WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT?

This episode, we're talking sustainable fashion and the simple joys of care and repair with supermodel, author, activist, and friend Cameron Russell. Also: why stats on the climate impacts of fashion are super sketchy.If you haven’t heard of Cameron, chances are you’ve seen her. As a model, she’s appeared on many magazine covers for Vogue and Elle, and on runways and billboards for brands like Prada, Calvin Klein, and Victoria’s Secret.But Cameron’s not only recognized for her modeling. She's been an activist and organizer her entire adult life – particularly on workers rights in the fashion industry and on climate. She co-founded Model Mafia, a network of hundreds of models to use their platforms to advocate for “a more equitable, just, sustainable industry and world."CALLS TO ACTION: 1. Do care work, and value the care work of others. 2. Share resources, be it clothing, food, or soccer cleats your kids grow out of.While you’re listening, please take a second to follow this podcast, rate it, leave a review 🌟, and tell your people to tune in. Support more climate content getting out into the world!REFERENCES: To learn more about Cameron’s work, head to cameronrussell.org. Video Cameron produced in 2009 to explain the name of climate group 350.org. Her 2012 viral TED Talk, “Looks aren’t everything. Believe me, I’m a model.” (Just re-watched; still so good.) Art show she co-curated in 2025 called The Art of Care. Cameron's poignant and expertly-crafted memoir, How to Make Herself Agreeable to Everyone.CREDITS: Produced and edited and Matthew Nelson/Stramash Media, with help with from Jenisha Shrestha.For podcast bonus content and my written musings on climate and culture, subscribe to the What If We Get It Right? newsletter. Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

Greetings, Earthlings! 🌏 Welcome to Season 2 of the What If We Get It Right? podcast.If you’re new here (hi!) let me quickly read you in: I wrote a book called What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures (which became a NY Times Bestseller! 😮). The heart of that book is 20 interviews with people sharing what getting it right on climate could look like and how we can make those visions into reality.Of course, way more than 20 people have important insights for how we can get things more right on climate. Hence, a podcast to continue the conversations about solutions for creating a livable future on Planet Earth. Tada!In each episode I’ll interview an expert — from producers, to fashion designers, to lawyers, to policymakers, to investors to journalists, and more — who will drop some knowledge. 💎 These folks also happen to be my friends, so it’s a freaking delight to yap with them.Since we’ve gotta do more than just imagine getting it right (although that is a critical step), in every episode, there will be advice and calls to action. And jokes, there will be jokes.Our first guest is the reason there even is a season 2: Carri Twigg, my homie and co-founder of production company Culture House. She’s also worked in politics at all levels of government from super local to the Obama White House. We're diving in on how cultural change precedes policy change.By the end of this episode, you will want to hear more from Carri. Luckily, she’s got an incredible politics podcast, Twigg & Jenkins, and a great Substack newsletter, Carri Twigg's Cultural Capitol — subscribe!Carri's calls to Action 📣: (1) Clean up your algorithm. Apply some hygiene to your media consumption. (2) Be okay consuming less. Quench your desire to accumulate stuff. (3) Start a podcast. 🤣CREDITS: We have a new producer/editor for this season. Welcome the very talented Matthew Nelson/Stramash Media! And thank you to associate producer Jenisha Shrestha.MENTIONED: The Blue Green Alliance, Rewiring America, and their Electric Creatives pledge.For behind the scenes pics and more, subscribe to the What If We Get It Right? newsletter. Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

