005 Globe Aware: How 'Voluntourism" Provides Ethical, Responsible Impact
Release Date: 05/12/2026
009 Justin Gordon of Amramp: Freedom, Dignity and Independence through Mobility
Sages of Industry
Justin Gordon is the CEO of Amramp Accessibility, a family-owned company founded by his father, Julian Gordon, in 1998. Amramp provides wheelchair ramps, stair lifts, vertical platform lifts, and other accessibility solutions, and public company materials say Justin joined the business in 2013, started as an installer, and later became the company’s second CEO. Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Justin Gordon about building a business around accessibility, independence, and practical human impact. The conversation starts with Justin’s role at Amramp and quickly...
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008 The Ripple Effect: Tapping Into Personal Power + Flow Activation
Sages of Industry
In this short solo episode of The Ripple Effect, Lynne Brodie shifts from explanation into experience. The focus of the episode is personal power — not as a motivational phrase, but as something listeners can begin to access directly. Lynne opens by framing the episode as a continuation of the larger conversation around flow, performance, and internal capacity. She asks a deeper set of questions: Do you know your path? Do you know how to access your own power? Do you know how to stand fully in it and use it intentionally? From there, the episode moves into a brief guided...
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007 Jackie Russell, of Teak Media, Discusses B-Corp Values-Based Business PR
Sages of Industry
Jackie Russell is the founder and president of Teak Media + Communication, a firm she started in 1997 to help nonprofit organizations and socially responsible companies gain wider recognition, grow revenue, and advance their missions. Russell previously worked as a newspaper reporter, including at the Eagle-Tribune and Connecticut Post. Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Jackie Russell about public relations as a force multiplier for organizations trying to do meaningful work in the world. The conversation begins with Jackie’s professional path from journalism...
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006 The Ripple Effect: Flow as a Force Multiplier
Sages of Industry
The podcast’s opening episode introduced The Ripple Effect as Lynne Brodie’s recurring solo series focused on imagination, innovation, and impact. Episode Summary In this short solo episode, Lynne Brodie introduces the first Ripple Effect segment and centers the conversation on flow — not as a vague ideal, but as a practical state that can expand performance, clarity, and creative output. A major theme of the episode is that many people have heard of flow, but think of it as accidental, elusive, or reserved for unusual moments. Lynne reframes it as something leaders,...
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005 Globe Aware: How 'Voluntourism" Provides Ethical, Responsible Impact
Sages of Industry
Kimberly Haley-Coleman the founder and executive director of Globe Aware, a US- and Canada-based nonprofit that organizes short-term international volunteer programs. Globe Aware works in more than 25 countries, serves individuals as well as family, school, church, and corporate groups, and is built around cultural awareness, sustainability, and working side-by-side with communities “as equals.” Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Kimberly Haley-Coleman about building a business and nonprofit model around meaningful short-term international service. The conversation...
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004 Fibre52 How Clean Cotton Saves Water and Energy
Sages of Industry
Graham Stewart is described as a long-time textile industry leader and the EVP/founder behind Fibre52, a process designed to improve how cotton-rich fabrics are prepared and dyed. Fibre52 as a drop-in solution for existing mill equipment that aims to reduce water, electricity, and steam/gas use while replacing harsher chemistry with bio-based inputs. Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Graham Stewart about what it takes to change an industry that has been doing things essentially the same way for decades. The conversation centers on textile manufacturing, cotton...
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003 Zen Leadership Institute Founder and Past NASA Executive Explores How Energy is Everything
Sages of Industry
Dr. Ginny Whitelaw as a former NASA senior leader, founder of the Institute for Zen Leadership, and co-developer of the FEBI framework, which focuses on four mind-body energy patterns in leadership. Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Dr. Ginny Whitelaw about leadership, human potential, and the deeper internal capacities that shape how people lead, create, and influence the world around them. The conversation begins with Ginny’s professional journey, including her time at NASA and the turning points that led her into leadership development work. From there, the...
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002 Sawyer Think: How a Small Company Disrupts Markets and Changes the World
Sages of Industry
Kurt Avery is the founder, owner, and president of Sawyer Products. His work focuess on outdoor protection, water filtration, first aid, and a long-standing commitment to expanding access to clean water around the world. He is also the author of Sawyer Think: How a Small Company Disrupts Markets and Changes the World. Episode Summary In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Kurt Avery about building a company that competes successfully in the marketplace while also solving real human problems at scale. The conversation centers on Sawyer Products, the path from a small product business...
