Wild with Sarah Wilson

How to find peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in one podcast episode? Ha! You 210% can’t. But if there is someone who can provide a vision for it, it’s Palestinian peace broker Aziz Abu Sarah. Aziz grew up in East Jerusalem and lost a brother to the conflict when he was nine when the Israeli military stormed his home in the middle of the night. At 18, however, he turned his hatred around and today Aziz is one of the world's most powerful and connected peacebuilders and cultural educators. He’s a National Geographic Explorer and Ted Fellow and has founded and led countless global conflict resolution organisations including Bereaved Families Forum and the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University and co-founded (with an American Israeli-Jew) the first dual narrative tour company (led by a guide from each “side”). We recorded this episode in Tel Aviv a few days before the recent Israeli election and we cover boycotts, Jerusalem (capital or not) and two wild strategies that *actually* work for most conflicts. Added bonus: Our chat cuts to the very heart of what it means to be human.Aziz’s dual narrative tour business is Mejdi Tours and he ran this tour with Impact SafariHe’s also written a book that shows how to travel as a force for peace  I ran a bunch of other interviews with peacebuilders while I was there, which you can find on my substack And here are the organisations employing the dual narrative approach that I promised to list:Combatants for Peace Bereaved Families Forum Interact International Hands of Peace Healing Across the Divides Creativity for PeaceTech for PeaceIf you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversations Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Seth Godin never does anything the normal way. The prolific marketing guru and disrupter joins us here on Wild for a second time to chat about what he describes as the most important project of his life, a crowd-created Climate Almanac, created by a 300-person army of scientists, artists and teachers from 41 countries who turned around the 97000-word book in 120 days. The wild idea we wrestle with in this episode is the very act of not doing climate activism the normal way. We talk about ditching activism and plastic recycling, ratcheting up capitalism (!!) and how to market discomfort as “sexy” (as many of you know, this is where I feel so much progress gets stuck – a resistance to leaving the capitalist cocoon of convenience). Activists and the Concerned ‘n’ Frustrated – this is an episode for you. It is peppered with pithy elevator pitches and helpful factlets about leaf blowers and patio heaters. Connect with the whole Carbon Almanac project here or purchase the book hereListen to the Kim Stanley Robinson episode that we reference hereYou can listen to my first Wild chat with Seth hereIf you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" pageSubscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversationGet your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this thought-provoking discussion, Bayo Akomolafe, a Nigerian-born poet and author known for his insightful explorations of post-humanism and eco-feminism, challenges us to rethink our relationship with the world. He proposes that the chaos of climate collapse invites us to embrace uncertainty rather than seek quick solutions. Bayo encourages slowing down, reflecting on our interconnectedness, and becoming 'fugitives' who thrive amidst disorder. His poetic insights and metaphors spark a radical reimagining of resilience and meaning in tumultuous times.

