Episode 204: The Fight She Chose After Hollywood | Stephanie Kauffman | President & COO, Melanoma Research Alliance
Stephanie Kauffman’s career has taken her from entertainment and corporate marketing to the front lines of cancer research funding. As President and COO of the Melanoma Research Alliance, she’s now helping lead the largest nonprofit funder of melanoma research worldwide. But her personal connection to the cause, and her passion for purpose-driven leadership, goes far deeper. In this episode, Kara and Stephanie talk about what we still don’t know about melanoma, the surprising groups most at risk, and how Stephanie went from movie premieres to life-saving partnerships. It’s a conversation about clarity, courage, and the power of asking what really matters.
“We need more women, more people, willing to go beyond donating money and to get involved in what they care about. Your brain power and ideas and innate talents can also make the difference.”
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Follow along using the Transcript
Chapters:
00:00 – From media to melanoma: Stephanie’s career shift
03:00 – What melanoma really is (and why it’s not just skin cancer)
06:20 – Why melanoma rates are rising in young women
08:45 – Personal loss and finding purpose through action
12:00 – How the Melanoma Research Alliance works
15:00 – The biggest myths about prevention and risk
17:30 – Why people of color are often diagnosed too late
21:00 – What early detection actually looks like
25:00 – How Stephanie defines success now vs. then
29:00 – Running a nonprofit like a business
33:00 – Career reinvention, leadership, and personal growth
37:30 – Her advice for making a difference in your own corner
A lot of the medical research areas happen to have models based on white men, believe it or not, through all the years. And that's what doctors would study in terms of trying to figure out treatments and that certainly dermatology. Most of your data models and data equity sets are based on white skin.
And white male ski.
That's Stephanie Kauffman. I'm Kara Duffy and this is The Powerful Ladies podcast.
Welcome to The Powerful Ladies Podcast.
Thank you so much. It's such a pleasure to be with you today. I love the work that you're doing, so it's a great honor to join and share in community and what it means to be, a powerful lady.
Let's start at the beginning. Let's tell everyone who you are, where you are, and what you're up to in the world.
I'm Stephanie Kauffman. I am the president and chief operating Officer for the Melanoma Research Alliance. I have just really have had this extraordinary moment of pivoting out of a very long-term media and entertainment career into the space of cancer research, particularly in the areas of women and their healthcare.
And for me, what I'm really excited about working on is. Talking especially around melanoma research and the impacts that it is having, and particularly the fact that melanoma right now is one of the leading cancer diagnoses that are happening, particularly in young women. And you would think with all the things that we know about protecting our skin.
That would not be the case, but I'm looking forward to helping put voice out there to start reversing those trends.
And what are some of those trends that are happening with women? What are the specifics so that people can hear the exact data or any numbers that you have available.
As it relates to melanoma, which is the deadliest form of skin cancer, unfortunately what we're seeing is this rise in melanoma cases being diagnosed in younger populations, but even more specifically women ages 15 to 29. And it can be caused through a number of things. There's a couple different types of melanoma.
The most prevalent is what's called cutaneous, which is basically your skin. And I think what we're seeing is. Trends in terms of we can go through 15 different steps in our skincare routine and then think about SPF only in the context of, oh, I'm going to the beach today, and not necessarily thinking about.
If you're working in an office environment that has a ton of windows, we all love the light that comes in, but you should probably be protecting your skin from that perspective. I think also we have a scenario where there are trends around particularly in TikTok, like coconut oil creates a barrier to skin.
So everybody should use coconut and that's not the case. And so I think sometimes within social media, women are getting health advice that. As they explore different ways to certainly improve their health, that sometimes you have to dig beneath that and realize that no, you definitely need to be protecting your skin through SPF every single day.
Hats are your friends. Protect your eyes. And so I think for us particularly women's health, when women haven't always been listened to through, through time, right? That we need to take a look at what those conversations are and then help. Provide information so that women in general can make the most informed choices around their healthcare.
And so those are some, a couple of things that we're exploring. Another area that we are working on is the fact that here in the United States, 40% of Americans do not have access to a dermatologist, right? So we're living in these dermatology deserts, so how can we help? All communities figure out ways to, if they see something suspicious on skin how can they get treated when maybe the average way to see a dermatologist could be three to four months and sometimes longer.
So we're doing some investment in the areas of tele dermatology u utilizing artificial intelligence to help create
Wow.
Diagnoses in a much quicker way or better detection strategies and one of those areas that we are also, working on, particularly for women. Typical in medical research.
