Called by many names, a jubilee economy is just what we need in the 21st century. We'll introduce ourselves and the biblical idea of Jubilee and explain how it captures our interest as a way to envision change in economics today.
Episode 2 :: Metanoia
To live sustainably on our one planet, we need deep change (metanoia) in the story we live, shifting our economic choices and the world view they express.
Episode 3 :: Prophetic Imagination, Envisioning a New Economy
If we cannot imagine the structures of a new economy, we cannot get there. The eyes of our inner artists can see ways to go. Lee discusses how any of us can rely on our inner artist to lead us to a world that reflects our deepest values, thus influencing how we move in the world.
Episode 4 :: Market as a Functional Religion
This show looks at how we can see the Market and the macroeconomic picture as a functional religion. That is, how it takes on deity-like qualities, and is supported by figures akin to high priests, and has with it a narrative mythology of progress, ultimate worth, sin, and so on.
Episode 5 :: JEM Video
JEM's one and only VIDEO podcast is no longer available. However, two videos by Lee Van Ham help explain Jubilee Economics: Introduction to the Biblical Jubilee (1/19/13 // 17 min.)
7/17/20 (89 min.)
2011
Episode 6 :: Juanita Van Ham: Education from the Ground Up
Lee's spouse Juanita is now our first guest on the podcast programs, and in this show she is talking about her work at the San Diego Cooperative Charter School, where their grandson went to school. She liked the role of managing the compost train so much that she stayed at the school even after Tyler moved on!
Episode 7 :: David Funkhouser and Fair Trade for Dummies
David Funkhouser of Fair Trade USA (formerly TransFair USA) is our featured guest for this episode which coincides with Fair Trade month (October). David is Strategic Relations coordinator for FTUSA in Oakland and just finished a day of presenting at three universities before coming to meet and talk with us. He talks about his attraction to and involvement in the movement, the origins of FT, the processes for certifying cooperatives that produce the goods, and how FT meets needs of smaller producers better than the so-called free trade market, ensuring that participating farmers and artisans can remain situated in their homelands, as dignified and productive citizens.
Episode 8 :: Community. Land. Trust.
This month's episode features two guests from the San Diego Community Land Trust, where Lee Van Ham is the board chairman. Richard Lawrence, ordained in the Methodist Church, has a long history in social justice work, affordable housing efforts and community building in Chicago and San Diego. Anastasia Brewster, coordinator, has experience in Real Estate consulting and has worked with a Phoenix area CLT before coming to San Diego and working with the local CLT.
Episode 9 :: Sabbath, Solstice and Spirit
This month, Lee goes it alone to talk about a season that is filled with holidays in so many traditions, most related to the solstice and its cosmological implications of downtime and ultimate promise of renewal. The shorter days are nature's way of modeling what the ancient Hebrews called the Sabbath: a punctuation in time, a bit of downtime for rest and renewal. Nature heeds this by default, but humans have, particularly in the last century, brushed that pattern aside with the go-go-go schedule operating at all hours on all days of the year.
Episode 10 :: Nancy Cassidy and Cooperatives
This month our guest is Nancy Cassidy, the General Manager of the Ocean Beach People's Organic Food Market, a cooperatively owned retail store in San Diego. OB People's concentrates in selling vegetarian food, but the cooperative as a business model can be applied to any kind of business that is now run by a corporation. The difference of course, is that shares are held in a one-owner, one share manner and no one can accumulate shares and the influence that goes with them.
Episode 11 :: Jan Schalkwijk on Green Investing
Jan Schalkwijk kicked off his financial advisor career in the traditional mold. But after a sweeping tour of the world in 2005, he came back energized to approach his career life with new vision for how to keep moving people toward sound investments but with an added criterion: to invest in companies and ventures that have the sustainable ethic in mind.
Episode 12 :: Harry Watkins, Teaching Triple Bottom Line
How are business majors being trained for the marketplace in the new context shaped by Earth's pushback on unlimited growth business models? That's where The Common Good goes in this episode with guest Harry Watkins, Professor of Strategy and Sustainability at the Fermanian School of Business, Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego. Harry tells us about his moments that moved him to a passion for incorporating the people and planet into the bottom line, and the drive to get others on board with the triple bottom line.
Episode 13 :: Consciousness, Cosmology, Sheep
If Einstein is right and we can't solve our problems by using the kind of thinking that created those problems, then we have our work cut out for us. When so many issues we face today are the children of a kind of male-dominated, selfish, and limited consciousness, how do we change that consciousness in order to steer the ship of human life another way?
