Progressive Hedonist

Leah Thomas, founder of the Intersectional Environmentalist, speaks eloquently about the importance of understanding interrelated systemic inequities and highlights the extraordinary work of Black environmentalists who have inspired her. In October 2024, podcast host Dana Cowin spoke to Thomas about the challenges of working in the eco space. Leah details the powerful effects of infusing joy and pleasure into transformative efforts. For anyone in search of resources or recommendations on taking first steps as an activist, this conversation is a great place to start.Photo credit: Val VegaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the ever-evolving world of food tech, Larissa Zimberoff is a uniquely thoughtful, well-informed and rigorous writer who cares about health, nutrition, innovation, taste, climate and soil. On this episode, host Dana Cowin learns about the Silicon Valley startups that are making new foods and trying to solve problems that we may one day encounter. Listen in to learn about the spectrum of tech food innovations that range from very unsettling to very promising.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

LinYee Yuan is the founder of Mold, a platform that "hopes to inspire designers to improve food systems through creative, human-centric solutions." For Yuan, the role of "design" is to ask questions, and on the Progressive Hedonist podcast, she posits several thought-provoking ones: Can we build and power our future using agricultural waste products? Why does something have to last forever to be considered successful? Can we create a food forest in an urban setting? Listen in to hear the riveting answers and to understand how we can become "creative collaborators" in determining our edible future.  Credit to Vincent Tullo for today's cover art.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bestselling author Dan Buettner has unlocked the secrets of longevity by studying Blue Zones, regions in the world where people live beyond the age of 80. Host Dana Cowin asks Buettner what we can learn from these communities now, and how we can lead long and healthy lives when confronted by environmental chaos. Listen in to hear Buettner’s skeptical response about the power of the individual to effect change and his socially-oriented solutions to our problems.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How are restaurants contributing to health issues for people and planet? That is one of the motivating questions for Johanna Hellrigl, chef and co-owner of Ama in Washington, DC. On the Progressive Hedonist podcast, Hellrigl shares how her own difficult health journey and the death of her talented chef father led her to create "meals that not only taste good but also feel good."  For her Northern Italian restaurant, “It's slow-living, it's slow-cooking, slow-food movement. I wanted to go back to our roots.” Listen in to hear about the intersection of restaurants and delicious, nourishing foods, as well as excellent advice about complex topics including everything from plastics in the kitchen to compostable cups.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Imani Black, founder of Minorities in Aquaculture (MIA), discusses the history—and the future—of Black watermen and demystifies the American aquaculture industry in this episode of Progressive Hedonist with Dana Cowin. Growing up on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Imani is drawn to work on the water, and along the way discovers her family’s own connection to the challenging local seafood industry. As she pursues her degree in Marine Biology and becomes an oyster farmer, Imani recognizes a need to encourage more women and people of color to join this environmentally sustainable work. In 2020, she launched MIA, a job training program and has single-handedly doubled the amount of African Americans working in the maritime industry. A self-proclaimed “seafood girly”, Imani also provides great recs on picking the best seafood and dishes on her favorite oysters.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

One of the best-known chef-environmentalists in the world, Dan Barber of Blue Hill Stone Barns shares his thoughts on how prioritizing deliciousness can improve the world. On this podcast, Barber dives into the benefits of growing food for flavor-first increased nutrition and soil health. He also digs in deep about why he launched a seed company, how we can improve on the accepted farm-to-table model and why we should.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cocktail consultant Kelsey Ramage of LA’s Trash Collective is an expert in making divine drinks from items that would ordinarily be thrown away. After noticing the obscene amount of fresh produce tossed out at a hotel where she was working in London, she began to develop cocktails with ubiquitous leftover lemon and lime rinds. She went on to create the Trash Tiki tour showcasing the delicate uses for discards like avocado pits, banana peels and coffee grinds. Listen in to also hear about global cocktail trends, goth events and sustainable spirit brands.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Andrew Zimmern might be best known for eating things like coral worms in Samoa and horse rib and rectum sausage in Kazakhstan, but when podcast host Dana Cowin caught up with him on Progressive Hedonist, he had clearly begun focusing on a new kind of food adventure. He now spends a lot of time addressing issues around sustainability, including producing the extraordinary documentary Hope In the Water with Shailene Woodley and Martha Stewart, among others, acting as global ambassador for both the United Nations World Food Programme and The Nature Conservancy, and so much more. On the podcast, Dana and Andrew discuss ways to mitigate climate change through food including immediate policy change and support from government, investment in green jobs, and speedy adoption of proven sustainable systems by companies. Listen in for stories of Minnesota fish barns, the connection between sobriety and sustainability, and the value of the local butcher.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Isaias Hernandez is a young climate activist whose background, education and insights make him one of the most prominent eco-communicators of his generation. A child of Mexican immigrants, he grew up in LA next door to polluting chemical companies, and went on to study Environmental Science at Berkeley. He soon realized that the language around environmentalism was so inaccessible he could hardly explain it to his mother, a teacher. To help bridge the gap between science and understanding, he launched @queerbrownvegan on Instagram. Listen to this episode of Progressive Hedonist to learn about Hernandez’s journey as well as his thoughts on climate grief, food systems and his most recent project, Symbiocene, an events company that brings together people with varying worldviews to discuss something they share in common—a love of the planet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.