Imagine if music could heal both people and the planet at the same time...

Kiran Gandhi (Madame Gandhi) is an electronic music producer, drummer, and climate activist who recorded melting glaciers in Antarctica and credits nature as an artist on Spotify.

In this conversation, Kiran shares why joy and love are the fuel for sustained climate action, her daily meditation practice, and how small intentional actions create massive ripple effects.

From touring with MIA to building underwater microphones at Stanford to working with Brian Eno on Earth Percent, Kiran proves that art and activism aren't just compatible—they're essential. This episode is for anyone who's felt overwhelmed by the climate crisis and needs a reminder that meaningful change starts with joy, connection, and intentional living.

In this episode:

• Recording the sounds of melting glaciers in Antarctica

• Earth Percent: Crediting nature as an artist and redirecting streaming royalties to conservation

• Daily meditation practices for sustained climate activism

• Why emotional depletion leads to overconsumption• Intentional living as radical climate action

• The difference between American and global climate attitudes

• Building spiritual strength for long-term activism

About the guest:

Kiran Gandhi, known as Madame Gandhi, is an electronic music producer, drummer, and climate activist. She toured internationally with MIA, holds degrees from Georgetown, Harvard Business School, and Stanford, and has been recognized by Forbes 30 Under 30 and BBC 100 Women. She integrates activism and environmentalism into her music.

Connect with Kiran:

Instagram: @madamegandhi

Website: madamegandhi.com

Spotify: Search "Madame Gandhi" to support Earth Percent conservation

Splice: Download the Antarctica glacier sound pack

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us BluedotLiving.com 

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

You don't need to be an expert, an activist, or perfect. You need to start where you are, do what you can, and connect with people who care, across every age, background, and zip code.

When 14-year-old Cleo walked into Vicki's life and asked, "Can I work for you?", neither imagined they'd become proof that our greatest climate advantage isn't technology or policy, it's the bridge between generations who refuse to wait for permission to act.

In this conversation, Victoria Riskin and Cleo Carney share how they're each taking daily climate action, from reducing food waste to choosing plant-based eating to mobilizing grandmothers and college students to show up at the same hearings. These aren't abstract commitments. They're choices you can make tomorrow.

What you'll learn:

• The personal moments that transformed climate change from news to action (and how to recognize yours)

• Small daily habits that actually reduce your footprint — no perfection required

• Why local action is winning faster than federal policy (and how to join it)

• What each generation brings to climate work that the others desperately need

• Practical ways empathy becomes climate action in your own community

Episodes that prove change is happening now:

• Jordan Thomas: How controlled burns are healing our forests

• Eric Garcetti: The climate mayors coalition changing cities globally

• Bun Lai: Turning invasive species into sustainable cuisine

• Granor Farm: Building community through regenerative agriculture

Read stories on Bluedot Living by Cleo Carney: https://bluedotliving.com/author/cleocarney/

Subscribe to Your Daily Dot: https://bluedotliving.com/category/advice/daily-dot/

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us BluedotLiving.com 

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

What does it really mean to “build a star on Earth”?

In this episode we explore one of the most ambitious clean-energy ideas of our time: fusion power. Joining us is Alex Creely, a plasma physicist and tokamak operations lead at Commonwealth Fusion Systems, who has spent nearly a decade working to turn fusion from a scientific breakthrough into a practical energy source.

Alex breaks down fusion in refreshingly human terms and explains why something that sounds simple is one of the hardest engineering challenges humanity has ever taken on. We talk about why fusion has always felt “just around the corner,” what has changed in recent years, and why the next decade could be pivotal.

Along the way, the conversation expands beyond science. We examine fear and misconceptions around nuclear energy, how fusion differs fundamentally from fission, and why big innovations often take decades of quiet progress before they suddenly feel inevitable.

This is a conversation about patience, curiosity, risk-taking, and what it means to work on something that may not pay off immediately, but could change everything.

