Episodes

Today, we’re in conversation about the act of listening. Our guests are researchers Netta Weinstein, Associate Professor in Psychology at the University of Reading, and Guy Itzchakov, an assistant professor in the Department of Human Services at the University of Haifa. Profs. Weinstein and Itzhchakov are part of a research team working to develop a scientific understanding of what listening is, what its benefits are, and why it matters so much to our well-being. Learn more: Guy Itzchakov...

Today, we’re talking about a pursuit of well-being that impacts us all — climate health. Today’s guest is Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and the first woman to hold that elected office and former United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights. Since Robinson’s tenure as Ireland’s President ended in 1997, she has continued to work tirelessly to promote gender equity, human rights, and, most recently and most intensively, climate justice. Robinson speaks about the interdependence of peop...

Today’s guest is international superstar dancer/choreographer Judith Jamison. In 1964, at just 21 years old, Jamison made her dance debut in New York with the American Ballet Theater. She soon joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, eventually becoming the company’s principal dancer, then its artistic director, and, since 2011, she’s been artistic director emerita. Learn more: Judith Jamison Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Alvin Ailey Video: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater pe...

In today’s episode, we delve into how humans flourish through music and listening with internationally acclaimed musician, composer, and bandleader Wynton Marsalis. At the age of 60, after a long, international career, Marsalis identifies not only as a solo artist and a group leader, but as an educator and a leading advocate of American culture. Learn more: Wynton Marsalis Subscribe to Stories of Impact wherever you listen to podcasts More about this episode Read the transcript of ...

Today, we hear about human happiness from two of the world’s foremost researchers on the subject: Dr. Laurie Santos and Dr. Arthur Brooks. Dr. Santos hosts The Happiness Lab, a podcast “that will forever alter the way you think about happiness.” She’s also a Professor of Psychology at Yale University and teacher of one of the most popular classes ever in Yale history: The Happiness Class, which tries to give students the keys to happiness and satisfaction. Dr. Brooks is a Harvard professor, soci...

In today’s episode, we hear from The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson, the first African-American woman to lead a top-ranked research university — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute — and Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Secretary-General at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, an intergovernmental economic organisation with 38 member countries who stimulate economic progress and world trade. These two globa...

Today, we’re delving into a discussion with Casper ter Kuile and Reverend Sue Phillips, two of the co-founders of Sacred Design Lab, which describes itself as a “soul-centered research and development lab.” If you’re thinking, “Wait, how can you do R&D on the soul?!”, you’ll want to hear what ter Kuile and Rev. Phillips have to say. Rev. Sue Phillips is a graduate of Colgate University and the Episcopal Divinity School, and she has served as a Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity Sc...

Our new season begins with scientist, entrepreneur, and philanthropy leader Dr. Andrew Serazin, President of Templeton World Charity Foundation. Dr. Serazin discusses TWCF's latest initiative, the Grand Challenges for Human Flourishing, which will enable researchers to discover new knowledge, develop new tools, and launch new practices or interventions that make a lasting impact on human flourishing. Learn more about the Grand Challenges for Human Flourishing initiative. Subscribe to Stories of...

The birthright of every human being is not just to survive, but to thrive. This year on the Stories of Impact Podcast, we bring you conversations about the science behind innovative tools that help human beings flourish. Join host Tavia Gilbert and journalist Richard Sergay to hear about the intersection of the science and spiritual practices that give life the deepest meaning and fulfillment. Every first and third Tuesday, you’ll hear from global luminaries with expertise in psychology...

Today’s episode highlights Richard’s conversation with Dr. Everett Worthington. Dr. Worthington is Commonwealth Professor Emeritus at Virginia Commonwealth University. For the last 30 years, Dr. Worthington has been studying forgiveness, and he has written more than a dozen books on the subject. In 2001, he developed the pioneering REACH Forgiveness method, which has helped thousands of people—including himself—reap the mental and physical benefits of forgiveness. Learn more about Dr. Everett...

Today, we hear a fascinating and inspiring conversation having to do with the flourishing of young South Africans. Today’s episode features Richard’s conversation with Nina Callaghan, former Associate Director and current South African Chair of Children’s Radio Foundation. In a post-apartheid country still suffering the social, psychic, and economic wounds of decades of institutionalized racial segregation, the very act of teaching these youth basic journalism 101, including ethics, consent, and...

Today we hear from Dr. Arthur C. Brooks, Professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School and Professor of Management Practice at the Harvard Business School. He’s also the former president of the American Enterprise Institute, a leading public policy think tank. You may be familiar with Brooks from his work as a writer — he’s the author of eleven books, including the national bestsellers Love Your Enemies and The Conservative Heart, a columnist for The Atlantic, host...

