History Advocate, Writer, Changemaker

New Hampshire has long been considered one of the “whitest states in the union.” But JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, says that New Hampshire, in fact, has a rich African-American past. She strives daily to continue to increase the visibility of black history in the state by believing that diversity programming is about social change.

Watch: The Fullness of Our Shared History

Architect, Community Activist

Barry Brensinger reminds us that our shared future depends on our schools. There’s broad agreement that education provides a pathway to success for all of us: students, families, employers, and the community at large. Given the importance of schooling, Barry challenges all of us to reexamine the way we think about this invaluable resource.

Watch: Our Schools are Our Future

Recycling Transformer

As the founder and CEO of The Recycling Partnership, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the planet, Keefe Harrison urges us to insist that corporations use their power, and dollars, to make important changes in how they do business and where they put their dollars, because only together can we address the urgent needs of our global environment.

Watch: The Voice We Need to Speak Up for the Environment

Author, Radio Journalist, Refugee Champion, Interpreter

Growing up in war-torn Somalia, Abdi Nor Iftin’s love of Hollywood movies helped him learn English — and also helped him learn to tell his own story. Eventually, his stories were picked up by journalists across the globe, and the stories he filed secretly — under penalty of death — became just one more unusual step in his journey to becoming an American citizen

Watch: A Story Behind Every Refugee

Pediatrician, Chief Medical Officer

Eating disorders are a common form of mental illness, affecting 1 in 5 people in the United States. Dr. Holly Mintz, pediatrician and Chief Medical Officer of a New Hampshire healthcare facility shares her personal, 35-year struggle with an eating disorder — and says the key to her recovery has been reforming her self-concept, which she did by connecting to and serving others.

Watch: Giving and Connection: Keys to Mental Health

Psychology Professor, Wellness Speaker

The feeling of original worthiness before any shameful messages are said to us tends to get lost as we advance through life. As a professor at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont, Dr. Kimberly Quinn teaches cognitive and positive psychology. She’s also a workshop facilitator, who frequently speaks on a variety of topics related to positive psychology, well-being, trauma-informed education, and mindfulness training.

Watch: No Need to Fix Me: I’m Not Broken

Entrepreneur

With big dreams and a fire in his belly to see them through, Matthew Seawright seemed poised for success time and time again yet managed to keep falling short. He had a lot of reasons, perhaps more than a few excuses, and a bit of dismay and anger. Seawright was ready to set people straight on what they were clearly missing until he experienced transformative self-reflection and realized the commonality in his broken dreams: it was him.

Watch: From Hubris to Human

Historic Preservationist

Architectural conservateur and timber framer Ian Stewart asks us to consider the local and global impacts of teaching the traditional hand skills to preserve old buildings. Economics, arts, education, activism, and environmentalism converge as Stewart takes us from North Adams, Massachusetts to The Netherlands to Charleston, South Carolina in a look back to the old ways as we look forward to what’s next.

Watch: Could Preservation Trades Help Save Our Cities?

Marketer, Podcast Host

Allen Voivod, creator and host of the “Star Wars 7x7” podcast, posits that hope is the singular ingredient to inspiring even the most hopeless to feel optimistic about the future. But to harness the power of hope, we need to blend it with storytelling. Using the popular and transcendent Star Wars series as a model, Voivod unpacks how even the most hopeless person can connect with a story and feel that their future will be better than the present momentt.

Watch: Why Hope is Star Wars’ Most Powerful Force