Kris Bordessa says the past few decades have “done a number” on what we consider normal. Now, COVID-19 has disrupted that normal, and many are trying to create their own new-normal, by becoming more self-reliant. So how can we create a sustainable, more natural way of living regardless of where we live? One small step at a time, from wherever we begin, says Kris.
We discuss her #1 success tip. How to create a greener lifestyle when time and money is limited. Microgreens, the easiest vegetables to grow, and easy ways to ferment foods like sauerkraut. Why your bunny’s poop makes great fertilizer. And why her natural living blog made National Geographic come calling.
In between your real vacations, it’s always fun to find a little summer adventure, travel, and escapism through summer reads. Today, we are joined by Barnes and Noble’s Stephanie Garcia to recommend NEW authors to look out for and suggest some readers’ favorites.
Stephanie is the Community Business Development Manager at the Lakewood Barnes and Noble. Her position allows her the joy of knowing her “work with school administrators, librarians, and teachers will get books into kids hands, and hope it sparks a love for reading!”
Ginny is a freelance writer, botanist, and experienced gardener who supports climate change mitigation. Sue Reed is a registered Landscape Architect who works with homeowners and HOA’s in creating environmentally sensitive, resource-efficient, and beautiful landscapes that conserve energy and respond to climate change.
In The Deepest Roots: Finding Food and Community on a Pacific Northwest Island, Kathleen Alcalá walks, wades, picks, pokes, digs, cooks, and cans, getting to know her neighbors on a much deeper level. She learns to better understand how we once fed ourselves, acknowledging that there may be a future in which we could need to do so again. Combining memoir, historical records, and a blueprint for sustainability, Kathleen shows us how an island population can mature into responsible food stewards.
Conversations Live with Vicki St. Clair airs Mondays at noon Pacific or Fridays at 6AM on KKNW 1150AM or 94.9FM HD. Like us on Facebook and follow Vicki on Twitter for exclusive updates and contests!
As friends began “going back to the land” at the same time that a health issue emerged, Kathleen Alcalá set out to re-examine her relationship with food at the most local level. Remembering her parents, Mexican immigrants who grew up during the Depression, and the memory of planting, growing, and harvesting fresh food with them as a child, she decided to explore the history of the Pacific Northwest island she calls home. The result was The Deepest Roots: Finding Food and Community on a Pacific Northwest Island, written to remind the reader that innovation, adaptation, diversity, and common sense will help us make wise decisions about our future. Kathleen is the author of a collection of essays, The Desert Remembers My Name: On Family and Writing; three novels, including Treasures in Heaven; and a collection of short stories. She lives on Bainbridge Island.
Katherine Neville is a best-selling author and public speaker who had the honor of being the first author chosen to become a member the Advisory Board of the Smithsonian Libraries in Washington, DC. As a great devotee of reading and research herself, Neville has co-created several awards and grants presented by the Smithsonian Libraries.
There is a massive extinction of biodiversity going on right under our noses, the likes of which have not been seen since the dinosaurs disappeared. Thanks to Citizen Scientists, however, we are aware of the depths of our dire straits and can make positive changes. Author and award winning journalist Mary Ellen Hannibal returns to Conversations Live to discuss her new book Citizen Scientist: Searching For Heroes and Hope in an Age of Extinction.
Listen: Five Simple Tools to Meet Your Everyday Parenting Challengesoffers readers five simple, practical skills even the most harried parent can use. Author Patty Wipfler demonstrates a practical understanding of children’s emotions and their upset moments, and shows parents how to build meaningful relationships that last a lifetime.
Listen to Conversations Live with Vicki St. Clair every Monday at noon Pacific on KKNW 1150AM or 94.9FM HD. For exclusive updates throughout the rest of the week, like us on Facebook, and follow Vicki St. Clair on Twitter!
Award Winning Environmental Journalist and Stanford Media Fellow Mary Ellen Hannibal’sexplores how volunteers are changing the very foundation of science, and saving the planet at the same time, in her new book, Citizen Scientist: Searching For Heroes and Hope in an Age of Extinction. She shows that by combining new technology and smartphone apps with the passion of amateur observers, anyone can become part of the movement to save the biodiversity that we need to thrive. The book covers skeptics, demonstrating what makes Citizen Science “real science”, and shares what apps you can use to get involved and record data right in your own backyard. Mary Ellen’s adventure of exploration and discovery was kick started by the sudden loss of her father, which prompted her to examine her own past and contemplate the larger loss of species taking place all over the world.
