When Women Fly

This week, to celebrate Earth Day, Sylvia is joined by Shannon Switzer Swanson, a National Geographic Explorer, marine social ecologist, and surfer to probe the intersection of storytelling, research, art and science. They talk about modern-day "Exploration"and the role of women and the BIPOC community in redefining it. Shannon is not discouraged or dissuaded by the complexities in her work with conservation and she continues to ask difficult questions, such as: “Can coastal communities manage their resources in ways that both sustain prosperous livelihoods and a healthy environment.” What is the win-win formula?


Fun fact: Shannon is grand daughter to one of the pioneering women pilots of the mid-1900s.


Topics Include:


Photography, storytelling, and research
How our perception of time affects choices around sustainability
What it means to be a modern-day explorer
Female role models
Extensive field research in Central Sulawesi
Building trust and participatory research methods
National Geographic programs and getting your start
Maintaining relationships while traveling
Balancing work and family life
Advice for women adventurers
And other topics...
Resources Mentioned:
An interactive website for folks interested in knowing where aquarium fish come from and how to keep an aquarium that doesn’t harm the world’s reefs, check it out at https://reeftoaquarium.com/.
Book: Femininities in the Field: Tourism and Transdisciplinary Research

Connect with Shannon:
Instagram: @ShannonSwitzerSwanson
Twitter: @S3Oceans
Facebook: @S3Oceans
LinkedIn: @shannonswitzerswanson
Interview with Shannon

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In this episode, Sylvia is joined by Melissa Burns, a professional aerobatic pilot, display skydiver, B.A.S.E. Jumper and mom. As a pilot and athlete, she was the youngest female member of the United States Unlimited Aerobatic Team in history and competed for 10 years. Melissa was named the Fastest Woman in the World at the World Champion Wingsuit Jumping Race in Norway and has numerous Skydiving World Records. She is Assistant Professor of Aeronautical Science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, migrates between Alaska and Florida and takes on her role as mom as passionately as any of her pursuits.

In this conversation, they touch on the the power of female role models, finding clarity in life and work, motherhood, taking risks as an extreme sports athlete, and much more.

Be sure to check out the podcast website, Melissa’s website and our posts on social to see her stunt work and incredible shots of her flying, living, playing and pushing the edge of women in extreme sports.

Topics Include:

Early influences from Melissa's aviatrix grandmother
Aerobatics and skydiving
Making the US Unlimited Aerobatic Team at 22 years old
Assessing risks in extreme sports
The cost of living on a show circuit and burn out
Being a role model for young women
Leveraging your platform to inspire others
Transitioning into motherhood, choices and professional life
World travel and gratitude
Neurodiversity and education
Setting goals, moving forward, enjoying the journey
And other topics...
Resources Mentioned:
Website: https://www.sportsgal.com/
Website: https://www.flyingadventurestm.com/
YouTube Video: World First: Melissa Andrzejewski, Sketchy Andy Lewis, & Jimmy Fitzpatrick take the Desert!

Books Mentioned:
Book: Resonant Leadership by Richard E. Boyatzis and Annie McKee
Book: Alone on the Wall by Alex Honnold
Book: The Push by Tommy Caldwell
Book: ROAR by Stacy Sims and Selene Yeager

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly
FB: @whenwomenfly
Twitter: @whenwomenfly
Pinterest: @whenwomenfly

In this episode, Sylvia is joined by Canadian Sasha Gollish, professional runner, performance engineer, speaker and educator. They discuss lessons on and off the track, balancing work and play, diversifying your sport, making choices not sacrifices, navigating academia as a professor, deconstructing personal narratives, daily doses of nature and adventure, and much more.

Sasha also loves to ski and is passionate about making fast turns on the track and on the slopes. She shares what the metaphor of flight means personally and its reference on her tattoo. Sasha is a flying member of the Haute Volée Oiselle running team and teaches at the University of Toronto.

