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Life Saves the Planet

This series explores the many ways that living systems create and regulate environmental conditions on our planet. Without a living system, Earth would be a dry barren rock, like Venus or Mars.

Life has created the planet as we know it, a place where all species, including humans, co-evolved. The symbiotic relationships that created this Eden are badly damaged. The Life Saves the Planet Series, presented by Biodiversity for a Livable Climate, will introduce you to people (and other species) doing amazing work all over the planet to regenerate systems, repair crucial relationships, and make this a healthy place once again. Without this work being done at scale, we will not have a habitable home for very long.

  • A rapidly changing Arctic is reshaping everything. Polar bears navigate shrinking expanses of sea ice, thawing permafrost threatens coastal villages, destabilizes infrastructure, and exhales methane, and warming temperatures push more species northward into a greener arctic. These transformations are profound, and their impacts can extend far beyond the region’s ecologies that depend on them.

    What do these changes mean for wildlife, humans, and the climate? How is all of this going to play out in different regions and ecosystems around the world? Does understanding these changes and seeing them with your own eyes change the way you see everything else?

    Join Biodiversity for a Livable Climate for a conversation that convenes story and science, writer and researcher to help shape our understanding of what this means for the Arctic, our climate and the webs of life that depend on both. Jon Waterman, writer for both Patagonia and NatGeo, and author of Into the Thaw, will be joined by Dr. Flavio Lehner, Chief Climate Scientist at Polar Bears International—one a storyteller of the Arctic’s systems, the other a researcher of them.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • Diverse ecosystems represent the greatest climate action technology at our disposal. But what recourse do we have when nature itself is under attack from the world's biggest political and economic powers?

    The movement to codify ecocide, that is, the intentional (or negligent) mass destruction of an ecosystem, as an international crime is gaining traction, particularly in Europe and in nations disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change. As a crime and an area of practice, ecocide law is reserved for the very worst of the worst. Think oil spills, deforestation, pollution, and war.

    But what are the promises and limits of international law in meting out justice on behalf of the environment?

    Join Biodiversity for a Livable Climate as Jojo Mehta, co-founder and executive director of Stop Ecocide International, makes the case for global ecocide law in a conversation guided by environmental journalist Judith Schwartz. They'll cover what exactly ecocide is, how enforcement and legal frameworks can act as deterrents, where they're gaining traction, and how legal teeth can help bolster other conservation and regeneration efforts.

    Stop Ecocide International recently celebrated a number of milestones on the world stage; in September the island nations of Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa officially petitioned the International Criminal Court to establish ecosystem destruction as a crime, and in February of this year Belgium became the first country in Europe to codify ecocide as an international crime. Several other countries on the continent are considering similar laws.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • Join Biodiversity For A Livable Climate to learn how one furry critter can help us restore wetlands, protect biodiversity and deal with both floods and fires.

    The February 26th fire in Texas was the largest in their history. In Canada, the fire season never really ended, as zombie fires smoldered under cover over winter and started up again come spring. Policy makers seem to be at a loss with some efforts at burning the forest on purpose, or logging huge swaths to create fire breaks. Is our only option for preventing forest fires to destroy the forests? Maybe not.

    Ten percent of North America was once covered in wetlands, most of which were created and maintained by beavers! About 200 million beavers. What would it take to shift our relationship with beavers from considering them pests to partnering with them to restore the vast swaths of aquatic habitat that once kept the continent wet, cool and full of biodiversity?

