Talaterra: Recent Episodes
Tania Marien
Conversations with independent professionals who facilitate connections between people and the outdoors. Professionals come from various fields, including environmental education, heritage interpretation, parks and recreation, science communication, photography, technology, art, and the planning of public spaces. They share in common their commitment to nurturing peoples' relationships with the outdoors and their status as independent professionals. Who are these professionals? What do they do? How do they contribute to lifelong learning?
Let's find out.
Today, we get to learn from Matthew Paneitz, founder and executive director of Long Way Home. This organization built Hero School, a student-built and community-built campus in San Juan Comalapa, Guatemala.
Built from recycled tires and trash, the campus took 16 years to build and serves 178 students enrolled in PreK through High School. The school campus is almost complete.
Matthew is also the recipient of the 2020 Sargent Shriver Award for Distinguished Humanitarian Service for his work in Guatemala. This award, presented annually by the National Peace Corps Association, honors Peace Corps volunteers who continue to contribute to humanitarian causes.
Long before this award and the existence of Hero School, Matthew had an idea.
An idea that needed funding, direction, and partners.
How did Matthew obtain funding when he started this project?
How did he develop a strategy sustaining him and the school he built with the residents of Comalapa?
What is the school's curriculum, and how does it change the conversation around poverty?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Long Way Home - Turn Trash Into Schools
Long Way Home Sustainability Projects (https://www.lwhomegreen.org)
Help School Fight Climate Change with Green Building (Global Giving) - Giving Tuesday is December 2, 2025
Watch timelapse video of recent classroom construction (Fall 2025)
2020 Sargent Shriver Award for Distinguished Humanitarian Service
EcoHab.org
Long Way Home on YouTube
Long Way Home on Facebook
Long Way Home on Instagram
Long Way Home on LinkedIn
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CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions, a newsletter about reimagining environmental skills
- Contact Us
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Learn More
- © 2019 - 2026 Talaterra Inc
ABOUT:
TALATERRA combines "tala" (Icelandic for "to speak" and "to talk") with "terra" (Earth)—because speaking for our planet and telling its stories is what environmental educators do.
TALATERRA: to speak Earth.
Today my guest is fundraiser and impact growth leader, Alexandra Dumitrescu. In this episode, we discuss nonprofit funding. Alexandra highlights the potential of technology to enhance fundraising efforts and presents ways nonprofits can diversify income streams. We discuss e-commerce models, leveraging SaaS platforms, improving donor relations, and lost funding opportunities.
We also discuss initiatives Alexandra founded to help nonprofits create sustainable income and integrate social impact features in business products.
How might Alexandra's ideas (or some version of them) be applied to your project, organization, or partnerships?
How does this conversation reframe what you see as being possible in environmental education?
LEARN MORE
Alexandra Dumitrescu on LinkedIn
BiggerPie (LinkedIn)
RWAYS for Nonprofits (LinkedIn)
Shop for Hope (Alexandra on Substack)
Fundraising Platforms Mentioned:
- FundraiseUp
- DonorBox
- iRaiser
- Dataro.io
Automation Services Mentioned:
- Zapier
- Zendesk
Acronyms Defined:
- Saas - Software as a Service (cloud-based services)
- KPI - Key Performance Indicators
- MVP - Minimum Viable Product
- CSR - Corporate Social Responsibility
Alexandra's Recommended Resources:
- Daniela Papi Thornton - Reclaiming Social Entrepreneurship (TEDx)
- Dan Pallotta - The Way We Think About Charity is Dead Wrong (TED)
- Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life (Nassim Nicholas Taleb)*
- Manifesto for a Moral Revolution (Jacqueline Novogratz)*
Subscribe to the Transferable Solutions newsletter.
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ABOUT:
TALATERRA combines "tala" (Icelandic for "to speak" and "to talk") with "terra" (Earth)—because speaking for our planet and telling its stories is what environmental educators do.
TALATERRA: to speak Earth.
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
- © 2019 - 2025 Talaterra Inc
* TALATERRA is an affiliate of Bookshop.org.
Rob Law is a musician and composer with decades of experience in the music industry. He has composed music for films and advertising campaigns. Rob is also a podcaster, a storyteller, and an advocate for outdoor learning. In this episode, Rob and I talk about The Creek Kids, his podcast for children inspired by the radio plays from the Golden Age of Radio.
- The Creek Kids on Podbean
- Rob Law (website)
AUDIO SAMPLES (in order of appearance):
- Lux. “Lux Radio Theater - Single Episodes : Old Time Radio Researchers Group : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive.” Internet Archive, 2025. https://archive.org/details/OTRR_Lux_Radio_Theater_Singles. Sample is from "Our Vines Have Tender Grapes.' https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
- The Mystery of the Flood: The Creek Kids. Produced by Rob Law. Used with permission.
- Campbells Creek Soundtrail. Produced by Rob Law. Used with permission.
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
Dinah Awino Kawino is the founder and director of Akadi Eco and Mentorship Ventures.
Akadi Eco is a consulting firm based in Kenya. It focuses on bringing environmental mentorship and sustainability solutions to educational and community spaces.
This year, Akadi Eco is leading an initiative called Pendo Mazingira. Pendo Mazingira is Swahili for "Love Environment."
Awino describes this program as “an eco-sensitivity mentorship program designed to cultivate a sense of environmental belonging through nature-based sensory experiences.” Pendo Mazingira serves both youth and adults.
How is the program working?
Let’s find out.
SUBSTACK: Pendo Mazingira Substack - AkadiEco and Mentorship Ventures Kenya
PANEL DISCUSSION:
Empowering Women in Science: Bridging Gaps and Building Futures
Interesting and honest conversation about being a woman in science. Awino's presentation begins at timestamp 57:22. Her presentation is titled, Empowering Women and Girls: Disrupting Fear-based Silence for Thriving Sustainability Science. This is a presentation by LIAISE.
BOOK:
Weaving a Green Future: Opportunities and Barriers in Textile Manufacturing in Kenya (Eliva Press, 2025)
ARTICLES:
Closing the Loop: A framework for tackling single-use plastic waste in the food and beverage industry through circular economy - a review (Journal of Environmental Management)
Challenges and Opportunities for Green Transitions Adoption in Kenya's Textile Manufacturing Industry (Frontiers in Sustainability)
Assessment of Green Growth Practices in the Textile Industry: A Study of Thika Cloth Mill and Rivatex in Kenya (East African Journal of Environment and Natural Resources)
LEADERSHIP:
The Green Embassy Kenya
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
Christina Carter is the author, illustrator, and founder of Gumnut Trails—a unique collection of Outdoor Adventure Guides that help families rediscover the joy of exploring nature together.
In this episode, we dive into how Christina’s own nature-rich childhood inspired her to create the “Lonely Planet of childhood adventures”—starting with four beautifully illustrated Guides across Melbourne.
Each Adventure Guide transforms an ‘ordinary’ walk into an immersive experience using storytelling, creative missions, and joyful illustrations. Designed to be interactive, screen-free, and deeply local, Gumnut Trails helps families connect with the natural spaces around them in fun, meaningful ways.
Every guide is built around the history, features, and hidden stories of each location. Months of on-the-ground exploring, researching, writing, and illustrating go into each one—making them more than just ready-made adventures, but true works of art.
What began as one parent’s mission to capture the magic of a childhood spent outdoors is now a growing movement.
So how did it all come together—and what’s next for Gumnut Trails? Let’s find out.
Website: www.gumnuttrails.com.au
Follow along on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gumnut_trails/
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
We are all in the attention economy.
Louise Karch (pronounced CARSH) makes sure good people like us break out not blend in.
Louise is delighted to speak us. She has a special fondness for environmental educators having been an Outward Bound Instructor.
For over a decade, she also was a career management professional, She was honoured to study with and support Richard Bolles, the author of the bestselling career/life planning in history, What Color Is Your Parachute.
It was Richard Bolles who inspired Louise to write guidebooks. Louise is the award-winning author of Word Glue, and head cheerleader and one of the co-authors of the global mega-hit The Carbon Almanac, It’s Not Too Late (Penguin Random House),
Louise’s most recent book, First Aid for Fairies: From Rain to Rainbows, is an uplifting steampunk-inspired guide that helps teens shift from stress to strength It’s been nominated for the American Library Association’s MIchael Princz award.
Louise has mentored leaders in 71 countries and edu-tained audiences from Australia to the Arctic. She prefers being warm.
You can find Louise at…
Word Glue
First Aid for Fairies
Interview Database with Addendum for Environmental Educators
RESOURCES MENTIONED
What color is your parachute?(2022)*
Transitions (2019)*
Brag! Toot Your Own Horn Without Blowing It*
Outward Bound (Canada)
Outward Bound (USA)
ASSESSMENT
Institute on Character
Jackson Vocational Interest Survey
Gallup CliftonStrengths Finder
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
Episode description:
Join us as we dive into the world of innovation with Vanessa Thompson, Managing Director of The Sustainability Experts. Vanessa shares bold strategies for sparking disruptive ideas, seizing new opportunities, and leveraging cutting-edge technologies to transform businesses and careers.
A renowned keynote speaker and consultant, Vanessa partners with startups, VCs, and global corporations to deliver powerful solutions that merge innovation with sustainability for lasting impact.
Listen to Vanessa’s Podcast: https://www.the-sustainability-experts.com/the-show
Book Vanessa as a Speaker: https://www.vanessathompson.com
Contact Us:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-sustainability-experts/?viewAsMember=true
- Email: info@the-sustainability-experts.com
- Website: The Sustainability Experts
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5PLmkmxJLJQ5BJ2Kgluxku
Don’t miss this insightful episode packed with actionable ideas to drive innovation and sustainable success!
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
Last week I launched the new newsletter. It’s called Transferable Solutions and the theme of the newsletter is “Environmental Skills, Reimagined.” When I started The Freelance Project, I wanted to explore what freelancing looked like in environmental education. The people we've had the opportunity to meet through the podcast have shown us there are dozens of ways to approach working as an environmental education professional.
With this deeper understanding established, it is time to add the next layer to my project.
Subscribe to the newsletter at https://talaterra.com.
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- Subscribe to Transferable Solutions.
- Contact Us
Today we get to learn from Kalliopi Monoyios, visual science communicator and lead author of "Visuals as a Catalyst for Climate Science Communication," a chapter in the book "Storytelling to Accelerate Climate Solutions" (Springer Nature, 2024).
In this episode, Kalliopi and I discuss the value of visuals in climate change communication. We discuss what effective visuals look like and also talk about creating culturally relevant and sensitive information. Kalliopi shares how someone can become a visual science communicator and what a collaborative project between a visual science communicator and a client might look like.
LINKS
Kalliopi Monoyios website
Guild of Natural Science Illustrators
Visuals as a Catalyst for Climate Communication (Open Access)
Kirsten Carlson | Fathom iT Studios
Taina Litwak
Fiona Martin | Visualizing Science
Your Inner Fish (book)
Your Inner Fish (PBS video)
Association of Medical Illustrators
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
Storytelling and Climate Solutions - A conversation with co-editors Emily Coren and Hua (Helen) Wang
Gretchen Halpert, Scientific Illustration Distance Program
Gary Hoyle discusses museum plant models, exhibit design, and dioramas
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
- Contact Us
A conversation with Emily Coren and Hua (Helen) Wang, editors of Storytelling to Accelerate Climate Solutions (Springer Nature, 2024). They collaborated with 44 authors to create a resource addressing many forms of climate communication.
Each of the book chapters addresses a specific type of storytelling. You’ll find chapters about entertainment education, locally-driven narratives, youth engagement, Hollywood, climate fiction, music, news reporting, geospatial tools, interactive storytelling, mental health, and telling stories through food. There is also a chapter about using visuals as a catalyst for climate science communication.
Storytelling to Accelerate Climate Solutions is an open-access title. You can download the entire book or individual chapters for free.
LINKS
Storytelling to Accelerate Climate Solutions (Download)
Publications by Emily Coren
Contact Emily Coren
Helen Wang, University of Buffalo
Entertainment-Education Behind the Scenes - Case Studies for Theory and Practice (Download)
Emily Coren: Science communicator, author, and affiliate in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. (Read Bio)
Hua Wang: Professor of Communication at the University of Buffalo, New York. Communication scientist whose specialties are health promotion, behavior change, and social justice. (Full Bio)
Episode Art: Photo by Naoram Sea on Unsplash
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
- Contact Us
Introducing a new feature to the podcast. This new feature is called INSIGHT. With each episode we’ll explore some aspect of freelancing and how it intersects with the environmental awareness work being done by independent professionals worldwide. In this first episode, we consider seven types of freelancing as described by Nikita Tambe, a contributor to Forbes magazine. Which type of freelancing best describes you?
Let’s talk. I am inviting people to 1:1 conversations to learn more about them and their experiences freelancing. Join me here.
LINKS
The Freelance Project Portfolio
What is freelancing and how does it work? (Nikita Tambe)
(Photo in episode art by Annie Spratt on Unsplash)
CREDITS:
- Producer: Tania Marien
- Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
- SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
- View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
- Contact Us
Maria Coryell-Martin is an expeditionary artist.
That’s right.
Expeditionary, as in expeditions. What type of imagery does this bring up? If you imagine an artist traveling with a scientist or an explorer, you are imagining things correctly.
This episode originally aired in 2019. Back then, Maria took a few moments to speak with me while she was packing for her trip to meet a scientist in Alaska.
In this episode, we discuss Maria’s journey from student to artist, how she has sustained herself as a working artist, and the three questions she answers before taking on new projects.
Plus, I have exciting updates to share. I hope you enjoy this conversation with Maria.
LINKS
- Learn more about Maria’s current project in the post Witnessing Climate Change.
- View the exhibition and other news about Maria's trip to Alaska.
- Expeditionary Art (Maria’s website)
- Maria talks about her work in this presentation for Girls Can Do.
- Maria shares how she introduces nature journaling to kids.
- See the Art Toolkit's new store!
- Follow Maria on Instagram at @expeditionaryart and @arttoolkit.
