From Inspiration to Impact: How to Create Purpose and Serve Your Community

Have you ever wondered how a spark of inspiration can ignite a revolution? Join me and Justice Faith, a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and UN Women Leaders Network member, as we share stories of transformation, resilience, and the power of young voices. From her politically active upbringing with Jamaican and Vincentian roots to aspiring Prime Minister, Justice’s journey reflects a lifelong commitment to activism and community involvement. Having connected with organizations like the Clinton and Gates Foundation, she shares insights on turning inspiration into impactful action. We'll discuss failing forward and finding purpose in everyday routines. 

The episode further explores how community, collaboration, and corporate partnerships can amplify efforts to create lasting impact. Justice's leap from a successful career to a values-driven path exemplifies the courage needed to pursue meaningful change. Through Revolutionnaire's initiatives, like disaster relief efforts in St. Vincent and partnerships with companies like Roots, we illustrate the power of collective action. We share insights on overcoming perfectionism, embracing boldness, and the significance of starting small to inspire others—encouraging you to take that first step toward making a difference in your community.

Be sure to follow Justice on Instagram and visit her website.
Visit Revolutionaire's website at www.revolutionnaire.co to learn more about their initiatives.
Follow Revolutionnaire on Instagram to keep up with the amazing work they do in the community.

Chapters

• 0:00 Turning Inspiration Into Impact
• 6:13 Discovering Purpose Through Adversity
• 10:14 Empowering Youth Through Social Change
• 17:32 Building Impact Through Community and Resilience
• 23:17 Fostering Community Engagement Through Partnerships
• 30:24 Creating Impact Through Corporate Partnerships

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Welcome to Tea with Tanya. I'm your host, tanya Ambrose, an average millennial navigating life as a maternal health professional, non-profit founder and grad student. Join me in the tea tasting room where we spill the tea on finding balance and promoting positive living while doing it all. All right, hey friend, welcome back to another episode of Tea with Tanya, where health, wellness and empowerment intersect. I'm your host, tanya, and today, today, today, we have a very exciting episode lined up for you, one that is close to my heart. I have a beautiful woman sitting in front of me. Virtually Guys, you may not be able to see her. She claims she has. She's been talking all week, so her voice is a little bit raspy, but she looks so beautiful and I'm just so happy that she is here in the Tea Tasting Room. Today we're going to be talking about turning inspiration into impact and how you can bring purpose into your daily life while finding ways to get involved in your community.

Speaker 1: 1:01

Now, justice. Here in the tea tasting room, we call ourselves very nosy. We like all the tea. Give us all the tea about yourself. Don't leave anything out, because if you do, I'm going to follow up, because I did my research. So if you leave anything out, I'm going to make sure I pull it up for you. But nevertheless, guys, this is justice.

Speaker 1: 1:19

And before we get into it, let me tell you how I met her, because in my head, she's my bestie. I, um, I have a sister by the name of Chloe and for a while she keeps talking about this person. Who's justice? I'm like, who's justice, justice, this is justice, justice. I'm like, okay, we went to Antigua for our work, the floor event and also to attend the Sid's Smart Island Development State um conference. And she's like, oh yeah, I have to meet justice. She's here, really. Because, again, I'm thinking this person is a fictional person, because I know we can be crazy in our family, you know.

Speaker 1: 1:48

And I went to the conference and I was able to meet Justice, and right before she was about to give a speech as well, a beautiful speech presentation, and since then we followed each other. I've been gassing her up. She gasses me up because, you know, again, I like to see young people doing great things, especially, you know, coming from the Caribbean, and we just the things that are happening in today's society is going to take our voice to bring about the change? Because clearly it's not. It wasn't happening with the older people for some reason. So it's our time now. So I told her, I think the first time we met, I said I need to have you on the podcast and she's like, yeah, let's make it happen. I was like, girl, don't check me with a good time now, because somebody says, yes, I am going to follow through. But I also had to make sure it made sense. So this is our first guest for this new season. So, justice, I am happy to have you here in the Tea Tasting Room. Tanya.

Speaker 2: 2:34

I am super, super, super honored. I've never gotten an introduction as special as that, so thank you. I am just really honestly beyond thrilled to be here as part of this community, so can't wait to dive in and spill the tea.

Speaker 1: 2:48

Tell us about yourself, give us all a tea, where you're from, who you are, what you do, and then we'll dive into everything else.

