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Welcome to “Candids,” presented by Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies. Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American,...
show more
Welcome to “Candids,” presented by Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies.
Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian leaders for candid conversations on what it means to be Asian American. We celebrate the accomplishments of our guests and ask questions to help listeners manifest their own career journey and demystify the pathway to leadership.
show less
Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian leaders for candid conversations on what it means to be Asian American. We celebrate the accomplishments of our guests and ask questions to help listeners manifest their own career journey and demystify the pathway to leadership.
APAICS Candids
APAICS Candids
APAICS Podcast Episode 7: Régine Biscoe Lee
26 AUG 2022 · This month’s Candids episode features APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke sitting with former Guam Senator Régine Biscoe Lee. Listen to hear her talk about her career in public service, her family, and finding balance amidst all her responsibilities.
Régine Biscoe Lee Bio:
Régine Biscoe Lee is a Communications/Marketing professional and Asian Pacific Islander community leader. Lee served as senator in the 34th & 35th Guam Legislatures and remains dedicated to helping people author their own opportunities, proving that nothing can widen the circle of economic freedom more than a community focused on practical skills, education, and the entrepreneurial wonder of a clean environment. Her legislative work has strengthened Guam’s workforce, supported small business, fostered regional alliances, and protected our environment. A proud Chamoru and Filipina woman, Lee was named one of the "100 Most Influential U.S. Women" by Filipina Women's Network for work on behalf of WWII Filipino Veterans in 2009. In 2015, she was recognized as Guam Chamber of Commerce's Young Professional of the Year. Lee was elected delegate for Guam to the 2012, 2016 & 2020 Democratic National Conventions. In 2019, the Obama Foundation selected Lee for the inaugural cohort of Obama Leaders: Asia-Pacific. In 2022, she was selected by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights as Guam Advisory Board member for the territory’s inaugural USCCR Advisory Committee.
She has served as Policy Advisor for Congresswoman Bordallo (D-Gu) and Chief of Staff for Senator Muña Barnes, as well as a consultant to local and federal government agencies, local businesses and nonprofits. Lee served as Vice-Chair on the Commission on Decolonization, National Committeewoman for the Democratic Party of Guam and Board Member for the Association of Pacific Island Legislatures (APIL) and Manenggon Memorial Foundation. She lives on Guam and can often be found in the ocean with her husband, two daughters and their rambunctious Labrador.
APAICS Podcast Episode 6: Victoria Lai
29 JUL 2022 · Wrapping up National Ice Cream month, APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke sits down with founder and CEO of Ice Cream Jubilee, Victoria Lai. In this conversation, Lai speaks of her transition from working in public service as a government lawyer to becoming an “icecreampreneur” and how she melds the two together.
Victoria Lai Bio:
Victoria Lai is the Founder and Chief Icecreampreneur of Ice Cream Jubilee, where she dreams up ice cream flavors inspired by international desserts, boozy cocktails, and childhood treats, like Banana Bourbon Caramel, Thai Iced Tea, Cookies & Cookie Dough, and Gin & Tonic sorbet. As the CEO, Victoria also manages finance, operations, growth, human resources, marketing, and strategy for the company.
Victoria Lai founded Ice Cream Jubilee as a blog that featured her passion for inventing ice cream flavors. At the time, she was working as a lawyer and presidential appointee at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Department of Homeland Security. Before this appointment, she clerked in the Second Circuit and Southern District of New York for the Hon. Denny Chin, worked as a corporate litigator, and advised the Democratic National Committee and a presidential campaign as the Director of Asian American Pacific Islander Outreach. She holds a J.D. from Fordham University and a B.A. from Wellesley College.
In 2013, Victoria entered her flavors in a city-wide ice cream competition and won People’s Choice for Best Ice Cream in DC. Inspired by this success, she left her job in 2014 to open her first store in the Navy Yard area of Washington, D.C. by Nationals Stadium. Ice Cream Jubilee currently has three locations, in Washington, D.C.’s Navy Yard and U Street neighborhoods and in Arlington, VA. Ice Cream Jubilee ships nationwide and is available in Whole Foods Markets in DC, VA, MD, PA, KY, OH, and southern NJ. Ice Cream Jubilee has been recognized as the Best Ice Cream In DC and one of the Best Ice Cream Shops in America seven years in a row!
Ice Cream Jubilee has been named one of the Best Ice Cream Shops in America by People Magazine, the Drew Barrymore Show, Thrillist, Food & Wine, and has been voted the Best Ice Cream in D.C. in the Washington CityPaper and Washingtonian Magazine. Victoria’s transition from government lawyer to icecreampreneur has been featured by NBC Nightly News, More Magazine, and Bloomberg News.
APAICS Podcast Episode 5: Channapha Khamvongsa
30 JUN 2022 · APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke sits down with Lao American advocate and foodways organizer Channapha Khamvongsa. In this conversation, Khamvongsa speaks of Lao American histories, her advocacy efforts through organizations like Legacies of War and the Lao Food Foundation, as well as the central role of food in her work.
