EcoJustice Radio

Can we trace where Western Civilization went wrong to the 1400s when Filippo Brunelleschi, known for his brazen duomo designs in Florence, Italy, invented the linear perspective that dominated Art, Architecture, and city planning ever since? This almost-photographic perspective of the world around us translated to cities and their people being separated from nature, and the ecosystems that nourish us all. Some European painters in the early 20th Century, like Picasso and Matisse, challenged this linear perspective and were called Fauves or wild beasts. But do we need more wild beasts, rather than just bad-boy white dudes, to overcome these linear perspective machines and heal our relationship with the Earth?

On today’s show, Shana Nys Dambrot [http://sndx.net], art historian and culture writer from Los Angeles’ vibrant art scene, joins co-host Jack Eidt to guide us on a romp through these European art movements to trace how we got here and where we are headed. We delve into the question of how environmental and climate activism intertwine with artistic expression. Shana engages in a thought-provoking conversation about the role of art in shaping a better world, exploring the dreams and tangible enactments of new realities. Join us as we confront the big questions: Whose dream? Whose world? What does 'better' truly mean? This episode is not just an exploration of art, but a challenge to the status quo and an invitation to envision a future that includes everyone.

Note: Jacques Derrida, French philosopher, referred to himself as a historian. He questioned assumptions of the Western philosophical tradition and also more broadly Western culture. Derrida called his challenge to the assumptions of Western culture "deconstruction.” On some occasions, Derrida referred to deconstruction as a radicalization of a certain spirit of Marxism. Shana applied the concept of deconstruction to the ideal of a "better world," which would then become a place that we never could have imagined or expected.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Resources/Articles:

https://www.laweekly.com/author/sndambrot/

https://artillerymag.com/byline/shana-nys-dambrot/

Related Interview:

Designing Architecture and Landscapes with Nature’s Ecological Wisdom - Carl Welty https://wilderutopia.com/ecojustice-radio/designing-architecture-and-landscapes-with-natures-ecological-wisdom/

On Geo-Fauvism: https://wilderutopia.com/sustainability/geo-fauvism-waking-to-the-wild-earth-through-visual-art/

Shana Nys Dambrot [http://sndx.net] is an art critic, curator, and author based in Downtown LA who has been Arts Editor for the L.A. Weekly, and a contributor to the Village Voice, Flaunt, Artillery, and other culture publications. She studied Art History at Vassar College, and is the recipient of the 2022 and 2024 Mozaik Future Art Writers Prize, the 2022 Rabkin Prize for Art Criticism, and the LA Press Club National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Critic of the Year award for 2022. Her surrealist novel Zen Psychosis (Griffith Moon) was published in 2020.

Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

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Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 212

We sat down this week with Jay Levin, President of EQuip Our Kids, to explore the transformative power of emotional intelligence training. As society grapples with rising stress, anxiety, and a digital landscape that both connects and isolates, he discusses how Equip Our Kids is paving a path to mental wellness for children and teens. This conversation is a must-listen for anyone invested in shaping a future where emotional intelligence is the cornerstone of education and personal development.

Most would agree our times are as tumultuous and unpredictable, as they are auspicious and potentiating. How we proceed in this era is ultimately a matter of choice and exploring the best ways forward. Over the last decade, mental health in among youth has been declining, in conjunction with increased levels of stress, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and depression. The pandemic years exacerbated feelings of isolation, loneliness, sadness and hopelessness among many youth globally.

The prevalence of social media, cellphones, and digital addiction are impacting youth with greater access to national and global challenges whether it be: climate change, gun violence, racial injustice, gun violence or international or socioeconomic crises. According to a survey of tens of thousands of students conducted by University of Michigan researchers, 8th and 10th graders in 2021 spent an average of 3.5 hours daily on social media platforms. The Pew Center also reported that last year, 35% teens said they used social media “almost constantly.” Poor sleep, sedentary, indoor lifestyles, peer pressure, cyberbullying, and diminishing in-person vs. virtual social connections are all impacting the mental health of today’s youth for better or worse.

