Eco Scale Radio

ESR 014 - Feeling Overwhelmed by Climate Change?

Manage Eco-Anxiety, Build Resilience, and Thrive in Uncertainty Discover how to manage eco-anxiety, embrace your environmental identity, and thrive in uncertainty with climate psychologist Thomas Doherty. In this episode of Eco Scale Radio, host Jim Oliver sits down with climate psychologist Thomas Doherty to explore the emotional complexities of the climate crisis. Thomas introduces powerful concepts like "personal sustainability," the "climate elephant," "environmental identity," and the critical role of values in building climate resilience. He offers listeners practical tools to navigate eco-anxiety, grief, and uncertainty. Drawing on decades of experience, Thomas shares insights from his book, Surviving Climate Anxiety: Coping, Healing, and Thriving on a Changing Planet and his podcast, Climate Change and Happiness. If you're concerned about the planet's future, this episode is packed with wisdom and actionable advice. This episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking clarity, resilience, and purpose in the face of climate change.

ESR 013 - Eco-Anxiety and Emotional Resilience: Nurturing Wellbeing in Uncertain, Unsettling Times

Explore how climate psychology can help us navigate overwhelming times and build meaningful connections. In this episode of Eco Scale Radio, Jim Oliver speaks with Linda Aspey, a leadership coach, psychotherapist, and board member of the Climate Psychology Alliance, about eco-anxiety, climate distress, and the emotional resilience needed to navigate the crises of the 21st century. Together, they explore how defense mechanisms like denial and disavowal shape our collective response to climate change and practical strategies for nurturing emotional wellbeing. Linda also shares inspiring ways to reconnect with nature, community, and actionable hope in these uncertain times. Linda's ability to shine the light on and give names to many of the experiences we are facing gives people the ability to better navigate the changing landscape we are living in.

ESR 012 - Wildlife, Technology, and Biophilia in the 21st Century

How should humans respond to the impact of climate change and loss of biodiversity? Should we double down with more technology or should we sit back and let nature reset itself? What roll does biophilia play in our response? In this interview with Christopher J. Preston, author of Tenacious Beasts and expert in wildlife, technology, and climate change, we discuss: * animals coming back from the brink of extinction * whales and whale vomit * The Great Whale Conveyor * the impact of bison on creeks and forests * the impact beavers have on land and water * the impact fashion has on beavers * the impact of sea otters on kelp * indigenous people's relationship with sea otters * the Shifting Baseline Syndrome * and much much more. I hope this conversation helps change the way you look at wildlife, technology, and climate change. And hopefully stokes up your sense of biophilia (your love and connection with nature). And perhaps motivate you to take proactive steps to help innovate and implement solutions to the many challenges that we are facing. Christopher J. Preston is a writer and professor based in Missoula, MT. His academic research centers on wildlife, technology, and climate change. Christopher has written for The Atlantic, Smithsonian Magazine, Discover, Orion, The Conversation, the Wall Street Journal, and The BBC. His recent book Tenacious Beasts: Wildlife Recoveries That Change How We Think About Animals investigates a number of species that came back from the brink of extinction. Tenacious Beasts was listed by the New Yorker as one of their Best Books of 2023. And won the 2024 High Plains Book Award for non-fiction. His previous book, The Synthetic Age: Out designing Evolution, Resurrecting Species, and Reengineering Our World, has been translated into six languages and won a silver medal from Nautilus in the ecology and environment category. Christopher gives talks in state parks, libraries, and breweries across Montana to audiences interested in conservation and technology. In early 2023, he won an annual award from the International Society for Environmental Ethics for his work as a public philosopher.

ESR 011 - Business Growth + Science-Based Positive Impact

Business Growth + Science-Based Positive Impact How to Create a Viral Customer Experience That Makes a Positive Regenerative Impact... Impact You Can Trust Handprint is the sum of your positive impact. Footprint is the sum of your negative impact. For Companies: What if your company could... * make engaging in climate action profitable * make regenerative sustainability your competitive advantage? * become a part of the new regenerative economy by integrating planet-positive actions into business activities in a profitable and seamless way? For Regenerative NGOs: What if your Impact Projects could get access to a global network of sponsors? In this Eco Scale Radio episode Mathias describes how his company Handprint helps impact entrepreneurs and NGOs do all this and much more.

ESR 010 - What is the Impact of Plastics on Human Health?

Plastic is everywhere. It's almost impossible to live your life without plastic these days. Our society has become dependent on plastic in all aspects of life, including: household goods, food processing, packaging, personal care products, and medical applications. More than 13,000 chemicals are used to make plastics. Over 350 million metric tons of plastic waste are discarded annually. The widespread presence of plastics and their degradation products in the environment leads to inevitable exposure through the food we eat and the air we breathe. This exposure to plastic chemicals carries various health risks, particularly due to the chemical composition of plastics and their ability to disrupt biological processes. A team of scientists at the Minderoo Foundation in Australia (in collaboration with Australian research institutes) asked two powerful questions: * What is the impact of plastics on human health? * How can we innovate safer plastic alternatives? The team recently spent 3 years screening more than 100,000 papers to find studies on plastic getting into the human body and how it could be harming our health. After doing this screening, they came up with 3,500 primary studies on plastic health from 1960 to 2022. These finding have been used to create the first-of-its-kind interactive Plastic Health Map, which maps the existing research on the effects of plastic chemicals on human health. The Plastic Health Map is also a tool that can help us develop safer plastic alternatives and help us transition to a world where plastic is more sustainable, safer, and free of toxic chemicals. In this Eco Scale Radio episode I have the good fortune of interviewing Louise Goode and Manuel Brunner from the Minderoo Foundation. Louise is the Principal Researcher at Minderoo Foundation. She is involved in research into the impact of plastics on human health at the Minderoo Foundation. She's like the research wrangler who helps her team make this Map a reality. Manuel is a chemist with a PhD from the University of Western Australia. In his role as Principal, Chemistry and Research at the Minderoo Foundation, he explores how we can create a sustainable chemical and plastics industry. In this conversation they describe the Plastic Health Map and the challenges of innovating plastic alternatives... and much more. After you hear this podcast interview, you will never see plastic the same way again.