celebration, change, opportunity

Leap: What I’m Thinking About on My Birthday – Kiefer Sutherland and Gandhi

Christa Avampato

“You have to work on opportunity’s watch and not your own.” ~ Keifer Sutherland

“The difference between what we are doing and what we are capable of doing would solve most of the world’s problems.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

36 today, and what’s on my mind? Kiefer Sutherland and Gandhi. Odd mix, you say? Perhaps, but here’s their glaring resemblance: they are men of opportunity.

Kiefer Sutherland was recently interviewed by Jay Leno about his new TV show, Touch. He didn’t want to take the job and hoped he would hate the script. Unfortunately, he fell in love with it and couldn’t turn it down. The story was too powerful and he knew he’d be kicking himself if he passed on being the one to tell it. We don’t always get to choose when we make a leap; sometimes, the leap chooses us.

Gandhi was also a man of opportunity. He saw injustice happening in his own life and to many others all around him. He couldn’t watch it anymore without throwing all of his efforts into change. He knew he could do more and that his efforts would make a difference. We revere Gandhi today as super-human, but he wasn’t. He was a person just like you and me, and with so much passion for his cause that he had to pursue it. He knew he could be the change.

I’ve firmly set the date for when I’ll be leaving my current job in pursuit of my own passions – Compass Yoga, my writing, and a public education project called Innovation Station that I have been crafting for several years. People have asked me how it feels to be leaving my stable job in pursuit of my own projects, and I have to admit that I don’t think of this change as leaving my job. I think of it as reaching up into the sky and pulling my dreams down to Earth. This is work I have to do that’s good for me and good for the world. I’m running to something that I must do, not running away from something that I can’t do anymore.

Today is a birthday for me on 2 levels – a celebration of 36 years of living and learning and another celebration of being reborn into the life I’m building of my own design. And I feel like the luckiest person on the planet for this opportunity. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day to all!

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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/

9 thoughts on “Leap: What I’m Thinking About on My Birthday – Kiefer Sutherland and Gandhi”

  2. dear and divine Christa….. like in a compass ….. the needle always align towards north so is our inner being towards our purpose of life ….. what you have doing up to now also is a part of the training to fulfill your dream ….. my best wishes and happy birthday ……with love and blessing ….. love all.

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