Culture Stew is a show dedicated to exploring diversity, inclusion, and cultural identity in its many dimensions. We explore how our identities and values influence our personal and professional lives. Through interviews with scholars, journalists, scientists, and leadership development practitioners, we'll delve into different concepts around cultural identity, explore how to lead diverse teams and organizations, and seek ways to build bridges across cultural chasms.
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June 3, 2026Episode 943 min
Recentering and Empowering Diverse Voices in Publishing
Lilly Ghahremani is a recovering attorney who now "uses her powers for good!" as the co-founder and literary agent for adult and children's books at Full Circle Literary. She represents a wide range of authors and illustrators, thinking strategically about building lasting careers that are both productive and satisfying in a rapidly-changing publishing landscape. As literary agent, she's spent over two decades advocating for marginalized voices and transforming the publishing landscape. In this episode of the Culture Stew, Lilly reveals how the industry's biases and censorship, both overt and subtle, silence diverse stories and what we can all do to reclaim them. From supporting diverse authors to engaging in meaningful conversations Lilly and Maria explore how activism can be woven into daily life, making it accessible and impactful for everyone.
April 23, 2026Episode 755 min
Reimagining Sustainable Economies
Veryl Pow is a movement lawyer at the Sustainable Economies Law Center who practices at the intersection between solidarity economics, housing decommodification, and land liberation. An activist first, Veryl's politics developed from his grassroots organizing experiences in resistance movements that spanned Third World solidarity to abolitionist campaigns; and has since expanded to prefigurative worldmaking movements that attempt to transform social and economic relations from profit accumulation, extraction, and atomization to care, cooperation, and mutual aid in the here and now. The Sustainable Economies Law Center is a worker self-directed nonprofit that is one such experiment in worldmaking because of its non-hierarchical structure and democratization of decision-making and labor. You can learn more about the work of the Law Center through their 2026 Project Gallery. In the month of May 2026, the Law Center is running their annual, community-gathering Grassroots Fundraising Campaign. The theme this year is #AllHandsOnDeck, as we need as many hands to build strong ties in local communities to meet this moment of curated chaos in our federal government.
April 9, 2026Episode 61 hr 4 min
Recentering Courage and Care in Education: A Conversation Dr. Todd Beer and Devin Moran
What is the role academics play in institutions, especially in the classroom, when it comes to supporting students' critical thinking around social issues? As we struggle with questions around free speech and what can or cannot be taught on campuses, how do educators navigate these issues, not necessarily from an administrative perspective, but from a student-focused one? Dr. Todd Beer is an Associate Professor and Chair of Sociology and Anthropology at Lake Forest College in Illinois, where his research spans globalization, social movements, environmental sociology, and climate justice. Dr. Devin M. Moran is a faculty member at Austin Peay State University's College of Education in Tennessee, teaching classroom management, instructional design, and the foundations of education. Dr. Moran is a sought-after speaker, researcher, and facilitator known for helping institutions build more inclusive, equitable, and effective learning environments.
March 25, 2026Episode 557 min
Reimagining Media Literacy
In a media landscape shaped by algorithmic amplification, AI-generated content, and narratives that move faster than facts — credibility has become the scarcest resource in the room. Lyanne Alfaro is an award-winning journalist, a narrative advisor, and a former insider at some of the most influential institutions shaping how the world understands business, technology, and capital. Her latest venture, Project Reliable, is an independent initiative working at the intersection of narrative strategy, media posture, and ethical influence. In this conversation, Lyanne shares how we can engage in everyday activism in how we consume, question, and share media. We also discuss the importance of organizations being intentional in how they respond to crisis situations to build credibility and trust. Find out more about Lyanne and her projects at: https://projectreliable.com/ https://www.monedamoves.com/
March 11, 2026Episode 41 hr 4 min
Rethinking Patient Advocacy
Dr. Leigh Ann Simmons wants to give women tools to better advocate for themselves at every stage of their health journey. As a medical practitioner and researcher, Dr. Simmons has published extensively on health disparities and is a leading scholar in promoting behavioral interventions to improve equity in health care. Dr. Simmons is a professor at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis and co-director of the Perinatal Origins of Disparities (POD) Center at UC Davis. She is the author of an upcoming book that will help women advocate for their care and help healthcare professionals become better allies for women's health.
