Why We Care
Tiphaine Marie
Biodiversity is the web of life we all depend on – life on Earth in all its forms from pollinators and fungi to entire ecosystems, from rainforests to deserts and oceans. Human activity is destroying nature all around us and over the past few years I’ve come to realise and understand that the reason why we care and feel such deep hurt when we see a forest being cut down or a whale being killed is because nature is where we come from. It’s our home and it’s who we are – and it is so central to our balance and wellbeing. Yet we’ve become so disconnected from it, most of us in the Western world living in concrete buildings, walking on concrete roads, living our lives away from the trees, rivers and wildlife we so crucially need to survive. For the health of the planet as well as our own, I really do believe we need to restore that connection with the natural world – now more than ever.
In Why We Care, activists, scientists, creatives, and changemakers are invited to share the story of their relationship with nature, and how they are helping protect biodiversity on our beautiful planet, both through the careers they chose and in their personal lives. For season 2, we’ll also dig deeper into figuring out how we can restore that connection – recognising that we can increase our health and wellbeing if we live in harmony with our environment and the other species we share the planet with.
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Top 10 Why We Care Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Why We Care episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Why We Care for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Why We Care episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
In this week’s episode I’m chatting with Nicola Brown, an impact producer and filmmaker specialising in natural history and conservation. Her most recent work, the digital campaign Our Frozen Planet, has been published over the past few months on the BBC Earth channels alongside the release of Frozen Planet ll. The series explores how climate change is impacting communities and species living in the frozen parts of our planet, with the vision to bring people together to drive positive change. She also led Our Blue Planet, another BBC Earth digital impact campaign that aimed to get people talking about the ocean.
Want to dive deeper?
- Our Frozen Planet - https://www.bbcearth.com/our-frozen-planet
- Our Blue Planet - https://www.bbcearth.com/our-blue-planet
- Project Biodiversity in Cape Verde - https://www.projectbiodiversity.org/
- Smart Ice initiative in Northern Canada - https://smartice.org/
- Outrage + Optimism podcast - https://www.outrageandoptimism.org/
- Oceans North nonprofit in Canada - https://www.oceansnorth.org/
- Isaias Hernandez (Queer Brown Vegan) - https://www.instagram.com/queerbrownvegan
- Repair Cafes - https://www.repaircafe.org/
- Force of Nature - https://www.forceofnature.xyz/
- New Zealand project - The Kotahitanga mō te Taiao alliance https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/asia-pacific/new-zealand/stories-in-new-zealand/new-zealand-alliance/
- Sea Our Future X Attitude magazine story - https://www.attitude.co.uk/uncategorised/bimini-and-dan-oneill-join-lgbtq-eco-activists-on-a-mission-to-heal-our-ocean-403363/
- The Outlaw Ocean by Ian Urbina - https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/439981/the-outlaw-ocean-by-ian-urbina/9781529111392
Little links
- Nicola on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nicolafayebrown/
- #OurFrozenPlanet on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/ourfrozenplanet/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this week’s episode I’m chatting with Anne Brummer, a wildlife rescuer and CEO of the Save Me Trust. I first heard about her through Dr. Brian May, who you might know as the guitarist of the band Queen. Turns out he is also really interested in animal rights, so much so that in 2009 he joined forces with Anne to set up the Save Me Trust, a nonprofit organisation on a mission to give wild animals a voice.
Anne has been rescuing wildlife for over 30 years and currently runs not only the Save Me Trust but also Harper Asprey Wildlife Rescue, an emergency wildlife hospital that works 24/7, 365 days a year. We spoke about the situation of wildlife in the UK and the main threats wild animals such as badgers, foxes, deer, birds and hedgehogs are facing - including habitat loss, lack of access to freshwater and hunting. She also shared a ton of practical advice on how you can help wildlife - from what to do if you find an injured animal, to what you can put in place to support your local wild animals, whether you have a garden or not. I live in a flat in Central London so don’t have a green space of my own that I can turn into a little wildlife haven which breaks my heart - but I will be putting some of her other tips into action, and also having conversations with people around me who do have gardens - including my Dad who I’ll definitely try to convince to make our garden back home more wildlife friendly!
