PROTECT

Lions. Commonly referenced as strong, powerful, and magnificent creatures are under threat. Alone, they cannot continue to roam through the African Savannah populating and living as they are entitled to.

Numbers are dwindling with lions targeted by the bushmeat trade, loss of habitat and human encroachment. According to today's guest, lion numbers half halved in the last quarter century with an estimated 20,000 left in the wild.

So today, we're off to Africa and I'm honoured to host Peter Lindsey, life-long wildlife conservationist and Director of The Lion Recovery Fund.

The Lion Recovery Fund's goal is to double the number of lions by 2050 through their science-based structure which invests in protecting landscapes designed to grow lion populations and other African wildlife by providing resources and education for coexistence between wildlife and the local community.

In four short years, Peter and his team have had incredible success, funding a host of population and habitat projects across their rescue, recover and retain structure. And what they've set up is very transparent with every dollar accounted for and invested in conservation.

I hope you enjoy the episode.

You can donate or learn more about The Lion Recovery Fund through their website or connect with them on social media below:

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

Eco-anxiety, climate fear or climate grief are common terms used to define how as humans, many of us are responding to the ecological crisis.

It is well documented that climate change is having a negative effect on our health and mental well-being. It is important to recognise how we are feeling about the future of our planet and normalise these feelings.

Today, I'm welcoming climate therapists, Andrew Bryant and Alexandra Woollacott to the podcast. Andrew is a clinical social worker, psychotherapist and co-director of North Seattle Therapy and Counselling and Alexandra originally from Australia is a practising psychotherapist and training psychoanalyst based in Seattle.

Andrew and Alexandra bring so much value in today's episode on their experiences in the climate change space. They offer solid strategies on ways to cope if you are feeling overwhelmed or discouraged. We look at ways to be creative with small daily behaviours that are good for the planet and yourself and of course, who to reach out to if you need support.

We are all part of an environment that needs protecting and we can start from within. I trust today's episode will bring you comfort, calm and above all - hope.

You can further explore resources on this topic through Andrew's website Climate and Mind or contact him through North Seattle Therapy & Counselling.

Alexandra can be contacted through her therapy practice.

Today, a compelling film which documents Australia's outdated and ineffective shark protection program is out on Stan.

Directed and produced by Andre Borell, Envoy - Shark Cull explores the history of shark nets and drumlines (baited hooks) in Queensland and NSW. Through these so called "protection" means, sharks and other marine life are being unnecessarily and cruelly caught and culled through the outdated use of nets in the water in a misguided attempt to promote human safety at beaches.

Envoy provides a lineup of marine conservation experts, shark divers, shark bite survivors, activists and through solid research and evidence caught on film will show you exactly what is happening beneath the water surface in a system that doesn't put people or sharks first. I hope you enjoy the episode.

You can watch Envoy - Shark Cull on Stan from today - October 12.

Stand up for sharks: https://www.envoyfilm.com.au/actnow

Learn more at the Australian Marine Conservation Society and Humane Society International.

The global cosmetics industry alone produces over 120 billion units of packaging almost every year, which is non recyclable. Add to that animal testing, toxic ingredients, shipping, overproduction, and as a consumer, you can feel overwhelmed about making a positive purchase in this space.

But you definitely can.

Today, my guest brings encouragement and possibility on how her small beauty company grew by putting people and the planet first and is now the producer of one of Australia's most natural, ethical and globally accredited product lines. Briony Kennedy is the founder of Adorn Cosmetics - a guilt free natural and organic makeup and skincare company. They're proudly vegan, cruelty free, Australian made and free from toxins and allergens.

On today's episode, Briony and I go behind the scenes on how to create ethical products from the onset discussing the earth's resources, natural ingredients, refillable packaging and more.

The message is loud that there is a huge opportunity for the beauty industry to do more and lessen their part in plastic pollution, and even stop producing products that were never designed to be on our skin.

I hope you enjoy today's episode.

You can learn more on Adorn's ethos and shop through their website or connect with the team on the below social channels.

Facebook

Instagram

YouTube

We are in the thick of a digital movement.

Our screens are a core part of our daily lives and have served us well during the pandemic where the world was forced home and we sought to connect with loved ones, work colleagues, and even leaned on digital entertainment to help those lockdown days go a little faster.

And there is no doubt that online activity will continue to rise. But at what cost to the environment?

Today, I explore this question with my guest, Dr Mike Hazas who is a Professor in Human-Computer Interaction at Uppsala University, Sweden.

Mike's research is concerned with everyday practices and digital technologies, and how they can be related to sustainability in particular energy demand and carbon emissions. Much of his recent work has focused on the proliferation of online services such as streaming social networking, gaming, and their invisible impacts due to the internet and data centres.

We discuss the environmental impacts of our digital footprint from zoom calls to streaming, gaming and all the activities that require high energy demands.

It's also a reminder of how we can be conscious of how we spend time online. Ways we can extend the life of our devices and our part to play in this space.

You can connect with Mike at Uppsala University or on LinkedIn

Below are some further links on this topic where Mike's comment was sought via the media.

WLRN 91.3FM Miami, South Florida

BBC News

Metro News

As travel borders begin to open post pandemic, some of us might be planning our first holiday in quite a while. On that itinerary might be a wild animal attraction and today we discuss how to ensure we are travelling responsibly when it comes to animal livelihood.

