This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:05] Jan Svendsen: Welcome to the Broadway Gives Back Podcast.

[0:07] Jan Svendsen: I'm your host, Jan Svendsen.

[0:10] Jan Svendsen: This podcast spotlights Broadway actors, shows, and organizations in their pursuit of social impact and philanthropy.

[0:17] Jan Svendsen: Join us as some of the brightest lights on Broadway share their stories about their favorite charities and how they got involved and the people and the causes who benefited from these philanthropic efforts.

[0:34] Jan Svendsen: The guest of my last podcast of 2022 was Anika Larsen.

[0:38] Jan Svendsen: Anika is an incredibly talented actor who was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance in Beautiful, the Carol King musical, along with many other theater credits.

[0:48] Jan Svendsen: When we last spoke, Anika told me about the United Nations global goals.

[0:53] Jan Svendsen: 17 goals that have become the to-do list to make the world a better place.

[0:58] Jan Svendsen: I was so intrigued and inspired by the global goals, and frankly, by Anika, that I suggested we collaborate and that she come on board the Broadway Gives Back Podcast to co-host a series where we talk about this initiative and bring in special guests to discuss the specific goals.

[1:14] Jan Svendsen: Anika is here with me today and will be joining me for the next month or two, where we will break down each goal and talk about what needs to be done and ways in which we can all help.

[1:23] Jan Svendsen: Anika, my new friend, my co-host, um, welcome again to the Broadway Gives Back Podcast.

[1:29] Jan Svendsen: Thank you so much for your activism and for agreeing to partner with me on this initiative.

[1:34] Anika Larsen: No, thank you. Gosh, you've made it even bigger than I was thinking about my little vlog and how would I tell people about the global goals. And um, it wasn't until I came on Broadway Gives Back and then you were like, I'm gonna set up meetings and you started making things happen, and now it's this whole big campaign for Earth Month, and you know, it's just it's all it's all much bigger and more exciting than I ever ever thought it would be. So thank you.

[1:55] Jan Svendsen: Well, it's always better to have, you know, more people collaborating. I think you always get better.

[1:59] Anika Larsen: You know what? That's number 17 partnerships for the goals. We can't do it alone. We gotta partner with people.

[2:06] Jan Svendsen: There you go. I love partnering with you.

[2:08] Anika Larsen: Um back at you.

[2:10] Jan Svendsen: So we were talking the other day after we did some podcast recordings about how we always ask people some rapid fire questions, or we do an icebreaker just to sort of let people get to know them. And we were talking about how hard it is, and I was saying I wouldn't even know what I would answer to half the questions that I ask.

[2:28] Anika Larsen: You were basically terrified. You were so glad that you didn't ever have to answer them, but now we don't have an actual guest, we're just two co-hosts.

[2:29] Jan Svendsen: We're just two co-hosts.

[2:36] Anika Larsen: So we're gonna ask each other some questions for the icebreaker round.

[2:41] Anika Larsen: Um, I'm starting with you because you're terrified.

[2:44] Jan Svendsen: So I'm terrified. Break on through.

[2:46] Anika Larsen: All right, Jan, please tell me three truths and a lie about yourself.

[2:52] Jan Svendsen: Um, I have been with Elton John on where I was wearing roller skates and carrying a hot dog and a root beer.

[3:03] Anika Larsen: Hmm.

[3:06] Jan Svendsen: I have been on a Broadway stage in a Broadway show as a jet girl in West Side Story once.

[3:15] Jan Svendsen: The drummer from the Who, Keith Moon, was at my breakfast room table when I was growing up at midnight, eating late-night snacks with me and my parents.

[3:28] Jan Svendsen: And I have gone skydiving.

[3:34] Anika Larsen: I don't know. I could see all of these, but I also know how terrified you are to perform. So you being a jet girl, accept that.

[3:40] Anika Larsen: Gosh, I don't know. Um. No, you know what? I'm gonna believe all the artsy ones and say you've never been skydiving.