Episode 14 :: Last Acts of Caring
This show features Eric Putt and Andrea Deerheart of Thresholds, a mortuary service that provides home- and family-directed funerals that put the human dimension back into taking care of the deceased--a real alternative to the commercial funeral industry, which by intent or accident has usurped the role of loved ones to care-fully tend to the body.
Episode 15 :: Rick Zemlin, Having Enough
Choosing to live on a budget of around $10,000 a year, Rick Zemlin tells how his consciousness has been shaped, how he determines what is enough for him. It isn't a prescription for everyone else, but for those who are looking for ways to adjust to new standard of living suitable for One Earth, Rick might be inspiring. He gives conceptual and practical examples of how one can live a dignified life with less, forgoing the things that might distract him from the spiritually-satisfying life he has led for decades now.
Episode 16 :: Lauren Van Ham, A Chaplain for a New Century
Lauren Van Ham has had a love affair with the natural world and has found renewal from being there. She has worked in nonprofit and for-profit settings, ministry settings, corporate settings, and has found herself instructing WalMart employees and management in what sustainablity means on a personal level. After some eye opening experiences showing her the great need for someone tuned into the needs of the Earth, she decided to recommit herself as an "eco-chaplain," even re-ritualizing her ordination to solidify her commitment outwardly.
Episode 17 :: Michael Johnson: The Eden We Can Choose
This month's show is a conversation between Lee Van Ham and Michael Johnson. Lee and Michael are collaborating on a project based on Lee's book-in-progress,The Eden We Can Choose: Moving to a One-Earth Economy and the Stories That Get Us There.
2012
Episode 18 :: Coffee As a Virtue
Stephan von Kolkow and Laurie Britton, co-owners of the cleverly named Cafe Virtuoso, believe in delivering quality coffee and tea products primarily to wholesale customers. Their product line is all organic, and since October is Fair Trade month, we wanted to talk to them about that. How did Fair Trade look to them as businesspeople with a bottom line to mind?
Episode 19 :: Sung Sohn, When a House is More Than a House
Eventually the American Dream proves itself to be otherwise. For Sung and Myra Sohn, arriving in the States from their native Korea, what awaited them was getting established in architectural studies (Sung—quite a renaissance man) and starting a career in pharmacology (Myra) and then joining with the usual frantic and disjointed rhythms of American life. Eventually they found that life not to their liking as its demands took a toll on family identity and cohesion. Sung envisioned an alternative housing arrangement based on shared life and spiritual practice, not just for his own family but for other residents and guests.
Episode 20 :: Rev. David Miller, Faith Presence at the Occupy Movement
Lots of stuff in this episode because there is much to report on. We plan to diversify content within each episode so as to keep you abreast of things in JEM-land, to reflect on some notable news, and to build community among our listeners and readers. We're starting to get the hang of this after all this time!
Episode 21 :: JEM, The Common Good, and Reciprocity
Now that The Common Good Podcast has been going on for about a year and a half now, and now that a new year is starting, Lee reflects on how JEM has worked reciprocally to serve content and to be shaped by our guests and friends who have left their feedback for either the podcast or the blog. We'd like to see more of that happening and we encourage listeners and readers to comment and add input that we can use within our blog and podcast.
Lane Van Ham is our featured guest for this episode. (Okay, you figured it out. He's related to Lee just like Lauren from episode 16 is. We're a small organization!) Apparent nepotism not withstanding (no one is geting paid, ahem!), Lane's new book, A Common Humanity: Ritual, Religion and Immigrant Advocacy in Tucson, Arizona (University of Arizona Press) just came out and stands fine on its own. Having done his graduate studies in the field of immigrant advocacy, this book emerged from that experience.
Episode 23 :: Challenges in Socially Responsible Investing with Jan Schalkwijk
Jan Schalkwijk is a financial advisor with a specialty in targeting investment options for people who are looking at more than just the "old" bottom line of profits alone. Jan was introduced a year ago on Episode 11, but this time around we get into some more aspects of Socially Responsible Investing, of which Jan's "green" focus is a component. Jan is approached by Lee who presents himself as a potential client with questions about green investing, community investment options, and how the limits to growth are changing the game of investment strategy.
Episode 24 :: Jubilee Economics for the Uninitiated
Okay, we have to admit it. Jubilee Economics Ministries has a big idea that not everyone gets. When you're trying (like we are) to take on a world class issue that encompasses a vast swath of history and attempts to deal with the microcosmic and macrocosmic concepts of economics, it gets a little hard to follow. It's a big job trying to get the world to think another way, and while we've done a range of things and employed various media, sometimes we miss the forest for the trees, and things take a bit more explanation why things are how they are with JEM.
