Category: podcast

EP 736 Will There Be Water For All in the Future?

EP 736 Will There Be Water For All in the Future?

The current approach to water management is failing to meet the demands of the growing human population and the severe challenges brought on by climate change.  Our guest, David Sedlak, director of the Berkeley Water Center and author of “Water for All: Global Solutions for a Changing Climate” argues that there are solutions to address these water shortages around the globe, but they differ from region to region and call for different technological and policy solutions.  He believes that America, and its built out water infrastructure, is too married to the dams, pipes and systems we built well over a hundred years ago.  He shares with us the creative responses to both our reservoirs above ground and aquifers below ground.  The work going on is extensive and he describes the emerging technologies in desalination to innovations for recycling wastewater and capturing more of the water that falls on fields and cities.  He even describes the in building efforts that may make our use of water in homes net zero in the future.  I found the discussion enlightening and the engineering going on extraordinary.

EP 735 Aging Population at Greatest Risk From Climate Change

EP 735 Aging Population at Greatest Risk From Climate Change

When Hurricane Ian devastated Florida in 2022, two-thirds of the people who died were older adults.  Similarly, the greatest number of fatalities during Hurricane Katrina, the California Camp Fire and the winter power outages in Texas were among the same population.  And when you stop to think about it, it makes sense.  Many older Americans have chronic conditions that make them more susceptible to extremes and their options in terms of housing and transportation are key factors, as well.  After all, the vast majority of older Americans live in their own homes, which often met their needs in an earlier phase of life, but not now.  And, then, of course, there’s the issue of social isolation which means many seniors are on their own in emergency situations.  All these factors, along with solutions, are included in Danielle Arigoni’s book, “Climate Resilience for an Aging Nation.” As she points out strikingly, in this podcast, our climate changes are on a collision course with our demographic trends in an ever aging America.

EP 734 Expert Leaders Outperform the Growing Legion of Generalists

EP 734 Expert Leaders Outperform the Growing Legion of Generalists

Our guest today has a basic rule, based on research, about leaders of businesses and organizations.  They should, first and foremost, be experts in the activity they lead and then acquire and assume the leadership skills required to run the operation.  In too many cases, as has been the trajectory since the 1980’s, more and more chief executives come with MBA’s, yet no practical experience in the widgets or services being created, or crossover from manufacturing, say, cars to then being hired to run a bank.  And, according to research, the results with experts are far better by many measurements–happy and productive workforce, focus on the mission and the bottom line.  Perhaps, most important is the long view, not just quarterly results, that expert leaders take when committed to the products or services they provide, is key to their success.  Amanda Goodall, a business school professor at the University of London, and author of “Credible: The Power of Expert Leaders” is our guest today.

EP 733 Follow Up to Food, Inc. Looks at New Developments in Fixing a Broken System

EP 733 Follow Up to Food, Inc. Looks at New Developments in Fixing a Broken System

 

America’s food system is broken, bringing harm to family farmers, workers, the environment and our health.  But it doesn’t have to be that way and the new documentary and companion book “Food, Inc. 2” provides plenty of approaches to reclaiming a more natural and sustainable way to feed  America.  It’s all a follow on to the highly acclaimed and impactful documentary project, “Food, Inc.” which got Americans attention back in 2008.  It posed penetrating questions about food processing, agribusiness, affordability, and the nutritional content of our food system.  “Food, Inc. 2” picks up the story to see what changes have occurred in this span of time.  There is good news like advances in lab-grown meat to better treatment of food workers of all types in the wake of the pandemic to a growing food-sovereignty movement–yet the industrialized food system we’ve built, call it Big Food, clearly remains dominant, crowding out the concept of family farming as a rule.  Joining us to discuss the sequel is Karl Weber, editor of the companion book.

EP 732 There’s a War Below to Power Our Electric Future

EP 732 There’s a War Below to Power Our Electric Future

 

 

 

There is a war raging below the surface, literally, for the critical minerals–lithium, copper, cobalt and that packet called ‘rare earth’–needed to power the conversion from fossil fuels to electrification of our lives.  To build electric cars, solar panels, cell phones and millions of other devices will require the world to dig more mines to extract these vital building blocks for lithium-ion batteries which power so much of our technological needs now.  That need will grow exponentially in the years ahead. Paradoxically, that which is designed to create a cleaner, greener world can start with the messy and dirty extraction process of these vital minerals.  China is well ahead in this competition to fight climate change and power crucial technologies.  America has some difficult choices to make, lest it become reliant on wobbly supply chains to provide these essentials.  Will this become a national security issue in the not too distant future?  We discuss all of the implications on this podcast with Ernest Scheyder, the author of “The War Below: Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives.”

