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Alex Wise

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“To Serve & Protect” Whom? Alec Karakatsanis on Copaganda (re-broadcast)
1w ago
“To Serve & Protect” Whom? Alec Karakatsanis on Copaganda (re-broadcast)
What comes to mind when you hear the words “crime” and “safety?” For many, these words evoke images of poor people stealing things, or police enforcing laws to suppress street crime. Our guest today on Sea Change Radio argues that there’s a whole set of crimes that have been intentionally omitted from the messaging we get and that, for many, “police” and “safety” are far from synonymous. This week we speak with Alec Karakatsanis, the founder and executive director of Civil Rights Corps. A former public defender and the author of “Usual Cruelty: The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System,” Karakatsanis believes that much of our country’s perspective on crime and policing has been shaped by “copaganda,” the swaying of public opinion for the benefit of law enforcement. We look at the corrosive societal effects of historic and current police practices, examine how and why these wrongheaded approaches persist, and discuss the complicity of journalists and policymakers who fall for and then perpetuate the American mythology of crime and safety. 00:01 Narrator - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. 00:20 Alec Karakatsanis (AK) - If you everyday on the news see a story of someone shoplifting from a pharmacy but you never hear a story about that pharmacy stealing from its own workers, then you're going to think that the shoplifting is a more of a problem than wage theft. Even though the exactly the opposite is true. And there are different kinds of problems, right? And there are different kinds of solutions. 00:00:44 Narrator - What comes to mind when you hear the words "crime" and "safety?" For many, these words evoke images of poor people stealing things, or police enforcing laws to suppress street crime. Our guest today on Sea Change Radio argues that there's a whole set of crimes that have been intentionally omitted from the messaging we get and that, for many, "police" and "safety" are far from synonymous. This week we speak with Alec Karakatsanis, the founder and executive director of Civil Rights Corps. A former public defender and the author of “Usual Cruelty: The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System,” Karakatsanis believes that much of our country’s perspective on crime and policing has been shaped by "copaganda," the swaying of public opinion for the benefit of law enforcement. We look at the corrosive societal effects of historic and current police practices, examine how and why these wrongheaded approaches persist, and discuss the complicity of journalists and policymakers who fall for and then perpetuate the American mythology of crime and safety. 02:05 Alex Wise (AW) - I'm joined now on Sea Change Radio by Alec Karakatsanis. He is the founder and executive director of Civil Rights Corps. Alec, welcome to Sea Change Radio. 02:14 Alec Karakatsanis (AK)  - Thank you for having me. 02:16 AW So you have a newsletter entitled Copaganda, Alec’s Copaganda Newsletter. Why don't you define copaganda for us? 02:24 AK - I think there are a lot of ways to understand what copaganda is, so I don't purport to have the definitive understanding of the term, but essentially what it reflects is the way in which a very special kind of propaganda is weaponized by powerful interests in government, in the corporate world and the media. To change the way we think about public safety, change that we think about the criminal punishment bureaucracy and the way we think about police, prosecutors, judges, courts, jails, prisons, probation officers, and I think it really serves 3 main roles. Rule #1: copaganda tends to narrow our conception of safety and what safety means to a very small subset of the many different kinds of threats that there are to public safety. So for example, copaganda and the media tends to focus on low level criminal activity, typically by the poor, and to ignore large scale. Criminal activity by more powerful interests like wage ...
Andrea Thompson: Battling Extreme Heat Fatigue
Mar 5 2024
Andrea Thompson: Battling Extreme Heat Fatigue
While you're shoveling snow out of the driveway this week, you may not want to hear about extreme heat - but then again, maybe you do! This week on Sea Change Radio, we discuss the issue of a warming planet with Andrea Thompson, a science reporter and associate editor at Scientific American. We look at how people and policymakers are trying to cope with the rising temps, examine how different parts of the globe are being affected, and talk about the challenges of presenting this important information to the public in a fresh, engaging manner. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise.  Andrea Thompson (AT) | 00:19 - How much we decide to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by and how quickly we do it is going to greatly affect what kind of summers we have 20, 30 years from now. You know, like what summers my 3-year-old is going to see when he's my age. And it's something that we, we are very much in control on. We get to set the standard for what that's going to be in the future. And the decisions we make now will affect that. Narrator | 00:50 - While you're shoveling snow out of the driveway this week, you may not want to hear about extreme heat - but then again, maybe you do! This week on Sea Change Radio, we discuss the issue of a warming planet with Andrea Thompson, a science reporter and associate editor at Scientific American. We look at how people and policymakers are trying to cope with the rising temps, examine how different parts of the globe are being affected, and talk about the challenges of presenting this important information to the public in a fresh, engaging manner. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:35 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Andrea Thompson. She is an associate editor at Scientific American. Andrea, welcome back to Sea Change Radio. Andrea Thompson (AT) | 01:52 - Thanks for having me. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:54 - So, looking at the work you've done the last few years at Scientific American, it seems like there's a lot of focus on something that we all are very concerned about, which is extreme heat. Why don't we dive into some of these stories, unpack them for our listeners, and, and give them a better idea of where we are and where we're headed and what we can do about it? Andrea Thompson (AT) | 02:20 - Absolutely. Yeah. So I think, you know, kind of the , the high level headline was the 2023 was the hottest year on record and by a very large margin, um, it was about 1.15 degrees Celsius or about 0.3 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the previous hottest year of 2016. And, you know, that doesn't sound like a lot, and it's not, you know, maybe day to day, but when you're talking on a global level averaging, you know, the whole world over a whole year, that is a really huge amount. It stands out very clearly in the records. And you know, these records, one of them is kept by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is, goes back 174 years. So that's a pretty substantial time and based on what are, what's called paleoclimate records, so using things like tree rings or cos taken from ice sheets or sediments, um, that can give us some glimpse of what the temperature was like before we have actual written records. There's a good chance this is, you know, the hottest it the earth has been since humans have really been around so a couple hundred thousand years, which is really remarkable. Alex Wise (AW)  | 03:39 - And we, here we are in the midst of winter and there's headlines. I'm sure we can sniff them out of record cold temperatures in Norway or Alaska or wherever, but that does not necessarily correlate to the planet not warming. So why don't you, if you can pop some of those myths for our listeners who, who may have gotten some disinformation about how if it's cold outside the planet's not actually warming.  Andrea Thompson (AT) | 04:12 - Absolutely. So the existence of climate change doesn't mean that winter does...
