Well and Good series where there's even a video interview to learn about how important ocean cities are to all of America and about how as we move forward into this new phase of our humanity, the oceans and the climate research that comes out of them and the jobs that they can create are actually going to be huge industries for us, and they're going to support the economy and incredible ways, so we can be good to the environment, good to the economy, and good to each other all at the same time. Honestly, it's incredible. So visit Urban ocean Lab dot org. You can follow at Urban Ocean Lab on Twitter, and you can get involved. They are actually hiring right now, guys. They're hiring project managers in coastal cities. These are paid, full time jobs. So go to Urban Ocean Lab dot org. If that sounds interesting to you, you might get hired. You can also donate because they're doing great work and get passionate about the ocean. Last Up is an organization I have been obsessed with for so many years and finally managed to have the founder of come on Work and progress as well. That's Jose Andres, and the organization is the World Central Kitchen. The World Central Kitchen uses the power of food to nourish communities and strengthen economies through times of crisis and so far beyond. Jose Andres is often first on the ground with w c K, supporting communities and disaster zones and also running culinary training programs and social enterprise ventures. They have activated in communities around the United States and all over the world to meet the daily needs of families that are in need of a warm plate of food, and they have supported thousands of local restaurants in the process. They kept so many restaurants up and running through this pandemic. Guy's World Central Kitchen is truly amazing, and they've responded to natural and man made disasters in countries on five continents. They worked to help during the massive bushfires in Australia, they offered assistance after a deadly explosion in Lebanon, and they were on the ground helping Central America recover from devastating hurricanes. They are fighting to feed hungry people around the world, and at the same time they continue planting roots in the communities where they work with a food producer network which is helping to create food resilience in the face of future disasters. In Haiti, for example, aspiring chefs are obtaining the skills and confidence they need to elevate their careers and the country's tourism sector. They have shown that there is no place too far or a disaster too great for their chefs to show up with a hot plate of food when it is needed most. So please consider checking out the World Central Kitchen. You can go to w c K, which obviously stands for a World Central Kitchen w c K dot org. You can follow them on Twitter at w c Kitchen, and you can volunteer. You can donate. Also check out that website because they are hiring right now, and I honestly can't imagine a kinder person to work for than Jose Andres. If you haven't listened to his episode of this podcast, you absolutely should because I would wager that you're going to feel the same way. So everyone, I hope that this has been an inspiring episode of the show. I hope that those little previews into five of my favorite organizations have you furiously searching through Google right now and following people on Instagram and on Twitter, because if you follow these organs, I promise you're going to get even more committed, even more inspired, and I bet you're going to help change the world. Thank you so much for your great questions. Keep them coming, and we'll see you next week. I work in progress.

Hi, everyone, it's Sophia and welcome to another bonus episode of Work in Progress. In all of my regular episodes, we get to delve deeply into what my guests are up to, but I don't get to talk as much to all of you directly, or talk to you about what's going on in my head. So that's really been the idea behind doing these episodes every so often, And for this exclusive, I thought I would tell you guys about some of my favorite organizations and activism opportunities. And the reason we decided to focus the whole episode on this is that I get so many amazing questions from all of you about where to start, where to find an organization you're passionate about, or cause your passionate, about how to begin donating time or available funds, or your energy or attention your platform to things that matter to you and that matter to the world. And I thought it would be really nice to answer some of those questions, especially the ones that pertain to specifically getting involved in causes. And I've been keeping a running list of these in my notebook. So all of the questions I'm going to get to first are essentially an aggregate of the things you guys ask me the most. So before I talk about my inspiration, I just want to say how inspired I am by all of you. The fact that so many of you dm me, tweet me, asked me questions on Instagram about dedicating yourselves to your community and making the world around you a better place basically just reinforces the feeling I have that my audience is the best audience. So you guys rock and let's get to it. Okay, So this is a question that comes up a lot. What was it