This Sustainable Life

447: Kathryn Garcia, part 1: Candidate for New York City Mayor

19 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Kathryn Garcia, candidate for Mayor of New York City joined. No matter where you live, the mayor here matters. Many national trends in politics, busin...

446: Wondering how you can make a difference? Action begets action.

16 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I noticed a trend among podcast guests that the people who have already acted the most on sustainability find new things fastest. By contrast, people ...

445: Rabbi Yonatan Neril, part 2: Religion, Interpreting the Torah, and Nature

13 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We got into territory I'd wanted to talk to a religious scholar about. I would have expected being recorded would make us more tentative, but I found ...

444: Dar-Lon Chang, part 1: The engineer who made headlines for quitting ExxonMobil

06 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Do you know anyone whose company pollutes more than they'd like, who wants to change things, but whose company keeps not acting?I think that situation...

443: Nobody understands what's so bad with climate change

04 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Here are my notes I read from for this episode------It hit me recently that nearly nobody knows what's so bad about climate change. I've started askin...

442: Jonathan Hardesty, part 1: The Journey from Absolute Rookie to Mastery

27 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Longtime listeners and readers of my books and podcast know I draw the analogy to learning and mastering a skill to learning to play piano or a sport....

441: John Sargent, part 1: The CEO who reduced a Big Five publisher's footprint

24 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I learned of John's work through his statement at Macmillan's Sustainability page while researching Ray Anderson: In 2009, after reading Ray Anderson’...

440: Andrés Reséndez: The Other Slavery

20 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

About six months ago the parallels started forming for me between our global economic system today that creates great suffering on the scale of hundre...

439: How to Fix Texas

17 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read from for this episodeHow to fix TexasJust got off conference call a Texas attendee couldn't attend because her power was out...

438: Avoiding Creating Trash, Advanced Edition

14 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When they hear I take two years to fill a load of trash, people ask how I do it, what's in my trash. In this episode I share a couple stories from las...

437: Bill Ryerson, part 1: Population matters

10 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

No matter what you think we should do, everyone gets that there is some connection between population and sustainability. Everyone knows our populatio...

436: You're right, it's not fair!

07 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The notes I read from for this episode:It's not fair!Back from picking up litterForecast, a few inches of snowJust want coffee, not to dispose. Ancest...

435: Etienne Stott MBE, part 1: Olympic gold medalist climate activist

06 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I met Etienne on a holiday conference call of Flight Free UK, which celebrates what life brings when we enjoy people, culture, cuisine, and so forth a...

434: Manisha Sinha: The Slave’s Cause: A History of Abolition

27 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

You've heard me speak and bring guests who are experts in the history of abolition and slavery, particularly in England. I learned about well-known ab...

433: Adam Hochschild, part 2: Abolition then and pollution today

25 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

If you've followed my development on how to view acting on sustainability, you've seen a marked change when I learned about the British abolition move...

432: Matthew Stevenson, part 2: What can environmentalists learn from disarming racism?

22 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Many people talk about responding to threats or people they disagree with with empathy, compassion, treating everyone with respect. In practice, I see...

431: I sang every day for two months, unplugged (still going)

20 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

What do you do if you use less power? No social media? No listening to music? No TV?Sound like a fate worse than death?Inspired by guests on my podcas...

430: Rabbi Yonatan Neril, part 1: The Eco Bible

19 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the midst of several episodes on religious approaches to sustainability I learned of today's guest, Rabbi Yonatan Neril's book The Eco Bible: An Ec...

429: What about jobs?

17 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"What about jobs?" people often ask to counter proposals to constrain some activity. Today's episode answers.Here are the notes I read from:What about...

428: Vanessa Friedman: The New York Times Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic

15 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Vanessa Friedman sees the fashion world from a vantage point few others can as the Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic at the New York Times. Sh...

427: Behind the Mic: Attraction and leadership

04 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Former guest and founder of the most popular men’s dating advice website Chase Amante guest-hosted me to continue the conversation I started with Do...

426: Why unplug?

02 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I'm in my second month since I unplugged my fridge. Why unplug it?Not because I think its power makes anything more than a negligible difference. This...

425: General William “Kip” Ward, part 1: Security, Stability, and Sustainability Start with People

29 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Kip Ward is a retired General who, among other things, was the first leader of the Africa Command. He shares his background so you can hear it from hi...

424: Brent Suter, part 3: We don't have to steward. We get to.

24 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

If you haven't listened to Brent and my first two episodes, I recommend listening to them first. Also, I recommend reading Milwaukee Brewers’ Brent ...

423: Kelly Allan, part 2: Restoring joy to work through Deming and stewardship

18 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We correct two big misunderstandings.First, most people associate acting on the environment with obligation, chore, deprivation, and sacrifice. We lea...