Want to dive deeper?
- Donate to the Save Me Trust - https://savemetrust.co.uk/
- Take action with the Save Me Trust - https://savemetrust.co.uk/take-action/
- What 3 Words app Anne mentioned - https://what3words.com/
Little links
- Anne on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/anneatsaveme/
- Harper Asprey Wildlife Rescue on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/harperaspreywildliferescue/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it.
Thank you for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this week’s episode I’m chatting with Emma Håkansson, an activist, author, and founder of Collective Fashion Justice – an organisation campaigning for a fashion system that upholds total ethics, by prioritising the life and wellbeing of our fellow animals, people and the planet we share. I first heard about Emma through Slay, a documentary on the behind the scenes of the leather industry – you might remember hearing about it in the episode I did with Poppy Mason Watts from WaterBear Network, as the film is available for free on their streaming platform.
Emma has been advocating for a more ethical fashion system for years – so we spoke about how to navigate the “sustainable” fashion space, which can be so confusing and misleading. We discussed the environmental impact of animal leather and how leather is actually a profitable co-product, rather than a byproduct of the meat industry as we’re often led to believe. We also spoke about the carbon tunnel vision - this idea that by focusing on carbon emissions we tend to overlook other important issues such as biodiversity loss, overconsumption, pollution, inequality, and animal exploitation.
Want to dive deeper?
- Get Emma’s book here - https://lnk.to/HowVeganismCanSaveUs
- Sign up to Collective Fashion Justice’s newsletter - https://www.collectivefashionjustice.org/newsletter
- Grazed and confused report - https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/reports/fcrn_gnc_report.pdf
- Collective Fashion Justice leather report series - https://www.collectivefashionjustice.org/under-their-skin
- CFJ material guide - https://www.collectivefashionjustice.org/material-guide
Little links
- Emma on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/hakamme/
- Collective Fashion Justice on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/collectivefashionjustice/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it.
Thank you for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In today’s episode I’m chatting with Joycelyn Longdon, a PhD researcher at Cambridge University and the founder of Climate in Colour, an education platform dedicated to making climate conversations more accessible and diverse for the climate curious.
Joycelyn works at the intersection of technology, ecology, sociology and racial justice. So there was a lot to cover in this episode! She describes bioacoustics and the technologies she works with for her PhD research as ‘Shazam for nature’, which I think is fascinating – she explained how by listening to the sounds of nature we’re able to monitor the health of ecosystems and enhance conservation work. We also spoke about the ethical implications of technology and how it can be used in service of nature and people, rather than against them. Another really important aspect of her work is participatory design, so she explained how she’s working very closely with local communities to reduce racial and climate injustice by involving them in the process, getting their insights and feedback.
Want to dive deeper?
- Subscribe to the Climate in Colour newsletter - https://climateincolour.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=web&utm_source=subscribe-widget
- Watch Joycelyn’s TED talk - https://tedxlondon.com/tedxlondon-countdown/programme/
Come say hi!
- Climate in Colour on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/climateincolour/
- Joycelyn on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joycelynlongdon/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it. Thank you so much for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
03/27/24 • 50 min
In today’s episode I’m speaking with Heïdi Sevestre, an amazing French glaciologist. She called me all the way from Svalbard, an archipelago in the Arctic ocean, between mainland Norway and the North Pole. 10 years ago, as Heidi was hiking from Chamonix to Zermatt, a mountain guide told her that it is possible to spend your life studying glaciers, and become a glaciologist. So she’s never looked back and has since studied glaciers all around the world, from the French Alps to Greenland, from the Arctic to Antarctica.
We spoke about why are glaciers important and their role in regards to regulating the climate, but also what exactly is happening to them and whether or not it is too late to save them. She also told me about a climbing expedition in Greenland she recently went on called Arctic Ascent, which was filmed and is currently being released on National Geographic TV.
Want to dive deeper?
- Heïdi’s book, “Sentinelle du Climat” (in French) — https://www.harpercollins.fr/collections/automated-collection/products/sentinelle-du-climat
- Heïdi’s website — https://www.heidisevestre.com/
- Ice & Life — https://www.iceandlife.com/index.php/en/
- Calculate your carbon footprint — https://footprint.wwf.org.uk/
- Watch Arctic Ascent — https://www.nationalgeographic.com/tv/shows/arctic-ascent-with-alex-honnold
Come say hi!
