In this episode of Rise + Rebel Podcast, Aya Hojadova sits down with Doug Hamilton, founder of CharlestonHacks, for a conversation about AI, hackathons, creative experimentation, community-building, and the future of Charleston’s tech ecosystem.

Doug shares why CharlestonHacks exists, what makes hackathons such powerful spaces for learning and connection, and why Charleston has a unique opportunity to become a place where builders, creatives, entrepreneurs, developers, and curious people can come together to create.

Together, Aya and Doug explore the rise of AI, how it is changing what it means to build, why human fundamentals still matter, and how low-pressure spaces like show-and-tell events can help people externalize ideas, receive honest feedback, and take the first step.

This conversation is for anyone who has an idea, feels intimidated by technology, or wants to understand how community, creativity, and AI can work together to help people build what they are here to create.

Subscribe to Rise + Rebel Podcast for conversations on creativity, entrepreneurship, identity, technology, transformation, visibility, and becoming who you were always meant to be.

Join the Rise + Rebel world:
risewithaya.com/start-here

Learn more about CharlestonHacks:
www.CharlestonHacks.com

Connect with Doug Hamilton:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/doug-hamilton-61517b2b/

In this solo episode of Rise + Rebel Podcast, Aya Hoja reflects on how AI has helped her organize her creativity, build faster, and turn scattered ideas into real execution across podcasting, newsletters, commercial real estate, Rise + Rebel Shop, brand strategy, content, and business planning.

This is not an episode about AI replacing the human voice. It is about using AI as a thinking partner while staying connected to your intuition, taste, lived experience, relationships, and creative source.

Because AI can help build the bridge, but the human still has to walk across it.

Subscribe to Rise + Rebel Podcast for conversations on creativity, entrepreneurship, identity, personal growth, visibility, intuition, and becoming who you were always meant to be.

Join the Rise + Rebel world:
risewithaya.com/start-here

In this episode of Rise + Rebel Podcast, Aya sits down with Woody Harris to talk about Welcome Home Burn, burn culture, integration, ritual, music, community, shadow work, play, and what it means to come back to yourself after stepping outside of the default world.

Woody is a therapist, clinical supervisor, podcaster, music lover, geek enthusiast, Deadhead, gamer, and now, a burner. With over 35 years of studying psychology and almost 20 years as a therapist, Woody brings a thoughtful, deeply human lens to the burn experience.

Together, Aya and Woody reflect on what it feels like to enter a temporary community, how each burn carries its own medicine, and why these spaces can become mirrors for our boundaries, joy, discomfort, grief, freedom, and personal growth.

We talk about Welcome Home Burn, the effigy burn, integration, enchantment withdrawal, volunteering, radical inclusion, gifting, play, the power of music, and the difference between consuming an experience and helping co-create it.

Woody also shares a powerful reflection on the burn as an experiment in community, ritual, alchemy, and reconnection. We explore what it means to bring the lessons of the burn back into the default world, rather than leaving them behind when the event ends.

This episode is for anyone who has ever felt changed by a temporary space, a powerful community, a ritual, a dance floor, a fire, or a moment that reminded them who they really are.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Welcome Home Burn and burn culture
• What integration feels like after a burn
• Enchantment withdrawal and returning to the default world
• Burns as medicine, mirrors, and rituals
• The effigy burn and releasing what no longer serves
• Shadow work, boundaries, authenticity, and personal growth
• Music, dancing, play, and emotional alchemy
• Volunteering, gifting, and co-creating community
• Radical inclusion, participation, and open-heartedness
• How to bring the burn back into everyday life

To connect and learn more about Woody Harris, check out his website here: https://dafostherapy.com/

Subscribe to Rise + Rebel Podcast for conversations on identity, creativity, transformation, courage, community, and becoming who you were always meant to be.