Kavita Nandini Ramdas joins the lineup alongside returning host Sanam Naraghi Anderlini as the radical leadership podcast returns for a new season.
Kavita Nandini Ramdas, senior advisor to the International Planned Parenthood Federation and former head of the Global Fund for Women, joins host Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, founder of ICAN and a peace strategist who has worked with women in conflict zones for over thirty years.
Sanam and Kavita represent voices rarely heard in podcasting. Two powerful advocates for peace and social justice, women leaders with roots in India and Iran, who have built careers as global citizens at the highest levels.
The new season launches on February 24th, and a special bonus episode discussing the Epstein files is available now.
The show will welcome an extraordinary range of guests including…
● Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh on advocating for survivors of sexual violence in war
● Ben Cohen, peace activist & founder of ‘Ben & Jerry’s’ on his battle with the Pentagon
● Alex Crawford, celebrated foreign correspondent, on this moment of global uncertainty
● Anasuya Sengupta, founder “Whose Knowledge?”, how algorithms are poisoning AI
Due to the extraordinary pace of global events Kavita and Sanam simply couldn’t wait to get recording! Coming together to record special episodes offering their unique perspectives on the crisis in Iran and the web of men exposed in the Epstein scandal.
In a world increasingly led by autocratic superpowers, exploiting fear and uncertainty, the premise of If You Were In Charge is simple: for every major problem out in the world, there are ordinary people finding extraordinary solutions. This podcast focuses on those who know the truth of poet June Jordan’s words, “we are the ones we have been waiting for”.
Meet The Hosts
Kavita and Sanam, longtime friends presenting a podcast together for the first time, are on a mission to give voice to those creating a more joyful, free, and, dare we say it, “feminist” future. Sanam’s daughter, Soleh will also join as an occasional guest offering her Gen-Z reality checks and insights.
“We’ve spent years identifying solutions to major issues, building movements, advocating for policy change and imagining what we would do differently” says co-host Sanam Naraghi Anderlini. “But the truth is we can’t wait for the politicians. Everywhere you look, it’s ‘we the people’ leading the change for good. They just don’t get the media attention.”
“We want to showcase those who don’t wait for permission,” says co-host Kavita Ramdas. “These are people who are rewriting what leadership looks like. Collective, creative, and rooted in care rather than control”.
“In these tough times when it’s easy to turn off the news, our guests are the antidote to pessimism,” says Naraghi Anderlini. “They bring hope and inspiration, and share the radical possibilities of imagination with us all.”
About Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, MBE
Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, MBE, is a peace strategist, founder, and CEO of the International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN). Iranian-British, she has spent nearly three decades working on global conflicts, peacebuilding, and crises with governments, the UN, and local civil society. She was a 2024 Richard von Weizsacker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy and in 2020, she was awarded an MBE for her services to international peacebuilding and
women’s rights.
Throughout her career, Sanam has spearheaded groundbreaking initiatives, including as a civil society architect of the seminal UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security.
About Kavita Nandini Ramdas
Kavita Nandini Ramdas is a globally recognized advocate for gender equity and justice and a Senior Strategic Advisor to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF). Born in India, she has lived and worked in Europe, India, and the United States, which she now calls home. She has extensive experience in the philanthropic sector having worked for the MacArthur, Ford, Nathan Cummings, and Open Society Foundations and served on the
boards of many others.
Kavita focuses on the challenges facing philanthropy and civil society as they seek to advance equitable and sustainable development including gender and racial equity. As President and CEO of the Global Fund for Women, she travelled the world building partnerships with feminist leaders in over 170 countries to use philanthropic capital to fuel innovation and feminist movements.
Listen to the podcast:
Apple – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/if-you-were-in-charge/id1770618616
Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/show/7dcRG0RUPlERcYkM1DOQRp?si=1f32abd3614d4563