How can we nurture emotional intelligence skills that equips youth with adaptability in changing times, fortitude and wellness tools that foster their innate gifts and potential? Jay Levin, President of Equip Our Kids [https://equipourkids.org] joined us to talk about the potential and need for social emotional learning and nurturing emotional intelligence to create greater balance, resiliency and a deep sense of connectedness among youth of all ages.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

More Info

https://equipourkids.org/explaining-eq-sel/

Featured Video:

Students Talk about Social and Emotional Learning's impact in school and in their life https://youtu.be/mV4t8hJG0d4

Jay Levin is the President of EQuip Our Kids! [https://equipourkids.org] whose mission it is to get emotional intelligence training in all US pre Kindergarten to grade 12 schools. The founder of the LA Weekly, which he grew to be the largest urban weekly newspaper in the country, he has also run five other media companies. A social entrepreneur, he has started six nonprofits dealing with social issues and has served on the advisory boards of three environmental organizations.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, Indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Intro: Jack Eidt

Hosted by Carry Kim

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 211

In honor of the conclusion of Black History Month, we air parts of a documentary from Kansas State University, called Dawn of Day: Stories of the Underground Railroad [https://youtu.be/L5c6cDCTJNY?si=Asw3p9WGrBf81_Zj], produced by Dean Mercer, Directed by Rusty Earl, and narrated by the late Richard Pitts, who was Director of the Wonder Workshop in Manhattan, Kansas.

Dawn of Day is a historical documentary about the Underground Railroad in Kansas that brings to light unsung heroes who worked in secret to deliver enslaved African Americans to freedom into the free states in the north. Featured on the show today are narrator Richard Pitts, Brad Burenheide of Kansas State, Madge McDonald of the Wamego, Kansas Historical Society, and Historian Michael Stubbs, interviewed in the famed Beecher Bible and Rifle Church in Wabaunsee, Kansas.

The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early to mid-19th century. The slaves who risked capture and those who aided them are also collectively referred to as the passengers and conductors of the "Underground Railroad.” One estimate suggests that, by 1850, approximately 100,000 slaves had escaped to freedom via the network.

The most famous conductor on the Underground Railroad was Harriet Tubman. After escaping slavery, she made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 enslaved people, including her family and friends, using the network of antislavery activists and safe houses between Maryland and Philadelphia, and after the Fugitive Slave Act of 1950, the destination was British North America, or what we know as Canada.

John Brown was also prominent leader in the Abolitionist Movement, first reaching national prominence in the 1850s for his radical fighting in Bleeding Kansas, a state-level civil war over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a slave state or a free state.

Brown was captured, tried, and executed by the Commonwealth of Virginia for a raid and incitement of a slave rebellion at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (today’s West Virginia) in 1859, an effort that was also assisted by Harriet Tubman.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

More Info:

https://wilderutopia.com/landscape/bleeding-kansas-and-stories-of-the-underground-railroad/

Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 210

Photo credit: Kansas State University

According to Dr Kristine Nichols, a soil microbiologist and regenerative agriculture expert, of the 900 million arable acres in the U.S., only about 1.5% is being farmed regeneratively. Yet, this continues to change, despite consolidation of farms, the majority of foods on this continent are still grown by small farmers. Regenerative is our future and also our past, as Indigenous peoples have long cared for this Earth, knowing it is our inheritance and responsibility. We owe a debt to how they have cared for the land through their culture, lifeways and connection to Mother Earth.

Our guest today, Gabe Brown, Regenerative Farmer and Rancher out of North Dakota, and a Partner in Understanding Ag [https://understandingag.com] and the Soil Health Academy [https://soilhealthacademy.org/] is a leading voice reminding us to return to tend the land as stewards, relatives, and children born of the land. Regenerative farming promotes soil health, restores the water cycle, increases biodiversity and the holistic health of the ecosystem. Aligning with regenerative farms, and creating beyond sustainable local food systems, requires us to shift to a consciousness of caring for the Earth as Indigenous peoples have done since time immemorial. Understanding and undertaking this personally and collectively is key to the continuance of life.

