The Wisdom & Action Podcast

Peter Garrett is a member of one of Australia's most successful bands, Midnight Oil. He’s also served as environment minister in the Rudd-Labor government, and been a long-time advocate and campaigner on a range of issues, including human rights and climate change. In this chat with contributor Myke Bartlett, he talked about the role of culture and the arts in enacting change, and how we can infuse our systems with integrity. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Roman Krznaric is an internationally renowned public philosopher who writes about the power of ideas to change society. Born in Sydney, he now lives in Oxford with his kids and wife Kate Raworth, who many of you will know as the designer and thinker behind Donut Economics. Roman is the founder of the world’s first Empathy Museum and Research Fellow of the Long Now Foundation, a long-term cultural institution promoting “slower/better” thinking. Roman’s most recent book is The Good Ancestor, which calmly calls for a reorientation towards the future, inviting us to consider the legacy we leave, for the benefit of our far-off descendants. He spoke with our contributor Sarah Darmody in September 2020. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elizabeth Sawin is unlocking the power of multi-solving for people and planet. A student of biology, she became fascinated with the interconnectedness of all things, in a world that is often ready to simplify and seperate. Climate change sat at the heart of those connections, leading her on a path to activism and the co-founding of Climate Interactive, a group that uses system dynamics — an approach to understand the behaviour of complex systems — to drive meaningful and equitable climate action. This year, Elizabeth has moved on to a new role as director of the Multisolving Institute, which focuses on solutions that address the climate emergency while also improving health, well-being, equity, and economic vitality. Elizabeth developed the idea of ‘multisolving’ to help people see and create conditions for these win-win-win solutions. Earlier this year, she spoke with our contributor Myke Bartlett for our systems change of issue of Dumbo Feather magazine. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We join American biologist and writer David Haskell on a sonic journey, back to the first sounds made on Earth.David's latest book is "Sounds Wild and Broken," a lyrical exploration of the diverse sounds of our planet and the perils that sonic diversity now faces. It’s an exquisite lens through which to think about our relationships with the living world, and how we can enter more fully into a conversation that is always waiting for us. David is a professor of biology and environmental studies at the University of the South in Tennessee, and author of the widely-acclaimed book "The Song of Trees."He spoke with Nathan in March 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we’re revisiting some of the spirit and empowered thinking that emerged from the chaos of 2020, with a conversation we had at the time with the deputy lord mayor of Sydney, Jess Scully. Jess is an extraordinary young councillor who is helping bring more voices to the political table, while creating pathways to reclaim public spaces, address housing problems, and enable more resilient and connected cities and communities. Jess is also an arts curator and writer, a passionate advocate for the role of creativity in our lives. At the time we caught up with her, she had just released her first book, Glimpses of Utopia: Real Ideas for a Fairer World.It’s a wonderful conversation that spans her experiences in politics, advocating for more participatory forms of democracy, her vision for our cities, as well as what was coming for her at the time as young mum four months into the pandemic. Jess is chatting with our programming manager at Small Giants Academy, Eleanor Gammell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exploring the impact of exponential technologies on governance structures, attractors in collective action problems, caring vs. panic in society, navigating exponential technological growth, and the conclusion of a two-part conversation with Daniel Schmachtenberger.

A deep dive into existential threats and collective sensemaking with social philosopher Daniel Schmachtenberger. Topics include global challenges, unschooling in education, dangers of social media manipulation, power structures, and integrating head, heart, and hands for effective problem-solving.

Maree Lowes is best known as the actress and storyteller behind dirtgirl, from the acclaimed children’s television series dirtgirlworld. She uses video, words and action to advocate for people & planet, moving in the pursuit of reciprocity with each other & our non-human kin. Maree has evolved beyond the screen to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with families, farmers and First Nations communities, championing regenerative thinking and modes of regenerative agriculture. This is how she came to be Dr Bronner's first Australian Ambassador.Maree has so much to say about how we can live in loving relationship with the planet. Here we talk about regenerative thinking, and Maree gives her tips on cultivating resilience in uncertain times - cue "psychological flexibility".The keep up with Maree's work & messages of the communities she amplifies, you can follow her on Instagram at @mareelowes To watch Maree as dirtgirl, head to iView and search Get Grubby TV or dirtgirlworld Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode, we have unlearner, uneducator Manish Jain. Manish is deeply committed to regenerating our diverse local knowledge systems and cultural imaginations. He is one of the leading voices on the planet for “de-schooling” our lives and co-founded some of the most innovative educational experiments in the world, including the Swaraj University, India's first university dedicated to regenerating local cultures, economies and ecologies. The interview was held by Alex Jensen from Local Futures, and was part of our Localisation issue of Dumbo Feather magazine.You can learn more about Local Futures and more incredible people involved in the localising movement, Like Manish, over at localfutures.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is a lecture from one of the wisest and most masterful storytellers of our time, the Canadian teacher, writer and culture activist, Stephen Jenkinson.Stephen is a former palliative care specialist who has written two internationally acclaimed books, Die Wise: A manifesto for sanity and soul, and Come of Age, the case for elderhood in a time of trouble.He is also a farmer, and co-founder of Orphan Wisdom, a teaching house for the skills of deep living and making human culture. This lecture was recorded live in April 2019. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.