Introducing Sounds like Impact
Audio and action to help make waves. 🌊
Hi 👋🏾
Are you overwhelmed about the state of our world?
Are you looking for ways to get involved from small asks to big tasks?
Are you seeking a community of people just as curious about the world but also fed up with the status quo?
I’m not going to lie, there is a lot to be upset about and it’s exhausting. But if you are like me, you might still ask yourself, are there things that I could be doing to help create a more just, safe world? And, are there people doing incredible work that can inspire me to action?
Whether reading a thing, signing a petition, donating 💰, changing to a social impact job, volunteering, there are plenty of things we can do…but where can we start?
Introducing Sounds Like Impact launching 4/12!
Sounds Like Impact is a weekly newsletter where you can find audio and action to help make waves. Simply, this is your hub for finding podcasts focused on impact and calls to action you can participate in. Each newsletter contains:
A curated podcast playlist by myself or a guest based on one theme
Calls to action related to the playlist theme
Creator spotlights
You can always count on the three items above and at times the newsletter may include an audio dispatch or some special opportunities.
Do you work for a podcast with a social issue focus? Submit a pitch.
Do you work for / with a nonprofit you want people to know more about? Let me know.
What’s the catch?
Did I mention this newsletter is FREE? I am not interested in gatekeeping content that can help make our corners of the world better—besides, much of this content is publicly available. So why should you pledge your support via subscription / donate anyways?
If you would like to support the labor that goes into curating and producing this weekly newsletter and / or you would be interested in events and special opportunities that could not happen without financial support, I would be grateful for any contribution.
Again, the core parts of this newsletter will always be free—the thematic curations by myself and guests, alongside calls to actions and most interviews. Though with some funds, we can make amazing things happen!
If you can’t financially support but you know of potential sponsorship opportunities or your business would be interested in placing ads, please get in touch at soundslikeimpact@unofficialsocialchair.com.
Pledge Your Support via Substack subscription (again, the newsletter is FREE, but an option to pledge $ support will come up when you click subscribe). Annual subscriptions bought in April 2023 will get a $20 discount!
Make a one-time donation (any amount helps!)
Share with friends, lovers, coworkers, strangers (helping me reach new audiences is FREE!)
About the author
Okay, so let me back up a bit and properly introduce myself.
My name is Ayo Oti (pronounced I-yo O-t) (she/her) and I have over 10+ years working in social impact. I am the founder of Unofficial Social Chair (website coming soon), a social impact storytelling consultancy and impact production company focused on podcasts.
I have been working in media for the past two years, most recently as an Audience Engagement Editor for podcasts at Spotify. Initially I was hired as a Social Impact Editor, sometimes working in collaboration with the company’s social impact team. I worked on campaigns for issues such as mental health, climate action, civic engagement and Trans Awareness Week.
I got my official start in media working in production on the Gimlet / Spotify podcast How to Save a Planet, a climate solutions podcast that always included calls to action with every episode (the CTA archive is still gold!).
Prior to Spotify, I held various positions in nonprofit, local government, higher education and even a B Corps. My career has been a journey, but the through-line has always been social impact.
As an undergraduate my intentions were to have a career in journalism focusing on international affairs and environmental issues. One internship upended that intention. My freshman year I interned at charity: water, a clean water access nonprofit that was exceptional at storytelling through photography and written stories.
Eventually my experience led me to fundraising for water wells in Ethiopia and creating majors in International Environmental Public Health and Human Ecology. My dream became working for a global nonprofit like Save the Children on WASH programs (water, sanitation & hygiene). I mean I literally wrote a senior thesis on community-led approaches to sanitation access. I was in deep shit…get it?
I share all of this to say,
1) I have always been interested in impactful storytelling, and to
2) remind myself and others of how stories can change the trajectory of our lives.
Working in podcasting for the past couple of years I have listened to audio that is too important to be ignored and yet is increasingly crowded out. Sounds Like Impact aims to change this by amplifying impactful storytelling and aiding you on your journey to make social change. I hope that you might have similar experiences to my own at charity: water with audio that can inspire you to make some waves.
Thank you for reading and coming on this sonic journey! #audioforaction