S2 Episode 1: “Acting and Activism” Ft. Rainn Wilson

For the launch of Season 2, Earth Shakers host Lizzie Carr interviews actor and climate change activist Rainn Wilson. Rainn is best known for playing the role of Dwight Schrute on NBC's The Office, but Rainn is also fiercely passionate about bringing attention to Climate Change and highlighting the work scientists are doing on the front-line.

In this episode Lizzie and Rainn discuss how Rainn moved into the Climate Change activism space, how celebrities can use their platforms for positive change and help get the message out from within the echo chambers of science, and of course they talk about his most famous role as Dwight from The Office and how Dwight’s alter-ego ReCyclops mimicked his own passions on Climate Change.

Wilson co-founded SoulPancake, a digital media company, and the Lide Foundation, an educational initiative in rural Haiti that empowers at-risk women and girls through the arts.

Rainn’s docu-series an “An Idiot’s Guide to Climate Change” can be found here

S2 EPISODE 2: “Activism, Burnout & the journey to inclusivitY” FT. SHANI DHANDA

In this episode of Earth Shakers, Lizzie chats with Shani Dhanda, an award-winning disability specialist, listed as one of the UK's most influential disabled people. As a keynote speaker and practitioner for inclusion across business, government, non-profit and wider society, Shani helps organisations break barriers and integrate inclusion into their business frameworks.

Shani and Lizzie get comfortably uncomfortable dispelling myths and commonly held beliefs about disabled people, we learn how valuable inclusion is not only to humanity but to the business world as well, and Shani discusses what helped on her own journey of self discovery and acceptance of her own experiences living with a disability.

Shani's style and approach are described as 'a winning combination of authenticity and passion, helping to remove the awkwardness and fear of having confident conversations about disability within business and society.

In this episode Shani discusses her diversability Card initiative which you can read more about here: https://diversabilitycard.co.uk

@shanidhanda 

https://shanidhanda.com

S2 Episode 3: “Zero waste cooking & Living slowly” ft. Douglas McMaster

Douglas McMaster is a known throughout the food industry for his innovative and ethical practices. In 2014 he won the ‘BBC Young Chef of the Year Award’ followed by ‘Britain’s Most Innovative Chef’ at the first Young British Foodie awards. His Hackney restaurant, Silo, is the world’s first ever zero-waste restaurant. By working with suppliers who deliver ‘package-free’ produce, flour milled on-site and compost machines, Silo has achieved the zero-waste concept serving food that would have otherwise been wasted in the name of fine dining.

In this episode Douglas shares his 3 zero-waste pillars for success and he and Lizzie discuss the culture change needed to live a zero-waste life, get back to nature and encourage sustainable living. 

 You can follow Douglas on instagram @mcmasterchef and you can check out his restaurant here https://silolondon.com/

Doug’s 3 pillars  for zero-waste living shared in this episode:

1. Direct Trade

2. Whole Food preparation

3. Composting

S2 EPISODE 4: “Eco-anxiety, gratitude and thw power of healthy soil” Ft. Ryland Engelhart

Ryland Engelhart is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of a non-profit called Kiss the Ground, and is the producer of ‘Kiss The Ground’ the Movie on Netflix which aims to spread the message of the importance of soil regeneration in the fight against climate change. He has spent the last 15 years as an entrepreneur, building a family business of sustainable, organic plant-based restaurants called Cafe Gratitude and Gracias Madre in Southern California.

In this episode Lizzie talks to Ryland about his journey of entrepreneurship and environmental activism that led him to producing the Netflix documentary ‘Kiss The Ground’.

Ryland was at an environmental conference in New Zealand where many scientists and environmental experts were describing the state of the climate crisis and whether we are too late to reverse the damage. He heard a talk from Graeme Sait, a leader in sustainable agriculture technology, describing the magnitude of the potential for soil to save our planet that changed his life. Ryland took this message back to California and went to work on taking the message of hope from the echo-chambers of science and giving it to the world.

Lizzie and Ryland discuss the making of the film, the importance of using the power of celebrity to spread the message, why hope is so important to engage and motivate people to change their behaviours and involve governments.

Kiss The Ground has a couple of resources to help you become a soil advocate that were mentioned in the episode.

