find your cause

Hosted by Joseph Smalzer

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209

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Aug 2026

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About the show

"find your cause" is the official podcast of Greater Than Zero Percent (GTZP). GTZP is 501(c)(3) non-profit on a mission to find people and organizations that are changing the world and sharing their stories. We believe that however big or small of a positive impact you have, every bit counts. As long as you are adding greater than zero percent, the momentum you build is already changing the world.

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September 14, 2026Episode 21132 min

Why Do Women Need Seven Conversations to Run for Office with Sarah Jakle

Sarah Jakle is the founder and executive director of DemocraShe, a national nonpartisan nonprofit that gives historically underserved high school girls free online training in resiliency skills, public policy leadership, and civic engagement, paired with a stipend so cost is never a barrier to participating. Sarah built the program after a diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis derailed her career as a social worker studying trauma and resilience through a military-focused master's in social work. She turned that research into practical tools (what DemocraShe calls "amygdala skills") for regulating fear and self-doubt, first for herself, then as national outreach director for a voter registration organization and Get Out the Vote director for California NOW, and now for the thousands of girls who go through DemocraShe's programs. She founded DemocraShe in January 2021 after learning that high school is the last point where boys and girls believe they can run for office equally. The organization is now 92 percent girls of color and 70 percent first generation Americans, and Sarah's five year goal is to grow the program to serve 115,000 girls by 2030. Timestamps: [00:00] Cold open: what did a rheumatologist tell Sarah she'd never do again? [00:56] Introduction [01:09] What is the mission of DemocraShe? [01:31] Why did Sarah found DemocraShe, and what's the origin story? [05:31] What are the early signs a woman is counting herself out? [07:17] Is there an evolutionary reason women's brains respond to risk differently than men's? [12:07] What can a woman do right now to work through that response? [15:55] How does DemocraShe turn these practices into an actual program? [17:35] What changes do girls see in themselves before and after the program? [22:12] What are DemocraShe's plans for the next five to ten years? [29:25] How can someone get engaged with DemocraShe? [30:58] What does Sarah want to leave listeners with? Guest Links: Website: https://www.democrashe.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/democrashe/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DemocraShe-110108011246367 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/democrasheorg/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

September 5, 2026Episode 21038 min

80% Return to Their Trafficker. Empowered Network Changed That with Kristy Norbert

Kristy Norbert is the co-founder and executive director of Empowered Network, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2017 that partners with survivors of human trafficking to achieve economic independence. A Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 20 years of experience, Kristy didn't set out to work in anti-trafficking. After moving to Connecticut, she met Abby Fabiaschi, the board chair of an anti-trafficking organization operating in Southeast Asia, and once she saw exploitation up close, she couldn't walk away. The two co-founded Empowered Network to address the gap that exists after crisis services end, partnering with survivors who have reached stability to build a 12-month empowerment plan covering housing, education, and employment. The organization serves around 200 survivors per year, with fewer than 2% of graduates returning to exploitation after completing the program. Timestamps: [00:00:00] Who keeps going back? [00:00:33] What is Empowered Network? [00:01:04] Why did Kristy end up here? [00:03:25] What does trafficking look like in the U.S.? [00:06:09] How does Empowered Network define trafficking? [00:06:48] What is familial trafficking? [00:07:58] What long-term impacts does nobody talk about? [00:08:36] What gap did Empowered Network exist to fill? [00:10:24] What is the re-trafficking rate? [00:11:31] When does a survivor enter the program? [00:13:46] What are the two program pathways? [00:15:06] What careers and wage gains are survivors seeing? [00:16:42] How did Empowered Network change how it measures impact? [00:18:46] Why does this data matter to survivors too? [00:20:34] What do survivor stories from the program look like? [00:24:43] What keeps Kristy going? [00:26:08] How does she stay grounded doing this work? [00:27:52] How has this work changed how she parents? [00:31:40] Where is Empowered Network headed? [00:33:50] How can someone get involved? [00:36:04] What does Kristy want people to know? Guest Links: Website: https://www.empowerednetwork.com LinkedIn (Kristy Norbert): https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristy-norbert-73448231 LinkedIn (organization page): https://www.linkedin.com/company/empowerednetworkorg/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EmpoweredNetworkorg/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/empowerednetworkorg/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

