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Have you ever heard the term climate hypocrite? Maybe you’ve noticed as it was applied to some high profile celebrity or advocate flying across the globe to give a speech on reducing carbon emissions? Or maybe you feared you yourself may be one as you sat in an air- conditioned office promoting the planetary virtues of a vegan diet? Our guest today on Sea Change Radio has thought a lot about this. He’s environmental journalist Sami Grover, whose first book entitled “We’re All Hypocrites Now” reminds us that environmentalists need not make the perfect the enemy of the good. We discuss the difficulty of trying to live a carbon-reduced lifestyle in a modern world largely built by fossil fuels, we talk about ways to as he puts it, live a little lighter on the earth, and we explore how regular folks who are not at the forefront of systems change may still have an influence beyond simply modifying their personal lifestyle choices.

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Have you ever noticed that scientists historically are mostly white men? Do you think that this fact has skewed some scientific findings? Well, our guest today on Sea Change Radio has certainly noticed. This week, we speak to glaciologist M Jackson, who’s drawn attention from the right wing for the feminist perspective she applies to her research. We discuss her new book, The Secret Lives of Glaciers, dive into her research, and examine how and why science has been influenced by centuries of white male dominance.Read the show transcript

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The infrastructure bill currently being negotiated in Congress includes some important climate-related allocations. Environmentalists, of course, feel it doesn’t go far enough, while Republicans have already voiced opposition to the climate protections embedded in the bill. This week on Sea Change Radio, we talk to Rebecca Leber, an environmental reporter at Vox who has been covering the story. We take a deep dive into what the bill aims to do, look at the politics surrounding it, and discuss what it could mean not only for the US but for the international environmental community. And as the dog days of summer begin to wind down, we also examine some of the problems with our reliance on air conditioning.Read the show transcript

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People sometimes like to quote that Bible passage about “an eye for an eye” when justifying a punitive criminal justice system focused on retribution and vengeance. Others like to repeat a saying often attributed to Ghandi, that “an eye for an eye will leave the whole world blind.” This week on Sea Change Radio, we get philosophical about crime and punishment. Our guest today is Celia Ouellette, a human rights lawyer and CEO of the nonprofit Responsible Business Initiative for Justice. Within the scope of her organization’s campaigns, we take a critical look at the American prison industrial complex and private prisons, the ineffectiveness of the death penalty, and the draconian practice of locking juveniles up for life.Read the show transcript

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Many of us grew up under the impression that “colorblindness,” or pretending not to see racial differences was virtuous. An important contribution of critical race theory, however, is the recognition that the colorblind philosophy is tantamount to ignoring racial injustice. This week’s guest on Sea Change Radio, Dr. Rod Graham, a professor of sociology and criminal justice at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia and a contributor to The Editorial Board, espouses color-consciousness over colorblindness. We discuss the racial divide in America, what bridge-building across race might look like, and why majority rule cannot be counted on to advance the rights of a minority group.

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Gray whales are dying in record numbers –  over 400 have washed up on West Coast shores since 2019. And yet, scientists aren’t quite sure why. With all the man-made problems affecting ocean ecosystems, it’s hard to point to just one cause. But scientists do know that these majestic mammals are not getting enough nutrition. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to Susanne Rust, an environmental reporter for the Los Angeles Times, about her work tracking the plight of the gray whale. We learn about some of the steps that marine biologists are taking, how the food supply of gray whales has greatly decreased, and what it’s like to try to investigate this crisis during a global pandemic.

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If you haven’t considered buying an electric vehicle yet, there’s a good chance that in the not-so-distant future, the decision will already be made for you. This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak to automotive and environmental journalist Jim Motavalli to catch-up on the latest news in the electric vehicle space. We learn about EV models of both cars and trucks coming down the pike, how traditional car dealerships in the US have yet to fully embrace the transition to an electric fleet (a transition which experts like Motavalli see as inevitable), what’s holding up the federal government’s efforts to purchase electric vehicles and why German and Japanese automakers remain behind the US in terms of electric vehicle manufacturing.

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This week on Sea Change Radio, we learn about a small, innovative company that is recycling all sorts of plastics and turning them into gravel. We speak to the founder and CEO, Sebastián Sajoux about the technology and mission of his company, Arqlite. Then, as the sunny days roll on this summer, we thought it worth revisiting our 2018 conversation with Craig Downs of the Haereticus Environmental Laboratory about the havoc that far-too-many sunscreens wreak on fragile marine ecosystems.

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This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with the CEOs of two startups that are trying in very different ways to help the planet. First, we hear from Ethan Steinberg of Propagate Ventures to learn more about how his company helps promote agroforestry efforts across the country. Then, we travel to Rotterdam and talk with Michaël Van der Jagt about his Dutch company, Parx Materials, which uses bio-mimicry to forge chemical-free, bacteria- and virus-resistant polymers, enabling the safe re-purposing of ocean waste plastic among other things.

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To most progressives, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a ground-breaking stalwart for the rule of law and a champion for the most vulnerable. But others resent the Notorious RBG who, despite having cancer in her 80s, chose to not step down from the bench during the Obama Administration – her subsequent death allowed Donald Trump to fill a precious Supreme Court seat in his last year. This week on Sea Change Radio, the second half of our discussion with political consultant Aaron Huertas. We focus on the fact that some of the nation’s most influential people are well past the average retirement age. We look at 83 year-old Stephen Breyer’s seeming reluctance to retire from the Supreme Court, talk about California Senator Dianne Feinstein plowing ahead with re-election plans (when she’ll be 91), and explore possible solutions to an exceedingly delicate balance of power.

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