Episode 25 :: Rev. Deb Mitchell, Shifting to a Paradigm of Service
Deb Mitchell was quite like millions of her time and place, comfortable in a middle class life with a good job at a major corporation. Without meaning to, she held advantage that she didn't even know she had over others. Eventually as her world grew larger than her Midwestern roots reached, Deb became more and more attuned to the dimension of life that had gone unnoticed for so long. Thanks to international travel and a changing corporate landscape, Deb was forced to look at things in a whole new way.
Episode 26 :: Doug Clegg, JEM, and Music's Prophetic Power
Doug Clegg wields a mean guitar. And a mean fiddle. And a mean mandolin. And a mean piano. And a mean resonator guitar. And ... well, just about any instrument in the folk music tool box. But even a bit more dangerously, he sports a formidable pen too. When he puts lyrics down, he just might channel the folk greats and their calls for just labor relations, or a healthy environment, or to call crooked politicians to truth.
Episode 27 :: Gerald Iversen, Simple Living, and The Common Good Podcast developments
Change is in the wind at The Common Good Podcast. We've got a new studio environment, a new software program, a new opportunity to employ Skype to conduct conversations, and most of all, a new collaborator in Gerald Iversen, our feature conversation partner for this month. With all this change happening at once, Ed reflects on how this puts TCGP into a new era, version 4.
Episode 28 :: Simple Living--Practical Implications
Change continues at The Common Good Podcast - new software and a new collaborator in Gerald Iversen. Jerry gives mostly serious insights about how jubilee economics and voluntary simple living come together in practical ways.
Episode 29 :: Countering Advertising with Alternative Holiday Celebrations
Advertising is designed to keep us dissatisfied. How can we resist it's pressure? How do we help children? Also, will Jubilee Economics or simple living make any real difference? What does the Future look like? And, Lee and Jerry give Tips for Simpler, More Meaningful Celebrations. Plus the latest JEM updates.
2013
Episode 30 :: Finding Common Cause with Bob Edgar to Resist Dollar Take-Over of Governments
The 2012 elections accentuate explicitly the overwhelming dollars pouring into government in the U.S., whithering democracy in the hot sun of their influence. This is what Bob Edgar actively resists in his work as President and CEO of Common Cause.
Episode 31 :: How Actions for the Common Good Equal Spiritual Practice
This podcast features some of our thoughts about learning to live in the Presence of the sacred. JEM followers have urged us to talk about how we link the Common Good practices that we talk about on this show to our spirituality; to do it explicitly, not just vaguely. So in this episode we give it a go.
Episode 32 :: Vet for Peace, Barry Ladendorf: "Peace on Earth" Is Better Economics Too
Barry Ladendorf is a veteran of the VietNam War. But by the time he was into his third tour of duty, on a naval ship stationed off the coast, he no longer believed that the war was succeeding nor that it was making the world safe for democracy. The U.S. gov't persisted in claiming both.
Episode 33 :: Voices for a Just Economy: Richard Lawrence, ML King, Other African-Americans & Our Planet
Martin L. King, Jr.'s speech, "Where Do We Go from Here?" gives us inspiration to give voice to what others are remaining silent about. African-Americans have repeatedly raised their voices and marched their feet for right relationships in America when America's too-white leadership kept silent, retaining their positions of power unfairly.
Richard Lawrence tells us of his experiences giving voice with King and others to how the economic system was ruled by whites in ways that acutely excluded blacks. Richard was present in Selma (1965) and led clergy in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood in an important business and bank boycott which King joined in.
Episode 34 :: Harry Watkins: Green Business Is Better Business
Harry Watkins, former marketing consultant to businesses, and currently teaching in the Fermanian School of Business at Point Loma Nazarene University, shares his conversion to sustainability, how generating sustainable businesses is part of what his evangelical faith requires, and how he's joined with other faculty to change the curriculum to show that being sustainable in business is no longer a nice option if you can work it in, but is essential to good business.
Episode 35 :: Harry Watkins part 2: Green Business Is Better Business
How many businesses can you name that you use because they are on the sustainability journey? Harry Watkins, professor in the business school at Point Loma Nazarene University, returns to TCGP to tell us about a few businesses that he knows of PLUS a guide for online shopping that helps us pick the most sustainable version of whatever product it is that we're looking for. Businesses on the sustainability journey help us walk it too.
Episode 36 :: Chuck Hassebrook: Standing Up for the Small Family Farmer
From 1971-1976, Earl Butz was Sec'y of Agriculture under Presidents Nixon and Ford. He had a mantra for farmers across America: Get big or get out. On this episode we're talking about people who never believed Earl Butz.
