Episode 200

Celebrating our 200th Episode of Diverse Climate Conversations with A CarbonSessions Buffet

Episode Summary: Join us for a special 200th episode celebration of CarbonSessions!  

We've curated a buffet of standout segments from our extensive library, featuring intimate conversations with world-leading experts, best-selling authors, and everyday people just like you and me.  

Explore these highlights and dive into the full episodes for more inspiring content. 

Segments from the following episodes and speakers: 

-----  

Featuring: 

  • Barbara Orsi (Italy): Founder of Generation Carbon Italy.  
  • Brian Tormey (US): Real estate professional and goat farmer. 
  • César González Fernández (Luxembourg): Co-founder of CSFN. 
  • Dan Slater (UK): Video game digital art student. 
  • Elisa Graf (Germany): Freelance writer and editor. 
  • Hannah Ritchie (Scotland): Data scientist, researcher and best selling-author. 
  • Henk Rogers (US): Co-founder of Tetris and renewable energy advocate. 
  • Imma Lopez (Spain/Scotland): Sommelier, poet, and slow food advocate. 
  • Jason Angel (US): Practitioner of sustainable living and agriculture. 
  • Jenn Swanson (Canada): Minister, coach, and community connector. 
  • Jennifer Myers Chua (Canada): CCO of a conscious distribution company. 
  • Jeremy Côté (Canada): Scientist, athlete, and writer. 
  • Joe Hines (US): Co-host of Solarpunk Life on YouTube. 
  • Jo Petroni (France): Bioclimatic architect. 
  • Joshua Spodek (US): Leadership coach, author and educator. 
  • Kate Field (Australia): Goat farmer, cheese maker and emergency doctor. 
  • Katherine Palmer (US): Aromatherapist and workshop coordinator. 
  • Kristina (US/Prague): Architect and engineer. 
  • Kristy Sharrow (US): Journalist turned marketer. 
  • Leekei Tang (France): Business founder, sustainable development educator and author. 
  • Olabanji Stephens (Nigeria): Creative Director and visual designer. 
  • Rob Slater (UK): Orthodontist and triathlete. 
  • Sam Schuffenecker (US): Golfer and former hockey player. 
  • Seth Godin (US): Change agent and best-selling author. 
  • Steve Heatherington (UK): Podcast coach, producer and alpaca shepherd. 
  • Tania Marien (US): Environmental education professional. 
  • Tonya Downing (US): Digital marketer for small businesses. 

----- 

For more information on the project and to order your copy of the Carbon Almanac (one of Amazon best-selling books of the year!), visit thecarbonalmanac.org 

Want to join in the conversation? 

Visit thecarbonalmanac.org/podcasts and send us a voice message on this episode or any other climate-related ideas and perspectives. 

Don’t Take Our Word For It, Look It Up! 

-----  

The CarbonSessions Podcast is produced and edited by Leekei Tang, Steve Heatherington and Rob Slater. 

Transcript
Speaker:

Hi, I'm Christina.

2

:

I'm from Prague.

3

:

Hi, I'm Jen, and I'm from Canada.

4

:

Hi, I'm Oladunji, and I'm from Nigeria.

5

:

Hello, I'm Liki, and I live in Paris.

6

:

Hi, I'm Brian, and I'm from New York.

7

:

Welcome

8

:

to Carbon Sessions, a podcast with

Carbon Conversations for every day, with

9

:

everyone, from everywhere in the world.

10

:

In our conversations, we share ideas,

Perspectives, questions, and things we

11

:

can actually do to make a difference.

12

:

So don't be shy and join our Carbon

Sessions because it's not too late.

13

:

Welcome to this special 200th

episode of carbon sessions.

14

:

Today we celebrate not just the number.

15

:

But the dedication,

consistency and persistence.

16

:

Of our incredible team and the invaluable

contributions of our amazing guests.

17

:

Reaching 200 episode is

a significant milestone.

18

:

Do you know that there are

over 4 million podcast?

19

:

Well, walled and only a small

fraction make it this far.

20

:

This milestone is a Testament

of our unwavering commitment to

21

:

sharing diverse perspective and

confronting ideas from around the

22

:

globe to address climate change.

23

:

And to try to build a better world.

24

:

We believe that through collective action

and shed knowledge, we can create change.

25

:

Throughout a journey we've tackled

a wide rent of topics, including

26

:

the voices and experiences of

people that are making a difference.

27

:

And to celebrate the small stone.

28

:

We've curated a selection

of Stanhope moments from our

29

:

extensive library of 200 episode.

30

:

I come up believe that I'm

saying 200 episode out loud.

31

:

That just mind boggling..

32

:

So in this episode, you'll

hear intimate conversations.

33

:

With world leading experts

best-selling offers.

34

:

And also everyday people just like

you and me from across the globe.

35

:

Because if you're listening to this show,

We believe that we all all United by our

36

:

commitment to changing the status quo.

37

:

And our carbon sessions, we firmly

believe that everyone can and

38

:

should be part of the conversations.

39

:

About climate change.

40

:

So as we look forward to

future episodes, we invite you.

41

:

Our listeners.

42

:

To join us in this

important conversations.

43

:

Your voice matters.

44

:

And together we can make a difference.

45

:

So Donna's.

46

:

OLABANJI: Hi, I'm ALA Vanji.

47

:

INMA: Hi, I'm Emma.

48

:

And today we are talking

49

:

About something essentially.

50

:

Beautiful

51

:

OLABANJI: Yeah.

52

:

INMA: Ji.

53

:

What is, what is food forest?

54

:

OLABANJI: Um, yeah, so

this is interesting.

55

:

I mean, I just, you know, been learning

about it for a while and it's basically.

56

:

You know, replacing our gardens

are pretty gardens with an actual,

57

:

, ecosystem where we can have shrubs.

58

:

We can have trees, we can have flowers.

59

:

Um, we can plant food as well there,

and that is good on many levels.

60

:

I mean, why not instead

of a garden that is.

61

:

Pretty green.

62

:

And then you have to,

um, you have to mow it.

63

:

Sometimes you have to cut down

flowers and all that stuff.

64

:

You can have a food forest and have

food who doesn't want food, have nice

65

:

INMA: yeah, exactly.

66

:

OLABANJI: fruits and all, all the

cool stuff that comes with it.

67

:

I mean, yeah.

68

:

So pretty much that's what it

69

:

INMA: yeah.

70

:

you can have birds.

71

:

OLABANJI: Yeah.

72

:

INMA: you were saying who

doesn't like a hum hummingbird

73

:

OLABANJI: Yeah.

74

:

INMA: in their, in the backyard.

75

:

So amazing.

76

:

OLABANJI: Who doesn't and, and when we

have a food forest, we create a habitat.

77

:

Those animals, , so now you have bees,

you have birds, you have butterflies

78

:

and you, you know, they're just amazing.

79

:

So you have butterflies.

80

:

Nice, cute little things that

everybody just likes and.

81

:

They're around

82

:

INMA: love butterflies.

83

:

OLABANJI: Yeah.

84

:

They're around you.

85

:

And they also help to crosspollinate.

86

:

I mean, the birds are there.

87

:

They take seeds and you know,

they take them all over the place.

88

:

You have trees, you have

fruits, you have flowers.

89

:

Um, and you have bees, you

have different species of bees.

90

:

You.

91

:

Um, butterflies, birds, just like

you were saying, like who doesn't

92

:

like a hummingbird in their backyard.

93

:

I can't imagine the feeling when you

wake up to a hummingbird, the sound of

94

:

a hummingbird that that's going to be

95

:

so cool.

96

:

And then , you create a chance for carbon

dioxide to be trapped and not go into the

97

:

atmosphere, which is one of the critical

reasons we're having this conversation.

98

:

INMA: apparently cutting, the, , the loan

is one of the things that I wouldn't think

99

:

about it, but apparently it gets quite.

100

:

a lot of carbon in the atmosphere.

101

:

OLABANJI: it does.

102

:

, I think I read a study that says, okay,

if you do the plus and minus of the

103

:

carbon that goes into maintaining the

lawn and the gardens, and then the carbon

104

:

that it traps, it's not equivalent.

105

:

Right.

106

:

It's as good as boring you something.

107

:

And then I come take it back

eventually because you plant.

108

:

To take the carbon, but then you come

with a lawnmower to, to take it out.

109

:

You have fertilizers and water system

and all that stuff that have really huge

110

:

carbon footprints to maintain the gardens.

111

:

So it's as good as it's

not effective at all.

112

:

It's not any use.

113

:

.

INMA: And I, we were talking Jen and myself.

114

:

We were talking the other day

about leaf blow that blew my

115

:

mind because I had no idea.

116

:

Well, first of all, I had no idea.

117

:

People use those things.

118

:

and secondly, uh, together with the,

with the long, owners are really,

119

:

really, \ , taking back whatever \ that

is beneficial for, for the atmosphere.

120

:

OLABANJI: Yeah.

121

:

Yeah.

122

:

it's been 18 months since you've started

working on the Carbon Almanac product

123

:

and almost nine or 10 months since

the carbon arm neck was published.

124

:

What do you think is going well and

what do you think is going not so well?

125

:

Oh boy.

126

:

So much to cover.

127

:

Okay.

128

:

So the world has an epidemic of

loneliness and we also have an

129

:

epidemic of, uh, following the place

where we live, leaving behind a

130

:

mess for other people to clean up.

131

:

And they're sort of relating.

132

:

And one of the things that I

discovered is that the internet is

133

:

a fine place to meet caring people.

134

:

To make connections that could last

a lifetime, that the internet enables

135

:

you to look at somebody who's only one

inch by one inch on your screen, but

136

:

know that that person would put you

up for the night if you were in town.

137

:

Know that somebody is walking

in the same direction as you.

138

:

And in a world where so many people

feel helpless or without meaning,

139

:

the last year and a half have

shown so many of us in this circle.

140

:

That it's possible if you extend

yourself, that others will extend them.

141

:

And that gives me optimism about

our climate because the earth

142

:

doesn't care if the weather changes.

143

:

We do.

144

:

And it's beyond discussion.

145

:

People who care at all about their

reputation is being thoughtful.

146

:

No longer talk about the fact

that the climate is changing.

147

:

It is.

148

:

And then the question

is what to do about it.

149

:

And.

150

:

What this crew figured out is that

while the world wanted a shortcut,

151

:

they wanted a palliative, they

wanted something that would make

152

:

them feel good for five minutes.

153

:

We refused to do that, and we just

said, here's what you need to know.

154

:

Here's what you're gonna need to know,

regardless of whether someone comes out

155

:

with single use laundry sheets or not,

regardless of whether you decide to

156

:

fly on an airplane ever again or not.

157

:

Because knowing leads to conversation

and conversations lead to connection.

158

:

And connection leads to better.

159

:

Wow.

160

:

Thank you.

161

:

Thank you for that answer.

162

:

Um, Carbon Sessions is a podcast

where we have conversations on

163

:

climate change and the environment,

you know, with everyday people from

164

:

just about anywhere in the world.

165

:

, and we've had so many fantastic

conversations on diverse topics like food.

166

:

Food systems, energy systems,

transportation, health, and so on.

167

:

One time we interviewed, um,

an E S G professor in London.

168

:

We've also had rare earth

engineers in Australia.

169

:

We've had bikes, activists in the us,

um, a tequila distiller in South America,

170

:

golfers and like so many people, um,

that we've been privileged to meet.

171

:

When we started, we actually thought

that we would run out of topics

172

:

or things to talk about very fast.

173

:

But the more we have these

conversations, the more we want to

174

:

talk about climate change, the more

we wanna talk about the environment.

175

:

We meet people that also

want to do the same.

176

:

And so now we only don't know if we're

ever going to run out, but we don't

177

:

want to and we don't see coming soon.

178

:

Um, but while we explore this

multifaceted approaches to, to climate

179

:

change, sometimes we come across

people that don't see the challenge

180

:

from the same angle that we see it.

181

:

Or do not necessarily agree

with what needs to be done

182

:

or how it needs to be done.

183

:

We feel like climate change is a

we problem, and that's why we're

184

:

here having conversations about it.