that really inspired me to get involved in politics? And was there a specific moment? So I gotta go back, way back to get to this specific public political moment um, back when I was a kid growing up in Southern California and spending so much time outside. I mean, you guys, this place is magical. And for anyone who lives here, I know you know what I'm talking about, But for anyone who doesn't, Southern California is this incredibly vast, diverse ecosystem. You can be in the desert, literally amidst cacti and uh and desert rock, and two hours later you can be in the canyons of Los Angeles hiking through forests and running into little critters, and then in another hour you can be in the ocean. You could be, you know, diving off of Santa Barbara or Catalina Um, exploring what's going on under the sea. It's it's us such a rich ecological wonderland. And I think it's all of that, the things that I was so lucky as a resident here to have access to as a kid, that made me really passionate about the environment. And in sixth grade, I think it was sixth grade, it actually might have been fifth grade, I tried to start a beach clean up club at school and shocker, there aren't many ten year old who want to spend their days at the beach picking up trash. So my mom used to take me with trash bags by myself to go to the beach with me, and really really leaned in in her encouragement of that passion and just said, look, if this matters to you, it doesn't matter if anybody comes with you, you can do the work. And I think that's probably where those seeds were born in my little brain. And it was the environment that really got me active. You know, Once I was a working lady and I was doing a lot of work with a great organization call Global Green at the time, and when the Deepwater Horizon oil spill happened, they had some attorneys who helped to fight for environmental legislation and protection that were based in New Orleans, Louisiana, and I had lived out there for a summer making a movie actually right before Hurricane Katrina. So the ecological devastation the impacts of climate change on that area really hit home for me because so many of my friends have been affected, and we had the science even then that could trace the effects of climate change to devastation, superstorms, all all of the things that we're seeing. But you know, what's affecting the coasts also through weather patterns, affects our farmers in the heart of America, affects folks in the Pacific Northwest. We see um different kinds of ecological occurrences in each place, but they're all really interconnected. And I think the sooner we can catch up to that reality and and understand that if some terrible thing happens on the West Coast or in the Heartland, or you know, in northern Eastern States, all of it's connected and it's connected to countries around the world as well, and we owe it to ourselves and our neighbors and our neighboring countries to do better. So that's a little side note. But it was those, um, those attorneys who talked to me about what was happening on the ground in Louisiana, and they just said, listen, what's going what you see on the news is not what's going on down here. It's really really bad. And activists and lawyers and scientists are being held out of these beach zones where this oil spill is so devastating, and they're basically being held out by people who were paid by the companies that brought the devastation in the first place. And I remember thinking to myself, you know, you'd never let a murder suspect go into the house where someone was murdered and clean up the crime scene before you let the investigators in. And that's what this felt like to me, And it really didn't sit right with me. So I flew out there, and it was actually gearing up for that trip that I decided to open a Twitter account. I always thought, what do I want to open my life up to? You know, this weird website for and for people to be mean, and I play other people for a living. You know, I don't. I don't do reality TV. I'm not trying to put my life out there. And then I realized, oh, if there's people impersonating me on Twitter, and by the way, like early Twitter days, folks who were pretending to be me and accounts y'all didn't spell check. And my people know me better than that, so that's on you. But I I realized that opening a Twitter account, in all seriousness, could be a really excellent way to disseminate information. I could essentially run it like a news channel. I could go down to Louisiana and tell the truth about what was happening to the communities of fishermen and the coastal communities that were so affected by this horrible event. And so I did, And that was really the start of the way. So many of you know me as a an outspoken political activist because I took to social media to do the work I've been doing behind the scenes, to have the conversation I'd been having in like minded communities of activists around my dinner table at home. I took it public with all of you, and you all have been so incredible to do this with, So thank you for caring about the planet and about people, and yeah, that that was my very specific moment. So there's this incredible John Muir quote, and he's one of my favorite writers and thinkers on nature in