It all begins with the soil, whether we are talking about food security and sovereignty, climate change or the need to heal ourselves and the soil, so that all life from microbes to insects to plants, animals, and humans can thrive together. It is not a hierarchy but a circle and cycle of care that we must urgently attend to for future generations. Gabe Brown joins us now to share his journey and how we can collectively contribute to an abundant future with regenerative farming.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Featured Video:

Understanding Ag:

https://youtu.be/9yPjoh9YJMk?si=aclF95oje6IFq6EY

Gabe Brown is one of the pioneers of the current soil health movement which focuses on the regeneration of our resources. Gabe and his wife and son operate Brown's Ranch [https://brownsranch.us/], a diversified 5,000 acre farm and ranch near Bismarck, North Dakota. Gabe was named one of the twenty-five most influential agricultural leaders in the United States and is also the author of the book, “Dirt to Soil, One Family’s Journey Into Regenerative Agriculture.” He is a partner in Understanding Ag [https://understandingag.com] and an instructor for Soil Health Academy [https://soilhealthacademy.org/], which focuses on teaching others the power and importance of healthy functioning ecosystems.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, Indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Intro: Jack Eidt

Hosted by Carry Kim

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 209

Two hundred years ago, before the Industrial Revolution, the rivers across North America ran clear and blue. Beginning in the 1800s, the growth of manufacturing and agriculture brought prosperity, but at the great cost of unmitigated pollution. While the food industry has been focused on profitability, their agricultural practices have resulted in rainstorms washing pesticides, fertilizers, feedlot manure, and bare soil into our waterways and oceans, turning rivers from clear reflections of blue skies to hues of greenish brown. And human health has suffered as well.

Our guest John Roulac [https://johnroulac.com/], Founder of Nutiva and Executive Producer of the recently premiered documentary film, Common Ground, delivers the good news: there are profitable and earth-friendly ways to grow nutrient-dense food, draw down carbon to address climate chaos, and return our rivers to their natural blue appearance. He discusses his many nonprofit organizations and two documentary films focused on soil regeneration as an important way forward.

John illuminates the harsh realities of our industrial agricultural practices and presents a compelling case for a regenerative revolution. From the loss of winged insects to the acidification of oceans, he paints a vivid picture of the ecological crisis at hand. We discuss how we can transform degraded lands into flourishing ecosystems, and why sustainable agriculture isn't enough. Learn about the power of regenerative agriculture to restore biodiversity, improve food security, and heal our planet. John’s message is clear – we must transition now from destructive farming to practices that could save our ecosystems and our personal health.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Resources/Articles:

Pharma's Culture War - https://johnroulac.com/pharmas-culture-war-are-simple-cheap-effective-options-being-downplayed/

Make America's Rivers Blue Again -https://johnroulac.com/making-americas-rivers-blue-again-connecting-the-dots-between-regenerative-ag-healthy-waterways/

John Roulac, the founder of Nutiva, sourced and formulated organic superfoods that have generated over $1 billion in retail sales. John is a serial entrepreneur, investor, writer, philanthropist, and the Executive Producer of the Netflix hit film Kiss the Ground, and the latest Common Ground which focuses on regenerative agriculture. Furthermore, John has established six non-profit organizations, including Great Plains Regeneration, Agroforestry Regeneration Communities (ARC), and Forests Forever, showcasing his commitment to environmental and social causes.

Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 208

Photo credit: John Roulac

Pastoralism. New (and Old Agrarians). Prescribed grazing. Adapting to our changing climate. Returning to ancient traditions for modern times. Throughout history, humanity has engaged pastoralism and grazing animals as a way of life, from Africa, to the Tibetan Plateau, the Eurasian steppes, to the Andes and Australia. As of 2019, 75% of all countries still maintain pastoral communities who graze animals for subsistence including cattle, camels, goats, yaks, llamas, reindeer, horses, and sheep. Diane Anastasio, Programs Manager of Shepherdess Land & Livestock [http://brittanycolebush.com/], based out of Ojai, California. joins us on this show to put the new generation of grazing on the land in perspective.