A lot of the medical research areas happen to have models based on white men. And can't believe it or not, through all the years, that's what doctors would study in terms of trying to figure out treatments. And that's certainly within dermatology, most of your data models and data equity sets are based on white skin and white male skin.
And so one of the areas we're also looking in is how do we create equity in dermatology to create better data sets through artificial intelligence and getting more diverse data populations so that we can create. Better healthcare. Access to care, but also better as it relates to cancer research, more equity in how that data is processed, and then ultimately for women with, within those spaces, whether that's melanoma research, but certainly another other cancer research.
I am one of those people who has been waiting forever to see my dermatologist. I booked an appointment in July for November. I got a call early November. Oh, that doctor's not here anymore. Can we wait until February? I'm like, guys, like I, I've tried to see you in July. I just need a body scan, like what is going on?
And I do not live in a dermatology desert. I'm in Orange County, California. Yeah, there's plenty, but none of them are. Available in any sort of quick time. I was able to pop into my primary care to get some things looked at just to make sure that someone else who has a mental degree could peak.
But it's beyond frustrating, especially when you're being proactive to try and do all the things that you need to do.
It is a completely frustrating area. And similar to you, I do not live in a dermatology desert. I'm in I live in the suburbs of New York City, so certainly access, but a scenario that I see.
I. I have fair skin, I have blonde hair, I have light eyes. I grew up in Florida, so while I was not someone who necessarily looked to be out, baking in the sun, I played sports, I was outdoors all of things. So I'm, I try to be hypervigilant around it as well. And the same situation, like we can see you in five months to do a body scan.
I think one of the challenges, that we hear from the community that we serve in similar to what you're saying is I probably could call the same dermatology practice and ask for Botox, and they're like, hi, we can get you in tomorrow at 8 15, 8 39 45. 10 o'clock. Yeah. And I think that's one of the challenges that we're seeing is within within dermatology.
Divide between medical dermatology and cosme cosmetic dermatology and where there's revenue opportunities. So one of the things that we're looking into is how can we start enabling primary care physicians to have better access to screening technologies? How can we maybe create opportunities within like urgent care clinics or MinuteClinics where maybe you could go into.
Your local CVS and they have in the way that they're helping create, healthcare moments where they could, take a picture of a suspicious mole and it can be sent to a pathologist where they can look at it really quickly and be able to say, you know what, that actually is fine.
You're good. Something. Or it's a situation where, you know what, let's put that under some active surveillance. Or three, yes. That is definitely something you need to be treated. And it gives. Someone the opportunity to say no. There's something definitely here. I've got some of the data. So how can we use digital healthcare to start advancing those challenges that, that we're seeing. So imagine where you and I have opportunity to maybe not be in dermatology, desert. Think about for those of which there's no dermatologist within a couple hundred miles. So how do we create better access to those opportunities?
How does. Skin cancers and melanoma, how does that rate versus the other cancers in regards to being deadly?
Being treatable?
Yeah. As it relates to melanoma, so there'll be about a hundred thousand people here in the US who will be diagnosed this year with melanoma. And I like with most cancers, if you're able to, catch it early, there's a lot of treatment options available to you.
Unfortunately, about 7,000 people will die of the disease. This year. But what we've been excited about within melanoma research is that it's been really the pioneer around immunology and, harnessing your immune system to create treatment protocols. And so through that research. We've enabled 15 new approved therapies that have been approved by the FDA, so there's a lot more options available than even only maybe 10 years ago. The reality is unfortunately we still have 50% of the people who have advanced melanoma. That aren't responding to those treatments. And that's one of the big things that we're solving for. Unfortunately we're seeing some, increases within melanoma.
And it can ha be any number of reasons why as we get older, right? Most people assume melanomas, years and years of accumulated sun sun impact. So we're, we're seeing that, we're seeing obviously within the fact that, our climate keeps getting hotter. Sun becomes a little bit more powerful.
But what a lot of other people don't realize is that they think melanoma, skin cancer, you can, cut it out and be done with it. And that's not always the case. There are some rare melanoma subtypes palms of your hands, bottom of your feet. And mucus membranes like your nose in your eyes that we're having to look for.
A hundred thousand people, if you look at that it's probably number five or six in terms of where it scales in terms of cancer diagnosis right now.
If we go back to 8-year-old, you would, she have imagined that this is what you're up to today?
No, she would not have, she would've been, my 8-year-old self was in Florida.