Raksha Vasudevan: Rocky Mountain Ways
Feb 28 2024
Raksha Vasudevan: Rocky Mountain Ways
Denver, Colorado's majestic mountains, green space, and reputation as an ecologically advanced city draw people into this growing metropolis. But there are some unwanted byproducts that result from the influx of humanity, for example air pollution and gentrification. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Raksha Vasudevan, a freelance journalist and contributing editor to High Country News about the transition of Denver from a remote Rocky Mountain town to a booming metropolis. We learn about the city's industrial history, discuss how its transportation system has evolved, and look at the paradoxes and unintended consequences of major green infrastructure projects. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Raksha Vasudevan (RV) | 00:26 - It really is like an unfortunate paradox of, of more people moving you here and of the city growing, is that there's more traffic jams, of course, to get to the mountains. And there are two highways that run through GES. So the people living in that area and people living adjacent to many highways absorb sort of the costs of people trying to access green space, but they don't really get to enjoy any of the benefits. Narrator | 00:54 - Denver, Colorado's majestic mountains green space and reputation as an ecologically advanced city draw people into this growing metropolis. But there are some unwanted byproducts that result from the influx of humanity, for example, air pollution and gentrification. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Raksha Vasudevan, a freelance journalist and contributing editor to High Country News about the transition of Denver from a remote Rocky Mountain town to a booming metropolis. We learn about the city's industrial history, discuss how its transportation system has evolved, and look at the paradoxes and unintended consequences of major green infrastructure projects. Alex Wise (AW) | 02:00 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Raksha Vasudevan. She is a freelance journalist and contributing editor at High Country News Raksha. Welcome to Sea Change Radio. Raksha Vasudevan (RV) | 02:08 - Thank you so much for having me. Alex Wise (AW) | 02:11 - So you have a piece in the December High Country News, or it's, it's, it was published December 1st, 2023 entitled North Denver's Green Space Paradox. And I thought it was a good launching point for a larger discussion about Denver and the environmental issues facing the entire mountain West. You focus on this Globeville Elyria-Swansea or GES community in North Denver. But why don't you first give us a little bit of a history of this region, because you provide that quite well in the piece. RV | 02:47 - Yeah. So this particular community in Denver, but Denver as a whole, one of the reasons for its founding and its growth was because it served as an important link in the Transcontinental Railroad. So it was kind of this frontier town in the west, and of course, when that railroad was built, it displaced the original inhabitants of the area, which was the indigenous people who lived here. But the railroad and the stop in Denver specifically opened a lot of opportunities for Denver. It became more than just a place to pick up your mail on the way out to California. It really became a city in its own right. And soon after the Transcontinental Railroad was built through Denver, um, there were also many iron and ore smelters that were built in the area because of the proximity to the railroad and to, to mines across the country. AW | 03:47 - This is like in the Reconstruction Era, like 1870 to 1890 era, I'm guessing.  RV | 03:53 - Yeah, around then, exactly. And so that attracted a lot of new people to this area, especially eastern European immigrants, to come work at these smelters. And eventually it also led to a livestock center and a livestock marketplace, um, which is still around, there's still an annual livestock show in Denver,
John Stoehr: Betting On Biden
Feb 21 2024
John Stoehr: Betting On Biden
Sometimes it seems as though Democrats are more determined to "fall in love" than to win elections. Lately I've been hearing, from both pundits and friends, that Joe Biden is simply too old to run for reelection. This week on Sea Change Radio, we hear from John Stoehr, the Editor and Founder of The Editorial Board, to get his insights into the 2024 presidential election. We look at some of the calls from media members like Ezra Klein and Nate Silver for Biden to step aside, discuss how Republicans are taking a much bigger leap of faith by re-nominating Donald Trump, and counter some of the critics with practical arguments for why the Democrats might want to stick with Joe Biden as their nominee in August. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. John Stoehr (JS) | 00:17 - We already have a consensus candidate. Joe Biden was the consensus candidate of 2020. He is the consensus candidate Now as the incumbent. You don't need to ditch the consensus candidate to come up with another consensus candidate. It doesn't make any sense. Narrator | 00:35 - Sometimes it seems as though Democrats are more determined to "fall in love" than to win elections. Lately I've been hearing, from both pundits and friends, that Joe Biden is simply too old to run for reelection. This week on Sea Change Radio, we hear from John Stoehr, the Editor and Founder of The Editorial Board, to get his insights into the 2024 presidential election. We look at some of the calls from media members like Ezra Klein and Nate Silver for Biden to step aside, discuss how Republicans are taking a much bigger leap of faith by re-nominating Donald Trump, and counter some of the critics with practical arguments for why the Democrats might want to stick with Joe Biden as their nominee in August. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:28 - I'm joined now on Sea Change Radio by John Storr. He is the editor and founder of The Editorial Board. John, welcome back to Sea Change Radio. John Stoehr (JS) | 01:42 - Thanks for having me back. Alex. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:44 - Always a pleasure to talk to you, my friend. You wrote a piece that was a perfect response to the many people who've spoken to me over the last few months, clutching their pearls. Very concerned that Joe Biden is not going to be the nominee, or needs to not be the nominee. Many variations on this, and this all came to a head recently when Ezra Klein wrote an op-Ed for the New York Times, as well as putting it on his podcast, a special monologue where he laid out his plan for Joe Biden to step aside, be a hero, do the right thing, and, and let somebody else run against Donald Trump. You wrote a piece in The Editorial Board entitled Critics Calling on Biden to Drop Out are not thinking it through. So let's go down this path together and make a collective case for these people who want to discuss the possibility of Joe Biden Stepping Aside. JS | 02:44 - Right. So we're to begin with this, um, I think it's one. Okay. So we begin with why are people worried? Right? And people are worried because, uh, there are many polls, poll after poll that suggest that Biden is quote unquote losing or trailing to Donald Trump. AW | 03:07 - And similar polls, I don't know how they phrase them, phrase the questions, but often say, is Joe Biden too old for president? And 86% will say “Yes,” et cetera. JS | 03:19 - Yes. Right. And so let's take, let's take those two questions. Here's what we do know is that these two questions seem to be related. Uh, so people seem to say that Biden's too old, and so therefore he shouldn't run for president, or he's too old and that's why he's trailing Donald Trump. However, those two questions are not empirically linked because they can't be. It's a leap of logic. AW | 03:40 - Yes. Explain that a little bit more. You break that down in your piece quite well.  JS | 03:44 - Yeah. I mean, it's just a matter,
Chris Nelder on Energy Transitions
Feb 6 2024
Chris Nelder on Energy Transitions
The transition from fossil fuels to a cleaner energy future is perhaps the most important human adaptation of our lifetime. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with Chris Nelder about his mission to take a deep dive into energy, on a fortnightly basis, as the host of the Energy Transition Show podcast. We discuss his travels as a digital nomad, look at some of the energy stories he's been covering, and get into a larger conversation about what needs to happen to see this transition through. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Chris Nelder (CN) | 00:15 - The more I've studied this stuff, the more it has become clear to me that there's no technical or economic reason why we shouldn't do the energy transition or why it can't work. We have the technology, it's very affordable. In most cases, it's far cheaper than remaining on the existing fossil fuel systems that we use. It's cheaper than nuclear for sure. So there's really no reason why we can't or shouldn't do it, except for politics. Narrator | 00:45 - The transition from fossil fuels to a cleaner energy future is perhaps the most important human adaptation of our lifetime. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with Chris Nelder about his mission to take a deep dive into energy, on a fortnightly basis, as the host of the Energy Transition Show podcast. We discuss his travels as a digital nomad, look at some of the energy stories he's been covering, and get into a larger conversation about what needs to happen to see this transition through. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:35 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Chris Nelder. Chris is the host of the Energy Transition Show podcast. Chris, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Chris Nelder (CN) | 01:44 - Thanks very much. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:45 - So, tell us about the Energy Transition Show. I'd like to know more about how you got into it and what problems you're trying to solve through it. Chris Nelder (CN) | 01:56 - Well, my partner, Justin Richie, pitched me on doing this show and, we've been doing the show for about eight and a half years now. And the whole concept of it really was to create the kind of energy podcast that I wanted to listen to because I was really disappointed with what I felt like was just sort of shallow, poorly structured, poorly researched content that was available in, in a lot of the other podcasts. And I'm a geek, I'm a serious energy geek, and I've been studying energy intensely full-time for the better part of 20 years. And so I wanted to make a show that was for people like me that really want to geek out on, the details and really understand sort of the complex, thorny issues involved in the energy transition. And, and there's a lot of them. Policy is complex. The technologies are complex. The way that these changes that we're experiencing through the energy transition affects the world, are very complex and so I want to do a show about all those things and with the intention of really motivating other people to participate in the energy transition however they can. Alex Wise (AW) | 03:02 - When somebody who is not very familiar with the term energy transition asks you what your show is about and what, what does that mean energy transition, how do you define that to them? CN | 03:13 - I mean, the simplest way of putting it, I think is, um, getting off of fossil fuels and, and moving over to, uh, renewables as a way of powering the world and all the, all the different purposes we have for energy. Of course, it's more complex than that. There are various kinds of what people call clean energy solutions that aren't necessarily based on renewables. But as time goes on in the energy transition progresses, it's becoming more clear. I think that really what we're talking about is a switch to renewables. Primarily it's about eliminating carbon emissions. It's about transforming our society in that way so that we can address th...
