Where The Climate Things Are

In this episode, Addie sits down with Christian Vanizette - social entrepreneur, activist, and founder of Makesense and chilli, the world’s first climate activism app. From growing up surrounded by the reefs and whales of Tahiti to building global movements for systemic change, Christian’s story bridges the personal and the political - showing how a single moment of heartbreak can evolve into a lifetime of action.

We talk about:

• Early connections to nature - growing up in Tahiti and realizing even paradise isn’t safe from climate change

• From impact investing to activism - why solutions alone aren’t enough without policy change

• The power of people - using collective action to stop pipelines, protect oceans, and shift corporate behavior

• Dreaming big and starting small - lessons from Muhammad Yunus on turning ideas into impact

• Building chilli - a new platform helping climate “impact creators” mobilize communities and funding

Links & Mentions:

• chilli App

• Makesense

• Professor Muhammad Yunus

• Obama Scholars Program

• IPCC Reports

Keywords:

climate activism, social entrepreneurship, collective action, coral reefs, fossil fuels, impact investing, policy change, Obama Scholars, Muhammad Yunus, IPCC, systemic change, youth movements, ocean protection, climate storytelling, Climate Week NYC

Ryan Thrower reads Addie's guest post on the TRR substack about Guster's environmental leadership in the music industry via the nonprofit REVERB (and also talks about how good their music is).

Links:

REVERB

Guster Track 1 Playlist

Trail Running Radio Substack

Where The Climate Things Are Substack 

In this episode, Addie sits down with Liv Rose — freediver, ocean educator, and founder of Liv for the Sea — to talk about ocean confidence, vulnerability, and how connection beneath the surface can shape how we show up for the planet. From witnessing coral bleaching firsthand to leading small-group expeditions across the Pacific, Liv shares what it means to teach courage, build community, and fall in love with the sea.

We talk about:

• Finding identity and confidence through freediving

• Seeing coral bleaching up close — and how ecosystems can recover

• Building Liv for the Sea into a global expedition business

• Balancing tourism, culture, and conservation in remote places

• Why seaweed farming gives her hope for the future

Links & Mentions
Liv for the Sea
Liv’s Instagram
Lord Howe Island
Example of seaweed farming

Keywords: freediving, ocean confidence, marine conservation, climate storytelling, coral bleaching, adventure tourism, environmental education, resilience, seaweed farming, ocean awareness, sustainability, travel, community, curiosity, courage

In this episode, I sit down with Tim Weed — writer, teacher, and international trip leader turned novelist. Tim’s latest book, The Afterlife Project, is a cli-fi novel that travels 10,000 years into the future to wrestle with the fate of humanity, biodiversity, and our relationship to nature.

We talk about:

• Growing up between Vermont and Denver and discovering a love of winter and skiing

• How fly fishing — in various locations throughout the US, including my favorite, Kennebago Lake — became a lifelong practice

• Trip leading, group dynamics, and what time in the wilderness reveals about human connection

• Why geological time, mass extinctions, and perspective helped him write through climate anxiety

• The role of fiction in shifting climate paradigms and building new climate mythologies

Links

• Tim Weed’s Website

• The Afterlife Project

• A Field Guide to Murder and Fly Fishing

• The World Without Us – Alan Weisman

• Braiding Sweetgrass – Robin Wall Kimmerer

• Project Drawdown

Keywords: cli-fi, climate fiction, The Afterlife Project, Tim Weed, fly fishing, Vermont, Colorado, geological time, mass extinctions, stewardship, storytelling, literature, outdoor community, Protect Our Winters, climate narratives, nature, resilience

Addie talks about the recent Climate Strides events at NYC Climate Week, as well as some moments of both existential crisis and uplifting inspiration.

Substack post is here.

In this episode, Addie sits down with Matt Scott — storyteller, podcaster, and Director of Storytelling & Engagement at Project Drawdown. From imposter syndrome and courage to representation and belonging, Matt shares what it means to “pass the mic” and create climate stories that are both human and transformative.

We talk about:

• Growing up with family legacies that shaped his path
  

• The Climate Reality training that turned curiosity into commitment
  

• Passing the mic and making space for others at the table
  

• Representation, outdoor safety, and belonging
  

• Bringing storytelling into Project Drawdown and launching Drawdown’s Neighborhood
  Links

  • Matt’s LinkedIn
    

  • Matt’s Bio Page

  • Project Drawdown

  • Drawdown’s Neighborhood

  • Matt’s Podcast

  • Climate Reality Project

  • The Black Female Project

  • Mustafa Santiago Ali

  Nalleli Cobo
  

  Keywords: storytelling, Project Drawdown, Drawdown’s Neighborhood, passing the mic, representation, climate justice, outdoor safety, courage, imposter syndrome, climate storytelling, environmental justice, Climate Reality Project, trail running, belonging, community, advocacy

In this episode, Addie debriefs tonight's Kilian Jornet Foundation event in Colorado Springs, as well as reads the newest substack article on the design of the environmental advocacy campaign that accompanies Kilian Jornet's States of Elevation challenge. Plus! We preview the five Climate Strides events happening in NYC at NYC Climate Week this month. Don't miss it if you'll be in town!