Very much in love with the idea of California. I watched, typical Friday and Saturday night programming series. So I'm dating myself and I'm happy to date myself, but it was like chips and the love boat and fantasy island, and I just remember how amazing and ethereal and magical, southern California.
During that time, I probably would've been thinking about like, how can I get a career in entertainment? Never thinking that first chapter of my professional career, I definitely went down that path. But the second chapter of my career in pivoting within cancer research would not have necessarily been on my 8-year-old radar at all.
What was the catalyst for that pivot into cancer research?
I think for so many people, it's when you in some way have been personally impacted.
Through a life changing diagnosis. And for me that was through a caregiver lens as opposed to personally impacted. It was, september 11th 15 years ago, so I guess 2008, the incredible woman that I had the great fortune of working for, she's incredible today.
Her name is Stephanie Berger. She's the president of Universal Studios Partnerships. Came into my office. I worked for her. I ran Global Alliances for her, and she's I found a lump. They're asking me to come in today, and I know it's not good. Will you come with me? And so we, we had this really incredible group of women who not only supported each other through professional, but we also were this tight group of women.
Were like, we're gonna support each other in all the ways that we can in life. And that's when she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, which is the most aggressive form of breast cancer. And okay, then what are we gonna do to. Help you live. At the time she was a single mom with a 6-year-old.
And okay, we need to rally around that and that, and seeing the process in which she went through and just the fact that at the time there was still not a lot of research or treatment protocols available for that aggressive form of breast cancer. And while, a couple months later, while she was.
In the hospital getting ready for reconstructive surgery. I got a text from my sister in Georgia in which my mom was in the hospital. She had been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. And so I literally left UCLA hospital, and got onto a red eye and got to Atlanta and it was just, this year of.
Being a, just a sup, helping support somebody who's going through the diagnosis. And I'm happy to say that Stephanie is living her best life and she's thriving and she's doing well. My mother unfortunately lost, lost her life disease. And it was during that time when I realized how much that cancer research was underfunded, how much that we needed to figure that out.
So I personally started to get into that space. How can I. You know, some, in some way contribute to helping support cancer research organizations. And so 15 years in at Universal we had gone through our fifth ownership change when I was there. And universal had been acquired by Comcast and Comcast, who's turned out to be an amazing owner for Universal.
Was thinking about how they wanted to align some of the businesses. And so a lot of our group that I was a part of was gonna be restructured and it was a perfect time. Sometimes the universe hands you something. Yes. When you least expect it. And I was like, you know what? I've done this for 15 years. It's been a great run.
I'm ready to do something different. Let. I think I wanna go to cancer research. I dunno what that means, but I'm gonna start googling and figuring out where I can add value and so let me take everything that I've learned and building corporate partnerships and sponsorships and figure out how I can maybe.
Take those skills and translate it into the world of cancer research, which is so different than being on a movie set and making sure that the Dodge car that you've agreed to place in VA Furious looks a little bit different than getting into cancer research in that whole language. But that was literally my aha moment was, you know what our whole group is gonna be, reorganized which is a nice way of saying layoffs and I gotta go now and figure out something different.
That's what really. Gave me that moment of thinking about my life and what I wanted my next chapter to be and purpose. And for me, I also, I like growing and learning and really challenging myself. If you are not. Comfortable growth and comfort do not coexist. I, I remember Jimmy Ti from IBM saying that, and that was definitely a place where I was definitely in a deeply uncomfortable space, but I wanted to figure out where I could grow in a different way.
That's what brought me into cancer research.
That makes me think about, your definitions of powerful and ladies, and if they change when they're, those two words are put next to each other.
I always think it's fascinating. When there are interviews that are happening with quote unquote powerful ladies.
And they
talk about, strength and your resilience and the power that you have as a woman. And there's never that conversation necessarily, that happens, with within men. And I think about my wonderful husband who's in finance, and he sits on panel conversations. And I don't think once he's had to talk about his strength, how he has to manage, right?
But I think it's important to, to show up. And so when I think about powerful and ladies, what I see that as is a couple of different things. It's obviously, number one is knowing that it's confidence, and there's this idea that even if you're not ready to do something, you'll figure it out.
And I think that there's such power in that, that all of us have gotten to our path with not knowing a hundred percent of checking the box, but we figured it out so that I think there's resourcefulness there's power in our conventions. Power in our voice and also power in some vulnerability, which was definitely not something as I was coming up through leadership instance.