February 27, 2026Episode 31 hr 7 min
Rethinking Community and Climate Justice with Collective Power
"At the roots of Collective Power is the idea that we can do more collectively than we can do individually." On this week's episode of the Culture Stew, Maria interviews Kelly and Christine Wyche, co-founders of Collective Power, an organization founded with the purpose of assisting underserved communities facing the challenges of climate change, aging infrastructure, and unsustainable lifestyle practices. Together, they explore how to imagine new infrastructures for sustainable living, scaling from book clubs to broader communities. We will get a sneak peak into their new book "Building Community with Collective Power: A Practical Tool," which outlines how you can bring this work to life in your own community. Find out more about Collective Power at https://www.ourcollectivepower.com/
February 11, 2026Episode 251 min
Healing as Resistance: Food Justice as Activism
How can the food we choose to eat, as well as the practices we use to source, prepare, and share our food, be a source of activism and liberation? Karina Sanchez (she/they) is a holistic health and wellness practitioner and food justice organizer. She co-leads Veggie Mijas Chicago, supporting plant-based education, mutual aid, and community programming for Queer BIPOC communities. Karina is an herbalism apprentice with Urban Growers Collective, a yoga teacher through the Latina Sweat Project, and an energy healing apprentice at Verde Holistic Wellness Studio, where she studies Mesoamerican healing practices and facilitates trauma-informed, culturally rooted wellness offerings. With over a decade of experience in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and community engagement, Kari brings a strategic and relational approach to systems change. In recent years, she has hosted workshops and community spaces that invite participants to begin decolonizing their relationships to food, health, and healing. Her work centers reconnecting people to their bodies, the land, plant medicine, and ancestral wisdom as pathways toward individual and collective liberation. Ways to Connect With Veggie Mijas Follow on Instagram: National: @VeggieMijas Chicago: @VeggieMijasChicago Donate via the website to support programs, including community fridges, food access, and education. Purchase the digital cookbook, Manteniendo Nuestra Cultura, available on the Veggie Mijas website — a celebration of plant-based recipes rooted in culture and tradition. Partner or work with Veggie Mijas: they offer services and collaborations for individuals, teams, and organizations interested in plant-based education, food justice, and sustainable, equitable food systems.
January 28, 2026Episode 248 min
Screaming Together for Liberation & Connection
In this episode, Maria sits down with Manny Hernandez and Elena Soboleva, co-founders of Scream Club™, to explore what it looks like to create spaces where people no longer have to hold it all in. Manny, a men's coach and breathwork practitioner, and Elena, a personal brand expert and community leader for women entrepreneurs, are aware of the impact of societal gender norms on mental health and wellbeing. Together, they share how their own lived experiences led them to build a community that challenges norms around silence, emotional suppression, and rigid gender roles, inviting people to be honest about stress, anger, grief, and joy. In our conversation, we explore the rapid growth of Scream Club, the power of collective release, and why building authentic, human-centered communities is not just healing, but necessary in a world that constantly asks us to perform instead of feel. Scream Club is now in multiple cities across the U.S. and abroad, bringing communities together to release the stresses of their daily lives collectively as a group.
January 14, 2026Episode 16 min
Redefining Activism: An Intro to Season 7
What does activism really mean? This season, we're centering the idea that justice and equity are not only pursued through protests, but also through everyday actions that shape how we show up for ourselves, our communities, and the world around us. Whether it's teaching women how to advocate for their healthcare needs, buiding sustainable communities through homesteading, relearning ancient wisdom related to food, or collectively screaming over a body of water to promote mental wellbeing, our guests this season will demonstrate how activism takes many forms across disciplines and lived experiences. Each episode highlights how individuals and communities are redefining activism in ways that are creative, relational, and deeply human. Buckle up and tune in!
July 2, 2025Episode 1653 min
Bringing Joy to Change: A Conversation with Judy Oyedele
In this episode of Culture Stew, host Maria Maroukian welcomes Judy Oyedele, founder and principal consultant of Joyedele Consulting. Judy is an organizational development practitioner and executive leadership coach with over a decade of experience helping leaders across sectors break out of the status quo and lead with clarity, ease, and strong boundaries. Judy shares reflections on her upbringing as the daughter of Nigerian immigrants in Texas and how early messages around worthiness and faith shaped her identity and resilience. She and Maria explore the evolution of self-worth beyond external validation, particularly in academic and professional environments, and how redefining identity is a powerful act of liberation. They dive into Judy's approach to culture change—one that prioritizes joy, justice, and human-centered leadership—and the challenges and rewards of coaching and podcasting. Judy also discusses her own podcast, Transformation Horizon, which amplifies stories of people driving change through organizational development and human connection. Whether you're a coach, change leader, or just someone craving deeper joy in your work, this episode offers meaningful insights and actionable wisdom.
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