Episode 37 :: Rob Hogg: A Senator Who Speaks Out About Climate Crisis
What happens this century -- ever-worsening climate disasters or effective action to fight climate change --depends on the knowledge and action of every American. Sen. Rob Hogg provides information and stimulus in his new book America's Climate Century: What Climate Change Means for America in the 21st Century and What Americans Can Do About It.
Episode 38 :: Jamie Gates: Encouraging Prophetic Living & Embodied Imagination
Having been raised and schooled in apartheid South Africa, Jamie continues to work with justice and reconciliation as core theological and social concerns.
Episode 39 :: John de Graaf part 1: Affluenza
John produced the films Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic, Escape from Affluenza, and coauthored the "Affluenza" book. The 3rd edition of the book is scheduled for release Dec., 2013.
Episode 40 :: John de Graaf part 2: Global Happiness Initiative
John de Graaf is a co-founder and senior partner of The Happiness Initiative. He was a member of the International Group advising Bhutan on its Happiness report to the UN.
Episode 41 :: Juli-Ann Gasper: Microfinance on the Ground Slows Climate Change Everywhere
Juli-Ann Gasper led several student expeditions from Creighton University, Omaha, to the Dominican Republic to see how micro-finance works on the ground. She's also a fascinating fiber artist.
PLUS Links on the Climate Crisis.
2014
Episode 42 :: Co-Host Lee Van Ham Turns Author with "Blinded by Progress"
Breaking Out of the Illusion That Holds Us released in early December!
Visit Lee's blog about his Eden Trilogy at TheOneEarthProject.com
In this episode Lee tells about how he became interested in writing, how this book is his own quest to understand the nonsensical way of living that requires more than one Earth, and some of those who have endorsed the book.
Episode 43 :: Mark Rasmussen #1: Aldo Leopold's Legacy, Our Overuse of Soil & Water
The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture explores and cultivates alternatives that secure healthier people and landscapes in Iowa and the nation.
Episode 44 :: Mark Rasmussen, #2: Teaching Ag at Iowa State U.; GMO's & Biofuels in Iowa Fields; World Food Prize
See Episode 43: Mark Rasmussen #1: Aldo Leopold's Legacy Addresses Industrial Agriculture's Overuse of Soil & Water
- Mentions in This Episode: World Food Prize Summit | Occupy the World Food Prize Summary Report
- Related Material
Episode 45:: Soren Rundquist on How Biofuels Are Devastating Farmlands!
This podcast assesses the current "green trend" of increased use of biofuels. Soren Rundquist of the independent, nonprofit Environmental Working Group, shares the results of his research.
Episode 46 :: Brian Czech: Creating a Strong Economy That Does Not Grow
The best response to obesity is not cheering it on. In this episode we hold our applause. Brian Czech talks with us about a strong, steady, less volatile economy.
Episode 47 :: Diane Hesselhuf: Sharing the Dream--Fair Trade, a Tool for People and Planet vs. Free Trade, a Weapon of Domination
I'm glad we're doing a show that will update ourselves and our listeners on a really powerful tool available to us to increase fairness for our environment and for low-income people. I'm referring to Fair Trade. WORLD FAIR TRADE DAY May 10, 2014 - World Fair Trade Organization
The relevance of our show, however, is far greater than WFTD. Fair Trade is a most wonderful opposite to Free Trade.
Episode 48 :: Frances Moore "Frankie" Lappe' Shares Her Co-Creative Way to Ecological Healing
This episode features Frances Moore Lappe', author or co-author of 18 books including the three-million copies sold, Diet for a Small Planet. Her most recent work, released by Nation Books in September 2011, is EcoMind: Changing the Way We Think to Create the World We Want, winner of a silver medal from the Independent Publisher Book Awards in the Environment/Ecology/Nature category.
Episode 49 :: Jeff Severinghaus: How 800,000 Year Old Antarctica Ice Confirms Earth's Changing Climate & How to Respond
Geoscientist Jeff Severinghaus is rigorously committed to saying neither more nor less on climate change than what science can determine. With unassuming presence, which comes through in the interview featured on this episode, he presents the results of his field work extracting cores of ice from the Antarctica. From ice that dates back up to 800,000 years, he can tell what the atmosphere was like then and compare it to what is happening today. He answers the question: How much climate change is cyclical and how much of what's happening today is different from anything in the history of our species? He also shares his hopes for humanity coming together in new cooperative ventures in the face of the challenge.
Episode 50 :: Colin Richard, part 1: Living a Sustainable Culture--Yes We Can
Permaculture.It may not be a new word to you, but can you describe it? Is it, for example, a way of gardening, of transforming your yard, or making sure the animals and plants on your farm are happy and healthy? If the "perma," part of the word is short for "permanent," could it be that "sustainable culture" is a synonym for permaculture? Does the "culture" part of the word suggest a pretty complete way of living? Will it help your household live more sustainably? What elements of permaculture might you already be practicing? Guest Colin Richard tells us of his attraction to permaculture and why on this 50th (jubilee) edition of TCGP.
