Death in The Garden

On this episode of “Death in The Garden,” Jake and Maren interview renowned author Charles Eisenstein. Charles has written a number of incredibly impactful books, such as Sacred Economics, Ascent of Humanity, The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible, and, most recently, Climate: A New Story. He also writes incredible essays available on his website, such as “Extinction and the Revolution of Love” which is mentioned in the show.In this episode we discuss what Charles calls “The Story of Separation,” the myths (or metanarratives) that dictate how we see ourselves within the biosphere, the problems of modern environmentalism and “sustainability” movements, carbon fundamentalism, the importance of viewing the Earth as being alive, the pitfalls of reductionist thinking, and the complexity of morality with regards to death.Thank you for listening to the show, and please rate, review, and subscribe! Check out our website and Instagram for more information about our multimedia documentary project.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

This week on “Death in The Garden” we return from our hiatus to share our interview with Jesse Smith, Director of Land Stewardship at White Buffalo Land Trust, a Savory Hub in Santa Barbara, CA. This was a pivotal interview which planted innumerable seeds in our heads, all of which have since germinated into such a deeper understanding about the direction of our project: "regeneration as self-preservation"; what regeneration truly means; what sustainability truly means; the reconciliation and healing from colonialism that is necessary for progress; the epigenetics of livestock/landscapes/humans; the energetic relationships between all things; the problems with Enlightenment thinking; how technology must “be in the service of more life”; the spiritual/cultural/physical regeneration that will punctuate our transition from this paradigm to the next; and understanding that we are surrounded by a living, mysterious world. There is so much gold packed into this interview. So much of what Jesse said here has informed our worldview today, even when many of the topics he discussed were outside of our comprehension at the moment of this interview.This is a fantastic interview, and we’re glad we are revisiting it and releasing it now, as our understanding of the topics discussed has since become far more clear. This is where so many seeds were planted for us – we can’t wait to share this conversation with you all.Thank you everyone for your patience. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the podcast if you are enjoying the conversations we are having here. Check out our website and Instagram for more information about “Death in The Garden.”Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of “Death in The Garden,” we had the honor to interview Steven Donziger in his Manhattan apartment on his 623rd day of house arrest for the baseless misdemeanor charge of criminal contempt.For 27 years, Steven has been fighting for the indigenous & rural peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon who, from 1967 to 1992 suffered cancer causing abuses and atrocities at the hands of the oil company Texaco, which has since merged with Chevron. Texaco executives had made deliberate decisions to cut costs by polluting the rivers and streams, creating an ecological disaster worse than the Valdez oil spill. They admitted to dumping 16 billion gallons of toxic waste during this time. This waste has caused unimaginable horrors for the humans and the ecosystem in this region of the Amazon.In 2011, Steven and his Ecuadorian partners won a historic judgement against Chevron. This judgement would be $9.5 billion to clean up the rainforest so that some semblance of paradise might be returned to the victims of this crime: the Secoya, the Siona, the Cofan, the Quechua, the Waorani, and the now extinct Tetete, who were wiped out by this atrocity.The judgement against Chevron has been affirmed by 6 appellate courts including the Supreme courts of both Ecuador and Canada.Instead of complying with the court order, Chevron began a retaliation campaign to discredit and demonize Steven, as well as a number of his associates in Ecuador (Secoya Indigenous leader Javier Piaguaje and farmer Hugo Camacho). Chevron claimed that the case was fraudulent based solely on admittedly false testimony from a witness that the company (Chevron themselves) had paid $2 million, Alberto Guerra.In July of 2019, Judge Lewis A. Kaplan charged Steven with criminal contempt for refusing to break his attorney-client confidentiality by turning over his cell phone & computer over to Chevron. Steven has been imprisoned under house arrest since then.His trial is May 10, 2021. Steven's lawyers say the preceding will be a farce given he is being denied a jury with the sole fact-finder being a judge who has locked him up for 2 years pretrial. The judge, Loretta A. Preska, and Rita Glavin both have extensive financial ties to Chevron. Glavin was appointed by Kaplan after the regular federal prosecutor refused to take on the case. Steven deserves a fair trial. Share widely. Call your representatives. Make your voice heard. To support Steven, please visit:www.donzigerdefense.comwww.freedonziger.orgFor a comprehensive timeline of the case, click here.Follow Steven on Instagram and Twitter to see updates on his case, and to support him by sharing his posts.Watch Crude, by Joe Berlinger here. Please spread the word. Please rate, review, and subscribe. Many thanks. Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of “Death in The Garden,” we interview Paul Kingsnorth, author (The Wake, Beast, Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist, and most recently, Alexandria, to name but a few) and creator of The Dark Mountain Project. The Dark Mountain Project is a cultural movement through storytelling, writing and art, centered around the Dark Mountain Journal.We spoke with Paul about what it means to be honest with ourselves in these times of social, ecological, and spiritual breakdown. We covered the issues of the current environmental movement, and the emotional processes of accepting that these “solutions” being given to us are not solutions at all. We talk about spirituality, religion, alchemy, and the importance of looking to pre-history & indigenous cultures to understand our place and path forward.If you are enjoying the show, please rate, review, and subscribe. If you want to know more about “Death in The Garden,” please visit our website and Instagram.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of “Death in The Garden,” we share our interview with Abbey Smith, an amazing mother, Global Network Coordinator for the Savory Institute, and director of the Jefferson Center for Holistic Management. We talked to Abbey about holism and the necessity of viewing life as complexly as possible — whether it be a question of our physical/mental health, the health of the land, the health of community, and the health of the planet. We speak about the difference between “industrial thinking” and “complex thinking,” holistic management, and we talk at length about Abbey’s personal health journey, which is an incredibly valuable anecdote for women. As per usual, we talk about death and the importance of understanding our place in the cycle of life.Please leave us a review, give us a rating, and subscribe to the podcast if you’re enjoying our work. Check out our website and Instagram for more information about our project.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of “Death in The Garden,” we share our interview with our friend Bobby Gill, Director of Development and Communications at the Savory Institute. We talk about regenerative agriculture, and how a holistic management & having a holistic context can (and should) be translated to all aspects of life — from managing livestock, to our mental and physical health, and ultimately to the trajectories of our lives. We talk about the necessity of death, the importance of embracing its existence rather than avoiding its existence, and how to have reverence for the cycles of life, death, and rebirth.Learn more about the Savory Institute and Bobby Gill by following them on Instagram.Please rate, review, and subscribe if you are enjoying our podcast! To learn more about our project, give us a follow on Instagram and check out our website.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of "Death in The Garden," Jake and Maren talk about the cultural memes and mythologies that permeate every aspect of modern life. Drawing inspiration from Ishmael and The Invisibility of Success by Daniel Quinn, we discuss the narratives and fallacies that have driven our culture to devour planet Earth, and we challenge our audience to confront the mythologies that dominate our world views.Check out our website and Instagram for more information about our project! Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