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
Wendy Nadherny Fachon is an author, journalist, podcast host and environmental educator. Her work is published by Natural Awakenings Magazine, Sustainable Living News, and Dreamvisions 7 Radio.
After working many years in the healthcare industry, Wendy left her position to focus on children's health and wellness issues. She developed an afterschool walking program, which gave rise to her radio show, the Story Walking Radio Hour.
How did Wendy develop her afterschool program?
What is her radio show about?
How does she approach partnership building, which has been critical to her success?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Story Walking Radio Hour
Listen to the latest episode
Story Walking Website
Story Walking Radio Hour Facebook group
Nature Drawing Program
The Empowerment Factory's Trash to Treasures Short Video (YouTube)
Contact Wendy
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
Today, we get to learn from Gloria Desanker, geospatial storyteller, founder, and Principal Consultant at Map Nerd Consulting.
More About Gloria
My name is Gloria Desanker, and I founded Map Nerd Consulting so that I could work as a Geospatial Storyteller to help others unlock the power of location-based insights. My services are designed to uplift community stories, especially communities of color. I offer tailored GIS solutions, visually appealing cartographic design, social media and marketing support, and storytelling guidance so that you can ensure your stories and experiences are authentically portrayed.
As a Black woman in the GIS, forestry, environmental science, and environmental education fields/sectors, I experience firsthand the lack of acknowledgment and representation these fields have of Black and brown successes, accomplishments, and feats. That is why I strive to change the white-dominant narrative of how data should be used, why data should be used, and how to use data and GIS to share an accurate representation of people of color in the U.S.
I take my clients through the full arc of mapping their story: story development, data collection and management, cartography and spatial analysis, graphic design and creation, and communications through Story Maps, infographic and report creation, or social media marketing. Data is only meaningful if a story is attached to it and we at Map Nerd Consulting believe there is a story in every map.
This past year, I joined the 2023 Cohort of the NAAEE CEE-Change Fellows where I am partnering with NorthStar of GIS whose mission is to advance intersectional racial justice, equity, and belonging in GIS, geography, and STEM. Together, we are developing GIS curriculum and training materials specifically for and by Black people and the Black African diaspora to change the narrative on how Black people and communities are portrayed in the context of climate change.
Map Nerd Consulting
View Map Nerd Consulting's Linktree
Schedule a call with Gloria at https://calendly.com/mapnerd
Mercator Projection
How Maps Distort Our Perception of the World
Gloria’s Community Action Project with NAAEE CEE-Change Fellowship
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
In this episode, we get to learn from Dr. Tom Rhoads, an economist and professor at Towson University.
Dr. Rhoads shares his transition from sports economics to environmental economics and his research integrating economics into environmental education.
Dr. Rhoads explains that his interest in environmental education began about five years ago when he noticed a shift in the demographics of his class, with more environmental science and studies majors than economics majors. This led him to change his approach to teaching environmental economics, focusing more on the environment and finding the economics within it.
LINKS
Tom Rhoads, Towson University
Aldo Leopold, Sand County Almanac*
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring*
The Leopold Writing Program
Working Paper - Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences, 2023 Conference | Thinking like an economist while reading the land: Using reading quizzes to show environmental studies and sciences and economics intersecting in Aldo Leopold's A Sand County Almanac; Working paper
Presentation Slides - North American Association for Environmental Education, 2023 Conference | Costs, Benefits, and Environmental Action; Presentation slides
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Bill Reynolds, Lars Wohlers, and Mike Mayer, co-founders of Experiential Interpretive Design, a coaching company they founded to help individuals, organizations, and sites develop the interpretive experiences they provide.
In this episode, we learned about the founders, their respective specialties, and why they founded EID.
Today is part 2 of this conversation. In this episode, I sit down with Mike Mayer to discuss his specialty (environmental education) and to learn more about the environmental program that inspires what he, Bill, and Lars do at EID.
We begin this episode by learning more about the Institute for Earth Education. Some of this may sound familiar because I included a short segment in Part 1. Don’t let this distract you because you’ll hear something a bit different before Mike walks us through an example of the type of programming offered by the Institute.
In this conversation, Mike and I also discuss creating holistic experiences in free-choice settings, the AMORE framework developed by Steve Van Matre, interpreting global topics across cultures, and what might change the status quo in environmental education.
LINKS
Experiential Interpretive Design
Institute for Earth Education
Interpretive Design and the Dance of Experience (2009)
Cooper Center for Environmental Learning, College of Education at the University of Arizona
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
In this episode, we meet the co-founders of Experiential Interpretive Design (EID) -- Bill Reynolds, Lars Wohlers, and Mike Mayer. Collectively, they have many years of experience in interpretation and experience design and bring to EID the experience they gained from various roles in tourism, planning, heritage interpretation, environmental education, and coaching. We learn about the founders, why they started EID Coaching, and discuss what is working in the field of interpretation and what is not working. This is the first installment of a two-part episode.
In Part 2 of this episode, I sit down with Mike Mayer to learn more about the environmental education program that inspires the work he, Bill, and Lars do at EID.
LINKS
Experiential Interpretive Design
Métis Crossing
Steve Van Matre
John Ververke
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES SHARED BY THE EID TEAM
Lars Wohlers’ bilingual website about digital evaluation (Visitor Studies)
Expecting Company? Preparing your site for Ag-Tourism! (youtube.com)
Sharing Great Ways to Greet the Guests (Part 1)
Sharing Great Ways to Greet the Guests (Part 2)
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
Janice Kelley is the founder and program director for Nature Detectives, where children in kindergarten through third grade discover the mysteries of the outdoor world on their school campus, at home, at a park, and in their neighborhood.
She is the author of several publications, and when she was here before, we spoke about her book "Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge: Watching Wildlife at the Lower American River." Today, we’re talking about a book she wrote for parents, grandparents, and family friends called "Nature Detectives at Home."
LINKS
Nature Detectives website
Nature Detectives at Home
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TALATERRA Community Calendar - Learn more about the calendar and how to add your events here.
________________________
Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
Roots of Success (RoS) is an empowering environmental literacy and job training program that prepares youth and adults with significant barriers to employment to access jobs and career pathways in environmental fields and to improve environmental and social conditions in their communities. The program is centered around a federally registered Department of Labor Apprenticeship and Pre-Apprenticeship program and 10-module course. We prepare individuals for 70 jobs and 111 career pathways in environmental and STEM fields.
Roots of Success is offered in job training programs, reentry programs, prisons, jails, juvenile facilities, high schools, youth programs, adult schools and other workforce and education settings throughout the United States. Since 2009, the program has been offered in over 600 programs in 40 states and over 26,000 youth and adults have gone through the program; more than 12,000 youth and adults took the course while incarcerated. The Roots of Success course is composed of 10 modules:
1) Fundamentals of Environmental Literacy
2) Water
3) Waste
4) Transportation
5) Energy
6) Building
7) Health, Food & Agriculture
8) Community Organizing & Leadership
9) Financial Literacy & Social Entrepreneurship
10) Application & Practice
The program strengthens academic, professional, financial, social entrepreneurship, and advocacy skills. The teaching approach encourages students to use their lived experiences as the foundation upon which to build further knowledge and skills, deepen their understanding of environmental problems and solutions, and access jobs in environmental fields.
Graduates earn an “Environmental Specialist” Pre-Apprenticeship credential and are prepared to access 50 jobs and 111 career pathways in the water, waste, transportation, energy, building, food, open space, and environmental advocacy sectors. Detailed information about each of these jobs and career pathways is provided in a two volume Green Jobs and Career Pathways Guidebook that is included in the teaching materials used by instructors who teach the Roots of Success course.
Roots of Success graduates have a high employment rate, are working in a wide range of fields, and are addressing environmental challenges and injustices through advocacy and policy efforts. A study conducted with community-based program partners that used Roots of Success for at least two years found that among 1,200 graduates 98% felt they were better prepared for job interviews, 75% found employment within 3 months, and 70% remained employed 6 months later.
In prisons, the Roots of Success program is usually taught by incarcerated men and women who are paid full time to teach the course to their peers and can also be taught by staff. Many Roots of Success instructors are serving long and life sentences and working with the Roots of Success program gives these men and women an opportunity to help others. The data we have collected for over a decade shows that participants who go through the Roots of Success course while incarcerated are finding stable, living wage employment opportunities when they return to the community and have very low recidivism rates.
Roots of Success is the leading resource for education and workforce programs across the country that strive to prepare youth and adults with barriers to employment for careers in environmental sectors and empower them to improve conditions in their communities. The program is easy to implement, cost effective, highly impactful, and provides graduates with industry recognized credentials that are highly valued by employers.
To learn more about the Roots of Success program, go to rootsofsuccess.org or email us at info@rootsofsuccess.org
Download a one-page overview
Download a short brochure
Download the 10-year report
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Producer: Tania Marien
Music: So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License;
SOLO ACOUSTIC GUITAR by Jason Shaw is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 United States License.
View The Freelance Project Portfolio to learn more about Independent environmental education professionals and how they strengthen environmental literacy.
- Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Commissions earned support The Freelance Project.
Contact Us
Today it is my pleasure to introduce you to Jerry Willenbring.
Jerry is a community organizer, teacher, and guide. He is also a physicist and an electrical engineer who has taken on electrifying California.
Literally.
In 2020, Jerry formed Electrify California, a nonprofit committed to providing education and resources to guide the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. When Jerry and I met we talked about why he started Electrify California, who he created it for, and how he engages with the public and supports them as they explore what’s possible while living an electrified life.
LINKS
ElectrifyNow.org
Inflation Reduction Act
Inflation Reduction Act Rebates and Tax Credits (MarketWatch)
CA Climate Action Rebates
Exxon scientists predicted global warming with ‘shocking skill and accuracy,’ Harvard researchers say.
The Climate Exxon Memo (1982) (The Carbon Almanac)
Microgrid Community in Menifee, CA
More about heat pumps and property value (Center for Global Sustainability, University of Maryland)
The Carbon Almanac
Erin Majeske is a mother, wife, dreamer, kitchen experimenter, wannabe gardener, nature explorer, and founder of Barefeet Farm School. When she's not in the outdoor classroom with preschoolers, she loves to enjoy the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her family and make as much music as possible.
In this episode, Erin shares how the need for a summer job led to her opening Barefeet Farm School. She shares her successes, challenges, and what she has learned to improve.
Topics discussed include licensing, consulting, working with parents, and building community partnerships.
LINKS
Barefeet Farm School
Explore starting your own preschool
Instagram (@barefeetfarmschool)
Loving Space School
Washington State is First to License Outdoor Preschools
Natural Start
Today we get to learn again from Dr. Brad McLain.
You might remember my conversation with Dr. McLain about identity theory and the professional identities of informal science educators.
In this episode, we pick up the conversation where we left it and talk about Dr. McLain’s new book called Designing Transformative Experiences.
In his book, Dr. McLain leads experience designers through the methodology he developed through years of working with employees, students, corporations, museums, and nonprofit organizations like Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots.
While you may recognize a transformative experience when you have one, do you know how to create one for the people you serve?
LINKS
Designing Transformative Experiences: A Toolkit for Leaders, Trainers, Teachers, and Other Experience Designers (book)
Designing Transformative Experiences (website)
Ep98: Brad McLain, Identity of Informal Science Educators
Saurabh Mithal is a teacher, independent professional, and the founder of Passionately Curious, a community for solopreneurs. I invited Saurabh to talk about his experience working with freelancers. In this episode, Saurabh shares how he helps independent professionals establish their businesses, and how he helps them manage self-doubt, procrastination, and distractions.
LINKS
PassionatelyCurious.in
The Passionately Curious podcast
Saurabh on LinkedIn
Designing Your Life
Creativity Inc.
Creative Confidence
The Practice
War of Art
This is Marketing
The Art of Possibility
My guest today is Jeffrey H. Ryan. Jeffrey is the author of Appalachian Odyssey and Blazing Ahead in his latest book, This Land Was Saved for You and Me.
Jeffrey introduces us to seven people who were key to forming and preserving America's public lands. Jeffrey tells how these individuals influenced and worked with each other and who they met during their careers.
He writes about the contributions made by Frederick Law Olmsted, Gifford Pinchot, Benton Mackaye, Theodore Roosevelt, Bob Marshall, Aldo Leopold, and Howard Zahniser.
Let's join the conversation.
LINKS
Jeffrey H. Ryan
Books by Jeffrey Ryan
Voices of the Wilderness
Wilderness Society
National Association for Interpretation
Today my guests are Dan Kriesberg and Camille Simone Edwards, founders of Diversity Education in Nature.
Dan and Camille’s unique approach to diversity education occur through the lens of ecological concepts and pairs outdoor experiences with conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion.
They reach beyond the field of environmental education and lead workshops for students, educators, parents, and caregivers. They have also developed a program for corporate settings and look forward to working with decision-makers at organizations large and small.
In this episode, we discuss the structure of their programs, radical empathy, consuming DEI as a “product,” and healing in communities.
Let’s join the conversation.
LINKS
Diversity Education in Nature (DEIN)
Contact Dan or Camille at DEINConsulting@gmail.com
Earth Wisdom, Dan Kriesberg’s website
Camille Simone Consulting
An Invitation to a Brave Space
Terri Givens, Radical Empathy
Subscribe to The Trail newsletter
View past issue of The Trail
Today our guest is Michael Hawk.
Michael is the founder of Jumpstart Nature and the host of the Nature’s Archive podcast.
Jumpstart Nature is a new organization taking a tech-centric approach to how they connect people with nature.
In this episode, we learn what inspired Michael to create the Nature's Archive podcast. We also discuss his thinking about technology in nature education and how the AGILE approach to project management is key to how he and his collaborate and build Jumpstart Nature.
Let’s join the conversation.
LINKS
Jumpstart Nature
Nature's Archive podcast
National Association for Interpretation
California Naturalist
Presentations by Michael:
- Incredible Insects
- The Surprising Biodiversity of a Suburban Yard
- The Wonders of Plant Galls: Biology, Identification, and Discovery
Today my guest is Jo Petroni.
