07/24/2026Adulthood asks us to confront a difficult truth: life rarely unfolds the way we imagined. In this episode, laura explores the difference between acceptance and approval, why acknowledging reality is essential for wise action, and how staying in relationship...

04/13/2026In this episode, laura explores why truly living our values—like inclusivity, growth, and liberation—requires more than good intentions. It demands the uncomfortable, ongoing practice of changing our minds. Drawing on neuroscience and real-life examples, she...

03/23/2026This episode is about the habit of making someone wrong—-and how quickly that instinct shapes the way we relate to each other. I’m asking what becomes possible if we loosen our grip on blame and instead choose something more curious, and more...

02/28/2026What happens after you let go of forced hope? No breakthrough. No surge of inspiration. Just life—continuing. In this quiet, honest episode, we explore what it means to stay put when nothing feels especially promising. Not grit. Not toxic positivity. Just...

01/16/2026How do you hope when there’s no logical reason to? In this episode, we explore what hope really is—and what it isn’t. Rather than treating hope as optimism, belief, or confidence about the future, this conversation reframes hope as a present-moment...

09/25/2025What does it mean to stay human in a world that fuels disconnection, numbness, and productivity? This episode digs into everyday forms of dehumanization—and offers five messy, honest practices to help you rehumanize yourself and the spaces/relationships...

08/31/2025laura reflects on the paradox of fighting for liberation while remembering we are already free. Through Buddhist practice, personal story, and practical tools, she invites listeners to live from wholeness now—even in the midst of struggle....

07/30/2025In this deeply human episode of How to Make Love, laura invites us to practice despair—not as defeat, but as an act of love and honesty. Together, we explore how to face the unbearable truths of our world—genocide, displacement, climate crises, and quiet...

06/23/2025Let's explore the radical, often uncomfortable practice of believing in others—even when life, systems, and personal history give us every reason not to. This episode challenges our instincts to withdraw trust and explores belief as a choice to see people as...

05/27/2025Letting go isn’t graceful, it’s often gutting—and it might also be the only path to liberation. In this episode, laura explores what it truly means to release relationships, roles, and illusions that no longer serve us—personally, politically, and...

04/14/2025What if certainty is (sometimes) a part of the problem? This episode unpacks how our need to know can prop up domination—and how embracing the skillfullness of not knowing can be a practice of love, liberation, and justice....

03/26/2025To fight or not to fight? And how? And against whom? Or for what? Join laura for a discussion about how to fight on behalf of love and justice differently. Plus a whole lot of reflection questions for your growth and development....

02/19/2025What do we do when we start to feel really embittered toward the world and the humans in it? How do we hold love and rage at the same time? How do we train in love when what we sometimes feel is hate?  EngageFollowThis is a brief...

01/20/2025Can love really go toe-to-toe with hate? If so, how do we train for it? What does love really have to do with today and the next four years? Come dig in.  EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us format this page and...

11/20/2024In this episode, we explore the art of personal reinvention—what it means to choose change on your own terms and imagine new possibilities for your life. Reinvention is more than self-discovery; it’s the training ground for transforming the world....

10/28/2024This episode went viral four years ago -- it's just as important and relevant today. Tune in for strategies and recommendations for self, team, and family care throughout the next few weeks.  EngageFollowThis is a brief sample...

10/21/2024We rarely confront the true costs of courage—social, emotional, physical, personal, professional. This episode unpacks why, despite the steep price, courage is worth the choice for personal and collective liberation—helping you understand the cost and truly...

09/2/2024Loveability is a mess. But love-ability? Now we're talking. Tune in to hear why shifting from "loveability" to "love-ability" might change your life, and the world around us.  EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us...

9/17/2024How do we love people we really, really disagree with? Join today's guest Jada Hebra to hear her personal story of crossing a giant divide with her spouse. As the election cycle heats up and divides between people are more inflammed than ever before, this...

08/26/2024Happy Birthday/Anniversary to How To Make Love! 🎈 We're back after an extended sabbatical and ready to take on more making of the love, justice, courage, and other important things we value. Hear laura share what's been up, and where we're going. ...

10/30/2023There's the idea of freedom and the somatics of freedom. Today's episode tackles how and why we should learn to cultivate the sensations of freedom in our bodies. Welcome.  EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us...

9/30/2023Who's ready for a mid-life crisis?! Me! You? Come on in for a lovingly honest and personal conversation about those feelings of falling apart –– midlife, or any other time.   EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us...

8/31/2023Ethic. Process. Aspiration. Practice. Come learn what else UNcontrol is and what it means and why we should engage it in the work of personal and collective freedom.EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us format this page...