Animals globally are suffering at the hand of the tourism industry through degrading entertaining, living conditions, cruel training methods and trauma from their captivity. It's important to remember that not all wild animal attractions are as pleasant as they may seem and to help me explore this topic today is World Animal Protection's season campaigner and spokesperson, Ben Pearson.

Ben has more than 24 years of experience advocating for their environment and one of his key campaigns is exposing the hidden cruelties of wildlife tourism, educating Australia and Kiwi travellers and working with tour operators to reduce captive wildlife encounters with the goal of ensuring that wild animals aren't exploited for entertainment.

Today's conversation discusses some really encouraging advocacy, but also covers details on animal cruelty that some listeners may find distressing. But I hope you'll still be able to listen and be part of this critical conversation.

Ben and I will explore some of the animals that are at the hand of abuse and cruelty in the travel space and how they find themselves there. We then learn how we can avoid contributing to this industry, and be part of the global goal of only encountering animals in the wild living the lives that they were meant to.

I hope you enjoy the episode.

You can visit World Animal Protection and learn about their work, donate or find out more on being an animal friendly traveller.

You can also connect with them on the below social channels:

Instagram

Twitter

YouTube

It can be hard to find a green retreat in a concrete-laden city but never before has it been so critical to invite nature back in.

Urban temperatures are rising at an alarming rate, air pollution continues to wreak havoc on our health and our biodiversity is dying.

Our built environment is actually a very suitable foundation to rewild our cities by implementing green walls, rooftop gardens, tree canopy and carbon sequestering green highway corridors. If we do this on scale - as my guest describes it as today - we may just have a chance at reversing some of the damage we've done in building cities that have long worked against nature.

Today I speak to Suzie Barnett who is the General Manager of Junglefy who research, grow, design install and maintain living infrastructure.

Suzie is passionate about restorative, resilient cities and innovative ways to reconnect people to nature to create greater health and wellbeing.

We discuss the power of plants, projects in the works, green technology and just how beneficial and critical living infrastructure is to our livelihood.

It's a very informative and research fuelled conversation which I hope you will enjoy.

You can visit Junglefy on their website or email them at [email protected] for more information. Suzie is also chair of biophilic design at The Living Future Institute of Australia which you can explore.

Junglefy are also on Instagram and Twitter

Some projects discussed today:

One Central Park

Bosco Verticale

Urban Forest

Beulah's Green Spine

Food Forests are responding to food security and local food production in cities across the globe.

Today, I've reached out to The Conservation Fund and one of their community projects which is the Urban Food Forest at Browns Mill, Atlanta.

It is currently one of the largest food forests in the US spanning 7.1 acres and is only a few kilometres from the city centre.

This wonderful project is described by the fund as "Agriforestry" which uses agriculture that integrates trees and shrubs with food production to create healthy and ecologically resilient landscapes.

Introducing us to the food forest and its success in the community is Kelsi Eccles. Kelsi is the fund's Urban Conservation Communications Manager, and primarily focuses on building capacity for community groups and expanding green space through equitable Park development under the Parks with Purpose program.

Today she is taking us into the edible food forest to detail this project, how it's come together and is serving a beautiful community whilst responding to local food production, food insecurity, education, and of course some much needed carbon sequestering to the city.

It is a pioneering project which can be implemented in smaller green areas and is a wonderful addition to cities which continue to lose critical, natural spaces.

You can find out more about the The Conservation Fund, the food forest and other projects through their website or support them through Trees Atlanta.

You can also reach out to them on their social channels below.

Facebook

Instagram

YouTube

I hope you enjoy the episode.

What would you sacrifice to stand up for nature?

Imagine liquidating everything you owned, leaving where you live, the people you know and love to respond to nature's desperate call in the African wilderness.

This is the story of Damien Mander, the Founder and CEO of the International Anti-Poaching Foundation. Damien was born in Australia and is now based in Zimbabwe, and is an Iraq War Veteran who served as a naval clearance diver and Special Operations sniper for the Australian Defence Force.

Following a few catalyst moments on an African adventure trip where he witnessed poacher violence to an ivory-stripped elephant and a pregnant buffalo, Damien knew he was about to embark on a fight bigger than one he'd ever fought at war and what today has become his life's work.

Thirteen years later, the IAPF formed in 2009, have over 240 employees protecting over 20 million acres of African wilderness. He also formed Akashinga, "The Brave Ones" - an all female, plant-based anti-poaching unit who are bringing heart and empathy to this fight and are succeeding.

Damien remains hopeful and his dedication to wildlife conservation is incredibly powerful and inspiring to listen to. The work he and the team do is critical to the future of some of nature's most beautiful creatures, biodiversity, the local community and in turn, climate change.

I speak to Damien today about his personal transformation from hunter and sniper to vegan and animal activist. We discuss the remarkable women of Akashinga and the promising future of the IAPF.

I hope you enjoy the episode.

You can learn more about the IAPF on their website or follow them on some of the below social channels for news and to witness the day-to-day work of this dedicated team of wildlife warriors.

Instagram

YouTube

Twitter

Today on the podcast Angela is flying solo and discussing ways you can be a daily activist for the environment.

She details her own routine and things she's learned and adopted from guests on PROTECT during its last three seasons.

From animal activism, veganism, zero waste and treading lightly and resourcefully every day.

Activism looks different for everyone and it's important to remember when it comes to the environment is that it's not a trend or a phase. It's an ongoing commitment to Mother Nature, to people and to animals.

I hope you enjoy the episode and let me know what you think over on Twitter or Instagram ~ Angela