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Catalyze

News & Politics Podcasts

This is Catalyze, a podcast produced by the Morehead-Cain Foundation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With a wink and a nod to the Foundation's two chemist benefactors—John Motley Morehead III and Gordon Cain—“Catalyze” is meant to represent action, movement, and bringing about change. Our conversations with action-oriented alumni and scholars cover Carolina experiences, career evolutions, individual leadership approaches, personal values, and all kinds of stories of transformation, resilience, and achievement.

This is Catalyze, a podcast produced by the Morehead-Cain Foundation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With a wink and a nod to the Foundation's two chemist benefactors—John Motley Morehead III and Gordon Cain—“Catalyze” is meant to represent action, movement, and bringing about change. Our conversations with action-oriented alumni and scholars cover Carolina experiences, career evolutions, individual leadership approaches, personal values, and all kinds of stories of transformation, resilience, and achievement.

Location:

United States

Description:

This is Catalyze, a podcast produced by the Morehead-Cain Foundation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With a wink and a nod to the Foundation's two chemist benefactors—John Motley Morehead III and Gordon Cain—“Catalyze” is meant to represent action, movement, and bringing about change. Our conversations with action-oriented alumni and scholars cover Carolina experiences, career evolutions, individual leadership approaches, personal values, and all kinds of stories of transformation, resilience, and achievement.

Language:

English

Episodes

Federal judge nominee Jerry Blackwell ’84 on the story behind the Chauvin trial as special prosecutor

7/26/2022
Trial lawyer Jerry Blackwell ’84 sat down with Catalyze hosts Sarah O’Carroll and Benny Klein ’24 to share his story of joining the prosecution team, some of the strategies behind the case, and what it was like to deliver the closing remarks of the trial. Jerry has been nominated by President Biden to become a federal judge for the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota. The alumnus is the founding partner, CEO, and chairman of Blackwell Burke P.A. Listen to the...

Duration:00:32:17

Brad Rathgeber ’01, CEO of One Schoolhouse, on a relationships-first approach to online learning, with scholar host Benny Klein ’24

7/12/2022
Brad Rathgeber ’01 is the head of school and CEO of One Schoolhouse, a “partner to independent schools that envisions and embodies what’s next in education, online learning, and professional development.” The alumnus talks with host Benny Klein ’24 of the Scholar Media Team about working with three other Morehead-Cains as a rising second-year college student for a nonprofit scholarship program in Zimbabwe (co-founded by Galahad Clark ’99 and Jeff Pike ’99), teaching and coaching at...

Duration:00:27:43

Podcast producer Nick Andersen ’12 on navigating his career in media and what it’s like to work for PBS MASTERPIECE

6/28/2022
Nick Andersen ’12 is a podcast producer for GBH Boston, the primary PBS member station in Boston. Nick shares with host Benny Klein ’24 of the Scholar Media Team about his work on the PBS MASTERPIECE series. Before joining GBH, the producer worked for WBUR, Boston’s NPR news station, and NPR’s On Point show. The alumnus is also the senior producer for Ministry of Ideas, a “small show about big ideas.” The Harvard Divinity School series is dedicated to investigating and illuminating the...

Duration:00:32:24

Jamie DeMent Holcomb ’01 on how saying ‘yes’ led her to success as a museum CEO, venture capitalist, writer, chef, and farmer, with scholar host Benny Klein ’24

6/14/2022
Jamie DeMent Holcomb ’01 stopped by the Foundation in March 2022 to speak with host Benny Klein ’24 of the Scholar Media Team during her campaign for North Carolina Senate (District 23). Jamie shares about growing up in Franklin County, North Carolina; watching the Duke vs. UNC game during her final selection weekend; spotting Brad Pitt and Quentin Tarantino on the Universal Studios set, and her love of science museums. Jamie is CEO of the Kidzu Children’s Museum in Chapel Hill, where she...

Duration:00:41:58

A quick message from the Morehead-Cain Scholar Media Team, with Tucker Stillman ’25

6/14/2022
Tucker Stillman ’25 from the Morehead-Cain Scholar Media Team shares about the latest stories from the team. First up, a series on self-starters by Sarah Chocron ’25 and Ria Patel ’25 features Morehead-Cains who took the initiative to fill gaps within their communities. The first edition highlights Isabella Grandic ’25 and her startup Boob Blurb, a card-game-turned-social-movement inspired by women’s liberation, women’s health and wellness, and women’s rights. Up next is Mercy Adekola ’25...