Jo is an architect, illustrator, writer and teacher. She's the author of Listen To Your Land, a Guide to Regenerative Land Design that blends biophilic design and permaculture philosophy. Jo is also a contributor to the Carbon Almanac and co-founder of Damn Good Humans, a creative agency about climate communication.
What is permarchitecture?
How can people listen to their land?
What is reversible habitat?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Permarchitecture - Regenerative Human Habitat Design Strategy
Bill Mollison
Jo's Epistolary
An illustrated time-lapse letter about climate from Jo's Epistolary
EcoVillage Network
The Carbon Almanac
Connect-the-Dots
Roam Research
Damn Good Humans - The Creative Agency for Climate Communication
Today we learn from Jessica Maccaro, Catherine Nguyen, and Joshua Reger, the team behind the new science communication podcast Across the Cline.
This podcast is the latest outreach vehicle for SciComm @ UCR, the student-led science communication group at the University of California, Riverside.
SciComm @ UCR was established in 2019 to explore creative approaches to science communication and to provide learning opportunities in science communication to Riverside residents.
The Across the Cline podcast has a smart format; we’ll learn more about it in this episode.
We’ll also hear how SciComm @ UCR engages with graduate students across disciplines and learn about what graduate students will share with Riverside residents this spring.
Let’s meet Jess, Catherine, and Joshua!
LINKS
SciComm @ UCR website
Contact SciComm @ UCR
@SciCommUCR (Twitter)
@scicommucr (Instagram)
Jessica Maccaro on Twitter (@JessicaMaccaro)
Catherine (Thiên-Ý) Nguyễn on Twitter (@Catherine_TY_Ng)
ZME Science
@ZMEScience (Twitter)
MORE ABOUT OUR GUESTS
Jessica:
- Science Nights at Back to the Grind
- When bees get a taste for dead things
Catherine:
- Sex differences in offspring discrimination in the biparental California mouse (Peromyscus californicus)
- Student research gear closet lowers barriers to field experiences
Joshua:
- Joshua Reger, 2022 Scholarship Recipient | Applied Biological Control Research
- Why flight testing is an important step in sterile insect technique
Arjit Jere, is a biologist, science communicator, and popular science writer based in India. Arjit has written about the lifecycle of antlions, competitor behavior in hummingbirds, climate change, and the critically endangered Amboli toad that's found only in the mountains of Western India.
I met Arjit during the Science Journalism Forum, a global gathering of science journalists, communicators, and students. The forum is a virtual event, and as you know, virtual events make it possible to learn from people you would never meet otherwise. Like Arjit!
In this episode, we discuss Arjit's experiences as a science journalist and what he would like to write about next.
Let's join the conversation.
CLICK HERE to engage with the transcript for this episode.
What do you think of this format?
How does it help you relate to the guest and their work?
Please share your thoughts here (https://talaterra.com/contact).
LINKS
Arjit Jere on LinkedIn
Arjit’s blog, Nature and Football
Saevus Magazine
RoundGlass Sustain
Dr.Pankaj Koparde, Chatur Ullu Evolutionary Ecology Lab, MIT World Peace University, Pune
Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT) World Peace University
Centre for Environmental Education, Pune
Articles:
A. Jere, Global warming and climate change - Current scenario. Biotechnology (2013) View Article
A. Jere, Circle of Life, Saevus. December 2017 - February 2018, p. 66 (2017) View Article
A. Jere, Hummingbirds and their hidden daggers. Manthan, Volume 2.2, 3 (2020) View article
A. Jere, Meet the Tiger Toad. Youth for Nature Magazine (2022). Accessed 11 Jan 2023. https://yfnmagazine.wordpress.com/2022/10/12/meet-the-tiger-toad
Today we get to learn from Robin Lee Carlson.
Robin is a biologist, science writer, and scientific illustrator. In all aspects of her work, Robin transforms scientific information into stories to help people see the natural world in new ways. Her scientific illustration work and writings can be found on posters, interpretive panels, and informative species cards used by the California Department of Transportation.
Robin is also the author and illustrator of The Cold Canyon Fire Journals: Green Shoots and Silver Linings in the Ashes.
In The Cold Canyon Fire Journals, Robin takes us to her local nature preserve that has twice experienced the type of fast-moving and expansive wildfires seen more and more often in California.
Through her illustrations and text, Robin takes us on a tour of the canyon before and after the fires and teaches us about fire ecology in an engaging way.
How did Robin’s relationship with Cold Canyon begin?
How did her illustrations and field notes become a book?
When it comes to fire management, who should be part of the conversation?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Robin Lee Carlson Illustration
Robin on Instagram (@anthropocenesketchbook)
Reading the Ashes | The Common
California Wilderness Coalition Bundle (Book + Bandana)
A couple of great podcasts about fire and controlled and cultural burning:
- Living with Fire
- Life with Fire Podcast
Book resources for cultural fire:
- Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of California’s Natural Resources
- Forgotten Fires: Native Americans and the Transient Wilderness
- Fire Country: How Indigenous Fire Management Could Help Save Australia
MUSIC:
So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License.
“Human rights are held by all persons equally, universally and forever.
Human rights are the basic standards without which people cannot live in dignity.
These rights are inalienable. This means you cannot lose these rights just as you cannot cease to be a human.“
- The World As It Could Be
In this episode, we learn from Sandy Sohcot and Ellen Sebastian Chang of The World As It Could Be Human Rights Education Program. We also learn about a collaboration between TWAICB and Talaterra that will help environmental professionals from diverse fields advance their work within a human rights framework.
- What circumstances led to the creation of The World As It Could Be?
- How do Sandy and Ellen introduce people to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
- How have they strengthened the relationship between community members and law enforcement?
- How is The World As It Could Be and Talaterra collaborating to help environmental professionals view their environmental work through a human rights framework?
These questions will be answered in this episode.
We begin with Sandy explaining how The World As It Could Be, got its start.
(A quick note to our regular listeners. This episode is a little longer than our usual episode.)
LINKS
- The World As It Could Be (TWAICB)
- TWAICB Facebook
- TWAICB Instagram (@TWAICB)
- TWAICB LinkedIn
- Join TWAICB Email List
- Alameda County Deputy Sheriffs Activities League (DSAL)
- Rex Foundation
Register for Amplify Your Practice for People and the Planet (begins January 19, 2023).
Join Sandy Sohcot and Ellen Sebastian Change of The World As It Could Be Human Rights Education Program to amplify the impact of your environmental education practice.
In this workshop, you’ll consider your educational objectives and the impact your programs have on people and the planet. You will engage in conversation about the fundamental purpose of environmental education and reflect on how the Universal Declaration of Human Rights connects with your practice and environmental education overall.
- Pre-enroll yourself (pre-enrollment ends January 1, 2023)
- Pre-enroll yourself and a colleague (pre-enrollment ends January 1, 2023)
(Note: Regular Registration begins on January 2, 2023. Check back here for links on January 2.)
___________________________________________
ABOUT SANDY SOHCOT
Director and originator of The World As It Could Be Human Rights Education Program. Sandy holds a California Lifetime Teaching Credential. In July 2001, Sandy became Executive Director of the Rex Foundation and served as in that capacity through 2013, to help renew the Foundation in the absence of direct Grateful Dead concert funding. In 2006, as part of her work, Sandy developed The World As It Could Be initiative to raise awareness about the human rights framework. The initial work evolved to become a full program with curriculum that includes the creative arts as a vital part of teaching about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Since January 2014, Sandy has been Director of TWAICB, now a program of the Alameda County Deputy Sheriffs’ Activities League (DSAL). Sandy has been active in the small business and women’s communities of San Francisco. She co-founded the Women’s Leadership Alliance, and is past president of the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners. In July 1999, the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women honored Sandy with their Women Who Make a Difference Award. Sandy served as a Commissioner on the San Francisco Human Rights Commission 2004 – 2008.
___________________________________________
ABOUT ELLEN SEBASTIAN CHANG:
Ellen Sebastian Chang (she/her), whose creative practice spans 45 years, is a storied figure in the performing arts, as a multi-disciplinary director (theater, opera, dance, and installation) arts educator, and lighting designer.
"I create as a director, producer, writer, and teaching artist. I began my theater practice as a lighting technician (Berkeley Stage Company) and designer. In 1981, I shifted to directing/writing/creating devised experimental performances with the premiere of Your Place is No Longer with Us which followed a ten-year-old biracial girl throughout a Victorian mansion in San Francisco. In 1986, I was the co-founder/co-artistic director of LIFE ON THE WATER, a national and internationally known presenting and producing organization at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center. In the 21st century, with Deep Waters Dance Theater I have co-created 14 Episodes of "House/Full of Blackwomen," in 2020 episode 14 called New Chitlin Circuitry: a reparations vaudeville; “How to Fall in Love in A Brothel” interactive installation, performances and short film with Sunhui Chang and Maya Gurantz commissioned by Catherine Clark Gallery; “A Hole In Space (Oakland Redux) created with Maya Gurantz connecting to Oakland neighborhoods via 24-hour video portal; Consulting Producer for “Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley” HBO and interviewee; “Fabulation” by Lynne Nottage Lorraine Hansberry Theater with Margo Hall and Daveed Diggs. Lost and Found Sound with The Kitchen Sisters. Since 2006 as the ongoing Creative Director and Teaching Artist for The World As It Could Be Human Rights Education Program (TWAICB) I co-created curriculum and a series of successful initiatives employing the creative arts to deepen learning about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and its principles. My perspective is an ongoing desire to engage creatively and collaboratively, to make works that connect us across disciplines, cultures, class, and break through our fears by challenging our learned beliefs. I have collaborated with and directed the works of KITKA, Gamelan Sekar Jaya, Eisa Davis, Youth Speaks, Holly Hughes, Word for Word, Center for Digital Story Telling, Fauxnique, Magic Theater, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, The Kitchen Sisters, Bill Talen, Anne Galjour, Felonious with One Ring Zero, Robert Karimi and George Coates Performance Works."
Between 2013-2017, she was the co-owner and events planner for the award-winning West Oakland restaurant FuseBOX, with co-owner and Chef Sunhui Chang.
She is currently serving as Resident Owner and Board Member for East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative/Advisor for Esther’s Orbit Room Project/Artist Housing.
She is a recipient of awards and grants from Creative Capital, MAP Fund, A Blade of Grass Fellowship in Social Engagement, Art Matters, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, NEA, MAP Fund, Creative Work Fund, California Arts Council, Sam Mazza Foundation and Zellerbach Family Community Arts Fund.
- Diversity and Social/Human Justice Work through the Arts with Ellen Sebastian Chang
- Fishing Lessons, a digital storytelling project in collaboration with StoryCenter
MUSIC:
So Far So Close by Jahzzar is licensed under a Attribution-ShareAlike License.
This summer, I have featured episodes from various shows on The Carbon Almanac Podcast Network.
In July, I shared an episode from The Carbon Almanac Collective, a podcast about the team who created The Carbon Almanac.
In August, I shared an episode from Generation Carbon, the podcast for kids 6-10.
This month, I am sharing an episode of the CarbonSessions podcast. This podcast features everyday conversations about climate with people from all over the world.
Listening to this podcast is like sitting at the kitchen table with neighbors and talking about the changes we're all seeing in the world around us.
In this episode, we gather around the table with host Katherine Palmer, an aromatherapist and workshop coordinator; Tonya Downing, a digital marketer; and Kristy Sharrow, a journalist-turned-marketer.
Tonya and Kristy are also scriptwriters for Generation Carbon. In this episode, they discuss what they learned while researching and writing the script for the episode about ocean plastics.
LINKS
CarbonSessions
Generation Carbon - Ocean Plastics
The Carbon Almanac
Great Pacific Garbage Patch (National Geographic)
Today we get to learn from Diane Wyzga, story strategist, guide, and founder of the practice called Engaged Storyism.
Diane is also the creator, host, and producer of Stories From Women Who Walk, a much-loved and listened-to podcast that has spread wisdom and touched hearts worldwide.
I reached out to Diane so you and I could think about story. Not in an MBA/marketing sort of way, but in a real way. A way that reflects who we are as individuals and professionals.
What is your story?
How do you find it?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Quarter Moon Story Arts
Stories From Women Who Walk
Camino de Santiago
Receive updates about the story workshop with Diane
As you know, I've been working on a project involving The Carbon Almanac for the past several months. One of the projects I've been able to help with is the Carbon Almanac Podcast Network. This network includes a podcast featuring conversations with individuals who worked on the book, a podcast about climate conversations happening across the globe, a podcast featuring the conversations everyday people are having about our changing world, and a podcast for kids aged 6-10.
Today's bonus episode comes from Generation Carbon, the kids' podcast. In this episode about bugs, you'll meet our host Edie, Callie Caterpillar, and Spencer Sparrow. You'll also hear science reporters on the climate case and curious changemakers asking Beetlelady questions about bugs and our changing climate.
If you are a longtime listener of this podcast and wondering why Beetlelady sounds familiar to you, it's because you've met her before in a previous episode.
Generation Carbon is part of the Carbon Almanac Network of Podcasts and has been rebroadcast with permission.
Supervising Producer: Jennifer Myers Chua. Senior Producer: Tonya Downing. Expert Outreach Advisor: Tania Marien. Written by: Carolanne Petrusiak with support from Kristy Sharrow. Hosted By: Jennifer Myers Chua, Edie Chua. Talent: Sam Schuffenecker, Olabanji Stephen, Steve Heatherington Editor: Jennifer Myers Chua. Project Co-ordinator: Jen Ankenmann. Shownotes: Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett
View Generation Carbon’s catalog of episodes
Sue Heatherington is a quiet disruptor. She started introducing herself this way after a period of time marked by family trauma, business challenges, and serious illness. The first time Sue introduced herself as a quiet disruptor, she was surprised by the reaction she received. in this episode, we join a conversation Sue led at an author event in May.
What is a quiet disruptor?
What has Sue learned about them?
Let's join the conversation.
