A Fighting Chance

How to Fight Big Oil and Win - Cesar Aguirre

Meet Cesar Aguirre, a community organizer who's fought Big Oil and won. Communities living near oil production risk breathing toxic air and drinking contaminated water. His team protected homes, schools, and hospitals from drilling by defeating a dangerous industry referendum in California. Cesar shows us what ground zero of the climate crisis is like - and it’s hidden in plain sight.

How Blowing Up Dams & Setting Fires Saves Nature - The Yurok Tribe

Meet the Yurok Tribe of California. They’re behind the world’s largest dam removal project and huge advocates of cultural burns. Their work matters, because by reminding us of the history of water and fire, they’re helping us rewrite the future of the planet.

Make America Green Again - Benji Backer

Most consider climate policy as a liberal viewpoint, but one conservative is leading the charge to take partisanship out of environmental politics. Meet Benji Backer, founder of Nature is Nonpartisan. In 2025, Benji landed a huge victory when President Trump issued an executive order called “Make America Beautiful Again”, establishing a council to conserve public lands, protect wildlife, and expand access to clean drinking water. This convo explores the partisan tensions pervading the climate movement - and how to overcome them. Be sure to like, comment, and subscribe or follow! It really helps us spread the word. You can learn more about A Fighting Chance at afightingchancepod.org and Climate California at climatecalifornia.org Follow us or give us feedback! Instagram: @norcalpublicmedia, @climate.california YouTube: @northerncaliforniapublicmedia TikTok: @norcalpublicmedia Email: viewer@norcalpublicmedia.org [viewer@norcalpublicmedia.org] Want more environmental storytelling? Support NorCal Public Media’s Center for Environmental Reporting at norcalpublicmedia.org/donate

The New Green Gospel - William Morris

If we want to get any progress done on climate change, we have to persuade the people who deny it. Traditionally, one of the largest groups of deniers are Evangelical Protestants. Charles meets with William Morris at GreenFaith, an international collective that unites local religious groups of all faiths to protect the environment. They’ve led divestment campaigns, won oil setbacks, and they’re just getting started. Be sure to like, comment, and subscribe or follow! It really helps us spread the word. You can learn more about A Fighting Chance at afightingchancepod.org and Climate California at climatecalifornia.org Follow us or give us feedback! Instagram: @norcalpublicmedia, @climate.california YouTube: @northerncaliforniapublicmedia TikTok: @norcalpublicmedia Email: viewer@norcalpublicmedia.org [viewer@norcalpublicmedia.org] Want more environmental storytelling? Support NorCal Public Media’s Center for Environmental Reporting at norcalpublicmedia.org/donate

Introducing A Fighting Chance

From NorCal Public Media, Emmy-winning filmmaker/host Charles Loi bridges the hard realities of climate change with the optimism of new possibilities and solutions, giving listeners renewed hope to hold onto. Subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.