[3:48] Jan Svendsen: No, I've never. I've been a jet girl, but that was in junior high.

[3:52] Anika Larsen: Oh, so it wasn't on Broadway.

[3:54] Jan Svendsen: Broadway stage.

[3:55] Anika Larsen: Oh, I thought it was maybe on a technicality, like during an Easter bonnet competition or something.

[4:00] Jan Svendsen: No, I was a jet girl in the sky.

[4:01] Anika Larsen: Oh, I should have trusted my instincts. Dag nabit.

[4:05] Jan Svendsen: Right. Yes.

[4:06] Anika Larsen: What you got for me?

[4:07] Jan Svendsen: Um, okay, for you. If you could invite three people to dinner.

[4:14] Jan Svendsen: Three people who are dead or alive to have an interesting dinner party. Who would you invite?

[4:19] Anika Larsen: Oh my goodness. That's so hard. Well, it's uh there's three people who were just in the forefront, you know, because I'm doing so much of this um, the research for all this stuff. And I was just looking at um, I was just looking at video of Maya Angelou, and um she she's just so wise, like just but not like she's planned wise, like when she writes her poetry, but um, but just when she's talking uh just off the cuff, the the unbelievable uh generosity of spirit, the unbelievable like zen of her. For sure I would want her there.

[5:00] Anika Larsen: Um, and then I was just looking at a video of Malala on the world's largest lesson, which is I'll tell you about, I'll tell you what that is later. But um uh, but she uh so she's fantastic. And then Greta Thunberg, three great women, I guess. Look at that.

[5:16] Anika Larsen: Um, and then I'll feel um all day long today. I'm gonna be kicking myself for all the people I didn't say. But come on, that would be the most interesting meal.

[5:25] Jan Svendsen: Yeah, I've ever had.

[5:28] Anika Larsen: Sure, of course.

[5:32] Jan Svendsen: Okay, all right. Let's do some questions that we both answer.

[5:34] Anika Larsen: Yes.

[5:35] Jan Svendsen: All right, what's your word?

[5:37] Anika Larsen: My word.

[5:39] Anika Larsen: My word, my word is passion. Because I think if you have passion about anything and everything, you know, your life is just better. And my eldest daughter made me this amazing ceramic plate that has the word passion on it in my favorite colors. So passion.

[5:57] Jan Svendsen: What about you?

[5:58] Anika Larsen: Nice. My word is actually two words. It's wicked awesome, because I'm from Boston, and every once in a while I just like to, I like the Boston girl in me to come on out, especially when I start talking about the Red Sox. But um, but yeah, so many things in this life are wicked awesome. And I like using the word wicked as a qualifier. Takes the piss out of things sometimes, you know, it's a little cheeky.

[6:20] Jan Svendsen: I like it.

[6:21] Anika Larsen: Um, you and Ben Affleck.

[6:22] Jan Svendsen: Um we went to high school together.

[6:25] Anika Larsen: Oh, did you really?

[6:26] Jan Svendsen: That's so crazy.

[6:27] Anika Larsen: We did.

[6:27] Jan Svendsen: Yeah.

[6:28] Anika Larsen: Cambridge Ringe in Latin.

[6:29] Jan Svendsen: That's amazing.

[6:31] Anika Larsen: Sunrise or sunset.

[6:35] Jan Svendsen: Um I gotta say sunset. I mean, sunrises are more special because you're so I mean, theater people, and my husband's a jazz musician, so we're so rarely up for them, except now that we have kids, we're up for them more, so they feel more rare and special, but we're just able to experience sunsets more. So I think sunsets.

[6:52] Anika Larsen: What about you?

[6:53] Jan Svendsen: Sunset. And actually, we were in Brazil a few years ago, and what's so cool in Brazil is at sunset, everybody kind of gathers outside and they stand on ledges or in backyards or at the beach. And as soon as the sun goes below the horizon, everybody claps.

