By nature, I am a passionate person. I get excited about charitable causes and I enjoy sharing my excitement about them. I often write about them on this blog and on my Examiner.com column. On occasion, I wonder if anyone’s listening or if anyone reading shares my interest and excitement. I guess that insecurity is normal for writers though I’ve never been able to be comfortable with it, particularly when I’m writing about something that I care about deeply.
Today, I received an email from a friend of mine that eased my sense of insecurity and re-energized me. Recently, I put together a post about a cause that I’d like to support. I’m not sure how to support the cause as it’s not one that is talked about frequently, at least not in the circles I travel in. My passion for the idea and my desire to make a difference in this area prompted me to put the idea out there into the world, hoping that I’d attract people to it who are as interested in it as I am. For a while, the airwaves have been silent but today, all of that changed with my friend’s email.
As it turns out, he and a friend of his are also very interested in this cause. They’ve been in the process of creating some content to support the cause and have been searching for someone to do the business framing around the idea. Perfect! I’ve got the business framing in mind and have been searching for content.
In addition to finding out about this shared interest with my friend, I also learned a critical lesson about social media. It gives us a way to howl and find our pack. It gives us a way to connect and explore new interests in ways that are far-reaching and previously impossible. It gives us a way to unite, collaborate, and innovate in extraordinary, immediate ways.
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
Serendipity is a wonderful thing, ain’t it.You are such a beautiful writer – really enjoyed the most recent post about the artist whose print you purchased recently…Why are you not writing a book, Christa!!Your fan, Phyllis R. Neill, http://www.shementor.com
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Hi Phyllis,Thank you so much for your comment. You reading my blog means so much to me! I’m getting to work on that book :)-Christa
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