This episode continues the fascinating-slash-frightening journey I’ve been on with you, to understand what we should prioritise as we face potential existential end times. Today’s guest, Harvard researcher and philanthropist Holden Karnofsky, brings the AI, effective altruism, longtermism and anti-growth debates together with the clarion call: “This is our moment, this century is make-or-break, pay attention people!” It’s not an idle or hysterical call, it’s one that Holden has researched extensively and is backed by global leaders in the space. As some background: Holden founded Givewell, the charity evaluator that has raised more than $US1billion for charities that have saved more than 150,000 lives (Bill Gates, Sam Harris and the now disgraced billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried use it) and Open Philanthropy investigates more speculative causes. So if this is the most important century, what does it mean for us? What are our responsibilities? What’s going to happen? Buckle up, says Holden, because, “we live in wild times and should be ready for anything to happen”. Here’s the "most important century" blog post series we talk about.I also flag Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. As well as this Vice article about how scientists can’t explain how AI works.You might also want to go back and listen to the episodes with Peter Singer on effective altruism, Will Macaskill on Longtermism and Elise Bohan on misaligned AI and transhumanism......If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The fashion industry produces 20% of global wastewater and more carbon emissions than ALL international flights and ALL maritime shipping COMBINED. If nothing changes, by 2050 the fashion industry will use up a quarter of the world’s carbon budget. Ex-Vogue journalist and founder of The Wardrobe Crisis (the book, podcast and academy) Clare Press joins me to wrestle the quandaries: Is vegan leather ethical? Are recycled plastic leggings green? What labels are legit carbon neutral? Does the stuff I donate to St Vinnies just go to landfill? (Yup.) Is it true when I return something online it goes to landfill and not back on rack? (Double yup!). I wanted to do this episode to set the truly shocking facts straight and share the tangible better options, but also to posit the wild idea of redefining fashion style in a new, far more creative way. Dig in!Check out The Wardrobe Crisis, the book, podcast and academy of courses Follow Clare on instagram We discuss an Atlantic article about returning online purchases, you can read it here. Clare’s Recommendations:The scorecard/resources for finding “good” brands: The Or Foundation, Oxfam’s Naughty or Nice, Fashion Revolution and Baptist World Aid Guide. The book to read: Loved clothes last by Orsola De CastroThe recycling app: UpparelThe influencer to follow: Maggis ZhuThe documentary to watch: 'Slay' The label: The Social Outfit in Newtown based in Sydney, or check out the sister organisations in Melbourne and London. I mentioned that Kay Montano in London had recommended a 1951 film The Man in the White Suit .....If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a young Australian human rights lawyer and barrister who has been at the centre of the most era-defining legal cases in the world. She has represented Julian Assange since 2010. She led the Amber Heard case. She worked on the case against the CIA’s drone strikes in Pakistan and a case against the Catholic Church over child sex abuse. She was also a legal adviser to The New York Times in the Murdoch phone-hacking scandal and regularly fronts up to the International Court of Justice and various UN human rights bodies representing the poor, oppressed, the maligned. Her name’s Jen Robinson, and she grew up in a low-income family in the small rural town of Berry, proudly schooled in public education and went on to be a Rhodes scholar and to work alongside Geoffrey Robertson and George Clooney’s wife Amal. Jen and I get mighty fired up about …speaking up...speaking up as an act of vitality and antidote to depression. We also cover why we want our friends to send their kids to public schools, the inside take on the Assange case, what we need to know about the Amber Heard case (big slap in face for me) and her new book, How Many More Woman, which shares how women can beat the legal system at its own game (and speak up!).You can now purchase Jen’s book, How Many More Women hereFollow Jen on Twitter .....If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We crave adventure to break up the ho-hum of our everyday lives. But busting ruts doesn’t have to be all about conquering Everest or ticking off bucket list challenges. We can get the same result as a “backyard adventurer”.Beau Miles, a Patagonia and Outward Bound ambassador, author and YouTube star, used to be a mad explorer – he’s indeed conquered Everest base camp, became the first person to run 650kms across the Australian Alps, kayaked Bass Strait and the rest. But a few years back he made the switch to exploring the world closer to home and now inspires a league of fans who froth over his mad-as videos of running the length of the old Warragul-Noojee Railway line to learn its history (dressed in a train driver uniform, carrying a shovel and three jars of dried pasta, just to chuck a hardship bomb into the equation), eating his body weight in beans (to see what happens), and spending a night in the tree outside his front door. This is a more of a fun two-way chat where the two of us compare notes on flipping your day-to-day life into a flirtation, getting out of life ruts, playing and loving being weird.Grab Beau’s book The Backyard Adventurer: Meaningful and pointless expeditions, self-experiments and the value of other people's junk Stay up to date with all his adventures via Instagram You can watch Beau’s films here .....If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Life is hard. And yet so much of contemporary life compels us to fight this fundamental reality. We are meant to be happy! We are meant to live our best, most #blissful, potential-stacked life! But I talk with Kieran Setiya, a professor of philosophy at MIT, who argues we should #NotLiveOurBestLife. It’s better to aspire to a life that is, well, good enough. Kieran has appeared on Sam Harris’ podcast, written for the New York Times, the London Review of Books etc bringing a philosophical argument to pop issues such as the Dave Chapelle quandary, baseball and the worth of having a midlife crises.  In his latest book, Life is Hard, he draws on Aristotle, Wittgenstein, and Simone Weil - as well as Groundhog Day and Joan Didion – to guide us to a good life, which entails embracing pain and hardship. In this chat we cover: How to make friends; what if the whole world turned sterile; the beauty of chronic pain and Kieran’s thesis for “the meaning of life” (it’s a cracker, and it’s not 42!).Grab Kieran’s book Life Is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our WayRead some of his essays and connect with him via his websiteHe mentions he came across Wild via this interview with Katherine May .....If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

He is regarded as the greatest science fiction writer alive and his most recent book, set in the climate catastrophe-wracked near future, The Ministry for the Future, is recommended widely by Barack Obama and Ezra Klein and such is the accuracy of his futuristic depictions Kim Stanley Robinson is now called upon to consult on climate solutions by the Pentagon and at COP26. But Kim is also a mad hiker and his latest book The High Sierra: A Love Story is a hiking guidebook-slash-meditation-slash-dedication to what he calls psychogeology (the way places shape the ways we think). I’ve been busting to have this chat. The Ministry for the Future blew my mind when I read it at the end of 2020, and we cover a bunch of expansive and wild ideas: how moving your desk outdoors can restart your career, geoengineering, donut economics and what your hiking gear says about your lack of critical thought (Kim is an ultra-lighter; wait until you hear how much is backpack weighs for a week’s trek!). Kim is 70 now and in many ways I find this chat to be inspirational fodder for mapping a life well-lived.Grab a copy of The Ministry for the Future Kim’s latest book is The High Sierra: A Love StoryWe also mention: Nan Shepard: The Living MountainThomas Piketty: Brief History of EqualityKate Raworth: Doughnut EconomicsAnd here’s a link to Network for Greening the Financial Systems.....If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you listen to Jordan Peterson, Sam Harris, Joe Rogan, Russell Brand or maybe a bit of Lex Freidman? They are the biggest names in podcasting (and beyond) and they started out as progressive voices, robustly questioning the status quo and challenging dominant interests and often bringing alternative spiritual or psychological perspectives to the big debates. But a trend has emerged among this crew of “bro-casters”. My guest in this episode, Australian psychology academic Matt Browne, argues that as their fame rises, many slide into taking on “guru” status. Matt is cohost of DECODING THE GURUS, a somewhat controversial podcast that does as it says on the packet, and I get him on to dissect this pop cultural phenomenon for us. We talk: the intellectual dark web (IDW); “galaxy brain”; what’s the deal with their all-meat diets and love of MMA; why young men flock to these gurus; and what it all says about the world, specifically our need for good, humble leadership. It’s a bit of a “meta” chat this one, but wild and intriguing too. I challenge everyone to determine their own take as they listen to Matt and I dissect the topic (he and I don’t agree on it all, BTW).Listen to Decoding the Gurus hereFollow Matt on twitterMatt mentions two non “pseude psychological bullshit” podcasts to look out for: Very Bad Wizards and Two Psychologists Four Beers......If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" page. Subscribe to my Substack newsletter for more such conversation. Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious Life Let’s connect on Instagram! It’s where I interact the most. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.