KTW 39 | Bringing Nature Back into People's Lives + Following Through on Big Ideas with WOODCHUCK USA's Ben

Osiris Doumbé has always been a nature fan. Though his favorite animal has changed from a lion when he was young now chimps and giraffes; one thing was always clear- he was going to work with African wildlife. Specifically, wildlife in Cameroon, where his father was from. He grew up in France with a French mother and a Cameroonian father who wanted to impart knowledge, pride, and reverence for Africa in his kids. And though Osiris spent time identifying birds at his grandparent’s farm in France, his heart was already in Africa. With 2 organizations, 2 master’s degrees, a book and now a research and lecture position at the Bristol Zoo studying and protecting Nigeria-Cameroon chimps and Kordofan giraffes.

Dan Ross grew up in a small fishing town on the East Coast of Australia. He described it to me as the best place to grow up, a surfers dream there are tons of different types of waves close by. Dan also grew up around pro surfers. His stepdad and brother both made a living surfing so there was never a doubt in his mind that he could do the same. And he did. Surfing has become a profession for Dan and has taken him all around the world. In between the waves he's also become an environmental activist. Since 2011 he has been officially a Surf Ambassador for Patagonia and takes the companies do no harm philosophies into his own life.

How much do you think about what you throw out? Chances are if you are an avid listener, it's more than the average bear. This weeks guest Evan Steinbrink wants to start his own waste management company in Ohio. Evan was inspired by some classes in high school and college to really start thinking about his personal environmental impact.    Sponsers: Pelacase.com Use code KISSTHATWORLD for 15% off at checkout

Here at Kiss That World, I am always trying to learn more from environmental experts in order to truly live sustainably. Let me take a step back and say that my definition of sustainability is the act of designing systems and products in a way that reduces/eliminates waste,  the solutions should be scalable, in harmony with nature and people (ethical) and won't knowingly cause problems for future generations. A lot of the time words get tossed around so much they can lose their meaning so just to clarify, that's what it means to me. So on my journey to eliminate my own waste, learn from experts and to truly align my lifestyle with my values (making sure words, thoughts and actions line up) there have been some bumps on the road. And there continue to be bumps on the road. I am a human, I procrastinate, I make mistakes and sometimes I just plain go against all the things I said I was going to do. So in the light of the approaching (read:impending) New Years, and the ubiquitous onslaught of goal setting and self-improvement posts that are no doubt coming, here is a list of all the things I personally struggle to do sustainably, and some I have flat out given up on. This episode is sponsored by https://pelacase.com/ Use the code KISSTHATWORLD at checkout for 15% off

Meghann reflects on how she got to a year in podcasting, and answers some guest questions at the end. Some other topics I get into on this episode are the events of my life in the last 10 years including; immigration, competetive swimming, marriage, divorce, reuniting with my biological parents, working at a tropical fish store, as an organic farmer, my time at the zoo and a little about my childhood. Tessa Bain Wants to know: Do I have a twin? How do you get your skin so glowy? Have I ever eaten bark to be closer to nature? I have seen (felt) you pee in the ocean, can you talk about the environmental impacts of peeing in the ocean? Mel Eiser wants to know: What are the 5 things I've learned    K8o Jones of Food Hero's Podcast Wants to know: How do you find your guests?  What are my best tips for climate change warriors based on one year of podcasting? Eve at Rewanted Bags: If you had a slogan or mantra what would it be?  This episode is brought to you by https://pelacase.com/

Carter Brooks is a climate artist, philosopher, and philosopher of climate art. And how does one become a philosopher of climate art? For Carter the journey started with math, he was a whiz in high school and even wrote his own program for solitaire. He went to Yale for his undergrad and worked for several years before being struck by the immediacy and enormity of the climate crisis and went back to school for his masters. He knew this problem could not be solved in his lifetime, and after grieving reevaluated everything that he thought was important.

Benjamin Jo Vandenwymelenberg was born and raised in Wright, WI. He created a thin wood phone case and his friends thought it was cool. Ben incorporated WOODCHUCK USA and found the vision “putting nature back to people’s lives, and jobs back to America”. He plants a tree for every product sold and has his sights on 10 Million trees, an impact on every continent and eventually, a tree on Mars with Elon Musk

LaDonna is a passionate, outspoken and energetic advocate for environmental racism, health and injustice. She knows the fight is as important as it is difficult. But for LaDonna, this work chose her in the most personal way possible. She had lived in a beautiful neighborhood for over 10 years with her two children. The neighborhood was called Midway Village and it was made up of low income townhomes. Her parents have Black and Native American roots and had always told her that getting her hands in the soil was important- the soil would save her. They were the ones who first dug into the earth and planted a small garden. They found some interesting creatures there; giant worms full of black liquid and two headed frogs but didn’t dwell on it.

Dr. Phil Watts is an aeronautical engineer, environmental engineer, inventor, entrepreneur and most importantly a father. Phil grew up in Canada and spent his time building things, exploring the outdoors and (I’m assuming as a fellow Canadian) eating poutine and Timbits. For his doctorate, he moved from the seasonality of Montreal to the steady climate of LA. For Phil, a life well spent is one that involves doing things that help the planet but also doing things that bring you joy.