Speaker 2: 2:54

Sure, okay. So my name is Justice, born and raised here in Canada to Caribbean parents. My dad is from Jamaica, mom is from St Vincent and the Grenadines, and I had the great fortune of going back to those respective islands many, many times growing up and now make a commitment to spend at least 25% of every year in the Caribbean. And as I was growing up, I was very much so exposed to many of the issues of the world because my parents felt like that was the best way to inspire their two daughters to be caring and empathetic young citizens. So, for example, like growing up, we would never get Christmas presents at the holidays. Instead, it'd be a time for us to go grocery shopping and prepare meal kits and deliver them to families experiencing homelessness. My dad is a lawyer and would take us to protest at a really young age, marching alongside women who have lost their sons to gun violence and advocating for community safety in my city of Toronto and for whatever reason, around the age of five years old, I started saying what I want to be prime minister of Canada one day. And my parents really. I guess that struck a chord with them. So I got to go to the parliament and go watch the budget be presented by the government, and I dressed up in a pink pantsuit at the age of eight, with my you know little pearl necklace, and I said this is what I want to do, because I fundamentally believed that politics is a way to change people's lives in the areas that affect them most. So what that looks like was me, literally eight years old, knocking on doors during different political campaigns and election seasons. If you could imagine a little girl showing up to your doorstep asking you to vote for the candidate of her choice, and then would spend my summers volunteering nonstop and I would always make sure to bring my friends with me, believing that again, especially when it comes to politics, you are never too young to make your voice heard and there are issues that are being decided on our behalf and it's our duty to make sure that, even if we can't vote, we can still influence outcomes that affect our futures. So that was really my childhood very nerdy, very politically engaged, and then decided to go off to France for two years as part of a dual degree program with Sciences Po Paris studying law.

Speaker 2: 5:12

I'm in Columbia University in New York for two years.

Speaker 2: 5:15

It was a dual degree program political science and law over the course of four years, graduated from Columbia, valedictorian, and then began my career at McKinsey and Company in management consulting, which was like wild, honestly, being 21 and advising all of these corporate leaders and bureaucrats, as well as my public sector clients, around how to drive change in their organizations.

Speaker 2: 5:38

But ultimately, with the murder of George Floyd, everything kind of shifted for me, as it did for so many people, and I asked myself, as a young activist, what had happened and how I was spending, you know, 16 hour days, so focused on the work at hand but not really looking at the bigger picture. And with that in mind, I decided to quit my corporate job in the middle of the pandemic and join forces with my sister, nia, to start Revolutionaire into this movement to empower young people to take action in their communities around the world. So that's what I've been very proud to be doing since 2021. And I'm sure we can talk more about it later, but really I think where I am right now is very predictable for anyone who knew five-year-old justice.

Speaker 1: 6:22

You know it's very rare that I get a guest that has me speechless, you know, because hearing that, since you were five years old, like, and to see that you're living in your purpose so me, it takes me back to when I was like, probably around seven as well. My grandmother, she would like make the clothes for a particular parliamentarian in our constituency and she would have the campaigns. And I would go with her because, you know, I was really nosy to the girl at the time Because in my mind at that age I wanted to be a lawyer. You know. I wanted to fix people's problem. I wanted to just, you know, advocate as well, but at the time I didn't know that I was advocating. Or I wanted to be an advocate Because you know you're young, inspiring, because I think sometimes in our society I've heard individuals say, oh, I'm not going to vote for this person because this person is this.

Speaker 1: 7:11

Or growing up in Antigua, you know they have two parties. I think we have three now. It was always like, you know, the Antigua Labor Party and the United Progressive Party. So one was red and one was blue, and as we grew up, some families they were just strictly red, no matter what, even if they were doing some kind of crime they could be murdering someone they will still be red. That's how it is with the politics in the Caribbean, and if they're blue, you're totally blue. It was never about what is better for the citizens. And when I decided I'm like you know what, let me move. When I move to the US I'm going to become a nurse so I can help sick people, that was my. I should have been a lawyer to a nurse.

Speaker 1: 7:45

And I went to nursing school justice and I failed after year one by 0.5 points, because I always put that 0.5 points in my story because I'm like these people could have rounded up and give me that passing grade. So I was devastated. Imagine that by 0.5 points. But I remember the school that I was attending. They said to me you know what? You have to wait two years to get back into the program. And I'm like I'm getting old. I was like 24 at the time. I said I have goals and dreams that I want to accomplish. Two years is just too much and you know I would.

Speaker 1: 8:12

I found an alternative, got into another nursing program. Then they told me you know what? We can't accept you again because you know what. I got my heart crushed and I remember just talking to my aunt and she was telling me oh, you should look into public health. And I was like, what is public health? This was in like 2017, maybe Did my research because I was a public health girl, you know you do research and fell in love with the feel and I decided to you know, pursue it, went to Georgia State University, got my bachelor's degree in public health, got to the top of my class and then decided that I was going to go get my master's in public health, which I'm currently doing.

