Hello! Remember us? Yes, we’re the guys who interviewed some amazing local changemakers around the Vancouver area to inspire others to do good in their field of work.
Well, how did it go?
We could not be happier with how it went! In the course of a week, we were able to film 6 interviews with some of Vancouver’s amazing changemakers. I could not of imagined how incredible our interviewees’ stories would be. Ajay Puri, our amazing host, did a great job creating an open and engaging space for the interviewees to talk about what they do, why they do that work, and how their work impacts their communities. And yes, there was chai. We shared masala chai homemade by Ajay himself, and it was delicious. The interviews lasted about an hour and a half, and we will be cutting them down to around 10 minutes.
Well, how did it go?
We could not be happier with how it went! In the course of a week, we were able to film 6 interviews with some of Vancouver’s amazing changemakers. I could not of imagined how incredible our interviewees’ stories would be. Ajay Puri, our amazing host, did a great job creating an open and engaging space for the interviewees to talk about what they do, why they do that work, and how their work impacts their communities. And yes, there was chai. We shared masala chai homemade by Ajay himself, and it was delicious. The interviews lasted about an hour and a half, and we will be cutting them down to around 10 minutes.
Who are these changemakers?
As I mentioned in our last blog, we started off by interviewing Ashok Puri, an elderly South Asian man who travels all across the world staying with locals rather than in hotels. His story of overcoming fear and realizing the best way to experience countries is with the locals was a beautiful start to our journey. He left us with a great message that retirement is not the end but the start of a new chapter.
As I mentioned in our last blog, we started off by interviewing Ashok Puri, an elderly South Asian man who travels all across the world staying with locals rather than in hotels. His story of overcoming fear and realizing the best way to experience countries is with the locals was a beautiful start to our journey. He left us with a great message that retirement is not the end but the start of a new chapter.
Next we interviewed Keith Ippel, cofounder of Spring. Spring is an activator for purpose-driven companies that look to change the world. Keith talked about how to pursue a financially successful startup and why Vancouver is the perfect place to start.
Our next interview was with Richard Wolak, founder of Vanfoodster, a local food blog. Richard talked about the trends that we are seeing in Vancouver, such as the rise of frozen yogurt places, and where those trend came from. It’s a much-watch if you are a foodie.
Next on the list was Bryn Davidson, founder of Lanefab, a design company that crafts custom homes and mini-homes (or “laneway houses”) with design quality and energy efficiency as core values. Bryn discussed how energy efficiency should be part of everything humans do and how we can use nature in a much better way.
Our next interview was with Richard Wolak, founder of Vanfoodster, a local food blog. Richard talked about the trends that we are seeing in Vancouver, such as the rise of frozen yogurt places, and where those trend came from. It’s a much-watch if you are a foodie.
Next on the list was Bryn Davidson, founder of Lanefab, a design company that crafts custom homes and mini-homes (or “laneway houses”) with design quality and energy efficiency as core values. Bryn discussed how energy efficiency should be part of everything humans do and how we can use nature in a much better way.
One of the most memorable interviews was with Vancouver City Councilor Andrea Reimer. Andrea discussed what the future of government should be in our society and how the government has shaped society today. A powerful segment of her interview involved a discussion about First Nations, including what the government has done and what the government needs to do to offer reconciliation. This is a conversation I will not forget and am so excited to share with the world.
The final interview for this season was with Alan Cassels, author of Selling Sickness. He discusses how we as a society are tricked into taking unnecessary medicine and how much power the pharmaceutical industries have. I will be double checking every medicine my doctor gives me from now on.
The final interview for this season was with Alan Cassels, author of Selling Sickness. He discusses how we as a society are tricked into taking unnecessary medicine and how much power the pharmaceutical industries have. I will be double checking every medicine my doctor gives me from now on.
Was there anything unexpected in the interviews?
What was really interesting was that even though we hosted completely different people, there were commonalities between them. Besides putting social good into everything they do and making a huge impact in their local communities, they love being here in Vancouver and see a bright future for Vancouver and its population. Whether it’s the future of food, money or government, Vancouver and the metro Vancouver area is perfectly positioned to be a model for social good in other metro areas.
What’s next?
The first season will be released by the beginning of September. Each interview will be edited down to about 10 minutes, but we will also be releasing a podcast with the full interviews for our audience members who want to delve further into our any of our amazing interviewees’ insights.
For updates and interviews, like Dunya and Changemakers on Facebook!