Grounded, Not Divided

Episode 16: Renae Marshall: Bipartisanship on climate and energy

Show notes: Today’s guest is Renae Marshall [https://www.renaemarshall.com/]. Renae Marshall is a Ph.D. candidate at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California Santa Barbara. She studies environmental politics, with a focus on understanding bipartisanship. As part of her research [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10584-022-03335-w], she has read every state-level climate-change bill from the past decade, and we discuss what she’s learned about what works and doesn’t work for bridging partisan divides. We also talk about caucuses in Congress, and the important role they play in helping members find common ground and get things done. Don’t miss our next episode! Make sure to subscribe, and stay tuned for our next episode, Episode 17, with Skip York. Our conversation will focus on the war in the Middle East and what it means for energy security globally and in the U.S. The episode will be live-taped [https://uwyo.trumba.com/engage-uw/War-in-the-Middle-East-and-Energy-Security-A-conversation-with-Skip-York/E200507207] next Monday, May 4, at the University of Wyoming College of Business. Skip York is a Nonresident Fellow in Energy and Global Oil at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and he is chief energy strategist at Turner Mason & Company, an energy consulting and advisory firm. Dr. York was formerly head of Commodity Strategy for Petroleum at BHP, and he has experience working with ExxonMobil, McKinsey & Company, Charles River Associates, and Wood Mackenzie. Dr. York received his undergraduate degree in economics from UW, and he holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Virginia. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guidedcivicrevival.substack.com [https://guidedcivicrevival.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 15: Ian Burgess: Entrepreneurship and education in the age of AI

Show notes: Today’s guest is Ian Burgess [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-burgess-35966337/]. Besides being my identical twin brother, Ian is founder and President of Ascendance Foundry [https://www.ascendancefoundry.com/], co-founder and former President of Validere [https://www.validere.com/], former Senior Venture Partner at the Pioneer Fund, board member of NEXTCanada [https://www.nextcanada.com/ian-burgess/] and Cquesta [https://www.cquesta.com/], and the world’s sixth-ranked amateur long driver [https://www.worldlongdrive.com/amateur]. We discuss his experience and philosophy on entrepreneurship, where he thinks AI will create new job opportunities, and he offers his advice for young people on how they can seize these opportunities. Preparing young people for the AI workforce of tomorrow is the focus of Ascendance Foundry. Don’t miss our next episode! Make sure to subscribe, and stay tuned for our next episode, Episode 16, with Renae Marshall. Renae Marshall [https://www.renaemarshall.com/] is a Ph.D. candidate at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California Santa Barbara. She studies environmental politics, with a focus on understanding bipartisanship. As part of her research, she has read every state-level climate-change bill from the past decade, and we discuss what she’s learned about what works and doesn’t work for bridging partisan divides. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guidedcivicrevival.substack.com [https://guidedcivicrevival.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 14: Sharon Friedman: Finding common ground on federal lands and federal science

Show notes: Today’s guest is Sharon Friedman. Dr. Friedman worked at the U.S. Forest Service for over 30 years in areas including [https://environment.yale.edu/news/article/barrier-breaking-forest-geneticist-honored-yse-alumni-award] planning, regulation, litigation, and research. In 2022, she received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Yale School of the Environment. In her retirement, she founded and has run The Smokey Wire [https://forestpolicypub.com/], a popular news and discussion forum for forest and federal lands issues. We discuss what federal scientists do, recent controversies surrounding federal science and scientists, federal lands issues in the news including permitting and wildfire prevention, and how to find common ground. Don’t miss our next episode! Make sure to subscribe, and stay tuned for our next episode, Episode 15, with Ian Burgess [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-burgess-35966337/] (we’re twins, in case anyone is wondering), founder and President of Ascendance Foundry [https://www.ascendancefoundry.com/], co-founder and former President of Validere [https://www.validere.com/], former Senior Venture Partner at the Pioneer Fund, board member of NEXTCanada [https://www.nextcanada.com/ian-burgess/] and Cquesta [https://www.cquesta.com/], and the world’s sixth-ranked amateur long driver [https://www.worldlongdrive.com/amateur]. We will discuss entrepreneurship, and how young people can prepare themselves for the AI-powered workforce of tomorrow (the focus of Ascendance Foundry). Thanks for reading Guided Civic Revival! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guidedcivicrevival.substack.com [https://guidedcivicrevival.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 13: Brian Kisida: Nuance on the politics of K-12 and higher education

