Being Alive

This week's episode features a Founder and CEO of Thred Media and Diana Award Recipient, Jenk Oz. A young person who knows first hand the incredible power behind young people's voices. Here, he shares his own personal story setting up the social initiative goliath Thred Media and its mission to educate and encourage youth voices to tackle the biggest problems facing Gen Z. Check out Thred Media here: https://thred.com/

In the business of breaking down barriers, co-founders of social initiative Sistem: Abigail and Donna, join us this week to discuss the importance of creating opportunities for young girls and women in STEM. We discuss the journey of their postgraduate endeavours and their valiant mission of transforming the lemons of their experiences into lemonade for the next generation of female scientists, researchers and engineers to come! Follow SISTEM on Instagram @sistemuk.

Belonging to one, both and sometimes neither. This week we delve deep into the experiences of second generation immigrants, exploring the difficulties of balancing conflicting cultural traditions, determining your own sense of identity and the importance of representation legacies that transcend borders. Spoiler: Be ware of the giggles and over-enjoyment!

As a proud feminist activist who seeks to challenge inequalities by campaigning for social, cultural and economic change, this week's guest Laura Coryton knows all about the power of young people's voices. Her "End Tampon Tax" campaign threw her fantastic advocacy into the spotlight when in 2021, the government reconsidered its commitment to period poverty and abolished the VAT tax on feminine hygiene products. Now, her attention turns to empowering young people with essential information through her new social initiative, Sex Ed Matters. For all the up-and-coming activists seeking to effect change in the world, this one is for you. As usual, remember to buckle up before jumping on this mind-blowing ride!

Starting Season 3 of with a bang, we talk all things education mobility related with the founder of Target Oxbridge, Naomi Kellman. Join us this week as we discuss the importance of diversifying prestigious higher education institutions like Oxford and Cambridge, creating opportunities for BAME pupils and Naomi's personal story of getting to Oxford as a black female student and later graduating with a 1st in PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics)!  As usual, make sure to give as a follow @the_being_alive_podcast Links: Target Oxbridge Website: https://targetoxbridge.co.uk/ Target Oxbridge Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/39Bl3irYCAMnOAycV6u9L7?si=d042b88a19b74ba1 Being Alive Website: www.strictlybeing.com

About one year we made the craziest decision ever! To create a podcast that inspired conversation, grappled with difficult topics and brought a laugh to as many young people as we could reach. A little show that became known as The Being Alive Podcast. Join us in this season finale as we pull back the curtain and show you how we got here.

With many students being in and out of school for most of the year since the outbreak of Covid-19- things haven't exactly always gone smoothly according to plan. Join as this week as we discuss everything from the Free School Meals scandal that took place last year to university students having to pay full tuition fees and the devastating effects on mental; health young people are experiencing as a result of the pandemic. When Gavin Williamson (Education Secretary) promised students a "high quality education" he probably meant something completely different to what we had all imagined.....

Thin, thinner, thinnest. With the body positivity movement on the rise, and with more fashion and beauty brands having an open conversation about weight and size stigmatization we give a review on the "progress" of how we talk about our bodies and the unfortunate stigma identified as "thin/skinny privilege". From everything from the "I Weigh" movement to eating disorders we tackle the old age question: Does Size Matter?

Usually whenever you hear the phrase "making history" we expect something wonderful or glorious-probably not an act of domestic terrorism! As Donald Trump "makes history " as the first US president to be impeached twice and the American people divided more than ever before, we take an in depth look into the horrifying and outrageous incident that took place on Wednesday the 6th of January 2020 and how we should have all have seen it coming.

"Shut up and grieve!" Don't worry the R Word isn't anything weird or strange, just something we as young people hardly ever talk about. Join us this week as we uncover the truth and societal stigma around rejection and exploring  skills to get back up again!

"This year my new year's resolution..." Losing weight? Connecting with family and friends more? Eat healthier? We've all been here and we've all most likely said these things. Join us this week we discuss the common problems with new year's resolutions, and why we may hate them and tips and tricks to making sure you head into 2021 with the right mindset! See f your resolution is among some of the most common https://www.goskills.com/Soft-Skills/Resources/Top-10-new-years-resolutions:

Wether it's Michael Bublé or Kelly Clarkson, we all have our preference when it comes to crowing the King OR Queen of Christmas. And it becomes even more of a struggles when out of the thousands available, we have to narrow all of the Christmas songs in the world down to just the one:- the best.  Join as this week in the second instalment in the miniseries "The Best Of All Time", to see who we crowned as The Best Christmas Song Of All Time (spoiler alert: apologies  to Mariah Carey !). Oh Santa Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2bx3FzgJ6o

Every October, there's a strange buzz in the year. We recognize black heroes and black heroines and their amazing contributions to modern day society. Sharing many stories about hardship and the journey that ethic minorities have made towards eventual equality. But then October ends and so does all the celebration. Join us this week we discuss the relevance of Black History Month in 2020 and the importance of cultural diversity and acknowledgement! 

