Katya Fels Smyth, Fuller Frame Initiative

In this episode we’re talking with Katya Fels Smyth about what it means to see and create change from a fuller frame. We too often see people as what is broken and our attempts to “fix” the human beings, allow problems to just get deeper. There is another way of thinking about how we orient ourselves, our public systems and our society that could give us all a fair shot. Listen in to hear more about our opportunities for creating more equitable health and wellbeing.

Ricardo Salvador, Union of Concerned Scientists + Paula Daniels, Good Food Purchasing

People’s foundation for physical and mental well-being starts with access to fresh air, clean water, and nutritious food. The mid-20TH century was a turning point in the American food system, ushering in a precipitous decline in farm populations. With the shift toward highly consolidated, vertically integrated, and industrially efficient agriculture came a rise in obesity, a loss of agricultural biodiversity, and a rise in nitrate pollution and greenhouse gas emissions due to concentrated methods of farming and animal rearing.

Michael Greer, Arts Fund Seattle

In this episode we’re talking with Michael Greer about the arts and it’s essential role in our social and civic fabric. We might also consider it’s role in our economy. The arts industry employs more than 5 million people and drives 900 billion in economic activity across our nation. The choices we make in the next six months about how we support and find our intersectionality with the arts will impact the next 60 years.

David Gibbs, Community Initiatives

David joins us to talk about racial equity and the role of our systems and structures as key drivers of the persistent inequities communities and community members face. He introduces Stock and Concealed stories and their role in maintaining our commonly held narratives and the status quo. Then David walks us with him into South Fulton, Georgia to meet the community partners setting the table and working together to begin to create community led solutions to housing and behavioral health.

Shannon Welch and Tricia Zahn, 100 Million Healthier Lives

100 Million Healthier Lives is working to advance a shared ecosystem for health, well-being and equity that connects people, organizations, and networks around the world. Listen in as Shannon Welch and Tricia Zahn share their experiences using the Community of Solutions Framework to create a culture of health and well-being; building capacity for measuring progress; spreading and scaling proof points; and connecting technology and other supports to navigate to the things that work and adapt as needed.

Michael McAfee, Policy Link

The nation is rapidly becoming a majority people of color. In cities and towns across the country many people are embracing the concept of equity and intent on achieving racial and economic equity for all. At the same time, as the word is used more, the concept of equity is in danger of becoming diluted, just another catchphrase of civil society, leaving the true promise of racial and economic inclusion unrealized. Monte Roulier interviewed Dr. McAfee as a critical perspective in the development of THRIVING TOGETHER: A Springboard for Equitable Recovery & Resilience in Communities Across America.

Liz Baxter, North Sound Accountable Community of Health

Health happens in communities, in the spaces where we congregate, live, and work; where children go to school and play; and where we seek care and services. North Sound Accountable Community of Health (North Sound ACH) is an independent nonprofit organization committed to building vibrant and healthy communities. Liz Baxter and her team convene a diverse network of individuals and organizations to foster meaningful community-led collaboration— and help public and private organizations adopt innovative, sustainable policies and programs that enhance health, advance equity, and reduce disparities.

Dr. Ben Miller, PsyD . , Well Being Trust

Health care in the United States is fractured and fragmented. Too often, mental health and addiction are treated separately from physical health, making it challenging for people to get timely access to quality mental health and addiction services. 2018 marked the longest sustained decline in U.S. life expectancy since 1920. For the past three years, Americans have died younger and younger, primarily due to deaths from drugs, alcohol, and suicide. More lives were lost to these deaths of despair in 2017 than ever before. While we have made tremendous innovations in health care, our health and well-being continues to suffer.

Parisa Parsa, Local Voices Network. The Local Voices Network (LVN) is fueled by ordinary people sharing their voices in small-group, in-person discussions led by experienced conversation hosts in the community. LVN hosts organize these conversations in gathering spots such as libraries, community centers, and kitchen tables, where participants will have a unique opportunity to listen, learn, speak and be heard. LVN provides a new way for people to understand and engage with one another in their community. It also serves to amplify under-heard voices and perspectives for other local stakeholders (journalists, public officials, political candidates) who wish to tune into the community’s concerns.

Monte Roulier, Community Initiatives and Community Commons

Dialogue strengthens our sense of belonging and civic muscle. When we listen, share, and discover, we are able create meaning together—and are better positioned to act as stewards in our organizations, communities, and regions. Community Initiatives and the WIN (Well-Being in the Nation) Network engages in dialogue to deepen relationships and to facilitate collective action. We know that dialogue will help connect communities across the county and will shift understanding about who we are, how we got here, and how we might create well-being and equity for all.

Bobby Milstein, PhD, MPH. , ReThink Health

When deciding which policies, practices, and investments to continue, and which to leave in the past, a basic question for every person and organization is whether our own legacies will affirm dignity and inclusion for all people or inflect trauma and exclusion on each other. Legacies that honor dignity and inclusion are a necessity for success in almost any endeavor to expand well-being. Join us as Bobby Milstein, PhD, MPH unpacks the WIN (Well-Being in the Nation) theory of change for creating legacies where all have the opportunity to meet their full potential.

Dr. Soma Saha, WE in the World

The Well Being In the Nation (WIN) Network is a growing strategic network of organizations and communities coming together to advance well-being and equity over generations by expanding the vital conditions everyone needs to thrive through relationships and system change. In this episode of Commons Good, Dr. Soma Saha shares how WIN looks to the leadership of people in places across the country who confront challenges to enrich health and well-being in a way that is inclusive of everyone.