Dr. Leah Robinson: Optimal Health for an Optimal Life

Dr. Nancy welcomes Michelle Milford Morse, Vice President for Girls and Women Strategy at the United Nations Foundation, for an inspiring conversation about advancing global gender equality. Milford Morse shares how her Texas roots and influential women leaders have shaped her journey, and highlights the UN Foundation’s critical role in fostering global cooperation to address challenges such as gender-based violence, climate change, and health inequities. She emphasizes the transformative power of women’s leadership and youth engagement in creating durable solutions. Together, they discuss the importance of hope, collaboration, and the UN’s impact on women’s rights worldwide. This episode is a powerful reminder of the progress we can achieve when women and men unite for a better future.

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Dr. Nancy sits down with David G. Smith, PhD, a sociologist, author, and leading expert on the benefits male allies bring to women in the workplace. Sharing his unique journey from Navy pilot alongside his wife to be to passionate advocate for male allyship and gender equity in the workplace. It was through her experiences, especially surrounding a lack of mentor and resources that transformed the way he saw gender in the workplace He discusses how his personal experiences versus hers shaped his work and led to his acclaimed books, "Athena Rising: How and Why Men Should Mentor Women" and "Good Guys: How Women Can Be Better Allies for Women in the Workplace," both of which he co-authored with W. Brad Johnson, PhD.

Dr. Smith explains the concept of systemic allyship and why it's a leadership issue that benefits everyone. He offers practical, actionable steps for men who want to become better allies, mentors, and sponsors for women. This conversation explores how to move beyond good intentions to create real, measurable change, fostering inclusive workplaces where collaboration thrives, and everyone can reach their full potential.

Dr. Nancy welcomes Heidi Sieck and Dr. Nicole Haggard for a powerful compilation on the topic of equality. Sieck shares her insights on the decades-long political strategy to limit reproductive freedom, and its critical role in empowering women to step into leadership. She also weighs in on the importance of local political engagement to protect these rights. Haggard highlights the necessity of intersectionality, comprehensive data, and the inclusion of men in the fight for gender equity. Together, they explore pathways to equality through representation, narrative research, coalition building, and actionable steps to create lasting change. This episode is a call to action and looks at the ways we can support one another, engage politically, and reimagine a future where equality is the foundation for progress.

Dr. Nancy welcomes Janine Firpo, investor, author of Activate Your Money, and co-founder of Invest for Better. Firpo shares the story of her unconventional path from tech and international development to pioneering values-aligned investing for everyday women. She introduces the Sheconomy, a collaborative national campaign that reframes what’s possible when women control capital and create impact while expanding returns. Firpo breaks down practical steps to align cash, stocks, bonds, and private investments with your values, and why shifting where money flows drives the products, policies, and outcomes that serve everyone. She also previews a 100-day action challenge to help women take financial control, build wealth with purpose, and shape a more equitable future.

Dr. Nancy welcomes Natalie Byrne, founder of the impact strategy firm blank space and the social profit blank space collaborative. Byrne shares her journey from journalism to advising global leaders, brands, and philanthropists on activating their purpose. She details the launch of BE Human at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative to re-center humanity in the age of AI. Byrne discusses how to build and live your legacy now, the importance of collaboration across business and philanthropy, and what horses can teach us about presence and connection. She explains how her work is creating a framework for the next generation of leaders to build a more conscious, human-centered world driven by purpose.

Dr. Nancy welcomes Sara Lomelin, founding CEO of Philanthropy Together and a global catalyst for democratizing philanthropy. Lomelin shares her journey from her childhood in Mexico City to becoming a visionary leader, named to the TIME100 Philanthropy list and Forbes 50 Over 50 for her work expanding the power of collective giving. She explains how giving circles—groups of people who pool their resources to support causes they care about—are transforming who gets to be a philanthropist. Discussing how the "Five T's" of giving (time, treasure, talent, testimony, and ties) have inspired hundreds of thousands of people to create giving circles that contribute to their communities, Lomelin also details their donor education, women-led initiatives, and hyper-local impact, building a more equitable and community-driven world.

Dr. Nancy welcomes Andreas Pettersson, author of Power Without Permission and longtime advocate for women’s leadership. Having been raised by a single mother in Sweden where equality is the norm, he expresses his shock at finding such extreme inequality in leadership in the U.S. He shares how his life’s mission has become focused on empowering women and challenging self-doubt and imposter syndrome, which he sees as a way to pay it forward. His book—co-authored with 13 women leaders—offers practical tools and real-life stories to inspire confidence and action for advancing women in leadership. Pettersson also describes how male allies can support women and urges participation in his free mentorship community designed to create a vast network of women and men to advance women’s leadership.