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The Good Road

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THE GOOD ROAD is an innovative, inspiring documentary series about two best friends who travel the world meeting philanthropists and change-makers, who have dedicated their lives to addressing global humanitarian issues. From depressed inner-city neighborhoods, to border camps for refugees, to rural health clinics, hosts Earl Bridges and Craig Martin explore efforts to help Rohingya refugees, stop elephant poaching, end human trafficking, alleviate poverty, and more.

Episodes:

• Havana, Cuba - Cuba Inc.

  A recent change in Cuban Law has made privately held corporations a possibility for the first time since the Revolution. We learn about the unique challenges of entrepreneurship in Cuba while exploring its deep cultural roots. From Cigars to dried fruit and Afro-Cuban hair products Cuba is undergoing an explosion of growth in the private sector.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Dec 27th, 2024 at 1:00 AM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• Bangkok, Thailand: River of Change

  Earl Bridges and Craig Martin are introduced as co-hosts of The Good Road. They invite viewers, they call "do-gooders," to explore change-makers in the world of philanthropy. Returning to their "hometown" of Bangkok, the show starts with nostalgia and noodles as they recall their childhood in the city. Next, Craig and Earl take a train to Ayutthaya, exploring Thai history, and the importance of the Chao Phraya river. They then visit an illegal community along the river called Klong Toey, and discover many good things happening amidst the poverty that abounds. Earl spends the day with the founder and namesake of the Duang Prateep Foundation and learns the many reasons that living in the Klong Toey slum is so difficult. But, he also learns how Duang Prateep is making a difference in the lives of the residents. Meanwhile, Craig explores one of the foundation's Thai kick-boxing youth programs and learns first-hand what it's like to get his butt kicked in the ring. From there it's on to Wat Paknam, one of Bangkok's most unique Buddhist temples. The duo is led around by monk Phra Pandit Bhikkhu to learn a little about the way of life and culture of a Buddhist monk. This wry monk of British origins has unique perspectives on the way of the Buddha against the backdrop of this sacred space. At day's end, Earl and Craig wind up back on the river to learn about the Thai government's plans to install a 50-kilometer promenade along the river. Mr. Yossapon Boonsom, founder of the Friends of the River (an activist group hoping to raise awareness around the promenade), takes the two on a tour and explains the potentially devastating effects that the promenade will have for residents living along the Chao Phraya. This journey leads viewers through Bangkok, a city of beauty and intrigue. It also explores what it means to engage in one's local community in a positive way regardless of formal occupation, religious affiliation or economic status.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Dec 27th, 2024 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:26
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Chyulu Hills, Kenya: Big Life in the Wild

  Earl and Craig embark on an adventure that starts in Nairobi, Kenya and ends at a wildlife ranger base in a remote region of the Chyulu Hills. The Good Road team joins a convoy of land rovers and motorcycles helmed by TED Fellow Erik Hersman and his fellow BRCK co-founders on this grand expedition. BRCK is a for-profit tech company based in Nairobi with the mission to provide free internet access across the continent of Africa. BRCK is attempting to solve all kinds of different problems and create new opportunities for anyone in remote areas ignored by big internet service providers. First stop on the expedition was the Big Life Foundation HQ, an Anti-Poaching organization where we met up with Craig Millar. Craig was made famous through the documentary film ​The Ivory Game, but, more importantly, he is an anti-poaching security chief for the Big Life Foundation. Flying a prop plane to work and chasing elephant poachers is Craig's daily routine. Craig toured us through the park which led to a memorable encounter with the world's largest elephant, Tim. After getting a sense of the work Big Life Foundation does, Craig and Earl follow BRCK to a remote anti-poaching camp where rangers from the Big Life Foundation and Kenyan Wildlife Service track animals and monitor poachers eager to kill and profit from elephants and black rhinos. The BRCK team installs hardware and software to provide the rangers fast and accessible internet access where it had been impossible before. After going on patrol with the rangers there is word of an incident and the arrest of a poacher. Craig and Earl discover that the issue of poaching isn't as clean cut as you might imagine. It is a matter of life and death not just for the animals but also for the poor, desperate farmers protecting their farms or just trying to eat. The episode concludes at sunset on a plain with Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance with "sundowners" (A Kenyan tradition the whole group can get behind). Earl, Craig, the BRCK team and the rangers chat about what is possible through combining modern technology with anti-poaching efforts in the information age.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Jan 3rd, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:25
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Alabama Village, Alabama: Light of the Village