- Heïdi on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/heidisevestre
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it. Thank you so much for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Restoring the ocean, one coral at a time with Titouan Bernicot, Founder and CEO of Coral Gardeners
Why We Care
01/31/24 • 25 min
In today’s episode I’m speaking with Titouan Bernicot, the founder & CEO of Coral Gardeners. He grew up on a pearl farm in French Polynesia, in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean. Whenever I’m on a call with him I’m convinced he’s using one of those fake beach backgrounds but then remember it’s actually a real backdrop. We even got interrupted by dolphins swimming past the Coral Gardeners headquarters while recording this conversation...
Titouan says that coral reefs gave him everything in his life, from the waves he surfs to the food he eats and the oxygen he breathes. So in 2017, at only 18 years old, he started Coral Gardeners to restore the reefs and plant corals. Together with his team he has already planted over 100,000 corals in French Polynesia and they have set the goal for themselves to plant one MILLION corals by 2025, all around the world.
I met him at the World Oceans Day event in New York last year and was so impressed by his positive energy and contagious hope. He knows what’s at stake but rather than letting the state of the world get him down, he turns this into meaningful action, getting people and organisations such as Rolex, Prada, Warner Bros and many more from all around the globe to join the movement and help restore healthy ocean ecosystems.
Want to dive deeper?
- Adopt a coral - https://coralgardeners.org/products/adopt-a-coral
- Follow Coral Gardeners on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/coralgardeners
Come say hi!
- Titouan on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/toutiess/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it. Thank you so much for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Why We Care – season 2 trailer
Why We Care
10/31/23 • 3 min
Biodiversity is the web of life we all depend on – life on Earth in all its forms from pollinators and fungi to entire ecosystems, from rainforests to deserts and oceans. Human activity is destroying nature all around us and over the past few years I’ve come to realise and understand that the reason why we care and feel such deep hurt when we see a forest being cut down or a whale being killed is because nature is where we come from. It’s our home and it’s who we are – and it is so central to our balance and wellbeing. Yet we’ve become so disconnected from it, most of us in the Western world living in concrete buildings, walking on concrete roads, living our lives away from the trees, rivers and wildlife we so crucially need to survive. For the health of the planet as well as our own, I really do believe we need to restore that connection with the natural world – now more than ever.
In Why We Care, activists, scientists, creatives, and changemakers are invited to share the story of their relationship with nature, and how they are helping protect biodiversity on our beautiful planet, both through the careers they chose and in their personal lives. For season 2, we’ll also dig deeper into figuring out how we can restore that connection – recognising that we can increase our health and wellbeing if we live in harmony with our environment and the other species we share the planet with.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In today’s episode I’m chatting with Zandi Ndhlovu – an ocean explorer, South Africa’s first Black woman free diving instructor and the founder of the Black Mermaid Foundation. Zandi discovered free diving when she was 28, and fell in love with this beautiful practice and the underwater world. Ever since she’s been using her voice to advocate for more diversity and access in the ocean space and change the narrative that black people don’t belong in the ocean.
Through the Black Mermaid Foundation she started in 2020 in Cape Town, she teaches local kids how to swim and helps them discover the wonders of the ocean through snorkeling. She told me how she realised that working with kids had a much broader impact on the community, as they come home from a snorkeling adventure and tell their parents all about what they have learned and discovered that day. She also said that kids are the leaders and decision makers of tomorrow, and so by getting them to understand the ocean, they will learn to love it and want to protect it. She told me how they’re usually terrified of getting into the water but once they do, they gradually learn to love it and marvel at the beauty of what they see.
Want to dive deeper?
- The Black Mermaid Foundation - https://www.blackmermaid.co.za/home-1
- To get in touch with the foundation directly - [email protected]
- Watch WaterBear’s documentary about Zandi - https://www.waterbear.com/watch/the-black-mermaid
Come say hi!