My guest this episode is The Jean Flemma. Jean spent over two decades working on Capitol Hill as staff to members of Congress, making magic behind the scenes over and over again. She is an absolute wizard of ocean and climate policy and the politics of achieving policy change. Jean and I co-founded Urban Ocean Lab, a nonprofit think tank for the future of coastal cities. So you’ll hear a bit about that in this episode. Heaps of good change can happen at the city government level — adapting to climate impacts, helping communities become more resilient, and simply taking care of the people who live there.🎙️PODCAST UPDATE — That's a wrap on Season 1, and... there will be a season 2! Coming in hot in April. 🔥In the meantime, check out the Season 1 back catalog if you missed some episodes. 🥰 And before season 2 is fully-baked, we’d love to hear from you: What have you liked or disliked or found valuable or annoying in these first dozen episodes? What topics or guests would you be stoked for? Email us: info@aejprojects.com.CREDITS: Many thanks to Powell’s Books for hosting us for this event, and thank you as always to my chief of staff Jenisha Shrestha. Shoutout Nora Saks, who produced and edited every single episode of season one with me. It was an absolute delight to collaborate with her. Thank you, Nora.For behind-the-scenes pics from each episode, plus other musings from Ayana on climate and culture, subscribe to the What If We Get It Right? newsletter. Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

In the last few months, the term “Green New Deal” has been popping up a lot again. And it’s the Trump administration bringing it up — as a boogeyman, as a foil for everything his crew fears about accelerating the clean energy transition.So I thought it would be a good time to discuss: What actually is the Green New Deal? How far have we gotten on implementing the concepts it includes? And why do those ideas still matter?My guest for this episode is Rhiana Gunn-Wright, one of the original architects of the Green New Deal. Recently, she was Director of Climate Policy at the Roosevelt Institute. Now, she is consulting and writing a book about the intersections among white supremacy, addiction, and climate change. Suffice it to say, I’ve been eagerly following her work since we met at policy workshop she organized, back in 2019.Note that this conversation was recorded back in October while I was on my book tour, and the political context has, well,… changed a little bit since then. But there's much more to this conversation than the Green New Deal. And her ideas about what shapes climate policy should take — from industry to employment to health care to democracy — are absolutely as relevant as ever.This episode was produced and edited by Nora Saks and me, with recording assistance in Chicago from Troy Cruz. And big thank you to Semicolon Books for hosting us.p.s. Call your representatives! Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

Near the end of my book tour, I found myself gazing up at those large concrete guard lions outside the New York Public Library, astounded to be entering for an event about my book.The occasion was all the more sweet because it was a family affair: I was in conversation with my cousin Steve Connell, whose incredible poem “This Living Earth” appears in my book (and which you get to hear him read in this episode!). We talked about how our family shaped us, the role of art and humor in the serious work of climate, and early inspirations.And the ultimate sweetness was that my 1st grade science teacher was in the audience, right in front. You’ll hear our warm reunion in the audio — thank you, thank you, Ms. Kristiansen. ❤️CREDITS: This episode was produced and edited by Nora Saks, and me, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. Big thanks to my cousin Steve Connell, and to the New York Public Library for hosting us and for recording this audio. And a huge thank you, credit where it’s due, to all the wonderful teachers out there. You never know the ripples that you create in the world... Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

I was originally going to title this episode “Facts Matter,” but instead chose the 90s hiphop version of that sentiment, as I’m prone to do.Today, we are peeling back the curtain on how I achieved the maximum possible accuracy and precision in my book What If We Get It Right?: I hired a fact checker named James Gaines.James is a freelance science writer, journalist, and fact checker with a special focus on solutions journalism, which we love. He grew up in a cabin in the woods in Texas, and as the child of two librarians, loves a good footnote. He comes by it honestly: his pedigree is people who sweat the details.Tune in as we reveal which facts were the hardest to check, my aversion to the term “my truth,” and how we got to the bottom of things, together.And head to the newsletter for pics and to read the poem I read to close out this episode, Marge Piercy's "To Be Of Use." It’s one of my all-time favorites, and it's the last poem that appears in What If We Get It Right? You may notice me slow down to emphasize my favorite line: “The work of the world is common as mud.” Yes. Mostly unglamorous, often solitary, sometime tedious, and that’s just fine as long as it’s a contribution to the transformation we need.CREDITS: This episode was produced and edited by Nora Saks and me, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, recorded live at Elliot Bay Book Company in Seattle, with recording assistance from John O’Brien. Check out James’ website, jmgaines.com, to find out more about all the cool work that he’s doing. And as always, huge thanks to my chief of staff (and tour producer) Jenisha Shrestha.Thanks for listening 💛 Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

adrienne maree brown, a best-selling author and activist, joins the conversation for a lively chat after a successful book tour. They explore themes of vulnerability and love in social justice movements, the tension between hope and uncertainty in the climate crisis, and the importance of mixed-race narratives. Expect laughter as they discuss Beyoncé vs. Rihanna vibes and brainstorm future projects. The duo emphasizes resilience through community support while advocating for a united approach to tackle pressing social and environmental issues.