422: Adam Hochschild, part 1: Abolition and Sustainability

13 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

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421: Behind the Mic: Race: Why I've talked about it so much

10 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

My second Behind the Mic conversation with Dan McPherson gets to why I've talked about race lately. Why on a podcast about sustainability, leadership,...

420: Three Years of Leadership and the Environment!

09 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I started this podcast November 30, 2017. In this episode I reflect on before starting the podcast, the fears and hopes driving it, the friends it bro...

419: Balint Horvath, part 4: Fatherhood and sustainability

08 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Let's talk fatherhood and sustainability."Josh, you don't understand since you don't have kids, it's impossible to avoid producing waste," people keep...

418: Chester Elton, part 2: The world's number 4 best leadership speaker, trainer, and thought leader

06 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The Global Top 30 Gurus named Chester the world's number 4 best leadership speaker, trainer, and thought leader, as I happened to find while researchi...

417: Dan McPherson, part 2: Recovering from his heart attack, cutting out water bottles

03 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Between asking about recovering from a heart attack in your 40s and about water bottles, where do you start? As it turns out, they're more closely rel...

416: Rod Schoonover, part 1: Resigned in protest after White House tried to delete "basic science" from climate change report

01 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In June and July 2019, you may remember reading about Rod Schoonover in the NY Times, State Dept. Intelligence Analyst Quits to Protest Blocked House ...

415: Marion Nestle, conversation 2: Let's Ask Marion

30 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Food started me on this journey. If it's not a major source of joy, community, and connection, the opportunity is there to make it so.Marion Nestle do...

414: Nir Eyal, part 2: He committed to avoiding flying before the pandemic

29 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We covered two main points: how I inspired him and how he inspired me. If I'm not too presumptuous to say I inspired him, that is, the first part is a...

413: Michael Moss, part 1.5: Maybe that was the addiction speaking

25 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Michael wrote me the morning before we scheduled this conversation to say he ended up spending more time on the screen when he intended less. He wonde...

412: George Chmiel, part 2: Teamwork from garbage

22 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"You heard it here first." We start by reviewing George's experience picking up garbage with a team he organized. We started creating a project.It spo...

411: Winston Churchill and the environment

19 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The notes I read from:Missing messages on the environment we can learn from Churchill. I'll read from some of his most famous speeches, during WWII, t...

410: Race, part 2: How do you learn when people respond to questions with criticism and judgment?

18 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here is my second episode with guest Dan McPherson of Leaders Must Lead on race. Probably one more after this one.Say someone doesn't know something a...

409: Kevin Cahill, part 2: Systems change, fast and effective

14 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Everyone gets we have to change system, which means global economy. They think we have to start huge. If it's not big enough, it's not worth doing.His...

408: Nancy Reagan and the Environment

14 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are my notes I read from for this episode:Just say nodrugs winningTry telling smoker that cigarettes cause lung cancer and see if it stops.Doesn'...

407: Eric Metaxas: William Wilberforce, Amazing Grace

12 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A few months ago I hadn't heard the names William Wilberforce or Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Now they rank among my greatest influences. Eric Metaxas's biogr...

406: J. B. MacKinnon, part 1: The Once and Future World

11 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

J. B. MacKinnon's book The Once and Future World influenced my view of nature as much as anyone's. I thought I knew what nature was, what we were tryi...

405: No, It's Not Just a Piece of Cloth

10 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

No, it's not just a piece of cloth• Context◦ Mark Meadows and Ben Carson tested positive◦ US is spreading virus maybe most in world. White House...

404: Michael Moss, part 1: Salt, Sugar, Fat, Convenience, Addiction, and the Environment

05 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Moss had already risked his life as a reporter in Baghdad, where he interviewed Islamic militants and exposing that US marines lacked body arm...

403: Ashish Jha, part 2: Battling covid-19, leadership, and the environment

04 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From a leadership standpoint, acting on sustainability and the pandemic overlap.You probably see Ashish's name everywhere too. He's in the thick of it...

402: Faith

03 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Why do I act on sustainability when everyone around me says there's no point?Faith.This episode shares a few words about faith. If you lack it, I thin...

401: Defund the police? A proposal.

30 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We've seen suggestions to defund the police. Many on the left consider it an obvious step. Many on the right think it's loony and will lead to society...

400: Race, part 1: Should whites shut up and listen?

29 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Following up my conversations on sex, drugs, and rock & roll with Dov, previous podcast guest Dan McPherson of Leaders Must Lead and I talk about ...

399: Mark Tercek: Former CEO, The Nature Conservancy; Former Partner, Goldman Sachs

28 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Mark Tercek stands tall in environmental action. He was president and CEO of The Nature Conservancy for 11 years.From Wikipedia: "Founded in 1951, The...