  Earl Bridges and Craig Martin travel to Alabama Village, a small community only a few miles outside of Mobile, but seemingly worlds apart. It is an impoverished and often violent community largely ignored by the world around it. But not by everyone... while there, Craig and Earl meet John and Dolores (D-Lo) Eads. John and D-Lo have a community center and church called ​Light of the Village. In their 15 years serving the people of Alabama Village and the surrounding communities they have buried more than 30 of the young people who have been through their program due to gun violence. This is a violent, desperately poor community surrounded by drugs, crime, and few legitimate work opportunities. And yet with the suthe port of Light of the Village program people like Jesse Darrington have a chance at escaping the cycles of crime and violence. The Good Road team follows the life of Jesse as he makes his way through his senior year of high school and out of Alabama Village. Along the way, they meet Da'Cino Dees. Da'Cino is a role model for Jesse who explains what it's like to grow up in "The Village" and why it's important for Jesse to leave. The road out wasn't easy for Jesse though and along the way he loses the most important person in his life, his mother, to the same violence he is trying to escape. Craig and Earl are genuinely worried about what will happen to Jesse during this most trying time. Then, Jesse and the other youth of Light of the Village show true compassion by turning their attention to those even less fortunate than they are. They volunteer and then raise money for a mission trip doing philanthropic work in the poor Mexican border-town of Ciudad ​Juarez​. This is a big moment for Jesse, and after returning home, and with the support of Da'Cino, John, and Delores, Jesse becomes the first in his family to graduate High School, and take the first real steps towards a college education.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Jan 10th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:26
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Zanzibar Archipelago, Tanzania: Islands of Isolation

  In this episode, Earl and Craig are back with the BRCK team as they bring WiFi to several small, remote Islands in the Zanzibar Archipelago. After an overnight journey from Kenya on an ancient wooden sailboat the The Good Road and BRCK teams land on a sandy beach at dawn where they off-load their supplies (and motorcycles). They have arrived on Pemba Island. After setting up camp, they make for a lighthouse at the highest point on the island. The BRCK team is combining technology it has created to support a small weather station to be installed here. It is to provide local fishermen with hyper-local up to the minute weather information that most people take for granted. Craig and Earl talk to the lighthouse caretaker and he explains how weather information in any ocean-faring effort is critical for commerce and can even save lives. Next, they head off to an even smaller, more remote Island several hours sail from Pemba. Once there, BRCK sets up an internet access point for a community with no previous internet access. In addition, they provide the one local school with a BRCK developed ruggedized tablet education system. This has the potential to solve a myriad of problems often found in emerging economy classrooms and the children at the school take to it immediately. Before returning to Pemba, the BRCK and Good Road teams overcome a number of obstacles (one of which is a lack of generator fuel!) to connect a Title 1 school in Nashville to the school on Kakota via the internet. Youth from an underprivileged American school and a remote Tanzanian school get to connect to each other in a way not possible without technology. After returning to Pemba, the team enjoys one more sunset together while discussing the implications and importance of bringing the Internet to places like Pemba and Kakota.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Jan 17th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:25
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Bangkok, Thailand: The Big House.... of Blessing

  The Good Road returns to Craig and Earl's hometown of Bangkok and end up in the 2nd largest maximum-security prison in all of Thailand. Luckily, it's by invitation. They receive a rare tour of the grounds as well as the cells before speaking to a Thai prisoner about what daily life is like in a Thai prison. Afterwards, they discover, amongst other things, a unique approach to vocational training and pre-release development at the prison. Access to Klong Prem prison is limited, especially for video crews from the West. But, Craig's dad, Jack Martin, worked in Thai prisons for decades. He started a prison ministry that helped prepare prisoners for life after prison. The program helped Jack establish friendships that would pay off for generations. Craig and Earl connect with Jack's mentee, Acharn Soonthorn, who has furthered the work and expanded the program- even inspiring prison officials to create similar, but secular, programs of their own. After reconnecting, Mr. Soonthorn takes Craig and Earl on a tour of the organization he helped to create around the prison ministry, the House of Blessing. It is a transitional facility that Soonthorn directs that helps recently released prisoners and the families of prisoners as they deal with the many problems and stages of incarceration in Thailand. The facility also supports ex-prisoners as they cope with the difference between life inside and outside of prison. House of Blessing provides education, childcare and continued vocational programs for those prisoners and ex-prisoners who most need it. Viewers will hear the redemptive stories of ex-convicts often ignored or rejected in Thai society because of their criminal past. This episode explores the benefits of a unique partnership between the primarily Buddhist bureaucrats of the Thai government and the Christian ministry started by Craig's father.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Jan 24th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:25
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Nairobi, Kenya: The Power of Story

