People Inspired By Purpose - Purposely Podcast

Sanjeev Gandhi founder of education charity Reach to Teach. He launched Reach to Teach in 2003 with the aim of providing education to children living in poverty in Gujarat (Western India). British born Sanjeev had been a regular visitor to the region from birth. Gujarat is his parents homeland and they installed not only a love for the area and its people but also a respect and passion for education. Those values along with formative experiences lead him to launch Reach to Teach. It wasn’t easy though with some stern challenges thrown down from local leaders who initially doubted his sincerity and his staying power. They along with a rather forceful aunty wanted to know what value he could add to the lives of children living in India when he was British. And young. Sanjeev’s perseverance won the day though and Reach to Teach went on from strength to strength. His genius included attracting the attention of Larry Ellison, founder of Oracle. Larry’s foundation along with Indian state government helped Reach to Teach to develop a unique high quality, low cost primary education system which has grown to reach tens of thousands of children in India Sanjeev has also held leadership roles in the media, technology and investment management sectors including as partner at Marwyn Investment Management, Director of Strategy at Yahoo! Europe and Head of Strategic Development at BBC Worldwide.   channel television market; at Yahoo! Europe Sanjeev was Director of Strategy, where he was one of the leadership team which established the business in Europe in early 1998 growing operations to every major European market in less than three years and turnover to over $100m. Sanjeev has a deep understanding of the need for companies to be seen as a force for good.  This is based on the direct experience of growing a not-for-profit enterprise which has reached significant scale.  He. Sanjeev is non-executive chair of the Eden Project Ltd, a non-executive director of the ECB’s New Competition Board and a trustee of the Fidelity Foundation.

Join Head of Purpose Mark Longbottom interviewing the inspirational Sir Tim Smit. Tim dreamt about a gigantic ‘tree museum’ that would go on to become one of the largest and most popular tourist attractions in the world. He turned that dream into a reality around the time of the new millennium. The project centred on the build of these giant biomes that take people on a journey of discovery through the undergrowth of Africa, Asia, Australasia, the Mediterranean all while using green technologies. Sir Tim and his team raised £80 million as start-up and build capital, transforming a disused China Clay Pit in Cornwall to social enterprise that has brought over £1 billion to the once failing Cornish economy. He describes it as ‘kissing a frog to make a prince’ . The museum became so much more and had educated hundreds and thousands and promises to spread its magic across the Globe including China and New Zealand. Hear about Edens challenge with the effects of COVID-19, Tim’s founder story including the early years as a successful music writer and producer in Soho, his frustration with his beloved Nottingham Forest and so much more. It really is a great listen.

Joseph Russo states his dyslexia is his super power. Tune in and hear how growing up with a disability propelled him to a life of purpose as founder and CEO of UK Charity The Enthusiasm Trust. A poignant interview that provides fantastic insights on what effective and impactful youth work does and should look like. Joseph also lays bare some of his toughest moments as a leader in the charitable sector with the relentless search for funding, sacrificing material wealth and the worry that he was falling into the trap of ‘founder syndrome’. Recruited by the UK Home Office as a special adviser on youth, criminal justice and gangs Joseph is a great listen.

In 2012 Ian Thwaites swapped a career in the City with an Investment Bank for a life of purpose. Ian and his co founder and now Chairman Stuart Rhodes set up the UK charity Level Water. Level Water provides one-to-one swimming lessons for children with physical disabilities or sensory impairments. They used the buzz caused around the 2012 Olympics, particularly the Para Olympics to help launch and grow the charity. Also hear how the damaging effects of a serious cycle accident just 15 months after launching the charity effected Ian and meant greater impetus and drive for his mission. A great listen for all people who believe in the power sports activity and participation (particularly swimming)

Lucy Buck swapped a successful career producing reality television for a life of purpose in Uganda helping orphan children. Love Island for a love of children. Lucy discovered that many of the orphanages operating in Uganda were in fact damaging to children and she was inspired to connect orphan children with loving alternatives and if possible helping them back to their families. Lucy’s ability to tell and share stories, like she had producing tv programmes, helped her to raise over £6 million over 11 years. These funds have helped to train foster carers, save and transform children’s lives and work with other agencies like UNICEF and Hope and Homes for Children to go a long way towards ending damaging institutional care.