LINKS
QuietDisruptors.com
Maria Sibylla Merian
Twitter (@QuietDisruptors)
Facebook (@quietdisruptors)
Instagram (@quietdisruptors)
Welcome back to the Talaterra podcast!
A landmark project pulled me away, and I let it take priority during an intense period of its production. So I return to podcasting by explaining where I've been, and to do this, I've decided to share a conversation I had for The Carbon Almanac Collective. This podcast is one of the podcasts built around The Carbon Almanac, a book of facts that will make it easier for ALL of us to talk about climate change.
I had the opportunity to contribute to The Carbon Almanac Project and am excited to share that the book will be published next week. To learn more, visit thecarbonalmanac.org.
Special thanks to Jennifer Myers Chua, Executive Producer of The Carbon Almanac Podcast Network, for allowing me to share this episode with you.
About Kalliopi
Kalliopi Monoyios is a visual creative dedicated to communicating the wonder of the natural world to a wide and varied audience. After graduating from Princeton University with a degree in geology, she built her career as a science illustrator for the prominent paleontologist Neil Shubin at The University of Chicago. Her scientific illustrations have appeared inside and on the covers of top peer-review journals such as Nature and Science as well as in four popular science books, including The New York Times best-seller, Your Inner Fish by Neil Shubin as well as his most recent, Some Assembly Required. In 2011, she co-founded Symbiartic, a blog covering the intersection of science and art for Scientific American. Since 2019, she has been on the Board of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, a group of professionals who communicate science through art, acting as President since 2020. Now, driven by the conviction that science communicators operating in all spheres are a critical part of creating a scientifically literate public, she is developing new avenues of public engagement with science via her own art and curated exhibits.
The Shubin Lab at the University of Chicago studies the great leaps in evolution by combining paleontology with cutting-edge molecular biology and genetics. Professor Shubin is also an author, frequent public speaker, and television host, having authored three popular non-fiction science books and hosted the PBS series Your Inner Fish (highly recommend!).
Patterns of Consumption, a solo exhibit of work by Kalliopi Monoyios, explores the complexity of our relationship with plastic with humor, beauty, and wonder. It is on view at the Littleton Museum in Littleton, CO now through June 26, 2022. An online artist's talk will be scheduled in May.
The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators (GNSI) is a 54-year-strong organization that began at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, USA. Today, they are a community of over 800 visual science communication professionals and enthusiasts worldwide. In addition to functioning as a generous and resourceful community of peers, they host the annual GNSI Visual SciComm Conference, publish the Journal of Natural Science Illustration, and run workshops and social events year-round, both in-person and online.
Ridwell, a company that specializes in keeping trash out of landfills by collecting hard to recycle items and finding local companies to either sustainably reuse or recycle them. (For the record, I don't get any perks for referring people to them beyond a cleaner world for us all!)
Sashiko Embroidery on Instagram
Symbiartic was a blog written by Kalliopi Monoyios, Glendon Mellow and Katie McKissick covering the intersection of science and art for Scientific American from 2011-2016. Select archives are still available here and here.
Blending art and science to help young learners establish a science identity.
A tabletop activity designed for a Pi Day event introduces students and families to Fibonacci and scientific illustration as a career path. This activity was adapted for classroom use by The Leonardo Principle. In this episode, we learn more about The Leonardo Principle from founding director, Sally Bensusen.
LINKS
The Leonardo Principle
Activities for developing observation skills
Vi Hart - Fibonacci, Doodling & Math
Science Identity Matters
Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World*
* Talaterra is a Bookstore affiliate. Commissions support the podcast.
Stephanie Rozzo is the founder and principal educator of Nature Sketch Crate, a subscription service that not only inspires interest in nature but supports people in their exploration of it. How did she build this subscription service?
Let's find out.
LINKS
www.naturesketchcrate.com
Nature Sketch Crate on Facebook
Nature Sketch Crate on Instagram
Nature Sketch Crate on YouTube
Nature Sketch Crate on Tiktok
Nature Sketch Crate on Twitter
Special coupon code for Talaterra listeners:
TALATERRA20
Use this code at www.naturesketchcrate.com to receive 20% off your first crate with a month-to-month purchase or 3 Month
prepay. Offer valid March 11, 2022 - April 29, 2022.
Be a guiding light.
Here is the link you need to lead.
Photo by Joshua Woroniecki on Unsplash
Sarah R. Johnson is a landscape-based environmental educator. As a freelance science educator, she is focused on climate change, public lands, watershed science, civics, and geography, and teaching and learning through her business, Wild Rose Education. She designs and facilitates educator professional development workshops, teaches public lands courses, teaches International Arctic Buoy Program STEM programs, and facilitates a Colorado cohort of climate change educators. Sarah has created and facilitated numerous environmental education programs including the award-winning Youth Water Leadership Program.
Sarah is currently a PolarTREC educator, Spirituality and EE eePro Group Moderator, Guidelines for Excellence eePro Group Moderator, and also a student of the Living School at the Center for Action and Contemplation. Sarah has been based in western Colorado working to protect rivers and public lands through education since 2004 where she enjoys playing outside during all seasons, gardening, and making music.
Follow Sarah’s Arctic Expeditions
Learn more about and join the U.S. ACE Coalition
Read more about Sarah’s UNFCCC COP26 experience through her blog.
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
More about Sarah and how she founded Wild Rose Education
Rebecca Rolnick is a naturalist, writer, and educator. She is the founder of Forest School-to-You and leads in-person and online programs for both K-12 students and adults. Rebecca also leads conversations about neurodiversity in environmental education.
What is neurodiversity?
Why is Rebecca inviting environmental educators to conversations about this topic?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
About me
Rebecca Rolnick: Naturalist | Writer | Educator
www.rebeccarolnick.com
IG: @forestschooltoyou
Youtube: Forest School-to-You
Recordings of Nature Journal Writing Workshops; other Nature Journaling videos
John Muir Law's Nature Journal Community Calendar
Includes my free class, Nature Journal “Writing Workshop Wednesdays”
Free mini-ebook “Science & Imagination: Exploring Words in Your Nature Journal”
Get notified when registration opens soon for “Nature Journaling for Re-STORY-ation Course, and free class coming soon “A World Full of Stories”:
Join the waitlist
_____________________________________________
Other Resources That I Like
Panel Discussion “Supporting Neurodivergent Students & Educators” NAAEE 2021
With Rebecca Rolnick, John Muir Laws, Sylvia Collazo, Katrina Thomas
Books mentioned in the podcast
- The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan by Ben Foss
- Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Kimmerer
- Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature by Jon Young, Ellen Haas, Evan McGown (forward by Richard Louv)
Autism Resources
Youtube Channels
Yo Samdy Sam
Chloe Haydn
Aspergers from the Inside
Mottron, Laurent. 2011. “The Power of Autism.” Nature 479 (7371): 33–35. https://doi.org/10.1038/479033a.
“...people with autism need opportunities and support more than they need treatment. As a result, my research group and others believe that autism should be described and investigated as a variant within the human species.….By emphasizing the abilities and strengths of people with autism, deciphering how autistics learn and succeed in natural settings, and avoiding language that frames autism as a defect to be corrected, [scientists] can help shape the entire discussion.”
ADHD
Youtube Channel: How to ADHD
ADHD “Under the Sea” Parody by The Holderness Family
Dyslexia
ARM Reports "Hard to Read: How American Schools Fail Kids with Dyslexia"
Scientific American: The Advantages of Dyslexia
_____________________________________________
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
What is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity: On the neurological underpinnings of geekdom (Harvey Blume, The Atlantic)
Episode 33: John Muir Laws, Community Building
Braiding Sweetgrass and other resources are available at Talaterra’s bookshop. Talaterra is a Bookshop.org affiliate and ten percent of each purchase goes towards the production of this podcast.
Today my guest is Mindi Rosser.
Mindi helps business owners and subject matter experts have conversations with their LinkedIn audience, peers, and prospects.
Mindi helps people establish a presence based on trust, authenticity, and consistency. I invited Mindi to talk about how independent professionals can establish credibility in their respective fields.
Joining us today is a panel of independent professionals representing STEM fields, photography, and storytelling.
You will hear from Mindi and me first. Then you will begin to hear from the guest panel.
Let’s join the conversation.
LINKS
Mindi Rosser helps B2B business owners, thought leaders, and subject matter experts to start having great conversations with their audience, prospects, and peers based on trust, authenticity, and consistency on LinkedIn. She's worked within the agency world, with startups, and then decided to branch out to work directly with business leaders on their social presence, building thought leadership and working with them to fill their pipelines with ideal clients using LinkedIn. As an entrepreneur, she values freedom and coloring outside the lines. She loves building systems that work on LinkedIn and testing them to generate results for her clients.
Mindi on LinkedIn
Mindi's LinkedIn Accelerator Waitlist
Mindi Rosser Marketing on Facebook
Mindi Rosser Marketing on YouTube
Mindi on Instagram
Mindi on TikTok
Special Thanks:
Maria Kauffman, Kauffman Institute
Maria is a Women’s Leadership Coach who helps women progress through successful career and business advancements with empowerment programs. Her signature Leadership Mastery Makeover coaching program uses the '5 Natural Steps to Advancement' to help women quickly go from Imposter to Impressive.
Maria on LinkedIn
Strategies Course for Empowered Women (free)
Laeti Golden, Laeti Photography
Laeti is a lifestyle photographer in Minneapolis who helps couples celebrate their love. With over 20 years of experience and a background in various types of photography, she enjoys helping people save their precious memories with each click of the camera's shutter. Her relaxed approach to each session places people at ease, allowing them to focus on their special moments. Her ability to recognize the uniqueness of her client's emotions, energy, approach to life, and their special occasion- ensures they will be comfortable and feel cared for during a photography session.
Laeti on LinkedIn
Laeti on Alignable
Laeti on Instagram
Diane Wyzga, Quarter Moon Story Arts
Diane coaches professional women who are ready to confidently convey their stories to be seen, heard, and understood. Diane is a story strategizer and founder of the Engaged Storyism Method.
What if you could discover your one true authentic voice to shape your personal or professional story, mission, or vision so you are seen, heard, understood, and listened to?
What if, indeed! If you have a desire to say what you mean and mean what you say, come as you are and change inside Quarter Moon Story Arts.
Stories From Women Who Walk
Diane on LinkedIn
Direct message Diane on LinkedIn
Contact Diane
Jim Folsom is the creator and host of @BotanyInContext, a fun and fascinating channel on TikTok about the plants we engage with and see in our daily lives. Jim is a teacher, a gardener, a botanist, and a cook who enjoys talking about plants. He is also Director Emeritus of the botanical gardens at The Huntington, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in Southern California. In this episode, Jim tells us about his TikTok channel, the 1,000-page botanical book he wrote, and what he would like the public to understand about plants.
LINKS
Botany In Context (website)
@BotanyInContext (TikTok)
A Botanical Reader (Apple Books)
Orthosiphon aristarus
Obedient Plant
Nesocodon (Gecko-pollinated flower)
Edward Lum
Tale of the Bean (TikTok)
Tale of the Bean (PDF download)
Glass Flowers at Harvard University
Why Plants and Gardens Matter
Dr. Marijke Hecht is an Assistant Professor at Penn State whose research of urban greenspaces involves the interaction between humans and more-than-human nature. In 2019 I read Dr. Hecht's paper about cultivating 21st-century naturalists. When I sat down with Dr. Hecht to discuss her research, she was then a doctoral candidate at the University of Pittsburgh. I am excited to share that Dr. Hecht's dissertation is now complete and has been published.
If you have an interest in identity development, out-of-school learning, informal science education, or curriculum design, consider reading Marijke’s dissertation. You’ll find a link in the show notes.
Before you dig in, listen to our conversation first. This will give you a solid introduction to Dr. Hecht's research.
LINKS
Marijke Hecht (Faculty Profile at Penn State)
Dr. Hecht's Dissertation (2020)
Dr. Brad McLain is a social scientist interested in the nature and psychology of identity development, learning, and leadership.
He is the Director of the Center for STEM Learning at the University of Colorado Boulder, and a Senior Researcher and Director of Corporate Research at the National Center for Women in Information Technology,
I reached out to Dr. McLain after reading a chapter he wrote about identity construction in informal science educators.
In this episode, we discuss identity theory. We discuss what informal science educators have in common with independent environmental education professionals, Dr. McLain’s work as chair of Dr. Jane Goodall’s US Roots & Shoots program, and his current research dedicated to the design of transformative experiences.
What is identity theory?
How do transformative experiences work?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Preparing Informal Science Educators (Book)
Informal Science Educator Identity Construction
Inspire Me: Dr. Brad McLain at TEDx Lincoln
Center for STEM Learning, University of Colorado Boulder
National Center for Women and Information Technology
Roots and Shoots
David Whyte, Poet
Dina Falconi and Wendy Hollender discuss how they wrote and illustrated their award-winning book, "Foraging and Feasting: A Field Guide to Wild Food Cookbook." They also discuss how they launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise money for their project.
Dina Falconi is a clinical herbalist, author, and teacher. Her specialty areas are food activism and nutritional healing.
Wendy Hollender is a botanical artist, illustrator, and author. She is one of the world's leading experts in using colored pencils and watercolor in detailed botanical illustrations.
LINKS
Foraging and Feasting: A Field Guide to Wild Food Cookbook (Botanical Arts Press)
Kickstarter Campaign
Foraging and Feasting on Instagram
Foraging and Feasting on Facebook
Dina Falconi on YouTube
WendyHollender.com
DrawBotanical.com
Wendy Hollender on YouTube
Talaterra on YouTube
Theme music for the podcast is provided by:
Jahzzar, So Far So Close, CC By 4.0 US (Episode 16 - onward)
Eleanor Chaney is a freelance artist and educator. She is also the founder and creative director of The Library of Nature, an online resource for children. In this episode, Eleanor and I discuss how her experience as a contemporary artist has informed her approach to art, nature, teaching, and learning. We also talk about Eleanor's exquisite paper sculptures, her enthusiasm for natural history books, and how she secured enough funding to launch her project.