Jacob Vigdor: College Admissions Quandries
Jan 31 2024
Jacob Vigdor: College Admissions Quandries
Whether it be standardized testing, grades, extracurricular activities or personal essays, the question of how to level the playing field in education is quite a challenge. This week on Sea Change Radio, we take a deep dive into higher education admissions and inequities in this country with Jacob Vigdor, a Professor of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Washington. We discuss the flawed measures we use to evaluate teenage pupils and ask what the goals should actually be for college admissions officers? Are we looking for students to get good grades and make a lot of money, or become leaders in their communities and help spark thoughtful debate among their peers? We examine the shortcomings of standardized testing and grades, explore admissions systems at most “elite" schools, and try to come up with some solutions to the problem. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Jacob Vigdor (JV) | 00:23 - If you ask the question, could an elite college find the students who have the academic foundation to be successful at their institution without standardized test scores? The answer is an unambiguous resounding yes. Narrator | 00:42 - Whether it be standardized testing grades, extracurricular activities, or personal essays, the question of how to level the playing field in education is quite a challenge. This week on Sea Change Radio, we take a deep dive into higher education, admissions and inequities in this country with Jacob Vigdor, a professor of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Washington. We discussed the flawed measures we use to evaluate teenage pupils and ask what the goals should actually be for college admissions officers. Are we looking for students to get good grades and make a lot of money, or become leaders in their communities and help spark thoughtful debate among their peers? We examine the shortcomings of standardized testing and grades, explore admission systems at most, quote unquote elite schools, and try to come up with some solutions to the problem. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:55 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Jacob Vigdor. He is a professor of public policy and governance at the University of Washington. Jake, welcome to Sea Change Radio.  Jacob Vigdor (JV) | 02:05 - Thanks for having me. Alex. Great to be here.  Alex Wise (AW) | 02:08 - It's a pleasure to talk to you. I read a Twitter thread of yours that addressed an article by New York Times columnist David Leonhardt, saying that colleges have been missing standardized testing, and that there's strong evidence that it's actually a, a very good predictor of grades and performance in college, and that colleges don't know what to do now that universities have decided not to make it a requirement in the application process or at least many universities. I, I don't know if that's an accurate summary, but why don't you expand on Leonhardt's piece and then explain where he kind of cherry picked, if you will, the statistics to fit his narrative.  Jacob Vigdor (JV) | 02:54 - Sure. Yeah. So the way I, I'd summarize the argument is, you know, the SAT is a predictor of how a student is going to do in college. And really the, the biggest concern is that there are certain students out there who maybe they're going to a rural high school, maybe they don't have access to the same kinds of resources. So, you know, they might be going to a high school that doesn't offer a whole lot of AP courses. They might be going to a high school where the counselors don't know how to write good recommendation letters for elite colleges. And so these are students that are at risk of falling off the radar screen of the admissions officers at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, wherever. But the SAT score is something that could, that could flag them as a student with real potential. So the idea being that maybe you're looking at an application,
Daniel Kammen: The Perils of Deep-Sea Mining
Jan 23 2024
Daniel Kammen: The Perils of Deep-Sea Mining
Most of us have never been there but according to a quick Google search, some of the things you might see at the bottom of the ocean include sea spiders, tube worms, and something called a blob sculpin. Add to that list: heavy equipment for mining rare earth minerals like cobalt and manganese. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with Daniel Kammen, an energy professor at the University of California at Berkeley, about deep-sea mining. We learn about this segment of the extraction industry, consider the environmental hazards, and examine why it's largely unnecessary. We also take a look at the promise of growing rare minerals like perovskites in laboratories, and discuss the recent Sunnylands Climate Agreement between the U.S. and China. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Daniel Kammen (DK) | 00:25 - Cobalt as mined today, either in the Congo, where most, most of it comes from, or um, from the seabed, is hugely problematic and damaging. Narrator | 00:37 - Most of us have never been there but according to a quick Google search, some of the things you might see at the bottom of the ocean include sea spiders, tube worms, and something called a blob sculpin. Add to that list: heavy equipment for mining rare earth minerals like cobalt and manganese. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with Daniel Kammen, an energy professor at the University of California at Berkeley, about deep-sea mining. We learn about this segment of the extraction industry, consider the environmental hazards, and examine why it's largely unnecessary. We also take a look at the promise of growing rare minerals like perovskites in laboratories, and discuss the recent Sunnylands Climate Agreement between the U.S. and China. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:46 - I'm joined now on Sea Change Radio by Daniel Kammen. He is a Professor of Energy at UC Berkeley, and a former science envoy for President Obama. Dan, welcome back to Sea Change Radio.  Daniel Kammen (DK) | 01:57 - Thanks for having me back on. I really appreciate it.  Alex Wise (AW) | 02:00 - Always a pleasure. I wanted you to summarize the white paper that you presented at COP 28 in Dubai. It was entitled, “Next Generation EV Batteries Eliminate the Need for Deep-Sea Mining.” So first, what is deep-sea mining and what's the problem that it presents? Daniel Kammen (DK) | 02:19 - So, deep-seabed mining is in my view, kind of one of the scariest crossover issues between the old energy economy and the new energy economy. And by that what I mean is that we've known about seabed mining for a long time. In fact, Howard Hughes was, one of the many ways he was famous was he constructed a boat, the Glomar Explorer that was ostensibly supposed to be harvesting these nodules of rare earth metals, manganese, cobalt, a variety of things from the sea floor. And they're about the size of tennis balls or softballs. They grow very slowly, um, at low temperature and, and, and high pressure and he had this boat that was designed to go do that. But in fact, we now know decades later that the Glomar Explorer was actually a CIA front and it was a front to go and try to pull a sunken Russian submarine off the bottom of the ocean. AW | 03:15 - This was not in the white paper, but this is very interesting . DK | 03:18 - It is very interesting. That's right. So, so this is an example of deep-seabed harvesting being a front for essentially cold war. So we've known about there are these nodules on the ocean bed floor. They grow a fraction of a millimeter a year in size. They accumulate these, these materials. And the issue that intersects with the new energy economy is that with the rise of the need for materials for solar panels and in particular batteries for electric vehicles, a number of companies have been launched. They have names like the Metals Company, impossible Metals, and others arguing that we should be harvesting these materials...
