Coming Home to Life

In this episode, Josie and Daniel are joined by Professor Anne Poelina, Co-Chair of Indigenous Studies at the University of Notre Dame and a Nyikina Warrwa Indigenous woman from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia.

Regeneration is often positioned as a recent development in sustainable practice, but the principles that underpin this approach – connecting with place and living in harmony with natural systems – have been woven through cultures and wisdom traditions since the dawn of human history. In this episode, Josie and Daniel yarn with Dr Anne Poelina, a Nyikina Warrwa Traditional Owner and guardian of the Mardoowarra, Lower Fitzroy River in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Professor Anne Poelina is Co-Chair of Indigenous Studies and Senior Research Fellow at the Nulungu Institute, University of Notre Dame Australia, and a Nyikina Warrwa Traditional Owner from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia. Anne is an active Indigenous community leader, human and earth rights advocate, filmmaker and a respected academic researcher. She is also on the steering committee for Regenerative Songlines, an Indigenous-led network working to develop a continent-wide framework for regeneration in Australia.

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In this first episode of the series, co-hosts Josie Warden and Daniel Christian Wahl discuss what it means to think and act regeneratively.

Every second of every day, our cells are fed, nourished, and regenerated by the living systems around us -- and our presence, in turn, enables other species to thrive. But our current way of living is interfering with these vital processes and undermining the very systems that enable life on this planet.

As communities around the world grapple with the devastating consequences of a climate emergency and converging social and economic crises, there is growing consensus that our current way of thinking will not bring about the change we need in the time we have. We urgently need to rethink who we are as a species and our role on this planet. We need a new collective story for humanity – one that recognises our interconnection with the rest of life on Earth and galvanises collaborative action towards regenerative futures.    

Dr Daniel Christian Wahl works internationally as a consultant and educator in regenerative design, whole systems design and transformative innovation. His vast catalogue of forward-thinking work (notably his book Designing Regenerative Cultures) has inspired and enabled people from all walks of life to apply regenerative design to their own contexts. In 2021, he was awarded the RSA's prestigious Bicentenary Medal for his contribution to the field of regenerative design.

Josie Warden is a designer and regenerative practitioner. She has worked with policy makers, businesses and civil society organisations to explore how design can shape regenerative futures where people and planet thrive together for the long term.

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