[7:12] Anika Larsen: Ah, it's so beautiful.

[7:14] Jan Svendsen: It was. Are they clapping for Mother Nature that got through another day successfully? Or are they like, ah, I love it. Whatever it is, it's gratitude, right?

[7:23] Anika Larsen: It was. It felt like I loved it. I loved it.

[7:27] Jan Svendsen: Um, that is lovely.

[7:29] Anika Larsen: Uh I feel like one of the reasons we have such a problem with the climate is that we've got we we get so far removed from nature that we feel like we're not in it and of it. And so I love that idea that like people's days are timed and attuned to when the sun is setting. Because I check my phone often to find out when the sun is rising or setting, and that's crazy.

[7:48] Jan Svendsen: That is crazy.

[7:49] Anika Larsen: But yeah, I get it. Well, at least now the days are getting longer, so that feels good.

[7:53] Jan Svendsen: Yeah.

[7:55] Anika Larsen: Okay. Favorite Disney princess or Disney character.

[7:58] Jan Svendsen: Oh my goodness. Encanto is a sublime movie musical.

[8:06] Anika Larsen: It is Lin-Manuel Miranda.

[8:08] Jan Svendsen: It is uh because I we just watched it again with my little boys, um, for the hundredth time, but it is um, and I don't know that I could pick a character because they're all so well written, so and they all just they all have such phenomenal songs, but that is such uh an unbelie like the story is so sophisticated and beautiful and so psychologically rich and um just so moving and um I don't know, there's no better animated movie than Encanto, if you ask me.

[8:37] Anika Larsen: What about you?

[8:38] Jan Svendsen: Oh, I'm a big fan of Beauty and the Beast. I love Belle.

[8:42] Anika Larsen: Yeah.

[8:43] Jan Svendsen: Belle is my girl.

[8:46] Anika Larsen: Yeah, fair enough.

[8:48] Jan Svendsen: She's got Moxie.

[8:50] Anika Larsen: She does, and she likes to read, so do I.

[8:52] Jan Svendsen: Um. So where's your physical happy place?

[8:57] Anika Larsen: Uh my physical happy place. Um, uh, you know, I f I thought I would live in New York City for my whole life. And um then I fell in love with a man who owned a house up the Hudson in the lower Hudson Valley. And it was a real struggle to move out here. Um, because I really just identified as a New Yorker and it was a little bit heartbreaking, but it it really only made sense. And certainly now that we have kids it it only makes sense. But um we have this big deck on the back of our house and it has it's just such a beautiful view.

[9:28] Anika Larsen: And um I just I never I when I when I look out at the view, I think if I went to a hotel, I wouldn't be able to afford the room with this view. And yet every morning I get to wake up to this view and it's just a canopy of trees and it's so so pretty. And so I don't get out on that deck as much as I like because of the kids. Um, but um, but I can see the through the windows out beyond it, and um, and it's um every day I'm grateful that I can look at such beauty.

[9:58] Jan Svendsen: What about you?

[9:59] Anika Larsen: So your happy place.

[10:01] Jan Svendsen: So we're bi-coastal and I have a happy place in LA and a happy place in New York. So my New York happy place is at the north end of the reservoir in Central Park. And I run and I always just have to take a beat and stop there and just have a moment of gratitude, and I just I love it.

[10:20] Jan Svendsen: And here in LA where I grew up, there's um right on Ocean Avenue overlooking like Palisades Park overlooking the Pacific Ocean. That's my spot. And even as a kid, I used to go there and just sort of ride my bike there and stop and reflect, and it's just become like sort of this place for me where I feel peaceful.

[10:41] Jan Svendsen: So you have a happy place on each coast. That's good.

[10:44] Anika Larsen: Yeah.

