In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Mia Sundstrom, CEO of the National Institute for Play (NIFP), and Lauren Sundstrom, NIFP Board Member, about the science, practice, and impact of play. They explore how play is essential not just for individual well-being but for workplaces, education, and societal health. From neuroscience and character development to organizational culture and philanthropy, the conversation reframes play as a foundational human and public health necessity.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie sits down with spiritual leader, author, and Unity San Francisco Senior Minister Ken Daigle to explore how play, faith, vulnerability, and imagination fuel personal transformation and social change. Drawing from Ken’s journey through Catholicism, queerness, theater, an HIV diagnosis, recovery, and ministry, they examine play as a sacred practice—one that invites discomfort, honest dialogue, and moral imagination. Together, they reflect on interfaith connection, polarization, unapologetic desire, and the courage to imagine lives and systems shaped not by fear or limitation, but by possibility.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie sits down with activist and strategist Scot Nakagawa and organizer Zev Mishell to explore how joy, play, faith, and ritual sustain people and movements through long struggles for justice. Drawing from decades of organizing, interfaith work, and personal history, they reflect on why burnout is a structural risk, how symbols and embodied practices build belonging, and why faith and politics are never truly separate. Together, they invite listeners to reimagine resistance as not only strategic but cultural and emotional—showing how imagination, care, and playful protest help movements endure, communicate meaning at scale, and keep showing up when the work feels heavy.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie sits down with poet, lawyer, and MacArthur Fellow Reginald Dwayne Betts to explore how joy, language, and access to stories sustain liberation and resilience in social justice work. Reflecting on his writing, his nonprofit Freedom Reads, and his lived experience, Betts invites listeners to reconsider how beauty, imagination, and serious work coexist—showing how words, books, and thoughtfully designed spaces can reshape systems, nurture hope, and sustain long-term movement building.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Jenan Mohajir, an educator, storyteller, and Vice President of External Affairs at Interfaith America, about the beauty and power of pluralism. They explore how local communities become sites of healing, how faith-based service shapes civic leadership, and how trust, humility, and storytelling sustain long-term work for the common good.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart, a Black queer preacher, teacher, and justice advocate, about integrating faith, politics, and joy into social change. They explore how voting and civic engagement can be expressions of faith, how reclaiming spiritual language fuels imagination and action, and how play and creativity sustain resilience in long-term justice work.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Rev. Jennifer Butler, founder of Faith in Democracy, about infusing joy, faith, and community into social change and exploring how spiritual language, humor, and compassion can renew resilience and help bridge divided communities.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with filmmaker Nicholas Ma about using creative storytelling and sustained in-person conversations to bridge divides, spark empathy, and strengthen community.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Michelle Sobel and Harry Gottlieb—co-founders of Unify America—about reducing polarization, rebuilding civic trust, and helping people collaborate across differences with curiosity and play.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, Kristine Michie talks with Shantel Suárez Ávila and Claire Groebner about centering lived experience, embracing play, and leading an abundance-minded approach to equity while building resilience, trust, and community impact.

In this episode, Host Kristine Michie talks with Samra Haider, CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, about reimagining philanthropy and using play, imagination, and local leadership to close New Jersey’s vast racial wealth gap.

In this episode, Bob Dalton joins The PlayFull Podcast to share how LOCL uses technology to spark real-world connection, proving that mission-driven entrepreneurship and people-centered design can turn digital spaces into thriving local communities.

In this episode, Don Howard joins Kristine Michie to discuss how empathy, equity, and innovation in philanthropy can shape a more inclusive future of work in an AI-driven world.

In this episode of The PlayFull Podcast, host Kristine Michie talks with Kat Guillaume, CEO of the Center for Community Progress, about how play, joy, and purpose can inspire courage, justice, and transformation from personal struggle to public leadership.

In this inspiring episode, Emma Bloomberg and host Kristine Michie explore how democratized data and local engagement empower communities to drive meaningful, joyful, and lasting civic change.

Kristine Michie talks with former pro golfer turned game designer and philanthropist Peter Williamson about how play can spark learning, connection, and systems change.

In this episode, host Kristine Michie talks with Aisha Benson, CEO of the Nonprofit Finance Fund, about her journey from Harlem to national leadership, highlighting how equity, joy, and resilience fuel her work championing nonprofits as vital forces for community well-being and economic power.

In this episode, Kristine Michie speaks with Micah Parzen, CEO of the Museum of Us, about transforming institutions through care, accountability, and courage by shifting from “artifacts” and “collections” to “belongings” and “ancestors,” inviting listeners to reflect on repair, repatriation, and the power of curiosity, language, and love in reshaping organizations.

Kristine Michie interviews Equality Fund CEO Jess Tomlin on how play, imagination, and bold leadership fuel global movements, highlighting $300M invested in 1,000 human rights groups across 100 countries.

Kristine Michie welcomes the READI Group—Jazmin Chavez, E. Bomani Johnson, Lyle Matthew Kan, and Erik Stegman—for a discussion on how philanthropy can defend racial equity by navigating risks while sustaining justice work through strategy, solidarity, joy, culture, and resilience.