185

:

And we need to incorporate all

the points of view since we can't

186

:

solve the problems by ourselves.

187

:

So Josh, you know, thank

you for joining us.

188

:

We're really appreciative of your

time and I know you know, one of the

189

:

interesting things that's already

arisen in our conversation this morning

190

:

is in order to help conserve power.

191

:

You were like, Hey, let me May,

is it okay if I go off video?

192

:

Cuz that's gonna help me conserve power.

193

:

Can you tell us a little bit why,

you know, what brings that about?

194

:

It's this, this journey you've been on for

the last six months and our listeners and

195

:

myself and Allon are excited to hear what

you've been up to these past six months.

196

:

Well, yeah.

197

:

It's hard to figure out where to begin.

198

:

I'll, I'll start at the end, but, but I'll

note that there's a lot leading up to it.

199

:

I didn't just decide to

disconnect outta the blue.

200

:

, but six months ago, no.

201

:

I have to go back to, do you mind

if I take a bit of a longer story

202

:

because uh, yeah, please tell us.

203

:

If you had asked me 10, 15 years

ago about the environment, I'd say,

204

:

yeah, it sounds pretty serious and

someone should do something about it.

205

:

Of course, my personal actions

wouldn't make a difference, and

206

:

only governments and corporations

can act on the scale that we need.

207

:

But I have faith that, you know, people

figured out maybe I could work on some

208

:

invention that might have some impact.

209

:

Not much would make much of a difference.

210

:

And I looked down one day at my

garbage in my kitchen and realized

211

:

I was producing a lot of garbage.

212

:

I probably empty at least once a week, and

I thought, well, maybe I can't change the

213

:

whole world, but I mean this garbage, no

one else can take responsibility for it.

214

:

I am the only one who can,

and I feel responsible to.

215

:

You know, it took me like six months

to implement the following idea.

216

:

I thought, I wonder if I could go for one

week without buying any packaged food.

217

:

Cause most of the garbage

was from food packaging.

218

:

And it took me six months to finally

say, to go from analyzing and

219

:

planning and thinking like, what do

I do day one, day two, day three.

220

:

Eventually just saying,

look, I'm not gonna die.

221

:

I'll just start right now.

222

:

And all these little questions of

like, do I count food in my pantry?

223

:

Can I eat that if it's packaged or not?

224

:

And all these little things that, like

once I actually started doing it, then

225

:

I had to solve all these problems.

226

:

And I thought that living in Manhattan

with all these restaurants around

227

:

that I'd be depriving myself and I.

228

:

I found that, well, it

took me, I mean, I made it.

229

:

I made it actually two and a

half weeks before I bought my

230

:

first packaged food, which was

surprisingly longer than I expected.

231

:

I didn't know if I would make the

week, and then over the next couple

232

:

months I thought, you know, maybe I

can't keep quite to zero for the whole

233

:

time, but I'll do my best to, you know,

get less packaging than I used to.

234

:

And this led to getting a lot more

fresh fruits and vegetables and getting

235

:

from bulk, bringing my own bags.

236

:

You know, this was the first time in

my life that I boiled dried beans on

237

:

the stove, which I'd never done before.

238

:

So I'm, I'm not proud that I made

it to my forties before doing that.

239

:

But as I cooked more and more with

more and more fresh stuff, I went

240

:

from just having seen vegetables all

the time to making really good food.

241

:

And I found that contrary to

my expectations, I was spending

242

:

less money when I was in a hurry.

243

:

I could make food faster.

244

:

It tasted better.

245

:

I started in workshops up in the

Bronx and in food deserts to help

246

:

bring farmer's markets to other

places, cuz I have easy access here.

247

:

And it was just a pure positive in

my life, not just a net positive.

248

:

There were no downsides.

249

:

I mean, except for that six

months of really bland stuff.

250

:

But that was kind of like my training.

251

:

And I should also mention that

that was eight, nine years ago.

252

:

And along the way, I've emptied

my garbage less and less.

253

:

So my garbage today is I'm just about

three years on one load, and it, it,

254

:

it feels, even that feels like a lot

to me because it's less and less.

255

:

So most of that is from two,

two and a half years ago.

256

:

And again, this is just pure

improvement to my life that I

257

:

would've thought would've been a loss.

258

:

And as much as the physical change is

meaningful, my impact is just one person.

259

:

Emotional and mental shift.

260

:

That was the big thing because I

started thinking, why did I think

261

:

that this was gonna be so awful?

262

:

What else in my life have I come to

believe through cultural whatever would

263

:

be awful, but might also be awesome.

264

:

So a couple of years later, I challenged

myself to go for a year without flying.

265

:

This was after watching a video

where I learned that flying.

266

:

The guy speaking was British, so

he said flying London to LA and

267

:

back was a year's worth of driving.

268

:

And I thought, again, I can't fix

the whole world, but I can take

269

:

responsibility for my stuff and

I don't wanna pollute the world.

270

:

I know that people are gonna be

breathing in those fumes and people

271

:

are displaced from the land to get

that oil, building the plane, all

272

:

the embedded pollution in that.

273

:

And so I thought, I wonder if I could go

for, you know, a week wouldn't be enough.

274

:

I eventually settled on a year without.

275

:

Again, same thing.

276

:

I thought this was gonna be

the worst year of my life.

277

:

I thought, you know, family work, all

these commitments, what am I gonna do?

278

:

And I just saw everything as it came.

279

:

And that was 2016 and

I haven't flown since.

280

:

And the longer I go without flying, the

more flying just, it's just wretched to

281

:

me, it just sounds like a terrible idea.

282

:

Not just for the pollution, but for

what, what it does to our culture.

283

:

Anyway, that led a

while later to, oh yeah.

284

:

I was reading this article on how

much, much of the world doesn't

285

:

refrigerate like we do, they ferment

and have different food systems.

286

:

And I looked at my fridge and

I thought, that's my biggest

287

:

source of pollution right now.

288

:

And I started thinking, I wonder how

long I could go without using the fridge.

289

:

What would I do?

290

:

Do I have to learn to ferment and

part of me something in my mind?

291

:

That's that analyzing planning that

takes a long time that just do it.

292

:

So before I could stop myself, I

went over and unplugged the fridge.

293

:

And the first time I made it three

months, then six and a half months.

294

:

And now I'm in my second year.

295

:

And I, I now, having made it a full

calendar year, I'll probably, I

296

:

may never plug the fridge in again.

297

:

I'm not sure.

298

:

And Oh, wow.

299

:

Once my bills started coming down

to my electric bill, there's 18

300

:

to $20 that I can't do anything.

301

:

That's just being connected.

302

:

I guess I could completely just like

tell ConEd to close the account,

303

:

but I haven't done that yet.

304

:

But as my bill started getting to like

a dollar, $2 a month for the power that

305

:

I was using, I started thinking and I

put up a blog post a couple years ago.

306

:

I wonder if I could get to zero.

307

:

Could I go for one month without

using any electrical power from the.

308

:

And this is in Manhattan.

309

:

And so I posted to my

blog, can anyone help me?

310

:

Does anyone know solar?

311

:

I didn't know anything about solar.

312

:

I mean, I knew what solar was and I

have a PhD in physics, so I know power

313

:

and energy and things like that, but I

didn't practically know what devices I

314

:

should buy and how do I connect them?

315

:

And I, I live in a co-op building that's

a big building, so I know that the

316

:

coop isn't gonna let me install stuff.

317

:

I, I get some light through the windows.

318

:

No one answered to my blog post, but

I just started going online and I mean

319

:

Craigslist looking at what's used,

and eventually I found out I should

320

:

get a, a battery and a solar panel,

and I got a portable solar panel and

321

:

a portable battery because I can't do

this a permanently, and I just bought

322

:

them from used and figured I'll try

it out and figure out how it goes.

323

:

And I'm not trying to solve

all the world's problems.

324

:

I'm just trying an experiment

to see if I can go for a month.

325

:

Using the grid.

326

:

So I guess one of 'em broke

and had to get it fixed.

327

:

But eventually on May 22nd, I had

just made my stew with a pressure

328

:

cooker powered from the battery,

which was powered by the solar panel.

329

:

And I was thinking, right, I got

some stew that lost me a few days.

330

:

I got 20% left on the battery.

331

:

I wonder like next, what should I check?

332

:

I don't really know how much

power floor AMP is gonna use.

333

:

I don't really know how

much my computer's gonna.

334

:

and I start thinking maybe I should

wait until the ConEd bill rolls over,

335

:

which is on the seventh of the month.

336

:

And then I realized, oh, this is that

thought that this is that analyzing

337

:

planning that always gets in the way.

338

:

Just, I know I'm not gonna die.

339

:

I know no one's gonna get hurt.

340

:

I'll find stuff out.

341

:

This thought entered my mind, I

guess I just started, so without

342

:

any planning, beyond just getting

the, the panel and the battery.

343

:

I just said, all right, I'll start now.

344

:

And I really had no idea how I'd make

it past when I ran out of the stew.

345

:

I didn't know how, how I'd make it

past a couple days, but my goal was one

346

:

month, and so now I'm in my sixth month

and I had no idea how I would do it.

347

:

I'm ending up going up

and down the stairs.

348

:

It's 11 flights up to the roof and back.

349

:

So I do that twice a day, maybe

three or four days a week.

350

:

Well, the past few days it's

been very rainy, so I haven't

351

:

been able to do it for a while.

352

:

I'm just solving things as they come and

it's turning out as I kind of knew, but

353

:

I knew intellectually, but didn't know

until it actually happened was just fun.

354

:

I'm getting in touch with the seasons and,

and the sunlight and all sorts of things.

355

:

And also, again, I should mention

I am doing it for myself because I

356

:

would like to reduce my pollution.

357

:

I don't wanna hurt people.

358

:

And I wanna clarify here,

there's changing the world.

359

:

But there's my contribution.

360

:

I know that the pollution I cause

is gonna hurt people in wildlife.

361

:

So even if I can't change the

world, I wouldn't wanna hurt people

362

:

even if I can't change the world.

363

:

But the bigger picture is that

this is a leadership exercise.

364

:

I don't believe that anyone can lead

another person to live by values

365

:

that they live the opposite of.

366

:

And so, how else can I learn

to do stuff without doing it?

367

:

I mean, I have to practice.

368

:

So I'm learning a lot of what

works and what doesn't work.

369

:

You know, the big challenges of changing

global culture is not, do people know

370

:

enough of how carbon dioxide traps heat?

371

:

That science is very interesting, but it's

our emotions, our stories, our images,

372

:

our our role models, and that's culture.

373

:

And giving people facts and

numbers doesn't change that.

374

:

Role models is a big thing,

knowing what leads people.

375

:

What leads people to say,

what I do doesn't matter.

376

:

When everyone knows that that's not

the case, what leads people to say only

377

:

governments incorporations can make

a difference when we know that how to

378

:

change governments is we have to act.

379

:

That's like the finish line for

government incorporation to act.

380

:

How do we get there?

381

:

That was a long answer

382

:

I mean, I just went, gungho researching

cephalopods, you know, ocean life.

383

:

I, I really kind of zoned in

on octopuses and several of

384

:

pods, but yeah, just learned.

385

:

Everything I could.

386

:

Yeah, you did a lot of really good

research, Tanya, and by the way, thank

387

:

you for saying that Catherine, about

the script, that means a lot to hear.

388

:

It was really fun to be a part of.

389

:

So when we were researching it, Tanya

did really take the reins and she

390

:

found all of these cool articles and

started listening to this audio book.

391

:

Or maybe you, you read it.

392

:

I think, I think you did audio

though, and just started sharing

393

:

all of this stuff and it.

394

:

It was really fascinating to learn

both about the octopus, which was what

395

:

we decided to center the story on.

396

:

But then also in parallel to that,

learning about ocean plastics and.

397

:

That whole side of things

was very eye opening too.

398

:

Yeah.

399

:

Yeah.

400

:

Super eye opening.

401

:

Like some of the things that I've learned

about ocean plastics, the great Pacific

402

:

plastic patch, you know, that huge mound

of plastic that's just floating out there.