7/31/2023Belonging. Repair. Across lines of difference. Today, Alli Myatt and I discuss radical relationships — especially at work. What makes them hard, what makes them complex, and what makes them beautiful. AND the things we need to unlearn so we can be in radical...

5/31/2023How can losing be a practice of justice? How can putting down the drive to win fuel liberation? And what are things we might all be better off for working to lose on purpose? We tackle all of that and more in today's...

4/28/2022We all perform. We've all been socialized to perform. And: none of us are truly free in a performance. Today's episode will take you into the what, why, how of performance and assimilation, and leave you with reflection questions for your healing and...

3/31/2023The path of healing is paved in UNlearning. In today's episode, we'll hear examples of what there may be to UNlearn and how that UNlearning has played out in our guest's life. Featuring the incredible storyteller and doula Chrystal Toop, we take a journey...

2/28/2023There is bracing. And there is breaking. In today's episode, learn why the latter is so essential to healing, to liberation, and to creation. Featuring the amazing liminalist Oceana Sawyer, we take a journey into a conversation about what we gain when we...

1/31/2022What's the thing that: a) humans do constantly, b) shapes our life in resounding ways, and c) we're never taught how to do? –– think. Our thoughts can be assets or liabilities in our life, and laura shares 5 tips in this episode to help all of us think a...

11/30/2022Tune in for a special update about where the podcast is headed in 2023, and to hear laura's personal reflection around the question all future guests will explore with her: what (for them) is the most essential tool in their practice of love, justice, and...

10/31/2022Purpose can be a guiding light. It can also be a dark shadow. But we rarely talk about the latter. We explore that conversation in this episode.EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us format this page and determine what...

9/30/2022Today we tackle ease, dis-ease, and urgency <em>and</em> we examine what helps us make both ease and dis-ease in our life and relationships. You might be surprised at some of the common things that can kick up urgency. Sneak peek: personal...

07/28/2022Purpose can be a guiding light. It can also be a dark shadow. But we rarely talk about the latter. We explore that conversation in this episode.EngageFollowThis is a brief sample description to help us format this page and determine what...

85: How To Judge Other People4/19/2022Since we all judge other people, let's be sure we understand the whats, whys, and hows of it. Especially the hows that connect us to oppressive ways of being in the world so that we can ultimately operate – and judge – with more...

81: How To Be Alive1/18/2022Being alive for our lives is harder and more complex than we think. Join laura to explore the what's, why's, and how's of aliveness in this episode.  At the end of the episode, laura offers several questions for reflection. Here they are:...

78: Impact > Intensity11/16/2021We've all heard of 'intent vs. impact' -- but how are 'intensity' and 'impact' related? And does our intensity produce the impact we mean to have? Welcome to a conversation about to what extent your desired impact matches your life...

77: Listener Love Pick -- "Pleasure is at the heart of understanding how to get free." (ft. adrienne maree brown)10/26/2021Join guest adrienne maree brown for a conversation about learning to make pleasure, science fiction, and freedom. And how they're all tied...

76: "Do you love this person enough to be yourself & also change yourself?" (ft. Yolonda & Will Jones)10/19/2021Our first ever listener-picked-episode! Shout out to Patreon Breanne W. for winning the opportunity to select a listener-chosen episode from the...

75: Well-Resourced vs. Not Depleted9/30/2021In today's episode, we will: Look at the inherent challenges and limitations with focusing on being not depleted; Understand why a focus on being well-resourced is more liberatory; Hear some real-talk: you are the only real...

74: How To Courage9/15/2021All things courage! How to courage. What courage is. How and when to practice it. What to avoid. And one very specific opportunity and invitation to grow it. Welcome to a very different conversation about courage. Thank you for listening! To...

67: Decolonizing Desire 5/31/2021Join host laura brewer as she talks about how and why answering the question "what do you want?" is an important part of learning to decolonize our desire. Thank you for listening! To share your thoughts: Leave a comment below Click...

57: "For me it was like a calling…I learned to live in truth in myself." (ft. Randy Quarterman & Sarah Eisner)11/27/2020Join guests Randy Quarterman & Sarah Eisner for a discussion about making love and justice through truth-telling and reparations. Randy and...

56: Self, Family, and Organizational Care During Election Week10/27/2020Making love and justice by planning for care and communication during election week. In this episode, you’ll hear: Questions, reflection points, and suggestions if you are a team or organizational...