Find your Path: Get your FREE individualised action plan to help you take part in the global soil regeneration movement https://kisstheground.com/find-your-path/ 

Kiss The Ground soil course: If you want to become a soil advocate you can take the training here:

https://kisstheground.mykajabi.com/kiss-the-ground-s-soil-advocate-training-90befcf2-102f-4937-a839-6f8bf7d8957c?preview_theme_id=2591978

https://kisstheground.com/

https://www.cafegratitude.com/

https://kissthegroundmovie.com/

S2 Episode 5: “Building mental strength and finding yourself through adventure" ft. athletic Adventurer Justine Gosling

Have you ever considered leaving the 9 to 5 for something a little different? Then this episode is for you! In this episode Lizzie talks to Justine Gosling. Justine is a professional explorer and Respiratory Health specialist for the World Health Organisation. Normally based in Denmark, Justine returned to the UK to work on the front-lines in the NHS to support the effort against COVID.

She has extensive expedition experience having completed many multi-week, self-supported journeys by foot, kayak and skis, mostly in the mountains or high arctic. These expeditions have earned her ambassador roles with the likes of Land Rover, The North Face, Hurtigruten and Talisker whisky among others. Justine is also a freelance travel journalist for the UK's national newspapers and travel and adventure magazines (Guardian, Times, Telegraph, Red Bull) and has delivered a TEDx talk on her Polar adventures.

In this episode Lizzie and Justine discuss their mutual sabbaticals that turned into full on career changes into the nature and adventure industry, Justine’s vocational call back to the UK to help deal with the pandemic and the stress and emotional exhaustion working as a health worker and the worries of infecting loved ones, her very first expedition of the Iron Curtain and how she has had to deal with serious in the middle of an expedition to get to the finish line.

Check out Justine’s 7 tips for being an arctic explorer here: https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/arctic-survival-tips

https://www.instagram.com/justine_gosling/

S2 episode 6: “The problem with biodegradable plastics and microplastics in our food chain” Ft. Professor Richard Thompson

Richard Thompson is one of the world’s leading experts on plastic pollution. In 2004, he published the first paper describing the long-term accumulation of microscopic fragments of plastic in the environment, naming them ‘microplastics’. He and his team have been at the forefront of microplastics research and have shown their global distribution, the potential for transfer from the gut to the circulatory system, and their role in the transport of chemical contaminants.

In this fascinating episode, activism and science come together as Lizzie and Richard get to grips with some of the big questions around the way we produce, use and dispose of plastic; why there are huge benefits to using plastic and in manufacturing, some disadvantages of living plastic-free that would in fact have equally negative effects on the environment, the impact of the inevitable and current consumption of plastic via the food chain, and what should we expect when something says “biodegradable” in its marketing.

Resources:

2004 paper coining the term “microplastics”: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/304/5672/838

2011 Paper on the Accumulation of microplastics globally: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es201811s

Royal Society Publishing - Plastics Issue compiled by Richard Thompson: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rstb/2009/364/1526

Article mentioned by Richard published by SAPEA (Science Advice for Policy by European Academies): https://www.sapea.info/topics/biodegradability-of-plastics/

S2 Episode 7: “LOOKING BACK ON 2020 and LOOKING FORWARD TO 2021” Ft. Lizzie carr

This week Lizzie is in the hot seat while producer Stevie takes over host duties asking Lizzie about her world as you may not see it through the lens of her non-profit and social media channels.

Get to know Lizzie as she discusses the challenges that she has faced in the last year as a result of the pandemic; how she has shifted her business, her climate change campaigning, her community engagement on plastic, while also being pregnant, giving birth and managing health anxiety. We pack a LOT into this episode as Lizzie lets us behind the scenes of her life as an intersectional campaigner, podcaster and of course, new mum.

As a special bonus for this episode, Lizzie has asked 3 campaigners for their top tips especially for you for 2021, thinking about ways that you too can be an Earth Shaker!

Campaigners you hear from are:

Lungi Mchunu @lungisails

Ella Daish @Elladaish

Elie Gordon @elioutside

This episode was produced and hosted by @steviekentproductions.

S2 Episode 8 “WHY BIRDS MATTER + THE RISE OF URBAN BIRDING” FT. DAVID LINDO, THE URBAN BIRDER

For the final episode of this season of Earth Shakers, your host, eco-campaigner and non-profit CEO Lizzie Carr sits down virtually with David Lindo, also known as The Urban Birder.

David is a broadcaster, writer, naturalist, photographer, urban tour leader and of course, a birder. David spends a large amount of his time promoting bird conservation and seeks to bring awareness and education to global citizens alike, encouraging everyone to step outside, wherever they are in the world to enjoy some urban birding and connect with nature.