Certainly within the movie business and the entertainment business. But I think there's now power in vulnerability and being very empathetic in terms of leadership and. Having the vulnerability to be able to say, actually, I have no idea. And admit, I have no idea what this is. And so admitting you don't know what you don't know.
And certainly that's been the case for me when I sit in now scientific lectures. I don't have a PhD, so I have to go I actually don't know what a circulating term DNA is, but. Break it down for me and I'll figure out a way for us to be able to talk about it so that other people can get invested in our work.
So I think in terms of powerful and ladies, it's confidence, resilience, it's strength, owning your voice, having a point of view and knowing what you want.
I think what's so fascinating about the story you shared about Stephanie and her cancer diagnosis and the fact that she came to you and asked for help.
And she didn't ask you for help of, can you do something for me in regards to bring me a meal or do this task? She just wanted you to be next to her in that initial conversation. And I've been talking a lot with my clients and the different groups I'm a part of about. How we look at what we ask for and how we let people help us.
And that it doesn't need to be a, can you pick up the kids? It doesn't need to be a, can you file this thing? It really can just be the full spectrum of what we need. How have you looked at how you've shifted, how you ask for things based on that experience with Stephanie and that amazing group of women you had at that company and then also.
How have you looked at like pushing into those more vulnerable spaces that you mentioned earlier?
I really love this question. I think for me, and I think about how I, came up through, through my life asking for help was not a part of my Lexi Cot. And I think even when I've spent time in, in therapy, which everybody should hopefully have that opportunity to do that I remember my therapist saying to me, you don't do vulnerability really well. And literally in that moment I remember just this reflex of scrunching up my nose, just even hearing that word vulnerable. I think for me over the last several years of trying to figure out, asking that it's okay to ask for help. It doesn't make you weak. And in fact, it will actually make you stronger in what, whatever capacity you need and verbalizing.
Verbalizing where you need help has been huge. And I think it's exactly what you were saying about in the context of Stephanie, just wanting to have somebody there to listen what was going on and to help her digest. What that all meant is it doesn't have to be the grand gesture.
It can be as easily as I just need someone to listen. Or to help me think through this, you don't have to solve for it. I just, I need a different point of view. So for me I think asking for help has been one of those things I've had to work on. To be honest with you, I tend to, so many of us, right?
We tend to want to help everybody else. We want to, okay, if you need this opportunity, and so one of the areas that, I've looked for help in a couple of different ways. Number one was. As I was thinking about making my pivot, okay, what does that look like? Because I'm gonna have to redefine a little bit of who I am in terms of.
Being in, the entertainment business and having an ident professional identity, based on that. So how do I talk about myself now in this role, and how do I make that shift and there, and really having people spend time in terms of what does that look like for me? I think the other piece where I've had to, really ask for help is how do I prioritize my own health?
So ironically, I'm in the cancer research business. How do I make sure that I make time to go to this appoint that I need to go to? And that's been an area that I have really leaned on and how, and having some friends really talk me through making sure that I'm prioritizing that in a way that I wasn't doing.
Remember yours for any number of reasons. And I think it's just, it's okay to start working through vulnerability. And I think what I've learned from that is when I've opened up in those areas that I've been challenged, I'm not feeling judged 'cause you gotta remember who your tribe is.
I'm not
feeling judged and I feel better for it. And I think for the longest time in a way, sometimes you get brought up is you just gotta be strong and you have to bury it. And if you show any type of needing help, it's weakness and particularly. As I came up, and I certainly hope this is not the case for my two incredible stepdaughters, one who's in her first job in a graduate college that she won't have, that she can feel authentic and vulnerable.
When I was coming up, a lot of times I was the only woman in the room. I was the only one with the table. So you did not show any vulnerability, right? That's an all adage never let us see you cry. And I think in this day and age, it's okay to be vulnerable.
And ask
for help in a way that was not a part of the conversation for me at least 20 years ago.
And I think that phrase, don't let them see you cry. Also makes it sound like the only vulnerability is crying also. And. I think it's been really interesting to unlearn that and unpack it. I think I had a really unique career space of time in being part of where there were still not women everywhere that I was working and all the groups I was in.
But it wasn't weird that women were at the table, but there still wasn't a lot. And what role you were or weren't allowed to have might have been different. So I also had the privilege of working at some great companies where no one cared what gender you were. But I do think that there was still that space of it didn't matter who you were.