Speaker 1: 8:48

I don't know how I'm doing it, because, with all the things that I do, I don't know how I'm still making these A's in these classes. I'm an overachiever, but I'm similar to say, you know, sometimes our journey to where we are in life or our journey to our purpose is often very different. You know it's not linear For me. You cannot tell me I was not going to be a family nurse practitioner. Even sometimes I still toy with the idea of doing that. But then I realized that what I'm doing now, I feel like I found my purpose. I'm still helping people, I'm still advocating, but not in a clinical setting.

Speaker 1: 9:20

You know, oftentimes people hear about public health. The entire world, how we live, is public health. The streets that we walk in, having the stop sign, how we advocate all of that is public health. So I think for me, when people ask me, you know what is your purpose? It's just to advocate, to bring about change, to be a change maker, you know, to create an impact in my community. So I'm still not allowed to say you know, I want to talk about.

Speaker 1: 9:41

You know how you and your sister Nia built Revolutionaire. You know how. Let's talk about that. How did you decide? Obviously you know, you told us your backstory. But how individuals listening to you can find purpose in their daily routines? Because for me, my purpose came about from failing. I call it failing forward. You know, if I didn't have that big obstacle in nursing school, I probably would have ended up in a career and then end up being burnt out. You know, because I wasn't doing what was passionate for me at the time. So what does purpose mean to you and how do you live by it day by day?

Speaker 2: 10:11

It's a great question and thank you so much for sharing your story. I think it's so funny when you think about this concept of a spark and me and I talk about it a lot right, that spark of inspiration that ultimately becomes your why, the why you get up in the morning, the why you push through during challenging times and the why you're ultimately able to actually rise and overcome. And that spark can come from positive experiences, but it could also come from negative experiences or, as you define, failing forward. And Revolutionaire's story actually began even prior to starting this movement for social change and empowering young people to take action. And ultimately it began when my little sister, nia, had the spark of meeting Misty Copeland when she was younger. And ultimately, nia grew up in the ballet world as a black ballerina, never having access to apparel and accessories in her color. And what was really interesting is when Nia had the great fortune of meeting Misty for the first time on Nia's birthday. And for those who don't know, misty was the first ever Black principal ballerina for the American Ballet Theater, which is a huge, huge, huge, huge deal. If you don't know Misty Copeland, you must go look at her story and follow her on social media because it's just constant inspiration. But ultimately Nia met Misty and went up to her and gave her her pointe shoes to sign. And while Misty was meeting this icon, this woman who she looked up to for so long, the dye from Nia's pointe shoes was coming off of Misty's fingers and Nia was so embarrassed and started apologizing profusely. And Misty said it's okay, the same thing happens to me. And in that moment Nia was like thinking to herself this is one of the best ballet dancers of all time. And if even Misty Copeland doesn't have access to what she needs, what does that mean for all the little black boys and girls ultimately in ballet? And what are they supposed to do?

Speaker 2: 12:10

So fast forward a couple of years, nia was dancing in New York full time and had a nearly career ending injury that put her on bedrest for several months and she could not dance. But she wanted to stay connected to the art form and that really inspired her to reflect on that moment with Misty and realize that the dance world needed a revolution. And as a young girl on bedrest, she decides to start sketching and dream up this world where people of all complexions could walk into the dance world and finally feel seen and reflected in the dance store by way of what was available. So when she got onto campus at Howard University as a 17-year-old, she launched the nation's first ever dance for line for dancers of color, and that was really the spark in terms of creating this revolution in the dance world.

Speaker 2: 12:59

Then, when we look at what happened in 2020, when the world was on fire, both as it relates to a pandemic, but then also the really reawakening of the Black Lives Matter movement and the resurgence of this international call for social justice and racial equity we saw all these young people wanting to start their own revolutions, but not necessarily knowing where to start or being so inundated with so much information that it was really overwhelming.

Speaker 2: 13:24

So I reflected on Nia's journey with starting a revolution in the dance world and we asked ourselves what it would look like if all young people could start their own revolutions, be it for racial equity or climate justice, housing and food security, and what was the missing gap and how could we actually step in, based on our experiences and the experiences of the team that we built, to create a world where any young person has a dream of making their communities or the world a better place, has access to the network, tools and information they need to actually make a difference. So Revolutionaire began with Nia's story and that spark of inspiration of meeting Misty Copeland, revolutionizing the dance world, and then this vision of a world where all young people could start their own revolutions for positive change.

