The RegenNarration

Gondwana Link has been called “the most exciting thing that is happening in restoration in Australia, if not the world.” It’s a one thousand kilometre stretch of country extending right across the south of Western Australia. This globally recognised biodiversity hotspot had been little understood, and devastatingly cleared. But not all of it. And Gondwana Link is restoring and re-connecting these land and seascapes, their communities, and their cultures. Hundreds of people, dozens of groups, private and public landholders, investors and more.

One of the outstanding successes has been the First Nations-led restoration of Nowanup – and all on the back of a handshake. That seems like the big story here – the trust and re-connection, that bears the fruit of restoration. And you’ll find Keith Bradby right in the thick of it.

Keith has been at the heart of Gondwana Link since it began nearly twenty years ago – and really, long before that. He’s the CEO of the organisation, has worked in business and as senior staff to cabinet ministers across the political spectrum, and exudes a love of connecting people and places. A walking ecology. Well, we all are really, but Keith sets a standard. His pivotal achievements read as long as your leg, playing key roles in developing the WA Landcare Network (he’s currently Chair), halting widespread clearing, and recrafting regional economies - both in Australia and now around the world.

Among his many accolades, Keith’s been awarded the Great Southern Development Commission’s Medal of Excellence in Natural Resource Management in 2005, and an Order of Australia Medal in 2015.

This conversation was recorded at one of the magnificent restoration sites at Twin Creeks, on 4 March 2021.

Title slide: Keith Bradby (pic supplied). You'll find a series of other photos on the episode web page too, including a particularly uncanny one.

Note: the quote at the top of this episode description was from Professor Richard Hobbs – an internationally recognised ecologist.

Music:
Faraway Castle, by Rae Howell & Sunwrae.

Find more:
On Keith Bradby.

Gondwana Link.

Get involved.

Gondwana Link’s video channel, featuring a series of short videos.

A short video profile on Gondwana Link featuring Keith, at the Twin Creeks site, produced by Luke Sweet for Clean State WA.

This short animation, with 2 million views and counting, is one of Keith’s favourite outlines of some of the dynamics at play: ‘Why Poor Places are More Diverse’.

Keith also co-wrote and narrated the award-winning documentary ‘A Million Acres a Year’, which told the story of the change from large scale clearing to the beginnings of large scale restoration in Western Australia.

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This is an excerpt from episode 78 featuring the last 25 minutes of my conversation with leading holistic farmers, Jeff Pow and Michelle McManus. We explore what it takes to regenerate country, community and custodianship. And to kick that off, I raise a section of the recent popular TV series here in Australia, Fight for Planet A, that had me squirming in my seat.

We then delve into some fascinating work around the health of ancient cultures relative to our modern ‘lifestyle’ afflictions, and how we might harness the ‘best of both worlds’. We close with Jeff’s run for parliament and an invitation to join Jeff and Michelle on their custodial journey.

Title slide: regenerated pasture at Southampton (pic: Justin Wolfgang).

You can hear the rest of our conversation in the main episode, ‘Growing Food & Farmers – for 500 Years!’ 

You’ll find a series of photos on that episode web page too. 

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Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

Marking Jeff's run for Parliament at the West Australian state election today, this is a special extra to episode 78 with Jeff Pow and Michelle McManus. It’s a stretch of eight minutes or so that starts with Jeff describing the extraordinary and instructive experience of the day Southampton burned. And it closes with a collective reflection on notions of responsibility, stewardship and the long game.

Title slide: The burned out shell of the historic Southampton Homestead (pic: Anthony James).

Music:
The Great Unwind, by William Tyler off his album Modern Country.

Find more:
You can hear the rest of our conversation in the main episode, ‘Growing Food & Farmers – for 500 Years!’

You’ll find a series of photos on that episode web page too. 

Send us a voicemail

Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

Jeff Pow and Michelle McManus are bringing chicken farming back to earth, and playing a part in rebirthing opportunities for communities and regions everywhere. They’ll say they’re doing nothing particularly new, but they’re finding a way to regenerate country, community and economy in an unprecedented context of crises.

For them, most recently, an horrific bushfire devastated their historic Southampton Homestead and Farm. We explore their soulful and award-winning journey of recovery, as they form part of a leading trend in farming – tending healthy people, animals and country, while reclaiming the terms of trade. That means taking back responsibility for the growing, processing and value-adding of all the food on the farm, and bringing it directly to the community.

Jeff is a former corporate, now first-generation farmer with his wife Michelle. He had regenerated this land once already, after arriving in 2006 to a landscape devastated by pine plantations, before that horrific bushfire razed the place to the ground in 2013. He felt the call to go again, as an old friend came back into his life and ultimately became his wife. And together, they’re creating an incredible story, with their hand-reared chicken and other animals on perennial pastures, insects and sunshine.

