Access to Inspiration podcast launches its first Impact Report

The Access to Inspiration podcast has published its first Impact Report measuring the effect that the series has had on listeners, guests, and those who work on the show. The podcast which launched in 2020, is now ranked in the top 10% of shows globally, according to Listen Notes, It was co-founded as a non-profit venture by Sue Stockdale, first UK woman to ski to the Magnetic North Pole, and Clive Steeper, a motorsports specialist, and former Tyre Engineer in working in Formula 1.

Stockdale who is also the podcast host, commented “we aim to provide access to diverse voices, inspirational stories and broader perspectives, to help people increase understanding, have greater levels of tolerance and eliminate stereotypes. Then we can improve people’s lives by helping them to transcend day to day challenges, challenge their views of the world and reflect on what they can achieve. The world faces many challenges and people need inspiration to believe they can have a positive impact - and inspiration is free energy’. In the latest episode which includes some listener feedback, some said how the podcast has made them calmer, caused them to look at the world differently, and take new actions because of what they heard.

Data from guests revealed that:

• 50% of the guests were first time podcasters
• 37% of guests positively changed their perception about podcasting after being a guest
• 85% of guests would be likely to be a podcast guest in the future

The podcast has also had an impact on those who work on the team. Matias de Ezcurra, Sound Editor based in Argentina said “All the people that appear in the podcast have this passion and they have this search. You don’t hear them saying, well, this is just my job. I also get that message. So, it’s inspiring me. And I’m proud to be part of a team that is also helping to inspire other people’.

The impetus to produce the 2021 Impact Report was one of the early podcast guests Racheal Kigame, Country Director of Help a Child Africa, who volunteered along with Salome Gathoni, a communications specialist who are based in Nairobi, Kenya. Racheal commented ‘Organizations and companies regardless of their size, really need to focus on measuring social impact. It really helps you to see the results of your work. If you’re relying on external funding, then it’s critical that you can illustrate the results of your effort. And this is where the data comes in. Salome and I also volunteered to produce this report because it’s about changing the African narrative. There’s the notion of Africans, they just like to receive, receive, receive. We really want to demonstrate that indeed Africans have resources, they’re solution-oriented and that’s the side of Africa we really want to bring across globally’.

Read the Impact Report

The Access to Inspiration podcast team is based around the world.

The latest podcast episide focuses on the results from the impact survey, including listener feedback. Listen below.