Natural Causes

Weeks after more than 600 houses in Spokane burned, James talks to community members about how people prepared, cared for each other, and worried about migration enforcement during the fire evacuations.

Sources:

Aldo Leopold- A Sand County Almanac

 https://www.instagram.com/p/DcBqjR6RdzJ/

Donation Links:

Spokane Immigrants Rights Coalition: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/sirc-community-fund 
Spectrum running the Rainbow Relief Fund: https://spectrumcenterspokane.app.neoncrm.com/forms/donate 
Colville Fund: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/cedar-fund-wildfire-recovery-campaign 

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James looks into the recent Cyclospora outbreak and what it can tell us about solidarity, food safety, and where our food comes from.

Sources:

https://newsroom.haas.berkeley.edu/magazine/spring-2026/taylor-farms/  
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/nov/23/billion-dollar-california-salad-company-exploits-undocumented-migrants-say-workers-and-teamsters 
https://gizmodo.com/elon-musk-economist-interview-2000790016 
https://www.thefp.com/p/cyclosporiasis-outbreak-lettuce-media?utm_source=publication-search 
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fda-report-e-coli-outbreak-onions-taylor-farms/ 
https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/imo/media/doc/2026-07-27garciatotaylorfarmsrecyclosporacontaminatedlettuce.pdf 
https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=Bruce+Taylor&contributor_employer=Taylor+Farms+ 
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/08/07/2025-14967/requirements-for-additional-traceability-records-for-certain-foods-compliance-date-extension 
https://bsky.app/profile/ufw.bsky.social/post/3msj3j7ordt2w 

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James talks with Molly Conger about the javelina and their installable appetite for golf courses.

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65x0RvhJNa8 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/nov/05/conservation.sciencenews   

https://zoologicalbulletin.de/BzB_Volumes/Volume_56_1_2/049_054_BzB56_1_2_Moraves_Jiri_and_B%C3%B6hme_Wolfgang.pdf  

https://www.azgfd.com/wildlife-conservation/living-with-wildlife/living-with-javelina/  

https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/8e8abbf4-6775-4575-9a10-fedacb7cb2c1 

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Natural Causes is a podcast about the politics and practicalities of going outside in a world on fire, hosted by Dr James Stout. It approaches the outdoors, conservation, agriculture, food sovereignty, fire management and Indigenous land rights as interconnected issues. We want to combine unflinching journalism with unabashed advocacy for the land we all share, and welcome everyone into the outdoors and the fight for our public lands. Our shared wild spaces are under threat like never before, The Trump administration is stripping protections, extractive capitalism and data centers are pillaging out common resources, and climate change is accelerating every day. Now, more than ever, we need serious journalism and serious solidarity that engages people with the struggle to protect these spaces for generations to come. New episodes every week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.