  In this episode, The Good Road explores the impact storytelling can have on the youth of underprivileged communities in Nairobi, Kenya. Craig and Earl hear the story of a leading technologist and designer, Mark Kamau (recently featured in National Geographic Magazine). Mark grew up in Matheri Slum in Nairobi but through a surprising series of events, he was able to escape the crime and poverty surrounding him and build a new life. But Mark wasn't content with keeping his new life for himself. He takes Craig and Earl back to Matheri to meet some of his old friends and to meet some of the youth he mentors. Mark dreams of everyone in Matheri getting the same opportunities he had and his story acts as a model for that next generation to rise above their circumstances. In another part of the city Craig and Earl then meet Ken Oloo, one of the founders of Filamujuani. Filamujuani's primary goal is to support underprivileged young people by training them how to become professionals in the TV and Film industry. Much like Mark, Ken also grew up in the slums and his story shows that next generation what is possible. For many, storytelling is a means of survival in Nairobi. And by helping people from the slums tell their own stories, Ken is giving a whole new generation a voice. One example of this is Ijawa Obeid. The Good Road meets her on the production set of the popular East African TV comedy One in a Million (kind of the Kenyan equivalent of The Beverly Hillbillies). Ijawa works as the Assistant Director for the show and many of the show's crew members came up through Ken's program. Ijawa invites Craig and Earl to her home in the Kibera slums where the team gets to hear what her daily life is like before hearing the amazing story of her adopted son, whom Ijawa literally rescued from exposure in the streets of Kibera.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Jan 31st, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:26
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Mbale, Uganda: Five Years If You're Lucky

  There are so many heroes in the world of philanthropy and The Good Road crew learns so much from these heroes. In this episode, Earl Bridges and Craig Martin meet two such heroes in the eastern part of Uganda. Their journey to find them begins in a Matatu that takes them through the Ugandan countryside to a series of geographic gems like the "source of the Nile". But after a long journey they arrive at their true destination- the Mbale Regional Referral Hospital. Once there, they meet up with an amazing couple, Kathy Bourgoine and Adam Hewitt-Smith, and their daughters Eseld and Lowenna. Despite the fact that Kathy (a neonatologist) and Adam (an anesthesiologist) could be crushing it back in London, UK where they are from, they have decided to live and work in this remote city of Uganda not making a dime from their labors. And contrary to what you might think, they're not doing it for Jesus. They're both self-avowed atheists who are simply doing it for the people whose lives they change. They are do-gooders because doing good is the right thing to do. Kathy's work in the NICU and Adam's work in the hospital is saving lives, but the work is hard and stressful and takes its toll on their children. Earl and Craig explore Kathy and Adam's inspiring and at times heartbreaking world and discover all kinds of bizarre, funny, and interesting Ugandan cultural details along the way.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Feb 7th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:26
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Yangon, Myanmar: Punk Rock Buddha

  This episode finds Earl and Craig back on the road in Southeast Asia in the former capital of one of the most politically controversial countries in the region, Myanmar. War, genocide, and conflict have raged in this country dominated by ethnic struggle for decades. But beyond the headlines there are powerful stories of unexpected heroes like Burmese punk rocker Kyaw Thu Win or Kyaw Kyaw (pronounced Joe Joe). Based out of Yangon, Kyaw Kyaw fronts a punk rock band called The Rebel Riot. But when he's not performing under a bridge with rented instruments he and his band are working hard to help street kids through food distributions and education/reading projects. He and his punk rock friends run the local chapter of Food not Bombs in their effort to do something about the people caught in the cracks of global conflict. What starts as an "off the beaten path" glimpse of the city of Yangon on the colonial era circular train turns into an exciting romp around one of the most interesting cities in the world. Craig and Earl tag along with Kyaw Kyaw and crew for a slice of life experience from tea-houses, and DIY screen printing co-ops, to Pirate Bars and Punk Shops. Only to see that the punks of Yangon find real meaning in helping communities in need. Do-gooders get a first-hand look at The Rebel Riot's philanthropic work from downtown Yangon to semi-legal villages on the outskirts of the city only reachable by ferry. Craig and Earl also reconnect with an old friend and Burmese refugee Hnin Hnin Pyne. Her unique perspective on the city and love of fish soup provides just the insight they need. Kyaw Kyaw and his bandmates cap off the episode by treating Craig, Earl and the crew to a world of beauty, wonder and Buddhist history at the Golden Rock Temple hours outside of Yangon. The highlight is a pagoda built on a rock that seemingly hovers at the edge of a cliff hanging atop the Kyaiktiyo Hill in Mon State.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Feb 14th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:27:26
  Usage rights:	4/6/2022 to 4/5/2026