403

:

That's bigger than Texas like that just.

404

:

Blew my mind that that's real.

405

:

And I guess there's one in the Atlantic

too, that rivals the Pacific one in size.

406

:

And it just, you realize all

the creatures that it affects,

407

:

like the octopus and I heard OC

occupy are really smart creatures.

408

:

Actually, they really are.

409

:

They actually have the IQ and capacity

of like a two year old human child

410

:

or like a dog, the trainability of a.

411

:

So they're really fascinating creatures.

412

:

They're mischievous.

413

:

They can like, they keep track of

people that have wronged them, or

414

:

like, there's this story of an octopus

in an aquarium where one of the

415

:

trainers or the workers, it didn't

like this worker for whatever reason.

416

:

So every time the worker would

turn his or her back to walk

417

:

away, it would spit water at it.

418

:

It was truly upset with this

worker and doing it on purpose.

419

:

They found.

420

:

So yeah, Actify are, are

super fascinating creatures.

421

:

And like one of the many creatures

under the ocean that are so smart,

422

:

like we look at, you know, dolphins

and whales and all these even sharks

423

:

are finding how this intelligence

that we never give them credit for.

424

:

It's just makes me really sad how we.

425

:

You know, polluting their

home so that they're, they're

426

:

not even standing a chance.

427

:

Yeah, I completely agree.

428

:

I think that was one of the eye-opening

pieces of knowledge that I learned

429

:

throughout creating this script.

430

:

Once we decided to choose an activist as

our main character, which we chose because

431

:

of some of the things Tanya mentioned of

it being mischievous and smart, and we

432

:

just thought it would be a fun character.

433

:

We were looking at where.

434

:

This octopus should live.

435

:

And I don't know where an

octopus would typically live.

436

:

I don't know much about it.

437

:

So I started doing research and it

did not take long to learn that many

438

:

are living in human trash right now.

439

:

And.

440

:

There are a lot of pictures of it, a

lot of information on it, but with human

441

:

trash becoming increasingly common in the

ocean, sometimes it's easier to find than

442

:

something like a seashell for a home.

443

:

So, Tanya, I don't know if you knew

that before, but I know for me that was.

444

:

that was a big moment to,

to learn more about that.

445

:

No, absolutely.

446

:

It was eye opening and we, I think we

kind of jokingly were feeling really bad

447

:

about collecting seashells and stuff.

448

:

Um, because we learned that that's an

actual problem for octopus, that they

449

:

sometimes will wear like shells to

cover themselves or protect themselves.

450

:

And they're not able to find.

451

:

Them as much anymore.

452

:

So they'll, they've started using ocean

plastics and coffee hands and, and

453

:

things that are, that make their way

from landfills to the bottom of the sea.

454

:

So it's very sad.

455

:

Yeah.

456

:

And then on top of those potentially

harming them, like there was one

457

:

picture that I remember from the

beginning of our research where

458

:

an octopus was living inside of a.

459

:

Piece of broken glass.

460

:

So on top of something like that,

potentially hurting them, some of the

461

:

ocean plastics can be leaking chemicals

that are harmful for them as well.

462

:

So was it hard to write it

so that it relates to kids?

463

:

Like this is such a huge problem

and it feels really daunting.

464

:

Like all these, all this plastic in

the oceans, like how is it to write

465

:

something that would relate to.

466

:

You said you had six.

467

:

You wanna keep pepper in him,

468

:

or leaky, and I can pepper him next.

469

:

, . Well, I'll ask one more.

470

:

There'll be half of my six.

471

:

Um, so what is lighting you up now?

472

:

Uh, especially about climate.

473

:

Especially about carbon.

474

:

Especially about climate.

475

:

Okay.

476

:

What's lighting you up now?

477

:

So, great question.

478

:

I mean, so the, the project that's

probably taking the most of my time right.

479

:

Is through our nonprofit, which is called

the Ecological Citizens Project, and we

480

:

launched a program called the Regenerative

Communities Program a couple years ago.

481

:

And the basic idea is that the

farming world is very white.

482

:

It's very old, it's aging out.

483

:

We need new farmers and we need

farmers across the spectrum.

484

:

And so we started training

farmers on our, our farm.

485

:

Three years ago, and then working

with nearby cities to gain access

486

:

to municipal land where the farmers

we train are, are going to those

487

:

sites and they're creating what we're

thinking of as public food gardens.

488

:

So a community farmer grows food

on those sites and, and anybody

489

:

is welcome to come and harvest it.

490

:

So it's kind of, you know,

a return to a commons idea.

491

:

And so what's really, uh, taking a

lot of our energy right now is we

492

:

are sustaining that program through

foundations and philanthropic giving.

493

:

You know, if you wanna change the

world, you probably can't do it

494

:

only on philanthropic giving alone.

495

:

And so we got a grant from New York State

to try to develop community owned solar

496

:

in peak scale, where by changing the

ownership structure, you have control

497

:

over the profits off of the solar system.

498

:

And so we're trying to steer those

profits towards paying urban farmers.

499

:

So, you know, not to

go deeply into it, but.

500

:

You know, food like everything

else, obviously in a capitals

501

:

economy is a commodity.

502

:

And so even as a small farmer, like

we find as a small farmer, you know,

503

:

if you're trying to be economically

viable as a small farmer, you are

504

:

growing microgreens for restaurants,

or you are bringing your produce

505

:

to the farmer's market where people

are willing to pay the most for it.

506

:

And all of a sudden your

food is not necessarily going

507

:

to people who need it most.

508

:

Um, and so if we start thinking

to ourselves, Well, what if in a C

509

:

food commodity world, the people who

can't afford it don't get to eat it?

510

:

That's just too bad.

511

:

It's a commodity, right?

512

:

But if we start to think about building

a new energy system and who owns it

513

:

and where the profits go, which is what

wakes me up in the middle of the night,

514

:

it's kind of transformative, right?

515

:

And if a farmer is paid by a revenue

stream off of solar to grow, , they've

516

:

kind of taken a bit of food out of

the commodity system and you can

517

:

now treat it like a human right.

518

:

You can treat it like food should

go to people who need it most,

519

:

regardless of ability to pay.

520

:

I believe even if we could do it in

the city of peak scale, a small city

521

:

demonstrate that you can build solar

and, and redirect the profits from

522

:

it, then I think, you know, it can be

really impactful for other communities.

523

:

Hi, I'm Leak.

524

:

Hi, I'm Brian.

525

:

Hi, I'm Christina.

526

:

Today we're gonna talk

about, uh, biomimicry.

527

:

So I brought in, uh, definition

from Biomimicry Institute.

528

:

Biomimicry is a practice that learns

from and mimics the strategies

529

:

found in nature to solve human

design challenges and find hope.

530

:

Sounds good.

531

:

That sounds good.

532

:

Yeah.

533

:

I like hope.

534

:

I like hope.

535

:

And I would like to add a comment

because I was not familiar with

536

:

biomimicry before we saw this film

on, what is the name of the company?

537

:

Interface?

538

:

The co company.

539

:

I wasn't aware that your biomimicry

was something that existed.

540

:

And then I looked up, and actually

it's a technology that has existed

541

:

for probably a full billion cares

because, um, nature has been fighting

542

:

against an environment for so long.

543

:

So imagine all the knowledge

has been acquired by nature as a

544

:

living body over all these years.

545

:

So it's really powerful.

546

:

Yeah.

547

:

I agree.

548

:

You know, it's, I'm gonna

go off on a little tangent.

549

:

Uh, that's sort of, you know, if we think

about evolutionary pressures, right?

550

:

It's about different things in nature.

551

:

Uh, trying different things, right?

552

:

Like, so, uh, mutations lead to

different, uh, styles, uh, and

553

:

phenotypes and how things are expressed.

554

:

How, how a plant works for an animal.

555

:

And then the environment creates pressure.

556

:

Some of those succeed

and some of those don't.

557

:

And we have change in adaptation to the

environment and circumstances and, and

558

:

the solution that ends up being the most

efficient, you know, ends up passing

559

:

on into the future generations more.

560

:

Right.

561

:

And here we are on the eve of some

of these interesting, uh, things

562

:

happening in the, in the world due

to ai, where all of a sudden in this

563

:

virtual space we can go through.

564

:

A lot of tests of something to see what

works and doesn't work, and it's sort

565

:

of creating this ability to see how

things evolve in this AI computer virtual

566

:

space faster than we can in nature by

modeling it out to see what succeeds.

567

:

But here we are.

568

:

We've got, even with the most powerful

computers, they still can only

569

:

look at so many things over time.

570

:

We've got around us in nature.

571

:

Millions and actually billions of years

of samples and testing and which thing

572

:

works and which thing doesn't work.

573

:

And we've got the, the solution sitting

around us and, and we can, it's so

574

:

interesting to see examples of this in

us learning how to use something that's

575

:

been adapted to solve problem A and

learn to adapt to it to solve problem B.

576

:

So I'm excited to talk about my first

one, Ry is really exciting to me,

577

:

so thanks for picking this topic.

578

:

Yeah.

579

:

The first one I wanna go to, first I have

to also on the topic of Biomed Creek,

580

:

give a huge shout out to Patrick Ari,

um, who does a podcast for the P B C

581

:

called 30 Animals That made us smarter.

582

:

And I remember when this podcast

first started, I listened to the first

583

:

episode and this sort of lead up to it.

584

:

I was like so excited about it

and I think I've listened to every

585

:

single episode along the way.

586

:

I really encourage our

listeners to go listen to it.

587

:

It's, it's a lot of fun.

588

:

He, he does a, a wonderful job with that

podcast and I'm gonna borrow from two

589

:

of the things I learned from his podcast

over time in what we talk about today.

590

:

So the first one I wanted to chat about

was, It's an episode called Could Cows

591

:

Help solve the world's sewage Problem?

592

:

Hmm.

593

:

And growing up raising cattle

myself, uh, this was one that like

594

:

I found particularly interesting.

595

:

Cattle are a type of, uh,

mammal called a ruminant.

596

:

They have multiple stomachs that sort

of go through this very interesting

597

:

process of how they digest their food.

598

:

Hi, I'm Jen.

599

:

So you were telling me that

you've been out and having a lot

600

:

of, um, meeting outside of your

work , with different organizations.

601

:

Yeah, I've been, um, doing different

things This past week, uh, I was a

602

:

guest at an annual meeting for an

organization that works with children and

603

:

adults with developmental disabilities.

604

:

And then I was at a First Nations event,

uh, a Potlatch because it was National

605

:

Indigenous People's Day this past week.

606

:

And so I've been meeting all

different groups of people.

607

:

And the thing that came to mind

about that, For me for this

608

:

conversation was climate mindset.

609

:

Mm.

610

:

And I wanted to just address climate

mindset and how if you're listening

611

:

to this podcast, you might have

your pair of climate glasses on.

612

:

So climate mindset, do you mean caring

about , the climate, Looking at the

613

:

world through your lenses of climate.

614

:

Yes.

615

:

Okay.

616

:

And how what we're doing as a

species has an impact in every

617

:

little tiny corner of our existence.

618

:

Not just the big governmental or corporate

things that are going on, but also in

619

:

our everyday tiny little decisions and.

620

:

I know that I walk around

with this set of glasses on.

621

:

Yes.

622

:

And I, I know that probably the people

listening do, but I wonder how, because

623

:

I find it personally very frustrating

when I'm in the lineup at the grocery

624

:

store and I've got my mesh re washable

bags to put fruit in and I'm not.

625

:

Putting every single thing in a plastic

bag, and I'm bringing my own cloth bags

626

:

and I'm being super careful about the

plastic use, and then the person next

627

:

to me puts every single thing into

a separate plastic bag, and I just

628

:

wanna whack my head against the wall.

629

:

But, but it, I realize they

don't have that climate mindset.

630

:

Yeah, well, they, they might not have the

same mindset, but maybe they don't have

631

:

the same constraints or, you know, they

are coming from, I don't know if they put

632

:

, their stuff in different plastic bags.

633

:

They must have their own reasons.

634

:

I don't know.

