
463. SOIL: What we do to it, we do to ourselves. Nicole Masters breaks down the regenerative shifts that change everything.
Low Tox LifeShow Notes
This week, I welcome one of the most respected voices in regenerative agriculture: Nicole Masters. She’s an agroecologist, educator, systems thinker, and author of For the Love of Soil - one of the best books I read while researching my second book FOOD.
With over 25 years of hands-on experience across North America, Australasia and globally, Nicole helps farmers, land stewards and businesses rebuild ecosystems from the ground up - literally.
My favourite aspect of Nicole’s genius, is her dot connection and analogies that can engage anyone from anywhere to care deeply for soil and understand why soil health is not just an agricultural concern but a planetary and human-health imperative - there’s no confusion: We must come together, and we must act now to turn the health of soil around to be able to turn our health around, too.
We explore what’s happening beneath our feet: the microbial networks, chemical dialogues and nutrient pathways that determine the resilience of entire landscapes, food systems, and ultimately our own bodies.
Despite the weight of global environmental challenges, Nicole leaves us with a grounded sense of possibility. Her work demonstrates that nature is astonishingly responsive when we create the conditions for recovery - and that regeneration often begins with surprisingly small, accessible shifts. Whether you’re a farmer, a gardener, a policy-maker or simply someone who eats food and wants a livable planet, this episode offers inspiration, tangible insights, and a renewed sense of agency in a time when many feel helpless.
Enjoy the show, Alexx Stuart, Your Host.
Fancy a few more podcasts we’ve done over the years, related to this one? Show #109: Joel Salatin on food, soil and regenerative effects of working with nature’s systems Show #416 Tammi Jonas PhD: Designing a Food System for All — Culturally Relevant, Nutritious, and ecologically sound Show #280 – Holistic Healing of People and Planet with Biodynamics Farmer, David McFall Show #136: Charlie Arnott on Regenerative & Biodynamic Agriculture Show #417 From Farm to Eater: Let’s focus on what and who is making a difference when trying to change the food system. And more…
Want to learn more about this week’s guest? Website: www.integritysoils.com/coaches Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Integrity_soils LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolemasters1 Nicole’s book: https://bit.ly/487Z4Db
Thank you to this month’s show partners for joining us to help you make your low tox swaps!
@WatersCoFilters take everything you don’t want OUT, put precious trace minerals back IN and give you a clean water solution for any situation and budget - drinking & shower. 15% of site wide Nov 1-Dec 15. Code LOWTOX15% or use the auto-applied discount link: https://bit.ly/watersco_autocode
@ausclimate is our major partner giving you 10% off their range for the whole of 2025, with brilliant Winix Air Purifiers, the best Dehumidifiers I’ve ever used and their new energy-efficient heating, air-circulating and cooling range. code LOWTOXLIFE (also works over and above their sales - pro tip!) https://bit.ly/ShopAusclimate
Be sure to join me on Instagram @lowtoxlife and tag me with your shares and AHAs if something resonated! I love to see your thoughts, genuinely!
Want to support the Low Tox Life podcast? Free option: Leave a 5 star review wherever you listen to Low Tox Life - thanks SO much! Paid + Member PERKS: Join the Low Tox Club - monthly practitioner live masterclasses, a suite of low tox store discounts from around the world and the most supportive and lovely chat group on all low tox topics on the internet: Check it out and join here for just the price of a coffee per month!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Low Tox Life
Reece Proudfoot is my brother-in-law and a very clever guy when it comes to regenerative economy design. So, in the face of what seems a never-ending onslaught of ‘big developer power’ coming in and taking from communities, I’ve brought him on to build our community’s sense of agency in our own little corners of the world. We explore: What is a regenerative vs extractive business? What kind of data centre could be a regenerative business within a community? How can communities develop their charter for what they will/won’t accept, and what they need as a priority list for anyone who wants to do business near them? This, for me, is the kind of conversation and action missing to really and truly turn power to the people. Firstly: Believe it’s possible. Secondly: Be a builder. Reece is Co-founder and Director of Regen Labs, where he works with regional communities to build resilient, prosperous and regenerative local economies. Based in Moss Vale on Gundungurra Country, Reece co-leads Highlands Homegrown Economy and A Better Model for Data Centres, two practical experiments in helping communities move from reacting to major development to shaping their own regenerative economic future. I hope you love this one. There are some excellent community fights happening globally - now it’s time to design and prevent more effectively so we can fight LESS. Alexx Stuart Your Host, Low Tox Life podcast
Feeling like environmental toxins keep increasing instead of decreasing? You're not alone. Pesticides have been big news in Australia lately, for two key reasons: 🔹 The expanded approval of isocycloseram, a PFAS pesticide used widely in berries and other tree crops and vegetables. 🔹 The murky regulatory saga of paraquat - a pesticide banned in 70 countries and strongly linked to Parkinson's disease. Australia has "modified" its use rather than banning it, despite scientists, neurologists and Parkinson's groups pointing to a strong correlation between exposure and the disease. This week on the podcast, I sit down with Josh Davis, Executive Director of Pesticide Action Australia, to unpack how pesticide regulation actually works across different levels of government - and how everyday people can push for safer food and farming policy. 🎙️ Tune in now and explore how we can build a safer food system for farmers and eaters alike. About Pesticide Action Australia (PAA): a not-for-profit charity working to reduce Australia's pesticide use for the sake of our health and environment. 🔗 https://pesticideaction.org.au/ About Josh: Co-founder and Executive Director of PAA, with a background spanning rural and regional community support, human rights advocacy, and roles across local, state and federal government.
When we think about environmental toxins, we often think about the things in our immediate environments, many of which would mean the home, what we put on our body, or what we eat.
If you spend time on an algorithm social media feed, you might have come to believe that parenting is impossible and kids are just not going to be able to thrive, growing up today.
Dr. Carrie Jones has been educating clinicians and supporting women in their hormonal health for nearly two decades. She's a naturopathic physician and based out of the U.S., but her reach is global and her passion is palpable.