• Richmond, Virginia: Hidden In Plain Sight

  After the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, the city of Richmond, Virginia -- former capital of the Confederacy -- became a focus of international attention. Earl Bridges and Craig Martin speak with influential members of the community who are hoping to bridge the gap of racial inequality and negativity. Dontrese Brown, a young, networked black entrepreneur shared his Hidden in Plain Site project (HiPS) which marries 360 video with historic images to shed light on famous and infamous sights in Richmond. Curator Valerie Oliver at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts talks about the impact and importance of Kehinde Wiley's iconic statue, "Rumors of War" a hip-hop inspired replica of the J.E.B. Stuart statue, and the renaming of The Boulevard to Arthur Ashe Boulevard. The purpose of these alterations is to set aside old and painful reminders of Richmond's slave past, embracing a positive era of racial reconciliation and hope.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Feb 21st, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:00
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• Charleston, S.C.: Voice As Freedom

  The loal free and independent press has become marginalized by national news sources conglomerated along political and ideological lines, and many have been under attack for asking hard questions. Earl Bridges and Craig Martin meet up with Adam Parker, a journalist at the Charleston Post and Courier, the oldest daily news source in the South. They explore Charleston's race relations, religion and government, and discuss the fate of journalism and the role of journalists to make positive societal change. In 2018, the New York Times reported on the Charleston Rifle Club and their refusal to admit Dr. Melvin Brown, who would have been the first black member, after Adam broke the story locally. Conversations with Dr. Brown and Toby Smith of the Mcleod Plantation's African American Experience of plantations provide further insight into racial inequities and the negative impact of revisionist histories. Earl and Craig also sit down with Ricky Dennis, one of a handful of black journalists at the Post and Courier. Ricky and his mentor Adam Parker address past issues but also provide a way forward. The hope for progressive and positive change lies not only in stories told by independent news outlets, but also in a new, diverse mix of reporters telling those stories.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Feb 28th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:25:59
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• San Juan, Puerto Rico: After The Storm

  For weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico in September of 2017, many families were left without any communication. Meteorologist Ada Monzon walks with Earl Bridges along the beach of one of the hardest hit communities, Loiza, to explain the aftermath, and her role in keeping people informed. Then, Craig Martin and Earl meet with Major League Baseball Hall of Famer, Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, who partnered up with Raul Rodriguez and the Cagua Criollos baseball franchise to help the community in Cagua. They provided all kinds of assistance including food and water despite the intense damage suffered by Criollos stadium, an iconic Puerto Rican venue. Pudge also toured Craig and Earl around his Pudge Coffee farm in his hometown of Vega Baja where the priority has been to get coffee farmers back in business. Casa Pueblo in the mountain town of Adjuntas is a community organization famous for winning the coveted Goldman Environmental Prize. Director Arturo Massol-Deya continues the mission and focus of his parents Tinti Deyá Diaz and Alexis Massol Gonzalez, Casa Pueblo's founders. They support the town of Adjuntas through their farms, radio station, medical labs and solar cinema. After Hurricane Maria hit, Casa Pueblo was one of the only places on the island that didn't lose power because of their solar infrastructure.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Mar 7th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:00
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• Hyderabad, India: One in a Billion

  Earl Bridges and Craig Martin travel to Hyderabad, India to meet up with Earl's old college friend, Harish Mamtani. Harish runs a private school designed to help underprivileged students who are eager to learn with a better education than can be received elsewhere in the community. Coming from an entrepreneurial background, Harish knows that innovation is the key to making possible the overwhelming task of providing effective education to students in poor communities. Craig and Earl also visit Hyderabad's historic Golconda Fort and Charminar Mosque, as The Good Road team steps back in time to India's ancient history. And, of course, they indulge in some of the best street food Hyderabad has to offer. Later, on a walk through a top rated private school in Richmond, Virginia, Harish explains to Earl why private education in India is critical for the poorest of the poor versus the traditional US model of private education for the wealthy. Harish works hard to provide access to the poor of Hyderabad through private schools, as a necessary supplement to India's public education infrastructure.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Mar 14th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:00
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• On The Burmese Border: Free Burma Ranger