    For 20 years, Brock Dolman and Kate Lundquist, WATER Institute Co-Directors from the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC) have been working to provide education and advocacy for a healthy watershed. It turns out that beavers can play a big role in that. Dolman & Lundquist will share with us how they moved from community action to recently supporting the creation of a state-led Beaver Restoration Program in California, and the joy of seeing beavers released in the wild in CA for the first time in nearly 75 years in collaboration with tribal partners from the Maidu Summit Consortium.
    Moderated by Beck Mordini, Biodiversity For A Livable Climate Executive Director.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • Join Beck Mordini and Jenny Pell for a lively conversation about facing our pretty scary future with integrity, hope, plenty of know-how, and a great sense of humor. They dive into climate reality, appropriate technologies, skill-building, local food, and neighborhood solutions that will inspire you to jump into your own community-based projects with both feet. The dearth of leadership on the coming climate crises is insane, so what do we do, and what are you bringing to the table?  There's plenty of good news and lots of do, and who knows, maybe the suburbs will save the world.  
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • We know that communities in the global south have been the first to experience the devastating effects of climate change, with warmer and drier conditions leaving much of the land nearly impossible to farm. John Leary will discuss how his organization Mother Trees is bringing together the best practices in agro-forestry and agri-business in a system called Lifetree Agroforestry. This is a complete system that empowers communities to rebuild their food systems and economic base. Additionally, John will discuss how the impact reaches far beyond food security, by restoring arid landscapes and biodiversity, communities are brought back to life.

    In the dry regions of Senegal, agroforestry starts with growing the forest. This forest may not look like any you have seen - as it starts with walls of thorny, native trees that create a ten foot tall barrier that protects the crops and starts to rebuild the ecosystem. Join us to learn more about how living fences are the foundations for living communities.

    John will be joined by Mother Trees’s Lead Ambassador Pam Agullo and Mariama Fatajo, founder and CEO of Tefa Development.
    Agullo documented with photos and video the recent Caravan which featured local leaders, village chiefs, the local agroforestry cooperatives, and the leaders of the forest management committee. Leary and Agullo visited five sites that have been restored through agroforestry, and ventured into the heart of Ndankou Forest with the president of the community forestry committee and the last remaining forest guardian to assess the threats to the forest up close.
    With her social entreprise, Mariama Fatajo empowers small businesses in low-income countries. She is also a proponent of the transformative eco-restoration project in the Gambia that works on reforestation, desertification combat, watershed management, and sustainable community livelihood development.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • "The most important right we have is the right to be responsible" by Gerald Amos is the opening quote of Patagonia's latest book, The Future of the Responsible Company. While we are used to companies claiming to be sustainable, this book gives us a deep dive into the Patagonia's more humble and honest goal of being responsible to people and ecosystems while making a living. It is a fascinating story that charts a possible path for any business, large or small.
    Join Bio4Climate as we focus on the growing awareness of whole systems impacts from soil regeneration, water usage and empowering local factories and businesses to treat employees better.

    The Future of the Responsible Company is a short book with gorgeous photography and we encourage you to read the book or learn a bit about Patagonia at their website before the talk. Topics include: Life Cycle Analysis, circular economy, regenerative agriculture, B Corps and what it means to have "earth as a shareholder"

    It is easy to vilify globalization and corporate America, but what would happen if the vast resources of the world economy turned towards eco restoration, fair trade and uplifting labor practices? Is it even possible? Come and judge for yourself. Join us January 29th to get a glimpse inside Patagonia's journey and to ask your questions of Mr. Stanley.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • Solar has become one of the least expensive sources for new energy generation and fields of solar panels are appearing everywhere, including on forest and farmland. Most people have a sense that cutting down forests to install solar is not a good idea, but we assume it must be necessary in order to curb climate change. That was the thinking of early legislation passed to fast track solar installations without environmental review. But has that assumption stood up to the facts? This talk explore two aspects of the negative impacts of of solar installations on forest land and the viability of alternatives.

    Michelle Manion, Vice President of Policy & Advocacy at Mass Audubon discusses the impacts of current trends in solar installation to nature. She reveals the conclusions of a study commissioned by Mass Audubon on the true cost of more sustainable alternatives. The talk also looks at the heat island effect of large solar installations and consider their impact on climate goals. Jessica Rempel, Natural Resources Analyst for the Cape Cod Commission, joins the discussion to discuss how to balance solar and protection of nature and landscape.