general, and he says, when we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. And when I think about what that means, I think about the image of you know, pulling a thread in a sweater and then you know, the whole sweater comes undone. The planet is deeply connected. And environmental justice and focusing on issues of gender, and you know, the elevation of women stopping the subjugation of women lead me to everything else. You know, environmental justice is racial justice. Justice for women is environmental justice, It is racial justice. Everything exists in a nexus where it's connected. And so many times places that are harmed have the same types of communities of people that are harmed. And people ask me a lot about how can you be so into all these things? You know, you can't really care this much about all of these things. And the thing I try to luminate for people or teach people, is that all of these things are actually the same. They're all one long, connected thread. There is a through line in all of this, and that that through line is us and the systems that oppress us, and the systems that do more harm to certain communities than others, the systems that don't value the environment, the planet on which we all live as guests, as being as valuable as us in the moment. And I think there's deeper truth to how we can do this better. I think there's a reality of how we can do this better, and it requires a lot of hope, but it also requires a lot of honest observation of what's going on out there. And those things go hand in hand to me, you know, the honesty the revelation of fact can be heavy sometimes. But I'm also very hopeful that as genius little human innovators can figure out better ways to do things. So yeah, it uh, it all feels connected to me, and that's why I try to hustle so hard for all of us and for this place that we live in. Next question, This is when I actually often ask guests on my show, and I will go ahead and uh and take a run out it myself. Um many many of you sent in versions of this question which said, do you have any advice for anyone who wants to give back but doesn't know where to start? Yes, So what I think is incredibly important. If you have the inclination or the spirit to give back, you're you're already doing great. You care about the world around you, You are concerned with equity, um with with human betterment. You have to care about people in their lives to want to give back. So I applaud you for that, and I also will say it's incredibly important for all of us, and it was for myself at the start of this journey, and and always to self interrogate and check in as I'm on it to make sure that we are helping in ways that don't accidentally do harm. And the reason that I say that is it's important to show up but also slow your role. You need to identify what is it that you care about? You know what causes really make you angry when you hear about them. Is it environmental injustice? Is it racial oppression? Is it the pay gap for women? What really bothers you? What do you recognize as being patently unfair? Unjust and if you can recognize it, what do you want to do about it. My suggestion is, first you research organizations, whether it's nationally or in your area, that are working on the issue that you care about out and figure out how to show up when whether you are going to donate some money if you can afford to, whether you are going to donate your time, whether you call up and find out if you can volunteer or help run an event, or you know, contribute some of your skills, whether that's creating artwork for them if you are a graphic designer or an artist, or if it's maybe helping them, uh, you know, with some legal counsel. Whatever it is that you do, figure out what you can offer, and when you start volunteering with an organization or working with an organization, listen to the people who have been in it. Listen to the folks who know so that you can learn from them. It's the whole idea of help the helpers. You've got to show up and learn how to help the helpers to become a helper. So I think it's really valuable to give of yourself and also hold on to the fact that you probably have a lot to learn. And the fun thing is we all do even for me in areas in which I'm now you know, called on as an expert. That feels crazy to me, guys the notion of being an expert. I feel like I have so much left to learn. And I will say, if you can hold onto that curiosity and that willingness to learn, the willingness to adjust your opinions as you learn new information, you will be in such excellent service to the organizations and the people that you care about. Oh, this is a great one. What is an issue that you have come to learn more about and appreciate as a result of hosting work in progress? There are so many issues. I think that this question is meant to ask, is there a cause? Is there an organization that you didn't know about? I think, though, the thing that feels really important to highlight, the thing that comes to mind when I read this is the issue of fear and self doubt. Everyone is afraid that they're getting it wrong, and everyone wonders if they're ever going to make it, or if their life is going to fall apart, or if today is going to be the day that everybody figures