Duration:00:01:16

Consultant and entrepreneur Bradley Opere ’17 of FarmMoja: ‘Africa is a place that a lot of people are waking up, step by step’

3/31/2022
Bradley Opere ’17 is the co-founder of FarmMoja, an agriculture social enterprise in Nairobi, Kenya. Bradley joined Catalyze to share about what got him interested in the agriculture industry, how FarmMoja is working to rehabilitate land and support smallholder farmers, and why it was important for the alumnus to return to Africa after graduating as a Morehead-Cain Scholar. For his day job, Bradley is now a consultant at Dalberg. Prior to joining the global consulting firm, he was a young...

Duration:00:14:52

Portfolio manager Ying Hua ’10 on the two approaches to investing and what college students should know about getting started

3/4/2022
Ying Hua ’10 is a portfolio manager at Balyasny Asset Management, a hedge fund with $15 billion of assets under management. On this episode, Ying breaks down the two approaches to investing (fundamental and quantitative) and gives personal finance advice for college students. She also shares how to embrace volatility and risk in your career. Prior to joining Balyasny in 2020, Ying was an analyst at Citadel for four years and an equity research associate at Goldman Sachs before that. She...

Duration:00:23:30

Episode teaser: 60 seconds of career advice, from Ying Hua ’10

2/17/2022
Our next Catalyze guest is Ying Hua ’10, a portfolio manager at Balyasny Asset Management in San Francisco. Ahead of releasing her full episode, we’re sharing 60 seconds of her advice for college students interested in pursuing a career in finance. Listen before your next interview, or if you just need a pep talk. Music credits: “Outside the Box,” by Patrick Patrikios.

Duration:00:01:04

Meet Dr. Brandi Brimmer, Morehead-Cain Alumni Associate Professor in the Department of African, African American, and Diaspora Studies at UNC–Chapel Hill

2/8/2022
Catalyze is honored to have Dr. Brandi Brimmer on the series to talk about her first year so far at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, her background in African American social and political history, and her current and upcoming research projects. Dr. Brimmer, an associate professor in the Department of African, African American, and Diaspora Studies (AAAD), is one of three Morehead-Cain Alumni Professors teaching at UNC–Chapel Hill. She joined the Morehead-Cain and Carolina...

Duration:00:18:29

MLK Day Special: Wendell McCain ’92, son of Greensboro Four civil rights activist Franklin McCain, with scholar host Benny Klein ’24

1/17/2022
For MLK Day, scholar host Benny Klein ’24 interviews Wendell McCain ’92, the son of activist Franklin McCain of the Greensboro Four. Wendell shares about what it was like to grow up around one of the leaders of the civil rights movement and the lessons he learned from his father about pursuing justice. He also talks about his journey through the financial world and how he’s found ways to support and uplift those around him. Wendell is the chair and CEO of Onset Capital Partners, a global...

Duration:00:43:56

From the Los Angeles Times to freelance: documentarian Rob Gourley ’18 on making the jump

1/11/2022
Rob Gourley ’18 is a documentary producer, cinematographer, and video editor based in Chico, California. During the pandemic, the alumnus was working for the Los Angeles Times as a video producer when an opportunity came up to work for PBS on a NOVA series about electric airplanes. What was intended to be a sabbatical turned into the launch of Rob’s career into freelance. Rob shares with Catalyze about his decision to take a big risk, his aspirations to make a documentary about wildfires,...

Duration:00:23:32

The power of third parties to keep countries accountable on climate action, with economist Billy Pizer ’90

12/7/2021
Upon his return from the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, Billy Pizer ’90 joined Catalyze to analyze the major announcements made and new global carbon market rules. The economist also shares his thoughts on the role of technologies backing cryptocurrencies in emissions reporting and payments. Billy is the vice president for research and policy engagement for Resources for the Future, a nonprofit research institution based in Washington, D.C. The...

