Episodes

Nov. 18, 2023

731: Debate and Understanding on Population Projections with Wolfgang Lutz and Chris Bystroff

I hosted two professionals who model population growth with different views, some complementary, some conflicting: Wolfgang Lutz and Chris Bystroff . I learned from both and recommend listening to their episodes first. I've …

Nov. 8, 2023

730: Tony Hansen, part 1 : McKinsey's Director of Natural Capital and Nature

Most of the partners I know at the top tier consulting firms have worked there since business school. Tony has a different background, as he describes at the beginning. Because the Firm influences people at high levels of bu…

Nov. 4, 2023

729: How to Develop a Sustainability Leadership Culture in Your Organization: a Panel I moderated

If no one is changing culture in your world, it's your opportunity to fill the leadership vacuum, no matter where you are in your organization or communities. Many companies are making strides toward goals for greening their…

Oct. 31, 2023

728: Chefs Irene and Margaret Li, part1: Winning Awards Saving Perfectly Good Food

I first read about Margaret and Irene and their book Perfectly Good Food: A Totally Achievable Zero Waste Approach to Home Cooking in an article on doof in the New Yorker . Then the next week the magazine devoted an article …

Oct. 27, 2023

727: Fun, liberation, freedom: How people talk after seriously acting on sustainability

Evelyn joined the first workshop I led in the Spodek Method: practicing it, leading others through it, and how to create a movement. She then became the teaching assistant for the next two workshops. The liberation, fun, and…

Oct. 24, 2023

726: Amy Westervelt, part 1: Showing What's Actually Happening Behind the Scenes

Amy hosts and produces a lot of podcasts, but Drilled is the big one I've listened to a lot. I listen partly to learn what happens behind the scenes and in the past in the fossil fuel industry. She's also covered how these c…

Oct. 20, 2023

725: Gautam Mukunda, part 3: The Spodek Method Doesn't Always Create a Huge Mindset Shift

Gautam and I had a lovely conversation about environmental things. He's become a good friend (we talk outside our recordings). Still, listen to determine for yourself, but I'd say this conversation exhibited a minor mindset …

Oct. 11, 2023

724: Dr. Michael Greger, part 2: How Not to Age

I follow Doctor Greger's newsletter and watch his videos every week. I unsubscribe from nearly everything else. In this episode we get a sneak preview of his next book, How Not to Age . Since he mostly covers diet, I wanted …

Oct. 3, 2023

723: David Blight, part 2: A Constitutional Amendment on Stewardship Based on the Thirteenth and John Locke

I've spoken to several guests about the idea of a constitutional stewardship amendment in the style of the Thirteenth Amendment, complementary to a Green Amendment . Amendments tend to pass in waves so I could see them helpi…

Sept. 30, 2023

722: Michael Forsythe: When McKinsey Comes to Town

When I started business school at Columbia, I hadn't heard of McKinsey. The Firm recruited heavily there, so I found out about them, but little, since they were so secretive. I learned more from my classmates, that the busin…

Sept. 14, 2023

721: Jim Burke, part 1: The Most Beautiful Street in New York City?

After reading about 34th Avenue in Queens and watching the video linked below, I had to ride to see it. Over a mile of a once congested street was transformed into safer, quieter places people enjoyed, especially kids. There…

Sept. 11, 2023

720: Maya Van Rossum, part 2: You Don't Have a Right to a Clean Environment. You Have to Work for It.

Do you think government should protect people's life, liberty, and property? What if it turned out it didn't, if it said other people could destroy your life, liberty, and property, and would help them do it? That's what pol…

Sept. 10, 2023

719: David Blight, part 1: From Abolitionism to Sustainability

Regular listeners and blog readers know my developing abolitionism as a role model for a sustainability movement. I've hosted several top scholars on the history of abolitionism in England and America, as well as the relevan…

Sept. 8, 2023

718: Albert Garcia-Romeu, part 2: Psychedelics and Appreciating Nature Where You Are

I couldn't help asking question about the field of psychedelics research beyond our last conversation. He's a professional at the top of the field and well-connected. I started by asking him about comedy and psychedelics, af…

Sept. 2, 2023

717: Pamela Paul: Writing on Controversial Subjects With Confidence

I met Pamela Paul after she mentioned previous guest John Sargent in a piece, There's More Than One Way to Ban a Book . I found her column covered issues others shy away from. I was curious what motivated her. We talked abou…

Aug. 29, 2023

716: Arnold Leitner, part 2: How much energy and power do you need to be happy?

How do we affect others and how does it relate to what brings meaning to life? I'm surprised it took this long for one of my conversations to cover the meaning of life, but I'm not surprised it came with a fellow physicist. …

Aug. 24, 2023

715: My mom, Marie Spodek, part 3: Starting a food coop and making ends meet as a single mom in a food desert with three kids

I've written about how people act like food coops don't work for people without resources like time and money or who have kids. It took me a long time to realize they didn't see food coops being started because the people st…

714: Adam Hochschild, part 3: King Leopold's Ghost

Aug. 23, 2023