{"podcast":{"title":"The Giving Game","slug":"the-giving-game-7858698","podcast_index_feed_id":7858698,"rss_url":"https://api.riverside.com/hosting/pRnLlG1r.rss","website_url":"https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/sophia-whitesell","image_url":"https://hosting-media.riverside.com/media/imports/podcasts/1609db1f-654c-410d-a53d-5a177663df3c/45906913-1777905764928-07c71079dd9cf.jpg","author":"Sophia Whitesell","episode_count":12,"summary":"What happens when you take sports away from athletes? You find out who they really are. Hosted by Sophie, The Giving Game is a one-of-a-kind podcast where athletes step out of the game and into something bigger. No stats. No scores. No surface-level interviews. Each episode is tied to a real, 7-day fundraising challenge—supporting causes that matter to the guests and giving listeners a chance to be part of something meaningful. You’ll hear raw conversations, unexpected stories, and a side of athletes the world rarely sees. This isn’t about sports. It’s about impact. Do you want to play?","last_synced_at":"2026-07-18T08:18:33.261382+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-giving-game-7858698"},"episode":{"title":"MMA Fighter Justin Wren on Addiction, Recovery & Fighting for Congo's Forgotten Pygmy Tribe","slug":"mma-fighter-justin-wren-on-addiction-recovery-fighting-for-congo-s-forgotten-pygmy-tribe","published_at":"2026-07-17T21:03:43+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-giving-game-7858698/mma-fighter-justin-wren-on-addiction-recovery-fighting-for-congo-s-forgotten-pygmy-tribe","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-giving-game-7858698","url":"https://api.riverside.com/hosting-analytics/media/2a118347d811901d54613848b27dc2c2a8c1e2d24ee6e3807b5b055b73792440/eyJlcGlzb2RlSWQiOiJjNTBiZjVhYy1iNzU1LTQ4ZjEtOWFjMC1mNTAwYTZhZDNiZjQiLCJwb2RjYXN0SWQiOiIxNjA5ZGIxZi02NTRjLTQxMGQtYTUzZC01YTE3NzY2M2RmM2MiLCJhY2NvdW50SWQiOiI2OWM1YWE1YWJjOGY2ODU4ZDQ2ZGMyNWUiLCJwYXRoIjoibWVkaWEvY2xpcHMvNmE1YTk4YWYxOGMyOTZiZmIxNzczNjUzL3NvcGhpYS13aGl0ZXNlbGxzLXN0dWRpby1jb21wb3Nlci0yMDI2LTctMTdfXzIzLTMtNDMubXAzIn0=.mp3","audio_url":"https://api.riverside.com/hosting-analytics/media/2a118347d811901d54613848b27dc2c2a8c1e2d24ee6e3807b5b055b73792440/eyJlcGlzb2RlSWQiOiJjNTBiZjVhYy1iNzU1LTQ4ZjEtOWFjMC1mNTAwYTZhZDNiZjQiLCJwb2RjYXN0SWQiOiIxNjA5ZGIxZi02NTRjLTQxMGQtYTUzZC01YTE3NzY2M2RmM2MiLCJhY2NvdW50SWQiOiI2OWM1YWE1YWJjOGY2ODU4ZDQ2ZGMyNWUiLCJwYXRoIjoibWVkaWEvY2xpcHMvNmE1YTk4YWYxOGMyOTZiZmIxNzczNjUzL3NvcGhpYS13aGl0ZXNlbGxzLXN0dWRpby1jb21wb3Nlci0yMDI2LTctMTdfXzIzLTMtNDMubXAzIn0=.mp3","summary":"What happens when an MMA fighter stops fighting against people and starts fighting for them? In this episode of The Giving Game, host Sophie Whitesell sits down with Justin Wren — former MMA fighter, keynote speaker, and founder of Fight for the Forgotten — for a conversation that goes far beyond the cage. True to the show's rules, there's no sports talk here. Instead, Justin opens up about hitting rock bottom with addiction, surviving two suicide attempts, and the sunrise that changed everything. Justin shares how he was adopted into the Pygmy tribes of the Congo Basin rainforest — the Mbuti, Efe, and Batwa peoples, among the oldest and most marginalized people groups on Earth — and how that second family inspired a nonprofit unlike any other. Fight for the Forgotten has helped secure over 3,000 acres of land rights, brought clean water to more than 100,000 people through 200+ sustainable water projects, and recently opened a critical access hospital with a thriving maternity ward. Every donation to Fight for the Forgotten during this campaign will be TRIPLED thanks to two matching gifts. Give at the link below and turn $10 into $30. What We Cover (00:00) The sunrise that saved Justin's life (02:02) The 3X matching gift — every donation tripled (02:54) What is Fight for the Forgotten? Justin's adoption into the Pygmy tribe (05:01) Why 230,000+ water wells in Africa are broken — and how to build ones that last (07:53) \"Slow down and listen\": the problem with fly-in, fly-out charity (12:02) Sophie's Ugandan colleague on \"patronizing\" Western aid (19:31) Voluntourism vs. expert volunteers — and the new Base Camp project (21:38) Rock bottom: addiction, treatment, and how the mission found Justin (22:59) Andy Bo's story: the $1 pills that could have saved a child's life (2…","meta_description":"What happens when an MMA fighter stops fighting against people and starts fighting for them? In this episode of The Giving Game, host Sophie Whitesell sit…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3420,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-giving-game-7858698/episodes/mma-fighter-justin-wren-on-addiction-recovery-fighting-for-congo-s-forgotten-pygmy-tribe/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-giving-game-7858698/mma-fighter-justin-wren-on-addiction-recovery-fighting-for-congo-s-forgotten-pygmy-tribe.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}