Now Jeff is standing for parliament at this month’s state election and, much like the Haggerty’s in episode 68, they’re inviting the return of farmers and others back on country, to scale the regeneration together, rather than as individual empires. They’re “growing food and farmers”, reclaiming the story of people and nature from Hobbesian nightmares, and restoring custodianship on country as our way out - creating the new system, as a means of emerging from the old.

This conversation was recorded on location at Southampton Homestead and Farm on 3 December 2020.

Title slide: Jeff on the farm (pic: Anthony James). You'll see more photos on the episode website.

Music:
Faraway Castle, by Rae Howell & Sunwrae.

The System, by the Public Opinion Afro Orchestra.

Find more:
Tune into the special extra with Jeff and Michelle.

Southampton Homestead website.

2015 short film by Regrarians with Jeff and Michelle, ‘After the Fire’.

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Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

This is an excerpt from episode 77 featuring the last 15 minutes or so of my conversation with the award-winning director of ‘That Sugar Film’ and ‘2040’, Damon Gameau. We pick up on what Damon says has been the most rewarding, promising and important part of his work with both films – working with kids and teachers in education. One million young people have engaged with the 2040 film and initiatives alone. And its upcoming US TV release is still to come.

We go on to talk about a number of other stories that are changing the story this year, our experience of an extraordinary generation of elders, and a reflection on what might just be needed most right now.

Title slide: Damon Gameau in conscious company (supplied).

You can hear the rest of our conversation in the main episode, ‘2021: Approaching Regenerative Tipping Points’. 

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Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

Welcome to a new year of The RegenNarration. And what a year it’s shaping up to be. But before we get into that, I wanted to take a brief moment here to admit to feeling a little flat. And by extension, to explain the delayed start to the podcast this year. Some sad and in some ways seismic changes have consumed me in recent times. And really, these changes relate to everything this podcast is about. So this episode starts on that note, before leading in to a conversation spanning a spectrum of spectacular efforts to regenerate the systems and stories we live by.

Kind enough to join me in this sweeping primer for the year is friend, supporter of the podcast, and masterfully accomplished director of That Sugar Film and 2040, Damon Gameau. We talk about some of what’s on, what’s coming on, and how we’re seeing the growing momentum towards regenerative tipping points.

Dedicated to Dad.

Title slide: Damon Gameau (supplied).

Music:
Faraway Castle, by Rae Howell and Sunwrae.

The System, by the Public Opinion Afro Orchestra.

Find more:
The 2040 website.

And you can find more of Damon and Anthony in conversation for episodes 30 (just prior to 2040 being released) and 38 (at the Perth premiere of the film). 

Send us a voicemail

Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

We’re signing off for the year with our annual episode of highlights from our brilliant array of guests throughout 2020. If you’ve been listening throughout this unique and likely transformative year, enjoy the revisit. And for those newer to the podcast, here’s a snapshot of how the year played out on The RegenNarration.

Track list:

1. Welcome to 2020 (from ep. 53), to music by Jeremiah Johnson
2. Dr Sheila Nguyen (from ep. 54)
3. Mike Salvaris (from ep. 55), and Jo Chandler (from ep. 56), all to The System, by the Public Opinion Afro Orchestra
4. An intro from home as COVID-19 lockdown begins, and Alanna Shaikh (from ep. 57)
5. Eugenie Stockmann (from ep. 58), from a live panel event at the Uni of Notre Dame in Fremantle
6. Dr Eduard Muller (from ep. 59), Matthew Evans (from ep. 60), Hunter Lovins (from ep. 61), Zach Bush MD (from ep. 62), Kirsten Larsen (from ep. 63), Tony Rinaudo (from ep. 64), all to music by Jeremiah Johnson
7. Joel Johnsson and Dr Peter Barnes (from ep. 65), to On the Punt by Adam Gibson and the Aerial Maps
8. David Pollock (from ep. 66), to the sounds of Wooleen Station
9. Dr Terry McCosker (from ep. 67) and Dianne Haggerty (from ep. 68), to music by Jeremiah Johnson
10. Mark Taylor (from ep. 69), to the sounds of the mill
11. Tyson Yunkaporta (from ep. 70) and Dr Charles Massy (from the extract to ep. 32, accompanying the Australian Story TV program on Charles), to Stones and Bones by Owls of the Swamp
12. Dr Kate Auty and Dr Alessandro Pellizon (from ep. 71), Nicole Masters (from ep. 72), Amy Steel and Lily Brazel (from ep. 73), and Rosanne Scott (from ep. 74), all to Faraway Castle by Rae Howell and Sunwrae
13.  Allan Savory (from ep. 75), to Scotland the Brave by Eric M Armour (sourced from the Free Music Archive).