Darren Samuelsohn: Untangling Trump’s Trials
Jan 17 2024
Darren Samuelsohn: Untangling Trump’s Trials
The self-proclaimed "greatest country on earth" is in an unfathomable position. Heavily favored to win the Republican Party's nomination for president is a man found guilty of rape and fraud in civil courts and facing nearly 100 felony counts in criminal proceedings. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Darren Samuelsohn, a longtime Washington reporter from The Messenger who will give us a useful overview of the 44th President's various and sundry legal wranglings. We sort through the labyrinthian timelines of the cases, discuss how these trials paradoxically seem to solidify Trump's support among Republicans, and look at how the complex web of a former president's criminality has stretched all three branches of the United States Government paper thin. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Darren Samuelsohn (DS) | 00:14 - Where do these criminal trials factor into people's attentions? The political discourse in the, in the general election campaign, I mean, we never experienced anything like this as a country before. Narrator | 00:27 - The self-proclaimed “greatest country on earth” is in an unfathomable position. Heavily favored to win the Republican Party’s nomination for president is a man found guilty of rape and fraud in civil courts and facing nearly 100 felony counts in criminal proceedings. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Darren Samuelsohn, a longtime Washington reporter from The Messenger who will give us a useful overview of the 44th President’s various and sundry legal wranglings. We sort through the labyrinthian timelines of the cases, discuss how these trials paradoxically seem to solidify Trump’s support among Republicans, and look at how the complex web of a former president’s criminality has stretched all three branches of the United States Government paper thin. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:25 I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Darren Samuelsohn. He is a senior editor at The Messenger. Darren, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Darren Samuelsohn (DS) | 01:37 - Thanks for having me. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:38 - It's a pleasure to have you covering the 44th President's legal machinations as a political junkie. I'm sure you didn't see yourself 10, 15 years ago being up in the weeds trying to understand many, many legal terms, and that's an expert like yourself. You can imagine how consumers of media are confused. And so that's why I wanted to have you on to try to break down some of Trump's legal troubles right now. And just trying to track the Trump criminal cases. We have the federal election interference case. We have the Georgia election interference case. We have the classified documents case, and then the hush money case. These are the criminal cases. And then there's also the civil case with E. Jean Carroll. And is there another one that I'm forgetting? Darren Samuelsohn (DS) | 02:29 - There's definitely one other big one. That's the civil trial in New York City, uh, where Trump's company is on the line, right? Uh, with, uh, you know, a trial that took place, basically the last quarter of 2023 was occupied by Donald Trump showing up in court, day in and day out in, in Manhattan. Uh, where soon gonna have that case kicked to the judge where he'll be issuing his ruling. Uh, there are appeals ongoing as well, so this is not gonna be over anytime soon. Alex Wise (AW) | 02:54 -So that's six cases, right? DS | 02:56 - That's at least six. And there's, there, there are other civil cases also, uh, that are happening. And then myriad tangential things to everything that we just discussed, because now the United States Supreme Court is involved on a ton of really big, high profile, big questions that connect directly to everything that you just laid out there. So, I mean, to your original point, Donald Trump, yeah, he's testing the system to no end, and it's happening every day. It's been that way ever since. He, you know,
Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News on COP28
Jan 9 2024
Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News on COP28
COP28, or the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Climate Change Conference, took place recently in the United Arab Emirates. With representation from nearly every country in the world, COP28 is the most important annual climate summit in the world. This week on Sea Change Radio, we talk with Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News who went to Dubai to cover the conference. We discuss the goals of the summit, talk about the irony of holding an environmental conference in one of the world's largest oil producing countries, and look at some of the key takeaways from COP28. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Bob Berwyn (BB) | 00:19 - These are serious people who politically represent island nations, and they're saying, “you know, I'm not gonna sign my own death warrant.” Narrator | 00:29 - COP 28 or the 28th meeting of the conference of the parties to the United Nations Climate Change Conference took place recently in the United Arab Emirates with representation from nearly every country in the world. COP 28 is the most important annual climate summit in the world. This week on Sea Change Radio, we talk with Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News, who went to Dubai to cover the conference. We discussed the goals of the summit, talk about the irony of holding an environmental conference in one of the world's largest oil producing countries, and look at some of the key takeaways from COP 28. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:37 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Bob Berwyn. Bob is a reporter at Inside Climate News. Bob, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Bob Berwyn (BB) | 01:46 - Hi, Alex. Thanks for having me, and it's nice to be back. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:49 - I wanted to have you on again because you just got back from the COP 28 Climate Summit in Dubai, and I wanted to get your reactions to what it was like being there, and then break down some of the policies that were discussed as well. Why don't you first walk us through what it's like to go to a climate summit in one of the capitals of the fossil fuel industry? BB | 02:13 - Yeah, so it's the annual conference of parties under the United Nations framework on Climate Change Convention, which is not a phrase that really rolls off the tongue very easily. It's really a bunch of jargon, and we've come to to call them cops. And this was the 28th COP and was held in Dubai from November 30th to December 12th, and as you said, in the heart of fossil fuel country. And it's a very interesting and actually disconcerting juxtaposition of concepts, you know, on the one hand of trying to address a climate crisis that's, that's, uh, caused by burning fossil fuels, coal, oil, and gas, primarily, I think 80% or close to 90% of all the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that's heating the planet comes from burning fossil fuels. And so it's clearly at the heart of the problem, yet it's never been mentioned officially in a, in a COP document specifically by the term fossil fuels.  AW | 03:21 - Yes. How did that duck under previous 27 cops, without mentioning the phrase fossil fuels? BB | 03:27 - Well, it's because the, the oil barons and the carbon cowboys have had a big important seed at the table all along. It turns out. Um, but Dubai itself is just, you know, really a, a sort of a symbol of the, of the excess of this fossil fueled extreme capitalism that's based on consumption, that's actually driving the problem. That's what's causing this incredible surge of greenhouse gas emissions. 50% of all greenhouse gases in the air have been emitted since the first COP, um, you know, as compared to 50% in the 150 years before that. So, wait a minute, what's going on here? Um, and, and you have a chief executive of a, of a major oil company as the sort of the presiding officer over the, over the proceedings, you know, and you walk down the street, you could rent Maseratis by the hour,
