From Informed to Involved: 5 Great Social Activism Podcasts
By: Sami Reed of Pod People
I recently heard Tressie McMillan Cottom say, “Choose the thing you can do in this world, and do that,” on a podcast about self-care.
“Self-care?” You may ask.
Yes! Because for some, activism is how they take care of themselves. People helping people.
So, if you, like me, have been on the hunt for podcasts that provide more information about activists, organizations, and concrete ways to start taking action today, then look no further!
I’ve compiled a list of episodes from podcasts that challenge the way we think about activism to help you choose the thing YOU can do in this world. Cheers to change!
5 Great Social Activism Podcasts
Six Degrees with Kevin Bacon
Yes, this is a celebrity podcast. Hear me out, though! This is a celebrity podcast that is more than a vanity project. Come for the celebrities. Stay to hear how they use their fame to bring some change to the world.
The episode, Open Hearts with Jane Seymour & the Open Hearts Foundation, is a personal favorite because the idea that your heart has to be open to help people is so beautiful. Open Hearts provides grants and volunteers to other organizations that need it. Jane, at one point, describes it as an organization that “curates movement” by being that middleman who helps you “empower growing and emerging charities in the United States.” Skip to around ~30 minutes if you want to hear about the foundation without a bunch of chit-chat and background info. But I recommend giving it all a listen!
Bonus recommendation for the animal lovers: Never Say Kill with Amanda Seyfried and Best Friends Animal Society
All About Change
All About Change is the 2024 winner of The Anthem Awards and a 2023 finalist for the Shorty Impact Awards, and has ranked #18 in Apple's US podcast charts and #3 in Society and Culture. Each episode features first-hand stories about activism, change, and courage from people who are changing the world.
Though not about any particular activist organization, the recent episode with Torrey DeVitto discussed how activism should be “rooted in love and your truth.” The episode is mostly about reproductive rights but it delves into hospice volunteering that ends the episode with a beautiful reminder about what people really care about at the end of life.
TW: This episode discusses abortion and miscarriage in depth.
Bonus recommendation about safe drinking water: All About Change: Erin Brockovich - Fighting for Safe Water.
Disruptors for Good
Disruptors for GOOD | Social Entrepreneurs and Social Enterprises
With more than 250 episodes, Disruptors for GOOD has a rich catalog of episodes that “explore social entrepreneurship and social enterprises around the world who have dedicated their lives to ethical fashion, impact investing, climate change, sustainable travel, and businesses that impact the world in a positive way.”
A recent one I enjoyed is with Co-Founder of Global Citizen, Michael Sheldrick who is trying to make policy that will end extreme poverty. He argues beautifully that the key to making lasting change is collective understanding and action. I loved his example of LiveAid as a time in history where policies were not only understood (a huge hurdle in passing public policy), but driven through music.
Bonus recommendation about renewable energy: Inna Braverman // Founder of Eco Wave Power on Apple Podcasts
Down The Struts
Down To The Struts is in its 9th season, focused on disability and design. The show discusses everything from making public buildings more inclusive to being Disabled in Space. The latter episode interviews NASA’s Denna Lambert, who has heartwarming openness and vulnerability about parenting as a person who is blind and her inclusion in NASA’s second disabled cohort in space. Obviously, the space talk was super cool, but most notable to me was the conversation returning again and again to having a community around her that she had palpable gratitude for — gratitude she also expressed about being a part of research in space that will help make space (and Earth!) more inclusive in the near future.
Bonus recommendation for Making Voting Accessible and Sitting Pretty
Earth Care
It seems fitting that we should end this blog post with a show that derives its name from self-care. Earth Care “is an extension of ‘self-care’ because ultimately we can’t live a healthy life without a healthy planet.” The goal is to use short interviews that make conservation efforts feel less overwhelming so we can all take small steps toward saving the planet. Yes, yes, and yes please!
Their current series is Sustainability in the Live Music Industry (something I already hadn’t been thinking about!), and I was particularly intrigued by their episode about Using Dancers' Body Heat to Power a Club | S5 E4. Really heating up the competition in the world of innovation. Beyond tapping into creative renewable energy, this venue also has so many other interesting and innovative green practices they’ve implemented on their way to net zero.
A shared message across all these and the other shows I’ve listened to is that change is possible with a little collaboration, communication, and collective action.
I hope this helps you find the thing in the world you want to do.