Links:

• Sign up for future States of Elevation events: https://nnormal.typeform.com/to/w5iiQgLB 
• Climate Strides NYC Monday - https://luma.com/bp02i5nj
• Climate Strides NYC Tuesday - https://luma.com/kqm45bet
• Climate Strides NYC Wednesday - https://luma.com/ug4uk2jr
• Climate Strides NYC Thursday - https://luma.com/pkzm255x
• Climate Strides NYC Friday - https://luma.com/k9el3yfl

Keywords: Kilian Jornet, climate, environment, event, running, trail running, Running Minds, campaign, strategy, design, restoration, resilience, reconnection, advocacy, policy, volunteers, partnerships, storytelling, community

In this episode, Addie sits down with Peyton Thomas - a biologist and competitive trail runner whose work explores the connections between aquatic ecosystems, climate change, and community. From growing up in Atlanta and confronting inequities in access to green space, to building a career that bridges research and running, Peyton shares what it means to navigate multiple identities while staying rooted in purpose.

We talk about:

• Peyton’s “aha” moment on climate: canvassing neighborhoods in Atlanta and recognizing environmental inequities.

• Running as a way to process life, find home in new landscapes, and stay connected to the natural world.

• How language learning became a bridge to community in Quebec and her work with the broader Black diaspora.

• The Anticosti Island fastpacking project: sampling rivers, studying brook trout, and blending science with outdoor adventure.

• The balance of pursuing both a science career and competitive running, and the ongoing process of defining fulfillment.

Links & Mentions

• Peyton’s Instagram

• Peyton’s Website

• Anticosti Island UNESCO nomination

• Trail Runner Mag Profile of Peyton (written by Dakota Jones)

• CU Boulder Profile

Keywords

trail running, road running, competitive running, community, Indigenous sovereignty, climate change, aquatic ecosystems, brook trout, biodiversity, environmental DNA, fish otoliths, conservation, Anticosti Island, UNESCO World Heritage, Quebec, Atlanta, Chattahoochee River, environmental justice, access to green space, PhD journey, Alaska, Yukon, Patagonia, NNormal, Western States 100, Dakota Jones, science and sport, language learning, French, resilience, climate storytelling

Climate Strides Returns to Central Park! We are excited to announce *five* Climate Strides events at NYC Climate Week. Addie talks about the upcoming events, what to expect and how to get involved. Thanks to Protect Our Winters who came on board as the presenting sponsor for these activations. Hope to see you there!

This week, I spoke with Emma Mary Murray — textile artist, place-based educator, and environmental storyteller stitching climate realities into fabric, flags, and community.

Emma joined me from Mount Desert Island, Maine, where she’s somehow managing to maintain a thriving career as an artist while teaching full-time. Her work is rooted in craft and kinship: an approach that blends personal ritual with planetary care, using slow art to tell fast-moving stories about aspects of the planet we’re losing and the one we’re still building.

In this conversation, Emma shares what it means to create climate art that isn’t just decorative but, rather, declarative. From glacier flags to embroidered landscapes to collaborative workshops, she’s turning thread into a form of truth-telling.

We talked about:

• Her formative climate “aha” moment at Chewonki’s Maine Coast Semester

• Her journey from outdoor guide and climber to embroidery artist

• Her experience as artist-in-residence with the North Cascades Glacier Climate Project and creating “impact flags” in the field

• How teaching her slow art craft is helping people reconnect with themselves and each other

• How Maine’s Island Explorer bus inspired her belief in public transit as a rural climate solution

Links

• Emma Mary Murray

• North Cascades Glacier Climate Project

• Shaped By Ice art show in Seattle

• Island Explorer

• Jill Pelto, climate artist and NCGCP art director

• No Man’s Land Film Festival

• American Alpine Club

• Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki
  

Keywords:
climate art, glacier loss, North Cascades, embroidery, storytelling, public transit, Mount Desert Island, climate education, slow craft, community art, place-based learning, youth climate action, teaching, glacial data, American Alpine Club, No Man’s Land Film Festival, climate grief, adaptation, handmade advocacy, rural climate solutions, Chewonki, activism