Speakup International

07/15/2026

Stop treating equity like a slogan!

In this episode, Rita Burke and I sat down with educator and community leader Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad in October 2023 to unpack what real institutional change looks like from the ground up. Forget the buzzwords—we are talking about the courage, strategy, and humility required to do the actual work.

The October 2023, version of this podcast was excellent! We decided to release the video so you can experience the full effect! Thank you, Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad!

What we unpack in this episode:
Breaking Silos: Concrete strategies bridging education, healthcare, and justice.

Real Representation: Elevating leaders with lived experience, dismantling "fit" as a gatekeeping tool, and tackling the school-to-prison pipeline.

True Accountability: Why a lack of data is a story institutions must answer for.
Listener

Note: If you care about Canadian education, Ontario teacher pathways, community safety, or institutional reform, this conversation is for you.

Until Monday, July 20, 2026, feel free to listen to or watch the following podcast collections.
www.speakuppodcast.ca (audio)
https://www.youtube.com//videos (video)

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07/13/2026

What is it like when decades of hard work & isolation suddenly become public recognition (Order of Ontario)?

For decades, Dwayne Morgan was building a life of private sacrifice before the public recognition of his achievements.

In our latest episode, legendary spoken word poet and community leader Dwayne Morgan sits down with us to pull back the curtain on long-game creativity. From building culture in Scarborough and across Toronto to pioneering equity work, Dwayne opens up to Rita and me about what it’s really like to build a vision before it becomes popular.

Artist, Educator, and Change Makers – this conversation is for you!
Watch the full episode now!
Video: https://youtu.be/oB_1BZm0lXA
Audio: www.speakuppodcast.ca

Subscribe, share with someone who is starting out and needs a push, and leave a review with the line or lesson that has resonated with you!

You can reach Dwayne Morgan using the following link:
https://www.dwaynemorgan.ca/

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07/06/2026

Burnout gets framed as a personal problem far too often, so we sit down with author and DEI speaker Rochelle Ramathe to name what many people are living: sometimes the workplace is the hazard. Rochelle shares her journey from being overlooked in school in Edmonton to earning a master’s degree in social work, and how one moment of being truly seen by a professor changed her identity and direction.

Ms. Ramathe discussed practical tools you can use right away to beat burnout.

If this conversation helps you name what you’ve been carrying, subscribe, share it with a colleague, and leave a review so more people can find it.

Rochelle, you can view the podcast using the following link: https://youtu.be/zdzINAReDhg
You can listen to the podcast using the following link:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1988087/episodes/19452312-why-black-skin-matters-with-rochelle-ramathe.mp3?download=true

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06/30/2026

3% is a number that should stop you cold. C.J. Stewart tells us you’ve got roughly a 3% chance of making it to pro sports and, in Atlanta, a similar shot at escaping poverty if you’re born into it. C.J. knows both worlds. He’s a former Chicago Cubs outfielder, and he’s now the chief visionary officer and co-founder of the L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, a sports-based youth development non-profit built to help marginalised youth build real paths into adulthood.

The conversation gets personal and practical: the difference between guilt and conviction, why mentorship is the floor not the ceiling, and why sponsorship and advocacy are what move young people from potential to power. CJ also shares a vision for a more connected Atlanta, including programs that bring together kids from Bankhead and Buckhead, and a definition of civic engagement that goes beyond voting into real, consequential living.

If you care about youth development, equity in sport, or building stronger communities, listen through and then share this with someone who mentors, coaches, or hires. Subscribe, leave a review, and tell us: what’s one relationship that changed your trajectory?

I invited you to listen or view the podcast using the following links:

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1988087/episodes/19418456-who-is-c-j-stewart-really-deep-dive-interview.mp3?download=true (audio)

https://youtu.be/v8rEuxx1kg4 (YouTube)

3% is a number that should stop you cold. C.J. Stewart tells us you...

06/27/2026

COMING MONDAY, JUNE 29, 2026!!!

3% is a number that should stop you cold. C.J. Stewart tells us you’ve got roughly a 3% chance of making it to pro sports and, in Atlanta, a similar shot at escaping poverty if you’re born into it. C.J. knows both worlds. He’s a former Chicago Cubs outfielder, and he’s now the chief visionary officer and co-founder of the L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, a sports-based youth development non-profit built to help marginalised youth build real paths into adulthood.

The conversation gets personal and practical: the difference between guilt and conviction, why mentorship is the floor not the ceiling, and why sponsorship and advocacy are what move young people from potential to power. C.J. also shares a vision for a more connected Atlanta, including programs that bring together kids from Bankhead and Buckhead, and a definition of civic engagement that goes beyond voting into real, consequential living.

If you care about youth development, equity in sport, or building stronger communities, listen through and then share this with someone who mentors, coaches, or hires. Subscribe, leave a review, and tell us: what’s one relationship that changed your trajectory?

Until the day of release, feel free in visit and enjoy the collection stories using the following links:

www.speakuppodcast.ca (audio)
https://www.youtube.com/ (YouTube)

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06/19/2026

Somebody is making money off Black suffering, and that truth changes how we understand everything from politics to philanthropy to the stories we tell about ourselves.

We sit down with Dennis Maurice Dumpson, author and founder of Invest Black, to name what he calls the black pain economy and how racial capitalism turns harm into a revenue model that rewards extraction while demanding endless durability from Black bodies.

Subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more listeners can find these stories and tools. What part of this conversation do you want to build on next?

Until June 22, 2026, enjoy our collection of inspirational stories are located at the following links:
www.speakuppodcast.ca (audio)
https://www.youtube.com/ (YouTube)

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06/06/2026

"Black people don’t support each other."

That’s the exact line a potential funder threw in Roger Dundas’s face when he was trying to launch a new venture. For most, it would be a door slammed in their face. For Roger, it became pure, unadulterated fuel.

In this explosive new episode of the SpeakUP! International podcast, Rita and I sit down with Toronto-based entrepreneur and ByBlacks co-founder, Roger Dundas, to dismantle this myth and expose the raw reality of building a Black media empire in Canada.

Why You Need to Listen to This Episode:

• The Birth of a Movement: Travel back to the early 2010s, where blatant mainstream bias and the sudden collapse of a vital publication left Black Canadian stories completely erased. Discover how ByBlacks rose from those ashes.
• Mission vs. Survival: It’s easy to talk about community; it’s brutally hard to fund it. Roger pulls back the curtain on the operational grit, inbound marketing, and bulletproof strategy required to keep a mission-driven business alive.
• Real Journalism over Celebrity Gossip: Find out why ByBlacks deliberately rejects the cheap highs of celebrity clickbait to invest in long-form journalism that actually reflects lived experiences and tackles real community issues.

"We didn't need another gossip column. We needed a mirror. And we needed an economic engine for Black-owned businesses."

Are you ready to change the narrative?
If you care about Black Canadian entrepreneurship, independent media, and concrete, practical ways to build fierce local economies, you cannot afford to miss this conversation. You can reach Roger Dundas using the following link: https://byblacks.com/

You can watch or listen to the podcast in its entirety by clicking on the following link:
https://youtu.be/_t4-86YwJTA?si=sLLNQsLIwXNhEY6e (YouTube)
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1988087/episodes/19309063-black-people-don-t-support-each-other.mp3?download=true (Audio)

Enjoy our audio and video collection using the following links:
https://www.youtube.com/ (YouTube)
https://www.facebook.com/speakupintl (Facebook)

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05/27/2026

THE GLASS ROOM- COMING MONDAY JUNE1, 2026

At a White House luncheon, a name-drop from President Reagan, and three glasses of w**e you never wanted. Dr. Trudy Morrison takes us from that surreal moment into the harder truth underneath it: how recognition can be real and still feel like performance when you are a Black woman carrying someone else’s agenda in rooms built to exclude you.A White House luncheon, a name-drop from President Reagan, and three glasses of w**e you never wanted.

Dr. Trudy Morrison takes us from that surreal moment into the harder truth underneath it: how recognition can be real and still feel like performance when you are a Black woman carrying someone else’s agenda in rooms built to exclude you.

Until the release of the show I invite you to enjoy our collection motivational and inspirational stories.

www.speakuppodcast.ca (audio)
https://lnkd.in/ekwxuJEa (YouTube)

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05/25/2026

What happens when the career you’ve built suddenly vanishes, and you realize—with terrifying clarity—that you could be broke by 65?

Most people would panic. David Nassif decided to build a compass.
In this episode of SpeakUP! International, we sit down with David to unpack an extraordinary story of resilience, reinvention, and financial survival.

After traditional job hunting felt like a dead end, David stopped drifting, bet entirely on himself as an independent sales agent, and completely revolutionized his relationship with money.

Whether you are navigating an unexpected career shift, planning for retirement, or simply looking for a clearer, calmer approach to personal finance, this conversation will leave you with concrete steps and a mindset you can deploy at any age.

Don't miss this masterclass in turning a setback into a setup for financial freedom!
Watch the podcast from here! https://youtu.be/cR2OtnUM_wo
Listen to the podcast from here! https://www.buzzsprout.com/1988087/episodes/19234167-fired-at-63-no-warning-no-mercy.mp3?download=true (audio)
Free PDF: www.onepagewealthcompass.com/free
Book: https://www.amazon.com/One-Page-Wealth-Compass-Nearly-Millionaire/dp/B0GCNSGRLG
Website: https://onepagewealthcompass.com/

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05/19/2026

Coming May 25th, 2026!
FIRED AT 63. NO WARNING. NO MERCY!

David knew something was up. Everyone in the office was whispering. David had no clue that his head was being placed on a chopping block.
Getting fired at 63 would scare most people into retreat. David Nassif did the exact opposite.

When the safety net was ripped away, he realized that everything he thought he knew about money was wrong. He didn't just rebuild his career—he cracked the code on true wealth building, turning a devastating crisis into a seven-figure retirement portfolio in just six years.

In our latest episode, David reveals:
• The "Termite Effect": The silent fee structure that is quietly draining hundreds of thousands from Canadian retirement accounts right now (and how to stop it).
• Income vs. Wealth: The crucial psychological shift David made to go from nearly broke to a millionaire without a corporate salary.
• The One-Page "Wealth Compass": The exact, dead-simple framework he created to eliminate investing anxiety and stop emotional decision-making.

How did he do it? And more importantly, how can you apply his exact roadmap to your own financial future—no matter your age?
On May 25th, 19, 2026, your curiosity will be satisfied. Until then, we invite you to peruse through our collection of inspirational narratives.

narratives.
Website: https://onepagewealthcompass.com/

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