    The discussion is moderated by Beck Mordini, Executive Director of Biodiversity for a Livable Climate. This talk is part of Life Saves the Planet, a partnership between Bio4Climate and the GBH Forum Network.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • As many interconnected climate crises escalate, we are challenged to see what we have overlooked in our understanding of the causes - and of what the best path forward might be. John Feldman’s film, Regenerating Life, proposes that it is humankind's destruction of nature that has been a primary cause of the climate crisis and that it is in nature we find crucial solutions. Feldman traveled widely to meet people who are working on solutions, innovative ways to repair the damage done to our extraordinary home. By working with nature, they are restoring the forests, fields, wetlands, and oceans, and are regenerating soils to grow healthy food and build healthy communities.

    John Feldman is joined in conversation by environmental journalist and author Judith D. Schwartz whose books also present leading scientists and regenerative practitioners.

    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • Dr. Ousmane Pame is founder of REDES Ecovillages based in Senegal. He talka about ecovillage communities in the Sahel region of Africa. and their global and regional contexts. The Sahel region includes Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger and the Gambia. REDES is the leading, nonprofit, community-led regenerative organization in the fight against desertification and its negative socioeconomic impacts in the Senegal River Valley. REDES is catalyzing efforts and initiatives on both sides of River Senegal, which is the border between Senegal and Mauritania, to regenerate the ecosystems and improve community life in the region. There are now 100 ecovillages in the area. Dr Pame ia joined by Dr. Marie Nazon, Academic Programs Coordinator for REDES International Service Learning Program and Katrina Jeffries, International relations coordinator. Dr. Dave Damm Luhr moderates the conversation.
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate
  • The story Coakí - William Wildcat- tells, begins 800,000 years ago. There does not appear to be a break in the lineages of humans and our ancestors Neanderthal and Homo Heidelbergensis using fire and hand tools to create forest clearings to select for plants and animal habitats for food, medicine, and materials important to countless groups of people. These forest gardening practices are our collective heritage and are a defining feature of our identity as a species. We call our ancestors and many of our living relatives “Indigenous” to distinguish them from those of us who have recently lost these practices. We see these practices disappearing around the world as we continue the deforestation of the planet. Our ancestral forest gardening practices are not lost, however. They are still practiced in many surviving traditions, such as the dehesas of Spain and other Mediterranean forest gardening and silvopasture practices, and the ancient form of milpa still practiced in Mesoamerica. It is from a marriage of these ancient agroforestry practices and modern ecology science that a powerful regenerative agriculture system called syntropic agroforestry was born. Syntropic agroforestry restores ecosystems and local economies, creates food security and a diversity of nutrient dense foods, and protects cultures from globalization as it heals human relationships with the forests. Coakí lives in the Mimbres watershed near the Gila wilderness area, in the unceded lands of the living Chiricahua peoples, of the Brown bear, of the Jaguar, and of the forests and wetlands which stood there 400 years ago. He studies, practices, and teaches these modern and ancient technologies there. He is in conversation with Jessica Alvarez Parfrey, Executive Director of Transition US. ### Resources [The Lost Forest Gardens of Europe](https://www.shelterwoodforestfarm.com/blog/the-lost-forest-gardens-of-europe) [Illustrated Guide to Agroforestry](https://agroflorestaemquadrinhos.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/final-english-22-10-under-revision-1.pdf) [Life in Syntropy Documentary](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSPNRu4ZPvE) [Modern Farmer Article on Syntropic Agriculture](https://modernfarmer.com/2023/05/syntropic-agriculture-boosts-soil-vitality-using-the-wisdom-of-the-forest/) [Anastassia Makarieva Biotic Pump 1: Global Cooling](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcDvVQOTuOw) [Anastassia Makarieva Biotic Pump 2: Water Cycles](https://forum-network.org/lectures/no-trees-no-rain/)
    Partner:
    Biodiversity for a Livable Climate