out. I actually have no idea what I'm doing. Everyone has that. The most impressive people I have interviewed say yeah, I don't know. I'm just still figuring it out. I'm the one who's a work in progress. And I think that's something really important to hold onto, especially because in the world we live in with all of this digital connectivity, we see a lot of people in two D. And what I mean by that is that we see people on a screen, we see them on Instagram, we see them online. We don't see the complexity of their lives or the questions they ask themselves, or the ways that they deal with their insecurities, or their failures because everybody has them. Failures are just part of the road to success. We assume everyone else has it all figured out and no is what they're doing, and then it often makes us feel really bad about ourselves. And to learn that everyone is just a little human on this journey has been really helpful to me, and it has actually given me more grace for myself. But it's also given me so much more grace for people that I patently don't agree with, and even for some of the leaders who I'm so angry at. You know, the people who pedaled disinformation, who have made people feel afraid of science and medicine, who just plain lie. Being part of this experience has given me the ability rather than to say I can't believe you would behave this way, It's given me just enough space to say, I think you want the best for people, and if that's true, why would you lie to them? And the energy of that exchange, I realize is kinder. I realized it allows me to offer someone the room to change or to do better, and it also just makes me less angry, which feels nice because we're all trying to deal with our stress. So for me, I really think that's kind of the issue, really, the truth of the human experience that maybe I thought some people outgrew. You know, we're all just in it and we're all in it together, and that's been a really special thing to learn about and I deeply appreciate it in the time since I've started this podcast. And then in terms of the kinds of you know, quote unquote issues causes, Oh my goodness, I mean, I don't know how I could pick one. I really am so impressed by the things that the folks have come on the show are working on and dedicating themselves to it. It's something that's given me so much hope and appreciation and faith in us being able to, you know, bend that moral arc of the universe towards justice. As Dr King said, this is a really good follow up to is there an issue that you wish people were more aware of or active about in the US? I think a lot of people are aware of what is happening with the attempts at voter suppression in the country. I wish we were much more vocal about it. You know, we should be hitting the streets over these draconian voter suppression laws in the way that we hit the streets last summer. This is a very terrifying moment for us. There are people in this country who are trying to end democracy. They're trying to end the very founding principle of this country that it is for the people. Because they make a lot of money and they retain a lot of power by suppressing the vote. They don't want to see this country become more equitable for the vast majority of us. And that is very scary. You know, when you hear people say that these are the most aggressive voting restriction laws since the Jim Crow era that this is Jim Crow two point oh. That is very very serious. So I would really encourage everyone who's listening, you know, I know that that can feel scary or overwhelming to think about. Don't let it. Let it give you that kind of sacred rage, you know that like fire. Let's think about it like fuel and start calling your elected officials. Call your congress people, call your senators. Jump on the petitions that are circulating around the internet to end this stuff that are calling on the government to take action, Call on senators to end the filibuster so that we can achieve better democratic practices for everyone in this country. That's the whole point of living here is that everyone gets to vote, everyone gets to participate. And the idea that we're trying to disenfranchise our citizens in many areas are most disadvantaged citizens by taking away their right to vote. It's just unacceptable. It's unacceptable, and there's a lot we can do about it, and it's really important to remind people who want to say things like well, if we you know, if we nuke the filibuster for this, then what's going to prevent them from doing it to us? They've already done it. Mitch McConnell rammed through Supreme Court nominees after withholding Merritt Garland's nomination for nearly a year. He rammed through Supreme Court nominees by nu king the filibuster to pass those votes. He just said, nope, on this vote, We're not honoring the filibuster. So they do it to us all the time. It's time for us to fight fire with fire and do it to protect America, not to try to change the electorate and to change who justice applies to. So you know, light a fire under the asses of your elected officials and tell them to get to work. Actually, these are really related to that last point. And uh, what advice do I have for making a habit of social and political activism. I actually have scheduled