- Zandi on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/zandithemermaid/
- The Black Mermaid Foundation on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/theblackmermaid_foundation
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
- Discover Earth on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/discoverearth/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it. A big thank you as well to Discover Earth for partnering with Why We Care and helping raise awareness of the importance of ocean conservation.
Thank you for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In today’s episode I’m chatting with Isaias Hernandez, an environmental educator aka Queer Brown Vegan - the social media platform where he helps people understand the climate crisis. Isaias is so good at explaining some of the worlds most pressing issues in a super simple and engaging way - highly recommend following him on Instagram to learn more about sustainability, research, and what he calls ‘evidence-based hope’.
We spoke about the link between the environmental crisis and social inequalities, how he believes the climate crisis is an educational crisis and how he perceives the tension between the need for systemic change and individual action. He told me the story of how and why he went vegan, and shared his perspective on ocean wildlife. We also discussed how to avoid climate doomism, and where to find hope - with the amazing example of the recovery of Monterey Bay, where ocean biodiversity is now thriving.
Isaias is such a joy to speak with and I had a great time recording this conversation - hope you’ll enjoy it as well!
Want to dive deeper?
- Watch the episode about Monterey Bay on Isaias’ YouTube channel – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13XomK_ASXs&t=650s&ab_channel=QueerBrownVegan
Come say hi!
- Isaias on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/queerbrownvegan/
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
- Discover Earth on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/discoverearth/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it. A big thank you as well to Discover Earth for partnering with Why We Care and helping raise awareness of the importance of ocean conservation.
Thank you for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this week’s episode I’m chatting with my friend Jesse Adler, a biomolecular scientist and materials innovation researcher at PANGAIA. Jesse is one of my favourite people - she is one the most enthusiastic, smartest, and overall just wonderful human beings I know. We spoke about materials innovation and what in her view are the most pressing issues in terms of materials that we need to find alternatives for, and about biomimicry and how so much of what we design as humans have been inspired by nature, including for example planes. We also discussed the cyclical nature of the world we live in and how the concept of waste doesn’t exist in nature.
Aside from her job at PANGAIA Jesse is also a future materials research fellow at the Jan Van Eyck Academie in the Netherlands. Her research focuses on finding replacements for artificial colorants in fungi. So we spoke about the makeup collection she created using pigments extracted from various types of fungi, and how she approaches this as a collaboration rather than an exploitative extractive practice. She shared her tips for ethical foraging and also how she practices mindfulness to connect with the wider ecosystems we are part of.
I’ve had bits of this conversation with Jesse over the past few years and it is so nice to have finally recorded it, I hope you’ll find it as exciting as we did!
Want to dive deeper?
- Jesse’s portfolio - https://www.jadlerdesign.com/
- Learn more about Alchemical Mycology - https://www.jadlerdesign.com/alchemical-mycology
- Learn more about biomimicry - https://biomimicry.org/what-is-biomimicry/
- Watch Fantastic Fungi on Netflix - https://www.netflix.com/title/81183477
- Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake - https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/merlin-sheldrake/entangled-life/9780525510321
- Peace is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh - https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/thich-nhat-hanh/peace-is-every-step/9780712674065
- The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee - https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/siddhartha-mukherjee/gene/9780099584575
Little links
- Jesse on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jadlerdesign
- Why We Care on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/whywecarepodcast/
- Tiphaine on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tiphainemarie_/
If you enjoyed the episode and want to help the podcast, I would be super grateful if you could leave a little review or share it with a friend who might like it.
Thank you for caring and sending you lots of love!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Why We Care have?
Why We Care currently has 29 episodes available.
What topics does Why We Care cover?
The podcast is about Animals, Crisis, Activism, Impact, Climate, Environment, Natural Sciences, Nature, Wildlife, Podcasts, Science and Sustainability.
What is the most popular episode on Why We Care?
The episode title 'Is it too late to save our glaciers? with Dr. Heïdi Sevestre, glaciologist' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Why We Care?
The average episode length on Why We Care is 34 minutes.
How often are episodes of Why We Care released?
Episodes of Why We Care are typically released every 13 days, 23 hours.
When was the first episode of Why We Care?
The first episode of Why We Care was released on Nov 26, 2022.
Show more FAQ
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