635

:

Absolutely.

636

:

And I think you were talking about

somebody who does workshops around,

637

:

uh, bringing people together

who have different points of

638

:

view and learning from that and.

639

:

An example that comes to mind is

a few years ago, Vancouver, which

640

:

is where I live, they decided they

were gonna ban plastic drinking

641

:

straws, and I think they did.

642

:

Mm-hmm.

643

:

And I thought this was excellent.

644

:

Who needs a straw?

645

:

You know, you used to always get a

straw when they'd bring you a drink

646

:

at a restaurant, et cetera, and

most of the time it would just go.

647

:

Tossed in the garbage or you know, used

for 10 seconds and then thrown away.

648

:

And I thought, oh, this is fantastic.

649

:

And then I was on an online discussion

somewhere about this, you know, and

650

:

it's always dangerous to read the

comments, but I was reading the comments

651

:

and a person from the disability

community said It can be critical for

652

:

people with a disability who can't.

653

:

Bring a cup to their mouth to have

a straw to be able to drink through.

654

:

And I, and, and that, that community

was gonna be affected by this.

655

:

My name is Joe Hines.

656

:

I live in the United States, in the

state of Virginia, and I am a solar punk.

657

:

I've, I've been trying to live a

more solar punk life actively for

658

:

the past three years, maybe a little

bit longer, but, uh, solar punk was

659

:

also something that found me, right?

660

:

Like I, I, I was living my normal

life trying to do good things.

661

:

And then I finally had a friend

that shared a mean with me.

662

:

And that meme included, uh, talking

about the difference between what a

663

:

prepper was and what a solar punk was.

664

:

And I really realized that I

was much more of a solar punk.

665

:

And, uh, and so we find a lot of times in,

I've been trying with my YouTube channel

666

:

to spread the word of what solar punk

is and kind of evangelize a little bit.

667

:

And we find that a lot of people have

the same reaction that they will.

668

:

See what a solar punk is.

669

:

They see hair defy it.

670

:

They go, oh, well I already

do a lot of that stuff.

671

:

Maybe I'm a solar punk.

672

:

And, uh, we, so we get

that reaction a lot.

673

:

So, you know, welcome to the

movement is what I like to say.

674

:

And, uh, you're not wrong.

675

:

We are all about trying to

spread, uh, positive message that

676

:

things are, things can be okay.

677

:

And that if we all get together and work

towards things that we can all together

678

:

make, uh, positive changes for the future.

679

:

Um, There's a quote out there somewhere

that says, everybody likes to think about

680

:

TR time travel and going back in time to

make some small change and how it affects

681

:

the future that we are living in now.

682

:

Very few people think about being able

to make a small change now and how it'll

683

:

affect the future 20 years from now,

and yet it's the same power, right?

684

:

We don't need a time machine.

685

:

We can make changes now.

686

:

Joe, that's, that's really exciting.

687

:

I'd, I, I feel like there's a chance

you're about to have a few more people

688

:

formally join your movement, uh, during

today's recording session and maybe even

689

:

more as our listeners listen, because I,

I feel like the vibes you're giving fit

690

:

in well with, uh, with what we've been

doing with the Carbon Almanac community

691

:

and sort of like trying to make change

for, for that 20 years and the 200 years.

692

:

And the two years, you know, all

the different, uh, time Horizons a

693

:

absolutely, but, but we believe in

the, the part it's not too late.

694

:

Um, you know, so let's go,

make some change happen.

695

:

Um, you know, my first question for you

is, can you give us a little bit more

696

:

like what define solar punk life for us

and some of the main fur listeners today?

697

:

Like what are the things that If you

weren't dueling solar or punk, like,

698

:

would be a little bit differently.

699

:

Give a little bit of context of

what, what's different, because

700

:

you've got this lens on through

which you look at your daily, and

701

:

I think you hit on the key phrase

right there is the, the lens, right?

702

:

Because it's not necessarily about what

you do, it's more so about how you think

703

:

about approaching the world, how you

think about approaching your community,

704

:

and that impacts the decisions that

you make in, in small and big ways.

705

:

So small ways, small things that we do

to try to live a more solar punk life

706

:

is we look at how much waste do we

generate in our normal, uh, daily lives,

707

:

and how can we minimize that waste?

708

:

Do we need to buy that thing?

709

:

Maybe not.

710

:

Can we prioritize buying things that

don't come with as much plastic packaging?

711

:

Yes, we probably can't.

712

:

Um, my wife and I, you know, we

live in a, a single family home.

713

:

We have our daughters 14 years old.

714

:

Um, we live in suburbia, right?

715

:

So we kinda live the average or

probably slightly above average

716

:

North American lifestyle.

717

:

And that means that we're in the top,

probably 5% consumers in the world, right?

718

:

OLABANJI: And so there's the carbon

Almanac that says, Hey, read, here's

719

:

how to protect the earth or preserve

the ecosystem that we have right now.

720

:

And we're doing that on one hand.

721

:

But I think on the other

hand, we also have to.

722

:

I don't know, find ways to be

ready for what is already changing,

723

:

because this is going to be gradual.

724

:

If where we're going to make progress

to ensure that we don't experience

725

:

too many more changes, but right now

we're already experiencing changes and

726

:

chances are, we will experience will

continue to experience them for awhile.

727

:

Maybe before things take a turn.

728

:

And so I think we're, it's

a two-sided thing here.

729

:

If I don't know if that makes any sense

730

:

STEVE: Yeah, a lot of the

memories we've got again.

731

:

The strongest ones go back to when we were

732

:

children.

733

:

and when we were younger, we

would kind of remember things.

734

:

Do you remember those

really long, hot summers?

735

:

Uh, when

736

:

we weren't at school, we had the

school, vacations holidays, and I

737

:

think, well, yeah, but that's,

what is that to do with my memory?

738

:

Kind of painting this amazing thing

that was a long, hot summer, because

739

:

I didn't have any responsibilities.

740

:

Whereas now.

741

:

You know, I I'm the through the year.

742

:

It seems.

743

:

don't, I don't have that long six

week, six week break in the middle

744

:

of, so some of those early memories,

uh, I kind of slightly suspect maybe.

745

:

In the, I grew up in the

Northeast of England.

746

:

So it was further north

and there is a difference.

747

:

And it's probably a few weeks in

terms of the temperature difference.

748

:

So that the things that would be, um,

fruiting, for example, so blackberries.

749

:

So, uh, they grow and

they produce the fruit.

750

:

In the school terms.

751

:

Cause that was the connection.

752

:

Uh, in terms of the, when I, when I was a

child, there was the, the main school term

753

:

you've got the, you go back in September

and then the half term between, you know,

754

:

between the two, this is the problem.

755

:

I've probably two people who I've got a

different kind of school timetable and I'm

756

:

using words you might not recognize, but

it's halfway between, uh, starting after

757

:

the summer and, and finishing for Chris.

758

:

Kind of the holiday period

of then so it's a half term.

759

:

So it's halfway.

760

:

And that week that, that we used to

have off was called Blackberry week.

761

:

It was kind of as a nickname for it.

762

:

And that's when you pick, you

went and picked blackberries

763

:

that's when they were fruiting.

764

:

So that was when that was going

to be kind of October-ish.

765

:

No, no, no, no.

766

:

That way before Venn now.

767

:

So, but the way before that, now , here.

768

:

We, we, we get sort of, sometimes you can

start to get, if it's a sunny spot, you

769

:

can start to have them in July, but it's

certainly in August, that whole thing

770

:

seems to have slid and come a lot earlier.

771

:

And, uh, what does that do for the.

772

:

The ecology of the animals that

rely on the birds and the, and the

773

:

animals that relying on the fruit

being at a time, which builds them

774

:

up enough to go through the winter.

775

:

But it's a long way from the winter.

776

:

If they're coming a lot earlier,

they're not having the food stores

777

:

or, you know, feeding themselves up.

778

:

So there's a definite effect.

779

:

And some of that, we're not going to

see today or notice in a short term,

780

:

it's going to be that long-term.

781

:

Tanya, you, you played golf as well.

782

:

Didn't you?

783

:

? Yes.

784

:

I made a concerted effort many years

ago to play, um, because that was.

785

:

My, you know, my husband's sport.

786

:

And so, you know, lessen the whole

nine yards and played regular,

787

:

you know, somewhat regularly.

788

:

And so, you know, this topic was, is of

interest to me because I'm interested

789

:

in the tension between recreation and

natural resource management and golf

790

:

courses, especially here in Southern

California are so well just yesterday.

791

:

They've been told they need

to cut back on their watering.

792

:

And so, um, you know, I'm interested.

793

:

Interested in how this will affect the

sport, that form of recreation, and

794

:

also interested in what the, how the

experience will change for players,

795

:

uh, at both amateur and pros and was

wondering what in the golf community,

796

:

what, uh, is the thinking or the

reactions that you've observed about

797

:

having to let courses go brown or,

you know, have to cut back on water.

798

:

Yeah, I'm a AC I'm in upstate New York.

799

:

So we don't really have a water

problem, but I'm well aware of it.

800

:

I would say for us in the Northeast,

we probably think about, I'm not an

801

:

expert in, uh, course management, but

we probably think about diseases and

802

:

we actually get too much rain at times.

803

:

I remember last year we had

about a month or three weeks.

804

:

Nonstop rain and the courses

were really hurting from that.

805

:

I haven't heard a lot of talk about

golf and the sustainability of golf.

806

:

So I'm really excited to have this

conversation with you guys ever since

807

:

joining the carbon Almanac, I've brought

it up with a few people and I just played

808

:

golf with someone last weekend, who.

809

:

Uh, watches over and takes care of the

bird species on our local golf courses.

810

:

And I had a great conversation

with him about what he he's doing.

811

:

That that sounds amazing.

812

:

I think the goal here is to not

lose the golf course, right.

813

:

Or the golf courses, and still

keep them carbon neutral or.

814

:

You know of some sort, right?

815

:

We, we don't wanna lose the game.

816

:

Um, we don't wanna lose the contribution

that it makes to the economy, to the

817

:

lives of people and, you know, just like

you, but we also don't want to, we don't

818

:

want it to hurt the, the environment.

819

:

So the golf course can be carbon positive

and it can be carbon negative, but I,

820

:

but I think we need to find the balance.

821

:

And perhaps we should talk about some of

the things that are, that are possible

822

:

with finding the balance, be between that.

823

:

Um, Tanya, what do you think.

824

:

I think, um, finding the

balance is, is necessary.

825

:

I mean, I don't think

it's an option anymore.

826

:

It isn't something to think about

for the future it's happening now.

827

:

And for around here, especially

with yesterday's news.

828

:

I was, you know, the, the article in the

Los Angeles times talks about golf courses

829

:

having to decide what is functional

grass and what is nonfunctional grass.

830

:

Yeah.

831

:

And.

832

:

You know, I was thinking then, well, if

the greens are the most expensive part

833

:

of the golf course that the greens would

get priority and then the fairway and

834

:

then the rough would be the I'm assuming

would be the last, uh, lowest on the list.

835

:

but from a player's perspective.

836

:

Yeah.

837

:

Um, you know, how, how does that affect

play, do you think, or might affect play?

838

:

ELISA: I grew up in Northern California

in the San Francisco bay area.

839

:

And it was like clockwork

in November to March.

840

:

We would have rain.

841

:

And it was the only time of the

year when we had any rain, you know,

842

:

it's like Mediterranean climate.

843

:

So, you know, I'd be walking to

school and there would be a storm and

844

:

I'd have to have my umbrella ready.

845

:

And so you could really depend on.

846

:

But I guess the last 20 years or

so, it's been changing so radically.

847

:

They don't get almost any

rain anymore in California.

848

:

And the last time I was there in 2000, 19

wildfire season was really out of control.

849

:

And there were 140,000 people

under evacuation orders in

850

:

my county due to wildfires.

851

:

So it's now fire season all

year round and there's no rain.

852

:

So it's a really big shift.

853

:

JENN: We should probably

find out where everybody is.

854

:

Wow.

855

:

Where, where are you doing?