Namrata Chowdhary: Three (50) Is A Magic Number (re-broadcast)
Jan 3 2024
Namrata Chowdhary: Three (50) Is A Magic Number (re-broadcast)
In the first decade of this century many of us learned that the threshold for keeping our planet healthy was 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide. Advocates like those at 350.org emphasized the need to adopt practices to help the earth stay below that number. Well, unfortunately, we earthlings have blown through that limit and are presently looking at 419 parts per million. But that doesn’t mean the idea of lowering our carbon emissions is moribund. And there are still organizations like 350.org keeping the dream alive. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Namrata Chowdhary, the Head of Public Engagement at 350.org. We learn more about the organization’s roots, examine some of the fights they’ve taken on, and discuss how they’re planning to evolve. We also talk about the corporatization of some larger environmental organizations and dive into the issues surrounding fossil fuel divestiture. 00:02 Narrator – This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I’m Alex Wise. 00:15 Namrata Chowdhary (NC) – Yes, in the Global North we need to acknowledge that there’s a gap in how we people the climate movement, and at the same time, we need to acknowledge that and environmentalism has held different forms in different parts of the world for decades longer. 00:33 Narrator – In the first decade of this century many of us learned that the threshold for keeping our planet healthy was 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide. Advocates like those at 350.org emphasized the need to adopt practices to help the earth stay below that number. Well, unfortunately, we earthlings have blown through that limit and are presently looking at 419 parts per million. But that doesn’t mean the idea of lowering our carbon emissions is moribund. And there are still organizations like 350.org keeping the dream alive. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Namrata Chowdhary, the Head of Public Engagement at 350.org. We learn more about the organization’s roots, examine some of the fights they’ve taken on, and discuss how they’re planning to evolve. We also talk about the corporatization of some larger environmental organizations and dive into the issues surrounding fossil fuel divestiture. 01:43 Alex Wise (AW) – I’m joined now on Sea Change Radio by Namrata Chowdhary. She is the head of public engagement at 350.org. Namrata, welcome to Sea Change Radio. 01:54 Namrata Chowdhary (NC) – Thank you ever so much, it’s a pleasure to be here. 01:56 Alex Wise (AW) – Pleasure to have you. You are coming to us from London, is that correct? 02:00 NC – That is correct. On a grey, cold day one wouldn’t believe it’s spring. 02:06 AW – First, why don’t you give us a bit of a background for our listeners who are not familiar with the mission of your organization and give us a little bit of the history and then we’ll catch up listeners on how the organization has evolved over the years. 02:21 NC – What a beautiful invitation to share about the history of an organization that I’ve long admired before I became part of it. 350.org was founded in 2008 by Bill McKibben, whom you’ve had on your show before, and a group of university friends who were his students at the time, and it’s named after – we are named after – the safe limits of 350 parts per million of carbon in the atmosphere. And that’s what we’re hoping to – or determined to, I should say – determined to get the earth back towards. We need to bring ourselves back to 350 parts of one million. The roots of 350 are very firmly in the activist sphere. It started with youth activists and today still we draw our primary strength from the young activists at the front lines, many of whom are at the front lines of the climate crisis and all of whom are committed to doing their part to changing the narrative of fossil fuels as the only way to bring energy to us. And are determined to do what they can to secure a more positive, uplifting, safe future for all.
Joseph McFadden: A Cattle Biologist Explains Feed Additives (re-broadcast)
Dec 26 2023
Joseph McFadden: A Cattle Biologist Explains Feed Additives (re-broadcast)
Did you know that India accounts for about one-third of the world’s one billion head of cattle? Last week on Sea Change Radio, we spoke to the head of Rumin8, a startup that’s working to reduce methane emissions from cattle. This week, we take a more academic approach to the cow burp problem – our guest is Dr. Joseph McFadden, a professor of cattle biology at Cornell University. We learn more about the science of enteric fermentation in ruminants, examine the various technological solutions aiming to reduce these methane emissions, and discuss the hurdles that the feed additive industry faces, and why they are particularly challenging in countries like India. 00:02 Narrator - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. 00:32 Joseph McFadden (JM) - We just need to have more investment, more investment in scientific research, to answer the tough questions when it comes to these feed additives, there's going to be a lot of high demand for various clinical trials to improve their efficacy and safety. And I see that improving, but I don't think we're anywhere where we need to be with the current funding climate - it's going to have to improve. 00:55 Narrator - Did you know that India accounts for about one-third of the world's one billion head of cattle? Last week on Sea Change Radio, we spoke to the head of Rumin8, a startup that's working to reduce methane emissions from cattle. This week, we take a more academic approach to the cow burp problem - our guest is Dr. Joseph McFadden, a professor of cattle biology at Cornell University. We learn more about the science of enteric fermentation in ruminants, examine the various technological solutions aiming to reduce these methane emissions, and discuss the hurdles that the feed additive industry faces, and why they are particularly challenging in countries like India. 01:56 Alex Wise (AW) - I'm joined now on Sea Change Radio by Doctor Joseph McFadden. He is a professor of dairy cattle biology at Cornell University. Joe, welcome to Sea Change Radio. 02:06 Joseph McFadden (JM) - Thanks for the invitation to talk. 02:08 Alex Wise (AW)  - For the last decade or so, we've heard a lot about the dangers of methane emissions from cattle, and there's people like yourself who are studying this phenomenon. Are some of the technological breakthroughs that have made you hopeful that we're going to be able to mitigate some of these methane emissions moving? 02:29 JM - So you know, there's a lot of interest right now in developing different technologies that can reduce enteric methane emissions. You know what I find particularly interesting is that these technologies have some efficacy already proven, meaning that depending on the type of perhaps feed additive that's being fed to cows. We might be able to see reductions anywhere from 10:00, but maybe 80%. Unfortunately, you know we're a little bit early in the research process to really determine if any of these sort of technologies are real solutions, right? And so, as a scientific community, we're trying to sort of take a step back for a moment and really make sure that our perspective is holistic. And in that we not only have effective solutions that reduce methane emissions from livestock, but also that these solutions are safe, safe for the animal, and it doesn't really modify meat or milk composition. So it's still safe for human consumption. And we also want to make sure that any potential technology is profitable for the farmer in order to ensure its adoption. 03:36 AW - I asked for some of the solutions first, but why don't you give us kind of a a broader scope of the problems that we're trying to solve? 03:44 JM - So you know, methane emissions represents about it's a high priority in terms of research, simply because agriculture contributes a large percentage of methane emissions from human derived activities. And, you know, one,
