In this month’s Everyday Mars episode, I sat down with one of the most influential voices in Mars advocacy—Dr. Robert Zubrin, founder of The Mars Society and author of The Case for Mars, The Case for Space, and The New World on Mars. For decades, Zubrin has been championing the idea that humans not only can go to Mars, but should. And in this conversation, we ask a simple but profound question: What is The Right Martian Stuff?

We dig into the character traits, skill sets, and cultural mindsets he believes the first Martian settlers will need—not just to survive, but to thrive. Spoiler: it’s less about military order and more about maverick spirit, humor under pressure, and a healthy dose of DIY ingenuity. We also talk about what kind of society might grow out of that environment—and what lessons Earth might learn in return.

Thank you to Dr. Zubrin for making the time for this chat and for his expertise, to Nick Thorburn for the theme music, to Ceci Giglio for the graphics, to RDan, Leila, Inka, and Carl for admining the Facebook group, and to my family for supporting all of this.