856

:

JO: I'm in sunny, south of

France, where it has been raining

857

:

for a long, long time now.

858

:

Um, but I'm a, actually a digital nomad.

859

:

So, um, every, every place I go is new.

860

:

I've never really accustomed to

the weather in any specific place.

861

:

I'm always the new guy, but I

listened to the Hebrews wherever I go.

862

:

So when you bring out is

not complaining about.

863

:

Even though it's raining.

864

:

It's very strange.

865

:

It's raining consistently,

but not enough to.

866

:

So Kim

867

:

JENN: and Rob, where are you?

868

:

ROB: I'm in Birmingham and interested in

Joe's comment there actually, because it

869

:

reminded me of, I suppose, about six years

old, I used to go to Wales on holidays.

870

:

We'd stay in a caravan and a while we had.

871

:

On the holidays and I'd be disappointed.

872

:

Cause I wanted to go out

and play on the beach.

873

:

There was this waterfall that we would go

and visit when we arrived in kenaf and we

874

:

would walk down to the waterfall and it

was this cascade of water and salmon would

875

:

jump up and it was very exciting to see.

876

:

But I decided to treat my children

and take them there this one summer.

877

:

And that was about 15 years

ago and we traveled down.

878

:

Took it for about four hours to get there.

879

:

And when we arrived, I was standing by

the riverbank and my children were looking

880

:

at me saying, is this what you see?

881

:

And there was this tiny,

tiny trickle of water.

882

:

My wife is looking at me

thinking, what is he up to?

883

:

And it's exactly what Joe was saying.

884

:

There's more rain, but there

was such, I couldn't believe how

885

:

little water was going over this

waterfall, although you can't use.

886

:

And itself has evidence of climate change.

887

:

It's certainly it's that amongst many

other things that start to make you feel

888

:

a bit worried about what's going on.

889

:

ELISA: Yeah.

890

:

That's a really good point.

891

:

Leekei: And so our entry point is plastic.

892

:

JENN: Yes,

893

:

absolutely.

894

:

And all the plastics, and we have

a special guest with us today.

895

:

Who's not really a guest because he's part

of the carbon Almanac and doing a whole

896

:

bunch of stuff behind the scenes, but

he happens to be an expert in this area.

897

:

So let's welcome, Rob,

898

:

ROB: Hi, Hi.

899

:

JENN: should we say Dr.

900

:

Rob?

901

:

ROB: It can be Dr.

902

:

Rob.

903

:

Yeah.

904

:

JENN: Tell us what you do, Rob.

905

:

, ROB: I'm an orthodontist.

906

:

Uh, so I treat, , adults and children.

907

:

So my main role is, uh,

straightening teeth.

908

:

We also get involved with,

uh, tooth whitening as well.

909

:

So, uh, I, I think that one, one area.

910

:

That I quite like is moving

towards, , toothpaste tablets.

911

:

They're not really toothpaste, but

they're a tablet instead of, , a paste.

912

:

Um, , the big problem with

toothpastes is that often the.

913

:

The toothpaste itself, the tube

itself is made outta a combination.

914

:

Sometimes plastics try to move away

from metals cuz the combination

915

:

of metal and plastic makes them

even more difficult to recycle.

916

:

if you've got plastics,

then rolling them up.

917

:

There's some companies actually

even will try to design it.

918

:

So that 10% of the toothpaste is

left in the tube that you can't get.

919

:

BEC that 10% is wasted and all of these,

uh, toothpastes have got microplastics in.

920

:

So we're putting these microplastics

in our mouth, which help to

921

:

scour the surface of the enamel.

922

:

But we then spit that into, , the.

923

:

Water supply goes off, down, into

the water waste, , and, uh, of

924

:

course into our rivers and streams.

925

:

So , that's quite a worrying thing.

926

:

And I think that if we can move

towards other forms of, um, perhaps

927

:

toothpaste that don't have microplastics

in or, uh, toothpaste tablets, and

928

:

that could be a good move forward,

929

:

JENN: I was, I was shocked to learn

that not that long ago, that there were

930

:

microplastics right in the toothpaste

931

:

and we ordered some tooth

tablets, but they had to come

932

:

from the UK and we're in Canada.

933

:

It took forever to get this bottle, but

it was a great big bottle and it it's

934

:

still going two years later or something,

but You know, then there's the whole

935

:

question of, , you know, does it work?

936

:

Are you supposed to have fluoride,

, like there's all those questions and

937

:

then, um, we've tried the tooth PA

like the pace that you can buy in

938

:

the health food store that's made

with clay and things like that.

939

:

And, uh, and that works, but it,

again, it's more expensive than the

940

:

ones that That are mass produced.

941

:

That aren't good for the planet, right?

942

:

It's the same old issue.

943

:

ROB: yeah.

944

:

And I think the, the they're small

companies very often, so their margins are

945

:

much more difficult to, , , to achieve.

946

:

And as a result, they're trying

to work around that by creating a

947

:

subscription model for their business.

948

:

But I contacted, um, a tablet company

a few weeks back, uh, Interested

949

:

to find out what they offered

to the dental profession, dental

950

:

professionals, dental practices.

951

:

And I just haven't had a response back

and I've had that happen a few times

952

:

over the years just don't respond.

953

:

So I think they're clearly wanting

to go direct to the consumer

954

:

because that's where they feel

, the proper profit is for them.

955

:

Leekei: Yeah, but also

because, um, there's small

956

:

companies and there's startups.

957

:

And so this is something I see

a lot that small companies, the

958

:

founders spend a lot of time, energy

on developing their product and

959

:

don't really take care of sales.

960

:

, there's different sales

channels they can get to.

961

:

So I don't think it's because

they are not very interested.

962

:

Maybe it's because they are

not very well organized as

963

:

well.

964

:

ROB: Yeah, yeah.

965

:

That, I think that's absolutely right.

966

:

Yeah.

967

:

, and , some of the earlier tablets

didn't have fluoride at all.

968

:

And I.

969

:

I always feel that fluoride , is

a good thing , to have in

970

:

a, a tooth cleaning product.

971

:

And, um, if people are worried

about fluoride, I often

972

:

say, well, do you drink tea?

973

:

Cause most people do.

974

:

, the average tea leaf

contains, , a thousand parts.

975

:

Perme fluoride, just

the same as toothpaste.

976

:

So there's a huge

amount of fluoride in it.

977

:

It does favorably suck up fluoride.

978

:

And although that isn't available

fluoride to your mouth, when you drink

979

:

tea, , there is a reasonable amount in

terms of the volume you're drinking.

980

:

So you.

981

:

Could probably end up taking in more

fluoride per year by drinking tea

982

:

than you would buy, using toothpaste

983

:

JENN: There you go, you

learn something every day.

984

:

I didn't know that

985

:

I'm studying video games,

digital art course at Birmingham

986

:

City Uni, and I found out.

987

:

Something quite interesting about,

um, how video games are linked

988

:

with sustainability on the planet.

989

:

So for me, um, I think gaming, yeah,

it's a, it's a window into the future

990

:

how we will be living in the future.

991

:

You know, today we live in mostly

in the real world, but in the

992

:

future it's very possible that we're

living mostly in the virtual world.

993

:

And if we live in the virtual world, when

we buy something, Buy clothing or buy a

994

:

car or buy a house, whatever it is that

we, uh, that we buy, and to show off to

995

:

our friends about how great we are, which

is why we buy clothes, which is why we

996

:

buy bigger cars and live in bigger houses.

997

:

It's just to show off to our friends.

998

:

Yeah, this is all about status, but

if we gain our status by virtual

999

:

objects, then at the end of life of

that , virtual object, there is no

:

00:56:01,442 --> 00:56:06,407

garbage., Every piece of clothing

that we buy turns into garbage.

:

00:56:07,093 --> 00:56:10,213

every object that we

buy turns into garbage.

:

00:56:10,783 --> 00:56:12,283

And so this is the big problem.

:

00:56:12,333 --> 00:56:16,053

We mine resources and we create garbage.

:

00:56:16,053 --> 00:56:19,863

That's basically what we

do in a virtual world.

:

00:56:19,863 --> 00:56:23,583

We don't need to do that when we're

done with our object, when it's lost its

:

00:56:23,583 --> 00:56:26,768

value, , then we can just say it's gone.

:

00:56:27,423 --> 00:56:29,393

And there's no trace left behind.

:

00:56:29,393 --> 00:56:37,733

So I really think that in the future,

if we can get our status by, you know,

:

00:56:37,738 --> 00:56:41,693

something in the virtual world, that's

much, much better than something gaining

:

00:56:41,698 --> 00:56:43,793

status with an object in the real world.

:

00:56:44,543 --> 00:56:44,663

Okay.

:

00:56:45,353 --> 00:56:47,723

I think that's one of many

first year video games.

:

00:56:47,753 --> 00:56:49,403

Uh, um,

:

00:56:52,058 --> 00:56:54,848

Have going forward into the

gaming industry regarding

:

00:56:54,848 --> 00:56:56,468

this sustainability problem?

:

00:56:57,004 --> 00:56:57,891

Um, yeah.

:

00:56:57,891 --> 00:57:05,420

Think about, um, what gives you

status in a game and, uh, I would,

:

00:57:05,600 --> 00:57:10,250

I would love for you to gain status

in a game by doing something good

:

00:57:11,060 --> 00:57:13,090

instead of like killing somebody.

:

00:57:14,330 --> 00:57:19,520

So, uh, you know, this, there's,

there's so much, um, how can I

:

00:57:19,520 --> 00:57:21,230

say, violence in video games.

:

00:57:21,800 --> 00:57:27,770

And I think this is just because the

audience is young boys who are going

:

00:57:27,775 --> 00:57:34,100

through their rite of passage to become

an adult, and they think that, uh,

:

00:57:34,250 --> 00:57:40,070

that by showing their ability to, I

don't know, out kill somebody else.

:

00:57:40,670 --> 00:57:43,070

That, that is a form of status.

:

00:57:43,520 --> 00:57:43,580

Yeah.

:

00:57:43,670 --> 00:57:48,620

But I, I think we need to change

that status to, uh, how can I

:

00:57:48,620 --> 00:57:50,030

say, doing good in the world.

:

00:57:50,035 --> 00:57:50,090

Mm-hmm.

:

00:57:51,200 --> 00:57:54,440

I'm, I'm working on a, on

a, you wanna call it a game?

:

00:57:54,440 --> 00:57:55,490

That's okay.

:

00:57:56,090 --> 00:58:00,620

It's certainly, I'm using a,

uh, my, my, how can I say my

:

00:58:00,620 --> 00:58:03,320

background as a, as a game designer.

:

00:58:03,320 --> 00:58:07,130

I, I created the first role

playing game in Japan in:

:

00:58:07,130 --> 00:58:08,810

Just to give you some background.

:

00:58:09,380 --> 00:58:12,290

The game that I'm working on

is, is all in the real world.

:

00:58:12,860 --> 00:58:16,790

People ask me at the end of

my speech, what can I do?

:

00:58:17,270 --> 00:58:20,690

And I always say, I'm sorry,

I don't know what you can do

:

00:58:20,690 --> 00:58:23,450

because I am me and you are, you.

:

00:58:23,990 --> 00:58:27,500

Only you can figure out what

you can do and what you will

:

00:58:27,505 --> 00:58:29,090

do, and you should do that.

:

00:58:29,990 --> 00:58:33,830

But then I see people with puzzled look

and they say, oh my God, they, they

:

00:58:33,830 --> 00:58:37,670

don't know where to start because the

problems that they face are so big.

:

00:58:38,855 --> 00:58:42,335

You know, what can a single person

do to fix such a huge problem?

:

00:58:43,055 --> 00:58:48,695

And so, um, my game is I create a

list of things for people to do.

:

00:58:49,805 --> 00:58:52,925

And in the beginning there's

small, like turn off a light in

:

00:58:52,925 --> 00:58:57,126

a, uh, in the room where there's

no people, or pick up a piece of

:

00:58:57,126 --> 00:58:58,446

rubbish and put in the rubbish can.

:

00:58:58,446 --> 00:58:59,346

It gives you one point.

