Episode 10

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Published on:

29th Mar 2026

Making Your Voice Heard with Former Congress Staffer Ben Anderson

We're asked to make calls, write letters, sign petitions, protest…to make our voices heard to the higher ups in congress. But does it matter? Do our efforts actually ever make it up the food chain to make a difference?

I invited Ben Anderson to give us a little insight into this.

Ben has worked for three members of congress from Minnesota, the US House Committee on Agriculture, and at the US Department of Agriculture.

He shares what he thinks works, matters, and is most effective.

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About the Podcast

The Global Grit Experience
Stories of inspiring people with grit protecting nature, wildlife and the outdoor places we love.
The Global Grit Experience is a podcast featuring inspiring people with grit - passion, perseverance and an unwavering dedication in protecting, and loving, nature and wildlife. Whoop! Whoop! Host Erika Gilsdorf (that’s me!) is an international, award-winning video producer, who leaves the camera behind (for the most part) to let conversations breathe authentically in a podcast that spans diverse guests and topics. I include mental health guests, too who help us cope with all the crap and find joy amidst all the junk happening to our outdoors. Uffda…it’s a lot! (I’m a Minnesotan if you can't tell). Most importantly, this is a podcast about inspiration, hope, action, and connection. We have each other my friends!

About your host

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Erika Gilsdorf

Hi! Thanks for being here! I’m Erika, the Global Grit Experience podcast creator and host. Though the podcast format is fairly new to me, I’ve been sharing stories close to 20 years in Minnesota, the U.S. and around the world. Some of those I’ve worked with include The Minnesota Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy, General Mills, United Airlines, and National Geographic. I’m an outdoor enthusiast, adventurer, and climate and nature activist. I chose ‘grit’ because everything worth pursuing takes grit - passion, perseverance, courage, curiosity, hope and an unwavering determination to protect. Nature deserves a bit of our grit. Thanks for giving some of your grit for the love of nature.