This week on “Death in The Garden,” Jake and Maren share their interview with Dr. Greg Stone, a renowned oceanographer, deep sea diver, conservationist, author (Ice Island, Soul of the Sea), and host of the podcast “The Sea Has Many Voices.” Greg founded the Ocean Health Index and created the world’s first ocean protected area, the Phoenix Islands Protected Area, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site the size of California! Currently, he serves as the Chief Ocean Scientist for DeepGreen Resources, a company which specializes in a more sustainable mining modality of collecting polymetallic nodules from the sea floor. In this episode we discuss the urgency around climate change, the importance of a cultural renaissance of our ethics and morals surrounding our relationship with the environment in which we live, and the realities around a renewable future.Check out Greg and all of the wonderful, inspiring work he is doing for our oceans, and be sure to watch his Ted Talk.Please rate, review, and subscribe if you enjoy this project, and check out our website and Instagram for more information.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

This week on “Death in The Garden,” Jake and Maren had a deep conversation with James Connolly, producer of the documentary Sacred Cow (Diana Rodgers and Robb Wolf, 2020) and guest host of the podcast “Sustainable Dish” also by Diana Rodgers. We talk about the mythos of civilization, critiques of the commodifying education system, the designed hierarchy of society, the religion of science, our propensity to seek out gurus & unintegrated spirituality, and so many other nuances of the world’s problems. You’ll just have to listen to catch it all— we go deep! We also shit-talk Elon Musk.This show will be co-released on the “Sustainable Dish” podcast, so go check them out, too!You can find James on Instagram: @primatekitchen @accidentalhostPlease leave us a rating, review, and subscribe to the show if you are enjoying what we’re doing! Check out our website deathinthegarden.org and our Instagram @deathinthegarden for more.Editing: Jake MarquezMusic: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe

This week on the “Death in The Garden” podcast, we’re sharing our interview with Evan Walbridge, project coordinator & land steward at White Buffalo Land Trust, an up-and-coming Savory hub in Southern California. We talk about how designing the built world in relation to ecology is one of the greatest changes we can make as a species, the importance of having a continual relationship with the cycles of life and death, and the nuances of regenerative agriculture. You can find him on Instagram @echoes_of_logic and learn more about the amazing things happening at White Buffalo Land Trust at their website: https://www.whitebuffalolandtrust.org/Please rate, review, and subscribe! For more information about our project please check out our Instagram @deathinthegarden & deathinthegarden.org Editing: Jake Marquez Music: Daniel Osterstock This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit deathinthegarden.substack.com/subscribe