Episode 51 :: Colin Richard, part 2: "Table of Contents" for a Spiritually-Infused, Sustainable Culture
MultiEarth's worldview has so fervently separated spirituality from science and knowledge that one of the challenges for living the OneEarth way is articulating how the sacred infuses all of life. In this second interview with Colin Richard on The Common Good Podcast, he tells us of the yearnings he has to live inside a spiritually-infused, sustainable culture. It's a yearning many share.
Episode 52 :: Kathleen Beck: How Falling in Love with a Bioregion Speeds the Change We Need
Kathleen Beck has lived a chunk of her life on one mountain, demonstrating the satisfaction and power of one whose ecological, spiritual, and educational orientation have roots in a particular place. Her relationship with Volcan Mountain includes the sense of the sacred there--an experience long recognized by the Kumeyaay People of Southern California. Loving Volcan has led Kathleen to be a nature interpreter and guide there. She tends its rich, fragile biosystems. Along with other artists of the area, Volcan inspires her artistically and spiritually.
Episode 53 :: Dan Swanson: How U.S. Policies in Latin America Drive Immigrants North for Survival
This episode features Dan Swanson, pictured here with Angelica, his spouse. Dan brings us a mighty important perspective on the economically and politically driven immigration of Latinos to the U.S. He helps us know some effective ways to respond in conversation and action. Dan has been involved with Jubilee Economics since its founding and continues to be involved as a board member. He is a skilled liaison for people who are interested in one of our "opening the eyes" immersions to southern Mexico.
2015
Episode 54 :: Lan Richart: Pressing for Justice in the Ecosystems Where Life Thrives or Dies
This episode features Lan Richart. He created healthy wetlands for many years in the business he and his spouse, Pam, owned. She led municipalities in planning their futures, helping them factor in the environmental issues. They retired early from their business, sold it, and formed the nonprofit Eco-Justice Collaborative, based in Chicago. They've just moved south to Champaign, Illinois, putting them in the middle of the state and much closer to the vast Illinois coalfields being mined to meet our species' voracious appetite for energy.
Episode 55 :: Larry Kurschner: Fixing the Electronic Waste Problem
What do we do with our old cell phone, computer, iPad, television, sound system components, lightbulbs, and all the other electronic waste in our business and home? Do we know how to dispose of them safely? And just how toxic are they anyway? Larry Kurschner, Chief Executive Officer of Secure E-Waste Solutions, our guest this time, will help us know more about the rapidly emerging field of E-waste recycling.
Episode 56 :: Carol Watkins: Shared Housing--a Step Toward OneEarth Living
In previous podcasts Lee has mentioned that he and Juanita, his wife, have moved into Shared Housing with Harry and Carol Watkins. This episode interviews Carol to get more details on how they came together, prepared for creating life together, bought a house this past summer, and then, in October, moved into their joint venture. As you listen, do ponder whether shared housing sounds to you like a step toward OneEarth living, AND whether it might be an option for you.
Episode 57 :: Marco Tavanti: True Sustainable Development Merges Local Wisdom with Justice-Based Resources
Our guest today, Marco Tavanti, throws a lot of light on two words that have come to have a dubious reputation in some circles -- "sustainable development."What kind of development locally or internationally can truly be called sustainable? And what lessons have been learned that give us reason to believe that "sustainable development" is being re-imagined so that the common good is being served? Do listen to this episode.
Episode 58 :: Veronica Lozada: Lawyer Defending Common Person vs. Powers in Mexico
It's noble, right, and good spiritual practice to defend ordinary people being marginalized by great powers. And it's dangerous! Recent reports of both the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and Amnesty Int'l speak of the challenges and dangers in the Americas to all who defend human rights. "In Latin America and the Caribbean it is increasingly common to see human rights defenders facing unfounded accusations and unfair detentions. It is of the utmost concern that the authorities are failing to stop the misuse of the justice system as a means of repression," said Nancy Tapias Torrado, Amnesty Int'l. Talk with any human rights attorney. They can tell you about the calls received in the night; the threats to them and their family. How can we be in solidarity with these attorneys and strengthen them?
Episode 59 :: Doug Clegg: Why Some Artists Avoid the Entertainment Industry
With ticket prices to concerts up in the stratosphere, at least for the high profile artists, is it true or false that the artists we listen to in parks, subways, coffeehouses, street fairs, churches, and bars are inferior? Or are they intentionally sharing their art from their heart with us, preferring to meet people where we are instead of being part of the high-end venues? What kind of art best serves the Common Good? Our guest this time speaks to some of these questions. He's following his call to be an artist for change, and an artist who wants to be with the people in common settings.
