Happy Earth Week, Besties!
I freaking love this planet, and I truly hope we can get our collective shit together to address the climate crisis soooooon. Yes, the problem is enormous, but getting stuck in the overwhelm and feeling too small to make a difference doesn’t help get us out of this mess. We obviously need to pressure our governments and big businesses to move the needle in a meaningful way, but that starts with individuals — people like you and me.
So I’m sharing some podcast recs to inspire us to use our skills to protect Mama Earth. Because what I took away from this listening is that it doesn’t take that many people to make a significant impact. And the thing about my Besties (that’s you!) is they ALL have the power to communicate important stories and solutions to listeners around the world.
HOW TO SAVE A PLANET: Is Your Carbon Footprint BS?
Do your individual actions matter when it comes to climate change? Or is it all about big, systemic change? In this episode of How to Save a Planet, Alex and Ayana break down both sides of the argument. They lay out the actions that have the most significant impact on your carbon footprint — and then ask if there's a better way to think about our individual role in climate change.
CLIMERGENCY: 6 Ways You Can Make a Big Impact on Climate Change
Individual actions CAN make a difference — especially if you’re affecting change in others — so if you want to focus on behaviors that can make the biggest impact, this interview is a great place to start. Kevin Green, who leads Rare's Center for Behavior & the Environment, outlines six relatively easy behaviors you can adopt to reduce your carbon footprint and live a more sustainable lifestyle. If you feel overwhelmed about climate change, this interview will make you feel more empowered.
CLIMATE ONE: Yvon Chouinard: Founding Patagonia and Living Simply
This interview with Yvon Chouinard, the founder and owner of Patagonia, is a case study for how to be a responsible business owner. He shares how he fell in love with the Patagonia region of South America as a climber, the unintentional way he started his business, the intentional way he reworked his supply chain, how a near-death experience near Tibet shifted his life and perspective on death, and a super interesting discussion on food sustainability and regenerative agriculture. I love this guy!
Amy Westervelt is back with new episodes of Drilled, her true crime podcast about climate change, in honor of Earth Day. The first episode is about a showdown between San Luis Obispo and SoCalGas amid a COVID backdrop.
A SUSTAINABLE MIND: Is Bamboo the Next Big Thing?
It seems like bamboo is everywhere as an eco-friendly alternative, but is it? (According to this episode, hell yes!) The guest for this episode is Scott Brady, the Vice President of Communications for Cariloha, a company that features sustainable bamboo in all of its product lines. This episode explains what makes bamboo sustainable, how bamboo compares to other fabrics we typically use, and its benefits.
The word regenerative has been popping up in mainstream fashion conversations more lately, but a lot of the methods and concepts used in regenerative agriculture are not new — they're rooted in circular practices cultivated by Indigenous people over thousands of years. Unfortunately, the sustainability movement has a reputation for taking ideas or practices from Black and Brown communities and finding new ways to repackage and commercialize them without proper credit. This episode features guests that buck that trend: Nishanth Chopra, the founder of Oshadi Collective, and Mairin Wilson, the head of regenerative practices at Christy Dawn, have been working together for the past two years to build a new kind of fashion system, one that is hyper-localized and regenerative.
BROWN GIRL GREEN: Stopping Food Waste: From Plate to Planet
Food waste currently contributes to 6 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. In this episode, Brown Girl Green talks with Maen Mahfoud, the founder and CEO of Replate. Replate is a non-profit tech organization that takes food surplus and redistributes it to the communities that need it the most. Out of all the individual actions, fixing your own food waste is among the most attainable, so start now!
Billed as “Law & Order meets the climate crisis,” Damages is a podcast exploring the legal side of climate change. “Ecocide,” the first episode of season two, dropped today.
Why Are Podcasts Having a Moment? - Podcasting is the best medium, right? As podcasters, we tend to think so — and at the moment, we’re on-trend. So why are podcasts the “it” girl right now among listeners and advertisers? Caila Litman unpacks the stats in her latest blog for Sounds Profitable.
Why Your Podcast Transcripts Need Non-Speech Elements - Yes, transcripts are essential for accessibility (and even SEO). We’re currently working on tackling this over at Private Parts Unknown, so I found this thread from Ma'ayan Plaut explaining why you should include non-speech elements very helpful. For more, Rebecca Klein’s blog dives deeper.
How One Artist Gamed the Spotify Charts to Hit #1 - Brazilian musical artist Anitta gave her fans info on how to inflate her streaming numbers in an under-the-radar way that skirted the terms and conditions. The result? Brazil’s first global chart-topper. Hmm… I wonder if we’ll see any podcasters follow suit.
Senior Manager, Limited Series (full-time) at Crooked Media | Los Angeles, CA
Producer (full-time) at Bonneville International | Salt Lake City, UT + Remote
Broadcast News Reporter/Producer (full-time) at Public News Service | Mid-Atlantic & Southeast + Remote
Associate Producer (contract) at American Public Media | Remote
In this episode, Sofiya and I welcome actor, writer, and advocate Emmy Olea to discuss the inspiration for her new podcast, Crumbs. Emmy shares how her childhood affected her romantic life, what it's like to navigate disclosure when dating as a trans woman, her journey to learning her worth in relationships, and more.
I was on Monday’s edition of The Daily Zeitgeist, and we had fun! We discussed how the police fumbled the latest NYC subway attack, the recent wave of cops using Disney and other copyrighted music to prevent being filmed (it doesn’t work), and the scientists planning to send a radio message into space revealing Earth's exact location to Alien’s despite Stephen Hawking's warning. Plus, I shared my recent search history and a couple of things I consider overrated and underrated.
I always love getting recommendations from one of my favorite people in podcasting and the Cookie Monster of podcast listening, Arielle Nissenblatt. She suggests you pop in your earbuds and check out:
“The cohosts come from a film background, but are so passionate about making this podcast and speaking with a diverse range of outdoor lovers.”
And, of course, make sure you’re subscribed to Arielle’s newsletter Earbuds Podcast Collective for five podcast episodes according to a theme, curated by a different person each week. It’s a treat in your inbox every Sunday!
➡️ Here’s the link to submit for future editions.
So… ROLL CALL! 🗣
What’s one of YOUR favorite sustainability or climate change-related podcast eps? You’re more than welcome to share your own podcast!
Follow me @courtneykocak on Twitter and Instagram. For more, check out my website courtneykocak.com.