Listen: Five Simple Tools to Meet Your Everyday Parenting Challenges by Patty Wipfler uses the latest research in the fields of neuroscience and psychology, along with tens of thousands of interactions with children and their parents on five continents to give even harried, on the go parents the practical skills to connect to their children. The focus of Patty’s work since 1974 has been teaching basic listening, parenting, and leadership skills to parents. She has led over 400 residential weekend workshops for families and for leaders of parents in the U.S. and in 23 countries.
Could you imagine a world without Giant Pandas? It’s estimated there are only 1,600 of these magnificent mammals roaming wild, and China is racing to save them from extinction. Photographer Ami Vitale joins Vicki to share highlights from the premiere episode of National Geographic WILD’s new series, Panda Babies: Mission Critical — featuring three maternity centers leading the way in raising and releasing pandas into the wild.
New York Times bestseller Carla Neggers returns today to discuss the sixth installment in the celebrated “Sharpe & Donovan” series, Liar’s Key. With settings in the US and Ireland, Liar’s Key delivers an international flair and Reader to Reader calls it a “suspenseful, fast-moving thriller filled with plot twists and excitement to the delightful conclusion.”
Conversations Live with Vicki St. Clair airs each Monday at noon Pacific on KKNW 1150AM or 94.9FM HD. For exclusive updates throughout the rest of the week, like us on Facebook and follow Vicki on Twitter!
For an estimated 8 million years, Giant Pandas have been a part of the Chinese countryside, and with their numbers dwindling fast, the Chinese government is racing to keep them from the brink of extinction. Photographer Ami Vitale was on the front lines of this effort as a part of the premiere episode of National Geographic WILD’snew series, Panda Babies: Mission Critical. She shares her experiences, including some of the unique methods in getting Pandas to procreate (which are not limited to Panda porn and Panda sex toys), and some surprising facts about Panda babies. In addition to her work with National Geographic, Ami is a Nikon Ambassador who’s lived in mud huts and war zones, contracted malaria, and donned a panda suit—all in keeping with her philosophy of “living the story.
Carla Neggers latest work in the “Sharpe & Donovan” series, Liar’s Key, is a thriller that hooks readers instantly with a fast-paced narrative involving whirlwind travel, a nemesis art thief and a mysterious death. Carla is the bestselling author of more than 60 novels of suspense and contemporary romance. Her popular “Sharpe & Donovan” and “Swift River Valley” series have been sold in more than 30 countries and translated into 24 languages. A world traveler herself, she lives with her family in New England.
Combining history, psychology and anthropology, Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by award-winning journalist Sebastian Junger focuses specifically on the problem American veterans and American society faces today — the breakdown of our communities and our “Tribe.”
National Geographic Explorer correspondent Justin Hall ventures into Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for a candid look at a region in conflict over the park’s valuable but endangered natural resources inThe Battle for Virunga.
Enjoy Conversations Live with Vicki St. Clair every Monday at noon Pacific on KKNW 1150AM or 94.9FM HD. For exclusive updates throughout the rest of the week, like us on Facebook, and follow Vicki St. Clair on Twitter!
Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by award-winning journalist Sebastian Junger explores what we can learn from tribal societies about loyalty, belonging, and the eternal human quest for meaning. It explains the irony that—for many veterans as well as civilians—war feels better than peace, adversity can turn out to be a blessing, and disasters are sometimes remembered more fondly than weddings or tropical vacations. Perhaps most importantly, it explains why we are stronger when we come together, and how that can be achieved even in today’s divided world. Sebastian is a New York Times Bestselling author, award-winning journalist, a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and a special correspondent at ABC News. He has covered major international news stories around the world, and has received both a National Magazine Award and a Peabody Award.
In terms of natural resources, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of the wealthiest nations in the world. Yet, over 50 percent of the country’s population lives on less than $1.25 per day. For the 4 million desperately poor residents living in and around Virunga National Park, the park’s borders are an arbitrary distinction, and conservation is just another term for the rich and powerful taking the best for themselves. Armed militias also use the park and its vast resources as a means of power in an ongoing and bloody regional conflict. In The Battle for Virunga National Geographic Explorer correspondent Justin Hall ventures into Virunga to meet park director Emmanuelle de Merode and veteran park ranger Innocent Mburanumwe for a candid interview about the rebel groups and militias roaming the park’s jungles, the slaughter of the park’s protected species, the Western oil giants seeking to extract the park’s vast resources and the park rangers who have been murdered in the line of duty.
Kris Bordessa says the past few decades have “done a number” on what we consider normal. Now, COVID-19 has disrupted that normal, and many are trying to create their own new-normal, by becoming more self-reliant. So how can we create a sustainable, more natural way of living regardless of where we live? One small step at a time, from wherever we begin, says Kris.
