Tune in to the fourth episode of my deep dive into the hypothetical question “What if we (the Australian people) took control of the next Federal Election?

Join me as I sit down with Dr Gretchen Miller, podcaster, documentary maker and former presenter on ABC Radio National of 20 years, who is producing the podcast “The Independents for Climate200”.  Gretchen has recently completed a PhD at the University of New South Wales, which focused on the power of podcasting in environmental communication. 

In the podcast “The Independents for Climate200”, Gretchen speaks with all candidates currently backed by Climate200 to get a feeling for who they are and what they stand for.  These are wonderful and engaging interviews that give insight into who the Independents really are. I highly recommend you give it a listen! I loved having this conversation with Gretchen and I found it really heart-warming in terms of restoring my faith in democracy and the upcoming Federal Election. 

Today we cover: 

• The power of podcasting in communicating about the environment and creating empathy in the listeners; 
•  Some of the themes to emerge from Gretchen’s studies at the University of New South Wales into podcasting, environmentalism and communication; 
• Gretchen’s experience of learning about the severity of the climate crisis; 
• A bit about the organisation Climate200; 
• We discuss the intersection of climate activism and politics; 
• We discuss some of our favourite moments from the podcast interviews featured on “The Independents for Climate200”; 
• I ask Gretchen whether any specific moments from the interviews have stuck with her to create a lasting impression; 
• How the podcast has been received so far; and
• Whether Gretchen thinks it’s possible to shake up Australian politics in the upcoming Federal Election. 

Show links: 

• Gretchen Miller about - http://www.gretchenmiller.com.au/about.html 
• Climate200 candidates - https://www.climate200.com.au/candidates 
• Climate200 about - https://www.climate200.com.au/about-us 
• Climate200 Podcast, “The Independents for Climate200” - https://www.climate200.com.au/podcast 
• Australian Electoral Commission – Enrol to vote – last day to enrol 18 April 2022 https://www.aec.gov.au/enrol/