5 Things / Spidey Senses
A Note from Bernadette
This week Patrick and I saw the new Spider-Man film.
Watching it, I kept thinking about how Spider-Man struggles because he's neglected his own needs, putting his community's needs first instead.
Spider-Man strives to embody his loved ones' parting words: "with great power comes great responsibility." I've reflected on what this means as a parent, as a leader, even as a human on this planet. Yes, I have responsibility for others, but also towards myself and to my body. When I take great care of myself, I have so much more to give.
The film gives lessons in trauma response, empathy, and yes, even work-life synergy. Great responsibility starts with ourselves.
I'm cheering you on—
Bernadette
Australia's Census Finally Counts Us
The 2026 Australian Census will ask about gender identity and sexual orientation for the first time. Options include man, woman, non-binary, straight, gay or lesbian, bisexual, and free text, plus the choice to decline.
All responses stay private and de-identified. When you count LGBTQ+ people, you build the case for the health services, housing protections, and policy investment this community has earned all along.
♐️ Ask your HR team whether your own workplace surveys give people room to identify beyond binary checkboxes.
Women's Pro Baseball Makes Its Comeback
The Women's Professional Baseball League played its first game in more than 70 years this weekend in Springfield, Illinois. Maybelle Blair, one of the last living players from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, threw out the first pitch.
Commissioner Justine Siegal, the first woman to coach on an MLB team, built a four-team league with 60 players from 11 countries. ESPN streams all 37 games this season, and each team is named for a trailblazing woman in American history.
♐️ Notice where "there's no market for that" gets said in your own org, then go find the market.
Virginia Restores 60,000 Voters' Rights
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger has restored voting and civil rights to 66,085 people with past felony convictions, reversing a stricter application process set by her predecessor. Those affected can now vote, serve on juries, run for office, and become notaries.
Virginia is one of only three states where a felony conviction permanently strips civil rights unless a governor personally restores them, a provision dating to a 1901 to 1902 constitutional convention designed to suppress Black political participation. A November referendum would make restoration automatic after release.
♐️ Systems built to exclude don't fix themselves. They take someone in power choosing to undo them.
3D Printing Restores Smiles For Free
Connor Gibson is a 22-year-old engineer who taught himself dentistry and 3D printing, then built the first mobile denture lab in the US for Remote Area Medical, a nonprofit that has served more than 1 million patients.
About 72 million American adults lack dental insurance, and Medicare typically doesn't cover dentures, leaving a real gap that Gibson's lab was built to close. His process shrinks delivery from three months to a few hours.
♐️ Ask your benefits team whether dental coverage is actually accessible to your lowest-paid employees, not just offered on paper.
UK Cabinet Hits Gender Parity
New UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham appointed a cabinet that is half women, the first time gender parity has been reached in British political history.
Four of Burnham's cabinet members come from a minority ethnic background, roughly mirroring the UK population. Oxbridge graduates still hold more than half the seats, a reminder that representation at the top doesn't mean the underlying system has changed.
♐️ Representation at the top and structural balance underneath are two different scoreboards. Track both.
Good Vibes to Go & Updates
August is National Black Business Month. Start with businesses you already know, and check out BuyBlack.org to find more.