Last week, I was contacted by a reporter from Civil Beat (https://www.civilbeat.org/) asking me about my proposal I submitted to the Honolulu City Charter. In preparation for the conversation, I decided to write a quick elevator pitch for why I think people-focused cities are better. After writing it, I decided it probably makes for a good blog post…So here it […]
Author and essayist Tamara Dean rejoins us for a special follow-up to her first Solve for Nature episode. Last time, her reflections on resilience, the Driftless landscape, and her book Shelter and Storm led to a challenge centered on citizen science. Today, she shares how that challenge unfolded—from the frustrations, to the unexpected joy, to the renewed sense of purpose […]
When we talk about “solving climate change,” we often think of new technology, renewable energy, carbon bills, or planting trees. And no doubt, climate change is a huge problem…Personally it often feels like the biggest problem we’ve had in decades. Global greenhouse-gas emissions continue to soar, and despite some hints that we may be peaking, we’re still way above a […]
Every time I’m in Waikiki (the epitome of a tourist city), I marvel at the fact that we haven’t limited or banned cars from the area – the area is relatively small and contained, and except for making day trips out from the resort area for hiking, snorkeling/SCUBA diving in other parts of the island, etc., people generally stay within […]
What if Stephen Hawking was right—that humanity has less than 100 years left? Physicist and tech entrepreneur Peter Solomon, Ph.D., believes the clock is ticking. With five existential threats accelerating—AI, climate change, genetic engineering, nuclear risk, and social media manipulation—he’s using science and storytelling to wake us up. His new novel 100 Years to Extinction paints a future we must […]
If you’re anything like me, you probably grew up believing that the world is mostly fair.That if something was being sold in a store, it had gone through the right checks.That if a product was cheap, it was because someone had figured out how to make it efficiently — not because someone else, somewhere, was paying the price. It’s a […]
We all have a version of ourselves we want to be…Who cooks real food instead of reaching for takeout.Who walks to the store instead of driving a mile.The person who buys less and repairs more.Who chooses reading a book over scrolling Instagram. But then… life happens. We get tired, we get busy, we forget. And little by little, our daily […]
Elspeth Hay is a writer and food systems thinker who’s inviting us to radically rethink how we grow our food. In her book Feed Us with Trees, she uncovers a forgotten story—one in which humans once thrived by cultivating staple foods like acorns, chestnuts, and hazelnuts in forest gardens rather than plowed fields. Through conversations with Indigenous knowledge-keepers, scientists, nut […]
I used to think companies were just giving us what we wanted. If people asked for faster cars, cheaper clothes, or tastier snacks, companies would listen and deliver. The market follows demand. Right? But then the day came when I realized that I was wrong – it works the other way around. Companies create what they want to sell, and […]
Kelly Wendorf is a leadership teacher, coach, and author of Flying Lead Change: 56 Million Years of Wisdom for Leading and Living. Drawing on indigenous teachings, neuroscience, and the wisdom of horses, she offers a nature-based approach to leadership that fosters connection, care, and resilience. Wendorf guides leaders—whether in workplaces, families, or communities—to “lead from behind,” creating safety, presence, and […]