In this episode:

• What fusion energy actually is, and how it differs from nuclear fission

• Why fusion requires temperatures hotter than the center of the sun

• The challenge of producing more energy than it takes to sustain the reaction

• How powerful magnets act as “insulation” for 100-million-degree plasma

• Why recent breakthroughs have shifted timelines from distant to tangible

• How fusion could complement wind and solar, especially for dense cities

• The infrastructure, cost, and policy challenges of scaling fusion globally

• What everyday people can do to support fusion’s future

• Why the most impactful work always carries uncertainty and risk

About Our Guest

Alex Creely is a plasma physicist and tokamak operations lead at Commonwealth Fusion Systems. His work focuses on advancing fusion energy from laboratory research to grid-ready infrastructure. Known for his ability to explain complex science in accessible ways, Alex is part of a growing group of scientists working to make clean, firm fusion power a reality.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry.

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us ⁠BluedotLiving.com ⁠

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

Imagine if the food on our plates could do more than nourish us, but also actively restore the planet?

In this episode of Imagine If by Bluedot Living, we’re joined by Bun Lai, chef and owner of Miya’s Sushi, for a conversation at the intersection of food, climate change, and biodiversity.

Raised in New Haven by parents who believed deeply that food is medicine, Bun grew up immersed in nature, foraging, fishing, and learning from a richly multicultural community. Those early experiences shaped his understanding of food as a source of health, connection, and care for both people and the planet.

Bun shares how Miya’s Sushi evolved over time, including the gradual removal of unsustainable seafood like tuna, eel, and salmon, and the introduction of plant-based dishes and invasive species such as shore crabs, lionfish, and Japanese knotweed. Rather than seeing invasive species solely as an ecological threat, Bun reframes them as a creative opportunity — one that protects native ecosystems while inviting people into sustainability through flavor and curiosity.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why food sits at the core of community, connection, and health

• How invasive species can become part of climate solutions

• The balance between grassroots action and policy change

• What foraging teaches us about slowing down and reconnecting with nature

• How cultural and ecological diversity can be healing

About our guest

Bun Lai is a James Beard Award nominee and recipient of the 2016 White House Champion of Change Award for Sustainable Seafood. He is the chef and owner of Miya’s Sushi, founded by his mother in 1982 and widely recognized as the world’s first sustainable sushi restaurant.

Known as “the mad scientist of the sustainable sushi movement” by The New York Times, Bun is an educator, speaker, and advocate whose work spans food, climate, and social justice. He is currently developing educational experiences, creative projects, and mission-driven food ventures focused on ecological restoration.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us BluedotLiving.com 

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

Imagine if farms across America were designed to nourish land, people, and community, not commodities. This week we explore what that world could look like through the story of Granor Farm, a certified organic and regenerative farm in Three Oaks, Michigan.

Janet Kraus and Cleo Carney sit down with Liz Cicchelli, co-founder and co-owner of Granor Farm, who shares how she and her family transformed 10 acres of conventional farmland into a thriving 400-acre regenerative ecosystem with a dining program, grain and spirits production, a farm store, and a beloved children’s farm camp.

Liz brings deep intentionality to every part of Granor, from soil health to community meals to raising the next generation of people who care about nature and food. This conversation will leave you dreaming about a future where farms heal soil, build connection, and strengthen local economies, one ingredient at a time.

In this episode:

• From 10 acres to 400: How a family vision turned into a nationally recognized regenerative farm.

• Why Granor grows food for people, not markets, and how that changes everything.

• The soil-first philosophy: How Granor partners with Michigan State, Purdue, and heritage seed networks to continually improve soil health.

• Scaling regenerative farming: The real economics behind expanding and later contracting acreage — tariffs, labor, demand, and time.

• Building a local food ecosystem: Why success isn’t about one big farm but many interdependent small businesses thriving together.

• Taste of Granor: A weekly greenhouse dinner featuring a menu created entirely from what was harvested that week.

• Farm Camp: How childhood curiosity sparked a signature program that now serves over 200 kids each summer.

• The labor reality: Why romanticized images of farming don’t match the physical demands and how Granor built a long-term, reliable agricultural team.

About our guest:

Liz Cicchelli is the co-founder and co-owner of Granor Farm, a 400-acre certified organic and regenerative farm in southwest Michigan. Raised in Chicago with summers spent in Michigan, Liz brings a unique blend of nonprofit leadership, global health experience, and community-minded values to her work at Granor.