in my calendar a weekly call to my elected reps. It doesn't take me very long, you know, depending on the issues that I need to talk about to whoever at their office answers the phone to take notes. I'd say, you know, between ten and twenty minutes. And I do it once a week and it's really really great call up and just say what are we doing about climate? What are we doing about a green New Deal, how are we prioritizing the ocean, and what's going on with voting, stand Up for Us past the four the People Act. These are the issues obviously that I'm calling about right now. Um, but every you know, every couple months, depending on what's happening in in the political landscape, they might change. But it's a really, really great habit to get into. And it's been really cool to see my friends with young kids do it when their kids are home and say, hey, this is what we do. This is how you participate, This is how you call the people who are supposed to take care of you and let them know what you care about. And I just think it's such a great habit to get into. So if you use any kind of calendar app on your phone, try plugging it in and then report back to us and tell us how it's going. So now, because so many of you ask about organizations to get involved in and about the things that I care about, and for recommendations of what you might be inspired by, I thought it might be really cool to highlight five organizations that are just doing such cool work in the world. The first feels really important to talk about especially a year and a half into this pandemic. You know, so many young people have had their lives turned upside down. School is such an important part of kids lives, their cognitive development and their social skills and all of it. And they've had to do school on zoom. And I will say, shout out to every single teacher out there who has just been doing such great work to entertain the kiddos in your classrooms and to make them feel engaged and loved. It's it's so special. One of which I have to say, Donovan Taylor Hall. You are such an amazing advocate for youth empowerment, So thank you. Um the videos of you and your classroom on zoom really are are some of the things I tune into to brighten my day. UM, So shout out to you and to all the other teachers. One of the things that teachers are talking a lot about and parents are talking a lot about is kids mental health. And I actually think the silver lining of the year. Thank God, kids are so resilient by the way. I think one of the silver linings of this year is a we've seen the ways that kids are managing to continue thriving and be we're finally talking about children's mental health and breaking through that stigma. Kids have struggled with mental health issues since long before this pandemic, and for whatever reason, we seemed really nervous to talk about that. And that's where an organization called On our Sleeves comes in. On our Sleeves is a national movement to break those stigmas around children's mental health issues. No family is supposed to struggle alone in their journey, and their mission is to provide free mental health educational resources to every community in America to educate families and empower advocates, and they also support access to services by connecting families to trusted local resources. On our Sleeves launched an incredible initiative called one Million Classrooms, and they are working on getting mental health tools into classrooms so that teachers can support their students and also let parents know when a student might be struggling, which is so incredibly important considering that kids in school spend so much time in their classrooms away from their parents. So whether you are a parent, a teacher, or you have a friend with a kid, check out on our Sleeves. It is a wonderful organization. And there's a couple of ways to get involved. If you go to their website on our Sleeves dot org, there are links to pledge to do one Small Thing. There are links to plan an event and even to plan a fundraiser. So if you're looking for a way to dedicate your time, this could be a really really great thing. UM The pledge to Do One Small Thing page feels really important. It's all about taking one small action, because that's really all it takes to start your journey to become a mental health advocate. And the first action is to start a conversation. So they have a whole list here of what you can do, and it's about checking in with someone, whether it's sending a text or an email, going for a coffee, UM, unplugging at a dinner, and having a conversation, you know, simple everyday conversations when a child has your full attention can really open doors to them revealing what they're going through. You can resolve not to use stigmatizing language, you know, throwing around casual terms like nuts are crazy, or or even technical terms that seem to have become inappropriate buzzwords like bipolar UM can really do a great deal of harm and so you can watch the words you use and educate yourself about them, and you can perform a random act of kindness. This is one of my favorite things that they do. Um they inspire all of us to go out and just do something like holding a door for someone you know, smiling at a stranger, or striking up a conversation