It's not that often that you meet many 20 year olds who've had the opportunity to live out every eight year old's dream and bring a Jacqueline Wilson classic to life! Most known for portraying the character of Gideon Smeed in the BBC's adaptation of Hetty Feather (as well as having acting credits in Truckers and Dr. Who!) this week's guest is none other than the incredibly talented Dasharn Anderson. From everything from a surprise Harry Potter quiz to him retelling his experiences on the show-there was plenty of room for a laugh in this weeks episode!

And then there were three. Following last week's elimination, the pressure has been cranked up once more in an effort to crown "The Best Netflix Show Of All Time". After an hour of tense argument and debate, you'd hope we'd surely have made the correct choice-right?

Binge-watching and hundreds of plotholes. What could possibly go wrong when you ask four teens to battle it out to crown one of their favourite shows as one of the best Netflix shows of all time? Join us this week as tackle everything from Spanish dramas to the world of the supernatural in the new sub series "The Best Of All Time"!

Guess who's back for a second season? Starting of the season with a bang! We're joined by an actress known for her portrayal of the hilarious and eccentric Eleesha Rahad on the popular children's television show "4 O'clock Club" -  Grace McIntosh! Join us this week as week as she reminisces her favourite moments of the show over the past 7 years and the diversity and representation it's has contributed to the industry as well as a  wider discussion on The Black Lives Matter powered by the force that is Gen Z

Being Alive (Trailer)

"With the chance to return back to normal,consider which parts are actually worth returning back to" Welcome to Part 2 of the Season Finale! After nearly 3 months of having the rest of our  lives on pause, it finally has come the time to resume life and a brand new way (after a certain's someone world tour!).This week is full of talk on new exams systems,return to life after a long break  and effective communication during lockdown. 

Welcome to the first part of the Season 1 Finale! Join us in a review of lockdown so far and how we've rated Ms.Rona's record-breaking world tour talking about everything from new hobbies to the return to school and work. Guardian Article on the benefits of lockdown on the environment: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/22/environment-pandemic-side-effects-earth-day-coronavirus

"17 is the lowest age in confidence recorded in teenagers!" Are we born naturally with talent or gain it because of our intelligence or our looks? Do we lose confidence because of trauma, a sudden fear of failure (atychiphobia) or because of things like anxiety. Join us this week as we discuss what confidence is and how we develop it and a never ending saga of constant comparison to others. Youth Support Trust Article: https://www.youthsporttrust.org/content/new-study-warns-confidence-crisis-amongst-british-teenagers

It's time that the snowflakes took over. As a generation battling serious trends in climate change, inequality and injustice; it's time that young people are allowed to take a more active role in society and begin to be "in the room where it happens!

"We aren't all Nigerians!"  Join us this week as we discuss what its like to grow up as a young African child in 2020. We discuss our  experiences with stigmas,stereotypes and all the little perks that come with our culture. From everything from Imposter's syndrome to Water Aid adverts  and a thousand uncles and aunties, this promises to be a fun episode!

In recent years, the plant-based diet has taken the world by storm giving way to rising trends in veganism and vegetarianism. Supermarkets and businesses are recording increases in sales every year and the culinary world begins to shift further and further away from meat options and embracing healthier plant-based meals and products. After all the strides we have made as a society to try and embrace this new diet, one question is still left unanswered: Do we really still need meat?

"Dark comedy is very difficult .You have to bring an audience in and push them away at the same time." Nowadays we often blur the lines between being offensive and funny. Join as we discuss the limits of modern day comedy and changing definition of what humour is  and where we answer the big question:How far is to far?

As a society, we put so much importance on grades. We sum up a person's intelligence based on a number or a letter, a score or a percentage and then make a judgement of them based on that. And then 2020 comes along and there are suddenly no more exams.  What happens now? 

Many of us live stressed and busy lives and to unwind we indulge in media fueled by scandal, rumour and cringe-worthy content.  Have we ever asked ourselves why these big media companies and reality tv shows have us hooked to hearing and receiving negativity on a daily basis? Article about our addiction to reality tv: https://hellogiggles.com/reviews-coverage/tv-shows/science-behind-watching-reality-shows/

"When you undervalue what you do the world will undervalue who you are". In a time where we are easily swayed to change and conform ourselves to the expectations of others, how much of ourselves are we really willing to give up all in the game that is social validation? Psychology For Today Article on Social Validation:https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/communication-central/200909/the-theory-social-validation Daniel Sloss Interview on Jigsaw:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRpOtOs45bo

"It's easy to be what you are when what you are is what's popular." In a world where we measure ourselves based on the amounts of double taps on a picture,the followers we have and by how much other  people like the "perfect" versions of ourselves; what's not to love?

Welcome to Earth; where good is sometimes bad and bad is sometimes  good and life is always hard!