:

00:58:59,886 --> 00:59:04,176

You do add up a bunch of single

pointers and then you go up a level.

:

00:59:04,746 --> 00:59:08,256

You go up a level, we give you bigger

things to do that's role playing.

:

00:59:08,256 --> 00:59:12,133

So you go up levels, uh, and then we

give you those big, you do a bunch

:

00:59:12,133 --> 00:59:13,693

of those and you go up another level.

:

00:59:14,113 --> 00:59:17,923

Now, one way to make points is

by doing the actions that you

:

00:59:17,923 --> 00:59:20,083

find on our list of things to do.

:

00:59:20,623 --> 00:59:24,673

But the other thing that you can do,

which is making you more points, is you

:

00:59:24,673 --> 00:59:27,313

can create things to do for other people.

:

00:59:28,183 --> 00:59:32,443

If you create a thing to do for other

people that is sticky and a lot of other

:

00:59:32,443 --> 00:59:34,063

people do it, you get a lot of points.

:

00:59:34,633 --> 00:59:39,703

So then it becomes a competition

to see who can make the most sticky

:

00:59:39,703 --> 00:59:41,653

or the most actionable actions.

:

00:59:42,163 --> 00:59:45,583

And then we can look at the actions

and we can do a calculation,

:

00:59:45,583 --> 00:59:50,893

what's the, like carbon footprint,

reduction of that action.

:

00:59:51,823 --> 00:59:55,333

Uh, and, and then we start being

able to calculate how many.

:

00:59:56,278 --> 00:59:58,288

People are doing some action and so on.

:

00:59:58,858 --> 01:00:03,148

And then the idea is that when you

get to level five or level six, then

:

01:00:03,148 --> 01:00:04,828

you get benefits in the real world.

:

01:00:05,128 --> 01:00:09,658

Like you get to buy tickets first

for the next concert, or you get the

:

01:00:09,663 --> 01:00:16,198

best seats or you get, um, considered

for a promotion first in, in your

:

01:00:16,228 --> 01:00:17,908

company, uh, that kind of thing.

:

01:00:17,913 --> 01:00:23,278

So yeah, I think that in the

beginning it, it will be like a game.

:

01:00:23,938 --> 01:00:26,908

Uh, but at the end it'll

be become very serious.

:

01:00:27,568 --> 01:00:35,008

And, uh, the actions that you do, the

AI watches, which actions you choose.

:

01:00:35,848 --> 01:00:39,388

And so it predicts what action

you're most likely to do next.

:

01:00:39,868 --> 01:00:47,308

So the AI will lead you to whatever

your field of interest is and make you.

:

01:00:47,683 --> 01:00:49,363

A hero in that direction.

:

01:00:49,974 --> 01:00:50,874

Good day everyone.

:

01:00:50,874 --> 01:00:55,794

I'm Kate Field and I am from

Tasmania, a little town called

:

01:00:55,794 --> 01:00:58,554

Copping Tasmania is part of Australia.

:

01:00:58,584 --> 01:01:02,724

It's the little island off

the Bo Southeast of Australia.

:

01:01:03,684 --> 01:01:04,284

Wonderful.

:

01:01:04,284 --> 01:01:08,514

I am very excited to be here today

with you too, because we all have

:

01:01:08,514 --> 01:01:10,674

regenerative farming in common.

:

01:01:10,854 --> 01:01:13,644

I'd love to know your backgrounds

in regenerative farming.

:

01:01:13,674 --> 01:01:14,994

We can start with you, Kate.

:

01:01:15,084 --> 01:01:20,214

So my husband and I, uh, came

to farming in:

:

01:01:20,219 --> 01:01:22,134

only been farmers for 10 years.

:

01:01:22,554 --> 01:01:25,614

He started out as an ecologist,

so he was a scientist.

:

01:01:25,704 --> 01:01:28,764

He was working for Macquarie

University in Sydney at that

:

01:01:28,764 --> 01:01:33,204

time, and he was specifically

looking at the ecology of marine

:

01:01:33,204 --> 01:01:35,664

vertebrates in the Anta and sub anta.

:

01:01:36,384 --> 01:01:40,914

So pretty different from what he's

doing now in one sense, but very

:

01:01:40,914 --> 01:01:43,314

similar in that it's all about.

:

01:01:43,539 --> 01:01:47,769

Ecology ecosystems and how

everything interacts with each

:

01:01:47,769 --> 01:01:49,299

other in a natural setting.

:

01:01:50,169 --> 01:01:54,399

Uh, we were living in Sydney,

so that was living with, uh, 20%

:

01:01:54,404 --> 01:01:58,629

of Australia's population, and

it's not a town that's set up for

:

01:01:58,629 --> 01:02:00,819

transport and ease of transportation.

:

01:02:00,999 --> 01:02:05,079

We weren't really enjoying living

in Sydney, and we'd always dreamed

:

01:02:05,079 --> 01:02:09,459

one day that we'd have our own farm,

but we were also dreaming about

:

01:02:09,464 --> 01:02:11,649

having a commercial cheese operation.

:

01:02:12,219 --> 01:02:17,979

And, uh, it got to:

turning point in our, our lives and our

:

01:02:17,979 --> 01:02:23,829

careers, and we decided that we would

become commercial cheese manufacturers.

:

01:02:24,309 --> 01:02:27,519

And of course, to make

cheese, you need to have milk.

:

01:02:27,939 --> 01:02:31,299

And so we made a decision that

we wanted to ensure quality

:

01:02:31,299 --> 01:02:33,489

milk and to have quality milk.

:

01:02:33,489 --> 01:02:38,199

We felt that we needed to guarantee the

health and the happiness of the animals,

:

01:02:38,589 --> 01:02:40,209

which meant that we needed to buy a farm.

:

01:02:41,094 --> 01:02:45,174

So we looked in a various few

places around Australia as to

:

01:02:45,174 --> 01:02:50,364

where we wanted to purchase a farm,

and we settled back to Tasmania.

:

01:02:50,364 --> 01:02:54,204

We'd both been to university here

in Tasmania and decided to return.

:

01:02:54,204 --> 01:02:59,094

His parents had migrated from the UK

to live in Tassie, and so we were,

:

01:02:59,154 --> 01:03:00,834

felt like we were returning home.

:

01:03:01,074 --> 01:03:06,234

We found a fabulous patch of land

that fulfilled our needs in terms of

:

01:03:06,234 --> 01:03:12,234

proximity to the hospital because I

also work as an emergency doctor and

:

01:03:12,264 --> 01:03:16,224

proximity to the airport in case I

couldn't get a job back in Hobart and

:

01:03:16,284 --> 01:03:18,534

needed to fly in and out for work.

:

01:03:19,024 --> 01:03:25,913

And we looked at the landscape and

decided, uh, that the best mammal to have

:

01:03:25,913 --> 01:03:28,404

for milk production was gonna be goats.

:

01:03:28,464 --> 01:03:33,624

So we actually chose our livestock

for our landscape rather than

:

01:03:33,624 --> 01:03:38,244

buying a bit of land and forcing

it to do what we wanted it to do.

:

01:03:38,779 --> 01:03:44,689

Our value system, our um, ethos is

to work with nature and to utilize

:

01:03:44,689 --> 01:03:50,389

nature to be able to produce

really good high quality food.

:

01:03:51,019 --> 01:03:53,959

So that's kind of how we

got into it, through cheese.

:

01:03:54,853 --> 01:04:00,828

I wanted to pivot a little bit

and, and talk about, um, Talk about

:

01:04:00,828 --> 01:04:03,948

sustainability because this is like

one of the core themes in your book.

:

01:04:03,948 --> 01:04:08,498

I mean, okay, we were touching on this

already, but, um, one of the first things

:

01:04:08,498 --> 01:04:13,688

that I, that I learned, um, while reading

your book was just this, uh, this very old

:

01:04:13,698 --> 01:04:18,288

definition of sustainability and how it

like has, uh, has multiple parts to it.

:

01:04:18,288 --> 01:04:21,008

Can you speak a little bit about

this for, uh, for, for our audience?

:

01:04:22,138 --> 01:04:22,338

Yeah.

:

01:04:22,338 --> 01:04:25,748

So, I mean, I think there are just

multiple definitions of sustainability

:

01:04:25,758 --> 01:04:27,278

and I think like, it's very.

:

01:04:27,968 --> 01:04:29,438

It's totally fine to debate those.

:

01:04:29,658 --> 01:04:33,008

I think as an environmentalist,

my, and my, coming at that from

:

01:04:33,008 --> 01:04:36,848

my background, I would often frame

just sustainability as having a low

:

01:04:36,848 --> 01:04:41,908

environmental impact so we don't ruin

the planet for future generations and

:

01:04:42,008 --> 01:04:43,718

other species on the planet as well.

:

01:04:44,208 --> 01:04:48,878

But I think to me that that's

a bit of a limiting definition.

:

01:04:48,948 --> 01:04:52,828

And the reason I say that is because it's

not just about having a low environmental

:

01:04:52,828 --> 01:04:54,118

impact for future generations.

:

01:04:54,128 --> 01:04:55,988

I also care about the

current generation, right?

:

01:04:55,988 --> 01:04:57,308

I care about human suffering.

:

01:04:57,628 --> 01:05:00,248

I think everyone alive today

should have access to like a

:

01:05:00,338 --> 01:05:02,098

good high standard of living.

:

01:05:02,708 --> 01:05:06,888

And actually that comes to the definition

that's like a bit more like a conventional

:

01:05:06,888 --> 01:05:11,758

sustainable development definition, which

has two halves and one half is meeting

:

01:05:11,758 --> 01:05:13,248

the needs of the current generation.

:

01:05:13,268 --> 01:05:19,308

So ensuring that eight billion people

have a good life and, um, not sacrificing

:

01:05:19,468 --> 01:05:21,168

opportunities for future generations.

:

01:05:21,178 --> 01:05:23,338

So that's about having a

low environmental impact.

:

01:05:23,788 --> 01:05:27,948

So basically provide a good

life for everyone without having

:

01:05:27,978 --> 01:05:29,428

a high environmental impact.

:

01:05:29,848 --> 01:05:34,123

I think the argument I put forth in

the book is that historically We've

:

01:05:34,123 --> 01:05:37,313

actually never really achieved both

of those halves at the same time.

:

01:05:37,493 --> 01:05:40,433

I think we have this notion that

we've only become unsustainable

:

01:05:40,463 --> 01:05:43,633

in the very recent past, and I

actually don't really think that's

:

01:05:43,693 --> 01:05:45,283

true based on this definition.

:

01:05:45,653 --> 01:05:49,473

And the reason is our ancestors might

have had a low environmental impact,

:

01:05:49,793 --> 01:05:53,423

but they did not have high standards

of living, at least not by our

:

01:05:53,423 --> 01:05:55,258

kind of modern definitions of that.

:

01:05:55,318 --> 01:05:59,998

And the example I use in the book

is, is child mortality, where for

:

01:05:59,998 --> 01:06:03,468

most of human history, between a

third and a half of children were

:

01:06:03,468 --> 01:06:05,568

dying before reaching puberty, right?

:

01:06:05,578 --> 01:06:09,478

That's like unimaginable levels to, like,

we could never imagine those levels today,

:

01:06:09,478 --> 01:06:11,408

that half of children would, would die.

:

01:06:11,798 --> 01:06:15,358

But that was like, the reality

for most of human history.

:

01:06:15,748 --> 01:06:19,698

What we've had over the last few centuries

is almost like a tipping where human

:

01:06:19,698 --> 01:06:23,368

living standards have improved a lot

and they've improved across the world.

:

01:06:23,378 --> 01:06:27,678

This is not just like, uh, elites

have, have, um, living conditions

:

01:06:27,678 --> 01:06:28,748

for the elites have improved.

:

01:06:28,908 --> 01:06:31,038

Like child mortality has

fallen across the world.

:

01:06:31,478 --> 01:06:33,308

Extreme poverty has

fallen across the world.

