How do we move beyond our myopic focus on carbon/CO2 as the index of our harms to the world? What can we do to heal the whole biosphere? And what role is played by water-as-verb, forest-as-verb, ocean-as-verb?

This week's guest is an environmental journalist and author who has answers to all of these questions - and more. Judith Schwartz is an author who tells stories to explore and illuminate scientific concepts and cultural nuance. She takes a clear-eyed look at global environmental, economic, and social challenges, and finds insights and solutions in natural systems. She writes for numerous publications, including The Guardian and Scientific American and her first two books are music to our regenerative ears. The first is called 'Cows Save the Planet' and the next is 'Water in Plan Sight'. Her latest, “The Reindeer Chronicles”, was long listed for the Wainwright Prize and is an astonishingly uplifting exploration of what committed people are achieving as they dedicate themselves to earth repair, water repair and human repair.

Judith was recently at the 'Embracing Nature's Complexity' conference, organised by the Biotic Pump Greening Group which offers revolutionary new insights into eco-hydro-climatological landscape restoration. She's a contributor to the new book, 'What if we Get it Right?' edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, who was one of the editors of All We can Save.

Judith has been described as 'one of ecology's most indispensable writers' and when you read her work, you'll understand the magnificent depth and breadth of her insight into who we are and how we can help the world to heal.

Judith's website https://www.judithdschwartz.com/
Do The Impossible website https://www.dotheimpossible.earth/
Embracing Nature's Complexity Conference https://www.thebioticpump.com/tum-ias-conference-2024
Judith's paper at the conference https://bioticregulation.ru/conf2024/Judith-Schwartz.pdf
Book - What if we get it right? https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-If-We-Get-Right-ebook/dp/B0BPX5GWP8

How do we build the local futures we all know we need? What does it actually take to become a good enough ancestor? Or even the best ancestor we can be? Our guest this week, Helena Norberg-Hodge, has given her life to exploring the answers, and helping birth them into being.

Helena Norberg-Hodge is one of the Elders of our culture. She's a linguist, author and filmmaker, and the founder and director of the international non-profit group Local Futures, in which role, she has initiated localization movements on every continent, and has launched both the International Alliance for Localization (IAL) and World Localization Day (WLD).

She's a pioneer of the new economy movement and recipient of the Alternative Nobel prize, the Arthur Morgan Award and the Goi Peace Prize for contributing to “the revitalization of cultural and biological diversity, and the strengthening of local communities and economies worldwide.” She is author of the inspirational classic Ancient Futures: Learning from Ladakh, and Local is Our Future (2019), and producer of the award-winning documentary The Economics of Happiness.

Almost fifty years since her journey began in Ladakh, Helena is still collaborating with thought-leaders, activists and community groups across the globe which gives her a uniquely rounded insight into howour local futures could look and feel - and the routes to getting there.

I've known Helena since I was at Schumacher college - I rented a room in her house for a while, so we know each other well and I was able to press her in ways I wouldn't normally feel able to do with a podcast guest, so we could drill down into the details of her ideas for a different way of being. At heart, we need to get rid of global trade and move back to a localist economy based in sufficiency. The devil is in the detail, obviously, but if we have an idea of where we're going, we stand more chance of getting there.

So I hope this inspires you to action. Please do follow up some of the links - and definitely watch this new film: Closer to Home - the vision it offers of a generative, working local future is beautiful.

Helena's website https://www.helenanorberghodge.com/
Local Futures https://localfutures.org
World Localisation Day https://worldlocalisationday.org

Film: Closer to Home: Voices of Hope in a Time of Crisis (YouTube) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJBWvUEZ-50
Helena's book Ancient Futures https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/ancient-futures-learning-from-ladakh-helena-norberg-hodge-hodge/2771495?ean=9780712606561
Book Local is our Future: Stepping into an Economics of Happiness https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/local-is-our-future-steps-to-an-economics-of-happiness-helena-norberg-hodge/7409197?ean=9781732980402

Here is an Autumn Equinox Meditation to help set you up for the shift from the long days to the long nights.

For those in the Southern Hemisphere, there's a Spring Equinox Meditation here.