I read Fast Company cover to cover every month. By chance, it usually arrives in my mailbox after I’ve had a particularly rough day. Just seeing the cover restores me. Like a giddy child, I run to my apartment, throw down my bag, and dig in to the info bursting from those pages. It helps me celebrate my inner social geek.
This month, Robert Safian wrote his Letter from the Editor to introduce the main topics addressed this month: how Barack Obama and Shaun White are tapping and energizing the elusive youth market, influential women in tech (a million thanks for this inspiring story!), and celebrating Darwin and his On the Origin of Species.
The most powerful part of Robert’s letter is captured in the last paragraph. With strong emotional appeal, he elegantly and sincerely describes what he and his team strive for every day and why they do it. “Our goal at Fast Company is to get you to pick your head up, at least periodically, and consider what happens when the sun comes out again.” With much thanks and appreciation, I am grateful to Fast Company for doing just that: they give me hope about my career, even if times are tough now, they give me faith with their inspiring stories of entrepreneurs, and they spark my creative thinking. If you aren’t a subscriber, you should be no matter what your field or interest. It’s the best $10 you’ll spend this year.
Published by Christa Avampato
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
I read Fast Company cover to cover every month. By chance, it usually arrives in my mailbox after I’ve had a particularly rough day. Just seeing the cover restores me. Like a giddy child, I run to my apartment, throw down my bag, and dig in to the info bursting from those pages. It helps me celebrate my inner social geek. 
