Spark
96 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 13 ratingsSpark, hosted by Kellee Marlow, on KXSF.FM in San Francisco, focuses on curated conversations with change-leaders and influencers- to inform minds, inspire ideas and ignite innovation. Basically, conversations that enable us to transcend beyond what we believe we are capable of.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Power of Identifying and Harnessing Inflection Points
March 30, 2023 20:10 - 27 minutes - 49.5 MBAs the pace of change continues to accelerate, we are both in a state of extraordinary challenges and opportunities. Kellee talks with Rita Gunther McGrath, a leading expert on innovation and growth during times of uncertainty. She will share her insights on how to identify, anticipate and harness the power of inflection points. Rita Gunther McGrath is a best-selling author and a longtime professor at Columbia Business School. She is widely recognized as a premier expert on leadin...
Control of Your Personal Identity
February 02, 2023 19:50 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MBAs our personal information including our address and everything that we do becomes more and more accessible over the Internet, how should we be thinking about privacy and protecting ourselves. Kellee talks with Arjun Bhatnagar, CEO of Cloaked about how our data is being accessed as well as how we should consider protecting our personal information in the digital world. Arjun Bhatnagar is the CEO of Cloaked -- a consumer-first privacy startup dedicated to bringing humanity back t...
Becoming Cyber-Wise
January 26, 2023 00:50 - 21 minutes - 19.9 MBGrowing up in a digital world involves new challenges tied to protecting your children’s privacy, self-esteem and exposure to the darker side of the Internet. Kellee talks with Diana Graber, co-founder of Cyberwise, on how to help you, to help your children build a healthy relationship with technology. Diana Graber is the founder of Cyber Civics and co-founder of CyberWise. She is also the author of "Raising Human in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with ...
Rise of Humanoid Robots
October 25, 2022 17:22 - 27 minutes - 24.8 MBWith the rise of AI-robots, in taking over repetitive tasks and even more activities in the future, there is a now an empath robot, with evolving emotional intelligence. It is seen as a viable solution, in supporting the world’s aging population. Her name is Sophia. She is the world’s first robot citizen and the first robot, Innovation Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program. She is used for research, as part of the Loving AI project, which seeks to understand how robo...
Trend-Spotting in a Topsy-Curvy World
October 19, 2022 19:26 - 25 minutes - 23 MBWith the world appearing to be topsy-curvy these days, are there still predictable trends and do they really matter? If there are clear trends, what are they and where are we heading? Kellee talks with Daniel Levine, a leading trend expert on the state of the world and the trends that will define the direction of our near future. Daniel Levine is one of the world's best-known trends experts. He is the director of the Avant-Guide Institute, a New York-based consultancy that helps s...
You Are a Public Figure
October 04, 2022 18:24 - 29 minutes - 27.5 MBEveryone in the digital age is a public figure. Your credibility is also determined by how you are treated by others online. How do you protect yourself or even young bloggers and users of social media online from negative interactions, reputation damage and abuse? Kellee talks with Dr. Michelle Ferrier, founder of TrollBusters.com, a just-in-time rescue service for female writers and journalists experiencing online harassment as well as cyber awareness for the younger generation w...
Sustainable Innovation: Space-Age Cleaning Technology
September 14, 2022 18:38 - 27 minutes - 50.5 MBWith the scare resource of water now a global issue, energy crisis and microfibers from our clothing making their way into our food chain, what can be done about these challenges? Oxwash has created an innovative washing and drying technology model, based on the design for recycling resources in space, to address challenges associated with garment cleaning that is both water- and energy- intensive. In addition, Oxwash’s model solves both the release of microfibers and toxic detergen...
Dating Post-Pandemic
June 07, 2022 15:08 - 23 minutes - 21.7 MBNow that we are coming out of the pandemic, dating in person is back on again. What is trending on the dating scene and what to do about online “swiping” burnout? Kellee talks with Samantha Garcia, Bumble's Marketing Director for the Americas. She will share how to have both a better online (or app-driven) and off-line dating experience. Bumble is an online platform for those seeking connections for dates, friendships or business mentors. It is designed to empower women to initiat...