Hannah Underwood is a self-confessed charity and data geek with an unquenchable desire to improve as many young lives as possible. In her early career Hannah learned how to measure performance and use data to improve organisations. At the age of 25, Hannah became CEO of The Key, a charity inspiring belief in young people. Working with venture philanthropists, Impetus PEF, they used data & metrics to build a vibrant, robust and well respected organisation. Outside of running The Key, Hannah’s been a Director of Datakind UK since 2013 and became part of the ‘Data For Good’ movement. When she’s not trying to change the world, you’ll find Hannah chasing a mucky toddler or renovating their old farmhouse in Northumberland.

Nyasha Gwatidzo was born in Zimbabwe and gained a degree in Chemistry from London University. She then went on to retrain at Reading University and gained an MA, to work with adults and children with emotional issues. She is a qualified psychotherapist, social worker, coach and mentor. http://walkwithmenetwork.com/ She is a serial social entrepreneur, working with disadvantaged people in the UK and Africa. She founded a multimillion pound social enterprise Banya, which finds foster families for children in the care of local authorities. www.banya.co.uk She founded a charity in the UK, Vana Trust which raises funds for children affected by HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe, supporting their education. The Trust also supports adults and young people here in the UK who have learning and emotional difficulties, through her therapeutic organic farm in Buckinghamshire. www.vanatrust.org.uk Nyasha wrote a book in 2015 after walking the length of the River Thames (206 miles) “Walk With Me through 16 Inspirational Business and Life Tips”. Her vision for the future is to forge global connections with women in the developing world who inspire her everyday through the social investment fund she is setting up, World Impact Capital. She would like them to reach economic independence through enterprise and she currently mentors women starting up in business. WIC will be a £100 million pounds social impact investment fund for African women entrepreneurs/leaders. This fund will fund their enterprises to grow their businesses as well as hands on business support. www.worldimpactcapital.com

Tune in to hear Dr Sarah Fane's incredible story... how this British woman continuously risked her life to play a key role in transforming the lives of thousands of Afghan people. Sarah is  currently Director in charge of the Marylebone Cricket Club Foundation, the charitable arm of the MCC, and their aim is to utilise the power of sport and specifically cricket to enhance lives.  Awarded an OBE by the British Government in 2013 for her charities services to the people of Afghanistan Sarah's founder story is incredible, from a war time doctor, to mother, to charity founder to twenty plus years of regularly travelling between the UK and Afghanistan and being at risk of kidnap.  Sarah's story starts with her overcoming doubts about her ability to study medicine and become a doctor... Inspired by a gap year working in rural India, Dr Sarah Fane decided to switch from her degree course in French and Latin to study medicine at Bristol University. Her Elective, in 1987, was spent in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan, working with an obstetrician in an area with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Once qualified, she returned to Pakistan, and worked from a Mujahideen camp on the border with Afghanistan, during the height of the Soviet Afghan war, running clinics for female refugees. In 2001 she was invited to Afghanistan, which was in the grip of the Taliban regime, to work in a mother and child clinic. The visit and the people she met inspired her to set up Afghan Connection. Closing earlier this year the charity supported education and sport in Afghanistan and has over the last 20 years built 46 schools for over 75,000 children. It also ran cricket projects backed by the Marylebone Cricket Club,M.C.C. which benefitted over 100,000 children in 22 provinces. Sarah was also made an Honorary Life Member of the M.C.C. in 2012

Mark Johnson is a rehabilitated offender and former drug user, bestselling author of Wasted and the founder of the charity User Voice. User Voice was built on using the strengths of people and ignoring what others see as deficiencies. User Voice focuses on the strengths of lived experience not on the perceived weaknesses of lack of education, qualifications and professional track record. The lived experience of someone who has experienced drug addiction, or time spent in prison, as expertise.