August 29, 2026Episode 20930 min

$112 Stops One Trafficking Victim with John Molineux

John Molineux is the founder and CEO of Love Justice International, a Christian nonprofit that fights human trafficking through a method called transit monitoring: training volunteers to intercept potential victims at borders, airports, bus stations, and other transit points before they are exploited. He moved to Nepal after college at Taylor University and stayed for 20 years, later relocating to South Africa, where he now lives with his wife, Aksha, and their two sons. Under his leadership, Love Justice has grown to 17 countries, intercepted more than 115,000 potential victims, and helped lead to about 2,000 arrests. The organization also runs children's homes and a school in Nepal called the Dream School. Timestamps: [00:00:25] Introduction, who is John Molineux and what is Love Justice International? [00:01:05] What is the mission of Love Justice International? [00:01:21] Why did John found Love Justice International? [00:03:28] How many people are living in modern slavery right now? [00:04:05] Why does human trafficking happen in the first place? [00:04:44] What role do governments play in stopping trafficking? [00:06:55] What sparked Love Justice's shift toward fighting trafficking directly? [00:09:16] How does transit monitoring actually work? [00:11:55] How much does it cost to intercept one trafficking victim? [00:12:36] What is the Dream School? [00:13:42] How does John stay hopeful doing this work every day? [00:16:18] What can everyday people do to help stop trafficking? [00:17:27] How does Love Justice decide where to expand next? [00:20:48] How does Love Justice work with local law enforcement? [00:21:35] Why aren't arrests equal to the number of interceptions? [00:22:49] What kind of data does Love Justice track on traffickers? [00:23:53] Is sharing trafficking data across countries a challenge? [00:24:36] How can listeners get involved or donate? [00:28:25] What's John's final challenge to listeners? Guest Links: Website: https://www.lovejustice.ngo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-molineux-04792b239 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LoveJusticeIntl/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lovejusticeintl/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

August 22, 2026Episode 20827 min

Stage 4 Cancer Led Her to Build a Search Engine for Good with Dvora Inwood

Dvora Inwood is co-founder and Head of Product at Samaritan Scout, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that built the first AI-powered search engine dedicated to connecting people with local, in-person volunteer opportunities. The idea started with her daughter, a high school freshman who kept running into a wall trying to find real, nearby service hours, only to find Google surfacing large national organizations and outdated directories with nothing local. When Dvora was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer in 2022, the recovery gave her the time and urgency to finally build it. She launched Samaritan Scout in May 2023 alongside co-founder Will Rosenthal, a then-high school senior with a background in cybersecurity. Today, Samaritan Scout crawls more than 25,000 certified 501(c)(3) organizations, lets users filter by location, skills, and cause, and is working toward a full volunteer management platform that removes the friction from sign-up on both sides. Timestamps: 00:00:00 - She Got a Stage 4 Cancer Diagnosis and Built a Search Engine During Recovery 00:11:28 - Why Do Most Volunteers Never Discover More Than One Organization? 00:08:50 - She Lived 7 Miles From This Volunteer Opportunity for 30 Years and Never Knew It 00:08:04 - Why Is Volunteering With Strangers the Real Cure for Loneliness? 00:06:34 - What Skills Do Nonprofits Need That They Don't Know How to Ask For? 00:25:16 - Why Do Only 12% of Nonprofits on the IRS List Actually Want Volunteers? 00:16:04 - What Is the One Friction Point Stopping Most People From Ever Volunteering? 00:12:40 - She Builds This Unpaid, Up Late at Night, for Years. What Keeps Her Going? Guest Links: Website: https://www.samaritanscout.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dvora-inwood/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Samaritan.Scout/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samaritanscout/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

