Down to Earth: The Planet to Plate Podcast

Dr. Caitlin Youngquist started out wanting to be a veterinarian, but then discovered soil science and was so taken by it that she got a PhD, and has devoted her career to serving farmers, ranchers, and rural communities. A practitioner and promoter of regenerative agriculture, she has worked with Conservation Districts, non-profit orgs, Extension, and her own small business, Dirt Works Wyoming, a company that provides compost statewide. She uses science as a tool to solve on-the-ground problems, which range from crops and livestock issues to mental health, family dynamics, and food insecurity. She also guides hunting programs for women, is a volunteer firefighter. TIMELINE 2'22 how Caitlin discovered agriculture and soil science 3'33 the value of applied science for solving real problems 4'23 what is Extension 4'52 the non-elitist focus of extension, taking academic research to the people 6'54 how extension actually works 8'40 food insecurity and food deserts in an agricultural state, starting a food garden 11'30 making sure initiatives last beyond their founder 13'17 taking the holistic/social work perspective as an extension educator 14'39 people get isolated on their farms 16'31 the importance of letting go of a scarcity/competition mindset and sharing knowledge 18'28 difficulty making generational transition of management 20'12 the difficulty in calling for help with family conflicts 22'17 the difference between complicated and complex systems 24'59 analogies between soil health and community health 27'17 efficiency vs resiliency 29'37 the one nation that feeds itself has high biodiversity and regenerative ag 30'21 making sure local food is not an elite activity 32'40 becoming a hunter 34'21 why hunting is so powerful for women in particular 40'05 whether hunting supports species conservation 42'29 compost company Dirt Works Wyoming 44'14 agriculture and soil science as a great career for young people to consider 45'47 drcaitlinyoungquist.com

In today's podcast, we talk to Jennifer Sahn, editor of High Country News, and writers Rick Bass and Laureli Ivanoff, about HCN's September issue, a collaboration with the Food & Environment Reporting Network (FERN). The issue covers a wide range of topics on Food and Power in the American West.

TIMELINE 1'57 High Country News and FERN collaboration on "Food and Power in the West" issue 3'17 stories in the issue including meat packing and pecan growing 6'10 the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Lab at Cal Poly, Humboldt 7'52 what is the Food & Environment Reporting Network 10'12 RICK BASS 10'57 the definition of sustainability and why it's not 100% attainable 12'41 forest service is part of the department of agriculture but really shouldn't be 12'59 old growth forests are a huge carbon sink and guard against climate change 13'48 the cooling effect of forests 15'49 art inspired by old growth forests 18'07 the role of old growth forests in not only climate defense but also global security 20'43 the paradigm shift from seeing the forest as a set of commodities to seeing it as a complex ecosystem—and that saving it is actually better for people than the industrial perspective 21'49 art to help people feel more deeply 22'48 the Yaak Valley Forest Council and the campaign to save it 23'38 defending the forest with love rather than litigation 24'48 trying to reach climate champions in power 25'22 Bass has been living in the forest for nearly 40 years, where he has worked as both a writer and an activist 26'10 trying to have the area dedicated as a climate refuge and a series of climate refuges in the northern forests 27'13 no extinctions since the last ice age 29'04 being a hunter in Montana looking for deer and elk 30'27 preserving the Black Ram forest, see montanaproject.org for art and yaakvalley.org for science 31'22 the importance of contacting elected representatives 31'48 LORELI IVANOFF 32'27 The Joyful Responsibility of Cutting Fish 38'46 the deeper meaning of "subsistence" 41'22 overharvest eventually results in collapse 43'07 the problem with thinking of the earth as possessions, rather than gifts 44'31 you don't take more than you need 45'47 the sense of belonging and community 49'55 the need to talk about community when community is threatened 50'55 how the climate has changed since she started cutting fish 51'41 it's hard to dry fish now because of wetter summer weather, and other climate problems 55'27 the difficulty of trying to live close to nature when you're in the city

Philip Connors grew up on a farm in Minnesota, studied journalism, and got a job at the Wall Street Journal. But after the September 11 attacks and the death of his brother, he left New York behind and took a job as a fire lookout in the Gila National Forest in New Mexico. Following in the footsteps of other fire lookout writers, poets, and philosophers, like Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac, and Jack Loeffler, he wrote his first book, Fire Season, in 2011. Since then he written three more books, the latest of which, The Mountain Knows the Mountain, incorporates poetry — particularly haiki — to engage both playful and profound ways of looking at the natural world and the state of our society.