LINKS
Eleanor's website
Sign up for Eleanor's free five-day mini-course
YouTube
The Library Of Nature:
Library of Nature Website
Library of Nature on Facebook
Library of Nature on Instagram
Special Thanks
Janice Benson for supporting Eleanor with her application for The Library Of Nature; Neil Mather for his help and support on the project, and Tullie House Museum and Gallery for their support on Eleanor's recent Hidden Natural Histories project.
Theme music for the podcast is provided by:
Jahzzar, So Far So Close, CC By 4.0 US (Episode 16 - onward)
Today my guest is Rebecca Kling.
Rebecca is an educator, performer, community organizer, storyteller, and advocate for social change.
Rebecca is also an advocate for transgender rights, is involved in the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign, and is the co-founder of Better World Collaborative, a trans, woman, and Latinx-owned consultancy rooted in social justice and the creative arts.
I met Rebecca in the pilot of the Earth Stories workshop that was hosted by StoryCenter. We learned about Earth Stories in the last episode.
The workshop was my introduction to her advocacy work, and how storytelling is a tool she uses throughout her work with individuals and organizations.
It is this aspect of her work that we will focus on today.
LINKS
RebeccaKling.com
Rebecca on Twitter (@RebeccaKling)
Better World Collaborative
Beyond Coal Initiative, Sierra Club
"Not Permanent" - A short film by Rebecca Kling, featured in the Earth Stories playlist by StoryCenter.
NEW! Storytelling for Advocacy, an interactive workshop with Rebecca Kling. (Learn More)
Today we are joined by Amy Hill, Yakuta Poonawalla, and Cassidy Villeneuve, creators, and facilitators of a new workshop experience at StoryCenter, the founders of the digital storytelling movement. I met Amy, Yakuta, and Cassidy while a student in the pilot of the Earth Stories workshop. This workshop focuses on the personal connections individuals have with the natural world.
In this conversation, Amy, Yakuta, Cassidy, and I talk about how this workshop was created, how digital storytelling can change peoples’ minds, and so much more.
LINKS
StoryCenter
View films from Earth Stories pilot
Frameworks Institute
Episodic vs. Thematic Stories
Paolo Friere
GUEST PROFILES
Amy Hill, StoryCenter
Amy is director of Silence Speaks, an initiative that works to bring personal stories into education and advocacy environments around women's rights and human rights. Amy also coordinates a lot of StoryCenter's social justice and environmental justice work.
Yakuta Poonawalla, Earth Stories Facilitator
Yakuta works at Golden Gate Parks Conservancy in San Francisco, CA, and feels extremely lucky and privileged to tell stories of the natural world and find ways to connect Bay Area communities to the natural world and parks in San Mateo and Marin counties.
Cassidy Villeneuve, Earth Stories Facilitator
Cassidy works at Frog Hollow Farm, a regenerative organic farm in California, and is interested in connecting experts, scientists, farmers, and individuals with expertise in climate solutions, to a broader audience through storytelling.
Susan B. Inches is an author, educator, and environmental advocate. In this episode, we discuss her career and new book, “Advocating for the Environment: How to Gather Your Power and Take Action.”
How did Susan become an independent advocate?
What is the difference between advocacy and direct action?
How can advocates connect with decision-makers?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Susan B. Inches - Author, Educator, Environmental Advocate
Pine Tree Amendment
Frameworks Institute
Buy "Advocating for the Environment" *
*Note: Talaterra is a Bookshop.org affiliate.
Theme music for the podcast is provided by:
Jason Shaw, Audionautix, CC By 3.0 US (Episodes 1 - 15)
Jahzzar, So Far So Close, CC By 4.0 US (Episode 16 - onward)
Scientific illustrator and science communicator, Gretchen Halpert, discusses how she entered the field of science illustration, shares a story about the time she demonstrated the value of drawing at a medical school, and tells us about the distance learning program she created for anyone interested in learning about scientific illustration.
LINKS
Scientific Illustration Distance Program
Guild of Natural Science Illustrators
Environmental and cultural educator, Miguel Cruz, prepares to launch environmental education programs in Mexico and to learn Otomi, his family's indigenous language.
LINKS
Miguel's YouTube channel - Nature, Culture, Nurture (@venconmige)
Facebook (@venconmige)
Instagram (@venconmige)
Miguel on LinkedIn
Information about ethnicity and language (Otomi)
Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival (AICLS)
AICLS Master Apprentice Program
Native-Land.ca
BEETLES
EE Forward Summit
Tami Cole and her family established Optimistic Orchard to create sustainable and healthy food systems in prisons.
How are they doing?
Let's find out.
__________
LINKS
Optimistic Orchard
Blooming Hope Project
Kiss the Ground
Photo Contest for a Cause (Regenerative Theme)
Flyers for photo contest and talent show
Legacy Alliance Outreach
Las Positas College
Legaseeds
This summer, I have the wonderful opportunity to be involved with projects addressing conversations around climate change. I couldn't do this work without revisiting the book "Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators" by Anne Armstrong.
Anne Armstrong is an author, an educator, and a Ph.D. student in the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell University.
She is also the mother of a young daughter who inspires her investigation into how environmental educators communicate climate change.
Anne stopped by to discuss her new book, "Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators."
What kind of field experiences inspired Anne to write her book?
How can environmental educators facilitate conversations about climate change?
What types of resources can educators use to develop programs about climate change?
Let’s find out.
(This is a remix of the original episode that was published on October 2, 2019.)
LINKS
Anne Armstrong
Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators ($19.95), Cornell University Press
Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators (Open Access), Cornell Open
Shore People Advancing Readiness for Knowledge (SPARK)
Iceberg Model of Culture
Claudia Diaz Carrasco, Intercultural Competence
National Network for Climate Change Interpretation (NNOCI)
Greta Thunberg’s Speech at U.N. Climate Action Summit, September 2019
Cornell Civic Ecology Lab
Rocking the Boat
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 1
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 2
North American Association for Environmental Education
EECapacity
Self-Efficacy: Confidence in your ability to achieve goals (Armstrong, 2018).
Free-Choice Learning
Climate Urban Systems Partnership (CUSP)
National Network for Ocean and Climate Change Information (NNOCCI)
Project WET
Frameworks Institute
Alliance for Climate Education
Drawdown
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
You're Invited! Let's talk about the purpose of environmental education
The Ecology School in Saco, Maine began as a seasonal outdoor camp in a rented facility. Today it is an established institution on a 105-acre working farm and is about to open two of the greenest buildings in the country for a residential environmental education center. How did founder Drew Dumsch and his colleagues turn an idea into The Ecology School?
Let's find out.
AN INVITATION
The Ecology School explores ways that we, as humans, can build communities that sustain the very ecosystems that in turn sustain us. Beginning in the Summer of 2021, with the opening of their new campus at River Bend Farm in Saco, Maine, The Ecology School is offering overnight summer camp experiences for both families and youth.
River Bend Farm Family Camp is now accepting applications for its July and October sessions. Listeners to the Talaterra podcast can receive 25% off the cost of River Bend Farm Family Camp by emailing info@theecologyschool.org and mentioning the podcast!
To learn more about The Ecology School, visit www.TheEcologySchool.org.
RESOURCES MENTIONED (plus a few extra!)
EcologyOnline.org - Online learning by The Ecology School
"Keepers of the Earth: Native American Stories and Environmental Activities for Children" by Joseph Bruchac and Michael Caduto.
"Sharing Nature with Children" by Joseph Cornell
Earth Education UK and Steve Van Matre
"Thinking in Systems" by Donella Meadows *
Alisa Gravitz, Green America
"Reading the Forested Landscape" by Tom Wessels *
"The Triple Focus: A New Approach to Education" by Daniel Golman & Peter Seng
International Living Future Institute
U.S. Green Building Council LEED Certification
Passive house design
Poland Spring Water
Chewonki
Schoodic Institute
Environmental Living and Learning for Maine (ELLM)
Association of Nature Center Administrators (ANCA)
* Affiliate link to Talaterra's shop at Bookshop.org. Talaterra receives a small percentage of each purchase made through this store. Proceeds support this podcast.
A recap of the first EE Forward Summit, a professional development and partnership-building event for independent environmental education professionals and community partners.
LINKS
Meghan McCarroll - What We Know About Water
What We Know About Water: A Water Literacy Review
Diane Wyzga - Communication and Story Skills
Rupu Gupta - Inclusive Approaches in Climate Resilience Partnerships
Erica Fielder - Designing Interpretive Displays About Watersheds
Don Smith - Food, Water & You (Kiss the Ground)
Mark & Crystal Mandica - The Amphibian Foundation
Alastair Duncan - StillWalks
Bethan Burton - Journaling with Nature
Our preoccupation with time has led to an affliction author Christian McEwen calls "hurry sickness." As we kick off a new summer season, here are three suggestions to help you wind down and leave timers and alerts behind.
LINKS
Christian McEwen
World Enough & Time: On Creativity and Slowing Down
The Alphabet of the Trees: A Guide to Naure doin.
Bethan Burton, International Nature Journaling Week
Bethan Burton, Building Bridges
Time.
Money.
Liveable wage.
To be taken seriously.
Be more visible.
More opportunities.
These are things independent educators have told me they want.
And this is only a partial list.
The items on this list and the items I’m not talking about today inform the work I do for The Freelance Condition and Lifelong Learning in Communities Project, as well as the other initiatives led at Talaterra.
This list of six items — time, money, livable wage, to be taken seriously, being more visible, and having more opportunities can be addressed by answering this question…
LINKS
Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work!
The Trailhead
View a recorded live stream conversation about the EE Forward Summit on a special pop-up edition of Creative on Purpose Live!
There’s a new event designed with the independent environmental education professional in mind.
What’s it about?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
More about the EE Forward Summit
During the past month, we’ve been able to learn about biophilic design and how graphic narratives can be used as effective learning tools.
My conversations with biophilic designer Sonja Bochart and illustrator Michi Mathias made me reflect on the conversation I had with Susan Chung in December 2019.
Susan is an illustrator with the Co-Design Group which is an association of architects, designers, and researchers in Canada. The Co-Design Group doesn’t design buildings, they design how life is lived in and around public spaces.
If you appreciate biophilic design and value the power of graphic narratives, you’ll want to listen to this conversation.
I hope you enjoy it.
LINKS
View links and images in the show notes at Talaterra.com.
Michi Mathias is an illustrator, author, and educator who creates informational illustrations to help people teach complicated concepts. She has written and illustrated short graphic narratives, a booklet about the science moments we experience every day, and a fun interactive comic about a day in the life of a freelance professional who is trying to get kids to school on time while getting work done. It is written in a “choose-your-own-adventure” type of format and is a lot of fun.
How did Michi begin her illustration and graphic novel practice?
How does she find the story in her projects?
How does she illustrate to inspire behavior change?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
MichiMathias.com
Michi on LinkedIn
Go behind-the-scenes of Michi’s book projects
Article about children, gardening, and comics.
Photosynthesis comic book
Scientific illustration hack for wiggly campers
Today we reflect on the green spaces where we live.
Beyond parks and gardens, we sometimes find green spaces inside buildings, between buildings, on tops of buildings, in parking lots, and in places, we may not expect to find them.
When we do find them, we may not recognize them as green spaces, yet we experience the restful changes in mood these spaces were designed to create.
Today we get to learn from Sonja Bochart, LEED-accredited independent professional whose expertise is in interior design, health and wellness, and regenerative design.
LINKS
Sonja Bochart Wellbeing+Design
Sonja on LinkedIn
Sonja on Twitter (@sonjabochart)
TEDx - How Buildings Can Make Us Better
Project for Public Spaces
Biophilic Cities
Stephen R, Kellert
Sally Bensusen is a former astronomer, a graphic designer, and a scientific illustrator. Her illustrations have been used by the National Science Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution, and Scientific American magazine.
In 2019 she retired as a graphic designer from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
Sally is the founding director of The Leonardo Principle, a new endeavor destined to become a library of STEAM activities focused on developing observation skills blending art and science.
What prompted Sally to create the Leonardo Principle?
How did she launch this initiative?
When did Sally's love of drawing begin?
Let's find out.
LINKS
The Leonardo Principle
Claudia Diaz-Carrasco discusses how she engages with Latinx youth in Southern California as the 4-H Youth Development Advisor for the University of California Extension. This episode originally aired in 2019. Since then, Claudia's community research has informed the work of many practitioners. At the end of this episode, I introduce a new resource based on Claudia's work.
LINKS
Overview of Guiding Principles for Engaging Latinx Youth
Dean Waye is a professional copywriter who helps independent professionals, small business owners, and corporations write copy for their respective initiatives. He also produces webinars as Chief Copywriter at WebinarGhostWriter.com. In today's episode, Dean and I talk about writing for LinkedIn, how to hold your audience's attention, and how to create online presentations. Dean shares valuable insight and resources environmental education professionals can use to develop presentations for their programs. As we enter another year in this new era of distance learning, you'll want to hear what Dean has to say about earning your audience's attention.
LINKS
Learn more from Dean at CMOWebinars.com
If environmental education organizations do not open by the end of 2020, it is estimated that 11 million children will miss out on outdoor learning opportunities. This statement comes from the policy brief created by the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California, Berkeley. This policy brief is titled "A Field at Risk: The Impact of COVID-19 on Environmental and Outdoor Science Education." This policy brief is the result of a survey that the Lawrence Hall of Science and its partners conducted in April of last year.
Nine hundred ninety-five organizations responded to this survey. These organizations included science centers, museums, nature centers, school districts, aquaria parks, government agencies, colleges, universities, and some Botanic gardens too.
The information in this brief is not encouraging. The research group estimated that in addition to the 11 million children who would be missing out on outdoor learning opportunities, the 995 participating organizations may lose $600 million in revenue. The research group also estimated that approximately 30,000 employees would be furloughed or laid off. And that 37% of the organizations surveyed would not reopen.
And if this wasn't bad enough, it was estimated that more than one-third of the field may disappear. The survey conducted by the Lawrence Hall of Science took into consideration the fate of organizations, their employees, and the people they serve. It did not look at how the pandemic was affecting independent professionals in the field.
