The HERE.together Podcast

We’re so excited to share talk with Daniel Sih about some of the big problems facing community living and some of the solutions he’s come up with.

Daniel Sih is the co-founder of Spacemakers, a productivity consulting group for busy leaders. After experiencing physical symptoms that were the result of working in the “always on” culture of internet connectivity, Daniel became passionate about helping people make space in their world for the things that really matter - like family, reflection, rest, and recharge.

We’ll talk a bit with Daniel about his book, Space Maker: How To Unplug, Unwind, And Think Clearly In The Digital Age. It contains a whole new way to think about how we spend our time AND some concrete suggestions about how to reclaim some space in our lives through both ambitious and simple changes.

In addition to carving out more personal space for peace of mind, Daniel recognized that he needed to push back at the atomization and isolation in our culture and actively create a sustaining community for himself and his family. Over a decade ago, he bought land and built two adjoining houses with another professional couple in Tasmania, Australia.

We’re really interested in learning about how these two families (and their neighbors) learned to share life and land as an intentional  mini-community. It sounds like the community got a little spontaneous, too, as neighbors joined in. Over the years, Daniel and his extended family learned about the limits of good intentions and the importance of structure to keep a community healthy through all seasons. Their solutions are ones that you might find yourself thinking about, even if your intentional community is just one family sharing a house.

This episode might seem like a bit of a diversion…our guests this time aren’t necessarily living in co-housing but they are both deeply immersed in creating a rich, sustainable community in Santa Barbara, CA.

Jill Cloutier is the Public Relations Director of an environmental education and arts nonprofit called Explore Ecology (EE for short). EE works with over 30,000 children a year with a focus on Watershed Education, School Gardens, Waste Reduction, and Creative Exploration. Their work inspires children to engage with the natural world, think critically, and experience the value of environmental stewardship.

Jill is a podcast producer, video-maker and writer. Her projects focus on plants and permaculture. Permaculture is a really important concept that contributes to biological, agricultural, and household sustainability and we’re really excited for Jill to help us understand that term and how we can practice it at small and medium scales to improve our lives and impacts.

Rachel Palmer is the Art Coordinator for EE and is in charge of the Art from Scrap Creative Re-use Store and Gallery and the associated arts programs.

Rachel is a fiber and print artist, educator, and self-proclaimed podcast fanatic. She is the Story Editor for Copper & Heat, the James Beard Award-winning podcast exploring the unspoken rules and traditions of the kitchen.

I’m all about the upcycle and Charles is all about the permaculture, so I can’t wait to see where this conversation goes and find out what we can learn today.

Welcome, Rachel and Jill! Thank you so much for being here with us today!

For key takeaways, sustainability resources, and a full transcript, go to: https://www.here-together.us/pod/how-to-make-an-art-of-sustainability

We know so many people who simultaneously feel blessed and privileged with a good, secure, abundant life, but they know they are missing something.  The single-family lifestyle has caused us to trade away too much community, mutual support, and joy for the illusion of autonomy, abundance, and safety.

There is an ache in our bones for a life that is more connected and meaningful, a life that sees us giving more of our gifts, and that leaves more and less of an impact on our world. If you feel that same ache, you’re in the right place.

We’re beyond excited to talk with Dr. Kat Caldwell today about some of the human issues of living in community.

How do we mobilize in the face of climate change, when we are mired in grief and/or denial?  How do we make individual changes that have a positive impact?

Dr. Caldwell has a Ph.D. in Human Development and is a researcher and teacher in the field of Conservation Psychology, which strives to understand the “reciprocal relationships between humans and the rest of nature, with the goal of encouraging conservation of the natural world.”  Kat researches how people make conservation-based choices in their households and how messaging can promote healthier and more sustainable food systems and behaviors. Kat encourages her students to become self-aware, critical thinkers and engaged citizens with an understanding of what motivates conservation behavior.

She is also the Director of Thrive Ithaca, the Ithaca EcoVillage Education Center, so she is the perfect person for us to talk to about how to make this dream of ours work.

With enough money, we could design and build all sorts of awesome housing and community features, but unless we understand what makes people live well together and behave in sustainable ways, we’re not going to succeed, so we are especially grateful to talk with Kat.

This episode we’re excited to talk with someone who is leveraging the inexorable power of capitalism to actually make positive change.