Channapha Khamvongsa Bio:
Channapha Khamvongsa has over 25 years of civil society experience, leading innovative organizations and programs to support social and racial justice and peacebuilding in the US and around the globe. Channapha founded and led Legacies of War, which seeks to address the problem of unexploded ordnance in Laos. Under her 15-year leadership, Legacies successfully shifted the tense discourse of US conflict in Laos to reconciliation and cooperation, and advocated for an increase in U.S. funding for bomb clearance in Laos, from an annual average of $2M in 2008 to $30M in 2016. In September 2016, President Barack Obama acknowledged Channapha’s advocacy efforts in Laos, where he became the first U.S. President to visit the country. Channapha has appeared in the New York Times, Democracy Now!, CNN, ABC, PBS, CBS News and Bon Appétit . She previously worked at the Ford Foundation and NEO Philanthropy on immigrant and refugee rights, civil society, civic engagement, capacity building, and transformational leadership. Her volunteer work included serving on the board of the Refugee Women’s Alliance, Seattle Asian American Film Festival and Conference on Asian American Leadership.
Today, Channapha continues to connect creative, inspiring people globally to bring about change and do awesome things together. The Lao Food Foundation seeks to promote, preserve and innovate Lao cuisine, increase knowledge through research and documentation, and support the individuals and communities that create Lao food. In 2023, the group will hold its second Lao Food Retreat in Champasak.
She was born in Vientiane, Laos and came to the U.S. as a refugee at the age of seven. Channapha received her Bachelor's of Science Degree in Public Administration from George Mason University. She received her Master's Degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University, where she received the Georgetown McCourt Distinguished Alumni Award.
APAICS Podcast Episode 4: Amna Nawaz
10 MAY 2022 · APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke interviews renowned jounrnalist and broadcaster Amna Nawaz, about her career and insights for the next generation.
Amna Nawaz Bio
Amna Nawaz joined PBS NewsHour in April 2018 and serves as the program's chief correspondent and primary substitute anchor.
Prior to joining the NewsHour, Nawaz was an anchor and correspondent at ABC News, anchoring breaking news coverage and leading the network’s digital coverage of the 2016 presidential election. Before that, she served as a foreign correspondent at NBC News, reporting from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Turkey, and the broader region. She is also the founder and former managing editor of NBC’s Asian America platform, built to elevate the voices of America’s fastest-growing population.
At the NewsHour, Nawaz has reported politics, foreign affairs, education, climate change, culture and sports. Her immigration reporting has taken her to multiple border communities in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico. She’s investigated the impact of the Trump Administration’s immigration policies, including following the journey of a single toddler as she left her home in Mexico, was separated from her family at the U.S. border, and later reunited with her family several weeks later. She also regularly covers issues around detention, refugees and asylum, and migrant children in U.S. government custody.
Nawaz has interviewed international newsmakers -- including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, and Brazilian leader Eduardo Bolsonaro; lawmakers and Trump administration officials – including then-ICE Director Mark Morgan’s first interview after President Trump announced mass raids across the U.S., Acting Secretary of DHS Kevin McAleenan, and former DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen in her first interview since leaving the Trump administration; and influential voices including Reba McEntire, Gloria Estefan, and Dev Patel. Domestically, her reporting has taken her to Appalachia to cover healthcare and the economy, the Pacific Northwest to cover gentrification and discrimination in housing, and communities across the country to take the political pulse of the nation. Internationally, she’s traveled to Brazil to report on climate change from within the Amazon, and the Venezuelan refugee crisis.
In 2019, her reporting as part of a NewsHour series on the global plastic problem was the recipient of a Peabody Award.
While at ABC News, Nawaz reported the documentary, “Roberts County: A Year in the Most Pro-Trump Town,” following four families’ lives over President Trump’s first year in office, and hosted the podcast series, “Uncomfortable,” featuring in-depth, one-on-one conversations with thought leaders on the issues dividing America.
Earlier, at NBC News, her work appeared on NBC Nightly News, The Today Show, Dateline NBC, MSNBC, and MSNBC.com. She was NBC’s Islamabad Bureau Chief and Correspondent for several years, and was the first foreign journalist allowed inside North Waziristan, the then-global hub of Al Qaida and the Taliban. She covered the Taliban attack on Malala Yousafzai, the U.S. raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, and broke news in a series of exclusive reports on the impact of U.S. drone strikes. Nawaz reported for the network’s investigative unit, covering the U.S. housing crisis and the BP oil spill, and also covered the election and inauguration of Barack Obama, the earthquake in Haiti, and Hurricane Katrina.
Nawaz began her career as a Nightline Fellow at ABC News. When the Sept. 11 attacks happened just weeks into her first job, Nawaz was given the opportunity to work on one of the most important news events in recent times, which set the precedent for the rest of her career.
Nawaz has also been honored with an Emmy Award for the NBC News Special “Inside the Obama White House,” a Society for Features Journalism Award, and was a recipient of the International Reporting Project fellowship in 2009. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania, where she captained the varsity field hockey team, and later earned her master's degree from the London School of Economics.
She lives with her husband and two daughters in the Washington, D.C. area.