Before farming, Liz worked in human rights and global health with organizations including Human Rights Watch and Partners In Health. Her passion for equity, education, and nourishment guides Granor’s mission today.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change because they actually are. Each episode of the podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you enjoyed this episode…

Follow/subscribe to Imagine If on your favorite podcast app and YouTube

Share this episode with a friend who cares about climate, community, or living more in balance with fire-adapted landscapes.

Visit Bluedot Living online for more stories of people turning climate insight into everyday action.

Imagine if the most effective climate solutions aren’t coming from Congress or global summits, but from mayors working city by city, block by block?

In this episode, former LA Mayor and U.S. Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti joins Victoria Riskin and Cleo Carney to unpack how cities have become the real engines of climate progress and why local action, community resilience, and everyday leadership matter more than ever.

We dive into the rise of Climate Mayors, a coalition that began with a handful of leaders and exploded into hundreds of cities across red, blue, and purple states. Eric reveals how mayors quietly kept the U.S. in the climate game even when the federal government stepped out—and why practical, local solutions cut through partisanship.

We also explore the global climate crossroads in India, LA's vision for the first carbon-reducing Olympics, and the emotional side of leadership: courage, joy, and staying connected to community during moments of crisis.

In this episode:

• Why cities—not nations—are driving the most meaningful climate action

• How the Climate Mayors coalition grew into a nationwide movement

• Why climate work is inherently nonpartisan when it stays local and human

• What LA is doing to make the 2028 Olympics the greenest games ever

• Why India may shape 40% of global climate outcomes in the next 20 years

• How Eric’s background in human rights and foster parenting influences his leadership

• Eric’s “Imagine if…”: A simple invitation to reclaim joy and personal agency

About our guest

Eric Garcetti is the former Mayor of Los Angeles and former U.S. Ambassador to India. He helped launch the Climate Mayors coalition and has spent his career at the intersection of human rights, city leadership, and climate resilience.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry.

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us ⁠BluedotLiving.com

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

Imagine if out of the tragedies of these huge fires came insight and opportunity to rethink how we live more in balance with the world and reshape policies that would actually allow us to protect and preserve the natural lands on which we live in a more holistic way…

California’s fire seasons are getting longer, hotter, and more destructive, but what if the problem isn’t “nature gone wild,” but human decisions that turned a fire-adapted landscape into a tinderbox? In this episode of Imagine If Janet Kraus and Victoria Riskin sit down with anthropologist and former Los Padres Hotshot Jordan Thomas, author of When It All Burns: Fighting Fire in a Transformed World, to explore how we got here and what a better relationship with fire could look like. 

Drawing on his frontline experience fighting megafires and his research into the history of colonization, logging, and Indigenous fire stewardship, Jordan challenges the idea that wildfires are “natural disasters.” Instead, he shows how specific policies and economic choices have primed forests to burn and how communities can reclaim “good fire” as a tool for resilience. 

For Victoria, the conversation is deeply personal. She shares her own story of surviving the 2017 Thomas Fire and Montecito debris flow, and how disaster unexpectedly deepened her sense of community. Together, she, Janet, and Jordan talk about grief, courage, and the kind of clear-eyed hope that comes from taking action, not looking away.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why California’s fires feel so different now

• How colonization and logging rewired fire-adapted landscapes

• The hidden costs of clear-cutting and fire suppression

• Life on an elite hotshot crew

• Grief, place, and the long tail of fire disasters

• Hope vs. naïve optimism vs. despair

• “People as technology” for solving the wildfire crisis

• Practical pathways to better fire

About our guest

Jordan Thomas is an anthropologist and former member of California’s elite Los Padres Hotshots, one of the U.S. Forest Service’s top wildland firefighting crews. His 2025 book, When It All Burns: Fighting Fire in a Transformed World, was longlisted for the National Book Award for Nonfiction and blends frontline storytelling with a sharp analysis of how colonization, industrial forestry, and climate change created today’s megafires. His writing has appeared in outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Drift. 

Want to go deeper?