398: Lt. General Paul Van Riper USMC, part 2: A Marine Versus Coffee

22 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Rip committed to avoid waste through coffee, which he describes as harder than he thought.Wait a minute. A three-star Marine Corps general is describi...

397: Eric Orts, part 1: Exploring a Senate Race

17 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Eric Orts is a tenured professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is also exploring a potential race for the U.S. Senate: t...

396: Margaret Klein Salamon, part 2: Political or Personal or Political and Personal

14 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

My goal in this podcast is to bring leaders from many fields and share what made them effective. I believe sustainability and stewardship would benefi...

395: A Time I Gave Up

11 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The rest of my story riding 100 miles a week and a half ago, where I gave up on myself, having lost faith in myself, but then getting lucky to force m...

394: Joe De Sena, part 2: The Sustainable Spartan starts here

08 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

You're in for a treat. Joe and I start talking business so you'll hear things happening while we're talking. We start by talking about his exercising ...

393: Jaime Casap, part 2: If a global pandemic isn't the end, what is?

06 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Jaime and my second conversation is enjoyable and challenging. It was different than usual because for whatever reason we're talking about views on en...

392: The doomsayers aren't who you think

04 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

People criticize environmentalists as doomsayers while celebrating futurists. This episode shares key examples where the doomsayers were the ones sayi...

391: Bob Inglis, part 2: Is Biden better for conservatives on climate legislation?

01 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Bob and I begin lightheartedly, covering mulberry trees, gingkos, and how our views of nature change when we act in stewardship of it. Then I ask him ...

390: George Chmiel 1.5: Sustainability, hard even for an ultramarathoner, but he doesn't give up

30 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

George's challenge involved people congregating outside, which California banned, increasing his challenge. Personally for him, Badwater got canceled ...

389: Why environmentalists can be so annoying

29 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I speculate why environmentalists can be so annoying sometimes and why you'd still like to become like them, just not the annoying part.This episode w...

388: Nir Eyal, part 2: Another role model avoiding flying pre-pandemic

24 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Nir and my second conversation covered how I inspired him and how he inspired me. If I'm not too presumptuous to say I inspired him, the first part is...

387: Maja Rosén: Leading not flying

21 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The not-flying-by-choice community is fairly small. About 80 percent of humans can't fly because they can't, but among people who can but choose not t...

386: Bob Inglis, part 1: the EcoRight, a balance to the Environmental Left

18 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Everyone can lead when everyone around them agrees. How about when your conscience tells you what's right differs from everyone around you?Bob Inglis ...

385: Coleman Hughes: Race and social media mobs

18 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I first crossed paths with Coleman at a conference that previous guest Jonathan Haidt organized on promoting viewpoint diversity in academia. I hosted...

384: They would rather switch than fight

17 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are my notes that I read from for this episode:Play Thomas N. Todd recordingRepeat it, explaining from ad campaignContext was civil rights---that...

383: Sports, competition, and beating pandemics

15 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Are you fatigued from pandemic defenses like wearing masks and washing your hands? Is your community, like New York City, doing well? Do you feel sinc...

382: Kelly Allan, part 1: Deming 101, community, and beyond

10 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Kelly is experienced in theory, practice, and community of W. Edwards Deming.If you don't know Deming, you'll hear from this conversation, but for con...

381: Kevin Edwards Cahill, part 1: The Deming Legacy

08 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Kevin Cahill's grandfather, W. Edwards Deming, changed nations. An emperor awarded him a medal. If you don't know either, listen to the first few minu...

380: Matthew Stevenson, part 1: Why Befriend a White Nationalist?

02 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Matthew is friends with the guy who built the white nationalist online community, Stormfront. He is also an observant orthodox Jew. You may have heard...

379: Dan McPherson, part 1: A Heart Attack Last Week at Age 46

01 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Do you have friends that you talk to once or twice a month---someone you can talk about important things beyond the day to day? Dan is one of those fr...

378: Libba and Gifford Pinchot III, part 1: Redefining business education

27 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Rarely do you meet someone who created a word that became common. My guests today, Gifford and Libba Pinchot, created the term intrapraneurship. In th...

377: Chris Manhertz, part 2: Tough times don't last. Tough people do.

24 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Our last episode ended with two subjects either of which I'd love to cover---an NFL tight end picking up other people's garbage and stoicism. We had c...

376: Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Stewardship

24 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I'm continuing my practice of bringing leadership to sustainability, following my bringing speeches and messages by Patton, Frankl, JFK, King, Mandela...

375: Vertical farms belie the false hope of fusion

23 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

For years I thought fusion could solve our environmental problems. Serious consideration betrays that false promise, illustrating it would only contin...

374: Andreas Larsson, part 1: Leadership and the Environment Sweden

22 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Andreas and I go back five or ten years. He hired me as a coach when he was selling his share of a business he cofounded. He appears in my book Initia...