in line, lending someone a hand. Uh. Kindness can really help someone who is struggling. And you can also encourage people well to pass that kindness on to others. So check out the website. Like I said, it's www. Dot on our Sleeves dot org. You can follow them on Twitter as well, and you can check out some resources about the organization in our stories this week next up, and this really relates to the conversation we were just having about activism in terms of defending voting. I am a voter. I am actually incredibly proud to say that I am one of the co founders that I am a voter. We are a nonpartisan movement that is aimed at creating a cultural shift around voting and civic engagement by unifying all of us around a central truth. Our democracy works better when we all participate, and there are ways in which we all describe ourselves, right I am a friend, I am a daughter, I am an actor, I am an activist, I am a podcast host, and I am a voter. Being a voter is actually a huge part of our identity, and it's actually the part of our identity that gives us the strongest representation and also a guarantee that we can uphold democracy, that we can live in a society that functions. And I hope that you guys feel really really inspired about being civically engaged. I hope that when you describe yourself, you all would say I am a voter too. You can get involved in a couple of ways. The way that I'm probably the most proud of is that we built a chatbot. And you guys, there's nothing I hate more than getting a bunch of messages that A, I don't need, be are repetitive or c or honestly just annoying. So I helped do this because I wanted it to be great, and I wanted it to be really, really, really clean and effective. All of us at the team really oversaw how this thing would communicate with you, and it is literally the easiest. You just text the word voter v O t e R two to six seven nine seven. Voter to to six seven nine seven. Are you doing it right now? I mean, if you're driving, don't do it. But if you're like sitting somewhere listening to this podcast, open your phone, open your text app and text voter to to six seven seven. You will get a quick text message and the text sign will remind you when elections are coming up in your area. It will let you know if you're pulling place is changed. You can check in and make sure you have not been purged from your voter roles, which, by the way, huge scandal happening right now. Our chat line will make sure you have exactly the information that you need and none that you don't, so make sure you sign up for your election reminders. You can also go to the website at I Am a Voter dot com and you can follow us on Instagram at I Am a Voter. And if you're feeling inspired and you love democracy as much as I do, you can go to the website and donate anything that you're able to. Next up and many of you know that this is an issue that is incredibly close to my heart. I want to talk to you all about every Town and Mom's Demand. Every town is on a mission to change gun violence in America. Gun violence touches every town in America, and for too long, life saving laws have been thwarted by the gun lobby and by leaders who refuse to take common sense steps that will save lives. But something is changing. More than six million mayors, moms, teachers, survivors, gun owners, students, and everyday Americans have come together to make change in their own communities and make their own communities safer. Every town starts with you, and it starts in your neighborhood. By introducing evidence based solutions in every town, we can end gun violence. And the ways that you can get involved. Go to the website every town dot org. You can download their volunteer app, which happens to be the same as the Mom's Demand app, and I'm just about to tell you about Mom's Demand. You can, of course donate or this is one of my favorite things to do because I love to help print phone banks. You can volunteer on their text or their call team so is. Check out every town dot org online, go follow them on Twitter and on Instagram. At every Town and one of their partner organizations run by my dear friend, Shannon Watts, who is literally a Mamma Warrior. She is so impressive and committed to her advocacy. Mom's Demand Action is a grassroots movement for Americans fighting for public safety measures that can protect people from gun violence. We can pass stronger gun laws and work to close the loopholes that jeopardize the safety of our families. We can also work in our own communities and with business leaders to encourage a culture of responsible gun ownership. We know that gun violence is preventable, and we are all committed to doing what it takes to keep families safe. That is the mission statement of Mom's Demand and I am slow clapping over here, except you know not so that I don't ruin the sound. Please go to Mom's Demand Action dot org and if you want to get involved, you can also download their volunteer app. Same as every Town, they share an app. It's incredible. You can email to become on volunteer. You can call your senators, which, like I said earlier, makes a huge difference. There are events and virtual events, and there is even a Student's Demand Action network for younger listeners and students who