Templeton World Charity Foundation President, Dr. Andrew Serazin, is back for another conversation with podcast host Richard Sergay. Dr. Serazin talks about human flourishing — what it is, and how TWCF hopes to spur discovery about it. Dr. Serazin shares his excitement about the foundation’s Grand Challenges for Human Flourishing program, born out of a specific strategy to discover new knowledge, develop new tools, and launch new innovations that make a lasting impact on human flourishing. Di...

Imagine a state of being in which all the many dimensions of your life are good. Imagine health that goes beyond typical measures of physical and mental well-being, but expands to include life satisfaction, meaning and purpose, character and virtue, and thriving social relationships. This spring, join producer Tavia Gilbert and journalist Richard Sergay for the fourth season of the award-winning Stories of Impact podcast. This season, we bring you explorations of how people throughout the wor...

Today, Richard is in conversation with Dr. Filippo Trevisan, assistant professor at the School of Communication and Deputy Director at the Institute on Disability and Public Policy at American University. Dr. Trevisan talks about our evolving views on social media and offers insight on how we can use — and how we are already using — the Internet as a tool to improve representation in our democratic process. More about Filippo Trevisan Mentioned in this episode: Citizenship in a Network...

Today’s conversation is with David O’Brien, Assistant Research Director at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. Prof. O’Brien talks to Richard about how we as citizens can bring our democratic values to bear on social media platforms; the role privacy plays online in allowing democracy and democratic citizenship to flourish; and more. More about David O’Brien and the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society Mentioned in this episode: Citizenship in...

Today’s episode features a conversation with Colin Mayer, Peter Moores Professor of Management Studies and the former dean at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. Prof. Mayer speaks to host Richard Sergay about the role of business institutions in building resilient and cohesive communities, as well as the necessity of trust in whether civilization itself will be sustained. More about Colin Mayer and his published works, including Prosperity: Better Business Makes the Greater...

Today, host Richard Sergay speaks with Baroness Onora O’Neill, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Cambridge University. Prof. O’Neill, whose work has focused on international justice and the roles of trust and accountability in public life, discusses the value of privacy in a time of surveillance capitalism, human rights after the digital revolution, and the importance of listening as a civic virtue. Mentioned in this episode: Citizenship in a Networked Age Internment of Uighurs in China...

As we explore our season focusing on citizenship in the networked age, journalist Richard Sergay explores the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen in the digital era, the individual and community strengths inherent in healthy citizenship, and the threats to our future without it. Today’s conversation is with Sir Paul Collier, a professor of economics and public policy at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Professor Collier is a world-renowned economist and a best...

Today’s conversation features three intersecting perspectives on the topic of citizenship in a networked age. We’ll hear from Vint Cerf, Google's vice president and chief Internet evangelist, and one of the world’s recognized “fathers of the Internet”; Nuala O’Connor, former president and CEO at the Center for Democracy and Technology; and Michael Wear, a strategist, speaker, and practitioner at the intersection of faith, politics, and public life. Each of them adds dimension to our podcast’s on...

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Andrew Briggs, a professor of nanomaterials at the University of Oxford, and Dr. Dominic Burbidge, a lecturer in politics at the University of Oxford and director of the Canterbury Institute. Along with a team of scholars, their study of citizenship in a networked age has led to a carefully crafted report, including seven recommendations in support of their Agenda for Rebuilding Our Civic Ideals. Learn more about Citizenship in a Networked Age and the Agenda ...

How can we listen to people we don’t agree with? Rebuild trust in an era of “fake news” and “alternative facts”? Create social cohesion, cooperation, and healthy, safe, inclusive societies? If you find yourself asking, “What are our rights as citizens, and what are our responsibilities?,” you’ll want to join journalist Richard Sergay and producer Tavia Gilbert for Season 3 of the Stories of Impact podcast, which explores the timely and vital question of what it means to be a citizen in a netw...

In the final episode of our second season, we meet three scientists who are creating a community of people who see the world differently, bringing together scholars from around the globe who are passionate about collaboration and exploration of the myriad intelligences throughout the planet and the cosmos. Richard Sergay speaks with Drs. Erica Cartmill and Jacob Foster, co-directors of the Templeton World Charity Foundation Diverse Intelligences Summer Institute (DISI), and DISI associate direc...

Today, we speak with an ethicist, a computer scientist, and a neuroscientist who have teamed together at Duke University to research how we might build human morality into an artificially intelligent machine. Drs. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, Jana Schaich Borg, and Vincent Conitzer also tell us about a surprising outcome of their research: that imbuing machines with the ability to act in accordance with moral principles can actually help us deepen our understanding of our own moral philosophy and b...