[10:45] Jan Svendsen: Nice. Um and that's a good segue. I didn't even plan this, but that's kind of a good segue to our conversation about the global goals. Um so I'm gonna have you talk about this, but just as a quick intro, I mean, clearly the world is facing so many challenges, whether it's poverty or hunger, inequality, and climate change. Um, and these need to be addressed urgently. The UN acknowledged this. Um, and they said there needed to be bold action to overcome them. And so they created these global goals.

[11:17] Jan Svendsen: And it's a plan or a pact, I guess, that was agreed to by all the world leaders to build a greener, fairer, better world by 2030. And we all have a role in achieving those goals.

[11:17] Anika Larsen: Yeah.

[11:30] Jan Svendsen: So I need you to break this down for me and for our listeners because this is a really big idea. And when I when you first talked to me about it, I went online and started researching it. I was fascinated by the whole thing, but I was I was also fascinated by the fact that I hadn't heard of it until you introduced me to it. So talk us through the global goals.

[11:50] Anika Larsen: Yeah, well, they know lots of people in lots of other countries know about it more than in our country, which is um why we're doing this, why we're doing these podcasts and why why I'm doing the vlog, um, is to let people know about it because it is so heartening that so many smart people really they it's the world's to-do list, basically. They broke down sort of all of our problems into 17 parts and um have targets and things that you can do for each one of them. Um, and it somehow in this format makes it all feel possible.

[12:22] Anika Larsen: Um it uh it is it helped me go from feeling helpless and hopeless to helpful and hopeful. Um it's just it's an it's a very elegant framework for the world's problems. And um, you know, the climate crisis is not new. It's something we've all known about our whole lives, right? And and for a really long time it just felt like it wasn't my thing. It wasn't my cause.

[12:45] Anika Larsen: Um, and it wasn't until my dear friend Andrea Varga, who's a professor of sustainability at Pasuni Newpaltz, introduced me to the global goals that I was like, oh no, this is my fight to fight because it's basically the the the idea of sustainability with a capital S, not little sustainability, but big sustainability, which my favorite definition for that is shared prosperity on a healthy planet, um, because that holds within it the three pillars of the global goals, which is people, planet, and prosperity.

[13:13] Anika Larsen: So of course it's not sustainable if we're polluting the oceans and the land and the skies, but it's also not sustainable if people don't have access to food, to clean water, to education, to equality, no matter what their gender, race, religious beliefs, their income is. Um, none of that is sustainable either if they don't have uh if they're poor, if they don't have decent work. All of these things are unsustainable.

[13:36] Anika Larsen: So the idea that that that shared prosperity is just as much a part of creating a healthy planet, that all of our problems are so intertwined and interdependent that actually in solving any of them, we're solving all of them. So the very first global goal is no poverty, second to zero hunger.

[13:52] Anika Larsen: And it's not until 13 that we get to climate action or 14 is life below water and then life on land. Um, and it's not in an order of importance because there is no order of importance. It's just what's important to you.

[14:04] Anika Larsen: If e if environmental justice is important to you, then that's your way in to fighting the good fight um and achieving uh helping to achieve any of these goals. It's you know, um, affordable and clean energy is number seven, and that's you know, wind turbines and solar power and finding new ways to power our planet so that we're not creating all the greenhouse gases.

[14:24] Anika Larsen: So it really was um it is if you go to their website, global goals.org, it is so beautifully honestly just like the graphics themselves. It's so beautifully elegantly laid out for you.

[14:38] Anika Larsen: And you click on any of the global goals that might fire you up, and there's guidance for helping you as an individual, as an organization, as a company, as a school. There's um, and I mentioned it before, but it's the it's the kids' website in within the the global goals.

[14:52] Anika Larsen: And it's if you just Google the world's largest lesson, it's they just so beautifully break it down in ways that it's for kids from four to eighteen and ways the kids can understand. Um, just a couple days ago, my son, I've been on my computer doing all this stuff so much, and my son walked by and he was like, Mama, what are you doing on your computer again?

[15:09] Anika Larsen: And I said, It's honey, it's the global goals again. And he finally he was ready to ask, yeah, but what is that, mama? And I said, Well, guess what? We're gonna go to the to the website.