Unleashing Your Creativity
May 25, 2022 15:22 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MBChange is constant and it is speeding up even faster now. One indication is the number of people pivoting in their lives. This requires us to be able to adapt with agility. Most importantly, unleash our creativity to fulfill our potential in our pivot. Kellee talks with Maria Brito, a leading expert on creativity. She will share how we can better tap into our creativity, to successfully transition in our ongoing pivots, especially in today fast-paced changing environment. Maria B...
Art of Stand-Up Comedy
April 28, 2022 19:38 - 29 minutes - 27.4 MBWe all could use more laughter right now. Kellee talks with Dhaya Lakshminarayanan, an award-winning stand-up comedian, storyteller and writer. She shares her journey as a stand-up comedian and how we can better flex our funny bone. If you want to learn what it takes to be a stand-up comedian, this is the episode for you. Dhaya's debute album DHAYATRIBE debuted #2 on iTunes. She received the Liz Carpenter Political Humor Award (previously awarded to Samantha Bee, Wanda Sykes and M...
Rise of Influencer Marketing
September 30, 2021 17:27 - 26 minutes - 48.4 MBAliza Freud is the Founder and CEO of SheSpeaks, which was launched in 2008 as a platform to amplify women’s voices. It is now the largest community of female influencers, reaching 300 million consumers per month, through brand programs designed and executed to drive real impact. The platform has become the voice of female consumers and influencers. It has created an award-winning Influencer Platform, with over 250 thousand members. Aliza Freud's expertise has been featured on ABC N...
How to Grow Your Community, Online and IRL
September 16, 2021 13:47 - 23 minutes - 42.5 MBJill Salzman is currently growing her third entrepreneurial venture, The Founding Moms, where she helps female entrepreneurs build better businesses. Previously, she started a music management firm and then launched and sold a baby jewelry company before creating her current venture. Jill is the author of The Best Business Book In The World* (according to my mom) and the Amazon best-seller, Found It: A Field Guide for Mom Entrepreneurs. She has shared the speaker stage with Richar...
Never Give Up
September 02, 2021 16:27 - 23 minutes - 43.2 MBAstronaut Clayton –“Astro Clay” spent 167 days in space and 38 hours and 28 minutes in executing 6 spacewalks. He applied 15 times before NASA selected him as an Astronaut in 1998, and he spent 30 years working for NASA; 15 as an engineer and then 15 as an Astronaut. Succeeding in one of the most difficult and coveted jobs in the world through perseverance and a never-give-up mantra, Anderson employs NASA’s “Plan, Train and Fly (Execute)” philosophy to his goals. He is the author o...
Science of Wisdom
August 18, 2021 21:56 - 23 minutes - 42.8 MBDilip Jeste, M.D. is a geriatric neuropsychiatrist, who specializes in successful aging, neurobiology of wisdom and psychotic disorders in older adults. He is the Senior Associate Dean for Healthy Aging and Senior Care, Estelle and Edgar Levi Memorial Chair in Aging, Director of Sam and Rose Stein Institute for Research on Aging, Founding Director of UC San Diego Center for Healthy Aging, Co-Director, IBM-UCSD Artificial Intelligence Center for Healthy Living, at the University of C...
Courage to Pursue
July 29, 2021 15:54 - 23 minutes - 44 MBDarcy Gaechter is an extreme athlete, entrepreneur, environmental activist and author. She is the first woman to kayak across the widest part of South America, stretching 4,000 miles, from source to sea. Ms Gaechter has won whitewater kayaking races throughout the world and led kayaking expeditions in eighteen different countries. When she is not on a whitewater expedition, Ms Gaechter runs her kayaking business, Small World Adventures. She is also the author of The Kayaker’s Guid...
Living Through Menopause
July 15, 2021 00:10 - 21 minutes - 20.1 MBDr. Jen Gunter is known by her thousands of fans as "Dr. Jen." She is also regularly referred to as "Twitter's resident OB/GYN." As an internationally, successful author and physician, her New York Times and USA Today bestselling book, The Vagina Bible, has been translated into nineteen languages and she recently released The Menopause Manifesto. The Guardian newspaper in the United Kingdom has called her “the world’s most famous—and outspoken—gynecologist.”