Speaker 1: 14:05

You know, I love that. That's so inspiring Getting to meet your idol, you know, and then that career near ending injury I just shivered, I don't know why, but you know, it's important when you think about turning inspiration into action, and I think that's what Nia did and that's what you did. You know, and oftentimes a lot of people feel inspired but they struggle to actually do something about it, and I can share my even my own story. When I first migrated from Antigua to the US, I told myself you know what? I want to go back to Antigua, I want to give back to Antigua in some way, shape or form, but in my mind I had to be a millionaire. But, but in my mind I had to be a millionaire. But it wasn't until I went.

Speaker 1: 14:44

I did a study abroad stint in Uganda, africa, back in 2019, right before the pandemic, and myself and my classes and my professor, we were, like you know, collecting clothing, shoes and menstrual items to these individuals in Uganda, and we got there one of the best experiences I've ever had Like I call it my second home now, and I just remember us going to the slums and giving these people these items, and I got to tell a friend of mine when we were on that trip that she's like, oh, but they live in the slums. Why can't they be so happy? And I say, you know, at the end of the day it might be the slums to us looking out. I mean it is technically, but again, where they are they're content with what they have. And I say sometimes to me, coming from a small Island, you know you get to see that other side, in another part of the world that you see back home to some extent. But um, it's when I went, when I went in, I said, okay, when we leave and we go to our place of privilege, what happens after to them? Because you know, we can just come in here as a savior for three weeks, four weeks, whatever, however long. But then when we leave, what happens? And I remember, as we were driving out I saw an individual, like she was just free, bleeding on herself, and we were like you know, you know that's before free bleeding became a thing, it's a thing now, don't get me wrong. But again she didn't have the access or the items to use basically to prevent that. And I just remember asking my professor what happens again when we leave. She said you know what, when I come back next year, may, we'll do it again. And I said you know, that's kind of unacceptable to me because again you're telling me that they got to do 12 more periods without you know these access to these items.

Speaker 1: 16:11

And I remember I came back to the United States and said you know what I need to start something like this in Antigua? I need to do my research, see what I can do. Started in Antigua, but my goal essentially to make my nonprofit global right, because again, I have that Uganda perspective and I still keep in contact with these people. Sometimes I even send stuff just so I can do my part every quarter to them, because my heart cannot stop me from doing that, you know.

Speaker 1: 16:33

But I think about how that particular trip inspired me, instead of me thinking, oh, you have to get to a certain point in your career or you have to make a certain amount of dollars to give back to people. And it's like People who are struggling. They're inspired but then they're struggling to actually do something about it. How did you bridge the gap when it comes to revolution and starting revolution? I know you know that time around that year it happened, with someone listening that wants to start something or has an idea but don't know how to implement that. How do they go about doing that?

Speaker 2: 17:08

great question and something that Nia and I also tackle monthly in our newsletter so individuals can subscribe at justiceandniaco online and you know when I think back on that experience and not to answer every question with a story, we love it here, we need it, we got to have context.

Speaker 1: 17:28

We got to have context, you know.

Speaker 2: 17:31

Look. The first thing, of course, is being able to recognize your spark and see that, recognize the fact that it's literally lit something up within you. And when I felt my spark, it was wild because I had and just for context a perfect rating at McKinsey. Mckinsey already has a 1% acceptance rate for recruiting. And then I was top 1% in the firm. Money was good, bonus was nice, but I was, like frankly, really unhappy and overwhelmed by what was going on in the world and thinking how can I just continue to sit here so comfortable by way of this material things and this external validation of this corporation, when there's a real opportunity for me to use even what I've learned here, what I've learned in life, to start to make a difference? And, as a result, the first thing, literally, was being courageous enough to recognize that my spark was talking to me and I needed to listen and lean into that. And then from there, you know, most people would say tactically okay, get to researching, really understand what the problem is, understand especially if you're looking at a startup, like what's the market size, et cetera. But for me, a critical point of our growth story was being able to actually build in community. So ultimately, my sister and I built together like this deck, outlining like this vision that we had. But we knew that we didn't just want to conceptualize this movement for Gen Z from our pink sofa in our living room. We immediately made a list of people in our community our friends, our allies and our acquaintances and said if we were to build this movement, who else do we want to have be a part of it? And that's why, on December 23rd 2020, just two days before Christmas we hopped on a Zoom and joined forces with dozens of young people, asking them to be a part of this journey with us and ask them specifically, reflecting on your unique, change-making experiences, what do you wish you had had? What do you wish your younger self had had? And, on top of that, what would be the most energizing part of this movement for you to help build?

