On this first day of April, we are trying to fool you, but just slightly. Though herstories month has just ended, we have the treat of catching up with one of featured voices from last week’s compilation episode. Returning with an update on Fourth Phase which was in the launch phase when last we caught up in 2020, is co-founder Nana Eyeson-Akiwowo. Nana is a dedicated social entrepreneur and humanitarian with a strong commitment to advocating for accessible healthcare for under-resourced women, children, and families. As the co-founder of Fourth Phase, she focuses on operations and our giving back program. She also founded non-profit, African Health Now (AHN), which is dedicated to providing vital health information and services across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Prior moving into entrepreneurship, Nana had a successful background in media, having worked with prominent titles such as Honey, Suede, and Essence. And also held positions at the Clinton Global Initiative Foundation and New York Mission Society. Her philanthropic efforts have been recognized globally. In 2017, she received the prestigious title of Humanitarian of the Year from the National Council of Ghanaian Associations, recognizing her impactful contributions. She was acknowledged with a New York State Senate Proclamation acknowledging her commitment to health advocacy. She has also received the Andrew Heiskell Humanitarian Award by Time Inc.

Catching up with Nana is an absolute delight, between learning all about the business of Fourth Phase to mompreneurship, I think you’ll feel welcomed into a world of innovation in a serious health area with a touch of light-heartedness. In case you missed our previous conversations, links are below.

Where to find Nana?

On Glocal Citizens
On Instagram
Fourth Phase on Instagram
Healing After Birth Podcast

What’s Nana watching?
The Golden Girls
The Cosby Show
Chicago Fire | PD | Med | Justice

What’s Nana listening to?
Beres Hammond

Other topics of interest:
Fourth Trimester in Websters Dictionary
Dr. Edward Brown in practice
About Dr. Andrew Alexis and his new program Skin of Color Savvy
Where to find Dr. Ama Alexis
About the TOMS model

Special Guest: Nana Eyeson-Akiwowo.

This week, Women’s Herstories Month takes me back to my recent journey to Nairobi, Kenya where the Glocal Citizens community came through in full effect. While in Nairobi I hosted the final session in the Glocal Citizens Future of Work Solutionscape and Stretch Salon Series--stay tuned for the full podcast series coming in May, and caught up with past guests, including meeting a few for the first time. This week’s connection comes courtesy of Episode 146 guest, Michelle Donald. Both Michelle and this week’s guest, Vuyanzi Rodman are truly living a #borderlessmindset lifestyle. And like these women, I too now hold Kenya near to my heart. Coach Vuyanzi has called Nairobi home since 2023 where she is a sought-after resource in the corporate space and at an individual level. Her client base spans medical doctors, educational leaders performance artists, business owners, ministers, politicians, C-suite executives and corporate VPs across four continents. With a focus on women leaders, Coach Vuyanzi helps her clients become more impactful leaders by conducting one-on-one coaching to clarify their goals and overcome blocks that are holding them back, such as self-limiting beliefs and fear. She empowers women leaders through her YouTube channel, Find Your Voice with Coach Vuyanzi and uses the platform to interview women from around the world and to share her own empowering stories.
As a seasoned TV presenter and radio host, she led a successful season of Rise and Shine, the popular morning show on one of Kenya’s leading Christian channels, Family Media and Family TV.

Where to find Coach Vuyanzi?
http://vuyanzi.live/
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What’s Vuyanzi reading?
I’ll Take Some Self Love with That by Cece Ojany- Bekhor
What' so Amazing About Grace? by Philip Yancey

What’s Vuyanzi watching?
Paradise featuring Sterling K. Brown
BritBox

Other topics of interest:
Village of Piermont, New York
About Teaneck, New Jersey
About the United African American Community Center-UAACC in Tanzania
Insights on African-American migration to East Africa, 1970s

Special Guest: Vuyanzi Rodman.

For this week’s episode we’re back in West Africa with Nigerian-American journalist and author, Abi Ishola-Ayodeji. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, Patience is a Subtle Thief, was named one of BuzzFeed's best books of May 2022 and received a coveted Kirkus-starred review. As a journalist, she has showcased her talent across a diverse range of platforms, including http://ELLE.com, PBS, http://Ebony.com, CUNY TV, and more. Her career has seen her cover extraordinary people, communities, and events from New York City to Paris and from Nigeria to Ghana.

In 2017, Essence Magazine named her among its Woke 100 Women for launching Beyond Classically Beautiful, an acclaimed photo story and media platform celebrating women of color who defy traditional beauty standards which you’ll learn much more about in our conversation.

After years of struggling to write a complete novel, she adopted a winning plan that helped her finish her manuscript seamlessly. She landed a deal with HarperCollins upon her first submission to a publisher. As she continues to work on her second novel, she is also coaching aspiring authors on how to write and finish the novel of their dreams.

Where to find Abi?
www.aishola.com
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On X
On Youtube

What’s Abi watching?
The Chi
Sex Education
Game of Thrones

Other topics of interest:
Revisit EP 74 Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond
All about Miami Gardens, Florida
About Ibadan, Nigeria
Why Ilesa? A visti with fellow Glocal Citizen, Funsho Ogundipe
About Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola and the stolen election
More about the Center for Black Literature @ Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn and the Wild Seeds Writers Retreat
About #imageactivitst, Michaela Angela Davis
About the film The Devil Wears Prada
James Baldwin, Toni Morrison and more about Abi’s Glocal Speak
About Supacel and sickle cell anemia

Special Guest: Abi Ishola-Ayodeji.

This week on the podcast I have the pleasure of hosting a social innovator who intersects not only my local experiences in Brooklyn and Accra, he is the husband of my guest on Episode 139, Asmeret Berhe-Lumax and on the Advisory Committee of Episodes 42/43 guest, Nana Eyeson-Akiwowo’s African Health Now. A fellow Ghanaian, Stanley Lumax is currently the Executive Brand Marketing Director at JP Morgan Chase, where he manages the Sapphire and Freedom Unlimited portfolios. Prior to this role, he partnered with Complex Media Networks to create Climate, an agency built to help brands harness the power of youth culture. He has also worked with brands such as Nike Basketball, National Basketball Association, Converse, Beats By Dre’, Brooklyn Nets, Pepsi, Budweiser and a host of other brands that have impacted popular culture. He’s taken this experience and applied it to his desire to bring the African Diaspora together. In 2019, he partnered with celebrated Senegalese chef, Pierre Thiam to open a West African concept restaraunt called Teranga, which has been celebrated as one of the top 20 places to eat in New York City.

A fun and engaging conversation, be sure to check out the other topics of interest below for insights on some of the many topics we cover in our discussion.

Where to find Stanley?
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On X/Twitter

What’s Stanley listening to?
The Joe Budden Podcast
Earn Your Leisure Podcast
A Dose of Black Joy and Caffeine with Justin Adu
Jungle Brothers
Q-tip
Big Daddy Kane
KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions

What’s Stanley watching?
Ladies First: A story of Women in Hip-Hop

Other topics of interest:
Ga People in Osu, Accra
About Ebbets Field, Brooklyn
About Bronwsville, Brooklyn
Tracy Towers, The Bronx
About US Immigration Policy in 2017
About Abiola Oke
About Luol Deng
About Nana “Pops” Mensah-Bonsu
About And1
Peace is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hang
About SLR Cameras

Special Guest: Stanley Lumax.