August 15, 2026Episode 20744 min

The Cowboy Myth Every Activist Believes with Shane Lukas

Shane Lukas is the owner and creative strategist of A Great Idea (AGI), an LGBTQ+-owned brand communications agency he founded in 2015, based in Greensboro and Durham, North Carolina, working with purpose-driven nonprofits and for-profit companies in healthcare and education across the country. He is also a two-time TEDx speaker (his second talk focuses on values), an author with a book coming out later this year, and a co-host of Power Beyond Pride, a weekly podcast spotlighting LGBTQ+ changemakers. Shane's activism started in his teen years and has centered on bodily autonomy and harm reduction, beginning with Planned Parenthood, work he says has shaped both his personal life and how AGI approaches brand strategy for its partners. Timestamps: 00:00 What happens when a nonprofit's numbers don't add up? 00:29 Who is Shane Lukas? 00:57 What is A Great Idea? 01:34 Why did Shane become an activist? 02:19 Is every organization "purpose-driven"? 03:44 Why does a food bank need to exist? 05:48 How do you find your real impact story? 10:12 What is the "Amazoning problem"? 13:57 Where's the line between values and manipulation? 16:54 Which values are rising and falling? 19:47 Why don't we agree on facts anymore? 23:05 Should social media follow publisher rules? 28:47 Can lived experience alone show you truth? 30:35 What should a young activist learn first? 34:03 Why shouldn't you do this work alone? 36:14 What impact has A Great Idea had? 38:25 Where does Shane want to be in 10 years? 41:07 Where can you learn more about Shane? 42:09 What's Shane's closing message? Guest Links: Personal website: https://shanelukas.com Organization website: https://agreatidea.com LinkedIn (personal): https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-lukas/ LinkedIn (A Great Idea): https://linkedin.com/company/agreatideacom Facebook (A Great Idea): https://facebook.com/agreatideaco Instagram (A Great Idea): https://instagram.com/weareagi Podcast: https://powerbeyondpride.com GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

August 7, 2026Episode 20645 min

Why Do Only 1 in 30 People Say Thank You with David Homan

David Homan is the founder and CEO of Orchestrated Connecting, LLC, a private global community of connectors spanning thousands of family offices, investors, artists, and impact leaders across dozens of countries. He is also the founder of SOAR Connect (Strength of Authentic Relationships), a relationship intelligence platform built to help people ask for what they need and match trusted introductions at scale, and co-author of the book Orchestrating Connection: How to Build Purposeful Community in a Tribal World, written with Noah Askin. Before building his network of connectors, David ran a global arts charity in his twenties and spent years as a classical musician and theater performer, backgrounds he credits with teaching him to listen closely enough to know exactly who someone should meet next. On this episode, he joins Joseph to talk about honoring the chain of connections, why gratitude is the most overlooked currency in relationship building, and what he's building with SOAR Connect to bring trust and intention back into networking. Timestamps: [00:00] Can one call end a trafficking ring? [00:34] Who is David Homan? [00:57] What is Orchestrated Connecting's mission? [02:00] How did a shy kid build this network? [03:13] What does honoring the chain mean? [04:31] How did a bathroom line fight trafficking? [05:59] Why don't we follow up on intros? [07:58] Why does one in thirty thanking you matter? [09:13] What happens when your network stops calling back? [12:14] How do you know a connection is worth making? [14:56] What should a new networker do first? [18:32] Why do doors open when you're not in the room? [19:23] Why be transparent about a startup that might fail? [21:03] What does David hope to see in ten years? [23:13] What is SOAR Connect? [25:08] What's the hardest part of building trust tech? [28:13] Why score trust out of fifteen, not ten? [30:15] Why won't SOAR Connect touch your inbox? [33:05] Can outreach be selfish and selfless at once? [38:57] What does SOAR Connect need to succeed? [40:35] How can listeners get involved now? [42:00] What has grief done to David's music? [43:12] What's the one thing to do this week? Guest Links: Website: https://orchestratedconnecting.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrhoman/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_connection_orchestrator/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

August 5, 2026Episode 20541 min

He Lost His Language When He Immigrated to America with Vladimir Baranov

Vladimir Baranov is the founder of Human Interfaces, where he coaches science and tech executives and founders on the leadership and communication skills their technical training never covered. His path there was not direct. He spent years in financial services before co-founding a wealth management SaaS company that grew over seven years and was acquired by Franklin Templeton, then moved into aerospace as an early team member on a satellite startup. Even after that success, he found himself wanting more direct, human impact, which led him to become a certified executive coach (UC Berkeley) with MBAs from Columbia and London Business School. His approach blends roughly 80 percent coaching questions with 20 percent mentoring from lived experience, built specifically for engineers and scientists stepping into leadership. Timestamps: [00:00:00] What happens when a founder wants to walk away from a co-founder? [00:00:51] What does a coach for science and tech executives actually do? [00:02:01] Why did Vladimir choose coaching as his life's mission? [00:03:21] What do first-time coaching clients actually want to know? [00:08:14] Why do even Amazon employees need a coach outside the company? [00:09:28] What's the real difference between coaching, mentoring, and consulting? [00:14:10] Why do technical people struggle to relate to others? [00:17:16] How much control do you actually have over your career? [00:23:04] Is your manager really the reason you're unhappy at work? [00:26:48] What happens when one question changes a founder's mind? [00:28:30] How did losing his language for eight years shape Vladimir's path? [00:31:21] Why did selling his company still leave him feeling empty? [00:34:59] How do you actually measure the impact of coaching? [00:40:14] Where can you find Vladimir Baranov? Guest Links: Website: https://www.humaninterfaces.co/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladimirbaranov Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/humaninterfacesx/ GTZP Links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp

July 24, 2026Episode 20436 min

Don't Let AI Write This For You With Jermaine Ee

Jermaine Ee built a chatbot to help his mother put her life into words: her belongings, her memories, the people she loved. A few months into the project, she had a stroke and passed away. Before that, on a family trip back to Oklahoma, she stood in a remodeled Burger King and finished a story she'd carried for forty years. Jermaine turned that mission into HeirLight, an app built to make estate planning feel less like paperwork and more like the conversations that mattered most. TIMESTAMPS: [00:00:22] What is the mission and purpose of HeirLight? [00:02:07] What role did your mother play in inspiring HeirLight? [00:06:33] Was your mom able to share her story and experiences before passing? [00:11:28] What are the core components of a standard estate plan? [00:13:28] What is the difference between an advance directive and a power of attorney? [00:14:30] Why should you avoid drafting a legal will using generic AI tools? [00:17:18] What is the step-by-step experience for someone using HeirLight? [00:25:30] How has HeirLight evolved since launching, and where is it headed? Heirlight Website: https://heirlight.com/en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/HeirLight-61577567893011/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heirlight/ App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/heirlight-simple-will-maker/id6748193203 Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.heirlight.app&hl=en LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/heirlight/ GTZP links: Website: http://www.gtzp.org Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast ... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQ ... YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp #FindYourCause #GreaterThanZeroPercent #EstatePlanning #Nonprofit #MissionDriven #HeirLight #LegacyPlanning #FounderStory

July 14, 2026Episode 20333 min

Giving At-Risk Kids Their First Passport With Omari Davis

Home economics. Wood shop. Music. The enrichment classes that taught a generation how to actually live got quietly cut from schools, but the kids still need them. Omari Davis built an organization to put them back. Omari Davis is the founder and executive officer of Get Out And Learn Something (GOALS), and a returning Find Your Cause guest five years after his first appearance. In this conversation he and Joseph Smalzer get into the "Use What You Got" culinary unit that teaches latchkey kids to make a real meal from whatever's already in the kitchen, the Passion Through Passports program that has taken youth on their first flights to Jamaica, Costa Rica, and Puerto Rico, why "no man is an island" still matters in the age of AI, the importance of protecting the pause between a question and an answer, and the slow, cold-call-and-a-flyer work of growing to nearly 20 schools across two states. G.O.A.L.S. Website: https://www.getoutandlearnsomething.com/ Email: getoutandlearnsomething@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/getoutandlearnsomething Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getoutandlearnsomething/ GTZP: Website: gtzp.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/greaterthanzeropercent/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greaterthanzeropercent/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/greaterthanzeropercent/ Want to be a guest? You may reach jerome@gtzp.org for inquiries. #FindYourCause #YouthDevelopment #Education #Nonprofit #LifeSkills #GreaterThanZeroPercent

July 7, 202637 min

45 Years Fighting for the World's Most Forgotten People With Steven Muncy

Steven Muncy was 23 years old, had never left the US, and couldn't speak a foreign language. He bought a ticket to the Philippines anyway. Forty-six years later, he leads Community and Family Services International, a 500-person organization working with hundreds of thousands of displaced people each year across Southeast Asia. In this conversation, Steven talks about the lessons that only come from showing up in a refugee camp, why the narrative around refugees is not just wrong but provably wrong, and the one moment with a woman named Dolores that changed how he listens. Guest links: Community and Family Services International: https://cfsi.ph/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CFSI.RebuildingLives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cfsi_rebuilds/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cfsi-rebuildinglives/ X: https://x.com/CFSI_rebuilds YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/cfsivideo/feed GTZP links: Website: www.gtzp.org Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-cause/id1528910691 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZeAnlQdjwKX5JodvYFwp2 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@gtzp #FindYourCause #Refugees #HumanRights #Nonprofit #GreaterThanZeroPercent #SocialJustice