Duration:00:22:25

What women want at work and what companies can do to reduce the gender gap in the post-pandemic workforce, with Ursula Dimmling Mead ’02 and Anna Pickens ’23 of InHerSight

11/15/2021
Since the beginning of the pandemic, millions of women have dropped out of the workforce, and many have yet to rejoin. Ursula Dimmling Mead ’02 has been studying what women want at work for the bulk of her career. She built a tool to help women make data-informed decisions about where to apply (and where to avoid applying). Ursula is the founder and CEO of InHerSight, the largest company-reviews platform for women. The alumna joined Catalyze to share how the pandemic has changed the ways...

Duration:00:31:13

The role U.S. universities play in driving nuclear weapons research and development, with Seth Shelden ’98 of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

11/9/2021
Seth Shelden ’98 is the United Nations liaison for the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The coalition was awarded the Nobel Peace Price in 2017 for its work to bring about the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The TPNW outlaws the use, testing, development, production, possession, and transfer of nuclear weapons, and it outlines how countries can destroy their own stockpiles. It also stipulates victim assistance, environmental remediation, and...

Duration:00:20:37

How Chattanooga is building a model for smart cities, with Geoff Milliner of the Chattanooga Enterprise Center, and Morehead-Cain’s Montez Thomas

10/26/2021
Catalyze is joined by Geoff Milliner, the COO of the Chattanooga Enterprise Center and a 2021 Civic Collaboration host for Morehead-Cain, and Montez Thomas, assistant director of scholar advising at Morehead-Cain. This episode is the second in a two-part series on the Civic Collaboration program. The Enterprise Center tasked their team of Morehead-Cain Scholars to explore the impact of “smart city” investments and technologies on quality of life, as well as its intersection with social...

Duration:00:20:57

Liz Kistin Keller ’04 of Albuquerque’s Office of the Mayor on increasing access to digital services in local government

10/26/2021
Catalyze is joined by Liz Kistin Keller ’04 of the City of Albuquerque’s Office of the Mayor and a 2021 Civic Collaboration host for Morehead-Cain. This episode is the first in a two-part series on the Civic Collaboration program. The Office of the Mayor tasked their team of Morehead-Cain Scholars to explore the online user experiences of the 50+ population in order to improve their access to internet-based services provided by local government. More than a dozen teams of scholars...

Duration:00:14:51

We’re back! Fall events lineup for Morehead-Cain

9/28/2021
Catalyze is back for the fall season, and we have a lot to share about. RSVP for this semester’s events: Find your class-year decade event with Morehead-Cain President Chris BradfordLearn more about the (Mini) Forum’s events, beginning the week of November 15th and leading up to our Day of GivingMusic credits The music for this episode is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul. How to listen On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to...

Duration:00:01:38

Managing an international business in Myanmar through a military coup and the COVID-19 pandemic, with J. R. Ching ’01 of Yoma Strategic Holdings

9/28/2021
We’re launching our fall season with J. R. Ching ’01, the chief financial officer for Yoma Strategic Holdings. We asked J. R. to join the show to help us understand the military coup in Myanmar and to hear how his company has managed the ongoing crisis as the Delta variant continues to surge throughout the country. Credits The music for this episode was produced and contributed by Nicholas Byrne ’19 of Arts + Crafts. Nicholas is a producer, guitarist, and singer, and a graduate student at...

Duration:00:20:07

Ads, algorithms, and reversing capitalism in art, with producer and musician Nicholas Byrne ’19

4/15/2021
Catalyze invited Nicholas Byrne ’19 of Arts + Crafts back to the series to talk about his latest music projects, and because we thought you might want to learn more about the artist behind the music that’s featured on the show. We first brought Nicholas to Catalyze in October 2020 as the producer, guitarist, and singer was road-tripping across the country with Eric Lee ’18 and Sam Lowe ’20. Nicholas spoke with us from Smithonia, an unincorporated community about 20 minutes outside Athens,...

Duration:00:28:25

Gap Year Dispatch: Emile Charles ’24 (and ft. Taylor Shinal ’25, Mark Finamore ’25, Asher Wexler ’25, and Noah Gottlieb ’25)

3/30/2021
For this special segment of Catalyze, Emile Charles ’24 shares the most impactful aspects of his international gap year, pandemic disruptions included. The scholar interned at a children’s hospital in Cape Town, South Africa; visited his father’s Caribbean home in St. George’s, Grenada; worked on a global public health collaboration between the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Malawi Ministry of Health; and organized Black Lives Matter protests in Chapel Hill. Gap year...

Duration:00:10:27

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