Hi everyone. We recorded this episode before Election Day, when we had no idea what new version of the world this would reach you in. Wherever and however this finds you, I hope you’ll enjoy this sweet and lighthearted conversation with Dr. Katharine Wilkinson, the Georgia-native, social scientist, bestselling writer, strategist, teacher, and dear friend with whom I co-edited the All We Can Save anthology — which is kind of like the older sister to my new book What If We Get It Right? Katharine and I also co-founded The All We Can Save Project, which she now so elegantly and impactfully leads to “nurture deep, sustained, and courageous climate engagement.”We’re also sharing this episode of the What If We Get It Right? podcast on a show A Matter of Degrees, which Katharine co-hosts with another climate expert, Dr. Leah Stokes. If you haven’t listened yet, you totally should.Since this conversation was in Katharine’s hometown, I let her interview me, and she asked such great questions, as she does. The focus was on how my new book came to be, the questions it offers, and some of the answers that inspire me. A little behind the scenes scoop for ya. CREDITS: Thanks so much to Katharine, The All We Can Save Project, and the Carter Center. This episode was produced and edited by Nora Saks, and me, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, with production help in Atlanta from Frequency Media, and support from Jenisha Shrestha, my chief of staff and tour producer. And thank you for listening! Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

Election Day is TOMORROW, y’all. 🫠 So I thought the best conversation to share with you right now would be one about some of the really important progress the Biden-Harris administration has made on ocean and climate policy. This progress is very much at risk if Trump and his fossil-fuel funded, climate-denying cronies end up back in the White House. This conversation took place in Washington, DC with two White House staffers, climate policy experts and dear friends of mine: Maggie Thomas, special assistant to President Biden for climate in the Office of Domestic Climate Policy, and Dr. Miriam Goldstein, director of ocean policy in the Council of Environmental Quality.One of the things I think doesn’t get talked about enough is who the next president will appoint to key positions like this. Personnel is policy, as the saying goes. It’s been such a thrill to cheer on Maggie and Miriam and watch from the outside, and to now share with you a bit of what’s been happening on the inside — from the Blue New Deal (aka how can we make sure that the ocean is included in federal climate policy) to the American Climate Corps to key lessons they’ve learned in the White House. It’s a wonky one. You’re welcome!Links to the Blue New Deal and Ocean Justice Strategy are in Urban Ocean Lab’s resource hub. And you can find all the work of the White House Climate Policy Office and Council of Environmental Quality at whitehouse.gov/cpo and whitehouse.gov/ceq.CREDITS: Thank you Maggie and Miriam. Thank you Politics and Prose bookstore for hosting us and Ellen Rolfes for recording the audio. Thank you people of DC for appreciating our nerdiest jokes — only there will Federal Register quips get a laugh! This episode was produced and edited by Nora Saks and me. Thanks also to Jenisha Shrestha, my chief of staff and tour producer.Thank you so much for listening! As a parting gift, to help get you through election week, my Anti-Apocalypse Mixtape. 🎶 Get full access to WHAT IF WE GET IT RIGHT? at ayanaelizabeth.substack.com/subscribe

Colette Pichon Battle, an attorney and co-founder of Taproot Earth, teams up with Jade Begay, a Diné and Tesuque Pueblo climate policy expert, to discuss the essence of home amidst climate challenges. They explore the intersection of culture, democracy, and community resilience, sharing insights on grassroots organizing. The conversation critiques traditional environmental activism and emphasizes the need for inclusive approaches that prioritize Indigenous knowledge. They also highlight the power of communal rituals in fostering healing and adaptation in the face of environmental and social injustices.