The New Rules of Aging Well
April 01, 2021 13:09 - 28 minutes - 52.2 MBDr Frank Lipman’s health expertise is endorsed by celebrities including Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick and Michelle Williams. He has authored a number of wellness books, with the latest: The New Rules of Aging Well. His advice has been featured in leading publications including Vogue, Bazaar, Allure, NY Times and Wall Street Journal.
Combatting Hair Loss
March 25, 2021 13:29 - 27 minutes - 50.4 MBAs the cofounder of Nutrafol, Dr Sophia Kogan focuses on developing supplements to deter hair loss and support its regrowth. Its supplements have been recognized by publications including Allure and Esquire as well as highlighted in NY Times, Bazaar and Huffington Post.
Optimizing Your Gut Health
March 18, 2021 14:30 - 29 minutes - 27.3 MBDr. Swann is an expert in the fields of prebiotics, probiotics and the microbiome. He is a Board Certified Family Physician with a focus on patient health, wellness and prevention. Dr. Swann is also a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. He received his Clinical Research Training through the National Institute of Health. He is also a Member of the Board of Trustees at the University of California, Me...
Integrative Infusion of the Future
March 04, 2021 15:23 - 17 minutes - 16.5 MBGary Shinner shares their journey from starting Mighty Leaf Tea to their new entrepreneurial vision and mission with Good Pharma. They have interwoven ancient medicine and science into their Good Pharma beverages. Their entrepreneurial success with multi-dimensional infusions has been featured in leading media outlets including CNN Money, NY Times, Inc., and SF Chronicle.
Rise of Narcissism
February 25, 2021 14:23 - 29 minutes - 27.3 MBRamani Durvasula is a licensed clinical psychologist, professor of psychology, media expert, and author. Her research on personality disorders has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and she is a Consulting Editor of the scientific journal Behavioral Medicine. She has shared her expertise on narcissistic personality disorder and narcissistic abuse, in leading media outlets including Red Table Talk, National Geographic, Today and Good Morning America.
Rise of Solopreneurs During Pandemic
February 18, 2021 15:54 - 25 minutes - 47.6 MBClaudia Viek founded the Invest in Women Entrepreneurs Initiative in 2018 after serving for ten years as CEO of CAMEO, the leading network of 120 organizations serving 50,000 micro and small businesses in California. She is the former Executive Director of the Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, an award-winning training, financing and business incubation program in San Francisco. Claudia was a longtime board member of the national Association for Economic Opportunity and a previou...
Social Impact: Innovating Fintech for Those Most in Need
February 11, 2021 14:45 - 23 minutes - 42.4 MBIn addition, Propel is a co-creator of Project 100 that has quickly raised and distributed over $140 million in cash to the most vulnerable population during this pandemic. Propel is building software for low-income Americans who are often overlooked by traditional tech innovation. Their current focus is on helping people manage their food stamps, a $70 billion program that reaches 40 million Americans, with the goal of providing an economic empowerment platform for them. The comp...
Social Impact: Financial Access for the Unbankable
February 04, 2021 15:04 - 29 minutes - 54.7 MBMost goods are created by millions living in poverty around the world. BankQu uses its blockchain technology to empower those who are unable to prove their identity and economic participation. Through implementation with corporations to record all impoverished farmers or workers that are contributing crops, raw materials and services to their supply chain, it enables these farmers and workers to have financial identity and viability. BankQu is an award-winning, social impact enter...
Social Impact: Combatting Human Trafficking in the US
January 28, 2021 15:35 - 31 minutes - 57.7 MBPolaris is an award-winning, non-profit organization that is leading a data-driven social justice movement to fight sex and labor trafficking. For more than a decade, Polaris has assisted thousands of victims and survivors through the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline, helped ensure countless traffickers were held accountable and built the largest known U.S. data set on actual trafficking experiences. It has been a recipient of social impact awards and featured in media outlet...