373: Jaeden Graham, Atlanta Falcon: Reaching beyond your potential

18 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I love talking with people who strive to reach their potential and beyond, and who elevate people around them---their teammates. People like that exis...

372: JFK, the moon, and missing leadership today

13 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

You've heard people calling for moonshots---challenges so great we take them on as a nation. But regarding sustainability we also ask people to do as ...

371: Margaret Klein Salamon, part 1: Become the Hero Humanity Needs

12 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Margaret is the Executive Director at The Climate Mobilization. Writing Facing the Climate Emergency brought her to me.Her psychology background leads...

370: Viktor Frankl on the pandemic

11 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Many people are looking to return to something they can call normal since the pandemic undid their earlier normal. In the meantime they struggle.Almos...

369: Another Decision From My Past I Feel Ashamed Of

08 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I shared a story with a client the other day that he found deeply meaningful. I'd never shared it with anyone before because it felt so shameful. Enou...

368: Chester Elton, part 1: Asking and listening across color lines

04 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

You're about to hear a conversation post-George Floyd by two leadership writers. Normally we write for mostly business audiences. this conversation fe...

367: The Surprising Mantle of Leadership

03 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read from for this episode:Stand up comediansGrowing up in 70sI thought everyone would want to lead, to give I Have A Dream speec...

366: The Cops, Jocko Willink, and Joe Rogan

02 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I wrote and read this podcast from:It's no secret the tension between police and protesters in this country. I've talked to a lot o...

365: Assaulted again and scammed

30 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read from (maybe better just to listen):Yesterday two things, I'll start with second because more poignant.Ran into old friend a ...

364: Joe De Sena, part 1: The Spartan Race: Resilience from effort

28 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Joe DeSena founded the Spartan Race and hosts the Spartan Up podcast. For those who know about me and my burpees, cold showers, rowing a marathon, pic...

363: General George Patton's Speech to the Third Army

27 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read from for this episode.Following pattern of effective speeches and leadership to lead people to love doing things not obvious...

362: Nelson Mandela: "it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

25 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The actions we can take to preserve the environment are so simple anyone can do them. They improve our lives, connecting us to each other, freeing us ...

361: George Chmiel, part 1: Why run 3,000 miles? Why challenge yourself?

22 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

George and I talked about three big topicsGeorge Floyd demonstrations and riots from the view of a man watching his businesses and his communities' bu...

360: Sparta could make history

21 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read from on recounting the potential I saw for the Spartan Race community and its founder, Joe De Sena, if they chose to priorit...

359: Jaime Casap, part 1: Google's Global Education Evangelist

13 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

“Don’t ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. Ask them what problem they want to solve.”Jaime explains what his title of Google's "Edu...

358: Bald Versus Plastic

10 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are the notes I read this episode from:People keep acting like I'm different, that they have to balance things that I don't when acting on the en...

357: Steven Pressfield: The War of Art and Nature

07 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Steven Pressfield's War of Art is a perennial bestseller. If you haven't read it, I recommend reading it, even if you delay listening to this podcast....

356: I was assaulted again this morning. Can I talk about it?

05 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

 While I was jogging (actually plogging) along the Hudson River around 7:30am, a person not wearing a mask stepped into my path, blocking me, say...

355: I balance values the same as anyone

04 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

People constantly suggest they have to balance different values as if I didn't. It came up in a recent conversation so I shared about it today.An elem...

354: Harvard Global Health Institute Director Ashish Jha, part 1: Front Line Pandemic Leadership

02 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

If you've followed sensible, expert advice on the pandemic, you've probably read or seen Ashish Jha in the New York Times, The Atlantic, CNN, Washingt...

353: I don't want to act on the environment

02 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I think I've accidentally led people astray, sharing how much I enjoy acting in stewardship. I would prefer doing anything I wanted whenever and where...

352: The War of Art and Nature

01 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I loved Steven Pressfield's book The War of Art. I found it inspiring. It had a property that qualifies for me that something qualifies as a work of a...

351: A Rough Day in New York City

29 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today was a rough day for me in New York. Most of my solo episodes I start with a point. Today brought me down enough that I decided to share more ope...

350: Jonathan Herzog, part 1: A candidate acts with genuineness and authenticity

23 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I haven't taken political stance because I am working to removing wedge-ness from environmental policy. I'm working for people to see laws about how p...

349: The State of the Environment Is The External Manifestation of Our Beliefs

20 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Think of where you are now in two ways---first, how it looked before humans arrived there, second, how it looks now.The difference is our influence, w...

348: Dave Chappelle's Line

19 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Dave Chappelle set a line for himself that when he became famous he would not cross it. His life crossed it and he left a successful show and a $50 mi...