[15:16] Anika Larsen: And we went to the world's largest lesson and we watched, they have this these introductory videos that are like just a few minutes long. The first one stars Malala, who's gonna be having lunch with me sometimes. Um, and um, and it's this animated video that breaks it down so beautifully.

[15:34] Anika Larsen: Um that then my husband and my other son came down and I said, Let's watch it again, and made everybody watch it. But um, it's just it's it, and and by the end, everybody was super fired up to um want to act.

[15:45] Anika Larsen: And my son went to school today, second grade today, and he said, I'm gonna tell the principal so she can say on the morning announcements about TGG. And I was like, What's TGG? The global goals, mama.

[15:56] Anika Larsen: He's fired up to spread the word. You can't help it. They just they do it so well that you sort of can't help it. I love a good to do list, you know.

[16:02] Anika Larsen: Like it's for me, it's so like I love making those check marks. Yes, and and I also I like this idea that it's kind of like the idiot's guide to saving the world. Um which yeah is also a podcast that I think the UN It's their podcast.

[16:19] Jan Svendsen: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[16:20] Anika Larsen: Yeah, because everybody needs to be a part of it. There's this great quote by this guy, um, Robert Swan. It's the greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.

[16:29] Anika Larsen: Um, is it really is it's all of our mess to clean up. And you know, it's funny you're calling me an activist, and I was like, I'm not sure I am an activist, because if I say I'm an activist, then that means I'm different than you, not you, Jan, but you, the general you.

[16:42] Anika Larsen: It's like there I'm different than you, and then that you don't have to be doing what I'm doing. And the thing of it is is that any of us who are able have to be, you know, rolling up our sleeves and and and and acting.

[16:54] Anika Larsen: Um, but the good news about that is that there's actually so much that you can be doing that isn't onerous, that really is like low-hanging fruit in your life. Just if you just flip the switch in your brain, there's so many different ways that you could be helping.

[17:08] Anika Larsen: Um, that um, and you know, it's all beautifully laid out, and I mean, and then that's it's it's a jumping off point. It isn't the beginning and the end of these efforts. There's lots of people doing extraordinary work in this.

[17:18] Anika Larsen: That's been the most heartening thing since I've sort of fallen down this rabbit hole is seeing how many people are out there doing the thing, like just doing unbelievable work in all of the different ways where they are.

[17:30] Jan Svendsen: But so what we're focusing on on the podcast and on the vlog is what we as the theater community, because I don't profess to be an expert on this. So it's about like what we in the theater community are doing to help achieve each one of these global goals.

[17:43] Anika Larsen: And breaking that down even further, it's the theater community as a business, but also just the individual fans and theater goers, what they can do.

[17:52] Jan Svendsen: Yeah.

[17:53] Anika Larsen: Yeah. So do you want to talk a little bit about like just in general what the theater community is doing right now? And I there's Broadway Green Alliance, and they've been on the podcast before, and you've been on the podcast talking about BG.

[18:05] Jan Svendsen: But in general, you know, some highlights of what the Broadway community is doing.

[18:10] Anika Larsen: Absolutely. Well, yes. So I mean, when I when I started thinking about this, I actually, when I called Andrea Varga, I call her my sustainability Yoda. Um she's wise, but she speaks in complete sentences.

[18:21] Anika Larsen: Um and um when I called her, she said, well, all ever anybody can do really is what they can do locally, but your local is Broadway, and Broadway gets attention. And I thought, ding ding ding, what does that mean?

[18:31] Anika Larsen: So then I I knew I reached out to the Broadway Green Alliance, and Molly Braverman over there is just an extraordinary human being. And um, I said, What do I do? What can we do?

[18:41] Anika Larsen: So um, so so brought the Broadway Green Alliance is helping the Broadway shows and not just Broadway, off Broadway college campuses all over the country, regional theaters. Um, and she is helped they are helping support um green efforts backstage and trying to be as sustainable as possible backstage and making great choices backstage.