:

01:06:33,338 --> 01:06:37,428

We have education, vaccines, like

we've made amazing human progress

:

01:06:37,428 --> 01:06:40,028

over the last few centuries, but it's

came at the cost of the environment.

:

01:06:40,028 --> 01:06:42,828

So we are now face all of

these environmental crises.

:

01:06:43,373 --> 01:06:46,053

And the argument I put forth in the

book is that I think we could be

:

01:06:46,053 --> 01:06:49,373

the first generation that does both

of these things at the same time.

:

01:06:49,843 --> 01:06:53,663

I think it is possible to

continue human progress with

:

01:06:53,693 --> 01:06:55,213

a lower environmental impact.

:

01:06:55,253 --> 01:06:57,553

And I think that we would

be, in some sense, the first

:

01:06:57,553 --> 01:07:00,208

generation to achieve Yeah.

:

01:07:00,208 --> 01:07:04,918

And I mean, part of, part of this in

your book is you have this, uh, like this

:

01:07:04,938 --> 01:07:08,788

concept, I'm calling it like decoupling

where it was like these standards of

:

01:07:08,788 --> 01:07:14,548

living keep going up, but we can decouple

these from kind of the, uh, you can call

:

01:07:14,548 --> 01:07:18,648

it like extraction of resources or like

negative impacts to the environment.

:

01:07:18,648 --> 01:07:20,363

And I thought this was, neat idea.

:

01:07:20,363 --> 01:07:21,043

Like I hadn't really.

:

01:07:21,063 --> 01:07:24,043

seen these, these, uh,

charts before showing this.

:

01:07:24,053 --> 01:07:26,266

So I thought this was quite eyeopening.

:

01:07:26,266 --> 01:07:26,536

Yeah.

:

01:07:26,616 --> 01:07:31,486

Barbara, you mentioned that she, now she

talks about plastic in a different way.

:

01:07:31,486 --> 01:07:33,266

Can you give us some example?

:

01:07:33,266 --> 01:07:37,646

Like, you know, what was her perspective

before and now what's her new perspective?

:

01:07:37,646 --> 01:07:40,496

And also, you know, the

perspective of her friends.

:

01:07:42,076 --> 01:07:42,496

Yeah.

:

01:07:42,716 --> 01:07:49,786

Uh, for example, at Christmas, when we

received several gifts, she noticed the,

:

01:07:49,796 --> 01:07:54,446

the plastic bags or the packaging that

was so much plastic and she asked why.

:

01:07:55,306 --> 01:07:58,536

This is just, just to mention an example.

:

01:07:58,896 --> 01:08:05,356

And of course, , now we, uh, we

stopped using plastic bottles at home

:

01:08:05,416 --> 01:08:08,386

and we refill uh, uh, glass bottles.

:

01:08:08,721 --> 01:08:13,121

And, uh, and she's the first one

that, it's, it's, it's a joke, but

:

01:08:13,441 --> 01:08:15,161

she loves Rochelle and the bottle.

:

01:08:16,020 --> 01:08:20,671

You know, it's just sort of, it's a habit,

but it, it matters , the fact that, uh,

:

01:08:20,761 --> 01:08:27,011

, I loved so much the guide that, uh, , , I,

, worked with, uh, Felice on the paperback

:

01:08:27,011 --> 01:08:29,071

version and I made it available on Amazon.

:

01:08:29,261 --> 01:08:36,475

Um, and as we did, in the USA,

uh, All the royalties are, uh,

:

01:08:36,506 --> 01:08:38,946

for, , projects related to kids.

:

01:08:38,946 --> 01:08:42,563

So unfortunately I haven't received

so many royalties, , but , we

:

01:08:42,568 --> 01:08:44,452

were, we are just at the beginning.

:

01:08:44,923 --> 01:08:50,673

The, the paper was version is so

beautiful that, um, I couldn't, but,

:

01:08:50,853 --> 01:08:58,593

uh, given for, um, giving a, a copy to

other kids of, Matilda's, , classes for

:

01:08:58,593 --> 01:09:00,712

Christmas, and this is was the first step.

:

01:09:01,653 --> 01:09:07,292

I gave it as a Christmas kid and I talked

with her, um, biology and science teacher

:

01:09:07,502 --> 01:09:15,813

asking her for advices how to use it, and,

and I, I told her that I was available to,

:

01:09:16,173 --> 01:09:18,962

, make, uh, a pilot project at her school.

:

01:09:19,943 --> 01:09:25,693

Um I was also lucky because it

was a year about scientist and so,

:

01:09:25,843 --> 01:09:31,693

uh, climatology or chemistry or

biology or whatever it was nice.

:

01:09:31,693 --> 01:09:35,738

And so, , they, the teacher

gave me the chance to, , give

:

01:09:35,738 --> 01:09:37,848

a lecture, one afternoon.

:

01:09:38,207 --> 01:09:42,618

And so I prefer a, a pilot and keeping

in mind that they are, of course,

:

01:09:42,622 --> 01:09:51,877

kids, so, I tried to involve them

with, uh, with a game and it was so

:

01:09:51,917 --> 01:09:56,848

massive, impressive because, you know,

Matilda's classes is a little bit, you

:

01:09:56,848 --> 01:09:58,758

know, , very, very far from being quiet.

:

01:09:59,848 --> 01:10:04,868

And, but that afternoon they follow

me, they pay so much attention

:

01:10:05,038 --> 01:10:08,327

or what I was saying to them

because I tried to involve them.

:

01:10:08,368 --> 01:10:12,648

And the first question was,

what has changed for you?

:

01:10:13,597 --> 01:10:19,543

Um, It was so beautiful to receive

a different kind of answer.

:

01:10:19,593 --> 01:10:26,373

So I, tried to, you know,

sort up a little bit the kids.

:

01:10:26,752 --> 01:10:31,773

And finally, I proposed them, uh, some

contents of the kids guide related

:

01:10:31,803 --> 01:10:34,553

to what is uh, why our Earth is, uh,

:

01:10:37,353 --> 01:10:39,633

You know, getting hotter and hotter.

:

01:10:39,923 --> 01:10:45,913

And then I involved them in a game

where they had to decide what was

:

01:10:45,913 --> 01:10:51,572

better between, um, a couple of

choice, for example, a plane or train.

:

01:10:53,278 --> 01:10:57,558

Bottle plastic or

reusable, , bottle and so on.

:

01:10:58,058 --> 01:10:58,938

And it was massive.

:

01:10:58,978 --> 01:11:04,728

And then they also had the chance to,

for every question they answer right.

:

01:11:05,448 --> 01:11:09,964

They had also the chance to, , create a

sort of forest because I was so prepared

:

01:11:09,964 --> 01:11:11,884

for them, different kinds of trees.

:

01:11:12,344 --> 01:11:19,094

, , so for every, uh, answer, uh, right,

uh, they, uh, they could choose one tree

:

01:11:19,374 --> 01:11:21,988

and put it in, , a big, big, big, flyer.

:

01:11:22,678 --> 01:11:28,381

And now this kind of, uh, uh,

billboard, big billboard is hanging on

:

01:11:28,391 --> 01:11:30,771

their class wall and it's beautiful.

:

01:11:30,771 --> 01:11:32,671

So we have their, their forest.

:

01:11:33,721 --> 01:11:36,691

And the teacher was also very, very happy.

:

01:11:37,461 --> 01:11:42,348

And, , at the end of the, the

lesson, , some kids, uh, um, thanked

:

01:11:42,348 --> 01:11:45,408

me and one kid gave me a, uh,

:

01:11:45,468 --> 01:11:51,017

,

she was drawing and they gave me this, um, uh, this beautiful cartoon she

:

01:11:51,017 --> 01:11:56,118

did asking me to help her save our

health and resolve climate change.

:

01:11:56,178 --> 01:11:57,127

And it was, you know.

:

01:11:58,298 --> 01:12:01,027

Yeah, it's, uh, there are many

different angles where you can

:

01:12:01,027 --> 01:12:05,788

see these actions and you can find

positiveness and good reasons to do that.

:

01:12:06,958 --> 01:12:07,258

I believe.

:

01:12:07,638 --> 01:12:08,258

What do you think?

:

01:12:09,098 --> 01:12:11,498

What is using the

experience of your app like?

:

01:12:11,538 --> 01:12:13,158

Like, I haven't had a

chance to look at it.

:

01:12:13,178 --> 01:12:15,148

I'm in Canada and I don't

think it's available here.

:

01:12:16,248 --> 01:12:20,788

What happens when someone downloads

your app and decides to use this to

:

01:12:20,797 --> 01:12:24,478

make an impact in their community or

to pick up litter or get some exercise

:

01:12:24,478 --> 01:12:25,628

or whatever it is they want to do?

:

01:12:25,748 --> 01:12:27,028

What is that experience like?

:

01:12:27,028 --> 01:12:27,608

Like, how does it work?

:

01:12:27,698 --> 01:12:27,888

Right.

:

01:12:28,068 --> 01:12:28,428

Great.

:

01:12:28,498 --> 01:12:31,208

So, the app is very easy to use.

:

01:12:31,538 --> 01:12:36,623

So, you need to go outside, um,

find some trashy area or Take some

:

01:12:36,623 --> 01:12:40,053

photos of before and after your

cleanup and post it on the app.

:

01:12:40,452 --> 01:12:45,092

The way you post it is very similar to

instagram where you have photos to add

:

01:12:45,093 --> 01:12:52,383

you have a caption or description you

have A location but now in our app you

:

01:12:52,393 --> 01:12:54,502

need to fill number of bags collected.

:

01:12:55,233 --> 01:12:59,288

So you say for instance three bags

You select the size of each of the

:

01:12:59,288 --> 01:13:03,768

bags, and it could be 50 liters or

in gallons, I don't know exactly,

:

01:13:03,768 --> 01:13:08,917

but and then with that info, we

already have the volume, the cleanup.

:

01:13:09,608 --> 01:13:13,898

And that's one of the things we

measure volume in liters and weight

:

01:13:13,938 --> 01:13:21,198

in kilograms, the weight we estimated

for you based on, um, over 50

:

01:13:21,278 --> 01:13:24,548

cleanups that we on a scale measure.

:

01:13:25,138 --> 01:13:26,708

And we had the liter.

:

01:13:27,443 --> 01:13:32,273

And the kilos so we took a average

on that So people if you don't if you

:

01:13:32,743 --> 01:13:36,283

don't have a hundred scale with you,

we estimated the weight But if you do

:

01:13:36,293 --> 01:13:42,443

you can also type the exact amount and

that's pretty That's pretty much it.

:

01:13:42,483 --> 01:13:43,783

You can also tag your friends.

:

01:13:43,792 --> 01:13:52,033

So if we two clean together 20 kilos,

I just tag you And these 20 go 10

:

01:13:52,033 --> 01:13:54,403

and 10 for each of our profiles.

:

01:13:55,263 --> 01:13:56,303

And why the app?

:

01:13:56,663 --> 01:14:01,093

Uh, we do that to share, to

celebrate, uh, how much we clean.

:

01:14:02,363 --> 01:14:05,283

You also have levels

in the app is gamified.

:

01:14:05,293 --> 01:14:09,113

So the more you clean, the more you

level up your profile and you discover

:

01:14:09,293 --> 01:14:10,773

endangered animals on the way.

:

01:14:12,480 --> 01:14:17,610

Today, as I've told you, I would

like to play a little quiz with you.

:

01:14:18,030 --> 01:14:18,270

Woohoo.

:

01:14:18,450 --> 01:14:24,240

And, um, so hope that you're prepared

because, um, I know that you are all

:

01:14:24,245 --> 01:14:28,770

very, very competitive and you want to,

you know, to have it right all the time.

:

01:14:28,775 --> 01:14:33,000

So let's go . Yeah, let's, let's, let's.

:

01:14:33,640 --> 01:14:39,995

And so first question, it's dessert time,

Which fruit, because we love fruits.

:

01:14:39,995 --> 01:14:42,545

Which fruit is better for the environment?

:

01:14:42,934 --> 01:14:45,155

Blueberries or papaya, Blueberry,

:

01:14:47,540 --> 01:14:48,410

. Blueberries.