Social Impact: Eradicating Modern Slavery
January 21, 2021 15:30 - 26 minutes - 49.5 MBUnseen is an award-winning, non-profit organization working to end human slavery. Its focus spans from providing safehouses, support helpline, victim outreach, re-integration, multi-sector partnerships and working with businesses on transparent supply chain. It has been a recipient of social impact awards and featured in media outlets including BBC, Business Times, Reuters, CNN, and The Economist.
Social Impact: Homelessness to Skilled Employment
January 14, 2021 14:59 - 23 minutes - 43.9 MBBeam's social impact innovation has won numerous awards including MIT - Inclusive Innovation Challenge, Tech4Good Awards and Financial Times' Europe’s 100 Digital Champions. Its mission and success have been featured in leading media outlets including BBC, Forbes, Financial Times and Reuters.
Social Impact: Prison to Entrepreneurship
January 07, 2021 14:49 - 26 minutes - 49.3 MBThrough the Defy Ventures, 82% employment rate was realized for its post-release program in 2018. The recidivism rate (return to prison) rate for Defy graduates is 7.20% within the first year compared with the national average of 44%. Andrew shares the factors that lead to a successful transition for ex-inmates and how we can support their transformation into becoming contributing members of society. Defy Ventures is a non-profit organization focused on addressing challenges tied to...
Sustainable Innovation: Food Waste Re-Engineered into Fashion Fiber and Plastics
December 31, 2020 14:22 - 18 minutes - 16.5 MBMi Terro’ Pro-Act technology has been recognized as a leading innovation in sectors including agriculture, food technology and sustainable solutions. It upcycles or repurposes surplus food and agricultural by-products, into plastic-alternative and cotton-alternative fibers for the fashion, medical, and packaging industries. In addition, it is helping farmers and agriculture processors create a new stream of revenue from its surplus supply. At the same time, it is providing compostab...
Sustainable Marketplace: Values-Driven Shopping
December 17, 2020 15:23 - 21 minutes - 38.7 MBEvery dollar you spend determines who and what thrives. According to Nielsen, e-commerce is booming, with the online grocery industry expected to exceed $100 billion by 2022. In this larger retail shift, consumers are also looking to support brands that embody their values. 75% of millennials are actively changing their consumption habits to reduce their impact on the environment, with 80% willing to pay more for products with social responsibility claims. By 2021, consumers are pro...
Sustainable Fashion: Wear the Change You Wish to See
December 10, 2020 14:50 - 28 minutes - 52.9 MBTeam Timbuktu uses organic and recycled plastic fabrics in their activewear line to create high-performance fabrics, without the usage of petroleum and high-energy output. 73 percent of their activewear are made from recycled plastic. Thus far, 75,000 bottles has been recycled into its activewear fabric, reducing dependence on fabrics made from oil and recycling single use plastics. The company focuses on sustainable and ethical sourcing of its products without compromising high-qua...
Sustainable Innovation: Pee Powered Energy
December 03, 2020 14:41 - 29 minutes - 54.5 MBIoannis Ieropoulos is the Professor of Bioenergy and Self-Sustainable Systems and Director of the Bristol BioEnergy Centre, at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of West England. He focuses on waste utilization and energy autonomy. Professor Ieropoulos produced the EcoBot family of robots, which are powered by microbial fuel cells (MFCs) fed on organic waste, with the latest self-sustainable robot, Row-bot. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the grantor of the "Urine-trici...
Countering Disinformation in Digital Age
November 19, 2020 14:43 - 25 minutes - 47.4 MBPhilip Napoli is a Professor of Public Policy and Faculty Affiliate with the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media & Democracy at Duke University. He is the author of Social Media and Public Interest: Media Regulation in the Disinformation Age. His previous books include: Audience Evolution: New Technologies and the Transformation of Media Audiences, Communications Research in Action: Scholar-Activist Collaborations for a Democratic Public Sphere (with Minna Aslama), Audience Economics: M...