Episode 60 :: Christle Balvin -- Extreme Drought Teaches Value of Water for the Common Good
Christle Balvin at the Pasadena Community Foundation’s “LOCAL HEROS” event with (L to R) Darryl Dunn, general manager of the Rose Bowl Operating Company, and Michael Beck, City Manager of Pasadena, California (Photo by Herb Shoebridge at http://www.timeriver.net/hintz&balvin/) Christle Balvin deepens our understanding in this episode of how California is and is not prepared to manage a coherent response to water shortages across California as the state wide drought continues into the 5th year. Christle helps us sort out the following:1. Separating fear and panic from the real concerns we have about water across the state.
2. The preparedness of the water boards to establish clear guides for all sectors of California's economy, cities, rural life, etc.
3. The exceptions being given to industrial agriculture and fracking in the early restrictions: Are these simply caving to economic powers or are other factors also involved?
4. What longer term solutions do you consider vital to how we steward water?
5. Religions of the World, including First Peoples, regard water to be sacred, not to be commodified. How can such a worldview be part of long term solutions?
Episode 61 :: Pope and Pando: An Encyclical and a Conference on Reversing Climate Change
John B. Cobb, Jr.Pope Francis released his encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si', on the day we pre-recorded this podcast. Many reviews, affirmative and critical, are already appearing online. Study guides will follow in the months ahead. In the Fall, 2015, Pope Francis will address the U.S. Congress and the U.N. General Assembly. How great will be the impacts of the encyclical? Much depends on whether users, Catholics and all others, maximize or minimize it.This podcast does not, however, major in the Pope's encyclical, but in a conference called "Pando Populous: Seizing the Alternative"--an int'l event on thinking that gets us to an "ecological civilization."
Episode 62 :: Jeff Lincer: Heroic Efforts to Manage Habitats of Endangered Species--Are They Succeeding?
Scientists continue to speak out on the ecological crises we're in. Jeff Lincer, our guest on this podcast, is one of them. The signature on his emails includes two quotes that tell us quickly what he's about. "Ecosystems are not only more complex than we think, they are more complex than we can think."-- Frank Egler"It is reckless to suppose that biodiversity can be diminished indefinitely without threatening humanity itself." Edward O. Wilson
He's a principle at Lincer & Associates, LLC, a woman-owned business, and president of Researchers Implementing Conservation Action. He's also Research Fellow, San Diego Zoological Society (Institute for Conservation Research) and Research Associate, San Diego Museum of Natural History.
Episode 63 :: Judie Lincer, Naturalist Educator for SDCaN
Judie Lincer has taught preschool-high school for over 25 years, is a Naturalist Educator and a board member and co-education lead for SDCaN, San Diego Children and Nature. She works as a Program Manager on various projects around the county that are designed to bring Schoolyard Science Lessons into schools.One main emphasis of the programs she leads is to empower teachers to use the outdoors to engage children in science, enhance their scientific- inquiry skills and to inspire and develop an appreciation of the environment and ecosystems in San Diego County. Judie also is a Naturalist Guide for SD Audubon and leads 4th grade curriculum-based hikes at the Silverwood Wildlife Sanctuary in Lakeside, as well as hikes for Outdoor Explore!-an after school program that takes children on hikes in nearby nature. Judie has a lifelong passion for sharing her love of nature with all.
Episode 64 :: Paul Canavese: Why the Pope's Encyclical and US Visit Matter
Paul focuses on the impact of Pope Francis' recent encyclical and the Pope's visit to the US, specifically on 1) alternative economics, 2) the creation crisis and 3) voluntary simplicity.Then Paul provides input on how small organizations like his, Jubilee Economics and Simple Living Works! can keep the pope's momentum building. We talk some about his new educational resources.
Episode 65 :: Mel Lions: Why Food Choices Are Our Best Portal to Making Differences Ecologically
Mel Lions, program manager at Wild Willow Farm and devoted educator, on how we can best create alternatives to the destructive practices of industrialized agriculture and factory farming.
2016
Episode 66 :: Dan Swanson: What's Trending in Jubilee's Paradigm-Shifting Mission
In this episode, a conversation between Dan Swanson and Lee Van Ham while they are participating in a border immersion in Nogales, Sonora (Mexico) peaks into what's trending in Jubilee's paradigm-changing mission.