Dr. Dionne Payn is the Founder and CEO of High Impact Property Investments. Dionne specializes in raising capital for organizations that create ethical property developments in Australia and the USA. Dionne is a speaker, author and property coach who loves creating win-win outcomes for as many people as possible. Her goals include:

Dionne has a PhD in Natural Products Chemistry, has project managed a number of property developments in Australia and has helped over 30 investors to achieve double digit returns through property. These property projects range from small one into two subdivisions up to larger, sustainable, co-living projects.

In this interview, Dionne talks about how she created abundance for her family while creating win/win/win solutions for investors, housing seekers and the community AND while sticking to a set of lofty values. 

For more about the Ethical Property Framework, see the show notes: https://www.here-together.us/pod/how-to-do-well-by-doing-good

This episode we’re excited to bring you a conversation with someone who seems able to cultivate a 10,000 foot view of the historical, social, cultural, and technical facets of climate change and sustainability.  David Johnson, has been teaching at Stanford Law School since 2008, while doing legal work for tech and biotech firms in Silicon Valley. His recent work on sustainability, though, explores the application of design thinking to the big problems we face today, whether it’s micro plastics in the oceans, species loss, or Southwestern drought.

Listen all the way to the end to hear David give is some free consulting about a big community project that Kelly and I are contemplating as out legacy work. 

For more about David's extensive background and access to helpful and actionable sustainability resources, see the full Show Notes at: https://www.here-together.us/pod/how-to-design-the-future

We’re really excited to release this episode featuring Kate Gaertner, a leading sustainability expert and consultant with 25 years of corporate and entrepreneurial experience. Kate is also a personal carbon footprint evangelist on a mission to help individuals align their priorities with their values to create positive change.

Hello, H.tties. In Season 3 of the HERE.together podcast we’re obsessed with the the big question - [fanfare] Can we live together sustainably? And if so, HOW?

Over the next year we’re gonna curate conversations with the people who are living in ecovillages, designing new cities, inventing new (or unearthing old) household tech, and who are at the forefront of sustainability science to get answers for ourselves and for you.

That’s why we’re really excited to interview Sara Zellner early in the season. Sara has been helping organizations AND families answer the big question.

She is an entrepreneur on a mission to help individuals and businesses align their priorities with their values to create positive change. (YOu know we are suckers for values alignment!) She is the founder and owner of Saz Healthy Living, which provides sustainable living, health, and wellness coaching, and is the principal CEO of Lynz Consulting LLC, which specializes in corporate responsibility; environmental, social, and governance (ESG); and sustainability consulting. PhD-trained, Sara uses her research and coaching skills to delve into her clients’ vexing issues and assist them in reaching their goals.

In this episode, Sara lays out the three most important steps individuals and families can take to reduce their carbon footprint (and, incidentally, become more physically healthy). She also runs us through the most common blocks to personal sustainable change and some support about how to get past them. 

Welcome to Season 3 of the HERE.together podcast. This season we are upgrading the podcast so it serves you AND US better. 

Hello H.tties! Our pod-a-versery is coming up next week. We’re finishing our second full year of podcasting!

In recognition of that achievement AND all the support you gorgeous h.tties have given us, we’re re-releasing this early (kind of major) episode with Claire Louge, that we recorded back in February 2020 before the world changed.

This episode is our most downloaded ever… and for good reason. Claire is brilliant, inspiring, and tells important stories about her personal growth and what drives her to be such an advocate for youth and community.

Like the other special re-releases we’ve done recently … this interview with Claire is another part of the meta story of how the HERE.together podcast came to be what it is today.

You see, at the time of this original interview, Claire had just been promoted to Executive Director of a state-wide non-profit and I thought we’d be talking about kinda standard podcast interview fare about how she’d been so successful at such a young age. She’d pitch her programs, encourage people to get involved and we’d have a decent episode.

Instead, the conversation veered quickly into much more important, more fraught territory that included stories about self-image, eating disorders, fear, courage, and choosing to live large. Yes, we also talked about preventing child abuse and live action role-playing.

This kind of radical honesty, fierce connection, and general badassery became the touchstone for us in producing this podcast. We knew we couldn’t make a regular, rah-rah business or thin-veneered community podcast… we knew we were in this for the vulnerability, the deep humanity, the learning, and, frankly, the big love that we’ve experienced over and over with the parade of incredible guests we’ve been so fortunate to share conversations with.

And that’s the knowing we’ve followed ever since. Thank you for following along.

For more about Claire and a curated list of books and resources mentioned in the episode, see the show notes at: https://www.here-together.us/pod/how-to-live-an-epic-life