How to Change the World

Challenges related to housing and homelessness can feel too big, too complex, or too stuck to solve. This conversation offers a clearer view of what real progress can look like. Mike Shore, President and CEO of HOM Inc., joins me to talk about what it takes to move one of our most urgent community challenges forward. We discuss why housing is the solution to homelessness, what people often misunderstand about the crisis today, and how HOM Inc.'s work helps thousands of families move into permanent housing across Arizona and Los Angeles. Mike also shares how Threshold, the initiative featured in Catherine's new book, The Changemaker's Toolkit, brings property owners into the solution through intentional partnership, targeted storytelling, and a clear focus on excellence at every level. If you care about housing, systems-level change, and what it looks like to bring your strengths to an issue you care deeply about, this episode is for you. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

If you've ever wondered how leaders keep going when the work never feels finished, this conversation offers a look behind the curtain. Claire Louge, Executive Director of Prevent Child Abuse Arizona, joins me to talk about what it looks like to lead change today. In this movingly honest conversation, Claire shares her personal journey moving from chronic self-doubt to developing self-trust, and why transparency has become one of her core values. We explore how her personal journey shaped the way she leads and why she believes leadership should be more accessible, human, and honest. Claire also breaks down what prevention of child abuse actually looks like, including why "the root cause of child abuse and neglect is unsupported people" and how we shift from a culture of surveillance to a culture of support by getting families what they need, when they need it, in their own communities. If you care about building a world where families flourish and children can be who they are and offer their strengths to the world, this episode is for you. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

If the world has started to feel like it's falling apart—and you're wondering what change can realistically look like right now—this episode is for you. Guest host Veronica Aguilar turns the mic on Catherine Alonzo, regular podcast host and author of The Changemaker's Toolkit, to talk about what led her to write a book "for the frustrated changemaker" and why it feels more timely than ever. Catherine shares the personal story that shaped her drive to make a difference, the three forces making this moment feel uniquely overwhelming (and why they also create unprecedented opportunity for change), and the four tools at the heart of her "toolkit": vision, systems, core values, and conviction. Along the way, she offers a grounded reframe for anyone feeling heavy or powerless: don't ask how to solve everything—ask, "What are my five yards?" 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

If you care about ethical fashion, women's leadership, and what it looks like to build change that lasts, this episode is for you. Julie Colombino-Billingham, founder of luxury fashion brand Deux Mains, joins me to share how a background in disaster response and a life-changing season in post-earthquake Haiti led her from short-term aid to focusing on long-term economic freedom for Haitian people through incredible craftsmanship. We talk about the moment a Haitian woman told her, "I don't need water, but I need a job," and how that single sentence reshaped her understanding of what people actually need to rebuild. Julie walks me through how Deux Mains grew from tire sandals made in a tent into a fair trade, women-led brand now selling in Nordstrom and creating stable jobs for Haitian artisans. We also unpack what redefined "luxury" can mean when it's rooted in transparency, living wages, sustainable choices, and partnerships that adapt without compromising core values. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

If politics has started to feel like nothing but noise, this conversation offers a different way in. Entrepreneur, investor, and author Neil Thanedar joins me to talk about his new book Positive Politics. We discuss why politics, messy as it is, is still one of our most powerful tools to create lasting social change. We unpack why negative politics dominates our attention, what positive politics looks like in practice, and how changemakers can get involved without burning out. From supporting a local issue to influencing a bill or stepping into leadership, there are more entry points than many people realize. Neil also shares his long-term vision for a "Y Combinator for politics" style accelerator that helps ambitious optimists move from caring to building real solutions, faster. If you care about the future, feel disillusioned by the status quo, and want a more grounded path from frustration to action, this episode is for you. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