Topics Include:

Finding space to discover your passions
Balancing being a scientist and an athlete
Performance training and lessons from the track
Connecting with the outdoors
The stories we tell ourselves about ourselves
Connecting to our bodies
Antifragility and resiliency systems in engineering
Facing the fear of death
Collaborating with Oiselle
Investigating our spiritual nature
The connection between risk and kindness
And other topics...
Resources Mentioned:
https://www.sashagollish.com/
https://www.oiselle.com/

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly

Sylvia is joined by Lindsay Bourgoine, the Vice President of Programs and Operations for Protect Our Winters, POW, a community of athletes, scientists, creatives, and business leaders advancing non-partisan policies that protect our world today and for future generations. Have you ever wondered how your passion for the outdoors can help save it? They discuss how individuals influence collective change, the impact of leveraging athletes' authority on the environment, the opportunities within diverse perspectives with a common goal, the complexities of policy and activism, steps toward change and much more.

Topics Include:

Growing up in Maine, the White Mountains, and the Appalachian Mountain Club
Navigating transitions in life, planning and pivoting
Studying law and policy
Connecting with Protect Our Winters
Why climate is the apex issue of our times
How professional athletes can leverage influence to fight climate change
The "Outdoor State" and how it can influence policy
How 2020 taught us about collective action and collective impact
Challenging assumptions people make about us
The power of unusual allies and voices
Making policy cool and accessible
Fighting apathy
And other topics...
Resources Mentioned:
Website: http://www.protectourwinters.org
IG: @protectourwinters
Books Mentioned:
A Mind Spread Out by Alicia Elliott
This Radical Land: A Natural History of American Dissent by Daegan Miller

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly
Pinterest, FB, Twitter, YouTube: whenwomenfly

Sylvia is joined by Melissa Lowe to discuss being a pioneer in the sport of skydiving. She shares openly the way she integrates her entrepreneurship, skydiving, yoga and family with her history, personal struggles, lessons on what has worked and a unique perspective on role models, mentors and confronting angst and fear. They talk about comradery and loss in a tight-knit community, and much more. Melissa holds 23 skydiving world records and is a licensed pilot, yoga instructor, author, and mom.

The Sugar Alpha Chronicles are a series of books based on the life of the late skydiving pioneer and Melissa’s father, Roger Nelson's life as a drug smuggler, iconic figure in the sport of skydiving, family man, and eventually a convicted felon. He wrote these books while serving his 5 year prison sentence and smuggled them out of prison where after his death, Melissa was able to finish the project and get them published. A decade’s worth of research and finding out truths of her past as a drug smuggler's daughter this series brought the memoirs into fruition.

Topics Include:

Growing up in a skydiving community drop zone
Being a drug smuggler's daughter
Breaking away from family mold
Getting sober and resetting identity
Influences from learning and practicing yoga
Stability and instability as a young adult
The experience of flying with your body
Processing loss
Wingsuit flying, Freestyle, Freefly and competition
Highlight Pro Skydiving - the all-female demonstration jump team
Mission and media
World records, attempts and other successes
Entrepreneurship and leadership
And other topics...
Resources Mentioned:
https://melissa-lowe.com/about/
Melissa's Books:
Sugar Alpha: The Life and Times of Señor Huevos Grandes and
Charlie Bravo: Descent into Darkness and Danger
Originally written by Roger, the series were not published until years after his death when Melissa picked up the dusty manuscript and turned them into books. Melissa had to fill in some gaps through interviews of people involved in Roger’s life to finish up this true story of Roger’s adventures.

Book mentioned:
Eat Wheat: A Scientific and Clinically-Proven Approach to Safely Bringing Wheat and Dairy Back Into Your Diet by John Douillard

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly

In this episode, Sylvia talks with Kikkan Randall, a trailblazer in women's sport. They talk about the athlete frame of mind and how it shows up in countless ways from training, team building and competing to fighting cancer, balance and life pivots. Challenges seem to embolden Kikkan. She is candid as she reflects on her journey in sport, life and leadership. She inspires us all to step out of our comfort zone and show up for our dreams, take small actions that serve large goals, give to earnest causes, live life to its fullest and have fun along the way! Enjoy this conversation...

Topics Include:

Being an Alaskan kid with an active family
Kikkan's early affinity for sports
Collaboration and competition in a team culture
Drawing up a plan for big goals, step-by-step
Recovering from setbacks and low points
The performance plateau before a breakthrough
Becoming a mother between Olympics
Winning an Olympic Gold Medal
Breast cancer
Why sharing stories of vulnerability are important
Running a 2:55 New York Marathon
Leadership and activism with Fast and Female and AKTIV against cancer
New directions after a successful athletic career
And much more....

