The books and articles on environmental hope and optimism still seem few and far between - too few for me to actually feel hopeful on a daily basis, that’s why I looked for ways to actually find a lasting sense of hope and even optimism despite the dire environmental circumstances that we find ourselves in. The research is pretty clear, we can find hope and even optimism, if we use these techniques to allow our brains to feel calmer about the circumstances.That is what I get into in this...

Feeling like you are a hamster on a wheel, not making an impact, not able to make substantive change to environmental and social justice issues can be depleting. Sometimes doing the work itself is not enough - it can feel like a drain on your energy and mental health. So you need to change what you are doing and how you approach the problem to get the gains you want. In today’s episode I talk to someone who has overcome exactly this when it comes to taking environmental action.Pauline is...

I was walking in the woods and it came to me as clear as day. The pieces came together and I understood how to move forward. This was my epiphany moment that came after a long, difficult period where the eco-overwhelm just seemed like it was too much.But what came to me in the woods changed everything for me, and it is what I still rely on myself and teach to this day.It turns out that part of what I was facing was a misalignment between my values and how I was living my life. Even though I w...

Wicked problems: isn’t that a great term?Wicked problems are complex and difficult to define, they cannot be separated from their context and there is no one definitive approach to solving them. Climate change, pollution, loss of biodiversity, plastic pollution, environmental racism, and the effects of colonialism are all examples of “Wicked” problems. You have likely been reading about or pondering how to address a Wicked problem recently in your own life. Something like, Why your ...

“I am worried about burning out.” is something I hear often, and this is a completely valid concern. After all, environmental and social justice work can be taxing both emotionally and physically.So, how do we tackle this very important, and necessary work without putting our own physical and mental health in jeopardy? Well, it turns out there are proven tactics with plenty of medical literature to support that it truly works.Now, these things do fall into the broad category of “self-care”, b...

There were certain environmental issues that I could barely talk about in my classes. Topics like animal suffering were simply too difficult for me to cover. I remember showing a video in class almost 25 years ago now of emaciated whales who were starving due to human over-fishing.I sat in that darkened classroom with tears rolling down my face. Yes, these emotions made me want to focus on solutions, but they also made me feel ashamed of my reaction. After all, I was the professional, and the...

You know that feeling of just spinning your wheels? Like you are getting pulled in every direction, trying to make headway, but nothing seems to be working? You are trying to make changes at home, in the workplace, and in society but you can’t seem to get traction.In this episode, I share four simple techniques to get real results, so that you can feel fulfilled, and like what you do matters.First, reconsider the small actions and their importance. It might be more meaningful than you tend to...

Do you sometimes wish that someone would just tell you the right thing to do when it comes to taking environmental action? It can be so darn complicated it seems. Every day there is another new campaign or cause, and they all seem important.Easy to feel torn in multiple directions. And it doesn’t help with the Eco-overwhelm! So I want to show you how to apply the concept of Voluntary Simplicity to direct your actions. What is Voluntary Simplicity?Voluntary Simplicity, despite being linke...

There is NO shortage of issues and causes that need our attention, and yes, they may all be important and worthy. But what can YOU do with your time and energy - that we all know is not bottomless?This problem of not knowing where to focus is the number one issue I find that keeps people stalled out on meaningful environmental and social change. So that is what we are going to tackle today.So, there is a greenspace in my neighborhood that really needs to be protected from development, and our...

One of the foundations of how I like to approach actions for sustainability - is through the lens of Sustainable Wellbeing. This is really, I believe, the foundation of how we can do this work and not burn ourselves out emotionally and physically along the way.Sustainable Wellbeing addresses both the personal and collective as well as ecological wellbeing. I like to define it as: caring for our personal wellbeing while we care for others and planet.Sustainable Wellbeing means that we acknowle...

So, do those feelings of dread and guilt about the environment make you feel like you could spiral out of control if you spend time looking at it, so you just shut your eyes and hope it goes away, but it never really does?Well, today we are going to tackle those feelings using the concept of “Emotional Agency”, it has worked really well for me. To be honest, this has been THE MOST meaningful concept that I have applied in my life. I have used it every single time I have had a significant and ...

Want to be transported to a gorgeous fall day for a tour of a regular city yard where Lori and Keith Michaelson grow dozens of varieties of vegetables, beans, greens, berries, and even fruits in a city that gets only 120 frost-free days each year? It is an urban farm that not only produces food all year-round but is a connecting point for the community's kids and neighbors.It might surprise you, to find the variety of foods that can be produced from a garden in this climate and some of the ed...

We know that Fair Trade is a certification system that helps to ensure social justice and environmental sustainability in the supply chain of common commodities, but how exactly does it do this and what are the standards that it upholds?In this interview with Editors Zack Gross, Sean McHugh and contributor Monika Firl, we get up close accounts of how the Fair Trade system provides us with coffee, tea, coca, chocolate and a myriad of other goods in a way that is fair and equitable for the farm...

So, can businesses be a part of the solution to social and environmental issues? Is there a bigger role for them to play beyond the tax revenues and employment they create? My guest Shaun Loney certainly thinks so, and he has worked with numerous start-up Social Enterprises showing that this model can actually deliver social and environmental outcomes more effectively than governments and without the old model of NGOs turning to funders for their operating budgets.It is a deeply creative and ...

Many of us have children in our lives, whether they are our own kids, grandkids, nieces and nephews, or kids we work with, but we often want to help them enjoy nature and gain an appreciation for the beauty and wonder of the "real world", not just the one they see on screens.In this episode, I explore how to help mentor young children to connect with nature through activities with nature connection teacher specialist, Lauren MacLean.Lauren lives in British Columbia, Canada, with her own two y...

We know that the fashion industry is highly unsustainable with massive waste produced from our fast fashion, not to mention the carbon footprint of clothing and the often substandard working conditions, especially for women in garment factories. So, it is clear that we need to rethink our closets and bring sustainability into the industry.In this episode, I had the chance to chat with Anuradha Singh, a textile designer with two sustainable clothing lines. She wants to help people be able to m...

Eating whole foods - those that have not been processed or packaged, and that often are also local to us is the cornerstone of every healthy eating plan, and the bonus is that it is also really great for the planet. Eating whole foods and eating in season dramatically reduces the carbon emissions, waste, and plastic associated with our foods.Ok, we are sold, yes, it is the right thing to do for our bodies and for the planet. But, how exactly can I do this with my real-life constraints of time...

Permaculture is a term that comes from combining the words "permanent" and "agriculture", but it really goes far beyond that. Permaculture is a philosophy of producing food in a way that works with the landscape, nature and even regenerates what we have lost. It helps to build soil organic matter, retain moisture and nutrients and builds healthy and diverse ecosystems, all while producing food.It is a radical transformation back to what agriculture once was, and can be again, working in harmo...

This week I chat with Laura Durenberger of the Raising Eco Minimalists podcast and the blog Reduce Reuse Renew. I begin by asking her about the "renew" aspect that she covers on her blog that deals with anxiety and how this ties into her environmental actions.Laura talks about the relationship between reducing the physical and mental clutter and how this can also help play a role in reducing anxiety. As she says, it helps by "reducing things in your life to give space for other things", which...

It can be so stressful trying to figure out the best actions to take to live a greener, more eco-conscious life. This is what sustainable wellbeing is all about. It means living better for yourself, your community, and for the planet. So, to help you figure out the best actions to take and get rid of that eco-guilt, I give you simple steps to get there!In this episode, I deliver the actions that you should take in the areas of:Reducing PlasticTaking Action on Climate ChangeProtecting Natural ...