Power of Purpose
November 12, 2020 16:13 - 22 minutes - 20.7 MBEric S. Kim is Assistant Professor of Psychology at University of British Columbia. He is a Visiting Scientist and Research Affiliate with the Lee Kumon Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University’s Institute for Quantitative Social Science. With a key focus being on purpose, his research aims to identify, understand, and intervene upon the dimensions of psychological well-being tha...
Ending Ageism
November 05, 2020 14:34 - 30 minutes - 55.3 MBAshton Applewhite has been recognized by The New York Times, National Public Radio, the New Yorker, and the American Society on Aging, as an expert on ageism. She blogs at ThisChairRocks.com, and has written for Harper's and The Guardian, and The New York Times. She has been named as a Fellow by the Knight Foundation, The New York Times, Yale Law School, and the Royal Society for the Arts. In 2015, she was included in a list of 100 inspiring women who are committed to social change....
Why Can't We Sleep?
October 29, 2020 14:06 - 42 minutes - 77.4 MBDr Guy Leschziner is a leading neurologist and authority on the science of sleep. He is a consulting neurologist at the London Bridge Hospital, the Cromwell Hospital and within the Department of Neurology and Sleep Disorders Centre at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals. He is clinical lead for the Sleep Disorders Centre, Guy's Hospital, one of Europe's largest sleep units, and Professor of Neurology at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neur...
Signs of Job Burnout
October 22, 2020 13:42 - 28 minutes - 52.4 MBChristina Maslach is a Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. She is recognized as the research pioneer on burnout and created the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) that is the most widely used measure of job burnout. She has written award-winning articles and books, including “The Truth About Burnout” and a forthcoming book on how to make the world of work a better place, to be published by Harvard University Press. She is the Vice-Provost for Undergraduat...
Happiness in a Pandemic
October 15, 2020 13:44 - 21 minutes - 40.2 MBIn her work, Gretchen Rubin draws from cutting-edge science, the wisdom of the ages, lessons from popular culture, and her own experiences to explore how we can make our lives happier, healthier, more productive, and more creative. She is the author of many books, including the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers Outer Order, Inner Calm, The Four Tendencies, Better Than Before and The Happiness Project. Her books have sold over 3.5 million copies worldwide, in more than thirty la...
Confidence as a Choice
October 08, 2020 16:27 - 28 minutes - 53 MBAlyssa Dver is CEO of the American Confidence Institute & Chair of the ERG Leadership Alliance. She is the author of “Confidence is a Choice: Real Science. Superhero Impact." Her book has been endorsed by leading experts at Harvard, MIT, Wharton and other prominent universities. She is also the “In Confidence” podcast co-host. A Boston Best Speaker, Alyssa teaches at Wharton’s Innovation Center, advises at the MIT’s Trust Center, and judges the Stevie’s Women in Business & Best Empl...
Wilder Than Wild
October 01, 2020 16:29 - 24 minutes - 44.6 MBKevin White is an Emmy Award-Winning producer, director, and writer. He founded Full Frame Productions and co-created the non-profit, Filmmakers Collaborative SF. Kevin has produced and directed dozens of films that have been screened in the many of the leading film festivals including Berlin Film Festival and San Francisco Film Festival. His work has received multiple awards including Emmys, CINE Golden Eagles, ACE Awards, while also being broadcasted on PBS, National Geographic, D...
Persuade Like a Mentalist
September 24, 2020 13:35 - 43 minutes - 80.3 MBJonathan Pritchard is a mentalist to Fortune 500 companies including Disney, Universal, Hyatt and United and works with these companies to engage their audience. He has performed as a mentalist around the world for over 15+ years and appeared on shows including America's Got Talent, Penn and Teller and Vegas. He consults and coaches on the psychology of communication, negotiation, influence, and sales based on his expertise as a mentalist. Jonathan is the author of four books on mot...
Art of Empathy
September 17, 2020 15:48 - 31 minutes - 57.2 MBJodi Halpern is a Chancellor’s Chair and Professor of Bioethics and Medical Humanities, in the Joint Medical Program and the School of Public Health at UC Berkeley. Her foundational research on clinical empathy was pivotal in making medical care more patient-centered and inspired a wave of research on patient-doctor relationships. In her first book, From Detached Concern to Empathy: Humanizing Medical Practice was called a “seminal work” by the Journal of the American Medical Associ...