54: How To Be Awkward9/29/2020Making love and justice by learning to be awkward, as a disruption of the status quo culture. In this episode, you’ll hear: How the status quo culture cuts us all off from our humanity; How being awkward can disrupt the status quo...

53: "Whatever it is, you're not the only one." (ft. Janine Kwoh)09/17/2020Join guest Janine Kwoh for a discussion about making love by being awkward, and moving toward belonging. Janine is the owner and artist behind Kwohtations, a Brooklyn, NY-based line of...

52: How To Disarm8/27/2020Making love by learning to disarm and deweaponize ourselves. In this episode, you’ll hear: How and why certain parts of who we are get armed, armored, and weaponized; Examples of arming and amoring; Tips and suggestions for practicing...

51: "We have a responsibility as leaders to ask the question: why is it that way?"(ft. Erica Jordan-Thomas)8/18/2020Join guest Erica Jordan-Thomas – Harvard Doctoral student and host of The EJT show – for a discussion about making love by leading on behalf of and in...

49: "Moving money is my medicine." (ft. Edgar Villanueva)7/23/2020Join guests Edgar Villanueva – author of Decolonizing Wealth – for a discussion about making love by moving money, and about building a practice of decolonization. Edgar Villanueva is a...

48: How to Radicalize6/30/20Are you radical-izable? Says who? How do you know? We're discussing that today + a discussion about how to hold folks we love accountable for harm they create. Welcome to a conversation about justice by learning to radicalize ourselves....

47: "Do you love this person enough to be yourself & also change yourself?" (ft. Yolonda & Will Jones)6/22/2020Join former guest Yolonda Coles Jones and her partner Will Jones for a frank discussion about making love, freedom, intimacy, conscious parenting,...

45: "We no longer walk in the world in a way that is boxed in." (ft. Stacey & Jasmine Johnson)5/14/2020Join guests Stacey and Jasmine Johnson of Black Zen for a discussion about making love and justice with and through meditation. Stacey and Jasmine are the hosts...

43: "You've gotta stop acting like you're not qualified to tell a story." (ft. Colin Seale)3/31/20Join guest Colin Seale as we tackle imposter syndrome, authenticity, and making sure all kids get the learning experiences they deserve. Colin is the founder of thinkLaw...

41: "Give me the opportunity to see your world for a while." (ft. Jenna Ushkowitz)2/27/20Join guest Jenna Ushkowitz as we take on all things work, worth, and belonging. Jenna is an American Tony Award-winning producer, actress, singer and podcast host. She is known...

SPECIAL EPISODE: How To Make Radical Love & Retention For New Teacher Center Symposium Attendees 2/11/2020 It's one thing to value retention, and another to make it. It's one thing to value love & justice, and another to make it. Since we could only go so deep...

39: "We imagine that by desiring money, we are causing harm." (ft. Jessie Susannah Karnatz)1/30/2020 Join guest Jessie Susannah Karnatz, aka the Money Witch, as we take on learning to how to build a loving relationship with money in a capitalist society. In this...

37: "Looking for the invisible takes extra effort." (ft. Rina Deshpande)12/26/2019Join guest Rina Deshpande as we take on learning to become more aware of cultural appropriation in our physical and spiritual practices. Rina is a writer, artist, and teacher of Yoga...

33: "Don’t ignore the things that won’t let you go."  10/29/2019 Join guest Jovian Zayne for a discussion all about being on purpose. And how to find it. Jovian is the founder of the International Day of Purpose as well as an international speaker and certified...

32: Imagination As Resistance 10/17/2019 Imagination is key to creating social change. But: our system of capitalism does not reward it, and for most of us, our imagination muscles have atrophied. In this episode, you’ll hear: How and why imagination is connected to...

31: "Curiosity & judgement can't occupy the same space." 10/10/2019 Join guests Emilee and Rob McGowan for a discussion about loss, tragedy, and creating intimacy and partnership – especially when it's missing. Rob & Emilee are partners in life and in their...

29: “Creativity is the antidote to destruction.” 8/28/2019 Join guests Alixa Garcia and Naima Penniman of Climbing PoeTree for a discussion about making love by BEing love, justice, and liberation. Climbing PoeTree combines impassioned lyricism, political theater, and...

27: "I'm reaching deeper, to the love that grief & rage grow out of." 8/26/2019 Join guest Dr. Katharine Wilkinson for a discussion of making love through learning to heal our planet. Today, Dr. Wilkinson joins us to discuss the state of climate change, and a...

25: "Organizing at the speed of love." 7/25/2019 Join guest Ai-jen Poo for a discussion of making love through organizing on behalf of change and dignity. Ai-jen is a TED speaker, a change maker, an activist, and a organizer on behalf of the sick, the elderly, and...

