Show Notes
This month we are on break and sharing a podcast episode from an Uproot Project member and environmental journalist - Eva Tesfaye. We hope you enjoy it! Two reminders: —We announced last month Jay and Scott are moving on and accepting applications from Definers to take over the show. More details in last month's episode. You can email us with your interest and why you should take over at [email protected]. —We are still doubling donations to Uproot Project up to the first $500. Email your donation receipt to [email protected], and we will double it! Here's a description of Eva's Sea Change podcast episode: Even though New Orleans has water in every direction, it's hard to access. And for a city with increasingly sweltering summers, this irony is painful. This episode talks about the uncomfortable history of Lincoln Beach, how it led to New Orleans not having any public beaches today, and how a community has rallied together to get their beach back. The episode starts in the era of segregation, where if you were Black, the only place to soak up sun and sand was Lincoln Beach. This episode was reported and hosted by Eva Tesfaye. Carlyle Calhoun is the managing producer. This episode was edited by Rosemary Westwood and Carlyle Calhoun with additional editing help from Halle Parker, Tyler Pratt, and Ryan Vasquez. Joseph King voiced WEB Dubois. Garrett Hazelwood is our fact-checker. Our sound designer is Emily Jankowski and our theme music is by Jon Batiste. Sea Change is a WWNO and WRKF production. We're a part of the NPR Podcast Network and distributed by PRX. Sea Change is made possible with major support from the Gulf Research Program of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. WWNO's Coastal Desk is supported by the Walton Family Foundation, the Meraux and the Greater New Orleans Foundation. You can reach the Sea Change team at [email protected].
More from Sustainability Defined
We spend a third of our lives on our mattresses, but what's actually in them? In this episode, we dig into the hidden world of the mattress industry: the flame retardants, petroleum-based foams, and PFAS ("forever chemicals") lurking in conventional mattresses, and what happens when millions of them end up in landfills every year, slowly breaking down and releasing toxins for decades? What happens when we sleep on them for years and how do they affect our health? We're joined by Arin Schultz, Chief Growth Officer at Naturepedic, a 20+ year-old family-run company founded by an environmental engineer on a mission to build a safer crib mattress. Arin takes us behind the scenes, from organic latex sourcing to regenerative cotton co-ops in Texas, and helps us cut through the greenwashing to understand what "non-toxic" really means, which certifications (like GOTS, GOLS, and MADE SAFE) actually matter, and how the choices we make about what we sleep on ripple out to human and environmental health.
Trees do so much more than make our neighborhoods beautiful. In this episode, we explore the surprising science behind why trees are essential for our mental and physical health, our communities, and our climate. In this episode Cecilia and Nethra discuss how spending time in nature can reduce stress and improve focus, why urban forests are critical for cooling cities and protecting public health, and how trees clean our air, store carbon, support biodiversity, and even save billions of dollars through the ecosystem services they provide. Plus, we dive into one of the most fascinating questions in ecology: Can trees communicate? From the "Wood Wide Web" to chemical warning signals and the latest research on tree behavior, we separate myth from science (a little mythbusting moment!) while uncovering the hidden world beneath our feet. After this episode, you may never look at a tree the same way again! Curious about conservation? Check out organizations like the Arbor Day Foundation, One Tree Planted, American Forests, and The Nature Conservancy to support reforestation and urban forestry efforts. You can also use Ecosia for your everyday searches, contribute to biodiversity science with iNaturalist, or look for local tree planting and stewardship events in your community.
What does clean beauty actually mean and why does the industry still struggle to agree on a definition? In this episode, Nethra and Cecilia sit down with Nour Tayara, co-founder and CEO of Aura Makeup, a vibrant, plastic-free beauty brand born in Mexico City. A former L'Oréal sustainability lead turned engineer-entrepreneur, Nour breaks down why he ditched plastic packaging entirely in favor of aluminum and tin and the surprising trial-and-error that came with building formulas and packaging from scratch. The conversation goes deep on the realities of beauty industry recycling (spoiler: most of what you toss in the bin isn't getting recycled at all), why black plastic is quietly one of the worst offenders (Nethra was shocked), and how Aura became a certified plastic-negative brand through its partnership with Repurpose Global, removing nine times the plastic waste of every product sold. Nour also opens up about redefining "clean" beauty beyond the pale, minimalist aesthetic it's become associated with, sourcing ethics around mica and cruelty-free formulas, and why color and joy are just as much a part of sustainability as ingredients and packaging. If you've ever wondered what happens to your empty makeup containers — or wanted proof that sustainable beauty can also be bold, colorful, and fun — this episode is for you.
We are celebrating a major milestone with episode of 100 of Sustainability Defined! Before diving in, we have a special message for all of our incredible Definers who have been a part of this journey. Thank you for listening, learning, and helping us builld a community dedicated to making sustainability more accessible. For this special epsiode, we are bringing back the Hot Commodities series joined by Sudheer Kosaraju, Chief Commerical Officer at Once Again Nut Butter. Through Once Again's work in sustainable peanut sourcing and production, we explore the journey behind one of the world's most beloved and nostalgic snacks: peanuts! From farming and water use to sourcing, processing, and global supply chains, we dig into the complex sustainability challenged behind this everyday commodity. We also explore what responsible business practices look like in agriculture and how consumers can make more sustainable choices at the grocery store. Join us this epsiode as we answer your burning questions about the peanut supply chain and discuss what it takes to create a more sustainable food system.
In this episode of Sustainability Defined, we're switching things up! Before diving into one of our classic storytelling-style breakdowns, we sit down with Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM), to unpack the world of sustainable supply chains. If you've been following our Hot Commodities series, you know we've become a little obsessed with supply chains, because behind every matcha latte, chocolate bar, banana, or t-shirt is a massive global system shaping emissions, labor, water use, waste, and more. So we realized: we've talked about supply chains constantly…without doing a deep dive into them. In the first half of this episode, Abe helps us break down what supply chains are, why sustainability and supply chains are inseparable, and how climate change, pandemics, and geopolitical tensions are forcing companies to rethink the way the world moves goods. Then, inspired by ASCM's new docuseries The Chain: How the World Works, we'll take you through the life cycle of a cotton t-shirt, from raw material extraction to landfill, unpacking the environmental and human impacts hidden behind one of the most everyday items in our closets. This episode is part explainer, part documentary breakdown, and part supply chain deep dive, and honestly, one of our favorite conversations we've had on the podcast!