269. David R. Montgomery: How to Heal Our Soil

269. David R. Montgomery: How to Heal Our Soil

A century of conventional farming has left our planet with sick soil, accelerating the interlinked crises of food security, biodiversity loss, water pollution, and climate change. In his new book, ReGen: A New Future for Farming, Food, and Health, David R. Montgomery lays out a practical and productive vision for recovering soil health and safeguarding the future of food. The answer: soil-building regenerative farming. In exploring this much-needed turning point for agriculture, Montgomery marshals more than a decade of research, interviewing innovative farmers and seeing firsthand how they restored degraded farms around the world. Breaking down common myths around conventional and organic farming, animal agriculture, and plant-based diets, the book frames ten policy recommendations for sustainably nourishing the world. As Montgomery shows, reducing tillage, laying off synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, growing a diversity of crops, and getting livestock back on the land can reverse centuries of soil degradation and harvest nutrient-dense food. Succinct, accessible, and urgent, ReGen points the way to a healthier, more resilient world. David R. Montgomery is a professor at the University of Washington and a MacArthur Fellow. He is the author and coauthor of several previous books about soil and agriculture, including Dirt, Growing a Revolution, and What Your Food Ate. https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/GFQL6zLHMTMFVLE9GQeBxg Buy the Book [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/GFQL6zLHMTMFVLE9GQeBxg] ReGen: A New Future for Farming, Food, and Health (Hardcover) [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/GFQL6zLHMTMFVLE9GQeBxg] Elliott Bay Book Company [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/GFQL6zLHMTMFVLE9GQeBxg]

268. Perrin Roosevelt Ireland: Poking the Squid

In the illustrated guide, Poking the Squid, Perrin Roosevelt Ireland illustrates the splendid diversity of nature's eroticism. Chock full of delightful watercolor comics featuring pregnant seahorse dads, spider oral sex, and the four-headed echidna penis, Ireland takes us on a wild biodiversity ride through queerness, infidelity, consent, divorce, sex change, and even sexual cannibalism in the animal world. Ireland interviews researchers probing the leading edge of animal reproductive biology and, with the help of her cats Ursula and Pudge, brings readers along as she learns the latest discoveries that implode traditional notions of sex roles, relationships, and just who is mounting whom. These researchers are making dolphin vaginal popsicles, retrieving sperm packets from male squid mouths, and documenting dolphin orgies. From the externalized clitoris of the spotted hyena to mating-by-fusion in anglerfish, Poking the Squid draws on decades of feminist and queer theory to show that sexual diversity is biodiversity, and boisterous boinking is only natural. Ireland reminds us that we humans, from habitat destruction to climate change, impact all of animal life, including their private lives. Yet Earth's sexual ecosystem is filled with joy, resilience, and vitality — a balm to climate grief and a reason to protect all forms of nature's pleasure. And by illuminating and celebrating animal diversity, Poking the Squid invites us to embrace our own. Perrin Roosevelt Ireland is an artist and environmentalist. For a decade, she worked at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), ultimately as deputy to the executive director. Her artwork has been published in Discover, Nature, Scientific American, and The Rumpus. She serves on the board of the Roosevelt Institute, was an inaugural Artist in Residence at the New York Aquarium, and is a Banff Graphic Novel Resident. Perrin lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her cats (and muses) Ursula and Pudge. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781324089049 Buy the Book [https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781324089049] Poking the Squid: What We Can Learn from Animal Sex (Hardcover) [https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781324089049] Third Place Books [https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781324089049]

267. Lynda Mapes: America's Arctic: Too Precious to Lose

The northernmost stretches of Alaska host an environmental wonder that very few people will connect with in their lives — millions of acres of largely undisturbed public land along the Arctic Circle. This region contains pristine tundra landscapes, unrestricted rivers shaped only by nature, and unique wildlife like polar bears, the only caribou herds in the United States, and more aquatic birds than can be found in any other Arctic wetland. And while the features and roles of these lands may be foreign to many even within the United States, science writer Lynda Mapes is committed to the importance of preserving one of America's most significant wildlands against a newly emboldened push of political interference. Join veteran journalist Mapes alongside longtime Arctic defenders for a multifaceted presentation on the wonder of these lands and the risks they face under a new agenda under the Trump administration, angling for maximum oil, gas, and mineral extraction in Alaska. The evening will open with an excerpt from the film The Arctic: Our Last Great Wilderness — shot by National Geographic photographer Florian Schulz — showcasing the spectacular beauty of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and urgency of protecting it. Mapes will then present on her own reporting just completed in the Arctic, with photography from the field taken in the actively threatened National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. Her findings will expand on the non-commercial value of these wildlands that act as home to ancient Native cultures and some of the most important bird, salmon, caribou, and polar bear habitats on the planet. Already vulnerable to rapid changes brought on by the climate crisis, Mapes emphasizes the critical nature of keeping these lands shielded from the lasting impacts of development, drilling, and the selling of public lands. Learn why everyone is connected to what happens next in America's Arctic—and what you can do to protect it. Lynda Mapes is an award-winning journalist and science writer. She is the author of six books on the natural and cultural history of the Pacific Northwest, including The Trees are Speaking and Orca: Shared Waters Shared Home. She worked previously as an environment reporter for The Seattle Times — focusing on nature, Native cultures and governments, and environmental news throughout her 27 years with the Times. She was named a finalist for a team award for the Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting in 2025 and serves on the board of the Northwest Science Writers Association. Presented by Town Hall Seattle and Braided River. https://www.braidedriver.org/