Like there, there was no crying in baseball and there was definitely no crying at work. And there was also because of that, a really big separation. Between who you were as a human and what, who you were at work. I like mixing everything together. It's been interesting to figure out how can you, what does vulnerability look like when it doesn't have to only be so emotionally triggered that you're a crying?
What are all the other spaces of vulnerability?
Oh, a hundred percent. And it's, I think this notion now. How do you bring your whole self to work, versus this bifurcated, the person you are, quote unquote in the office, or this workspace that you're in versus how you may be at home.
Sometimes you'll hear that, wow, you're so much fun outta the office. Like I, I could totally be a fun person. And I think understanding those vulnerabilities and this idea of bringing your whole self and who you are. Authentically has also shaped how I think about leadership as I think about the teams that I'm a part of and the teams that I lead, is those types of conversations that would not necessarily happen.
All those years ago, once you allow that vulnerability to play out, whether that's, just listening to someone if they're having, a difficult time in their life and understanding how that's playing into to the workspace and figuring out how to give them the psychological safety and space to be able to do that changes that dynamic dramatically.
And that's how you, that's how you have the teams who will, continue to. Not do the quiet quitting, right? Because they feel heard, they are allowed to be deeply authentic as to they are, and it's celebrated. And that was definitely a switch is how I was thinking about my leadership style over these last, several years is allowing that space to come in and you just the culture becomes much healthier as a result of that.
Yeah. There's a lot of questions I get from clients about how to manage. Gen Z, for example, and the stereotype is that they're able to come to work and bring all their things. They walk in with all the baggage, all the stuff, and a lot of the requests of what I'm really being asked and underneath that is how do we teach 'em to leave some things outside of the office, right?
There's always like this pendulum swing. And I do think it's really interesting because I. I personally have a racket against the term quiet, quitting. 'cause it's not being in your power. I also understand that there's not giving your heart and soul to every job because it will not love you back.
So where's that balance? And what I really hear is how many people don't have power at work and don't feel, don't know how to navigate those spaces. I'm not sure what training processes, probably none. We had to figure it out. You and I went through in corporate spaces. And I always knew that I had to be more selfish potentially at work than I might choose to be selfish in a more personal environment.
I just think it's really interesting how it seems to be shifting now and how can we leave room for being a compassionate heart led leader, which I know most leaders are. We just don't always put that in front of the needs and still be really productive and efficient in the workplace. So I'm curious, how have you chosen to navigate.
Being compassionate and being productive.
That's a great, it's a great thing that I think we all talk about. And first things first, right? There's the, as you're talking about some of the clients that you consult with in terms of how do you navigate, so I'm Gen X, and so how do you navigate the zen, whether that's, the, gen Z, the Alphas, A couple of things I like to think about is number one, yeah, it can get really easy to like, oh, they're bringing all the things into work and not to personalize, I think sometimes I see this, sometimes I see it actually through women. I had to go through all of the stuff and so therefore should you, and to me that is such counterintuitive because for all of us who had some experience, we were creating those experiences. So at least for me, my hope is that the next generation of women are not having to deal with situations where, the Ronnie Joan used to be like harass was two words. And I'm hopeful that's not gonna be the case where you can have a point of view and it's gonna be heard and respected now.
At the end of the day, your, the leadership may decide to go in a different path, but at least you heard and hopefully you have some sort of rationale as to Okay, why that path may be. A couple things that I've taken away in terms of compassion leadership is I always try to do some, what I would call a reverse mentorship.
I'm really fascinated in terms of how millennials, gen Z. What do they call the alphas now? How are they thinking about the world and how should I be thinking about 'cause that's where we're headed.
Course, whether you like it or not, it's like when music said, oh, we're not gonna go digital and hi, we all listen, turn music off, phone out.
Like you have to figure out otherwise you're gonna be one of those entities that. Are no longer relevant. And so for me I always try to just understand take me through your thought process here and why are you feeling this? I think also I hugely respect, this generation who's I wanna do good work and I'm going to do work.
And they do great work. They're like, I'm not gonna give my whole life to it because I've seen. Look, my my three stepchildren have seen me be laid off. They've seen their father, go through transitions and they're like, and they've seen the 80 hour work weeks. And so I think they're like, look, I'm gonna work hard.
I'm gonna do great, but I'm not gonna, live. To doing everything by the company because at the end of the day, I'll end up just being like a box on an org chart. Doesn't matter how big the work is if I'm in the wrong box. And that's what goes. So I really admire their ability to think that through so practically.