[18:57] Anika Larsen: I mean, one of the really cool things that they um got done, one of their first sort of coups was um getting LED lights in all of the Broadway marquees. So now Broadway, the power of those bright Broadway marquees, um, it's two it requires two tenths of the power that it used to before they switched light bulbs.

[19:13] Anika Larsen: Um, and then they also got um uh all of the broad uh Broadway washing machines are now high-efficiency washing machines, um, so that all of the laundry is being done better backstage.

[19:23] Anika Larsen: So um, so yeah, so that there's stuff like that that they are really helping to support with their green captains in each of in each of the um Broadway shows.

[19:33] Anika Larsen: Um, and then there is but but like I say, it's not just about that's climate action. That's goal number 13. So that's very specific to climate action, but um, you know, there's um organizations like Revolution Latina, who I know you've talked to Luis Salgato, he's gonna be on my vlog, but it's that's a great example of number four quality education is bringing arts education to kids um who wouldn't otherwise get it.

[19:55] Anika Larsen: Um, and of course, you know, we focus on the art side of things, but of course, when we mean this globally, we mean that there's a lot of people who don't, especially women and girls who don't get access to quality education.

[20:06] Anika Larsen: Um, there's um who else? There's I mean, of course, there's um Broadway Cares and all that they are doing.

[20:12] Anika Larsen: Um, I like to think of them sort of under the category of number 16, which is uh peace, justice, and strong institutions, but um just all that Broadway Cares is doing to take care of people in the city and in the country, um and what a strong institution they are.

[20:26] Anika Larsen: And even in the world, you know, there are sort of our first responders worldwide. I was thinking about social justice as one of the goals, too.

[20:33] Anika Larsen: And you know, Black Theater United, um Broadway Advocacy Coalition, all the way to the world.

[20:41] Jan Svendsen: Yes, absolutely.

[20:43] Anika Larsen: Yes, and um uh, you know, uh we were just talking earlier about um uh the entertainment community fund, aka formerly known as the Actors Fund, and all that they do to help with health care, with those of us in the theater industry with making sure we keep we keep our health insurance and helping folks get access to the health care that they need and the mental health care that they need, and that is global goal number three, good health and well-being.

[21:10] Anika Larsen: Um, so really there's not a global goal that that exists that we aren't in some way trying to help, um, trying to help get there.

[21:18] Jan Svendsen: Now I want to take it to a more micro level. So theatergoers, fans of theater, what can individual people do? And I just want to give one example. Last week we were talking and we were talking about doing laundry. Yes. And I was introduced to this idea. I didn't know that there were detergent sheets. So that you don't have to buy a ginormous plastic bottle of Tide. Yes, tune in for Telly Leung because he enlightened us on the laundry sheets, which are wonderful. I bought them this weekend. They are amazing. And I feel like so good, but it's such a small thing. And I feel like those are the kinds of little hacks, life hacks that we should talk about and share with each other and share with our listeners and the listeners should share back with us what they're doing. Because I feel like that's a very grassroots way to help the world accomplish some of these 17 goals.

[22:12] Anika Larsen: Yeah. Um, so one of the ways that I think about it is um just the idea of consume less. And there's so many different ways that you can do that. And it's, you know, it's little steps at a time, you know, you're not gonna do it all in one day. It's like every day, is there a different way that you can consume less and consume less what? Well, consume less meat. The meat industry is real rough on the planet. Um, so consuming less meat, don't you if you love meat, don't cut it out of your life, but just less. If everybody consumed less meat, it would have a huge effect on the planet and on greenhouse gases. Um, consume less electricity, that's the thing we all know. Shut the lights off when you leave a room, you know, but in all of the ways that you can consume less electricity, consuming less gas, which is, you know, driving places.