To begin with the border immersion itself, it's important to note that it was a pilot venture by SCUPE (Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education), Chicago, as they seek to shift their pedagogy into modules conducted at various hotspots for ministry. Nogales is a hotspot for border crossings and deportations. So after two days of visiting many sites that hold the dynamics of the border, serving meals to deportees and listening to their stories, our hearts were opened to think in new ways about what kind of ministry and service make sense in this volatile, transformative context.
Episode 67 :: Raising Up the Common Good & Living More Simply--Two Components in Earth-Size Living
Hear cohosts Lee and Jerry comment on multiple themes comprising the common good, and the common people for whom those themes are a primary activity of their lives. It could be that the cohosts learned more than anyone else from the 2015 podcasts. They certainly increased connections to the people interviewed. 
Episode 68 :: Convergence of OneEarth Living and Voluntary Simplicity
The impetus for this podcast came when TCGP cohost Lee Van Ham was one of the presenters at "Seeking Simplicity: A Workshop for the Soul and the Planet," hosted at St. Paul's Cathedral in January, 2016. The search for simplicity, not austerity, can get us closer to using only the capacities of our one planet instead of several. Yet, just what simplicity is varies widely; what size fits you? And does your size fit the planet?
Episode 69 :: Anne Marie Tipton: The Movement to Divest from Fossil Fuels Is Growing Rapidly
This episode interviews Anne Marie Tipton, a volunteer with Fossil Free California, on the campaigns to divest from fossil fuels. She dates the divestment movement from the 2012 article by Bill McKibben published by _Rolling Stone_ magazine. Currently, over 500 entities have pledged to divest from fossil fuels, Stanford University and the City of Seattle are among them.
Episode 70: William Ostrander:: I Want to Reverse Climate Change by How I Farm. Why Am I Also Running for U.S. Congress?
When TCGP co-host Jerry Iversen heard farmer William Ostrander speak at a Climate Action rally, he knew he wanted an interview for TCGP.
Episode 71 :: Jim Redmond, Mr. Missouri River, on Acting Ecologically Wherever You Live
"Volunteers are Beyond Measure!" Dawn Snyder bestowed the "Friend of Conservation 2015" award to our illustrious leader, Jim Redmond, during last night's Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center's Awards and Volunteer Dinner. Our guest on this podcast, Jim Redmond, exemplifies the importance of living in ecological consciousness wherever we are. Jim is a leader in the Iowa Sierra Club and has great knowledge about relating to the Missouri River with ecological integrity.
If you're a Sierra Club member in the state of Iowa, what kind of issues are you addressing? If you're not in Iowa, you'll be able to translate all the issues discussed in this podcast into similar ones in your area: protecting fragile habitats, pure water, using the natural world in ways that recognize our interdependence with it.
Episode 72 :: Walter Brueggemann on Sabbath as Resistance to a Nano-Second, Hurry-Up World
This podcast is about resistance to our 24/7 civilization. Quiet, disciplined resistance. Practicing alternative, slower behaviors to the fast food, nano-second hurry of a work week, and living richer because of it. This interview with Walter Brueggemann will surprise, disturb, and delight you!!
The interview revolves around the word "Sabbath." It's a surprise, because not so many of us would likely hurry to listen to a podcast on Sabbath. But this half-hour interview with Brueggemann goes to highly unpredictable places. This podcast will destroy the stereotypes about Sabbath.
Walter Brueggemann is surely one of the most influential Bible interpreters of our time. He is the author of over one hundred books and numerous scholarly articles. He continues to be a highly sought-after speaker.
Walter Brueggemann's web site: About, Books, Audio/Video || Wikipedia
Sabbath as Resistance: Saying NO to the Culture of NOW
Episode 73 :: Hal Brody: An Up-to-the-Minute Report on Solar Energy
Costs, technologies, rebates, and policies change rapidly around solar energy. If you haven't updated yourself since 2014, you're likely not aware of how affordable and convenient it is. This episode's interview with Hal Brody lets the sun shine on all of these issues. Every day the sun sends more energy to Earth than what we use globally in a year. But our technology has lagged in using it. How about today? Is solar energy still more expensive or does it now compete in price with carbon energies?