Resources Mentioned:
www.kikkan.com
IG: @kikkanimal
Fast and Female
ACTIV Against Cancer
US Cross Country Skiing

In today's episode, Sylvia is joined by Meagan Davis, Air Force Chaplain, entrepreneur, aviatrix, mentor and creator of Women Rock Wings. Meagan shares her story from early influences growing in Brooklyn to being called to chaplaincy and learning to fly. They discuss the power of faith, her belief that women were born to soar, and the transformative influence of community.

During the month of March, Women's History Month, we lean into the the power of community by affirming each other’s knowledge and credibility, perhaps what we collectively need most. Meagan is changing the narrative of all women by elevating the voices and using her platform to highlight an adage, "The Future of Flight is Female", an assertion to continue progressing together in all fields.

Topics Include:

Growing up in Brooklyn and maternal role models
The influences of being from a matriarchal family
Finding a path to the Air Force at age 20
Grit and perseverance–knowing you are more than enough
Transitioning from aircraft electrician to chaplain
Misconceptions about the military
Positive mindset, happiness and joy in the face of adversity
The power vulnerability has to foster connection
Creating Women Rock Wings
Being kind to yourself
And much more ...
Resources Mentioned:
Women Rock Wings
IG: @womenrockwings

...

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly

This month of March, we celebrate women's history by leaning into stories where the collective energy of women speaks to the incredible influence of sisterhoods and allies. We talk to women who are deeply involved in creating, nurturing and growing communities.

In today's episode, Sylvia is joined by Carolyn Gardner, the Volée Team Manager at Oiselle, about the community-building power of running. They discuss early experiences of intimidation in running groups and how that inspired Carolyn to make a difference, adaption and unforeseen wins during COVID, the power of sharing women's stories, and much more.

Topics Include:

Growing up in the Chicago
An early fondness of sports
The connection between sports and resilience
Pivoting during COVID
The Womxn Run the Vote Virtual Relay
Creating inclusive spaces
The power of sharing women's stories
Learning to use your voice
Connecting into your local community
And other topics
Resources Mentioned:
www.oiselle.com
www.girlsontherun.org
I Was the Fastest Girl in America, Until I Joined Nike by Mary Cain

...

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
IG: @whenwomenfly

In this episode, Sylvia talks with the pilot, visionary, and strategist Ivy McIver, the Director of the SR Product Line at Cirrus Aircraft. Ivy talks about parachutes in airplanes, where planes can go and how they can change your life, why training is so critical, the importance of collaboration in the design process, and bringing outrageous innovations to market. They also dig into the psychology of endurance multi-sports and how lessons learned from extreme physical challenges can be applied in other areas of life.

Topics Include:

Laser focus in pursuit of a dream as a child and Top Gun
Adapting to circumstances and the tyranny of minimum height requirements
General aviation and the adventure that profits
Moving job titles from computer programmer, to salesperson, to innovator and influencer
Working in a male-dominated industry
Extreme endurance sports such as completing 10-day races
Lessons learned from team adventure races
Overcoming the fear of failure
Risk tolerance in relationships
And other topics...
...

Resources Mentioned:
www.cirrusaircraft.com/

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Sylvia is joined by social entrepreneur, pilot, and educator Refilwe Ledwaba. Refilwe is the first black woman from South Africa to fly a helicopter and she is also the first black woman to fly for the South African Police Service. Most recently she founded the Girls Fly Program in Africa, a nonprofit designed to shape, empower, enable and support the next generation of changemakers and problemsolvers in the aviation and space industry.

Topics Include:

Growing up in apartheid South Africa
An upbringing surrounded by strong women
The importance of seeing people that look like you in positions you aspire to
Giving recognition to the changemakers that came before us
The burden of being “the first”
The danger associated with breaking glass ceilings
Pre and post-apartheid
The spirit of ubuntu ~ "I am because we are"
Transforming community through mindset and education
Flying into remote villages in Africa to run workshops in STEAM and design
Becoming an Obama Foundation Fellow and a Gates Foundation Goalkeeper
Pivoting during COVID to serve a community with minimal internet access
The problem of access and the digital divide
Pausing to heal and self-reflect during quarantine
And other topics...
...

www.gfpafoundation.org
www.areye.africa

Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Linkedin
@gfpafoundation
@areyestories

Instagram @refilwe_led
Facebook: Refilwe Ledwaba
Linkedin: Refilwe ledwaba

#gfpafoundation #areyestories

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly