Biophilic Solutions: Nature Has the Answers

As we launch Season 5, we’re taking a moment to reflect on the vital role of nature in uncertain times. Our connection to the natural world isn’t just about aesthetics – it profoundly shapes our mental health, strengthens community bonds, and influences our cultural identities. In this episode, we explore how technology can either distract us or serve as a tool for deeper engagement and examine how our consumption habits affect our relationship with nature and each other. In a world of constant change, how can we foster a future where both nature and human connection flourish? Join Monica and Jennifer for this essential conversation.Questions or comments? We’d love to hear from you! Reach out to us at contact@biophilicsolutions.comShow NotesJoin Monica & Jennifer  at the The Biophilic Leadership Summit, March 30 - April 1 in SerenbeBiophilia Discovers Its Missing Father (The Hybrid Intelligencer)‘’This is garbage’ – Step aside influencers, we’re now in the era of de-influencing (NPR)Keywords: biophilia, nature, community, technology, overconsumption, mental health, hope, spirituality, design, environmental awareness, empathy, DEI, nature, cycles, consciousness, indigenous wisdom, anti-influencer, biophilia, human connection, audience engagementBiophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

Season 5 of Biophilic Solutions premieres on Tuesday, March 4th! This season, we're taking a broader approach to biophilia—going beyond architecture and design to examine nature’s role in culture, politics, and spirituality. We’ll tackle pressing issues like the rise of AI, the influence of social media, and the current political climate, all through the lens of nature and balance. With a focus on hope and possibility, we’ll paint a vision of a biophilic future—one that fosters connection, trust, and harmony.Join us as we seek answers and reimagine a world where nature guides the way forward!Biophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

This year, we’re embracing the slower pace of winter and our mantra is less rush, more cheer. More time with family and friends, more warm cups of tea, more long walks in the woods, and of course more time spent curled up with a good book. So, as the holiday season approaches, we’re back with more nature-inspired and uplifting reads. So whether you’re looking for the perfect gift for someone special in your life or are in need of some inspiration yourself, keep listening. Show Notes:The Biophilic Leadership SummitLess Rush, More Cheer: What We’re Reading This Winter (Full List on Bookshop)How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen by David BrooksA Philosophy of Walking by Frederic Gros and John HoweInfectious Generosity: The Ultimate Idea Worth Spreading by Chris AndersonSlow Down: The Degrowth Manifesto by Kohei SaitoAll the Beauty in the World: THe Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me by Patrick BringleyRestorative Cities: Urban Design for Mental Health and Wellbeing by Jenny Roe and Layla McCayGeorgia O’Keeffe & Henry Moore at the Museum of Fine Arts BostonBiophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

Does the natural world bear witness to history? What lessons can nature teach us about survival, adaptation, and connection? This week, we’re exploring those questions and so much more alongside Erin Sharkey. Erin Sharkey is the editor of A Darker Wilderness: Black Nature Writing From Soil To Stars, an acclaimed anthology that weaves together history, personal narrative, and imaginative storytelling in order to explore the profound relationship between nature and Black identity. Each essay is connected through the use of archival objects, anchoring each piece to a shared past and nodding to the complicated history of nature writing as a discipline. Erin is a writer, arts and abolition organizer, cultural worker, and film producer based in Minneapolis. She is the cofounder, with Junauda Petrus, of an experimental arts collective called Free Black Dirt and is the producer of film projects including Sweetness of Wild and Small Business Revolution. Erin is also a founding coop member of the Fields at Rootsprings, a retreat center that focuses on healing, learning, and connection for individuals, community and Earth and that centers BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists, activists, and healers.In this episode, we delve into the inspiration behind A Darker Wilderness, the intersections of race and ecology, and how Erin’s creative practice brings healing and hope to the communities she serves.Show NotesA Darker Wilderness: Black Nature Writing From Soil to StarsErin Sharkey on InstagramErin Sharkey WebsiteThe Fields at RootspringsRochester Arts CenterBiophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

This week, we’re diving deep into the interconnectedness of human health and planetary health. We know that nature provides us with a myriad of health benefits, both as individuals and socially. However, challenges like climate change and biodiversity loss also pose a dire threat to our species, from disease proliferation, unstable food systems, and even increasing crime rates. Our guest today is Dr. Howard Frumkin. Dr. Frumkin is Professor Emeritus of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Washington and serves as the  Director of the Trust for Public Land’s Land & People Lab. Dr. Frumkin is the co-editor of Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves.In this episode, we discuss human habitats that are better for people and the planet, rectifying the gap between human progress and planetary degradation, and the inspiring, important work that Dr. Frumkin is doing at the Land & People Lab. ShownotesPlanetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves edited by Samuel Myers and Howard Frumkin Trust for Public LandThe Land & People LabAwe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life by Dacher KeltnerVitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature Rich Life by Richard LouvNational Nature Assessment COP29: What you need to know about the global climate summitKey Words: climate, climate change, biodiversity, biodiversity loss, biophilia, biophilic design, public land, green space, climate solutions, local solutions, local politics, Howard Frumkin, nature, national nature assessment Biophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