2026 is poised to be a chaotic year in politics and elections – with high-stakes consequences. So, what better time to analyze and predict the year ahead with Javelina's resident political experts? In this episode, I'm joined by Javelina political strategists David Waid and Justin Plumb to unpack what they're already seeing in early 2026 — from fractures within both parties, to how campaigns are thinking about authenticity, to the role AI will (and won't) play in reaching voters. We get into voter turnout, midterm dynamics, wedge issues, and why some of the most effective candidates may be the ones who blend heart with strategy. We also share our own bold predictions (some serious, some not-so-serious) about the races, actors, and surprises that may define this cycle — and what this moment is signaling about politics more broadly. If you've been trying to make sense of the political landscape, this conversation offers insight, context, and a reminder that even unpredictable cycles have patterns worth watching. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

What a year of changemaking books taught us about how to drive meaningful impact. In this special second annual How to Change the World Book Club episode, Catherine is joined by book club regulars Maggie Bauer and Eric DeMarco to share the standout reads of the year, the themes that kept surfacing, and the "book awards" they handed out along the way. From most hopeful to most likely to shift your perspective, they dig into big topics like AI bias, climate resilience, disability justice, emotional labor, and the role of community in creating real change — and reflect on the surprising ways reading together can move you from awareness to action. Here are the 12 books we read in 2025: January - Atomic Habits by James Clear (personal growth) February - Demystifying Disability by Emily Ladau (disability/advocacy) March - What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales (nature/environment) April - Factfulness by Hans Rosling (society/economics) May - Emotional Labor by Rose Hackman (workplace/gender) June - Murder the Truth by David Enrich (government/politics) July - Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson (economics/technology) August - Moral Ambition by Rutger Bregman (society/change) September - We All Want to Change the World by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (society/politics) October - Unmasking AI by Joy Buolamwini (technology) November - Medicine River by Mary Annette Pember (Native American history) December - Hope Dies Last by Alan Weisman (environment) 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

If it feels like corporations have more influence than elected officials right now… you're not imagining it. Authors Seth Levine and Elizabeth MacBride join me to unpack their new book, Capital Evolution: The New American Economy — and the argument that we're living through a major transition in American capitalism. They break down how the last 50 years of "shareholder-first" thinking helped concentrate wealth and opportunity, why we're now in a messy in-between era, and what they believe could come next: a more "dynamic capitalism" that still values markets, but expands ownership and opportunity, encourages longer-term thinking, and redefines the relationship between business, government, and the public. We also talk about what accountability looks like when business is a primary actor in society, where the line is between corporate values and politics, and why our fractured information environment (and AI) makes it harder to see what's actually real. If you've been trying to make sense of the economy, power, and what's shifting beneath our feet — this conversation offers language, context, and a few reasons to stay clear-eyed (and hopeful). 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

Our culture would have us believe that most any problem can be solved by working harder, longer, faster, more. But what are the limitations of hustle culture and how can we move beyond it? Brand and business strategist Quinn Tempest helps solopreneurs build businesses that change the world without pounding themselves into the ground. In this insightful episode, she shares what it looks like to build a life-first business (versus lifestyle business), how to know when your "operating system" needs an upgrade, and practical ways to realign your why with your what across brand, offers, pricing, and marketing. We also talk about identity shifts, the power of community when you're a team of one, and why entrepreneurship can quietly reshape "business as usual." If you've been stuck in busywork, this conversation is a nudge to zoom out, update, and take the next right step — one move at a time. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!

What if a 10-week, after-school program led by older students could move the needle on a statewide literacy crisis? Sophie Allen Etchart, founder and CEO of Read Better Be Better (RBBB), shares how a simple, peer-led reading model — pairing middle school leaders with younger readers — is helping Arizona students beat the odds in a state where 61% of third graders aren't reading at grade level. Sophie shares how she built Read Better Be Better from testing the curriculum with a kid in her neighborhood to a recent study by an independent education group confirming that students in their programs outperform their peers on key literacy measures. Now, the program stands as a Tier II evidence-based option schools can include in their literacy plans. If you care about focusing school boards on what works, championing the science of reading, and finding leadership by looking around — not up — this conversation offers a hopeful, practical roadmap for systems-level change. 👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on changemaking. 🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on YouTube now!