EP 731 Don’t Confuse Misinformation with Disinformation and Beware of the Latter

EP 731 Don’t Confuse Misinformation with Disinformation and Beware of the Latter

Last time we spoke to our guest on this podcast he was trying to help us talk to science deniers.  What ever happened to the America that thought better living(and longer life)could be achieved by following the science?  He told us not to be argumentative and try to understand those who might still be smitten with the notion that the earth is flat or that the moon landing never happened.  I never have been terribly good at doing that and I’m even less sympathetic to those who tell bald face lives repeatedly in our public discourse(like #stop the steal)and those who sheepishly follow them.  However, public philosopher Lee McIntyre, author of the new book, “On Disinformation: How to Fight for Truth and Protect Democracy” does his best, at least, to try to explain how otherwise rational people get caught up in following truth killers. He also describes the creators, the believers and the amplifiers in this process and vividly explores the techniques used and motivations behind it all.  There’s no one antidote for all of this, but we better do our best to quell the phenomenon before the next presidential election or we have examples aplenty, in this age as to what can happen here.  Been to Hungary lately?

EP 730 The Forgotten Approach to Farming in America: Can We Survive Without Its Return?

EP 730 The Forgotten Approach to Farming in America: Can We Survive Without Its Return?

Industrial farming and ranching began about 80 years ago and now accounts for almost all agricultural output in America.  We have allowed what once occupied nearly 40 percent of our population to be placed in the hands of of about one percent at the present time.  I can see where some would say that’s a good thing because food is plentiful and cheaper.  Yes, but…the depletion of the soil, the despoiling of the air, the cruelty to the animals and the ill effects of too much pesticide, fungicides and herbicides on our own health remind us that there is a price to pay for the approach which works against, not with, the natural order.  Will Harris, the owner of White Oak Pastures, a holistically managed, regenerative ranch and farm in Georgia makes an eloquent case for returning to the roots of farming as practiced years ago in his book “A Bold Return to Giving a Damn: One Farm, Six Generations, and the Future of Food.”  Maybe we cannot turn the clock back and provide the sustenance for our population in this era, but the bell is tolling and cleaner, more natural practices need to come back into play in some fashion.  Will’s message and approach is worth understanding if that is to happen.  And, as he reminds, buy from a local farmer, if you can.

EP 729 Protections for Endangered Species As Critical Today as It was Fifty Years Ago

EP 729 Protections for Endangered Species As Critical Today as It was Fifty Years Ago

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is recognized globally as the most important wildlife conservation law ever passed.  Having turned 50 in 2023, there is no requirement to update it, but given changes in approaches to managing the law and new and growing threats to biodiversity, it is a good time to reconsider what this commitment means to the species, habitats and ecosystems covered by it. Our guest Lowell Baier, a distinguished environmental lawyer and historian, along with Dr. John F. Organ and Christopher E. Segal, have edited “The Codex of the Endangered Species Act, Volume II: The Next Fifty Years”, to look to the challenges that lie ahead.  And while there have been no substantive amendments to the legislation since 1988, the rate of species decline is accelerating at an alarming rate.  This is as a result of a combination of climate change, habitat loss, invasive species, diseases and pollution. Our discussion with Dr. Baier will touch on how the Act was first passed and the adaptations to it needed to reflect today’s realities.

EP 728 Can the Future of EV’s Hang on the Ability to Calm Range Anxiety?

EP 728 Can the Future of EV’s Hang on the Ability to Calm Range Anxiety?

The sale of electric vehicles(EV’s) has slowed owing to the high cost of the current crop and the fears of some that they will be on a road trip and unable to ‘fill up’ with electricity to continue on their journey.  Clearly, the industry is continuing to work on better battery life, longer ranges and the glut of competitors to current industry leader, Tesla, will work to drive down the price of the cars over time.  Tesla has recently announced development of a model in the $30,000 range.  Along with that are great incentives from the federal government to hasten the transition from the internal combustion engine autos.  Joining us to discuss where this conversion stands is Rue Phillips, president and co-founder of SkillFusion, a digital customer service platform for training, certification, and compliance of Electric Vehicle Equipment Electricians, Technicians, and EV-ComTechs.  And while there are fewer parts in these cars, thus making maintenance less expensive, building out the charging stations and maintaining them will be a necessary skill to train people for.

 

EP 727 Shrinkflation and Other Supermarket Trends From the Supermarket Guru

EP 727 Shrinkflation and Other Supermarket Trends From the Supermarket Guru

Phil Lempert, aka The Supermarket Guru, knows his way around a supermarket and has been imparting great advice to consumers on trends in these important confines for more than 25 years as an astute analyst of consumer behavior, marketing trends, new products and the changing retail landscape. Perhaps you’ve seen him on NBC’s ‘Today Show’ regularly reporting on new products.  Our conversation starts off discussing a trend that has given consumers a look of consternation of late.  That being the practice of ‘shrinkflation.’ It is characterized by a reduction in weight or volume without a corresponding decrease in price.  The phenomenon evidences itself in everything from breakfast cereals to paper towels to Greek yogurt.  A 2023 YouGov study found that nearly three-quarters of American consumers are concerned about shrinkflation.  After we pursue this topic with Phil, we move on to a number of other topics involved in today’s grocery shopping experience.  He’s a delight and a fount of knowledge.