Is the idea of pristine, untouched nature a misguided fantasy? Are any animals truly wild on a planet so dominated by human impact? And while we’re on the topic - what do we mean by wildness in the first place? Join us for a thought-provoking conversation that redefines our relationship with nature and encourages us to rethink our place within it.This week, our guest is celebrated science writer Emma Marris, author of Wild Souls: Freedom and Flourishing in the Non-Human World. Emma’s work has appeared in publications like National Geographic, The New York Times, and the Atlantic. She is also the author of Rambunctious Garden: Saving Nature in a Post-Wild World. Show NotesEmma Marris WebsiteWild Souls: Freedom and Flourishing in the Non-Human World by Emma MarrisRambunctious Garden: Saving Nature in a Post-Wild World by Emma MarrisBeloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in the Age of Extinction by Michelle Nijhuis Opinion: New York is Wilder Than You Think by Emma Marris (New York TImes)Nature Doesn’t Care Where a Species is From by Emma Marris (The Atlantic)Key Words: Animals, Animal Rights, Animal Welfare, Nature, Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Climate, Climate Change, Wildness, Wilderness, Ecosystem, Emma Marris, Author, Science, Nature Journalism, Environment, Environmental Philosophy Biophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

We know that many animals possess “human-like” qualities: the ability to play, sustain friendships, mate for life, and even reflect on the past. But what should we actually do with that information? That’s the crucial question that Brandon Keim poses in his latest book Meet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-Than Human World. Brandon is a journalist who specializes in science, nature, and animals. His work has appeared in publications like National Geographic, The New York Times, The Atlantic, and WIRED. In this conversation, we explore questions of what we owe animals, the concept of animal personhood and what legal rights animals should be entitled to, and how we can have nuanced conversations about all of these issues. Show NotesMeet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-Than Human World by Brandon KeimBrandon Keim WebsiteSubscribe to Brandon’s SubstackNonhuman Rights ProjectBooks by Richard LouvKey Words: Animals, Animal Welfare, Animal Rights, Nature, Nature Based Solutions, Biophilia, Biophilic, Animal Personhood, Zoo, Animal Intelligence, ScienceBiophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

With the rise of suburban sprawl and city planning that has prioritized car travel above all else, modern American cities seriously lack comfortable walking and biking infrastructure. It’s a massive issue - but solutions do exist and importantly, those solutions are decidedly doable. Today we are so thrilled to be speaking with Jeff Speck, a city planner, who is widely known for his work advocating for and creating more walkable cities. His book, Walkable City, first published in 2012, has been translated into seven languages and is the best selling city planning book of the 21st century. Walkable City is also a winner of the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature.Jeff believes that a thriving city is a walkable city, where cars are instruments for freedom but aren’t necessary for the day-to-day basics of living. We would also add that walkable cities are fundamentally biophilic because livability and wellness are at the core of biophilia. In this episode, we chat with Jeff about making cities more walkable, the economic benefits of walkable cities, and demanding more of our environments. Shownotes Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time 10th Anniversary Edition by Jeff SpeckThe Smart Growth Manual by Jeff SpeckWalkable City Rules by Jeff SpeckSuburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream by Jeff Speck The walkable city (TED Talk)4 ways to make a city more walkable (TED Talk)Street Fight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution by Janette Sadik-Khan and Seth SolomonowConfessions of a Recovering Engineer by Charles L. MarohnKilled by a Traffic Engineer by Wes Marshall Andres Duany: Principles of New Urbanism (YouTube)Biophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers

Emily Han is a co-author of "Mushroom Hunting" and an advocate for nature connection, while Gregory Han is a design journalist and mushroom enthusiast. They explore the joy of mushroom hunting as a mindfulness practice, emphasizing its mental health benefits and the wonder of diverse fungi. The duo shares their personal stories, encourages curiosity in nature, and discusses responsible foraging. They also highlight the complexities of mushroom ecosystems and the importance of slowing down to connect deeply with the natural world.

What would you think if your doctor wrote you a prescription to take a walk outside? To visit an art museum? To take a yoga class? It may sound unconventional, but the practice of prescribing nonmedical interventions to improve health, known as social prescribing, is becoming more and more commonplace. This week, we’re chatting with Julia Hotz, author of The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging. With Julia as our guide, we’ll explore the profound relationship between environment and wellness, the amazing health outcomes of social prescriptions, and the healthcare professionals at the forefront of this growing movement. In a busy world, where so many of our ailments are lifestyle based, social prescribing helps connect us back to the things that make us human. Show NotesThe Connection Cure: he Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging by Julia HotzSocial Prescribing WebsiteYou’re Not Sick – Your Environment Is (Slate)The Connection Cure explores social prescriptions to improve mental health (NPR)Key Words: healthcare, public health, preventative medicine, nature, biophilia, biophilic design, culture, art, wellness, social prescribing, loneliness, health, lifestyle, mental health Biophilic Solutions is available wherever you get podcasts. Please listen, follow, and give us a five-star review. Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn and learn more on our website. #NatureHasTheAnswers