In early summer, I began to look at this specific aspect myself.
LINKS
Talaterra
The Trailhead
The Freelance Project in "Legacy" magazine
A Field at Risk: The Impact of COVID-19 on Environmental and Outdoor Science Education
Sara Lynn Cramb is a designer and illustrator who creates illustrations for children’s books, apps, and other educational products. Sara’s clients include Scholastic, Nosy Crow, Silver Dolphin Books, Cambridge University Press, and the Akron Zoo.
Through her work, she introduces young learners to the world outside their doors. She also teaches them about human biology, geography, molecules, and more.
Sara’s Nature Coloring Pages caught my eye and I reached out to her to learn more about them.
Sara has worked as a freelance professional for more than 7 years. In today’s episode, I speak with her about her work and how she built her career.
LINKS
Sara Lynn Creative
Nature Activity Sheets by Sara
Sara's Red Bubble Store (magnets, stickers, children's clothes, and more)
Sara on Instagram (@saralynncreative)
Welcome to the new year and to part two of our look at some of the themes that have emerged from my conversations with guests of this podcast.
I have had the good fortune to interview more than 40 guests since launching the podcast two years ago this month. Guests have come from many fields. What they share in common is their commitment to nurturing peoples’ relationship with the outdoors and their status as independent professionals.
In the previous episode, we took a look at guests’ earliest memories of enjoying nature.
Today we’ll hear guests talk about the moment nature became important to them.
LINKS
Rayma Peterson
Dr. Marijke Hecht
John Muir Laws
Tina Demirdjian
Dr. Stephanie Dole
Since launching the podcast, I've had the opportunity to learn from 43 wonderful guests. Along the way, I started asking guests questions about their earliest experiences with nature. I also started to ask guests when it was that nature became important to them. These became the show's signature questions.
In this episode, we reflect on themes emerging from guest responses to the question:
What is your earliest memory of enjoying nature?
LINKS
Kate Field
Dr. Kathayoon Khalil
Katura Reynolds
Crystal Mandica
Bethan Burton
John Muir Laws
Talaterra on Twitter (@Talaterra)
Nicole Felts is a biologist and ecologist by training and has a Bachelor's degree in biology and a Master's degree in geography and environmental systems. Nicole is also the co-founder and principal educator at Felts Family Farmette, a suburban farm she founded with her parents just as the pandemic began to change our lives. Nicole shares how she navigated her first year in business and talks about what she needs to learn next.
If you've ever thought about starting an urban farm, bringing fresh and nutritious food to your community, and serving as an educational resource, you'll want to listen to Nicole's story.
How did Nicole position herself for success?
How did she decide on which farmer's market to join?
What does five-star customer service look like to her?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Felts Family Farmette on Instagram (@feltsfamilyfarmette)
Felts Family Farmette on Facebook (@feltsfamilyfarmette)
Do you have questions about starting your own small urban farm? Nicole has generously offered to respond to questions from listeners.
Overlea Farmers Market
Maryland Farmers Market Association
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Dr. Lee Ann Woolery is a researcher, naturalist, educator, and artist. She is also the founder of EcoArt Expeditions and the Citizen Artist project. In this episode, Dr. Woolery and I discuss her interdisciplinary approach to ecological field research and the Train-the-Trainer pilot program that will launch in the new year.
LINKS
EcoArts Expeditions
Art-Based Perceptual Ecology
Knowing the Language of Place Through the Arts
Dr. Woolery's publications on ResearchGate
Contact Dr. Woolery
Maria Sibylla Merian, Smithsonian Institution
Students in the United States like studying animals more than plants.
People tend not to pay attention to the plants in their surroundings.
These are only two factors contributing to a condition described as "plant blindness" in the botany and science education literature. In this episode, I speak with Dr. Elisabeth Schussler, one of the two botanists who coined the phrase in 1999. I also speak with Kathryn Parsley, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Memphis, whose specialty is botanical literacy. In a paper written for the journal "Plants People Planet," Kathryn makes a case for replacing the phrase "plant blindness" with Plant Awareness Disparity. Find out why formal and informal educators should consider doing the same.
LINKS
Links to Kathryn Parsley's websites and projects
Dr. Elisabeth Schussler, University of Tennessee
Article - Plant Awareness Disparity: A Case for Renaming Plant Blindness
Article - Preventing Plant Blindness
Botanical Society of America
American Society of Plant Biologists
Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary (Harris & Harris)
Ed Yong, Science Journalist
Besley Framework
Episode 47: Kathryn Parsley, Plant Blindness
The Trailhead is the newest initiative by Talaterra. It is an open forum for independent professionals working in environmental education. Learn more about this initiative and The Freelance Condition and Lifelong Learning in Communities project.
LINKS
The Trailhead
Talaterra
Share Your Story
Today my guest is Dr. Kathayoon Khalil, conservation and education professional and the Conservation Impact Manager at the Oregon Zoo. Dr. Kahlil is all the co-author of "Practical Evaluation for Conservation Education and Outreach: Assessing Impacts and Enhancing Effectiveness."
In my conversation with Dr. Khalil, we discuss why conservation is a people problem and not an animal problem. We talk about sociology, biology, anthropomorphism, and teaching in informal learning environments.
What role does empathy play in environmental education?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Kathayoon Kahlil on LinkedIn
Society for Conservation Biology
Effective Practices for Fostering Empathy Towards Marine Life
Measuring Empathy: Collaborative Assessment Project
Plants as Persons: A Philosophical Botany*
Practical Evaluation for Conservation Education and Outreach*
The People Problem: Including Social Sciences in Wildlife Conservation
Lightning Talk at Seattle Aquarium (Death of Tahlequah)
*Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org
Social media image of octopus by Jeahn Laffitte on Unsplash
Rayma Peterson is a botanist, artist, and author. Her new book, "Very Fine Art Projects for Artists and Educators," features 29 projects perfect for classroom teachers, educators working in informal learning environments, and parents leading homeschool programs.
Why did Rayma create this book of projects?
How did she establish herself as a freelance artist and educator?
How does she hope to guide people’s understanding of the outdoors with this book and upcoming books?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Rayma Peterson's website
American Society of Botanical Artists
Rayma's Studio
Alberta Native Plant Council
Very Fine Art Projects for Artists and Educators
Treaty Six
Albrecht Durer’s “Great Piece of Turf”
Contact Rayma
Sometimes I have the good fortune to visit with a past guest to find out how they are doing. Recently I had the opportunity to visit with Bethan Burton. Bethan and I spoke earlier this year when she was busy preparing for International Nature Journaling Week. It was March and global state-at-home orders were just beginning to be implemented. I reached out to Bethan to find out how things were going for her.
How did International Nature Journaling Week go?
What is Bethan working on now?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Journaling with Nature (Bethan’s website)
Journaling with Nature Podcast
Wild Wonder Virtual Nature Journal Conference (Oct. 7-11, 2020)
Brisbane Nature Journal Club
Amy Kirkbright, Melbourne Nature Journal Club
Art & Fear*
*Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org.
Today, my guest is Darrel Griffin. Darrel is a LinkedIn strategist who helps business owners and freelance professionals attract new clients. I had the opportunity to learn from Darrel last year and reached out to him to see if he had time to discuss how freelance environmental educators can use LinkedIn during this time.
How should environmental education professionals present themselves on LinkedIn?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Policy Brief: A Field at Risk
Darrel Griffin on LinkedIn
Darrel’s website
Request Darrel’s LinkedIn Handbook
View transcript while listening
Kathryn Owen is an independent evaluator who helps zoos, aquariums, nature centers, and conservation groups assess the effectiveness of their exhibitions, programs, and initiatives. She has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than 20 years.
I reached out to Kathryn because I wanted to speak with her about doing evaluation in the kind of community settings where freelance educators often work — settings such as an environmental education fair, a neighborhood conference, or some other community event.
How many ways are there to evaluate the impact of brief interactions at community events?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Email Kathryn Owen
Kathryn Owen (LinkedIn)
Kathryn offers free one-hour phone consults and is happy to offer feedback and suggestions on evaluating your programs.
Helpful resources for those seeking more about evaluation include:
My Environmental Education Evaluation Resource Assistant is an online tool that takes you step-by-step through the process of designing and implementing your own evaluation.
The Visitor Studies Association is a professional organization for anyone engaged or interested in visitor research and evaluation.
Informalscience.org offers a large archive of current and past evaluation reports from projects in the field of informal learning. Skim through the reports in the Evaluation section, and you’ll see what kinds of evaluation tools and approaches others have used to measure the outcomes you’re interest in.
North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE)
Practitioner Guide to Assessing Connections to Nature
Institute for Learning Innovation
American Evaluation Association
Poll Everywhere
Alastair Duncan is an award-winning artist and educator who uses sound to interpret place. As founder and director of StillWalks he develops interactive projects that promote understanding of place and the outdoors.
How does Alastair create StillWalks projects?
What has he learned about sound?
How does he work with schools, community organizations, a local prison, and immigration services?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
StillWalks
StillWalks on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@stillwalks)
Viewing Nature Scenes Positivity Affects Recovery of Autonomic Function Following Acute-Mental Stress
View Through a Window May Influence Recovery from Surgery
From Orange to Blue: How Nature Imagery Affects Inmates in the “Blue Room”
High Tide Birds soundtrack, courtesy of StillWalks®, all rights reserved.
Correction:
Near the end at 49:11, when talking about research, Alastair mentioned the University of Exeter. He intended to say the University of Essex.
Thank you for listening.
If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with friends and colleagues and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (Click on “Listen on Apple Podcasts.”). Your review brings attention to the significant contributions independent environmental education professionals make to the field and society.
Katura Reynolds is an Interpretive Content Developer and scientific illustrator. She has worked in exhibit design since 1997 and has created learning environments at museums such as The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Garden, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, and most recently Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, WA.
She is especially interested in bilingual and bi-cultural content development and community-based social marketing.
How did Katura learn to design bilingual learning environments?
What recommendations does she have for us?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Scribbiling Science
Best practices for the design of bilingual museum graphics (NISE Network)
Translation Process Guide (NISE Network)
Bilingual Exhibit Research Initiative (BERI), diving into how folks use bilingual graphics in museums.
Roots of Wisdom Legacy Document, with insights on cross-cultural collaborations.
View transcript
Thank you for listening.
If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with friends and colleagues and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (Click on “Listen on Apple Podcasts.”). Your review brings attention to the significant contributions independent environmental education professionals make to the field and society.
Kate Field is a co-founder of Leap Farm, a 300-acre award-winning family farm in Tasmania. Together with her husband, Kate implements regenerative farming techniques to produce their signature cheese and to raise goats and cattle.
Kate is also the host and producer of “The Curious Farmer” podcast in which she explores the topic of regenerative agriculture.
How did Kate and her husband come to own their independent farm?
What changes to the land have they observed since taking an ecological approach to farming?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Leap Farm
The Curious Farmer
Thank you for listening.
If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with friends and colleagues and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (Click on “Listen on Apple Podcasts.”). Your review brings attention to the significant contributions independent environmental education professionals make to the field and society.
Next week Talaterra Cowork will host Breakthrough! - Purpose of Environmental Education.
This Breakthrough! session will be the first of many monthly conversations to encourage dialogue between independent professionals working in fields related to environmental education and their colleagues.
This month’s topic was inspired by papers I read by Dr. Rupu Gupta and her colleagues. Last year I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Gupta for the podcast. Dr. Gupta’s specialty is conservation psychology. She studies why people have an interest in nature, why they don’t, what motivates them to take care of nature, and what barriers prevent people from caring for the environment.
This week we revisit my conversation with Dr. Gupta because next week’s Breakthrough! session is informed and inspired by her work and the research tool she helped create at Knology.
I hope you enjoy learning about Dr. Rupu’s research and that you consider participating in next week’s Breakthrough! conversation.
LINKS
Knology.org
More about Dr. Rupu Gupta
Let’s Talk: What to you is the purpose of environmental education?
Transcript: Ep60, What is Environmental Education for?
Social media photo by Marleen Mulder-Wieske on Unsplash
The future of work is uncertain.
What does this mean to independent professionals like you and me?
We can talk about it if you want.
How?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Talaterra
When Every Aspect of Your Museum Job Has Changed, How Do You Move Forward?
International Nature Journaling Week
Last week I had the opportunity to meet with a group of environmental educators. Participants logged in from California, Oregon, Wisconsin, Maine, Mexico, and Costa Rica.
What did I learn?
What is Talaterra’s next initiative for freelance environmental professionals?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Register for Breakthrough! - Purpose of EE
Practitioners’ perspectives on the purpose of environmental education
Transcript: Ep 58, Announcing Breakthrough!
“(A) lack of environmental education opportunities in our daughters’ elementary school.”
“Through work I was doing with scientific journals and museum publications.”
“(An) internship with an organic farm through school.”
These are only a few of the responses I received to the question:
How did you start working in the field of informal education?
I included this question in the survey I used in the early days of The Freelance Project.
What else did I learn?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Freelancing in Environmental Education
This week we meet up with Mark and Crystal Mandica, founders of The Amphibian Foundation. When Mark and Crystal launched the Foundation in 2016, they had to get creative when it came to funding because a federal startup grant they were counting on did not come through. They hit the ground running and turned their Foundation into what it is today. Because of the current COVID-19 pandemic, they once again find themselves having to fund themselves creatively.
After listening to the original episode (aired December 18, 2019), you’ll hear the conversation I had with Mark and Crystal earlier this week. They have exciting new updates to share, so be sure to stick around to find out what’s new.
How is The Amphibian Foundation growing their network?
What is their new initiative for families?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
The Amphibian Foundation
Amphibian Foundation Membership
Critter Camp Worldwide
Alice Merry is a co-founder of Museo Wak'a, a pop-up participatory museum delighting communities in Lima, Peru. I spoke with Alice to learn more about Museo Wak'a and how it contributes to lifelong learning in communities.