Today, smaller ruminants such as goats and sheep are integral and essential to ecological restoration, regeneration, and reconnecting us to animals and the land itself. Ruminants help balance ecosystems and usher in biodiversity, when handled conscientiously, with the future in mind. Overgrazing has also led to land degradation and desertification worldwide, however, many view animals as a sacred key to revitalizing land and renewing our relationship to animals and Nature. Sheep and goats offer back end fertilization, food, fiber and help prevent fire hazards.

Prescribed Grazing creates ecological resilience and healthier landscapes adaptable to the whims of climate change. In the US, pastoral practices and economies have virtually been eradicated due to colonization, industrialization, and the individualization of livestock production. Ours is a time for renewing pastoralism culturally and economically, in order to foster a life of balance and reverence upon the lands, in connection with all life. Diane Anastasio [https://www.dianeanastasio.com/] joins us to share the potentiality of prescribed grazing, ecological resilience and a pastoral life.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Featured Videos:

Shepherdess Land and Livestock IG: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsB6F4mpXxD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

LATimes 404 IG: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C00TQb7Lpoh/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Intro Video The Selby: https://vimeo.com/708353057

Diane Anastasio is a weaver, writer and shepherd currently working with prescribed grazing business, Shepherdess Land & Livestock [https://shepherdesslandl.co/] in Ojai, California. Diane arrived in agriculture through overlapping explorations of food systems, nutrition, education and a deep desire to carry on the work of their agrarian ancestors. Diane is passionate about creating accessible pathways into prescribed grazing and has been collaborating on the development of the Grazing School of the West [http://grazingschoolofthewest.com/] in order to support new generations of agrarians in the field.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, Indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Intro: Jack Eidt

Hosted by Carry Kim

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 207

Photo Credit: Pickhard for Shepherdess Land and Livestock

What is now known as Alabama and the environs of the Deep South, boast exceptional biodiversity and capture the imagination with its rich cultural and historical significance. It is the ancestral home of Cherokees, Choctaws, Muscogee or Creeks, and numerous lesser known Native nations and also the place where civil rights activist Stokely Carmichael planted the seeds of Black Power. Moreover, Dr. King famously marched from Selma to Montgomery, weaving along the Alabama River to manifest a dream of unity.

Listen to rich stories of ecological restoration and preservation of places of civil rights history that is Alabama. In 2021, we spoke with Bill Finch of Alabama River Diversity Network and the Paint Rock Forest Research Center, and Phillip Howard, Project Manager of Civil Rights People and Places Initiative. They shared the vision and mission of these non-profit organizations dedicated to preserving and promoting the extraordinarily diverse natural and human heritage of this essential region.

Bill Finch is the founding director of Paint Rock Forest Research Center [https://paintrock.org] and founding partner of the Alabama River Diversity Network [https://alabamarivernetwork.org]. Finch is author of Longleaf, Far As the Eye Can See, an exploration of the potential in North America’s most diverse forest ecosystem. He is former conservation director for the Nature Conservancy’s Alabama Chapter, and an award-winning writer on gardening, farming and environmental issues.

Phillip Howard is Project Manager for The Conservation Fund’s Civil Rights People and Places Initiative. He recently produced a film about the Campsites of the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail called 54 Miles to Home.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, Indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

54 Miles to Home: https://vimeo.com/591288364

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://wilderutopia.com/ecojustice-radio/conserving-civil-rights-history-and-biological-diversity-in-alabama/

Support the Podcast: https://socal350.org/contribute-to-socal-350-climate-action/

Executive Producer: Jack Eidt

Interview by Carry Kim

Intro by Jessica Aldridge

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 122

Image: EJR with thanks to Bill Finch and Phillip Howard

We have an epidemic of chronic illness and degenerative disease on this continent. According to the NonGMO Project, the U.S. is by far the largest producer in the world of GMOs, 37.6% of all land globally dedicated to genetically modified crops is in the U.S. And until relatively recently, there were no mandatory labeling laws. Zen Honeycutt, Founder of Moms Across America & author of the book, Unstoppable, joined us to share about her journey as a mother who advocates about the current state of our world food supply, how it affects our children’s health, public health, the health of farmworkers and everyone we love.

