Episodes
Jan. 28, 2019
126: Col. Everett Spain, part 2: West Point’s Head of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership
Would you expect the army to change sooner or later than other institutions---say business, traditional education, or non-profits? Col. Spain committed to using less plastic bottled water for 30 days. He reduced his typical …
Jan. 27, 2019
125: Ann-Marie Heidingsfelder, part 2: Balancing priorities
I learned a lot in this conversation. That's a euphemism for it being challenging for me, since her values and working style differs from mine. You'll probably hear me struggling to listen and learn her experience and perspe…
Jan. 23, 2019
124: Guilt Free
Before acting on my environmental values, I felt guilty and helpless. I didn't like those feelings. All the analyzing, raising awareness, and planning, I now look back and see that I was occupying my mind, making busy work f…
Jan. 22, 2019
123: Dave Gardner: Busting the Growth Myth
Dave saw the problems with growth to local communities, the national economy, the global economy, and the environment. He questioned the the nearly unquestioned belief that growth is good, especially GDP and population growt…
Jan. 21, 2019
122: Rosa Parks and Acting on Your Environmental Values
Lately, I've thought of people who say they can't avoid plastic bags, bottles, flying. I suggest just declining, but they say they can't. Saying no reminds me of Rosa Parks. She said no. She didn't just act on her own as the…
Jan. 20, 2019
121: Minimalism should be called Maximalism
People see my apartment and often describe me or my lifestyle as minimalist. I don't like labeling people or being labeled, but if anything, a more apt label would be maximalist . You might see the lack of stuff, but my focu…
Jan. 17, 2019
120: Rules for plogging in New York City
If you haven't started plogging, I recommend it. What's plogging? It's a term the Swedish created for picking up garbage when you run. I've picked up at least one piece of trash per day for a few years. In fact, this podcast…
Jan. 17, 2019
119: Heroin and the Environment
A friend who treats opioid addicts told me about the squalor they live in. They don't see it because they're thinking about their next hit, which will bring them euphoria. They'll steal and prostitute themselves to maintain …
Jan. 13, 2019
118: Beth Comstock 2: Action creates awareness
"To start, I need to build awareness." Who hasn't said that about polluting less? It seems the standard starting point. On the contrary, it's the standard delay tactic. In a world where environmental issues are front page ne…
Jan. 10, 2019
117: Jeffrey Madoff: Creative Careers: Making a Living With Your Ideas
Jeff teaches a class in making a living through a creative life. I've sat in on his class for years for his interviews and the guests. I don't need more formal education. Look at some of the people he's interviewed Ralph Lau…
Jan. 9, 2019
116: Michael O'Heaney, part 2: Less plastic, less stuff, more fun, more family
First, if you haven't watched Story of Stuff , as much as I love my podcast, watch the videos from the organization Michael O'Heaney leads---the Story of Stuff . You'll hear that simple things he could have always done are a…
Jan. 8, 2019
115: Sandy Reisky, part 2: A Superbowl Ad to reduce consumption
First, watch the video Sandy made through Generation 180 , the nonprofit he started to promote reducing consumption. His for-profit companies are already responsible for significant increases in solar, wind, and other renewa…
Jan. 7, 2019
114: Dave Asprey: Leading with love
If you're like me, you've heard of Bulletproof coffee. Since I don't drink coffee I didn't think much of it, but since I heard about it, I figured the guy behind it was good at internet marketing. I'd come to hear Dave name.…
Jan. 5, 2019
113: Ann-Marie Heidingsfelder: A conservative voice
You'll love how I met Ann-Marie, a friend whose perspective I value despite not having met in person yet. After the 2016 election, I posted a piece on Inc., If You Voted for Trump, Let's Meet , because living in lower Manhat…
Jan. 1, 2019
112: Bethany McLean, part 1: the Business and People of Fracking
Bethany made her name as the first to report that Enron was overpriced, which meant going deep into the numbers and people, understanding them, and then facing overwhelming criticism. Turns out she was right, but can you ima…
Dec. 27, 2018
111: Marion Nestle: Changing the food system
Marion Nestle is a hero for me. Food may be the greatest interest that got me into acting on my environmental action. Avoiding packaged food emerged from avoiding fiber-removed foods, which emerged from reading Diet for a Sm…
Dec. 26, 2018
110: Geoffrey West, part 3: Using science to create a vision for the future
My third conversation with Geoff covers using his research to figure out what to do. I start with a few questions on how to create a vision for the future based on his research. Can we change our growth trajectory, currently…
Dec. 20, 2018
109: Flying and Polluting Helps Elect Trump
This episode is for people who detest Trump. I'll speak to people who love him in future episodes. If you pollute and emit greenhouse emissions beyond the IPCC recommendations, which one round-trip cross country coach flight…
Dec. 19, 2018
108: Awareness Is A Delay Tactic, A Smokescreen
I talk to a lot of people who aren't acting on their environmental values. They explain their inaction in many ways, but one of the top ones is that they claim they first have to raise their awareness or become more consciou…
Dec. 18, 2018
107: Beth Comstock, part 1: Inside the Fortune 5 C-Suite
Beth personifies whom this podcast is designed to showcase: someone whose hard work, risk-taking, and personal challenge brought her to the pinnacle of her craft, which she is willing to share. That is, someone who did what …
Dec. 16, 2018
106: Exploding the Myth that Technology Will Save Us
Many people believe that technology will save many of our environmental problems. I've written and spoken on how making a polluting system more efficient will lead to it polluting more efficiently. My recent cross-country tr…
Nov. 29, 2018
105: Evelina Utterdahl, part 2: A Month Avoiding Plastic!
Evelina said she'd avoid plastic for a month before she could think twice about it. Did she complain or back out? You'll hear in this episode, but the big picture is that instead of giving up, she worked harder. I've spoken …
Nov. 29, 2018
104: Jared Angaza, part 2: Motherhood and Apple Pie
Since appearing on his podcast, he and I have become friends. You can't hear it in this recording, but since meeting on line, I've met him in San Diego, where I stayed in his guest bedroom, meet his family, and cooked my fam…
Nov. 25, 2018
103: Geoffrey West, part 2: theoretical physics and the environment
In our second conversation, Geoffrey and I continue to pursue his unique approach to viewing the environment. I find it fascinating because he approaches the environment from a different direction, but he arrives to the same…