Lauren Kim: Young Evangelicals for Climate Action
Dec 19 2023
Lauren Kim: Young Evangelicals for Climate Action
A study from 2022 found that people who identified as non-religious or atheist were more likely to identify as pro-environment, as compared with religious people who tended to be "less committed to the environment." Many of us environmentalists may not look to churches as natural sites for allies. But perhaps we should look a little closer. This week on Sea Change Radio, we are speaking with Lauren Kim, an evangelical Christian and recent college graduate, who volunteers for an organization called YECA - Young Evangelical Christians for Climate Action. We talk about the mission of her organization, learn about a faith-based form of environmentalism known as "creation care," and discuss a new generation of evangelicals converting their brethren to help protect the planet. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Lauren Kim (LK) | 00:20 - Regardless if someone leans more conservatively or more liberally, wherever they are on the spectrum, climate change is something that matters for them. And we're seeing this trend more and more with people who would label themselves as conservative. And under the age of 30. Narrator | 00:37 - A study from 2022 found that people who identified as non-religious or atheist were more likely to identify as pro-environment, as compared with religious people who tended to be "less committed to the environment.” Many of us environmentalists may not look to churches as natural sites for allies. But perhaps we should look a little closer. This week on Sea Change Radio, we are speaking with Lauren Kim, an evangelical Christian and recent college graduate, who volunteers for an organization called YECA - Young Evangelical Christians for Climate Action. We talk about the mission of her organization, learn about a faith-based form of environmentalism known as "creation care," and discuss a new generation of evangelicals converting their brethren to help protect the planet. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:39 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Lauren Kim. Lauren is the financial secretary and a steering committee member for YECA Young Evangelicals for Climate Action. Lauren, welcome to Sea Change Radio.  Lauren Kim (LK)| 01:52 - Hi. Thank you so much, Alex, for having me.  Alex Wise (AW) | 01:55 - Very interested to hear more about YECA. Why don't you first explain the mission of your organization, if you will? Lauren Kim (LK) | 02:02 - Yeah, absolutely. The mission of YECA, we exist to equip, empower, and catalyze young Christians to love God and our neighbors. And we do this through climate action in both in churches and communities. And we do this to create a more just and equitable and loving world. And I think we can sum up our entire mission statement through Micah's six, eight, which is do justice. So justice as an act, love, mercy, and walk humbly with our God. So we're a faith-based organization. We're a nonprofit and we do creation care.  Alex Wise (AW) | 02:42 - What does that mean, “Creation care?” LK | 02:44 - So creation care is, in simple words, is environmentalism, but I think we differ from other environmental organizations because our motivation. So a lot of environmental orgs, they revolve around, scientists or people who are passionate about a certain issue, um, or tribal rights or something along those lines. Our interests and the reason why we care about the environment is because of Jesus and because he came down, we take the Bible seriously and in order to love our neighbors and be obedient to the word, we try to advocate for climate action and care for the environment, um, because we're mandated to and it helps people around us. AW | 03:32 - So give us some examples of some of the climate action that your organization is involved in. How, how do you try to affect change directly? LK | 03:41 - Yeah, so we actually have three pillars for our work and we base everything around these three pillars. Um,
Christine Yoo: 26.2 To Life
Dec 13 2023
Christine Yoo: 26.2 To Life
For many of us, the holiday season presents an opportunity to spend some time thinking about people less fortunate than ourselves. This week on Sea Change Radio, we spotlight a story of hope, determination and redemption. Our guest is Christine Yoo the director and producer of the new documentary film 26.2 to Life which takes viewers into the San Quentin Prison Marathon and its 1000 Mile Club. We learn about the inspiration behind the film, discuss the challenges of long distance running behind bars, and look at what the film reveals about our prison system and the effect it has on millions. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Christine Yoo (CY) | 00:23 - There were a lot of people there with brothers or fathers or mothers in prison, or their kids in prison too. It's a cycle that is self-perpetuating. Narrator | 00:38 - For many of us, the holiday season presents an opportunity to spend some time thinking about people less fortunate than ourselves. This week on Sea Change Radio, we spotlight a story of hope, determination and redemption. Our guest is Christine Yoo the director and producer of the new documentary film 26.2 to Life which takes viewers into the San Quentin Prison Marathon and 1000 Mile Club. We learn about the inspiration behind the film, discuss the challenges of long distance running behind bars, and look at what the film reveals about our prison system and the effect it has on millions.  Alex Wise (AW) | 01:38 -  I am joined on Sea Change Radio by my high school classmate, Christine Yu. Chris is the director and producer of the new documentary film 26.2 to Life. Christine, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Christine Yoo (CY) | 01:51 - Hey Alex, how are you? Glad to be here. Alex Wise (AW)  | 01:55 - First, why don't you give us a brief synopsis of 26.2 to Life, and then I want to dive into how you came about the project because it's, it's really a labor of love. It took six years, right? Christine Yoo (CY)  | 02:07 - Yeah, absolutely. Six long, very long years. So 26.2 to Life takes you inside the San Quentin Prison Marathon. And it explores the transformative power of running through the lens of the prisons running club, which is called the Thousand Mile Club. And within this club that is organized by these volunteers who are elite marathon runners that go into the prison throughout the year to coach a group of incarcerated men, they train so that every November they run a 26.2 mile marathon entirely behind the prison walls, 105 laps around this prison yard. But more than running the film really explores, uh, what, what led these men to the starting line at San Quentin and highlights their rehabilitative journeys to, to define themselves, you know, to be more than their crime.  Alex Wise (AW) | 03:12 - So how did you get interested in this project and how did you decide which characters you were going to follow as, as, as the story unfolded in front of you?  CY | 03:24 - So, my relationship with the prison system started more than 20 years ago. Um, I had a friend who was also fellow Korean American who was wrongfully convicted, and he was sentenced to 271 years in California state prison. Um, it really impacted me a lot. Um, I knew his whole family and how devastating it was for them. And he was somebody that I felt basically could have been my brother. You know, we had like the same type of family vacations, you know, grew up very similarly. Our fathers went to the same school in Korea. Um, and so because of his incarceration, I really started to wonder, uh, what does that look like if you know you're going to die in prison? I mean, what does that act? How do you actually carry out a life? You know, because people still need to find a way to live. So what does that really actually look like for people? Uh, and the, so I guess basically the opportunity to explore that question came to me in 2016.