Speaker 2: 19:44

I say all that to say after you've defined your spark and have an idea or concept of how you want to turn that spark into action. Building with community is super, super important. I'm not building just for the sake of building or being some sort of leader who just delegates, but actually bringing people in who, legitimately, are emotionally connected and invested in the idea and the success of the idea, and then also empowered to work on a part of the idea that legitimately energizes them. So for us, it was really, really important to build in community and that was an essential part, of course, of this movement, to ensure that it's not just for a certain type of young person but really it's for any young person who wants to make a difference. So my biggest lesson in terms of getting your idea off the ground and there are 10 full steps that we talk about extensively in our newsletter on a month-to-month basis but really the biggest lessons I've learned are find your spark, lean into your spark and then build community around your spark.

Speaker 1: 20:37

And you know that's awesome because I'm sure there were challenges, you know, along the way. And for me, again, here we go with the story people, but you know what we got. To have context, I started Scrub Life Cures back in November of 2020, because before I just started getting people rallying people, hey, we need these products, we need these items to get back to a particular area in Antigua X, Y, Z and just to see my fellow public health professionals, you know, rally and come and donate it, I was like, okay, this is something special. Again, still didn't have the concept at the time, you know. And for me, now that we have grown to where we are thus far, one of my challenges that I can retransmit with you is finding individuals that share the same vision or mission, or at least somewhere close. You have a team, but sometimes, to be honest, I can tell that the spark is not there. It's a situation where you're part of a movement or an organization that is doing big things or going places. Let me hang around here and see what's going on, and I'm sure you guys would have faced challenge, as you say, when it comes to even building your community.

Speaker 1: 21:39

So how do you, or how does one stay motivated when things get tough, Even when it feels like you know your impact is slow to come? Cause I've experienced that before and I used to beat myself. I'm like you know, what are we doing? Do I want to quit? I'm not a quitter because I have the vision and the mission, Because once something comes to me in a dream, it has to happen. It may not be two years, one month, but it is going to happen. Once I have a dream that's very, very, very, very clear, you know. So how does one, or how do you guys, even stay motivated when things get tough and when it feels like you know impact is slow to come? What kind of words of encouragement do you have for someone like myself or people in general?

Speaker 2: 22:13

It's a great question, and the first is that any sustained impact takes time, and that's the type of thing that we should lean into. I remember I was so young can't even remember how young I was but like I remember this very specific sermon in church where there was a guest pastor that came in and talked about the microwave effect. And if you put some leftovers in a microwave for like 45 seconds, 60 seconds, it's going to be a minute of your time. It's going to come out super, super hot. You walk away because you remember you have an email to respond to. You come back five, 10 minutes later it's ice cold.

Speaker 2: 22:51

That's ultimately not the type of impact that you want to make. You're not looking for a microwave effect. You're looking for sustained impact and, dare I say, even a legacy of certain extent, not an arrogant legacy about you, but a legacy truly in terms of the individuals, people's, organizations, communities that you're able to make a difference for and drastically support in a meaningful way that moves them forward. So this has been a very difficult lesson for me to teach myself and for me to learn through experiences. But as much as instant validation and gratification feels so great, we also must recognize that anything truly transformative and of the scale that we're looking for takes time and cannot be rushed. That being said, it's also important to note that when you are doing something for the first time, it is going to be hard. When you're blazing a trail, like literally clearing the way, it is going to be hard, and that is a badge of honor honestly worth caring and worth being very proud of, because, at the end of the day, you know that for those who come after you, it's going to be easier, so you're willing to take on that load.

Speaker 2: 24:04

The other thing that I think gets really, really challenging about this work is the role of ego and the fear of failure. Talk about it Right, and, as you've mentioned a few times, you're a perfectionist. I am, I would love to say, a recovering perfectionist, but I wouldn't be speaking the truth Like I'm working on it but I'm not there. But one thing that I learned is that too often, it's this fear of failing that gets in the way of us actually making progress, and I once heard someone describe it as look, if you have a dream of making a positive difference, you owe it to your community or the world to try, because your attempt is far better than the risk of that dream just being tucked away in a bedside nightstand.

Speaker 2: 24:53

That becomes dangerous right, like when you think about all those ideas that are ultimately shelved because people are too scared to fail, how on earth do we actually allow society to move forward? So, if you look at it from the perspective of I'm moving away from being scared of embarrassing myself because there's a risk of failure to I'm stepping into this time in my life where I'm willing to be bold enough to take a risk, recognizing that, if all goes well, I've made a difference in someone else's life, and who knows what the potential of that difference looks like. So, ultimately, being brave enough to lean in, recognize that this is bigger than you, this is bigger than any potential fear or risk of failure, and you owe it to the communities that you're hoping to serve to at least get started and to push through.

