Why I Started ReGrounded (and the Middle Path of Raising Kids Who Care)

What Does This Actually Look Like in the Day-To-Day?

Enough philosophy - let's get practical. In this episode, Jess tells the story of a scraggly weed growing on the path to her son's school, and how a ten-second moment on an ordinary Tuesday morning turned out to contain almost everything the ReGrounded approach is about. Plus: what's coming in the next three episodes, and one small thing to try this week that requires no preparation, no equipment, and no lifestyle overhaul whatsoever.

Why Mindset Is the Most Important Thing (And Not a Cop-Out)

Most eco-parenting advice starts with a list of things to do: Recycle. Buy less plastic. Walk to school. And while none of that is wrong - something crucial is missing from almost all of it. In Episode 2, Jess makes the case that focusing on mindset isn't the soft alternative to real environmental action. It's actually the foundation that makes lasting change possible - the root from which everything else grows. She traces this belief back to its origins: an idealistic eco-activist phase in her early twenties that taught her, the hard way, that ticking visible boxes is not the same as actually caring. And she explores why, despite decades of recycling campaigns and sustainability initiatives, the gap between people and planet keeps widening - and what that tells us about where the real work needs to happen. Because individual action matters. But a child who grows up genuinely feeling part of the natural world - rather than just being told to recycle - will ripple outward in ways no checklist ever could. If Episode 1 was about finding the middle path, Episode 2 is about understanding why that path works. If you haven't yet, sign up to the ReGrounded Newsletter here [https://regrounded.podia.com/0b1f20fa-8781-41f9-8ac4-37ed2d42734d]. And check out all the ReGrounded Resources here [https://regrounded.podia.com/].

Why I Started ReGrounded (and the Middle Path of Raising Kids Who Care)

In this first episode, Jess shares the story behind ReGrounded and the tension that inspired it. On one side of the internet, eco-parenting advice often looks like slow-living perfection: wooden toys, homemade everything and families living close to the land on communal homesteads... On the other side, parenting is framed as pure chaos and survival mode. But what if there’s a middle ground? Jess explores how busy, imperfect parents can still raise kids who care deeply about the natural world without overhauling their entire lives or adding unrealistic eco-tasks to their already full plates. Drawing on her background (PhD in environmental ethics) and her real-life experience raising three young children, she introduces the core philosophy behind ReGrounded: that care for the Earth often grows not from big lifestyle changes, but from small shifts in language, attention and everyday family moments. If you’ve ever wondered how to raise eco-aware kids in the middle of modern life, this episode is where the journey begins. For more ReGrounded resources, see here [See more at https://regrounded.podia.com/. ].