If She Can Make It Here Podcast: Women As Changemakers In NYC

 Amplify Her Foundation's If She Can Make It Here is a new podcast that has a lot going for it. First, it's produced by Amplify Her Foundation, which is a private grant-giving foundation that supports women and girls from underserved communities in New York City to become "transformative changemakers."

Its mission is achieved through grant making to community-led organizations, advocacy, building a network of women leaders, and conducting research to address systemic barriers. The foundation prioritizes organizations and programs that are led by women and/or girls.

Second, its hosts are superb -- passionate and articulate. The show is hosted by Marti Speranza Wong, Founder and Executive Director of the Amplify Her® Foundation, and Maia Molina-Schaefer, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives. Episodes cover topics like care equity, advocating for domestic workers, building inclusive workplace cultures, and the unique spirit of New York in fostering change.

In the show's inaugural episode, the co-hosts sat down with Ai-jen Poo, Co-founder and President of the National Domestic Workers Alliance and Co-founder and Executive Director of Caring Across Generations.  

Ai-jen Poo shares what fuels her fight for care equity and the lessons she’s learned as she built a movement from grassroots organizing in New York to transformative national policy change. The guest is a renowned speaker, organizer, and voice for women and people in labor movements.

The guest advocated for support systems that should already be in place for citizen needs, such as child care, elder care, and care equity. 

I liked what the co-hosts did at the end of the show, which I assume will be their format going forward. They asked Ai-jen Poo, "to complete this sentence. If She Can Make it here, she can..." That's a nice touch of summary for the listeners and solidifying the key messages of the interview.

If She Can Make It Here celebrates the bold and fearless women leading across New York City. The series will feature changemakers, like Ai-jen Poo (first episode) and Reshma Saujani, who build pathways, shift narratives, and transform systems to advance gender equity.

The show uses intro music effectively, offers listeners strong sound quality, keeps interviews short and tight, and has co-hosts who work as a team and are listener-focused.

On October 3rd, 
Amplify Her® Foundation held its Launch Celebration, with New York State Attorney General Letitia James giving opening remarks and Tarana Burke, Founder of the Me Too Movement and a pioneer in driving social change and women’s leadership, receiving the foundation's inaugural GlassBreaker award. 

Amplify Her® Foundation also unveiled a comprehensive research report on women’s leadership, If She Can Make It Here, and a panel of esteemed women leaders joined an interactive dialogue to dive deep into the report's findings and discuss actionable interventions that empower women and girls in underserved communities.

Between feature episodes, If She Can Make It Here will spotlight stories from Amplify Her® Foundation’s grantee partners, revealing how innovation - from STEM education to entrepreneurship - fuels long-term impact. 

Check out If She Can Make It Here. Despite what the current administration will have you believe, there is a wealth of community spirit, working together, entrepreneurial spirit, female empowerment and grassroots organizing.