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001 Introducing Sages of Industry: Sparking Business for World Good in You
Sages of Industry
In this opening episode, Lynne Brodie introduces Sages of Industry and explains the purpose behind the podcast. She positions the show as a platform for conversations with leaders who build companies, products, and services that do three things at once: serve clients, engage employees, and solve real-world problems. Lynne also shares the professional perspective that led her to create the show. Drawing on decades in corporate America, she reflects on what she has observed inside large organizations: strong ideas often exist, but meaningful follow-through, innovation, and broader impact do...
info_outlineKimberly Haley-Coleman the founder and executive director of Globe Aware, a US- and Canada-based nonprofit that organizes short-term international volunteer programs. Globe Aware works in more than 25 countries, serves individuals as well as family, school, church, and corporate groups, and is built around cultural awareness, sustainability, and working side-by-side with communities “as equals.”
Episode Summary
In this episode, Lynne Brodie speaks with Kimberly Haley-Coleman about building a business and nonprofit model around meaningful short-term international service. The conversation begins with Kimberly’s background and then moves into the origin of Globe Aware: a practical response to the fact that many adults want to serve abroad but cannot leave their jobs, families, or responsibilities for six to eight weeks at a time. From there, the episode explores how Globe Aware created a more accessible model for service travel without losing depth, cultural immersion, or meaningful contribution. Globe Aware is a structured, short-term, community-oriented service model designed for adults, families, and groups.
A major theme in the episode is that the experience is not just about helping others. Kimberly emphasizes perspective change, human connection, and what happens when people step outside routine, screens, and comfort zones to work alongside others in a very different environment. The conversation repeatedly frames service travel as experiential learning: something that changes how participants see their own lives, habits, assumptions, and possibilities.
The episode also addresses ethical questions directly. Kimberly distinguishes Globe Aware’s model from more superficial or extractive forms of voluntourism by stressing local leadership, community-driven projects, dignity, and the importance of working with people rather than “for” them in a top-down way.
Another strong thread in the episode is applicability for families, companies, and multigenerational groups. Kimberly talks about who participates, why employers are increasingly open to supporting these experiences, and how shared service can build gratitude, engagement, and perspective in ways that typical travel does not. Globe Aware’s trips are for families, schools, and corporate groups, and recent interviews describe them as powerful for team building, leadership development, and cross-cultural learning.
Key Takeaways
- Globe Aware was built around practical insight: many people want to serve internationally, but most cannot commit to traditional long-form volunteer models.
- The episode presents short-term service travel as a serious alternative to ordinary tourism when it is structured well and rooted in local partnership.
- Kimberly frames the experience as mutual: communities’ benefit, but participants are also changed by the work, the relationships, and the exposure to another way of living.
- Ethical design matters. A recurring point is that projects should be locally guided, dignity-centered, and genuinely useful.
- The conversation highlights families, companies, and older adults as meaningful participants in this kind of work, not just students or gap-year travelers.
- One of the clearest messages in the episode is that connection matters as much as contribution. The value is not only in what gets built or delivered, but in what gets understood.
Discussed Topics
- Kimberly Haley-Coleman’s background and leadership path
- The founding idea behind Globe Aware
- Why short-term service travel fills an important gap
- Business travel, exposure to other countries, and the search for meaningful engagement
- Working alongside communities as equals
- What Globe Aware trips actually look like in practice
- Examples of projects in different countries
- Logistics, safety, accommodations, and program cost
- The difference between service travel and ordinary tourism
- Perspective shift, gratitude, and experiential learning
- Conscious business, world good, and nonprofit impact
- Families, companies, and employer-supported volunteering
- Ethical concerns around voluntourism
- Community-led design and responsible project selection
- Memorable stories from the field
- How people can get started with Globe Aware
Timeline
00:00 Welcome and introduction to Kimberly Haley-Coleman
01:00 Kimberly’s background and leadership experience
01:55 What Globe Aware is and the kind of work it does
03:00 How the idea began through international business travel
04:20 Why Kimberly created a short-term service model
05:10 Working alongside communities rather than above them
06:00 What the trips look like and examples of projects
07:20 Cost, logistics, accommodations, and safety
08:40 How this differs from ordinary tourism or superficial volunteering
10:00 Why these experiences change perspective so deeply
11:30 Joy, meaning, and the human value of service travel
12:40 Who typically participates in Globe Aware programs
14:00 Employers, matching programs, and the business case for supporting service
15:20 Why “voluntourism” can be the wrong label
16:30 Preparing participants and designing accessible experiences
17:45 Families, children, and learning beyond screens
19:00 Ethical concerns, power imbalance, and community-led projects
20:20 Surprising demographics and the role of older volunteers
21:15 Favorite experiences and memorable stories from the field
23:00 Why connection matters more than charity alone
24:20 How to choose a destination or type of project
25:15 Where to find Globe Aware and how to get started
26:10 Closing reflections and episode wrap-up