Do you have to drive? Could you walk? Could you bike? Um, could you drive an electric vehicle? Um, it's consuming less plastic. That's a big one. That honestly, if that's one of those things where if you just flip the switch in your brain, um, there's so many times where you take plastic without thinking about it. And if you just said, hey, no, I don't need those utensils, or I don't actually want a straw, thank you. Um, or you just, you know, when I was like, I don't need that plastic bag, right? Oh, I don't need that plastic bag.

[23:19] Jan Svendsen: Exactly. I was shopping for my boys this Christmas, and I just decided to be thinking about that because so many toys for kids are plastic. And so I'm not gonna not get them toys, but I just I thought sort of consciously about well, which of the plastic toys are worth it, which of the things that are wrapped in so much plastic are worth it, and some things I actually didn't get because they were just so much plastic. Um, and you know, look, I really want to acknowledge that so many of these things, like buying organic instead of buying non-organic foods, so many of these things that are better for the planet are also more expensive or harder for people to do. Um, and so I fully want to recognize that some people are just trying to get through their days and they can't do these things.

Some people can't afford to choose wooden toys over plastic toys. Um, and so I fully acknowledge that. And then I therefore I say that those of us who can should, must. Um, I was thinking today as I was washing my dishes, I have a plastic scrub brush, and I was looking at it and I thought, I bet there's wooden scrub brushes out there that aren't probably that much more expensive than the plastic one. If it's a dollar or two, I can swing that. There's other ways that I can be more eco-friendly that I can't afford, but that's one that I can afford. And so it's just, you know, thinking in those ways.

[24:35] Anika Larsen: Um, I think this whole idea of being mindful is because you know, a lot of times you're just going through your day and you're not thinking about anything, but just being more mindful about exactly what you're saying about the scrub brushes, you know, like, oh, I could do this. But also even some of the other goals, you know, like social justice or, you know, mental health issues, just being more mindful and thinking about it in terms of oh, how, what little thing could I do to sort of, you know, think about this? So a lot of it is just the acknowledgment.

[25:07] Jan Svendsen: Yeah, and I think once actually that flip has been switched, like when you once you've seen, you can't unsee, you know. I think that that's so that it actually isn't something that you have to be making a concerted effort to do all day, every day, that it then just becomes sort of a part of you. Um, and I'm really big on the idea of just creating the cultural expectation. If we just start saying, if it should be a thing where um restaurants don't offer you the plastic utensils unless you ask for it. I mean, if we could legislate that, that would be great. But um, but it should just become a thing where we're not trying to offer Telly was saying that he's in London right now and that all of the food he's ever gotten, he's gotten wooden utensils for them. So it's about creating the cultural expectation that that we're gonna be taking care of each other and our planet in all of these ways.

[25:55] Anika Larsen: Um, and you know, it's interesting because I read an article recently about Japan and in Japan they all wear the global goals pin. It's this sort of color wheel um of the global goals. Um, all the business people over there will wear them, whether or not their company is actually trying to, you know, help. Um, there is this now expectation that they should be. And I think even if you know, people are getting upset that it's, you know, greenwashing or that the people are saying promising things they're not delivering, but I really think that in if you create the expectation that the action has to follow. So it's just about yeah, changing the ways we think about things. And we're storytellers, that's what theater people are, right?

So it's about trying to tell the story in an engaging way that doesn't make it feel annoying because nobody wants to be lectured to, and nobody wants it's either overwhelming or it's boring, one of my friends said to me. And I was like, I know, you're right, it is. I agree. I've felt that way for decades too. So how do we make it not? And the global goals are doing a great job of that. It's not overwhelming. They break it down so nicely, and it's not boring, it's lovely.