Title slide: Rainbow over the regenerating landscapes of the Haggerty’s (episode 68).

With thanks to all of the brilliant musicians who generously granted permission for their music to appear here.

Find more:
To access the full catalogue of episodes, head to our website  or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

This is an extract from episode 75 featuring the last half an hour of my conversation with regenerative agriculture and holistic management pioneer, Allan Savory. We pick up where Allan states the need for this to go mainstream now. He goes on to propose how it might happen, while laying down the challenge. And outlines why he believes the change is very close.

We go on to talk about the largely ‘accidental’ way Allan’s life and insights have evolved, and the subtle but vital role ‘gut feel’ has played. Then close with a brilliant story, illustrative of what he’s learned most about how people best navigate change.

Title slide: Allan Savory in trusted company (supplied).

You can hear the rest of our conversation in the main episode, ‘Regenerating Civilisation: Allan Savory on holistic management, scaling & a sense of survival’.

You’ll find a series of photos on that episode web page too. 

Send us a voicemail

Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

This is a special extra to episode 75 with Allan Savory. We delve further here into a few areas that have been pivotal to Allan’s pioneering life. It starts with a little exchange on how wilderness and livestock-based agriculture can regenerate country together (and where they can’t).

Then we turn to the wilderness within, going back to the incredibly formative time Allan experienced as a tracker. And another as the leader of the opposition party in Rhodesia, before being forced into political exile. All this unexpectedly led to meeting his wife Jody Butterfield, setting in tow a partnership that would change the world.

We wind up with more on what success (and failure) looks like, including holistically managing government.

Title slide: Allan delivering his famous TED talk.

Music:
Gone Clear, by William Tyler off his album Modern Country.

Find more:
You can hear the rest of our conversation in the main episode, ‘Regenerating Civilisation: Allan Savory on holistic management, scaling up & a sense of survival’. 

You’ll find a series of photos on that episode web page too. 

Send us a voicemail

Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!

Haul back through the spread of regenerative agriculture in recent decades, and Allan Savory is there. His global influence is hard to overstate. Here we chat about his extraordinary life, and the evolution of his insights that have proved so transformative for so many. Thinking holistically is one thing. But how do we actually manage our lives and societies holistically? And ultimately, how do we engage the institutions that we’ve come to so distrust, to enable regeneration at scale - in whatever our role or walk of life? Far from just in agriculture, but certainly not without it.

Allan believes it’s possible, and proposes how it might be done. Allan’s the founder and President of The Savory Institute. He’s also Chair and co-founder, with wife Jody Butterfield, of the Africa Centre for Holistic Management back home in Zimbabwe. His TED talk has now been viewed over seven million times. And his most valued award was Australia’s esteemed International Banksia Award (there's a photo on the episode website linked below) for the person doing the most for the environment on a global scale.

This episode marks what would have been the 77th birthday of the bloke who introduced me to systems thinking and living 20 years ago – a man who somehow did find his way in academia, albeit in notably different ways, the late Professor Frank Fisher. I couldn’t imagine a more fitting guest to mark the occasion than Allan. We met online for this conversation on Saturday 22 November 2020.

Title slide: Allan Savory.

You’ll see a terrific selection of other photos on the website (supplied).

Music:
Faraway Castle, by Rae Howell and Sunwrae.

Scotland the Brave, by Eric M. Armour - Sourced from the Free Music Archive under Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Find more:
You can also hear a special extra to this episode with Allan.

The Savory Institute, including Allan’s famous text and a new handbook, with courses, global network etc.

The Africa Centre for Holistic Management.

Allan’s 2020 Tony Coote Memorial Lecture for The Mulloon Institute (lecture starts 7 minutes in).

And you can find my conversations with some of those mentioned in our conversation (such as Terry McCosker in ep. 67 & the Henggelers in the Kimberley in ep. 25). 

Send us a voicemail

Support the show

Please share this episode or the trailer with a friend, follow the podcast, and subscribe if you can.

The RegenNarration is independent and ad-free, with hundreds of episodes freely available, thanks to the generous support of listeners like you. If you're enjoying the podcast, I hope you'll consider becoming a paid subscriber, from as little as around $1 a week, to gain access to a great community, subscriber events and giveaways, and to help keep the show going, on Patreon or Substack (where you'll find some writing, photography and tunes too).

You can also donate directly via the website (avoiding fees) or PayPal.

I hope to see you at an event soon, even the shop. Thanks so much for your support!