The Inclusion of Nonparents: Critical, Universal, and Overlooked
April 19, 2022
Hosted by Christine Erickson
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Guest Information
Episode Description
In today’s episode we recognize the founding and evolution of The NotMom -- its blog, social networks, and events for women without children by choice or by chance. We are happy to join the celebration of The NotMom’s upcoming 10th anniversary. We have previously discussed on the show the importance of how to come together as a collective community, engaging both childless and childfree community spaces, to influence changes in the workplace and public policy. Today, we will hear from the partners behind The NotMom: Karen Malone Wright and Laura M. LaVoie. Through their work and friendship, Karen and Laura have bridged their individual experiences of age, race, geography and living childless and childfree. They bring key insight and expertise to this conversation, and share what they have learned on their shared journey. We will also discuss how the scope of self-funded work that comprises so much of non-parents’ efforts to create real change are so often limited to what we can do as individuals or partners because our voices, concerns, and initiatives are too often not included, acknowledged, or respected, by businesses, funders, and governments. We will delve into the realities of how and why inclusion is needed within our own community and beyond, and the underlying reasons for challenges we face to achieve meaningful, impactful change.
New Legacy Radio
Tuesday at 10 AM Pacific Time on VoiceAmerica Variety Channel
New Legacy Radio is a social justice platform about people without children. This space is intended to bring visibility and change to our experiences, to connect with our allies and anyone committed to learning more from our community, which is reaching an estimated one-third of the global population. The show addresses the social, systemic, and structural realities perpetuated by reproductive and relational identity bias. We discuss the impact of pronatalist behavior and policies, through the perspectives of our community and allies, as we work to achieve meaningful change that recognizes the truly diverse, intersectional continuum of our experiences. New Legacy Radio is brought to you by New Legacy Institute (NLI), which is policy institute, focused on the global culture and impact of pronatalism. The Institute’s social justice advocacy serves the growing, global community of people without children. NLI’s mission is to generate constructive change in cultural, organizational, and institutional policies that exhibit biases against people without children.
Christine Erickson
Christine Erickson (she/her) is the founder of New Legacy Institute. The Institute’s purpose is to advocate for change around social realities and policy inequities faced by those who do not have children. Christine is involuntarily childless by circumstance (cxc), and touched on her experiences in her award-winning book, The Mother Within: A Guide to Accepting Your Childless Journey. (2015) A revised edition is forthcoming. Her current writing focuses on the unacknowledged impact of women who are childless/childfree due to circumstances. Christine is dedicated to advancing the diverse narratives and experiences of people without children. She is a staunch advocate of our community’s equitable inclusion and belonging in the workplace, media & entertainment narratives, and making visible the ways in which our community is impacted by culture and policy, and the change we seek. As an executive and entrepreneur, she has lived and worked globally, for the majority of her career. She is an experienced executive coach, leadership educator, and the founder of the Center for Consent-Driven Leadership. She is writing a forthcoming book: Consent-Driven: Rethinking the Culture of Leadership. Christine is an advocate for justice reform in family law and court procedures, involuntary pro se representation, and multifaceted accountability regarding violence against women. She has also consulted on international women’s law and development, gender equity and healthcare access initiatives.