[26:53] Jan Svendsen: Well, there's so many different things, and over the next few months, we're gonna have many guests coming in and talking about um different goals. We've assigned a different goal to a different guest. Plus, you're gonna be doing vlogs separately from that, which are gonna be little short bite-sized pieces of content. But I'm just gonna give a little sneak peek to a couple of the goals that are coming up. Um, as you mentioned, Telly Leung is gonna talk about goal number 11, which is sustainable cities. Um, currently, Telly is in London performing in Allegiance, which he originated that role when he was on Broadway. Um, Barrett Foa, um, who people might know from NCIS, um, who's also a big Broadway person, um, is gonna come on and talk about goal number two, which is zero hunger.

Yeah, and he works, he's a vice chair for an organization that basically um takes the donated food that's on movie sets and film sets um and TV sets and donates it to um unhoused people who are, you know, have food insecurities. So it's great. It's an ingenious example of problem solving for one of the goals.

[28:01] Anika Larsen: It's like it's so many wins, yeah. In a very grassroots way that's very doable. Yeah, yeah. Um, we're also gonna have Andrew Barth Feldman, who most recently was in Dear Evan Hansen, and is gonna talk about goal number three, which is good health and well-being. And we'll talk a lot about mental health issues, um, which affect so many, so many of the different goals here. So those are just a few. There's more, and there's some bigger games that are gonna be on as well. Yeah, some surprises. Um but I've got some friends coming on. I've got um on my vlog, people you've already talked to, like Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley are gonna come on. Um, Gavin Creel's gonna come on. Um, I've also got some because it's not just actors, we don't just need actors.

We also should be talking to other people in the Broadway industry. So I have um lighting designer Natasha Katz is coming, um, set designer Derek McLean, costume designer Greg Barnes. So um it's gonna be real fun. We're gonna talk to um we're gonna go backstage at Hamilton and talk to Tamar Green about clean water and sanitation, because we of course all use reusable water bottles backstage with our fabulous New York City water, which Telly Leung calls the champagne of tap water, and I agree.

[29:10] Jan Svendsen: I do too. So anyway, so the next month or two will be really exciting. We're gonna launch in April. This will be the first podcast of April, and this series will be co-hosted with the two of us. So I'm very excited forward to next steps. And I just want to thank you, Anika, for first of all introducing me to this whole idea, but also agreeing to come on and be a co-host and just help figure all of this out. You know, you don't have to do this, and you are so passionate, using my favorite word, um, about this, and it's infectious. So thank you.

[29:46] Anika Larsen: Oh, well good. Well good. I don't know. We all just, we all just gotta do what we can, right? We're all just trying to matter, you know, but not everybody takes their time and energy to do what they care about. So there's that extra layer. And I just, I so I want to acknowledge you and just tell you how much I appreciate what you're doing and how it's really influenced me and my life too, and I hope it influences others as well.

[30:10] Jan Svendsen: Oh, thanks. Well, you know, I'm one of 10 kids. I grew up one of 10 kids, and I have one of my life's compulsions is being a good team player and making sure I'm carrying my weight. Um, and so this just feels like an obvious I don't I it doesn't, it just feels like it's what I should be doing. It doesn't feel like I should be um applauded for it. It really is. We it's what we should all be doing, you know. So um, but thank you. Um, because I know that really if all of us just, if we all just do the next right thing, which is my favorite quote from Frozen 2, if we all just do the next right thing, we are going to fix this. That's what's really exciting, is that I didn't know that last year, and now after all of this work that I've done, I know that now. So that's exciting. So everybody jump on board. Theater climate revolution, baby. It's happening. Join us for doing the next right thing.

[30:59] Jan Svendsen: Thanks for listening to this episode of the Broadway Gives Back Podcast. If you like what you hear, please subscribe and rate Broadway Gives Back wherever you stream your podcasts. You can also follow me on Facebook at Jan Friedlander Weiss and on Instagram at Jan for Good. Broadway Gives Back is part of the Broadway Podcast Network. Produced by Dori Berinstein, Alan Seales, Kimberlee Garris, along with their team of amazing collaborators and wonderful humans. To learn more about this podcast and other Broadway podcasts, visit BPN.fm slash Broadway Gives Back.