Today’s guest is Brian Kisida. Brian Kisida [https://truman.missouri.edu/people/kisida] is an Associate Professor in the Truman School of Government & Public Affairs at the University of Missouri, Co-Director of the Arts, Humanities, & Civic Engagement Lab [https://truman.missouri.edu/artlab], and Director of the Open Minds Initiative [https://truman.missouri.edu/open-minds-initiative]. We discuss his recent [https://direct.mit.edu/edfp/article-abstract/doi/10.1162/EDFP.a.423/133359/Exploring-Claims-of-Critical-Race-Theory-Divisive?redirectedFrom=fulltext] research [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15582159.2025.2575615] on K-12 education, which cuts through the political noise on what is and is not being taught in high schools about race and critical race theory. We also discuss his work on promoting viewpoint diversity in the classroom, and his perspective on broader national debates about higher education reform. We compare notes from our positive experiences at flagship public universities, in contrast to some of the news stories out of elite universities. Don’t miss our next episode! Make sure to subscribe, and stay tuned for our next episode, Episode 14, with Sharon Friedman [https://thebreakthrough.org/people/sharon-friedman], on finding common ground in public lands. Dr. Friedman worked at the U.S. Forest Service for over 30 years in areas including [https://environment.yale.edu/news/article/barrier-breaking-forest-geneticist-honored-yse-alumni-award] planning, regulation, litigation, and research. In her retirement, she founded and has run The Smokey Wire [https://forestpolicypub.com/], a popular news and discussion forum for forest and federal lands issues. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guidedcivicrevival.substack.com [https://guidedcivicrevival.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 12: Ron Rabou: Blessed are the peacemakers

Show notes: To combat today’s political polarization and violence, a distinguished group of Wyoming faith, business, and community leaders recently launched [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2025/09/17/wyoming-faith-leaders-launch-group-to-foster-civil-discourse-after-kirk-killing/] the “Become a Peacemaker [https://becomepeacemakers.org/become-a-peacemaker-launches-in-wyoming-calling-christians-to-restore-grace-in-public-life/]” initiative, “calling Christians to restore grace in public life”. In the biblical Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:9), Jesus said: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God”. My guest on today’s episode is Become a Peacemaker board member Ron Rabou [https://www.raboufarms.com/]. In addition to his work on Become a Peacemaker, Ron Rabou is President and CEO of Rabou Farms, a noted public speaker, and author of Keep It Simple: The 12 Core Values that Lead to Personal and Professional Success [https://www.amazon.com/Keep-Simple-Personal-Professional-Success/dp/1479308137/ref=sr_1_2?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.EEtxtXkcvMCB28djYVheo2fuVBEqBjvGOLoXFcHoqOc.rYNVATurQq8ru4cjvolZLF1xzXg38t3eNI7CmjyU0FE&dib_tag=se&qid=1743790856&refinements=p_27%3ARon+Rabou&s=books&sr=1-2&text=Ron+Rabou] and Make Your OWN Way: One Family’s Story of Breaking the Mold and Achieving Independence in American Agriculture [https://www.amazon.com/Make-Your-OWN-Way-Independence/dp/0578680505/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.EEtxtXkcvMCB28djYVheo2fuVBEqBjvGOLoXFcHoqOc.rYNVATurQq8ru4cjvolZLF1xzXg38t3eNI7CmjyU0FE&dib_tag=se&qid=1743791028&refinements=p_27%3ARon+Rabou&s=books&sr=1-1&text=Ron+Rabou]. We discuss the Become a Peacemaker initiative, its connection to the biblical concept of grace, and the challenge of political polarization in America and Wyoming. Don’t miss our next episode! Make sure to subscribe, and stay tuned for our next episode, Episode 13, on finding common ground on K-12 and higher-ed issues, with Brian Kisida [https://truman.missouri.edu/people/kisida], Associate Professor in the Truman School of Government & Public Affairs at the University of Missouri and Co-Director of the Arts, Humanities, & Civic Engagement Lab [https://truman.missouri.edu/artlab]. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guidedcivicrevival.substack.com [https://guidedcivicrevival.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]