Alice and co-founder Gustavo Florez Salcedo and team member Rolando Flores Vega launched Museo Wak'a three years ago in a garage after a flood. Since then, they received a grant from the Royal Society of Arts, formed partnerships with museums, and won the hearts of residents.
How did Museo Wak'a develop partnerships with traditional museums?
What has been Waka's most successful approach to sponsorships?
What's next for this community-oriented museum?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Museo Wak'a: A New Kind of Museum
Museo Wak'a on Facebook
Event photos on Facebook
Our First Few Interviews: Heritage, Shame, and Food
More Interviews: Make an Event of It
Alice on LinkedIn
Alice's podcast about women and financial inclusion (The Feminist Finance Podcast)
Data for Visitor-serving Organizations
A Beautiful Constraint
Janice Kelley is an author and the founder of an afterschool program called Nature Detectives. This week we revisit my conversation with Janice because she recently launched a podcast series based on her book, Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge. Today's episode begins with our discussion about her new podcast, followed by an in-depth conversation about her book and afterschool program. Our in-depth interview first aired on March 7, 2019.
What's the story behind the book Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge?
How did Janice create and grow Nature Detectives?
Where does she want to take the program?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Nature Legacies (Janice’s website)
Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge podcast
Nature Detectives
Mornings on Fair Oaks Bridge: Watching Wildlife at the Lower American River
Through the Eyes of John Muir: Practices in Environmental Stewardship
Tina Demirdjian is a poet, author, and teacher. Tina uses poetry and creative strategies to build sustainable partnerships. In this episode, Tina helps us see how poetry can be used to view the world in new and creative ways.
How does Tina use poetry as a tool for community building?
How does she work with multi-generational audiences?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Poetry Consults
Tina on Instagram
Two Dying Bees (poem)
Worm Biology (poem)
Mid-Afternoon (poem)
Talaterra on Poetry: Use Poetry to Engage with Your Subject, Your Audience, and Yourself
While reviewing survey results collected in the early stage of The Freelance Project, I was struck by the questions about place and responses educators provided. I know it is our current challenge with the coronavirus that made them stand out. The world was different back then.
I did read something in the survey that encouraged me, though.
LINKS
Talaterra
Donna Cravotta is the founder and CEO of Social Pivot PR. Donna's passion is to inspire people to rethink their approach to social media. I invited Donna to the show today because she achieved the impossible. She got me to see that social media isn't just junk and noise. It is possible to engage with social media thoughtfully and purposefully, and with generosity.
I had one question on my mind when I reached out to Donna. It was:
How can freelance environmental educators and interpreters use social media to move themselves forward while separated from the people they serve?
What did she say?
Let's find out.
LINKS
SocialPivot PR
Donna on LinkedIn
Donna on Facebook
Donna on Twitter
Donna on Instagram
Donna’s Visibility Workshops (use code gathersale, one sale $75 each)
Podcasts: Before, During & After the Interview
Media: Pitch & Position Yourself to Land Media
From the Stage: Speak to Your Audience
Gather Masterclass - 4-hour LIVE virtual workshop (use gatherjd for 20% off)
HARO
TweetDeck
Later.com
eClincher
SmarterQueue
Bethan Burton is a teacher, avid nature journaler, and founder of International Nature Journaling Week, an online global celebration occurring June 1-7, 2020.
When did Bethan decide to make journaling her career?
How does she teach nature journaling to toddlers?
What is International Nature Journaling Week all about?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Journaling with Nature (Bethan's website)
Bethan on Instagram (@journalingwithnature)
International Nature Journaling Week
Alfred Russel Wallace
The Sketchbook Project at Brooklyn Art Library
As some of you already know, last week I opened the doors to Talaterra Cowork, the coworking space that was established for independent professionals working in our field. If you are an independent professional working in environmental education, natural resource fields, nature, and heritage interpretation or in really any field, where through your work, you connect people with nature, this coworking space is for you.
How do you find "the others?"
This question was the focus of a conversation I had earlier this morning.
Today I had the opportunity to participate in the Ruckus Makers Roundtable, hosted by Scott Perry, Chief Difference Maker at Creative on Purpose. Scott is currently hosting a series of conversations with individuals from ForwardLink, the alumni community created by Seth Godin. Joining me on the call was Penny Harris, founder of Mission Centered Fundraising. Some of the things Scott, Penny, and I spoke about are who the "others" are, how we move ourselves forward, what we're regularly shipping, and what to do when your audience changes. I'm not going to fill you in with all the details. Instead, I'd like to invite you to listen in on our conversation. You'll find the link to this morning's session in the show notes.
Thank you for stopping by the podcast today. See you next week.
LINKS
Ruckus Makers Roundtable: How do you "find the others?"
Creative on Purpose
Akimbo Workshops
Kathryn Parsley is a Ph.D. candidate whose specialty is plant blindness and botanical literacy. She is creating tools to asses plant blindness in students and hopes to make her tools available to teachers for use in any learning environment.
Why did Kathryn choose to study plant blindness?
What are her tools about?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Kathryn's website
Validity and Reliability of the Plant Blindness Index (PBI) and the Botanical Literacy Inventory (BLI)
Analyzing Plant and Animal Images in Undergraduate Biology Textbooks
The Plant Blindness Problem
Sabel Lab at University of Memphis
Center for Biodiversity at the University of Memphis
Kathryn's Plantae Fellow profile
Kathryn on LinkedIn
Kathryn on Twitter
Kathryn on Instagram
Toward a Theory of Plant Blindness
Erica Fielder is the owner of Erica Fielder Studio, an interpretive studio that creates interpretive displays for parks and visitor centers. Erica has worked with over 50 creative partners during the studio’s 30-year history and has guided the production of almost 1,400 interpretive displays.
How did Erica become a designer of interpretive panels?
How does she prepare watercolor paintings for her panels?
How does Erica begin conversations with prospective clients?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Erica Fielder Studio
Sam H. Ham•
Freeman Tilden •
Jug Handle Creek Farm & Nature Center
Maraya Cornell on Twitter
National Association for Interpretation (NAI)
North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE)
Pannier Graphics - Outdoor Signage and Exhibit Bases
iZone Imaging - Custom Signs and Environmental Graphics
Talaterra is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. If you choose to purchase a book through a link on any of Talaterra’s websites, Talaterra receives a small percentage from each sale.
Episode 45: Introducing Freelance EE
February 20, 2020
Tania Marien 0:00
Freelance environmental education? That's a thing? Yes, it is. I've had more than one conversation with people who weren't aware that freelance environmental educators existed. And this is one of the handful of reasons why I started the freelance project, this podcast and the coworking space. Today I'm introducing a new element to the podcast. I'm calling it Freelance EE.
Share your specialty
Learn more about the podcast and Talaterra Cowork at Talaterra.com.
Today’s episode addresses this question:
How can freelance educators learn to engage with diverse audiences and develop intercultural competence?
This question kicked off my conversation with Claudia Diaz-Carrasco. This episode is one of the most listened to episodes to date. It first aired in March 2019.
Make sure you stick around until the very end so you don’t miss the special announcement.
LINKS
Talaterra Mailing List for Freelance Educators
Transcript to Episode 9: Claudia Diaz Carrasco, Intercultural Competence
Hello and welcome to February.
How is your year going?
Has it been nonstop busy since the holidays?
For me this year, January went the same way it went last year — busy, busy, busy — but lots of good things are happening, so no complaints.
The events of the past month made me think about our fast-moving world and how it really isn’t a surprise that people don’t notice their surroundings. I then switched to thinking about myself and how I might make myself slow down. Then I thought about my conversation with Kimberly Beck, one of the first guests on this podcast. Kimberly is an environmental educator and psychotherapist at Relational Rewilding Nature Guiding. Here Kimberly offers rewilding programs and nature therapy. I thought about what she does in her programs and found myself wishing that Colorado wasn’t so far away.
If you've been wishing for more quiet moments and have been looking for more stillness for you and for your audience, I recommend listening to this episode to find out how Kimberly incorporates stillness and guides the participants in her programs.
Enjoy.
LINKS
Relational Rewilding Nature Guiding
Follow Kimberly on Facebook
Is encouraging gratitude an antidote for materialism? (article)
Not a Stick (children’s book)
This week’s episode is about the launch of Talaterra Cowork, a coworking space for freelance environmental educators. What’s it all about?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Talaterra Cowork (cowork.talaterra.com)
Transcript: Ep42 Talaterra Cowork
Margaret Best is an award-winning contemporary botanical artist and a respected teacher. Her work can be viewed in books, catalogs, magazines, public and private collections, and on coins distributed by the Royal Canadian Mint.
How did Margaret stumble into this genre?
What life experience prepared Margaret for the specialty she’s become known for?
How does botanical art differ from flower painting?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Margaret Best’s website
Margaret on Instagram (@margaretbest8904)
Margaret on Facebook
Ann Swan
Pandora Sellars
Coral Guest
American Society of Botanical Artists
Out of the Woods Exhibition
Botanical Art and Artists
Plant Blindness
Margaret Best Designs Wild Rose for Royal Canadian Mint
Margaret Best Discusses Color in Botanical Art, Provides Tips for Informal Science Educators
The Blue of the Artist’s Ocean, an article for Environmental Education Week by Margaret Best
Marijke Hecht is a doctoral candidate in Learning Sciences and Policy at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research is focused on how people learn about nature outside of the classroom. I shared her paper, “Becoming a Naturalist,” this past summer (see Episode 21).
What has Marijke learned about how a naturalist identity develops?
How can guest educators contribute to an outdoor program?
What drives learning ecosystems in the informal sector? What should be driving them instead?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
View Marijke’s research
Follow Marijke on Twitter (@marijkehecht)
Visit the UPCLOSE lab at the University of Pittsburgh
iNaturalist
Episode 21: Cultivating Naturalists
Transcript: Ep40, Marijke Hecht, Developing a Naturalist Identity
Hello and Happy New Year.
Almost one year ago, in January 2019, I launched this podcast. Launching this podcast was both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. I wanted so much to move my project forward, but at the same time was very unsure about hearing my own voice out in the world. When I published the trailer for this show, it was the first time that I spoke my intention out loud outside of my group of podcasting peers and colleagues. Since then, I've had the opportunity to interview amazing educators and researchers, people who've picked themselves to create change in their communities. But since today is January 1, and as this week is a time of reflection, I wanted to reflect on how my podcasting journey began. And I wanted to do this by revisiting my very first interview, which was with scientific illustrator Gretchen Halpert, founder of the Science Illustration Distance Program. If you heard this interview a year ago, thank you so much for being on this journey with me. If you haven't heard this interview before, sit back and relax as you learn how scientific illustration is being used in science communication.
Mark and Crystal Mandica founded the Amphibian Foundation in 2016. The Foundation focuses on the conservation of amphibians in the southeastern region of the United States. Mark and Crystal also lead educational initiatives that facilitate conversations addressing the global amphibian extinction crisis.
How did Mark and Crystal build The Amphibian Foundation to what it is today?
What is their philosophy about community building?
What is critter camp for adults?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Amphibian Foundation
The Amphibian Foundation on Facebook
The Amphibian Foundation on Twitter
The Amphibian Foundation on Instagram
Frog.life Store
Donation page for The Amphibian Foundation
Urban Kings Citizen Science Project
Blue Heron Nature Preserve
Famous Frog Toughie Dies, Sending Species to Extinction
Taking Stock of Hurricane Michael's Effects on Rare Wild Animals
Steve Heatherington is an alpaca shepherd and co-owner of Welsh Valley Alpacas in Wales. Steve manages a large herd of alpacas and offers support services to alpaca owners, as well as workshops for individuals interested in owning alpacas. Steve welcomes the public to his farm and provides immersive learning experiences for visitors.
Steve also provides learning opportunities through his podcast. To “visit” the farm yourself, visit Steve and the alpacas on Instagram. There’s a link in the show notes.
How did Steve become an alpaca shepherd?
What is his podcast about?
What's next for this 21st-century shepherd?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Welsh Valley Alpacas
Alpaca Tribe podcast
The Waterside
Susan Chung is an experienced co-design artist and a science educator. Her specialty areas are environmental education and intergenerational mentorship.
Her work promoting architecture as ecological education that helps youth respond creatively to ecological challenges has been recognized by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada.
Susan teaches youth about sustainable design and has organized fairs, forums, and conferences for youth, parents, and the public.
How was Susan introduced to co-design?
What happens during a co-design session?
How does Susan involve youth in the design of sustainable communities?
LINKS
Co-Design Youth Manual Website
Youth Co-Design Workshops (PDF) - Workshop summary by the city of Vancouver for their planning of False Creek South.
Co-Design: A Process of Design Participation. 1989. Stanley King, Merinda Conley, Bill Latimer, Drew Ferrari. New York, NY: Van Nostrand Reinhold (9780442233334)
Correction to audio: The authors of the co-design book are Stanley King, Merinda Conley, Bill Latimer, and Drew Ferrari. Search for the book at your favorite used-book dealer.
Robson Square Project (click on "History" tab)
Robson Square Information
UNICEF Child Friendly Cities Initiative
Urban Native Youth Association
View illustration from my co-design session with Susan
The Freelance Condition and Lifelong Learning in Communities project experienced a lot of growth this year. Week by week, the number of episode downloads has increased. The number of newsletter subscribers has too, and while these metrics matter to some, the metric that matters the most to me is the number of face-to-face conversations I get to have with educators.
Click on "Transcripts" to view the transcript for this episode.
Today my guests are the author and illustrator of the award-winning book "Foraging & Feasting: A Field Guide and Wild Food Cookbook."
Dina Falconi is a clinical herbalist, author, and teacher. Her focus is on food activism and nutritional healing.
Wendy Hollender is a botanical artist, illustrator, author, and instructor.
Together Dina and Wendy own Botanical Arts Press, a publishing company formed to handle all aspects of the marketing and distribution of their book and related products.
How long has Dina worked on this cookbook?
How did Dina and Wendy create the contents of this book?