266. David Epstein with Katy Sewall: Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better

Limits are the key to stimulating creativity, innovation, and collaboration. In a world that gives us seemingly infinite choices and prizes freedom above all else, we have an unprecedented number of options regarding what to do, who to be, and how to spend our time. All that choice is wonderful, but it is also overwhelming. The irony is that total freedom can be paralyzing, and unlimited resources don't necessarily lead to the biggest breakthroughs. In fact, overvaluing complete freedom can be disastrous for everything from starting a company to harnessing creativity to finding personal satisfaction. In his new book, Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better, David Epstein argues that all of us — individuals, businesses, institutions, even societies — can benefit from narrowing our options. Epstein dives into the science and practice of constraints, exploring exactly when and how guardrails can be beneficial, whether we're working with limited resources or using self-imposed boundaries to tap unexpected wells of focus and innovation. Inside the Box reveals how boundaries create breakthroughs, and how setting the right constraints can help you become the most creative, productive, and satisfied version of yourself. David Epstein is the author of the number one New York Times bestseller Range and the New York Times bestseller The Sports Gene. He has master's degrees in environmental science and journalism and has worked as a senior writer for Sports Illustrated and as an investigative reporter for ProPublica. Katy Sewall is the host and creator of The Bittersweet Life podcast. She's a writer, podcast consultant, and a Public Radio professional frequently heard on 94.9 KUOW. She's also the former Program Director at Town Hall. https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/ZoOPMvNQhqZT-gRkDpqp9w Buy the Book [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/ZoOPMvNQhqZT-gRkDpqp9w] Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/ZoOPMvNQhqZT-gRkDpqp9w] Elliott Bay Book Company [https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/ZoOPMvNQhqZT-gRkDpqp9w]

265. Psychedelic Salon: Psychedelics & Grief With Dr. Sunil Aggarwal, Laura Sullivan Cassidy, and April Pride

Grief is one of the most universal yet isolating experiences we endure—and psychedelics may offer a path through it. This Salon explores how substances like psilocybin, MDMA, and 5-MeO-DMT are being used to support those navigating loss, whether from death, identity shifts, or life transitions. This session sheds light on how altered states can help us reconnect to love, soften the sharp edges of sorrow, and reorient to a life forever changed. Attendees will gain insight into the science and integration practices that support emotional processing and meaning-making in the context of grief. Dr. Sunil Aggarwal is a physician in hospice and palliative medicine, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and a medical geographer. Dr. Aggarwal's primary clinical work is as an Integrative Pain, Palliative Care, and Rehabilitation Physician in private practice at the AIMS Institute in Seattle, Washington, and as an on-call Palliative and Hospice Physician within a Puget Sound–based healthcare system. He has a petition to reschedule psilocybin that is currently under review at the US Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Aggarwal's medical geography scholarship focuses on the geographies of access, delivery, and development of cannabinologic and psychedelic integrative medicine—particularly as these relate to pain management, hospice and palliative medicine, and rehabilitation services. After two decades in journalism and content direction, Laura Sullivan Cassidy (she/her) used the early pandemic years to begin building a new career serving communities in grief and loss. She's trained as a grief work facilitator, creative coach, and death doula, and is employed at Recompose, the Seattle-based green funeral home known for pioneering the process of human composting. Her role at Recompose involves outreach, community, and client work—specifically with communities for whom a death is approaching, either via terminal diagnosis or hospice care. Laura writes a Substack called Griever's Ball and offers creative expression, listening groups, and death awareness workshops. — Psychedelic Salon: Cultivating Conscious Connections Join Seattle-based psychedelics educator and podcast host April Pride in a dynamic series co-produced with Town Hall Seattle. Psychedelic Salon explores the transformative potential of psychedelic medicines through engaging conversations, expert panels, and interactive community discussions. Rooted in scientific evidence, each event highlights unique themes—including grief, seniors, menopause, and more—emphasizing their role in mental health, spiritual growth, and personal optimization. Designed to be inclusive and insightful, this series invites attendees of all backgrounds to discover how psychedelics can foster profound connections, healing, and well-being. About April Pride April Pride is a Seattle-based creative entrepreneur and harm reduction advocate with over two decades of experience building brands at the intersection of lifestyle, cannabis, psychedelics, and women's health. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Forbes, Vice, and The Guardian. April is the founder of SetSet, the world's first clinician-approved woman-focused platform for safe, accessible psychedelic integration. To learn more, follow April on Substack – aprilpride.substack.com [http://aprilpride.substack.com/]