And so for me, in terms of how I think about like compassionate leadership is be willing to hear the perspective, right? And in fact, I think it's, again, it's okay to feel vulnerable. Like I actually don't know how to do that. I don't know what the next trend may be in terms of digital communication.
'cause I'm not in that space and I think it's more than okay to listen to the people that you lead. They're gonna they wanna share their knowledge and it's okay to be vulnerable in that moment. And a lot of times, I will say to the staff. Talk to me as if I'm a 2-year-old and I really don't understand this, but I wanna understand it.
'cause you're telling me it's gonna add value. You're telling me we're gonna be able to communicate with an audience in a different way. And I think if you don't do that and you don't listen to what's coming up and you're not respectful of that then what are those results are gonna look like. And then the flip side the advice that I would give to centennials is.
We wanna learn Gen X, I'll speak as Gen X. We wanna learn, but also I hope that you can be mindful that there's a lot of paths that we have navigated and opened up so that you could have those moments of conversation in a way that we certainly could not have had 10, 15 years ago with our leadership.
So hopefully there's some mutual respect that can go both ways.
The area that you work in is heavy. Yes, it has a lot of stress. There's a lot of sorrow, there's a lot of pressure. A lot of other people can say things like it's not brain surgery. And you're like, yeah, but it might not be brain surgery, but it's cancer.
What else is more important to solve in the world? So what are you doing for yourself to stay in alignment with how your soul gets filled up and to make sure that. Not only are you producing amazing work, but you are personally thriving.
Cancer research can absolutely be heavy area because we definitely engage with patients who have been impacted,
By the disease or their diagnosis.
And you can get really excited about all the breakthroughs that cancer research may be having across wherever the case may be. And then it's really heart wrenching. Particularly when you see someone who's doing everything that they can, they're doing the clinical trials or and for whatever reason it hasn't worked.
And so you become close to the communities that you serve. And then you can get very weighted down by what did we miss? Why is that research coming through faster? And so yes, it can be very heavy. I think the first things first is. You definitely have those emotions and you can definitely a hundred percent be vulnerable and cry in that.
In that time. I think for me, in terms of how do I process it and navigate it is different for everybody is. Just really talking it through, letting those emotions sit in it and be uncomfortable a little bit within that. And then in terms of, I like to think about, okay, how do we honor that person and the lessons that they have brought to my life?
And then also just the flip side of that is, okay, what are some of the things I can be doing to help
Stay present and think through what's next and not just. Live in kind of the heaviness of that. That's everything from just getting outside and getting some walks in to listening to a great podcast.
Yeah,
like someone I'm talking to right now for me it's also reading. And just setting space to to be able to do that and then being in conversation with really good friends who may have had a similar experience. And we just talked about how to navigate those things. If anything has taught us, particularly as we've all gone continue to go through a global pandemic, is how do you, in the physical fitness that we create for ourselves, physical fitness, there's all the things. How do we make sure that we give space time for mental fitness? And mental health and. Accessing tools, and there's so many more tools today than there ever were and being open about that and what your needs are.
For me, it's everything from getting to some good walks, a little bit of sunshine, of course, wearing SPF and a beautiful hat, but also reading I love. I love interior design, like creating beautiful spaces, or at least aspiring to anyway, and listening to podcasts and then just creating quiet time for me to just reflect on more of that.
Yeah. You are also a co-chair of the IWMF. Yes. Let's tell everyone what that is because this is a really exciting space and very adjacent to powerful ladies. So it's the
International Women's Media Foundation. I've been very honored to have been to be a part of their board of directors. And I've been co-chairing the board of directors with my incredible colleague and friend Suzanne Malvo, who is was with CNN for 20 years.
She just announced that she's actually doing something different in terms of content and storytelling. What really drew me to this organization is a couple of things. What the I WFS mission is to help create some gender equity within newsrooms because if you think about who's telling the story of media, we are 50% of the world.
And so through the lens of media news who are telling those stories and making sure that the stories are balanced and certainly have a female, female perspective within that. So that's number one of the idea submission number two is we've seen the consolidation of news outlets and media outlets.
It's also helping provide some funding and support so that freelance women journalists can actually tell these incredible stories. They're often stories that nobody wants told because it brings a spotlight to some really egregious behavior.
Around the world.
Particularly as it impacts, women's issues. And so giving these incredible women the freedom of flexibility through reporting fellowships to bring those stories alive. And then also finally for us is how do we create better equity within news media for the bipoc communities and doing, incredible work and supporting those efforts through.