Episode 74 :: Paul Taylor: How Much Is Enough? A Vital Question for the Common Good
When an economy HAS to grow in order to be strong, it cannot answer the questions raised in this podcast: How much is enough? And how does living with a sense of enough affect the quality of our lives and the lives of others? Earth, our planetary home, has strong opinions about how much of what she produces is for each of us. Our choices about enough put us between what the growth economy says and what the ecospheres say. What does an economy of enough look like? How can we encourage one another in choices of sufficiency when we're often told that we deserve more? When all around us we're being lured into nicer, better, and greater? What happens to poverty and wealth in a world where everyone takes only their portion? This podcast lets you in on one person's choices about enough and more, sufficiency and excess. PLUS, our guest raises a haunting question that grows out of the biblical story of manna, the food for the people of Israel while they were in the desert after leaving Egypt. Here's the question: Even though the Bible clearly states that a container of manna is to be in the Ark of the Covenant as a perpetual reminder of enough, why do we never see so much as a symbol of it in centers of Judeo-Christian worship? Don't go away.Lee met Paul initially when they attended an event led by Faith and Money Network, Inc., part of the Church of the Savior in Washington, D.C. Paul has chaired the board of Faith and Money Network for awhile. Along the way, his wife, Cara, and Lee's, Juanita, developed a wonderful relationship, and that too facilitated our getting together. Paul and Cara live just outside of Sacramento. It was on one of our visits that Paul wondered aloud why houses of worship did not have in them a symbol of Enough?
Episode 75 :: Jean Diaz, Exec. Dir., San Diego Community Land Trust
With the average house in San Diego in 2016, selling at over $500,000, and with almost 800 San Diego homes selling for over $2M in 2015, just what does "affordable housing" mean? (Just to compare: the average home in Cleveland, OH, sells for around $80,000.) What level of income is needed in San Diego to become a homeowner? When the Market does not, and cannot, provide houses affordable to people in the workforce, what alternatives are there to paying rents that continue rising? Is renting your only option, and therefore paying all your housing money to someone else who does own? Stay with us for this episode of The Common Good Podcast because we're talking with the executive director of one non-profit that defines "affordable housing" in a way that many people in the workforce can become homeowners, not just in San Diego County, but all across the country.This podcast updates us on the community land trust model of making homes available for ownership at 20%-or-so below the market rate. I've been on the board of the SDCLT since its inception, chairing it for at least three years, so I believe in this model of housing. The reasons will become clear as I talk with Jean Diaz, who became Ex. Dir. in 2013.
Ep. 76: Celebrating Ugly Food & Fighting for Clean Water
Part 1: Celebrating Ugly Food / Gleaning with Pastor Amy Beveridge, Gail McNichols-Oliver and Emily Wilson
Exploring the intersection of food, water & faith in a time of drought, every Sunday in August, Bethel Lutheran Church (ELCA), Templeton, CA - Speakers, film, music, worship, fun! + Ugly Food Banquet.
Bethel Lutheran's Ugly Food Project promotion items (media releases, bulletin inserts, etc.) Plus an extended conversation with Gail McNichols-Oliver, a founder of GleanSLO, and Biblical reflections by Pr. Amy in light of Jesus' feeding the multitudes.
Part 2: Fighting for Clean Water with Paula Wansa
VIDEO--Thirsty for Justice: The Struggle for the Human Right to Water
Ep. 77: From Egos to Eden
Author Lee Van Ham gives us a preview of "From Egos to Eden: Our Heroic Journey to Keep Earth Livable," vol. 2 of his Eden for the 21st Century trilogy, due out Feb. 6, 2017.
Episode 78 :: Susan Taylor
Susan Taylor of Just Money Advisors on Relating to Money in a Toxic Culture and Parenting Children about Money
2017
- TCGP #79: Candace Vanderhoff, Water Conservation/Reclamation (1/1)
- TCGP #80: Walter Brueggemann on The Primal Power of Money and Possessions in Our Lives (part 1) (2/1)
- TCGP #81: Learning Resistance and Alternatives from Zapatistas and Jubilee's Mexico Partners(3/1)
- TCGP #82: Kelly Siefken: How Sacramento Food Bank Distributes Food (Where the Food System Fails) and Helps Families Become Self-Sustaining (4/1)
- TCGP #83: Hazel Henderson of Ethical Markets Media: Reforming Economies to Work for the Wellbeing of All Creatures (5/1)
- TCGP #84: Patricia St. Onge: Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Peoples Coming Together for OneEarth Living (6/1)
- TCGP #85: Lee & Jerry: Actions for a Better World in a Time of Climate Change and U.S. Extremism (7/1)
- TCGP #86: Walter Brueggemann on the Primal Power of Money part 2 (8/1)
- TCGP #87: Enrique Morones: Advocate for Migrants, Immigrants, and Keeping Borders Humane (9/1)
- TCGP #88: Writer, speakers Paul K. Chappell from the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation: Distinguishing Violence from Aggression in Living & Teaching Nonviolence (10/1)
- TCGP #89: Sr. Shirley Fineran: 21st Century Slave Trade--Helping Victims Recover from Human Trafficking (11/1)
- TCGP #90: Ulrich Duchrow: Importance of Radicalizing Our Reforms So We Create a Culture of Life (12/1)
Page updated 11/22/21