APAICS Podcast Episode 3: Mary Lou Akai-Ferguson
17 APR 2022 · APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke interviews rising campaign rockstar Mary Lou Akai-Ferguson, about her career and insights for the next generation.
Mary Lou Akai-Ferguson Bio
Mary Lou Akai-Ferguson is a progressive organizer & political activist with a focus on outreach and turnout in immigrant communities. Most recently, she served as campaign manager for Michelle Wu’s campaign for mayor of Boston, leading the effort to elect the first woman and first person of color as mayor of the city. After their victory, Mary Lou continued as Chief of Staff to the mayor. Prior to running Michelle Wu’s campaign, she served as Elizabeth Warren’s Midwest Organizing Director and AAPI Outreach Director during her 2020 presidential campaign. Before entering politics, Mary Lou was a high school algebra teacher.
APAICS Podcast Episode 2: Sonal Shah
22 MAR 2022 · APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke interviews public policy and philanthropy pioneer Sonal Shah, about her career and insights for the next generation.
Sonal Shah Bio
Sonal Shah serves as Interim Executive Vice President, Worldwide Network
Advancement. She leads the U.S. and International Network teams to work with local United
Ways to help deliver the greatest impact for UWW's communities. She serves on the UWW
Executive Leadership Team.
Ms. Shah is a global leader on social impact and innovation. She has started and led social
impact efforts in academia, government, and the private and philanthropy sectors for more
than twenty-five years. Most recently she founded and led The Asian American Foundation,
raising over $1billion, the largest philanthropic effort serving the Asian American community.
Before TAAF, she started and led Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact
and Innovation for over seven years, training students on social impact and leading research
on different models of social innovation. In the Obama Administration, Ms. Shah served as
Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Social Innovation at the White
House, leading the efforts across government to introduce social innovation, including
financial innovation, impact metrics, and the role of technology. In the private sector, she led
the Global Development Initiatives at Google focused on impact investing and technology for
social impact. At Goldman Sachs, Shah developed and implemented the firm’s environmental
strategy.
Ms. Shah also has significant experience working internationally as an economist at the
Department of Treasury, setting up the central bank in Bosnia, working for post-conflict
reconstruction in Kosovo, and implementing poverty reduction strategies in Africa. She also
served as the chief of operations for the Center for Global Development.
Ms. Shah serves on the boards of Oxfam America, the UBS Optimus Foundation, The Century
Foundation, and the National Democratic Institute. She also serves as an adviser to Pinterest
and Apollo Global Management. She is a research professor at Georgetown University. In
2019-20, she served as the National Policy Director for Mayor Pete Buttigieg's Presidential Campaign.
APAICS Podcast Episode 1: Betsy Lin
10 FEB 2022 · APAICS president & CEO Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke interviews seasoned campaign and policy expert, Betsy Lin, about her career and insights for the next generation.
Betsy Lin Bio
Betsy comes with an over two decade track record in electoral and advocacy politics,
serving or running campaigns across the nation. Most recently, she served as executive
director to a non-profit in the civic engagement field, working with partner organizations
across eleven states, building an expanded organizational footprint and deepening
financial and political support among a broad range of stakeholders. She is the founder
of Breakwater Consulting, helping candidates, campaigns, and organizations thrive.
She started out in Washington state, helping to develop and support the first
coordinated work to identify voters in the state’s voter file, worked to organize health
care workers in southern California as part of SEIU’s historic organizing campaign, ran
the Alliance for a Better California campaign in Orange County, CA and served as field
director for Senator Akaka’s re-election in Hawaii in 2006.
Her work in Washington DC started in 2007 as a deputy political director for the
Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, helping to directly elect Senators Kay
Hagan, Mark Udall, Tom Udall and Mark Warner in the 2008 cycle.
She served on Capitol Hill as senior policy advisor for Senator Byron Dorgan through
2010, managing his appropriations portfolio. After Senator Dorgan’s retirement, she
became chief of staff to Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, running her historic 2012
campaign to elect the first Asian American woman to serve in the U.S. Senate.
Betsy served as Senator Hirono’s top advisor for nearly seven years, building her
senate operation between Washington DC and Hawaii in to a professional staff of 46,
and managing the politics on Capitol Hill and in state.
Betsy was born the daughter of immigrants and raised in Washington state. When she’s
not on the campaign trail, you can find her in search of the perfect wave.
Welcome to “Candids,” presented by Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies. Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American,...
show more
Welcome to “Candids,” presented by Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies.
Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian leaders for candid conversations on what it means to be Asian American. We celebrate the accomplishments of our guests and ask questions to help listeners manifest their own career journey and demystify the pathway to leadership.
show less
Hosted by Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, APAICS President and CEO, this 10 minute segment sits down with Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian leaders for candid conversations on what it means to be Asian American. We celebrate the accomplishments of our guests and ask questions to help listeners manifest their own career journey and demystify the pathway to leadership.
Information
| Author | APAICS |
| Organization | Asian Pacific American Institu |
| Categories | Politics |
| Website | - |
| apaics@apaics.org |
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