The Black Journalist Recovery Fund in terms of you, the mental health and reporting things that are happening within your community. We have an initiative for the Missing and Murder indigenous women community and trying to report those stories more. So I, what it draw drew me to joining IWMF is I love the news.
I'm a news junkie, but also I was, became well aware of just how little women are actually represented within the news group space. And so how could I help in some way support that?
Yeah, amazing. I had the pleasure of going to Mountain Film Fest in Telluride last Memorial Day, and they started off as a kind of ski and snowboarding films festival, and now they've expanded into environmental and social consciousness and there was an amazing film which you can now watch on Disney Plus about.
The indigenous population of Brazil. And what I thought was so fascinating about that film, because it was created, produced, and directed initially by white men from America, but what they did to your point of giving the people in the story, the tools to tell the story. They gave them all cameras and taught them how to use all the equipment to record it all themselves, film it on themselves, and they had to at one point because of COVID as well.
That's, that was the bigger trigger. Here's all the stuff. Go keep recording. And it's completely empowered this indigenous community in a completely different way because there's no, no filter, no secret biases, there's nothing. It's just like this is what's happening to us from our perspective. And the movie's amazing.
I'll put it in the show notes because I currently can't remember it. But it's incredible. And to see, you can just see their faces change when they get to speak for themselves and they get to create for themselves. It was just such an example of how you, when you empower people with tools to tell their own story, that it's the next level of representation, right?
We can represent you, but now are we gonna let you actually speak for yourself? And I think I'm excited to see that because
It's not coming through this, package soundbite. Like you're, yeah, something like that gives you the real look and then you can make. A judgment for your own self on how you think about it.
So definitely put that in the show notes 'cause I'm definitely gonna wanna watch that. That's exciting.
I just Googled it. It's called the Territory. It's the territory. Yeah. And adding it
to the 17 streaming things that I subscribed to now Disney Plus. Got
it. Yeah, Nat Geo helped fund the movie you can find it in lots of different ways.
But yeah, the territory, it was mind blowing. There were tons of movies at that festival, so if anybody wants to go to a great festival to find new people and new stories and new things definitely go there. Every. I, it was such a treat to get to, to be in that space. So it was very cool.
Of course this is the Powerful Ladies podcast and I'm always curious who is inspiring you today? Who are you looking to for new ideas, new leadership? Just moving yourself forward in, into whatever your greatness is.
Always inspired by women who are putting their voice out there and really trying to make a shift in how the world works, so whatever that may be. Obviously I'm tremendously inspired by Stacey Abrams and what she's been able to do in terms of mobilizing. Voting within Georgia, which is where my family currently lives today and making sure that people have a path to express, their votes.
So I've been tremendously inspired by her in terms of understanding that's not an easy thing to do. And so how does she create conversation and community around that? I'm always inspired. By women who are saying, okay, there's an unmet need here. And I think about actually the founder of the co-founder of the Melanoma Research Alliance.
When I think about cancer research. There. Off the top of my head, there are two extraordinary women who've really shifted the paradigm around cancer research. One is Deborah Black, who was diagnosed with a very rare form of melanoma. And so she certainly could have said, okay, I'm gonna, make a philanthropic investment and one institution and let them study this particular.
Thing and then go about my day. And she realized as another person I'm have been inspired by is how do I, there's no research happening. How do I help change the outcome? And decided to form, my work, the Melanoma Research Alliance didn't have to take that on, finding a foundation and making those investments and being deeply involved.
And so she's the someone that I'm inspiring, she inspires. Me every day in terms of she should have a PhD in science. Like she knows so much. This isn't a, this is not a vanity project in the way that sometimes you may see that in philanthropy. And she's also very giving. Of her time and her commitment.
And it has really helped shift, second to the federal government and maybe philanthropy, I don't think anybody has done more to try to invest in all research in terms of what she's done. The other person was Evelyn Lauder of the the late Evelyn of state lau companies who during her breast cancer diagnosis realized there was no research happening in the late eighties.
In fact. Breast cancer was vebo to talk about. And so similarly, she's I can start a foundation and it would be a send not to. And so if you think about where we are today in breast cancer research is because two women were like, healthcare is not serving us. And so we had the capacity to do it and we wanna do more than just, write one simple check.
We wanna change the paradigm. So I think any type of person who's doing that type of work always inspires me.
We ask everyone on the podcast where you put yourself on the powerful lady's scale. If zero is average everyday human and 10 is the most powerful lady you can imagine, where would you put yourself today and on average?