are fed up with going to school, terrified of gun violence. Mom's demand is just unbelievable, you guys, I don't have enough good words to say about them. I could talk about them for ages. I really really believe in their mission, and I really believe that there is a solution for all. So let's do it. Next up, I want to talk to you about the Urban Ocean Lab. The Urban Ocean Lab was co founded by Work in Progress guest and dear friend dr Ianna Elizabeth Johnson, and they cultivate rigorous, creative, equitable, and practical climate and ocean policy for the future of coastal cities. Now, coastal cities are leaders in climate and ocean policy, obviously, as they're on the coasts, in plementing science based and forward thinking strategies, ensuring environmental justice for coastal communities, and serving as a laboratory for state and federal initiatives. Now, even if you don't live on a coast, and we were talking about this earlier, I think you would love to get involved with the Urban Ocean Lab because, as we discussed before, if there is a weather event on the coast, it also affects our inland communities. We're seeing changes in weather patterns and extreme heat and droughts that are affecting our farmers. We saw those daio's last year that ravaged Middle America and destroyed crops and upset the economy. All of this is connected and if we can protect our oceans, we can protect our country and we can protect our planet. Ianna and some of the episodes that she's done for us here at Work in Progress has really explained how this works. You can check out our episode from earlier this year and our Well and Good series where there's even a video interview to learn about how important ocean cities are to all of America and about how as we move forward into this new phase of our humanity, the oceans and the climate research that comes out of them and the jobs that they can create are actually going to be huge industries for us, and they're going to support the economy and incredible ways, so we can be good to the environment, good to the economy, and good to each other all at the same time. Honestly, it's incredible. So visit Urban ocean Lab dot org. You can follow at Urban Ocean Lab on Twitter, and you can get involved. They are actually hiring right now, guys. They're hiring project managers in coastal cities. These are paid, full time jobs. So go to Urban Ocean Lab dot org. If that sounds interesting to you, you might get hired. You can also donate because they're doing great work and get passionate about the ocean. Last Up is an organization I have been obsessed with for so many years and finally managed to have the founder of come on Work and progress as well. That's Jose Andres, and the organization is the World Central Kitchen. The World Central Kitchen uses the power of food to nourish communities and strengthen economies through times of crisis and so far beyond. Jose Andres is often first on the ground with w c K, supporting communities and disaster zones and also running culinary training programs and social enterprise ventures. They have activated in communities around the United States and all over the world to meet the daily needs of families that are in need of a warm plate of food, and they have supported thousands of local restaurants in the process. They kept so many restaurants up and running through this pandemic. Guy's World Central Kitchen is truly amazing, and they've responded to natural and man made disasters in countries on five continents. They worked to help during the massive bushfires in Australia, they offered assistance after a deadly explosion in Lebanon, and they were on the ground helping Central America recover from devastating hurricanes. They are fighting to feed hungry people around the world, and at the same time they continue planting roots in the communities where they work with a food producer network which is helping to create food resilience in the face of future disasters. In Haiti, for example, aspiring chefs are obtaining the skills and confidence they need to elevate their careers and the country's tourism sector. They have shown that there is no place too far or a disaster too great for their chefs to show up with a hot plate of food when it is needed most. So please consider checking out the World Central Kitchen. You can go to w c K, which obviously stands for a World Central Kitchen w c K dot org. You can follow them on Twitter at w c Kitchen, and you can volunteer. You can donate. Also check out that website because they are hiring right now, and I honestly can't imagine a kinder person to work for than Jose Andres. If you haven't listened to his episode of this podcast, you absolutely should because I would wager that you're going to feel the same way. So everyone, I hope that this has been an inspiring episode of the show. I hope that those little previews into five of my favorite organizations have you furiously searching through Google right now and following people on Instagram and on Twitter, because if you follow these organs, I promise you're going to get even more committed, even more inspired, and I bet you're going to help change the world. Thank you so much for your great questions. Keep them coming, and we'll see you next week. I work in progress.