  The Burmese border is home base to an organization called the Free Burma Rangers, headed by Dave Eubank. The Free Burma Rangers serve around the world in combat zones, rescuing civilians from the frontlines of conflict and documenting atrocities in places like Myanmar and Syria. Dave's entire family - his wife and three children - are involved in the work of engaging and helping wounded civilians caught in conflict. Craig Martin and Earl Bridges try to keep up on horseback as they work out with the rangers on the "Ranger Runs" and wading through swamps as they train in Northern Thailand. They learn how challenging and stressful the work is, and how sharing love and hope with desperate people presents a new level of complexity and extreme danger. Currently, the Free Burma Rangers are in the middle of the struggle between military oppression and the regular citizenry of Myanmar. At great risk to their lives, Dave Eubank and his family are proving that love and good cannot just survive but even thrive in the midst of evil and injustice.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Mar 21st, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:00
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• Charleston, South Carolina: Rising Tides

  Precariously positioned between major waterways, rivers and the Atlantic Ocean, Charleston, South Carolina is susceptible to flooding from major storms and even the daily shifting of the tides. This reality complicates everything for businesses and the city's residents, especially those living in poor, historically black neighborhoods. Earl Bridges and Craig Martin have in-depth conversations with people addressing climate change and sustainability, such as Mayor John Tecklenburg. They also venture out on the rich oyster beds with Terrell Brown and his dad, owners of Brown's Oyster Supply. Terrell talks about sustainability and the impact that climate change has had on this generational industry of oyster harvesting. Later, Craig and Earl visit with Latonya Gamble at Eastside Community Development, where Latonya talks about the impact that flooding has had on this struggling community. A visit to Joe Watson and his family-owned Mary's Sweet Shop restores faith in the power of family and community in the face of intense societal and meteorological pressures. Joe shows Earl and Craig the sticky notes and registers of names of many of the poorest of the poor who receive basic needed food and milk for free with a promissory note to pay Joe back when they can.

  Next Airing:	Fri, Mar 28th, 2025 at 8:00 PM on UEN-TV
  Length:	00:26:00
  Usage rights:	1/7/2022 to 1/6/2026

• Asheville, Nc - Downstream

  Earl, Craig and magazine editor Dave Dibenidetto get a left-of-center look into the Asheville food and farm scene by spending the day on the Farm Heritage trail. They meet the folks running heritage and family owned farms that help to bridge the urban / rural divide. We learn the ways in which we're all connected, because everyone is downstream from someone.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• Havana, Cuba - Behind Closed Doors

  Dance, Art, and Music are helping to usher Cuba into a new future. From Instagram savvy dance groups to Art first economic development plans we discover the many innovative ways that Cubans are supporting one another from within this isolated island. Because everything they do is steeped in the resilience and generosity that anchors their heritage and culture.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• Miami, Fl - Little Haiti Healers

  We explore Miami's Little Haiti and the experiences of the Haitian Diaspora through art, culture, food and the Little Haiti Cultural Complex as they aid refugees in their effort to build a new home in America. Vegan Healers, artists, and a Miami Herald reporter help us understand this complicated country and teach us what Haiti has to offer.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• Northern Iraq & Istanbul - Iraqi Freedom

  The Good Road explores religious freedom and pluralism in a region haunted by violence and trauma. We hear personal stories of resilience and survival and meet a reporter in Istanbul, Turkey who has covered the region for decades. What do a Bahai, a Christian, and an atheist all have in common in a predominantly Muslim country? They all believe in the future of Iraq for everyone.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• Nyc - Liquid Na Courage

  Craig and Earl explore the lower east side through the lens of Craig's personal sobriety journey. Their guides are three creative women for whom wellness and mental health involve writing, dance, and exploration. From discussing sober sex to voguing for pride month and a non-alcoholic elixir bar... The Good Road is on the wagon.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• St. Croix, Charleston, Asheville - Bees!

  Bees are critical to food production across the world. Bees are also dying off at an alarming rate. We journey from Earl's little beehive in downtown Charleston to Honeyman's 100's of hives on the island of St. Croix, USVI and end up at The Honey Bee Research Center in Asheville. We learn more about Bees than we knew you could and meet some of the folks fighting for their existence.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

• St. Thomas, Uvi - Rock City Kids

  Julius "The Chef" Jackson is a household name in St. Thomas, and comes from a Caribbean boxing dynasty. We discover how he, and his world champion father Julian Jackson, give back to the island that gave them so much.

  Length:	00:26:46
  Usage rights:	11/1/2024 to 9/30/2026

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