Oh my goodness. I could put myself as a five. And the reason why is 'cause I think you always have to give yourself room to grow and to expand and to learn. So while I definitely have created power within my career. I still think there's so much more for me to be able to give and to learn and to grow and having those differences in the table.
It's, so it's the work that I'm trying to do with the IWMF. Very fortunate to have joined the 92nd Y women and Fellows. Program as a mentor and trying to expand my role on, on that area. And then also where I can continue to lean in and become a better, leader and contributor to the communities in which I serve.
So right now I'm gonna give myself a five 'cause I wanna be able to grow to that 10, but I don't know that I would ever get to that 10. 'cause then if you stop learning. So what are you doing?
Yeah. We have also been asking everyone, what do you need? What do you want? I believe in having a to-do list and a to manifest list, so you don't need to know how to make any of these things happen, but this is a powerful and generous community and I really believe that you never know who has that next key for the door that you're looking to go through next.
So what's something on your to-do list? Wishlist or manifest list?
Okay, professionally I would love to see some more broader conversations that are obviously happening for melanoma. So what hopefully that could look like is if someone out there within this amazing, generous community has been impacted by a Bella diagnosis or has been a caregiver or a loved one of that love for them to.
Reach out, get involved in our work in terms of just spreading the message. Number one, in terms of melanoma research, I think number two is certainly, as we've seen through the last couple of years with COVID is, I would like to, for people to figure out a way to get screened and come in and have those conversations on how we can make screenings for cancers at large and easier process.
So that's on a wishlist. And I think personally for me one of the things that I want to really lean in over the next couple of years is doing a better job at time, blocking my calendar. And allowing me to have more time to, to focus on mental fitness, physical fitness in a way that sometimes I'm not very good at doing.
So I'd like to figure out better ways to think through that. And then I think the last thing is I would love to continue to see. More women in leadership roles, board board roles within, corporate America, CEO roles. We definitely continue to see that. They deliver exceptional shareholder value.
And the last thing I would say is, for women at large, let's continue to support each other. I think about just most recently, Jamie Lee Curtis celebrating the women, Michelle yell, like, how do we all become the Jamie Lee Curtiss? In terms of that moment of just sheer joy when another woman has success, it shouldn't be, oh, their success happened because of this.
And like, how do we create the sheer joy moments of supporting each other's success and realize that their sunlight is also could be our sunlight.
I love that. For everyone who wants to meet you for a coffee work with you, support you, follow you, where can they find you and all of the organizations that you're a part of,
always love a good coffee.
Always love to say yes to, to meetings. So you can follow me Twitter or Instagram at s. Kauffman, that's s as in Stephanie Kauffman, KAU, f as in Frank, F as in Frank, MAN zero one. So that's my handle on social. Feel free to please reach out. I love to engage in coffee in real life for virtual LinkedIn.
It's Stephanie Kauffman Melanoma Research Alliance. Reach me there and then if you wanna. Do old fashioned email. Always love that. It's s Kauffman at Cure melanoma, so CURE melanoma.org. And I would love to hear from all of you and create, expand a community and wherever I can help support this incredible community you've created.
I'm here. What can I do?
It has been such a pleasure to talk to you today. Thank you for the work you're doing that is so needed. Thank you for being a champion for. Just women supporting women and more than anything else, making sure that we're getting the medical services and information that we need so that we can not only change the world, but be as healthy as possible doing it.
And I know how precious your time is, so thank you for. Sharing your story with all of us today.
Thank you so much. Have a wonderful day, and thank you for what you're doing.
All the links to connect with Stephanie Melanoma Research Alliance and IWMF are all in our show notes@thepowerfulladies.com. Please subscribe to this podcast wherever you're listening. And for bonus, leave us a rating and review. They are so helpful in getting this podcast noticed. To those who are looking for it, come join us on Instagram at Powerful Ladies.
And if you're looking to connect directly with me, please visit kara duffy.com or find an Instagram at Kara Duff. I will be back next week with a brand new episode. Until then, I hope you're taking on being powerful in your life. Go be awesome and up to something you love.
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Twitter: skauffman01
Website: www.curemelanoma.org
LinkedIn: stephaniekauffman70
Email: skauffman@curemelanoma.org
Created and hosted by Kara Duffy
Audio Engineering & Editing by Jordan Duffy
Production by Amanda Kass
Graphic design by Anna Olinova
Music by Joakim Karud
