Welcome to Dreaming in Color, a show hosted by Darren Isom, a partner with The Bridgespan Group, that provides a space for social change leaders of color to reflect on how their life experiences, personal and professional, have prepared them to lead and drive the impact we all seek.

Today we welcome Mia Birdsong, a pathfinder, writer, and facilitator who engages the leadership and wisdom of people experiencing injustice to chart new visions of American life. As the Founding Executive Director of Next River, she nourishes communities toward a liberated future.

In her book "How We Show Up" and the podcast miniseries "More Than Enough," she highlights community vitality and the guaranteed income movement. Previously, Mia was Co-Director of Family Story and Vice President of the Family Independence Initiative, promoting new narratives and leveraging data to support low-income families.

Her public dialogues, TED talks, and other initiatives spotlight marginalized voices as leaders of change. A Senior Fellow at the Economic Security Project and a Future Good Fellow, Mia lives in Oakland, tending to bees, chickens, and plants on the occupied land of the Chochenyo Ohlone people.

In this episode, Darren and Mia discuss what constitutes something as radical, a future without poverty, and finding joy and optimism in activism.

This is Dreaming In Color.

Jump straight into:

(00:22.7) Introduction of Mia Birdsong, Founding Executive Director of Next River.

(06:27.5) Cracked open: Mia shares her educational beginnings in Rochester and how an unexpected Public Enemy cassette tape on a school bus ignited her path to activism.

(09:19.9) Critical Resistance and Mia’s journey to becoming an abolitionist.

(12:04.2) The American dream vs. the collective dream.

(13:43.1) Ending poverty is not a problem of lacking solutions, but of lacking belief. Mia Birdsong explores her initial efforts advocating for a guaranteed income.

(20:59.9) Dismantling power structures and moving beyond wealth and power hoarding.

(22:51.2) We explore Mia’s work with Next River and her unwavering commitment to guaranteed income, guaranteed housing, education and universal healthcare.

(26:02.6) What is radical? Mia shares how many “unattainable radical beliefs” are actually being successfully performed all over the world and how discovering these stories of small communities implementing these systems for themselves inspires her work.

(29:38.2) The path of least resistance: Mia discusses finding strength in vulnerability and staying optimistic vs. falling into cynicism.

Episode Resources

• Keep up with Mia on Twitter, Instagram, & LinkedIn
• Learn more about Mia through her website.
• Order Mia’s book “How We Show Up” here.
• Listen to Mia’s podcast “More Than Enough” here.
• Watch Mia’s TEDX Talk “The Story We Tell About Poverty Isn’t True” here.

Welcome to Dreaming in Color, a show hosted by Darren Isom, a partner with The Bridgespan Group, that provides a space for social change leaders of color to reflect on how their life experiences, personal and professional, have prepared them to lead and drive the impact we all seek.

In this episode, we sit down with Naomi Ostwald Kawamura, the Executive Director of Densho, an organization devoted to documenting the testimonies of Japanese Americans who were unjustly incarcerated during World War II. Naomi has a rich background, with a BFA in Metal Design from the University of Washington, a Master’s in Education from Harvard, and a PhD from the University of British Columbia, where she studied the intergenerational transfer of memory in Japanese-American and Japanese-Canadian communities. Before Densho, she led the Nikkei Place Foundation and held key roles at the San Diego History Center and the California Center for the Arts. Naomi is passionate about addressing the challenges faced by community history organizations, especially concerning the legacy of Japanese American WWII incarceration, and has shared her insights in various publications, including an upcoming book on ethnic diversity and national identity in history education.

Join this conversation as Naomi explores themes of heritage, resilience, and storytelling. She discusses her upbringing as the daughter of Japanese immigrants in California and her parents' encouragement to embrace both her Japanese and American identities. Naomi shares her family's history, including her father and grandfather's survival of the American atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and emphasizes the importance of making history relevant for younger generations. Listen as she highlights the challenges of preserving oral histories, the role of technology in accessibility, and the power of art in conveying complex emotions and histories.

This is Dreaming In Color.

Jump Straight Into:

(00:22.2) Introduction of Naomi Ostwald Kawamura, Executive Director of Densho.

(01:37.9) Naomi reflects on an inspirational visit to the Meiji Jingu Shrine.

(02:45.7) Naomi discusses her roots and the immigration story of her parents.

(06:07.2) Naomi connects her history to the bombing of Hiroshima.

(07:52.6) Being a light in the darkness: Naomi shares how her family’s history inspires her work.

(12:15.6) Naomi dives into memory research and discusses collecting stories from diverse perspectives to honor and preserve each viewpoint, thereby creating comprehensive historical narratives.

Episode Resources:

• Connect with Naomi through LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Densho through their website.
• Read Naomi’s interview with Densho here.
• Read Naomi’s Densho article “Building Community and Connection that Transcends Borders” here.
• Watch Naomi’s town hall on community and connections here.
• August 6th and 9th, 2024, mark the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This New York Times Op-Ed presents survivor testimonies and underscores the significance...

Welcome to Dreaming in Color, a show hosted by Darren Isom, a partner with The Bridgespan Group, that provides a space for social change leaders of color to reflect on how their life experiences, personal and professional, have prepared them to lead and drive the impact we all seek.

In this episode of Dreaming In Color, guest host Angela Maldonado, a partner at Bridgespan, welcomes Tarik Ward, Director of Global Strategic Operations and U.S. Programs at ELMA Philanthropies. As the manager of digital and physical infrastructure for ELMA Philanthropy Services, Tarik oversees their operations in New York, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Kampala. He also directs U.S. programming for the ELMA Music Foundation, ELMA U.S. Foundation, and ELMA Caribbean Foundation.

Tarik's innovative approach has significantly expanded the reach and impact of the ELMA Music Foundation both in the U.S. and South Africa. His collaborations with organizations using music for youth development are transforming lives and creating brighter futures.

With a career journey as diverse as it is impressive, Tarik has worked as a flight controller for the International Space Station at NASA, a consultant at Deloitte focusing on education and early childhood development nonprofits, and as the COO of the Commit! Partnership, a nonprofit dedicated to quality education access in Dallas, Texas.

Tarik holds a B.S. in aerospace engineering from MIT, an M.B.A., and an M.A. in education from Stanford University. Beyond his professional achievements, he is a passionate trumpet player and has amassed a digital music collection of nearly 100,000 songs.

Join us as we dive into Tarik's journey, explore his insights on the educational potential of music, and discover how his work is making a global impact.

Jump Straight Into:

(00:22.1) Introduction of Angela Maldonado, Partner at Bridgespan.

(00:52.1) Introduction of Tarik Ward, Director of Global Strategic Operations and U.S. Programs at ELMA Philanthropies.

(01:55.1) Tarik reminisces on the memory of his mother and how she inspired him to dream and learn music.

(06:22.8) Tarik takes us on his journey from musician, to MIT student to eventually flying spaceships for NASA.

(11:56.6) Tarik tells us how he met his wife and how she inspired his journey to Stanford and eventually into education and non-profit work.

(18:28.9) Tarik talks about his non-traditional approach to funding and how he builds relationships with other leaders of color.

(22:19.1) Tarik comments on the current state of philanthropy and paints us a picture of what he hopes the future will look like.

Episode Resources:

• Connect with Tarik through LinkedIn.
• Learn more about ELMA Philanthropies through their website.
• Follow Tarik on Twitter.
• Read Tarik’s interview with Entartain Impact here.
• Learn more about Jamaican composer and musician Ansel Collins here and follow him on Instagram here.
• Listen to the Dreaming In Color Spotify Playlist here.