Matt Simon on Microplastics, Pt. 2
Dec 6 2023
Matt Simon on Microplastics, Pt. 2
Last week on Sea Change Radio, we learned that the plastics industry plans to triple production in the next 40 years, reaching 3 trillion pounds of plastic a year by 2060. This week, we have the second half of our discussion with Wired writer and author, Matt Simon, who talks about how microplastic waste has crept into every nook and cranny on the planet. In this episode, we discuss how microplastics are contributing to air pollution (both indoors and out), examine some innovative ways to reduce plastic waste, and discuss the overlap between plastic waste and climate change. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise.  Matt Simon (MS) | 00:16 - We need to get rid of all the unnecessary plastic as quickly as possible because the, the trend here is not looking good.  Narrator | 00:26 - Last week on Sea Change Radio, we learned that the plastics industry plans to triple production in the next 40 years, reaching 3 trillion pounds of plastic a year by 2060. This week we have the second half of our discussion with Wired writer and author Matt Simon, who talks about how microplastic waste has crept into every nook and cranny on the planet. In this episode, we discuss how microplastics are contributing to air pollution, both indoors and out, examine some innovative ways to reduce plastic waste and discuss the overlap between plastic waste and climate change.  Alex Wise (AW) | 01:13 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Matt Simon. He's a senior staff writer at Wired Magazine, and his most recent book is A Poison Like No Other. Matt, welcome to Sea Change Radio.  Matt Simon (MS) | 01:27 - And thank you for having me.  Alex Wise (AW) | 01:29 - So Matt, I saw a documentary on makeup on Netflix. One of the episodes was about talc and how talc gets into our cosmetic industry in a, in a very pernicious way. And one of the ways that the talc industry and the cosmetics industry checked this off as being safe was that they just changed the measurements. They, they just use different microscopes and saying, yeah, it's not being detected by our microscopes, but they weren't using the best microscopes for this. So they, they kind of moved the goalposts in order to clear it for the public. It was devastating effects that it's had for many, many people. When you're talking about this plastics recycling and the effluence and trying to detect it, it, it made me think of that. It's just that they're not measuring it correctly and they need to get better microscopes or whatever, better filtration systems. Why don't, why don't you expand if you can. MS | 02:22 - Sure. Yeah. There's, there's an interesting parallel here there, 'cause microplastics are involved in, in cosmetics as well. So about a decade ago in the United States, banned microbeads, right? That's this big famous environmental progress. AW | 02:34 - They looked really cool in shampoo for a few years, right? Yeah. MS | 02:37 - Yeah. So cosmetics and plastics industry had this truly insane idea, which is to, and like face washes and things to, uh, create this sort of abrasive effect with little bits of plastic. Um, instead of, you know, perfectly natural machine, you can do this with like, uh, stone fruit pits, right?  AW | 02:55 - Oh yeah. I've seen like apricot scrub. MS | 02:57 - Yeah. Yeah. They said, no, too expensive to do that. We will just put little tiny pieces of plastic, uh, these microbeads. So when that ban went into effect about a decade ago in the United States, that was only for wash off products, those face washes, um, that, that were using those sorts of scrubbing plastics that did not include cosmetics. So cosmetics to this day are chockfull of microplastics. So they are often used not for abrasive effects, but actually make makeup go on smoother. They act almost like a little tiny ball bearings. So when you wash off your makeup, that is washing into ecosystems,
Matt Simon on Microplastics, Pt. 1
Nov 28 2023
Matt Simon on Microplastics, Pt. 1
Look around you: at this very moment, chances are that within a one-foot radius of your body, there’s something plastic. The ubiquity of plastic comes with a steep cost, however. This week on Sea Change Radio, the first half of our two-part discussion with Matt Simon, a Wired staff writer and author of A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies. In this episode, we learn about the history of plastic manufacturing, look at some unexpected ways that we’re exposed to microplastics, and examine how plastic recycling falls well-short of its promise. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Matt Simon (MS) | 00:17 - We need just a fundamental renegotiation with our relationship with plastic. Narrator | 00:25 - Look around you: at this very moment, chances are that within a one-foot radius of your body, there’s something plastic. The ubiquity of plastic comes with a steep cost, however. This week on Sea Change Radio, the first half of our two-part discussion with Matt Simon, a Wired staff writer and author of “A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies.” In this episode, we learn about the history of plastic manufacturing, look at some unexpected ways that we’re exposed to microplastics, and examine how plastic recycling falls well-short of its promise. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:30 - I'm joined now on Sea Change Radio by Matt Simon. He's a senior staff writer at Wired Magazine, and his most recent book is “A Poison Like No Other.” Matt, welcome to Sea Change Radio, Matt Simon (MS) | 01:41 - And thank you for having me. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:43 - So, your most recent book, as I just mentioned, is, is entitled A Poison Like No Other. It focuses on microplastics. You wrote a piece for Wired recently highlighting a study that showed that microplastics are a real problem in the recycling process. Why don't you explain, first of all, how much our plastic recycling system is failing us. MS | 02:09 - It is, unfortunately failing us on a number of different levels. So, the promise all along this is a promise pitched by the plastics industry itself, was that if we're able to continuously recycle these plastic products, that we could keep these, these materials in circulation. The subtext of that being, well, if that were the case, we wouldn't need to produce any more plastic, right? So why would a plastics industry want us to do something that would decrease their, their bottom line? So all along reporting has come out. NPR did a piece about this a couple years ago, that that found that the plastics industry pitched recycling as a way to shunt the responsibility for plastics pollution to the public. So, it's your fault and my fault that we're not recycling bottles in bags enough, and they're escaping into the environment and, and that onus is on us. But all along the plastics industry knew that the economics of recycling just didn't add up. It is much, much cheaper to just keep producing virgin plastics, largely because the price of fossil fuels are still very low. 99% of plastics still being made out of, of fossil fuels. So this study that you mentioned, came out, I believe last year, was really a one of the first quantifications of this thing that we didn't consider in plastics recycling, is that another angle into this, which is as the plastic is, is processed in this facility, it's chewed up, shredded, washed multiple times, that wash water is then flushed out into the environment so when that stuff is all chewed up, it produces lots and lots of microplastic and nanoplastic microplastic typically being defined as something that's smaller than five millimeters, nanoplastics typically being smaller than a millionth of a meter. So that effluent is spewing into the environment. And this, this study quantified that it's something on the order of 6.5 million pounds of microplastic coming out of a single re...
Zealous Founder Scott Hechinger
Nov 22 2023
Zealous Founder Scott Hechinger
It’s that time of year when as the weather gets colder we warm ourselves with thoughts of gratitude and giving, which, for many, includes charitable donations to organizations making a difference. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with the founder and executive director of one such organization. Scott Hechinger, a former public defender, runs the nonprofit advocacy organization Zealous, whose aim is to educate the public about the inequities of this country’s justice system. We examine why more public defenders aren’t elected to higher office, talk about the repercussions from last year’s recall of San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin, and discuss the impact Zealous is trying to make. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Scott Hechinger (SH) | 00:16 - If you care about human rights, if you care about fiscal responsibility, at the end of the day, public health and safety, like you should a support investing in public defense. All but you should also love your local public defender. You should be encouraging more public defenders to run for office. I think we'd be in a way, way better place across the board policy-wise. If we had thoughtful public defenders in office. Narrator | 00:40 - It’s that time of year when as the weather gets colder we warm ourselves with thoughts of gratitude and giving, which, for many, includes charitable donations to organizations making a difference. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with the founder and executive director of one such organization. Scott Hechinger, a former public defender, runs the nonprofit advocacy organization Zealous, whose aim is to educate the public about the inequities of this country’s justice system. We examine why more public defenders aren’t elected to higher office, talk about the repercussions from last year’s recall of San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin, and discuss the impact Zealous is trying to make. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:35 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Scott Hechinger. He's the founder and executive director of Zealous. He's an attorney, former public defender and a law professor as well. Scott, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Scott Hechinger (SH) | 01:50 - Thanks for having me on. Great to be here. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:53 - So, first, why don't we talk about your role as a public defender? You're not actively serving in that role, but it's an important part of your background and maybe explain what the mission of Zealous is and how that kind of all works within that framework. Scott Hechinger (SH) | 02:10 - So Zealous really is an outgrowth of the work, um, uh, that I was doing for close to a decade as a public defender in Brooklyn. And frankly, going back further than that, my first law job during law school down in New Orleans, uh, in one of the first intern classes, most people don't know this, but there was no full-time public defender office in New Orleans before Katrina in one of the strange silver linings that came from Katrina was that a lot of social justice attention got focused down in New Orleans. Um, and one of the ways that it happened was that a lot of public defenders went, came in from around the country and said, look, we wanna change the system of private attorneys who are friends with the prosecutors and friends with the judges, having this kind of old boys club plea deal system and actually get some folks in there that were trying to challenge the system, which is what public defenders do. The role of public defenders is to provide people who can't afford representation with meaningful Zealous counsel in court, um, in order to, to figure out what's actually happening in the case to, to try to come up with the best case solutions, whether that goes through to trial or before. Um, it's about challenging police misconduct in court. The sad thing is the reality is because of just endemic underfunding and,
Eriel Deranger + Bill Plotkin
Nov 14 2023
Eriel Deranger + Bill Plotkin
This week on Sea Change Radio, we dig into the archives to hear from someone who works to amplify first people’s voices in the fight for climate justice. We speak with the Executive Director of Indigenous Climate Action, Eriel Deranger. We discuss the intersection of the indigenous people’s and the Black Lives Matter movements, take a look at her organization’s climate report, and get an update on the Keystone XL pipeline. Then, we take a breath to learn a bit about ourselves from Bill Plotkin, an author, psychologist and spiritual ecologist. We dive into Plotkin’s teachings, outlined in his book, “The Journey of Soul Initiation,” about moving from adolescence into adulthood (both metaphorically and figuratively), and how we can all evolve as individuals to become better stewards of the planet. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Eriel Deranger (ED) | 00:22 - Biden, who was elected in one of his first executive orders, was to cancel the Keystone XL because he acknowledged its implications to the climate crisis, but also to the fact that these projects were abrogating and violating the rights of indigenous communities. Narrator | 00:40 - This week on Sea Change Radio, we dig into the archives to hear from someone who works to amplify first people's voices in the fight for climate justice, we speak with the Executive Director of Indigenous Climate Action, Eriel Deranger. We discuss the intersection of the indigenous peoples and the Black Lives Matter movements, take a look at her organization's climate report and get an update on the Keystone XL Pipeline. Then we take a breath to learn a bit about ourselves from Bill Plotkin, an author, psychologist, and spiritual ecologist. We dive into Plotkin teachings outlined in his book, “The Journey of Soul Initiation,” about moving from adolescence into adulthood (both metaphorically and figuratively), and how we can all evolve as individuals to become better stewards of the planet. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:45 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Eriel Deranger. She is the Executive Director of Indigenous Climate Action. Eriel, welcome to Sea Change Radio. Eriel Deranger (ED) | 01:56 - Thank you for having me. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:57 - Why don't you first tell us the mission of your organization? ED | 02:02 - Well, we're Canada's premier and only indigenous led climate justice organization, and our organization was really founded out of a need for indigenous communities to have a central organization that focused on indigenous led climate justice. And our main mandate is to create resources and tools and training for indigenous communities to be leaders in driving indigenous led climate solutions and addressing Canada's climate crisis. AW | 02:33 - And you have a new indigenous climate policy white paper out that maybe you can summarize and then talk about what you're hoping it turns into? ED | 02:44 - Yeah, so, you know, some of the, the biggest challenges are is why do we need indigenous led climate solutions? It's a big question. You know, Canada constantly states that the relationship with indigenous communities is one of their highest priorities in the country, yet we're still developing policy and particularly climate policy without the participation of indigenous peoples. And some of the questions sort of from the larger ENGO and government world is, well, what's wrong with the policy? Like, what's wrong with the actual policy that we're creating? And so this critique looks at a how the processes for the development of the Pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change and a healthy environment and healthy economy. The two primary climate policies and plans of the Canadian government excluded, well really investigates whether these plans aim at the root causes of climate change, while also respecting and meaningfully including indigenous peoples and our rights knowledges and approac...
Gigi Berardi: Eating Well, Eating Wisely (re-broadcast)
Nov 7 2023
Gigi Berardi: Eating Well, Eating Wisely (re-broadcast)
For many, along with all that good cheer, the holidays bring a bunch of food-related conundrums: what to bring to the pot luck, what to eat and not eat at the company party, what gifts to buy for our culinary-focused friends and family, and how to be ecologically responsible without compromising taste. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with a food expert who can help solve these holiday food puzzlers. Gigi Berardi is a professor of food studies and geography at Western Washington University. Her new book, FoodWISE lays out ways to make better decisions about what we eat. We discuss the differences between frozen and canned foods, take a look at “Big Organic,” and examine how the food industry’s misuse of the word “healthy” has warped its meaning. Narrator | 00:02 - This is Sea Change Radio, covering the shift to sustainability. I'm Alex Wise. Gigi Berardi (GB) | 00:14 - Choose whole, be informed, choose sustainable, and go for the experience. Narrator | 00:24 - For many, along with all that good cheer, the holidays bring a bunch of food-related conundrums: what to bring to the pot luck, what to eat and not eat at the company party, what gifts to buy for our culinary-focused friends and family, and how to be ecologically responsible without compromising taste. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with a food expert who can help solve these holiday food puzzlers. Gigi Berardi is a professor of food studies and geography at Western Washington University. Her new book, FoodWISE lays out ways to make better decisions about what we eat. We discuss the differences between frozen and canned foods, take a look at “Big Organic,” and examine how the food industry’s misuse of the word “healthy” has warped its meaning. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:40 - I am joined now on Sea Change Radio by Gigi Berardi. She's a professor of food studies and geography at Western Washington University, and her new book is Food Wise Gigi. Welcome to Sea Change Radio. Gigi Berardi (GB) | 01:52 - Thank you, Alex. Alex Wise (AW) | 01:54 - So you have a new book coming out early 2020 entitled Food Wise. What is the Wise approach? It's an acronym. Why don't you explain to our listeners what the Wise approach to sourcing and preparing meals is all about? GB | 02:09 - Right. Uh, Wise is an acronym, and the acronym is Whole for W. Informed is the I, S is sustainable and E is experience. So experience-based thinking. And I had thought about using Wisest and that would've allowed me to add a T for Tasty, but I did not. And so in its simplest form it represents an approach to dealing with food choices. So this book is a little different in that it's not about food so much as about food choices, which are really difficult for many of us to make. AW | 02:54 - So is it for consumers who are going to the store shopping and the choices that they have to make when they get home? GB | 03:02 - Precisely. AW | 03:03 - What are some of the biggest challenges that you think that consumers are facing in today's marketplace? GB | 03:10 - Time and money. Uh, so, uh, in particular, I mean, I think people can choose wisely and find, uh, inexpensive foods and, uh, inexpensive ways to cook, but then it comes down to time, and that is, you know, valuing time, the time it takes to cook, to prepare a meal, to invite friends, uh, over and, um, to be hospitable. Uh, so I think that that time is a, a real limiting factor. And, um, I should say that when I wrote this book, I was really trying to address my students, uh, as well as friends, family, colleagues, uh, and other people I work with. And students are very busy with school and also are on tight budgets. And so they find it very difficult to, uh, to find the time and money, but, um, to cook. But in one of my classes we've got, uh, 150 students, and part of the class is cooking for a potluck. So we have potlucks with 150 students and 50 students cook at a time.