Resilience Through Self-Compassion
September 10, 2020 15:43 - 28 minutes - 52.4 MBKristin Neff is widely recognized as one of the leading experts on self-compassion, being the first one to operationally define and measure the construct over a decade ago. She has been credited with conducting the first academic studies into self-compassion and creating the Self-Compassion Scales. Kristin is the Associate Professor in Educational Psychology at the University of Texas, Austin, and the author of Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself and co-autho...
Courage to Look Within
September 03, 2020 15:46 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBA three-time national tennis champion and former FBI agent, Banni Bunting is a UCLA trained Mindfulness Facilitator as well as a member of the International Mindfulness Teachers Association (IMTA). Banni’s current focus is bringing mindfulness into the classroom to both teachers and students. She is the author of How Do You See the World? a mindfulness book for children accompanied with a complete mindfulness curriculum. Her training includes with the Greater Good Science Center at ...
Why Social Attitudes + Biases Are Contagious
August 27, 2020 16:47 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBAllison Skinner-Dorkenoo is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at University of Georgia. She directs the Georgia Attitude, Bias, and Behavior Acquisition Lab (GABBA Lab) and examines how attitudes, biases, and nonverbal behaviors are established, maintained, and facilitated through subtle messages present in everyday life. More specifically, she studies how situational cues in our social environments shape our attitudes and behavior toward other individuals and groups. Her researc...
Eating for Longevity
August 20, 2020 16:00 - 31 minutes - 29.2 MBChristina Pirello is the Emmy Award-Winning television personality of Christina Cooks. She has authored seven cookbooks, including Cooking the Whole Foods Way, which was named the "Healthiest Cookbook of the Decade" by the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine. Christina also lectures as a professor of culinary arts and nutrition, at The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College. She holds a Masters Degree in Nutrition and received the 2020 Philadelphia Award for Health Food...
Sustainable Living with Less Is More
August 06, 2020 16:20 - 19 minutes - 17.6 MBLindsay Miles is a passionate zero-waste and plastic-free living spokesperson, author and educator who helps people to find more meaningful lives with less waste and less stuff. She has been sharing ideas and strategies on her popular website, Treading My Own Path, since 2013, and has been featured across international media including BBC, The Guardian,TEDx, ABC and more. She gives talks and workshops to encourage others to embrace change, reconnect with their values and make a posi...
Thriving on a Plant Based Diet
July 30, 2020 18:16 - 21 minutes - 19.4 MBSharon Palmer is a registered dietitian and nutritionist (RDN) with more than 18 years of experience in plant-based nutrition and sustainability. She has written over 1,000 articles in a variety of publications, including Better Homes and Gardens, Oprah, and LA Times and author of plant diet books: The Plant-Powered Diet: The Lifelong Eating Plan for Achieving Optimal Health, Beginning Today, Plant-Powered for Life: Eat Your Way to Lasting Health with 52 Simple Steps & 125 Delicious...
Power of Awe
July 23, 2020 16:23 - 28 minutes - 52.7 MBMichelle "Lani" Shiota is a social psychologist and associate professor at Arizona State University, where she directs the Shiota Psycho-Physiology Lab for Affective Testing. Her research and publications focus on positive emotion, positive reappraisal, aging and emotion, and emotion in close relationships. She is lead author of the textbook "Emotion" and co-editor of the "Handbook of Positive Emotions.” Her research on awe has been featured in leading media outlets including, Oprah...
3-D Printing of Coral Reefs From Extinction
July 16, 2020 17:16 - 23 minutes - 43.1 MBDanielle Dixson is a marine biologist and associate professor of the School of Marine Science and Policy, at University of Delaware. Her research and conservation work have been featured in leading media outlets including BBC, NPR, National Geographic, Nova documentary film. She has been a contributing writer for the National Geographic, creator of the Sea Story books and speaker at the US Senate and House of Representatives.