Speaker 1: 25:42

I love that, one of the things that I often tell myself, or even my team if we're able to serve one person, we're doing our job, because sometimes it's so easy to want to serve you know an entire community or thousands of people, but especially when you're starting out, it's most important that you, if you serve one person, our job here is not done, but it is something you know what I mean. And I think one thing that Revolutionaire is known for, from what I've seen, it's incredible. It's incredible community involvement. You guys, I'm going to be honest, I don't see anybody doing it like how you do it. I don't know. I have not seen anybody and I follow many different people and people who inspire me. But I'm going to say one thing about you guys you guys are known for that incredible community involvement. So how do you approach engaging with communities and what advice do you have for listeners who want to start making a difference in their own communities?

Speaker 2: 26:30

Yes, well, first of all, thank you so much for saying that we pride ourselves on making service fun, engaging and addictive, and what that looks like is sometimes getting like 150 young people together, bringing a DJ, getting supplies and packing 2000 meal and hygiene kits and then distributing them into the community. But for us, one thing that is really, really, really important is just recognizing how much fun things can be when you do them together, and you don't have to be the most popular person on campus to do something with a group of people. It literally can be you, starting with your local club, for example, or a local organization, or even reaching out to people on Instagram and LinkedIn who are in a similar niche as you, and bringing together 10 people, for example, to come and serve. One of the examples that we saw this summer, actually, after Hurricane Beryl was Revolutionaire, joined forces with Deborah Cox to be able to mobilize this movement and get corporations to chip in and support as part of our work with the Global Empowerment Mission and their disaster relief response across Grenada, st Vincent and the Grenadines and Jamaica, as well as other affected islands, and so we were doing this corporation mobilization on one hand. We were also encouraging people to shop a link, a registry link to have needed supplies delivered directly to a warehouse then be packaged up and distributed to affected communities. And then we also had people go ahead and make donations monetary.

Speaker 2: 28:03

But then what was super cool was we had this organization of young women in Atlanta, georgia, called the Free To Be Collective, who decided to basically do like a community cookout whereby everyone would be encouraged to show up and like bring something that represented their home island, rep their island in some way, and then also like bring something that they could actually donate to people in those affected communities.

Speaker 2: 28:31

And ultimately it was a super, super fun day. All of these young girls came together, they sold t-shirts, even to raise additional funds, and then they filled two cars with supplies and have them shipped down to Miami and then shipped over to the Caribbean to be distributed. And like that was super, super fun and a beautiful way to engage your community and kind of like an unexpected approach, right, like they made a whole event around service, which is what we like to do, and whether that's us getting 150 people in the room or looking at that example of, like you know, 25, 50 young women, like it could who knows, it could even be 500 volunteers that you're getting out, but honestly, the number doesn't matter, it's choosing to get started, because for us, what's been really cool is how the people who have come to our service events have also been sparked to start their own initiatives locally. And that's really where you start to see the power of a ripple effect and also the power of inspiration.

Speaker 1: 29:25

I love that and I think one of the biggest things we should also be doing is looking at your local community, because sometimes we tend to look out or look past that. Start by looking at your local community, see what's happening around you, reach out, as you said, to organizations who are doing the work that you care about, and even attending local events, because, for me, I love to network Just this one thing about me and they will tell you. Tanya, she doesn't care where you are, who you are, she's going to network, she's going to tell you about her passion and what I'm doing, because I think partnerships are just so important. You know, I think when we collaborate, our efforts are oftentimes amplified, if that makes sense. So, speaking of partnerships, you know what has your experience been with building these amazing partnerships in your community? Because, like I said, you are doing amazing, top tier work. So what has that been like, you know, experiencing building these relationships, these partnerships that can sustain, you know, next year, the year after, not just a one-time thing.

Speaker 2: 30:14

Totally Well. Again, thank you so much for saying that.

Speaker 1: 30:18

And I'm going to I'm going to gas you every time I can. Okay, I want to gas you every time.

Speaker 2: 30:23

Okay. So, as it relates to partnerships, revolutionaire does a whole ton of partnerships. We really lean into this idea of one plus one equals three and fundamentally, all of our partnerships must be values aligned. We are not teaming up with any corporation as a box ticking exercise or to make them feel good. It really has to be about how are you actually moving the needle forward on the causes that we're tackling, but taking a step back, I think one thing that's kind of interesting is sometimes people are very reticent to engaging with corporations or even just private sector entities when it comes to doing good.

Speaker 2: 30:57

The way that we look at it is if you're aligned from a value standpoint, corporations and private sector more broadly allows to really scale the impact of our work. So, for example, a couple of summers ago, we did an Instagram live with these young men from Houston who were talking about how, during the pandemic, they were using their family's food stamps to feed people experiencing homelessness, and me and I, you know, obviously reflected on that live and thought there has to be a better way. So what we decided to do was knock on the doors of corporations essentially and ask would you sponsor the service initiative and allow us to scale the impact of this incredible youth-led organization to be able to reach more people in the way that they needed to. And what was really fascinating is that, more often than not, the answer was yes, absolutely, and as long as you're very clear about the ask. And then, absolutely, and as long as you're very clear about the ask. And then I find in 2024, corporations are a little bit less giving now, so sometimes you need to make a business case for their involvement, and for me, that often looks like.

Speaker 2: 32:04

Right now, gen Z has a spending power of at least $450 billion. By 2030, that's expected to increase to $2 trillion. And what do we want? We want to support brands that actually commit to and invest in sustainability and equity. Therefore, it's in the best interest of your bottom line to show up for not only Gen Z, but also the causes that we care about and we found from our work that, again, brands have been very receptive to that. But also because we provide a real vehicle for them to have lasting community impact and change. And for us, that's important because we want to ensure that we're able to catalyze youth-led ideas and actually get them to be scaled at the level that we dream of.

Speaker 1: 32:41

I love that. I love that, as we get ready to wrap up, can you share an example which you've had throughout this episode of Revolutionaire? A project that you guys started that just took off without any expectations. You just know what. This is what we want to do. We're going to do the research, we're going to get it done. You know, like one of your most proud projects. I mean, I know you're proud of everything, but what started really, really small and has since then exceeded your expectations.

Speaker 2: 33:02

Oof. There are a few, a few.

Speaker 1: 33:11

And there doesn't have to be one, but you know, let's talk about it so people can know exactly what you guys are doing, because I want to make sure that people know the impact that you're making. You know.

Speaker 2: 33:17

Definitely. I mean, I'll share perhaps two different perspectives one in terms of community, the other in terms of commerce. I've spoken a lot about our different service initiatives but frankly, like two weeks before we launched our digital platform for young changemakers, there was a volcanic eruption in St Vincent and the Grenadines and that was really, really, really devastating. And, as I mentioned at the top of the episode, my mom is from St Vincent and the Grenadines and obviously spent a lot of time there. And let me tell you something I appreciate, again, anyone stepping up and doing something helpful. But one thing I did not like was how many like used clothing drives were being organized across the diaspora to send those back home. It just didn't sit right with me.

Speaker 2: 34:02

So ultimately, nia and I again made a list of corporations. We wanted to knock on those doors and figure out how we could mobilize their support here in Canada to support individuals in St Vincent and the Grenadines. 16,000 people had been affected by the volcanic eruption and we were able to get, yes, things like power washers and hygiene kits and all of these different things. But what we also did was actually look to one of our first clothing collaborators, roots, and they supported us by sending down tons of apparel and accessories for people in need, with the tags still on. These were brand new t-shirts, sweatshirts, sweatpants, etc. Socks essential items for people who had literally lost everything.

Speaker 2: 34:50

Fast forward now to December 2023, me and I were doing this give back tour during the Christmas season with Intercaribbean Airways and went to Grenada, barbados and St Vincent and specifically went to food insecure communities and surprised people at the grocery store with free groceries. We literally like hashed them out and then say, surprise, it's on us and Intercaribbean. And one day a man walked in in St Vincent and the Grenadines into one of the grocery stores and he was wearing one of those Roots t-shirts and we just said hey, I like your t-shirt.

Speaker 2: 35:24

He said thank you so much. An organization from Canada had it sent down after the volcanic eruption and it meant so much to me to be able to read it. And literally a small thing, tanya, like super, super small, but it felt incredibly full circle in that moment and again a reminder of the work that we do and how you know, several years later, this was something that had moved this man and he had no idea, obviously, that me and I were behind it and we weren't about to mention that in that moment, but it was a beautiful exchange that again reaffirms the value and the human impact of the work that we're doing.