Through her realization of the numerous toxic chemicals we often unknowingly feed our loved ones, she has pursued the origin and effects of glyphosate, herbicides, pesticides and GMOs with renowned scientists. And she has met with and documented the stories of many farmers who wish to feed the world well, without destroying its inheritance. She has galvanized countless Moms who have shared the chronic and life-threatening health issues befalling their children, themselves, and other family members & how they reclaimed their lives and enacted change for their communities.

There are true tales of corporate greed and government corruption—being traded for personal and public health. With autism projected to affect 1 in 2 children in the near future, changing how and what we eat and how we protect the waters, air, soil from harm is an imperative that involves us all. The future of our children matters immensely. And our future existence depends on each of us becoming activists and advocates for change. Zen Honeycutt shares how we can change things for ourselves, our families, our world.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Zen Honeycutt is the Founding Executive Director of the non-profit, Moms Across America [https://www.momsacrossamerica.com/], a National Coalition of Unstoppable Moms with the motto "Empowered Moms, Healthy Kids." She is also an international speaker and the author of UNSTOPPABLE Transforming Sickness and Struggle into Triumph, Empowerment, and a Celebration of Community [https://www.amazon.com/Unstoppable-Transforming-Empowerment-Celebration-Community/dp/1986668266/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1526656802&sr=8-3&keywords=unstoppable+transforming&pldnSite=1].

Zen has been featured in over a dozen documentaries such as BOUGHT, Secret Ingredients, Modified, and Common Ground, in hundreds of podcasts, and other media outlets.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, Indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Executive Producer and Intro: Jack Eidt

Hosted by Carry Kim

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 206

First we share a report from Yurok country, in the Pacific Northwest. The largest dam removal in U.S. history has entered a critical phase, with the lowering of dammed reservoirs on the Klamath River, with members of the Yurok Tribe leading the effort. We use this as an example of why Indigenous people must be leading the efforts of conservation, which is the basis of the Land Back movement discussed in this show.

We also include a brief report on the Northern California Hoopa Tribe’s relation to water from ABC10 in Northern California, featuring Merv George of the Hoopa Tribe.

Then we air an interview from 2023 of Dr. Cutcha Risling Baldy, Associate Professor and Department Chair of Native American Studies at Cal Poly Humboldt, on how radical imagination is required to forge a new, and also perhaps ancient way out of the injustices and destruction inherent in settler colonialism with the Land Back Movement.

In the third segment, we air an excerpt from 'Restoring The River with the Yurok, Hupa and Karuk' from KCET's Tending Nature, Season 2, Episode 3 [https://youtu.be/8kZac1ZCtcE?si=NTvrPPX2uycf-y46]. It features Rosie Clyburn the Yurok Tribe Heritage Preservation Officer, Bob McConnel, of the Yurok Tribe and Executive Director of the Cultural Fire Management Council, Charley Reed, Karuk-Yurok-Hupa fisherman, and Tiana Williams, a Yurok Condor Biologist.

Dr. Cutcha Risling Baldy is the Co-Director of the Cal Poly Humboldt Native American Studies Food Sovereignty Lab & Traditional Ecological Knowledges Institute. Her book: We Are Dancing For You: Native Feminisms and the Revitalization of Women's Coming-of-Age Ceremonies received “Best First Book in Native American and Indigenous Studies,” at the 2019 Native American Indigenous Studies Association Conference. She is also the volunteer Executive Director of the Native Women's Collective [http://www.nativewomenscollective.org/], a nonprofit organization that supports the continued revitalization of Native American arts and culture. She is Hupa, Karuk, and Yurok and is enrolled in the Hoopa Valley Tribe.