24: How To Be Wounded 6/20/2019 The root of the word vulnerability is "vulnus," meaning "to be wounded." Join host laura brewer for discussion about what radical vulnerability entails, how to practice it, and why it's essential for making love and justice. In this...

23: “Sex positivity is a philosophy and movement towards acceptance.” (ft. Dr. Shannon Chavez) 6/6/2019 Join guest Dr. Shannon Chavez for a discussion about making love, and making sex positivity. Dr. Chavez is a sex therapist and a clinical psychologist whose work...

21: "For my story, I get to be the one that writes it." 5/7/2019 Join guest Elena Aguilar for a discussion of making love through creating resilience. Elena is a renown author and educational coach who has trained thousands of educators across America. She has studied...

20: PowerLESS Love 4/25/19 Making our love powerLESS rather than powerFULL. That’s what we’re up to today. In this episode, you’ll hear: Why it's important to strip control and power out of the way we love; What all of this has to do with love and justice. Nine...

19: "For all that shall be: yes." (ft. Paula Stone Williams & Jonathan Williams) 4/9/2019 Join guests Paula S. Williams and Jonathan Williams for a discussion about making love by choosing "yes" in difficult relationships and experiences. Paula and Jonathan are...

18: Under the Influence of Urgency 3/26/2019 Making love through: slowing down. That’s what we’re up to today. In this episode, you’ll hear: What does operating under the influence of urgency mean? How do we benefit from urgency as a way of being, in our lives or...

17: "Language matters desperately." (Ft. Rita Dove) 3/19/2019 Join guest Rita Dove for a discussion about making love through making language. Rita Dove is the former Poet Laureate of the United States, a Pulitzer Prize winning poet, and the poetry editor of the New...

16: Courage & Fear 2/26/2019 Making love through: using fear as a compass to cultivate courage. That’s what we’re up to today. In this episode, you’ll hear:What are the ingredients for cultivating courage with intention?What is fear? Why the ways we tend to relate...

15: “When you return fire and begin dehumanizing others, you compromise your own Self.” (ft. Simran Jeet Singh) 2/14/2019 Join guest Simran Jeet Singh for a discussion of making love through reckoning with hate. Simran is an activist and professor who teaches us about...

"People are always trying to define who I am." -- 013 (ft. Miki Poy) 1/15/2019 Join guest Miki Poy for the first episode of 2019, and the first ever episode featuring one of our regular listeners! And: it's a huge episode. Love. Identity. And belonging. Saddle up!  In...

"You need to call from inside the thing you want to liberate." 012 (ft. Sadada Jackson) 12/31/2018 Join guest Sadada Jackson for a conversation about making love with, in, and through our bodies. Sadada is an embodied practitioner of equity and teaches us all to spend...

"I thought I couldn't be powerful if I were a loving leader." -- 011 (Ft. Christine Margiotta) 12/6/18 Join guest Christine Margiotta for a case and conversation about bringing love to work. Christine is the Executive Director of Social Venture Partners -- Los...

“The fight for justice, the fight for freedom, are always in accordance with the fight for love.” -- 010 (ft. Prof. David Kim) 11/20/2018 Join guest Professor David Kyuman Kim for a conversation about the radical art of love in public, love in politics, and the heart...

"All of the connections break when you are utterly broken." -- 008 (ft. Yolonda Coles Jones) 10/30/2018 Join guest Yolonda Coles Jones for an open, honest conversation around how to make love when you are broken wide open. Yolonda's whole heart and body and voice and...

“You just have to trust that there are enough people who will respond in a positive way that it’s worth it.” - 006 10/2/2018 Join guest Megan Amram for a discussion of making love through comedy and laughter. Megan is one of the funniest humans on the planet. She’s an...

“I have as much passion as I have insecurity.” – 005 9/25/2018 Join writer Tre Johnson for a discussion of making love through writing, self expression, and pop culture. Tre Johnson is a prolific writer, who's perspective and words call us into a more meaningful...

“We're holding back the tide of darkness but that does not mean we're creating light.” – 004 9/11/2018 Join guest Norma Wong for a discussion of making love through aloha and activism. Norma is a Zen Master, teacher of Mu-i Tai Ji Zen, and a former Hawai'i state...

“She went down in the airport, and she never woke up.” - 003 9/4/2018 Welcome to an episode about making love in and through death, featuring guest and hospice chaplain Reverend Kendall Cooke. In a culture and society that's so eager to avoid the reality of death,...