Humans of Purpose

What if the answer to loneliness, burnout, and community collapse is as simple as building a village? Mona Mahamed reveals how a handful of homemade acts of care grew into a life-changing social enterprise that now feeds, clothes, supports, and employs people across Bankstown and beyond.From a Facebook group and a ute full of donated goods to a registered charity, a community supermarket, counselling, mediation, and a thriving sewing program, Mona shares the scrappy, deeply human story behind CSS Village. She explains how her own journey across Australia and Egypt shaped her identity, why she returned to community work after personal trauma and depression, and how her faith, resilience, and “nourish, nurture, empower” philosophy became the backbone of a movement.
Essential listening if you care about community building, social enterprise or simply what it takes to turn pain into purpose. If you’ve ever felt alone, this conversation will leave you with one clear message: join a village, or build your own.

Matt Formston lost 95 percent of his sight to macular dystrophy at age five, growing up on Sydney's Northern Beaches. He didn't slow down. He's now a Paralympian, a four time world surfing champion, and the first blind surfer to ride Nazaré - a wave that has broken sighted professionals at the height of their careers.
In this conversation, Matt breaks down the framework he's built trust on his entire life: standards, consistency and time. Not as a motivational idea, but as a practical formula - one he now uses to coach leaders and teams on culture, accountability and psychological safety.
This episode is about more than sport. It's about what it actually takes to become someone others can rely on - in a boardroom, on a wave, or in a team you're trying to lead.

Some stories change the shape of a life. This one changed the shape of a movement.
As we release this episode, four women and girls were killed in four days in Australia. Thirty-seven women and seventeen children have been killed since January 1st this year. That number is likely higher. Undercounting is part of the story Sherele Moody has spent a decade trying to fix. And whenever you are listening to this, the number will have changed again.
That is exactly why this conversation exists. Because we believe that the stories a culture tells about itself determine what it can and cannot see. And we will keep telling them until the number is zero.
Sherele Moody is a journalist, founder of Australian Femicide Watch and the Red Heart Movement. She grew up in a home marked by domestic violence. As a teenager, she learned her stepfather had murdered a nine year old girl, her cousin's daughter, Stacy Ann Tracy. From that came two of the most significant tools this country has for tracking and confronting violence against women.
In this episode, Sherele talks about what it means to carry resilience you never wanted, why ending femicide is not women's work to do, the small activisms that actually make a difference, and what it took to turn personal tragedy into a national movement.
This episode discusses domestic violence, child safety, and loss. We have approached it with sensitivity and care, and we would ask that you do the same.
Listen when you feel ready.
Support is available. Lifeline 13 11 14 · 1800RESPECT 1800 737 732.

South Sudanese Australian founder and cultural intelligence consultant Adongwot Manyoul shares how her childhood experiences of racism and exclusion shaped her mission to transform education, workplaces, and communities. In this conversation, she breaks down why DEI often fails as a checkbox exercise, how cultural intelligence creates real change, and what it takes to move from awareness to action. A powerful episode about justice, resilience, and building a more inclusive Australia.

AI isn't just another tool. It's intelligence becoming cheap, instant, and impossible to switch off from, and neurofuturist Joel Pearson thinks most of us haven't reckoned with what that actually means.
In this episode, Mel sits down with Joel to unpack what happens to our brains, our work, and our relationships when thinking hard stops being necessary. They talk about the tension between innovation and staying human, why "just another tool" is the wrong way to think about AI, and what leaders and individuals alike need to understand before the ground shifts further underneath them.
If you've felt caught between excitement and unease about where this is all heading, this conversation will give you language for it.

My guest this week is Henry Shukman — poet, novelist, authorised Zen master in the Sanbo Zen lineage, and co-founder of The Way meditation app. His work has moved through boardrooms, retreat centres, and living rooms across the world, helping people find what lies on the other side of their suffering.
Henry's path here was anything but direct. A spontaneous awakening experience at nineteen, years of chronic illness, childhood trauma, and family rupture became not obstacles to his spiritual life — but doorways into it. His memoir, One Blade of Grass, recounts that journey with unflinching honesty, and was named a Times Literary Supplement Book of the Year. His poetry has appeared in the New Yorker and the London Review of Books.
But what we really wanted to talk to Henry about in this conversation is something simpler and harder than any of that. What does it mean to stay genuinely open in a world that seems to be doing everything it can to close us down?

