The Most Important Question

This week: Water in the WestWho will get Long COVID?The baby formula shortage, explainedDrug overdoses and gaslightingData privacy improvementsGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

This week: India's heat continuesWhen a surge is not a surgeAntibiotics (still) in meatAbortionEmail cybersecurity is...lackingGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

If you give a shit, well, you’ve probably had at least a few moments where the enormity of what’s in front of us has challenged your mental health in some way.I can’t imagine there are many folks listening to this show who’ve never felt the heaviness of our climate future, of our climate present.There’s a lot of guilt, a lot of shame, a lot of shame about that shame, a lot of furious action – we’re here, aren’t we.And running parallel alongside all of those emotions is the dread of what’s being done out there, about the lack of action, and for the people who are taking action on the frontlines of the future, giving it their all.But, as Dr. Katharine Hayhoe says, we have to talk about it. Not just what’s happening, but how we’re dealing with it. How we can recognize it and move forward, for ourselves, together, for the planet, for the people who will come after us.My guest today is Dr. Britt Wray.Britt is the author of the fantastic new book “Generation Dread: Finding Purpose in an Age of Climate Crisis”, an impassioned generational perspective on how to stay sane amid climate disruption.Britt has a Ph.D. in Science Communication from the University of Copenhagen and is the author of "Rise of the Necrofauna: The Science, Ethics and Risks of De-Extinction."She is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (sure, why not both?), where she researches the mental health impacts of climate change on young people.Britt is also the author of Gen Dread, the first newsletter that shares wide-ranging ideas for supporting emotional health and psychological resilience in the climate and wider ecological crisis.I have learned so much from Britt of late, and her book is a tremendous source of empathy and courage. I think you will find us both baring a bit of our souls and our beliefs in this conversation, and hopefully, some ways we can all cope and build a radically more supportive world – for everyone.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at podcast.importantnotimportant.com.-----------INI Book Club:Generation Dread: Finding Purpose in an Age of Climate Crisis by Britt WrayGreek Myths by Gustav SchwabFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Follow Britt Wray on TwitterFollow @gen_dread on InstagramGen Dread NewsletterClimate AwakeningClimate CaféGood Grief NetworkWork That ReconnectsClimate Psychology AllianceClimate Psychiatry AllianceFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comArtwork by Amrit Pal

This week: Wind isn't profitableKids vaccines on the hold upThe kitchen sink answer to food waste, it's metaphors galore todayMenthol cigarettes are all smoked outAmerica's new AI chiefGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

This week: Should we mine the ocean?Mask mandates are over, what else?Split up the FDAAlzheimer's trials are very whiteRonan Farrow comes for Pegasus spywareGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

This week: Carbon removal: Hope is not a plan. A bajillion dollars might be!COVID and diabetes is the new BenniferWalmart's regenerative farming pledge is about dirtPFAS in food wrappers, not deliciousHow hospitals get cyberattacked, but whyGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

TLDR: INI/Membership is here.Today we’re launching the first way for INI readers and listeners to come together, to go deeper, and to unlock a place where you can gain wisdom and organize to make concrete progress towards a cleaner, more equitable world — for everyone.And just in time.Here’s what won’t change: The newsletter and podcast will remain free, forever. Even better: Memberships will not only make sure the newsletter and podcast remain free for everyone across the world, but will also support INI’s growing business along the way. Members on the annual plan can apply to our new Community, and every Member will benefit from:Monthly live AMA’s with Quinn and special guests; plus other eventsExclusive special reports and quarterly updates on INIExclusive first looks at INI-driven investment opportunities across climate tech, health tech, biotech, and moreInvitations to participate in working groups and panelsJoin now to solve problems with other Shit Givers on the frontlines of the future, to support our work, and to improve your decision making for company and family.Link to join: https://newsletter.importantnotimportant.com/upgradeGot questions? Email us at Questions@importantnotimportant.com.

Over the past few years, more and more voters have cited “action on climate” as a reason for voting the way they do.From Data for Progress, in October:Over two-thirds of voters (68 percent), agree that the U.S. should lead the world in addressing climate change so other countries will follow suit.From November:Roughly two-thirds of voters (64 percent) think that the U.S. should invest in cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable energy sources rather than ramp up fossil fuel production and continue relying on foreign energy exportsFrom March:When asked about changes to infrastructure in light of the IPCC report, an overwhelming majority (81 percent) of voters, said they would support government investments to increase the climate resilience of our buildings, roads, bridges, and other structuresBut here’s the thing, and I think you know this, and it might even be you: lots – lots – of voters who are registered, and even those who do vote in presidential elections – don’t turn out for midterms.Much less for state and local races.Even registered voters who list the environment or climate as their most important issue do the same. Millions of them don’t turn out.Success might not actually be about identifying and focusing on one specific issue, campaign, or candidate. It might come down to how we want to see ourselves, why we wear those little “I Voted” stickers, how we identify, and our behaviors.And that’s what the Environmental Voter Project is all about.My guest today is Nathaniel Stinnett.Nathaniel founded the Environmental Voter Project in 2015 after over a decade of experience as a senior advisor, consultant, and trainer for political campaigns and issue-advocacy nonprofits. Hailed as a "visionary" by The New York Times, and dubbed "The Voting Guru" by Grist magazine, Stinnett is a frequent expert speaker on cutting-edge campaign techniques and the behavioral science behind getting people to vote. Nathaniel has held a variety of senior leadership and campaign manager positions on U.S. Senate, Congressional, state, and mayoral campaigns, and he sits on the Board of Advisors for MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative. And he’s here to help me understand the EVP’s mission and tactics, and how we can help them achieve their goal of turning out more climate-focused voters this year and in the years to come.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at podcast.importantnotimportant.com.-----------INI Book Club:The Overstory by Richard PowersFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Follow Nathaniel on TwitterVolunteer with the Environmental Voter Project today!Follow the Environmental Voter Project on TwitterFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comArtwork by Amrit Pal

This week: The climate tech gap, explainedFree COVID tests, over (for some)The future of freshwaterMillions of nurses, lostFacebook, unregulated, stillGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it

This week: The SEC's new climate rule, summarizedJ&J's COVID shot, redeemed?How to protect food workers in the climate agePTSD and ecstasyRussia's lack of cyber warfare, hypothesizedGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it