• When It All Burns: Fighting Fire in a Transformed World by Jordan Thomas

• Jordan’s work and upcoming events: search for “When It All Burns Jordan Thomas” or visit his author site.

• Learn about prescribed burn associations and Indigenous-led fire stewardship in your region through local conservation groups, tribal nations, or state forestry agencies.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us ⁠BluedotLiving.com ⁠

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

 Imagine if everyone left the movie theater, not only feeling inspired, but also connected to one another and the planet and ready to make a difference. 

In this episode, Victoria Riskin and Ally Giebutowski sit down with acclaimed film producer Adam Leipzig, former president of National Geographic Films and creative force behind environmental classics like March of the Penguins and A Plastic Ocean. Adam shares how powerful storytelling moves people from climate overwhelm to meaningful action, from reusable cups in the campus café to plastic bans and rights-of-nature laws around the world.

Together, we explore how film can balance urgency with optimism, why emotion drives climate action more than data alone, and how each of us can take “micro actions” that add up to real change.

In this episode:

• Why big issues like the climate crisis can feel hopeless, and why that feeling is wrong

• How March of the Penguins evolved from a nature film into a story about family, humanity, and a warming planet

• The ripple effect of A Plastic Ocean, including its role in more than 150 laws on plastic bags, straws, and recycling practices around the world

• What PFAS “forever chemicals” are, and the story behind the short film Sludge and poisoned farmland in Maine

• How filmmakers measure “impact,” and why emotional connection is the foundation for policy change, beach cleanups, and personal behavior shifts

• The new reality for creatives: why building your own audience is now part of the job description

• How Adam stays hopeful while telling hard climate stories and why every solution must leave viewers with something they can personally do next

Micro actions you can take after listening

• Swap one single-use item in your daily routine for a reusable option (cup, bottle, or straw).

• Host a screening of an environmental documentary and open the floor for local action ideas.

• Learn whether your city, state, or country has any rights-of-nature provisions—and if not, what advocacy is already underway.

• Support filmmakers and organizations using storytelling as a catalyst for climate progress.

About our guest

Adam Leipzig is a producer, filmmaker, and former president of National Geographic Films. A former senior vice president at Walt Disney Studios, he oversaw films including Dead Poets Society and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. As a producer and creative executive, he has helped bring more than 35 films to life, including the Oscar-winning March of the Penguins and the influential documentary A Plastic Ocean, which has been used as a primary advocacy tool in passing plastic-related legislation in countries and communities around the world.

His recent and forthcoming projects include Sludge, a short film on PFAS and contaminated farmland, Nature’s Guardians, a new film on the rights of nature, and a forthcoming sea lion–centered film set in the Galápagos. Adam is also the author of a forthcoming book, Fearless Persistence: Creative Life, Creative Work, and the 10 Laws of Omics, focused on helping creatives, entrepreneurs, and change-makers sustain their work and their well-being over time.

Be part of the Bluedot Living community

At Bluedot Living, we imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change—because they actually are. Each episode of Bluedot Living Podcast shares stories of people, policies, and projects that prove your choices matter, from micro decisions at home to macro shifts in law and industry. 

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us BluedotLiving.com 

For daily inspiration you can follow us @Bluedotliving on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotliving/

Imagine if people were actually making progress on climate change… because they are.

Imagine If is a podcast from Bluedot Living that spotlights the people, ideas, and actions creating real momentum for our planet. In this trailer episode, meet your four hosts and get a preview of the conversations ahead -  stories rooted in progress, possibility, and hope.

Join each week as Victoria Riskin, founder of Bluedot Living, is joined by Janet Kraus, serial entrepreneur, Cleo Carney, sophomore at Harvard, and Allison Giebutowski, freshman at Lafayette College, explore what climate action looks like in the real world.

From innovators reshaping industries, to creatives rewriting the rules, to students rethinking the future, Imagine If brings you conversations with changemakers who prove that meaningful impact doesn’t have to be massive to matter.

Because when we imagine a better world, we can start building it.

Connect with Us:

If you want to explore our recipes, products for your home and lifestyle, and read interesting stories, you can find us BluedotLiving.com and and for daily inspiration you can follow us at @Bluedotliving on Instagram.