In this episode, Jan Owen reflects on her journey - from setting up illegal drop-in centres in Brisbane to pioneering Australia's first lived experience advocacy organisations. She unpacks how philanthropy evolved from government funding to innovative impact investing, revealing surprising shifts in funding models that continue to influence social change. You'll discover why informal community networks are as vital today as ever, and how the modern reliance on formal systems can sometimes undermine the profound power of grassroots care.Jan is an esteemed social innovator with decades of experience in impact advocacy, policy reform, and community-led movements. Her pioneering work with Create Foundation and her leadership in shaping Australia's social impact landscape make her insights invaluable for navigating today’s complex challenges.Perfect for social impact leaders, educators, policymakers, and anyone committed to making a difference, this episode will inspire you to see systemic change as a collective journey, grounded in community, trust, and the unstoppable power of human adaptability. 

To premiere Season 2 of the Humans of Purpose Podcast, Mel sits down with Josh Ross from Humanitix. Josh Ross walked away from a hedge fund partnership at 26, turned down a lucrative career, and co-founded one of Australia's most radical companies with his best friend. Humanitix is an online event ticketing platform with one extraordinary difference: 100% of profits from booking fees go directly to charity. Not some. All of it. To date, they've donated over $20 million to education programs, health initiatives, environmental causes and indigenous affairs around the world.
In this conversation, Mel sits down with Josh to talk about what it actually takes to leave behind a version of success the whole world recognises — and build something the world genuinely needs. They explore the pact Josh made with his co-founder on a hiking trip in Sri Lanka that changed the direction of both their lives, what it means to challenge the conventional wisdom that business and social good can't coexist, and why the most powerful lever for change might just be the booking fee on your next event ticket.
This one is for anyone who has ever felt the pull of a more purposeful life and wondered whether it was actually possible.

My guest this week is Rachel Ball, CEO of the Reichstein Foundation, where she works at the forefront of social, economic, and environmental justice through collaborative philanthropy and systems-level change.
Rachel’s path into this work was shaped early. Growing up in Sydney in a family grounded in education, and later experiencing global inequality firsthand during a Rotary exchange in Brazil, she developed a deep commitment to justice and collective action. Those early experiences, combined with a strong community of peers engaged in activism continue to shape her leadership today.
In this episode of Humans of Purpose, we explore what it takes to create meaningful change in a complex and often fragmented world.
We discuss:
key themes from the Progress social change conference, including the need for unity across differences
why economic justice is foundational to solving broader social challenges
how philanthropy can move beyond grant-making to align investment with purpose
and the role of tax reform as a powerful (and often overlooked) lever for fairness and redistribution
Rachel also shares insights into the Reichstein Foundation’s approach, from funding long-term advocacy work to supporting First Nations-led organisations and treaty processes, and rethinking how over $50 billion in philanthropic capital can be used to drive systemic change.
This conversation is a thoughtful reflection on power, responsibility, and what it means to build an economy that works for people, not just markets.
It’s also a reminder that lasting change doesn’t happen overnight. It requires persistence, collaboration, and a willingness to work together, even when it feels uncomfortable.
🔗 Explore more from Rachel’s work here:https://reichsteinfoundation.org.au/
 

My guest this week is Amanda Cahill, CEO of The Next Economy, where she works with regional communities across Australia to support a rapid, responsible, and fair transition away from fossil fuels.
Amanda has spent more than 15 years working at the intersection of community, climate, and economic development. Her work focuses on helping regions navigate complex change, ensuring that as industries shift, people and communities are not left behind.
Her commitment to this work is deeply personal. Growing up in regional Queensland, and later experiencing poverty firsthand during a Rotary exchange in Brazil, shaped her lifelong focus on justice, equity, and creating systems that allow everyone to thrive.
In this episode of Humans of Purpose, we explore what it really takes to transition toward a new kind of economy, one that is both sustainable and fair.
We discuss:
the tension between speed and fairness in the energy transition
what a “just transition” looks like in practice for workers and communities
how regional communities are leading the way in designing future-focused solutions
and why local, community-owned initiatives from renewable energy to food systems are key to long-term resilience
Amanda also shares a broader vision for “the economy we could have”, one where access to essentials like housing, food, education, and healthcare is not determined by circumstance, but treated as a foundation for a thriving society.
This is a thoughtful and grounded conversation about systems change, leadership, and the role of community in shaping a more equitable future.
🔗 Explore more from Amanda’s work here:https://nexteconomy.com.au/
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