:

01:14:48,740 --> 01:14:49,370

Okay.

:

01:14:49,820 --> 01:14:50,390

What about you all?

:

01:14:50,390 --> 01:14:50,660

Avenge.

:

01:14:51,290 --> 01:14:52,940

Why do I feel like I'm on a hot seat?

:

01:14:56,360 --> 01:14:58,190

uh, blueberries.

:

01:14:58,190 --> 01:14:59,600

I, I think blueberries.

:

01:15:00,245 --> 01:15:00,545

Yeah.

:

01:15:00,755 --> 01:15:00,905

Mm.

:

01:15:02,105 --> 01:15:08,225

Well actually I think that blueberries is

the right answer for Jen because she lives

:

01:15:08,225 --> 01:15:13,055

in Canada and from the last time I checked

Canada is a big exporter of blueberries.

:

01:15:13,115 --> 01:15:17,585

But because you're in Nigeria and

Nigeria doesn't produce a lot of

:

01:15:17,585 --> 01:15:22,175

blueberries, but a love papaya,

And, um, Oh, I think I missed it.

:

01:15:22,415 --> 01:15:24,184

Uh, yeah, my bad.

:

01:15:25,715 --> 01:15:26,915

. That was, Yeah, sorry.

:

01:15:26,915 --> 01:15:27,575

It was a trick.

:

01:15:27,934 --> 01:15:28,865

It was a trick.

:

01:15:29,045 --> 01:15:29,495

My bad.

:

01:15:29,845 --> 01:15:30,815

So, So yeah.

:

01:15:34,565 --> 01:15:35,915

Where's the buzzer now?

:

01:15:38,045 --> 01:15:39,125

Okay, so let's do.

:

01:15:39,955 --> 01:15:41,635

Oh, bet you, What's your answer?

:

01:15:41,785 --> 01:15:43,585

Uh, papaya would be the answer.

:

01:15:43,585 --> 01:15:47,135

So we, we, we kind of call it

around here, we, we call it pop.

:

01:15:47,745 --> 01:15:51,615

So . Yeah, . Yeah.

:

01:15:51,625 --> 01:15:53,565

So I didn't get that as fast as I should.

:

01:15:53,565 --> 01:15:53,925

Yeah.

:

01:15:53,925 --> 01:15:54,365

Got it.

:

01:15:54,665 --> 01:15:57,850

But I think the fruit that is best for

the environment is that the one that

:

01:15:57,850 --> 01:16:00,580

is grown locally, but is pure there.

:

01:16:00,730 --> 01:16:01,270

Yeah.

:

01:16:01,330 --> 01:16:03,580

And not in a green house and in season.

:

01:16:05,000 --> 01:16:08,840

Sometimes, you know, I don't know, in

France, sometimes I don't think they will

:

01:16:08,840 --> 01:16:15,193

see it ever again, but I remember maybe 10

years ago there was cherry imported from

:

01:16:15,193 --> 01:16:19,273

South America or something for Christmas

and they sell it very at the very

:

01:16:19,273 --> 01:16:21,913

expensive price because it was expensive.

:

01:16:22,033 --> 01:16:26,913

So, and I think that we, that is

very, For the, We have blueberries,

:

01:16:26,943 --> 01:16:32,223

blueberry farms, all around where I

live But papaya is very expensive

:

01:16:32,283 --> 01:16:34,293

because it doesn't grow here.

:

01:16:34,673 --> 01:16:35,073

. Yes.

:

01:16:35,503 --> 01:16:35,993

Yeah.

:

01:16:36,333 --> 01:16:36,753

Yes.

:

01:16:37,183 --> 01:16:37,673

Yeah.

:

01:16:37,673 --> 01:16:38,033

Yeah.

:

01:16:38,253 --> 01:16:39,633

You both are correct.

:

01:16:39,882 --> 01:16:40,992

With the new answer from

:

01:16:44,292 --> 01:16:45,522

Oh, now we understand the rules.

:

01:16:45,552 --> 01:16:47,742

Okay, ? Yeah.

:

01:16:47,852 --> 01:16:48,342

Yeah.

:

01:16:48,672 --> 01:16:49,332

Now we get it.

:

01:16:49,572 --> 01:16:50,052

Okay.

:

01:16:50,057 --> 01:16:54,102

This is something I found on the

website called Fold Unfolded,

:

01:16:54,162 --> 01:17:00,552

which is, uh, website that informs

consumers in Europe on the carbon

:

01:17:00,552 --> 01:17:02,472

emission of each type of food.

:

01:17:02,562 --> 01:17:05,022

So question, It goes by pair.

:

01:17:05,082 --> 01:17:05,352

Okay.

:

01:17:05,357 --> 01:17:07,152

I'm going to give you two.

:

01:17:07,707 --> 01:17:12,416

Foods and you are going to tell me

which one Emits more carbon dioxide.

:

01:17:12,537 --> 01:17:12,987

Okay.

:

01:17:12,987 --> 01:17:13,257

All right.

:

01:17:13,587 --> 01:17:15,477

Potatoes or lentils?

:

01:17:15,777 --> 01:17:19,377

Um, I'm gonna say lentils for me more.

:

01:17:19,797 --> 01:17:20,277

Okay.

:

01:17:20,397 --> 01:17:21,537

Yeah, I didn't get that.

:

01:17:21,541 --> 01:17:22,137

Come again.

:

01:17:22,347 --> 01:17:23,727

Potato or, or what?

:

01:17:24,057 --> 01:17:24,807

Lentils.

:

01:17:25,437 --> 01:17:28,767

Um, I, I'm not sure what that is.

:

01:17:29,602 --> 01:17:31,122

Actually . Okay.

:

01:17:31,482 --> 01:17:33,122

It might be called something else.

:

01:17:33,222 --> 01:17:33,642

Yes.

:

01:17:33,642 --> 01:17:33,922

Yeah.

:

01:17:33,922 --> 01:17:35,052

I'm wondering something like that.

:

01:17:35,052 --> 01:17:35,892

Pulses.

:

01:17:35,952 --> 01:17:36,342

Pulses.

:

01:17:36,342 --> 01:17:36,942

Pulses.

:

01:17:37,122 --> 01:17:37,272

Yeah.

:

01:17:37,532 --> 01:17:39,432

Uh, doesn't sound familiar.

:

01:17:40,662 --> 01:17:44,832

little tiny hard things that you have

to soak and then cook in Indian food.

:

01:17:44,982 --> 01:17:48,402

Oh, no, I, I've not, I've

not seen a lot of that.

:

01:17:48,767 --> 01:17:50,027

It's a bad question.

:

01:17:50,087 --> 01:17:50,447

Okay.

:

01:17:50,447 --> 01:17:53,387

Um, ? No, no, it's not a bad question.

:

01:17:53,507 --> 01:17:55,007

So I can see a picture of it now.

:

01:17:55,007 --> 01:17:56,416

It looks like beans, right?

:

01:17:56,422 --> 01:17:56,877

Yeah.

:

01:17:56,877 --> 01:17:57,317

Oh yeah.

:

01:17:57,317 --> 01:17:57,797

Like beans.

:

01:17:57,837 --> 01:17:58,437

Oh, okay.

:

01:17:58,487 --> 01:18:02,477

We, we don't, we don't see a lot of

that, so, um, I would say, I would say

:

01:18:02,482 --> 01:18:07,277

lentils, but well actually potatoes,

uh, emits more carbon dioxide really.

:

01:18:07,367 --> 01:18:07,787

Lentils.

:

01:18:07,877 --> 01:18:11,687

Oh, and lentils is a

great source of protein.

:

01:18:12,077 --> 01:18:12,347

Oh, really?

:

01:18:13,457 --> 01:18:15,517

Um, yes, it is interest.

:

01:18:16,112 --> 01:18:16,602

Yeah.

:

01:18:16,652 --> 01:18:21,002

Cause I feel like, uh, potatoes, like

they kind of grow in most areas here.

:

01:18:21,272 --> 01:18:22,472

Cheese or milk?

:

01:18:22,682 --> 01:18:27,032

Uh, is, is that like choice

or ? Which one makes more carbon?

:

01:18:27,032 --> 01:18:29,252

No, it's, it's, which one?

:

01:18:29,257 --> 01:18:30,541

Emits more carbon.

:

01:18:30,692 --> 01:18:32,432

You need to choose cheese or milk.

:

01:18:32,462 --> 01:18:33,392

Yes, it's a choice.

:

01:18:33,847 --> 01:18:38,791

, Um, milk, They're kind of the same

thing, but the transport I'm thinking of.

:

01:18:38,942 --> 01:18:41,791

Are you thinking, do you

mean like production of it?

:

01:18:42,182 --> 01:18:43,322

So it's production.

:

01:18:43,322 --> 01:18:44,582

There's no transport involved here.

:

01:18:44,852 --> 01:18:45,272

Oh, production.

:

01:18:45,987 --> 01:18:46,407

Oh.

:

01:18:47,352 --> 01:18:48,732

That might actually be cheese.

:

01:18:48,822 --> 01:18:51,552

It might be, yeah,

because cheese is process.

:

01:18:51,552 --> 01:18:54,732

I mean, it's more process than,

Than, than, no, yeah, that's right.

:

01:18:55,002 --> 01:18:55,512

Okay.

:

01:18:55,512 --> 01:19:00,102

Question, Beef or lamb,

which one emits more common?

:

01:19:01,732 --> 01:19:05,362

.

LYNN: You've been listening to Karbon sessions, a podcast with carbon

:

01:19:05,362 --> 01:19:09,832

conversations for every day, with

everyone from everywhere in the world.

:

01:19:10,282 --> 01:19:13,972

We'd love you to join the carbon

sessions so YouTube can share your

:

01:19:13,972 --> 01:19:15,982

perspectives from wherever you are.

:

01:19:16,432 --> 01:19:19,852

This is a great way for our community

to learn from your ideas and

:

01:19:19,852 --> 01:19:22,852

experiences, connect and take action.

:

01:19:23,541 --> 01:19:27,632

If you want to add your voice to

the conversation, go to the carbon.

:

01:19:28,257 --> 01:19:33,537

Dot org slash podcast and sign up

to be part of a future episode.

:

01:19:34,227 --> 01:19:38,607

This podcast is also part of the

carbon Almanac network for more

:

01:19:38,607 --> 01:19:42,687

information, to sign up for the

emails, to join the movement and

:

01:19:42,687 --> 01:19:47,666

to order your copy of the carbon

Almanac, go to the carbon almanac.org.

:

01:19:48,087 --> 01:19:50,727

Be sure to subscribe

and join us here again.

:

01:19:50,847 --> 01:19:53,277

As together we can change the world.

Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

About the Podcast

Show artwork for CarbonSessions
CarbonSessions
Carbon Conversations for every day, with everyone, from everywhere in the world.

Listen for free

About your host

Profile picture for Carbon Almanac

Carbon Almanac

When it comes to the climate, we don’t need more marketing or anxiety. We need established facts and a plan for collective action.

The climate is the fundamental issue of our time, and now we face a critical decision. Whether to be optimistic or fatalistic, whether to profess skepticism or to take action. Yet it seems we can barely agree on what is really going on, let alone what needs to be done. We urgently need facts, not opinions. Insights, not statistics. And a shift from thinking about climate change as a “me” problem to a “we” problem.

The Carbon Almanac is a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration between hundreds of writers, researchers, thinkers, and illustrators that focuses on what we know, what has come before, and what might happen next. Drawing on over 1,000 data points, the book uses cartoons, quotes, illustrations, tables, histories, and articles to lay out carbon’s impact on our food system, ocean acidity, agriculture, energy, biodiversity, extreme weather events, the economy, human health, and best and worst-case scenarios. Visually engaging and built to share, The Carbon Almanac is the definitive source for facts and the basis for a global movement to fight climate change.

This isn’t what the oil companies, marketers, activists, or politicians want you to believe. This is what’s really happening, right now. Our planet is in trouble, and no one concerned group, corporation, country, or hemisphere can address this on its own. Self-interest only increases the problem. We are in this together. And it’s not too late to for concerted, collective action for change.