During the pandemic lockdown, record numbers of people around the UK have taken up birding, the RSPB has seen a 69% increase in its website traffic and we have recently seen the Big Garden Birdwatch, the largest citizen science project in the UK. Birding is suddenly cool and long time birder David Lindo is here to tell us more...

In this episode Lizzie and David discuss how he has made a career out of birding and conservation, dispelling the myths of the stereotypical ‘anorak’ birders, the challenges facing the bird populations and David passes on some tips for first time urban birders!

Resources David mentions in this episode:

https://www.rspb.org.uk/

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/

https://www.wwt.org.uk/

https://theurbanbirderworld.com/

http://theurbanbirder.com/

https://www.instagram.com/theurbanbirder/

S1 EPISODE 2: "ADVENTURE AND INCLUSIVITY" FT. DWAYNE FIELDS, PROFESSIONAL ADVENTURER

Lizzie Carr talks to fellow adventurer and naturalist Dwayne Fields.  Dwayne is the first black Briton to have walked to the magnetic North Pole, he was awarded the City of London’s highest honour of The Freedom of the City of London for his work with young people to engage them with the countryside. 

In this episode Dwayne discusses how he developed his love for nature and the outdoors into a career, moving from Jamaica to the UK as a young boy and feeling like he needed to hide his true self in order to fit in with his peers and stay safe in inner city London where during his teens he was the victim of both knife and gun crime. 

Dwayne also opens up about the recent Countryfile episode where he described the UK outdoors as not being as welcoming an environment to people of colour. His comments sparked a National race conversation and gained Countryfile its largest number of complaints in its history on the BBC.

Dwayne is currently fundraising and planning an expedition to take under-privileged youngsters to Antarctica through his #WeTwo Foundation with fellow adventurer Phoebe Smith. (Find out more at teamwetwo.com and you can donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/wetwo)

https://www.teamwetwo.com
https://www.dwayne-fields.com

Follow Dwayne: Instagram.com/dwaynefields; twitter.com/dwaynefields

S1 EPISODE 3: “Travelling responsibly & preventing future pandemics” FT. CATHERINE CAPON, conservationist

Lizzie Carr talks to wildlife conservationist and naturalist, Catherine Capon.

Catherine Capon is a British Naturalist and Environmentalist who is passionate about responsible eco-tourism. 

Catherine is on a mission is to inspire people to choose wildlife destinations for their vacations in hopes that their own experiences will awaken the eco-warrior within and unite us all to live more consciously on our planet. Catherine studied Zoology at Imperial College London and has since gone on to work in the wildlife and eco-tourism industries through her work filmmaking and sustainability communication. 

Earth Shakers host Lizzie Carr talks to Catherine about her journey into responsible eco-tourism and her personal top tips to ensure the best experience for locals, wildlife and travellers alike; the social media tick-box culture that’s causing us to lose our sense of adventure in favour of a coveted selfie; the need to consider our behaviours globally in terms of how we treat other species to prevent further pandemic outbreaks caused by wet markets; and finally thoughts for the future as Lizzie and Catherine talk about becoming new mums as eco-adventurers in today’s new world.

www.instagram.com/catherinecapon

www.catherinecapon.com 

S1 Episode 6: “Curating Your News Diet” ft. Jodie Jackson

This week Lizzie sits down with news consumer-turned-author Jodie Jackson… Jodie is on a mission to change the media; her recent book “You Are What You Read” is an invitation to become a part of this movement.

Jodie has spent the last decade researching the psychological impact of the news. Through her work, she has shown that the excessive negativity in the news creates a distorted and harmful picture of the world. Jodie believes that we need a better balance in the news and shows why we must widen the media lens to include stories of solutions, progress and development in order to improve our psychological & sociological wellbeing, the news industry and, ultimately, the world.

Lizzie and Jodie discuss the negative mental health impact of the constant flow of negative news, due to the way technology and media has evolved over recent decades, and how we can curate our own “news diet” to be more conscious of what we are digesting while still being informed in more mentally healthy way.

Jodie mentions a couple of resources in this discussion: 

Jodie’s book “You Are What You Read” is available here

Jodie’s media starter kit where you can find media outlets already presenting solutions based news.

Jodie’s new children’s book “Little Ruffle” can be found here

If you want to subscribe to Jodie’s newsletter of solutions based news you can sign up here