How did they launch a successful Kickstarter campaign without having an extensive online presence?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Botanical Arts Press
WendyHollender.com
DrawBotanical.com
Foraging & Feasting on Facebook
Foraging & Feasting on Twitter
Foraging & Feasting on Instagram
John Muir Laws is a scientist, educator, and author whose books and workshops help people forge personal connections with nature. A trained wildlife biologist, John has inspired nature journalers across the globe.
What generous act launched John's freelance career?
What's the key reason why people don't keep a nature journal?
What is John's next book about?
Let's find out.
LINKS
John Muir Laws’ website
The Nature Journal Club Public Group | Facebook
Join John’s mailing list
Alasdair Plambeck is a retreat leader, coach, and founder of RippleOut Retreats. He and his team lead transformational travel experiences enriching people’s connection to nature and place.
Why did Alasdair leave the California startup scene to travel the world?
Why did he create RippleOut Retreats?
How does he facilitate connections between people and nature?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Alasdair Plambeck’s website
RippleOut Retreats
The FAR OUT Podcast
Leave No Trace
Dr. Stephanie Dole is a scientist, educator, researcher and the founder of Beetlelady.
Through programs taught at schools, libraries, birthday parties, and corporate events, Stephanie introduces the public to insects and the field of entomology.
Stephanie has extensive field experience collecting and studying insects and brings her expertise to her public programs.
What kind of research has Stephanie completed?
How did she start Beetlelady?
How is she expanding her programs?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Beetlelady
Bohart Museum of Entomology at UC Davis
Taxon Expeditions
Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference Schedule
Pollinator Week
Pollinator Syndromes
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
The Talaterra podcast goes to the Wild & Scenic Film Festival On Tour to introduce festival-goers to the work of freelance environmental educators.
While at the festival, I had the opportunity to interview three people in-between my conversations with the public.
What did I learn from the people I interviewed during the event?
What did this experience teach me about community building?
Let's find out.
LINKS
Inland Empire Waterkeeper
Talaterra Handout w/QR Codes
Wild & Scenic Film Festival
Inland Empire Resource Conservation District
Western Riverside Council of Governments
Monster Media
Prints on Wood
Inland Empire Kids Outdoors
Mindy Lighthipe is a nature artist and the author and illustrator of The Art of Botanical and Bird Illustration and Mother Monarch, a children’s book about the life cycle of the monarch butterfly.
Her work is featured in the book Today’s Botanical Artists, a book about North American botanical artists and on a set of oracle cards about nature’s wisdom.
Mindy is also an award-winning artist. In 2009, her series titled Symbiosis received a silver-gilt medal from the Royal Horticulture Society.
How did Mindy develop her freelance career?
How does she help her students tell their story?
Why does she lead trips to Costa Rica?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Mindy Lighthipe
Journey to the Heart of Creativity in Costa Rica
Holbrook Travel
Wanderlust Entrepreneur
Nature’s Wisdom Oracle Cards
The Art of Botanical and Bird Illustration
Mother Monarch
Today’s Botanical Artists
New York Botanic Garden Botanical Art & Illustration Program
Royal Horticultural Society
Vicky Earle - An Artist’s Journey for Conservation
Guild of Natural Science Illustrators (GNSI)
American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA)
ArtPlantae
Anne Armstrong is an author, an educator, and a Ph.D. student in the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell University.
She is also the mother of a three-year-old daughter who inspires her investigation into how environmental educators communicate climate change.
Anne stopped by to discuss her new book, Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators.
What kind of field experiences inspired Anne to write her book?
How can environmental educators facilitate conversations about climate change?
What types of resources can educators use to develop programs about climate change?
Let’s find out.
LINKS
Anne Armstrong
Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators ($19.95), Cornell University Press
Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators (Open Access), Cornell Open
Shore People Advancing Readiness for Knowledge (SPARK)
Iceberg Model of Culture
Claudia Diaz Carrasco, Intercultural Competence
National Network for Climate Change Interpretation (NNOCI)
Greta Thunberg’s Speech at U.N. Climate Action Summit, September 2019
Cornell Civic Ecology Lab
Rocking the Boat
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 1
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 2
North American Association for Environmental Education
EECapacity
Self-Efficacy: Confidence in your ability to achieve goals (Armstrong, 2018).
Free-Choice Learning
Climate Urban Systems Partnership
Project WET
Frameworks Institute
Alliance for Climate Education
Drawdown
The article A Learning Pathway to an Integrated Approach Involving Natural, Applied and Social Science, Humanities and Arts to Face Climate Change by Stephano Alessandri was written for non-scientists, scholars, students, and scientists whose fields do not involve the study of climate.
Alessandri, Stefano. (2019). A learning pathway to an integrated approach involving natural, applied and social science, humanities and arts to face climate change. Sustainability: The Journal of Record. 12(4): 199 - 214. Retrieved from https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/sus.2018.0040
LINKS
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 1
Building Community with Dr. Rupu Gupta, Part 2
Kellie Cox is a landscape designer, botanical muralist, and teacher who encourages an interest in horticulture, gardening, and native plants through public art.
How does Kellie get her projects?
What type of community partnerships has she formed?
Where can you see Kellie's art in person?
Let's find out.
Related Links
- KellieCox.com
- Ithaca Murals
- Mt. Cuba Native Plant Program
- Hatchfund.org - Crowdfunding for artists
- Ginkgo Gardens
Producer: Julie-Roxane Krikorian
The problem most students seem to have is that they see nature as “Other.” Nature is a tourist destination, a place on the map, something saved by buying and selling crunchy candy. They rarely understand that they themselves might actually be a part of it.
``` — Christian McEwen and Mark Statman
```
The Alphabet of the Trees: A Guide to Nature Writing is a collection of essays written by nature writers, poets, fiction writers, and educators. Editors Christian McEwen and Mark Statman published this book for teachers because they wanted to change how the subject of nature is approached in the classroom.
To view a list of contributors and the activities they write about, view the show notes for this episode at Talaterra.com.
Anna Laurent is an award-winning photographer, author, and teacher. Through her projects, Anna introduces new audiences to the wonders of the botanical world. Anna has worked as a columnist for Garden Design magazine and Print magazine. Her first book, published in 2016, examines the art and science of plant biology in 19th-century wall charts. Anna’s interest in plants began in college. Years later, her interest prompted her to quit her job and to find a way to get paid to learn about plants.
Did she succeed?
Let’s find out.
Links
Anna Laurent’s website
The Sorcery of Seedpods: Little Packages of DNA that Explode with Beauty
Temperate House at Royal Botanic Garden, Kew
Botanical Art from the Golden Age of Scientific Discovery
Anna has graciously shared photos of her work with listeners. You can view these photos at Talaterra.com.
Producer: Julie-Roxane Krikorian
To download the card sorting activity and instructor guide, visit the show notes for this episode.
This week we return to our conversation with Dr. Rupu Gupta, conservation psychologist at New Knowledge Organization whose research focuses on inclusion and equity in the environmental field.
Last week, Dr. Gupta talked about community building. Part of our conversation centered around the paper “Practitioners’ perspectives on the purpose of environmental education.”
If you read this paper, it becomes clear that the field of environmental education (EE) is struggling to answer the question, “What’s it for?”
Today we take a brief look at this paper. In this paper, Dr. Gupta and her colleagues answer this big question:
How do North American environmental education practitioners (both from formal and non-formal institutions) think about their work?
View the show notes for this episode
Dr. Rupu Gupta is a conservation psychologist at the New Knowledge Organization whose research focus is inclusion and equity in the environmental field. Her interests are in what motivates or hinders people to care for nature and the environment.
In this episode we revisit Dr. Gupta’s paper about the diversity of the environmental field. We also talk about collaboration and bringing attention to the work of independent educators.
This is a two-part episode. Next week we’ll discuss a professional development exercise developed by Dr. Gupta and her colleagues.
Show Notes
Talaterra, Episode 14
Revisit Dr. Gupta’s paper about how many educators work in the environmental field.
New Knowledge Organization
National Association for Interpretation
Civic Ecology Lab, Cornell University
North American Association for Environmental Education
How do you cultivate a naturalist?
I landed on this question because while walking past the window of my independent bookstore, I saw the book The Not-So Great Outdoors by author and illustrator Madeline Kloepper.
It is a story about a young girl who is dreading her family’s upcoming camping trip. She wants nothing to do with nature and thinks nature is dirty and that there is nothing to do out there. She spends a good part of the story being grumpy and wanting to go home.
But then something changed her mind. You’ll have to get the book to find out what it was.
I read this book in the store before buying it. After leaving the store I began to wonder…
How does interest in nature develop?
What factors contribute to developing this interest?
Today we consider the findings of an investigation into how interest in the natural world can be developed.
What can educators in informal learning environments do to facilitate an interest in nature?
Let’s find out.
Show Notes
Hecht, M., Knutson, K. & Crowley, K. (2019). Becoming a naturalist: Interest development across the learning ecology. Science Education. 103(3): 1-23 (Download PDF)
Madeline Kloepper, author of The Not-So Great Outdoors
Find your local independent bookstore at IndieBound.
Karena de Souza is a strategist who helps Generation Z (those born between 1996-2010) navigate the future of work. While Karena speaks with students, her messaging is directed towards parents as well.
I invited Karena to be a guest because she doesn’t talk only about career-building. She talks about environmental awareness too.
What is Karena’s message to parents?
Why does she take an environmental position in her work?
What does the future of work look like and how might freelance environmental educators contribute to this future?
Let’s find out.
Related Links:
Karena de Souza’s website
TILT the Future on Apple Podcasts
IQ and EQ Skills (a brief overview)
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
10 Things You Need to Know About Generation Z
Defining Generations: Where Millennials end and Generation Z Begins
It is one thing to research ways to connect people with the natural world and quite another to figure out how to make time to apply the ideas you've learned.
Has something inside you been telling you to slow down and focus so you can create more meaningful work? Consider reading "World Enough & Time: On Creativity and Slowing Down" by Christian McEwen.
Related Links
Christian McEwen's website
"World Enough & Time" can be purchased from the author and independent bookstores. It is also available in the following formats: Audible audiobook and Kindle.
Read a review of "World Enough & Time"
Trailer for Talaterra, a podcast for and about independent educators working in natural resource fields and environmental education.
Theme music:
Jahzzar, So Far So Close, (CC By 4.0 US)
Maria Coryell-Martin is a freelance artist and educator who travels to remote locations to document landscapes, people, and communities. This week she begins a project about climate change in Alaska.
Earlier this week Maria took a break from packing to discuss her work.
How did Maria become an expeditionary artist?
What is the focus of her current project?
How did she build her career and her audience?
Let’s find out.
View show notes for this episode
The Talaterra podcast was launched in January. During the past 5 months, I have had the opportunity to speak with a wonderful group of independent professionals. I have interviewed a scientific illustrator, a game designer, a teacher and lifelong birder, a food systems scholar, a relational rewilding expert, a shamanic practitioner, the founder of an after-school program, and an environmental education consultant. Although they each have different titles, they have one thing in common. They are all teachers and advocates dedicated to nurturing relationships between people and nature. This episode is a look back at Season 1.
If you are a new listener, welcome. Thank you for joining us.
If you are a regular listener, thank you for being on this journey.
View all podcast episodes at Talaterra.com.
How do you interpret plants in your programs?
Share what you do! Leave a voice message about how you introduce your audience to the botanical world. A collection of responses will be shared next week. Share Here
Literature Cited:
O’Donnell, Liam. (2007). Understanding Photosynthesis with Max Axiom, Super Scientist*. Capstone Press, First edition. (Note: There is now a 4D version of this book. Learn More
Uno, Gordon E. (2009). Botanical literacy: What and how should students learn about plants? American Journal of Botany, Vol. 96 (10): 1753-1759. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.0900025
Wandersee, James H., and Elisabeth Schussler. (2001). Toward a Theory of Plant Blindness. Plant Science Bulletin, 47 (1): 2-9 (View)
Learn more about the Talaterra podcast at Talaterra.com.
View Kathleen's illustrations and paintings, download her guide to plant families of the Chicago Region, and view other resources by visiting the show notes for this episode at Talaterra.com.
To view the open access article mentioned in this episode, see the show notes for this episode at Talaterra.com.
In this episode we begin to address the components of The Freelance Condition project. We begin by answering the question, "What is a freelance educator?"
Relational Rewilding Nature Guiding
View the show notes for this episode at Talaterra.com.
Get the Transcript
Claudia provides so much insight into the issue of intercultural competence that a transcript was prepared for this episode. There is no need to take notes at a frantic pace. Download the transcript here.
Learn more about Janice's work on her website at NatureLegacies.com. View additional resources by visiting the show notes at Talaterra.com.
Sarah Johnson is the founder and principal of Wild Rose Education, a woman-owned small business providing place-based workshops for educators, youth leadership opportunities, and environmental education consulting located in Carbondale, CO.
In my conversation with Sarah we discuss leadership, networking, and how the field of environmental education can work with independent educators.
View the show notes for this episode at Talaterra.com.
Cynthia Espinosa Marrero is a food systems scholar who addresses issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion through her work. She is also an instructor in an online permaculture program that offers a 72-hour Permaculture Design Certificate, as well as a certificate in Social Systems Design.
Pulegium Consulting
Additional show notes can be viewed at Talaterra.com.
Bruce Glick is a high school teacher who is balancing a full-time career and a post-retirement transition into a freelance lifestyle. We discuss his project about connecting families to local birds.
Gretchen Halpert is the founder the Scientific Illustration Distance Program. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design/ CE, Gretchen has many years of experience working as a scientific illustrator and as an instructor of natural science illustration.
The Scientific Illustration Distance Program is composed of four 10-week sessions and includes a ten-week internship or independent study project. The internship gives students the opportunity to work with professionals, develop contacts, and learn how to navigate the freelance world. Gretchen assists students with planning, writing contracts/agreements, and developing projects that benefit both student interns and mentors.
Learn more at https://www.gretchenhalpert-distanceprogram.com.
Theme MusicJason Shaw, Audionautix
An introduction to this podcast series and its host, Tania Marien.
Also see Talaterra.com.