Green Table Talk is a social justice podcast that offers unique perspectives on current issues and initiatives within our community.
The podcast focuses on FGCU issues, locally and nationally, through co-hosts and guest speakers. Green Table Talk is managed by the Center for Multicultural and Leadership Development (MLD) and was revamped in February 2023. It originally began as an FGCU version of the titular Red Table Talk series.
Co-hosts Evan Clemente and Andrea Toles record Mondays in the library’s audio production room and guest speakers from different organizations come on the show. The podcast is streamed on Spotify and episodes are uploaded twice a month on Fridays this semester.
“I made the choice to join Green Table Talk because I wanted to be part of a space that allows me to be a voice for underrepresented people, participate in and learn from the conversations that matter to me more on subjects that are not close to my heart. a subject matter expert,” senior Evan Clemente said. “Green Table Talk inspires me to speak out and be assertive on issues that matter to me and to learn to have my own opinions and perspectives on things as an independent individual. »
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This year they had members from the Latino Student Organization (LASO), Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA), United Greek Association (UGA), and Best Buddies. They will also collaborate with national sorority Sigma Lambda Gamma, Incorporated for a panel incorporating Trio Student Support Services. The panel will be a live, interactive recording of first-generation students where they will discuss what it means to be a first-generation college student. He will discuss the struggles and privileges of first-generation college students and compare life to that of an average college student.
“Green Table Talk is based on topics related to social justice issues, but I would like to see it expand in a variety of ways with new people, new topics, and new ways of regulating podcasting so that we can grow the number of our listeners and make more people aware of it. that,” Clemente said.
So far, Green Table Talk has discussed Latinx culture and the personal stories surrounding it, Black-owned small businesses, LGBTQ+ awareness, Autism awareness, gender inequality in athletics and cultural differences. The co-hosts expressed the need to be authentic by bringing their personalities to their roles. Sadreena Colonel, a graduate student and former co-host, also oversees the production element of Green Table Talk. According to Clemente, the environment during recording is not entirely structured or formal, but rather a natural relationship that continues to develop.
“Green Table Talk is always the start of any conversation, so we always want to provide a brave space for students to hear different points of view,” senior Andrea Toles said. “It’s a topic of conversation about everything that’s happening in the world! »
During the semester’s brainstorming sessions, the co-hosts decide whether they want a guest to come and record or whether they choose a topic and go back and forth on their own. Green Table Discussions strive to get people to listen and then engage in conversation with those in their circle.
“We don’t know when these types of conversations will be allowed again, so if not us, who and if not now, when?” Toles said.
