Episodes
Jan. 16, 2022
551: Chad Foster, part 4: Flying to skiing, but not camping in the back yard
In this episode we talk about how to lead people, but I can't help notice on listening afterward how quick and easy it is for him to fly his whole family across the country several times a season, but impossible to pitch a t…
Jan. 14, 2022
550: Rick Ridgeway: A Life Lived Wild: K2, Everest, and places no human had seen
Prepare to be awed at Rick's stories of adventure, discovery, nature, and humanity. He has summited K2, Everest, and more. He's visited places possibly no other human has. And he's an experienced, brilliant storyteller, so s…
Jan. 11, 2022
549: Abdal Hakim Murad, part 2: High and low tech in the new green mosque in Cambridge, UK
Many people and mainstream society seem to view technology as the solution to our environmental problems---and the more and the newer the better. Abdal Hakim and I agree technology isn't the glowing solution many believe. It…
Jan. 8, 2022
548: Erik Bottcher, part 1: a New York City politician awesome enough to pick up litter
Erik Bottcher is my elected legislator. New York City's council presides over a budget bigger than most countries'. Yet I met him picking up litter. He organized weekly clean-ups when the city dropped its sanitation budget d…
Jan. 7, 2022
547: Michael Carlino, part 4: What does Christian scripture say about population?
Michael is becoming a regular. Would I have expected an extended conversation with a doctoral candidate at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary when I started? I don't think so, and I don't think many environmentalists …
Jan. 5, 2022
546: Maxine Bédat, part 2: Systemic Change Begins With Personal Change
Maxine shares her experience with her commitment across the country. She moved partly to enable living by her values. People often suggest it's easier for someone living in New York not to fly since I have access to so much …
Dec. 28, 2021
545: Jesse Eisinger: Pulitzer-Prize winning investigative reporter for Propublica
How do you become one of the premier investigative journalists at one of the premier publishers of investigative journalism? In general, how do you excel in an area with no established path? I consider figuring out how essen…
Dec. 24, 2021
544: Michael Carlino, part 3: What would Jesus do with an iPhone?
Michael shares about avoiding using a smart phone, or at least using a minimally functional smart phone. Do you remember what life was like without yours? What does solitude mean to you? How much time do you spend on a smart…
Dec. 21, 2021
543: Hilary Link, part 1: a college president leading her school to carbon neutrality
Allegheny College was one of the first 10 institutions of higher education in the United States to be declared carbon neutral by an organization called Second Nature. Readers of my blog know my skepticism of claims of "net z…
Dec. 17, 2021
542: Chad Foster, part 3: Experiencing nature, people, and sex without sight
Chad shares his experience motivating his family to try to bring them camping with him. You'll hear they didn't make it easy. I couldn't resist asking questions about his experience of nature, people, and sex without sight. …
Dec. 15, 2021
541: My "rant" on "People want to act, Josh, but it's hard"
"People want to act, but it's hard," my business friend said to me, speaking on the environment. I said it to myself for most of my life before learning that acting on the environment, however hard, was fun. Raising a child …
Dec. 13, 2021
540: Blake Haxton, part 3: Exploring nature from a wheelchair with a shotgun
Blake shares his results about acting on his commitments from last time. He couldn't work much with rowing with temperatures barely above freezing, but he could act on his diet. He also dusted off an old habit of shooting, w…
Dec. 10, 2021
539: Katharine Hayhoe: Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World
I've been following Katharine for years. If you don't know of her, after our conversation, watch her TED talk and read her book, Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World . It comprises de…
Dec. 8, 2021
538: How much should I reduce my pollution? How many slaves should Thomas Jefferson have freed?
Here are the notes I read from for this episode: Will hit 70 next week. Dawning on people what has dawned on what we now call the global south, that the projections are more serious than they internalized. That their world i…
Dec. 7, 2021
537: Nate Hochman, part 1: Toward a Conservative Environmentalism
I met Nate on Citizens Climate Lobby panel on conservatives and climate, then read his National Review piece, Toward a Conservative Environmentalism, which we talk about in this conversation. I've looked forward to a convers…
Nov. 30, 2021
536: David Pogue: How to Prepare for Climate Change: A Practical Guide to Surviving the Chaos
Two great reasons to listen to this episode. First, David is a tremendous science communicator. He's experienced, thoughtful, funny, and communicates simply without dumbing down. He's worked with some of the most important s…
Nov. 29, 2021
535: The best sledding hill in the world, Tommy's Hill in Philadelphia (from my third TEDx talk)
NOTE: I recommend watching the video of this episode , not just listening to the audio. What does the environment mean to you? We are motivated by what's in our hearts more than facts or numbers so I believe we will act more…
Nov. 27, 2021
534: Mom, part 2: Opportunity and oppression: race and religion in my childhood
I recorded my second conversation with my mom about my childhood and before during the pandemic, in the spring of 2020. Shortly after recording our first conversation , which covered race, George Floyd was murdered. You know…
Nov. 24, 2021
533: Laura Coe, part 3: The Nature of Love
Longtime listeners will remember Laura from episodes 192 and 209 , over two years ago. Her book, Emotional Obesity , made a big effect on me, as did her warmth and move from success in tech entrepreneurship to her podcast, T…
Nov. 22, 2021
532: Michael Lenox, part 3: How to Decarbonize the Global Economy by 2050
At last, a conversation with a knowledgeable economist! Longtime listeners remember Michael here after his last book. He just published a new one, The Decarbonization Imperative: Transforming the Global Economy by 2050 . His…
Nov. 19, 2021
531: Scott White, part 1: The Founder/CEO of an Energy Company on Sustainability
Two of this podcast's top goals are To bring leaders to share and act on their environmental values, from any area, but especially polluting fields To help change culture from expecting sustainability is a chore or burden to…
Nov. 17, 2021
Cassiano Laureano, part 2: Burpees for the body, banzai tree for the heart and mind
Cassiano's first episode led to more listener comments than most. People loved his enthusiasm. I find guys who know martial arts tend to speak with a security. The opposite of insecure or desperate. So I think people found h…
Nov. 16, 2021
529: Katie Redford, part 2: No distractions. Keeping oil in the ground.
I see exactly two highest priorities for material goals to restore Earth's ability to sustain life. One is keeping fossil fuels in the ground. Down there it's safe. Above ground, it's poison and deadly. However clear and str…
Nov. 10, 2021
528: Don't Bother With Stewardship. It Makes Your Life Worse. Especially If You're American.
I've meant to record this episode for a while, as the idea of saying "fuck it," not trying, forgetting about the future and my effect on others, and enjoying what our society offers seems everyone else's choice. So I'm going…