Speaker 1: 35:59

You know, we wouldn't be where we are without these people and these organizations, these corporations, you know, sharing the vision and collaborating with each other. And I like the way in which you, how you approach these corporations, because it's important. You know, imagine if other people were doing that, how many people we could help, because they're making their millions, trillions, billions, and sometimes they just need an ask. You know what I mean. You just need someone to ask and I think justice, because you got me teary-eyed and whatnot. I can't. You got me teary-eyed by that story because I'm telling you, because people really be going through stuff in life To see, you know the work that you did. That's one random day in a grocery store. You know what I mean. So that's just heartwarming to me. But before we go here in the tea tasting room, we'd like to have something that's called the rapid fire question. You're going to spill the tea, okay? So you ready? Yes, I'm ready. Okay, I got a few questions here for you. What's one word that a podcast that's inspired you recently.

Speaker 2: 37:04

It's not even recently, but it's my annual reread. The Alchemist and Meditations by Marcus Aurelius those two together are my dynamic.

Speaker 1: 37:12

Okay, if you could have dinner with any activist, past or present, who would it be?

Speaker 2: 37:18

I would love to have dinner with the phenomenal Shirley Chisholm.

Speaker 1: 37:23

Yes, love it. What's your go-to self-care routine?

Speaker 2: 37:27

Go-to self-care routine is an early night in bed.

Speaker 1: 37:32

I love that for you. Teach me your ways. What's the best advice you've ever received?

Speaker 2: 37:38

Best advice I've ever received is going to sound super, super cliche, but my mom was always reminding us in our childhood to really lean into your dreams and, by extension of that, bet on yourself. Everything else will follow.

Speaker 1: 37:57

I love that. I just told somebody today I was talking to you have to bet on yourself always, no matter what. So it's funny that you said that. What is one cause you're passionate about that we should all know more about?

Speaker 2: 38:09

It's a way of life, youth empowerment. I say this every single day. Young people are experts in our experiences and we bring the ideas that are necessary to get the world back on track. You know, obviously I talk day in, day out about the Sustainable Development Goals, that blueprint to save the planet and its people. The only way in which we can truly expect to come close to realizing those Sustainable Development Goals is by embedding young people and ultimately the torchbearers for the future, into the solution. Coffee, tea or something else.

Speaker 2: 38:44

I've never had coffee in my life, so it's got to be tea, and decaffeinated tea, you know by the way, you're from the Caribbean, so you better have chosen tea, because tea is just life.

Speaker 1: 38:53

The Caribbean, so you better have chosen tea, because tea is just life. One last question you recently announced that you were working with the United Nations Women. What was that experience like, or what are you looking forward to the most with that?

Speaker 2: 39:05

Thank you. Yes, I was recently invited to join the new UN Women Leaders Network, chaired by the Executive Director of UN Women, seema Bahoos, and I was just so over the moon like honored and, frankly, very surprised. But essentially, the executive directors convened this network of 100 women leaders from across sectors, like several prime ministers and presidents and people who I look up to, like Kimberly Crenshaw and Roxanne Gay, all convening together to talk about what's it going to take to advance women's leadership in sectors around the world. So it's a very new development for me, but I'm very excited to get to work alongside these phenomenal women who I've looked up to for so many years.

Speaker 1: 39:48

I love that for you and I think we've given the tea tasters, as I call my listeners a lot to think about. You know, from finding inspiration to taking action and also creating, you know, purpose in their daily life. So I want to thank you so much for even agreeing to be a guest on this podcast and for sharing your wisdom and your journey. But before we go, tell everyone where they can find you, how they can get in contact with your organization. You know, sign up for the newsletter, everything. Just tell us everything.

Speaker 2: 40:15

Okay, sounds good.

Speaker 1: 40:16

So you can how they can get involved as well, because, you know, I think we'll have some people who want to get involved with what you're doing.

Speaker 2: 40:22

Yes, of course. Well, thank you, tanya, so much again for having me. This has been such a delight and really, really honored to be a part of your Thank you. In regards to getting in touch, so you can learn more about Revolutionaire at revolutionaireco on Instagram, tiktok, as well as wwwrevolutionaireco online, and to learn more about Nia and me and to subscribe to our newsletter, you can head to justiceandniaco that's wwwjusticeandniaco, and follow us at the Justice Faith and at Nia Faith on Instagram.

Speaker 1: 40:55

Well, thank you so much. Thank you, guys, for tuning into another episode. As always, remember to keep sipping and keep thriving and bet on yourself always Love it. Thank you for joining me for another episode of Tea with Tanya. If you liked this episode, be sure to share it with a friend. Tanya, if you liked this episode, be sure to share it with a friend. Don't forget to follow on Instagram at Tea with Tanya Podcast. Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Tea Talk newsletter and, of course, rate on Apple or Spotify and subscribe wherever you listen. See you next time. I love you for listening.