Carry Kim, Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. An advocate for ecosystem restoration, indigenous lifeways, and a new humanity born of connection and compassion, she is a long-time volunteer for SoCal350, member of Ecosystem Restoration Camps, and a co-founder of the Soil Sponge Collective, a grassroots community organization dedicated to big and small scale regeneration of Mother Earth.

MORE INFO

“Tending Nature: Indigenous Land Stewardship.” KCET documentary film series. https://www.kcet.org/shows/tending-nature/special/indigenous-land-stewardship

Episode 19: Decolonizing Water Part I Water Talk Podcast https://www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/episode-19

”Reviving Relationships with Our Foodways: A History of Indigenous Food Sovereignty in California and Beyond" by Dr. Cutcha Risling Baldy and Dr. Kaitlin Reed (co-directors of the FSL). https://cooperationhumboldt.com/food-guide-2021/

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

Executive Producer: Jack Eidt

Hosted by Carry Kim

Intro By: Jessica Aldridge

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

In this industrialized country, we have had a war on wild what we call "predators," helicopter gunners shooting wolves to “protect” caribou herds in Alaska. Every day is open season on mountain lions in Nevada. Between 2000 and 2021, at least 4,229 mountain lions were killed in Nevada by hunters, trappers, and the state’s lethal removal effort, according to data from the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

Humans are the greatest threat to mountain lions. In California, close to 40 million people live within, or adjacent to, cougar habitat.

In this show we air parts of a documentary series called California Mountain Lions, Legends of California, by UC Davis Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Health Center [https://youtu.be/GLvRuSjSYgo?si=wOMXEOB60EjdUpjd]. Featured speakers are Walter Boyce, UC Davis, Dave Garcelon, Institute of Wildlife Studies, T. Winston Vickers, Veterinarian, UC Davis, and Jessica Sanchez SoCal Puma Project, Eric Gagne, Post Doc, Colorado State Univ., Trish Smith, The Nature Conservancy, and Pablo Bryant, SDSU Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve.

We also share from Indigenous stories and mythology about the importance of predators like the big cats, or jaguars in their southern relatives.

We further include sections from an interview our host Jessica Aldridge did with Beth Pratt, California Regional Executive Director of National Wildlife Federation, focusing on mountain lion populations, wildlife connectivity, and existing and planned transportation crossings as a solution to protect wildlife. [https://wilderutopia.com/ecojustice-radio/room-to-roam-the-importance-of-wildlife-connectivity-crossings/]

More Info: https://mountainlion.org/2022/03/02/mountain-lion-minutes-the-archaeology-of-americas-lion/

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2024-01-07/california-has-fewer-mountain-lions-than-previously-estimated

Beth Pratt, California Regional Executive Director of National Wildlife Federation, joins us to discuss the importance of connectivity and wildlife crossings. She explains why they are an integral strategy in land and habitat conservation and why preserving biodiversity not only protects wildlife, but also all of us humans! Beth’s Website: http://www.bethpratt.com/

Save LA Cougars: https://savelacougars.org/

Jessica Aldridge, Co-Host and Producer of EcoJustice Radio, is an environmental educator, community organizer, and 15-year waste industry leader. She is a co-founder of SoCal 350, organizer for ReusableLA, and founded Adventures in Waste. She is a former professor of Recycling and Resource Management at Santa Monica College, and an award recipient of the international 2021 Women in Sustainability Leadership and the 2016 inaugural Waste360, 40 Under 40.

Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.

Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/

Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/

Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio

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Stories read by Jack Eidt from “Old Man Coyote,” Crow/Apsáalooké People, in ‘Myths and Traditions of the Crow Indians’ by Robert Lowie, Univ of Nebraska Press, 1993. And “Origin of the Honey Festival,” Tembé People, in ‘From Honey to Ashes’ by Claude Levi-Strauss, Harper and Row Publishers, 1966.

Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt

Co-Host Jessica Aldridge

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 204