A Little Green

S3 E8: “We have created this future... I think we can also create a different future.” Let’s dream for a moment... not about a New York that survives climate change, but one that actually thrives in the future. It’s not a simple task, but luckily, there are people like Gita Nandan out there doing some serious reimagining. Gita is a designer, architect, and co-founder of the R.E.T.I. Center in Red...

S3 E7: “We're going to be loud about this until something's done.” We’ve heard from so many amazing individuals and organizations that are mobilizing on the grassroots level, but how do they harness all of that local power and get things done legislatively? Christina speaks to Lonnie Portis, the New York Policy and Advocacy Manager at WE ACT for Environmental Justice. Lonnie shares the key to gett...

S3 E6: “Once you zoom out a little bit, you realize how universal so many of these issues are.” Back in Christina’s neighborhood in Brooklyn, something huge is developing… The Gowanus Canal has a reputation for being beyond gross -- brimming with industrial pollution, sludge, and sewage. Just over a century ago, the Gowanus Canal was one of the country’s busiest waterways, and, over time, it becam...

S3 E5: “If we're witnessing something that's wrong, how can we work together?” Inspired by people who care deeply for their corner of the world, Christina takes a trip to the South Bronx to meet someone who’s committed to protecting their community. Mychal Johnson shares his story with Christina, from a childhood in Chicago that fostered love and respect for nature to his move to New York, and how...

S3 E4: “If the world is to be saved, it will be saved by those who care deeply for very small places.” We’ve heard about some of the giant resilience efforts happening in New York; now it’s time to think a little bit smaller and talk about... oysters! Not only are oysters a delicious treat, but they’re also fundamental to the health and sustainability of New York’s waterway ecosystem. To learn all...

S3 E3: “You can multiply the benefits and you can also multiply the joy.” Big storms aren’t going anywhere any time soon, so it’s essential to understand how cities like New York are adapting to and preparing for these increasingly precedented weather events. Christina gets the lowdown on some of the massive resiliency projects happening in the city. She learns about an exciting model for climate...

S3 E2: “What if the rebuilding of the city in the face of a climate crisis is a moment to build a more just and a more environmentally flexible city?” Before we can understand what the future of New York City could look like as our climate changes, we need to go back... way back. With the help of local historian and professor, Kara Schlichting, Christina learns about what the area was like before...

S3 E1: “It's one thing understanding that intellectually... it's another thing actually seeing what happened.” In September of 2023, heavy rainfall led to flooding in New York City. Images of cars covered in water were all over the news and reminded people of one of New York’s most harrowing weather events: Superstorm Sandy. To kick off this season of A Little Green , host Christina Thompson sets...

In 2012, New York City got a massive wake up call: Superstorm Sandy devastated parts of the city and forever changed how we think about severe weather. But... did it change how we actually handle these events? This season, host Christina Thompson sets out to answer that very question and understand just what climate resiliency looks like in her own backyard. Follow along as she connects with grass...

S2 E8: “I am part of it, and it is part of me.”  Lance Garland was supposed to get married at 18 and become a preacher. But, that was never really in the cards for him; he knew early on that he was gay. Inspired by writers like Jack Kerouac, he forged his own path and found himself in the wilderness. In the season finale of A Little Green , Lance takes us on his first backpacking trip, one that wo...

S2 E7: “It's a connection with Mother Nature and it's a way to find yourself.”  As a child in Michoacán, Javier Zamora remembers planting radishes and picking citrus. When he came to LA, he built a comfortable life for himself and his family, but everything changed when the 2008 recession hit. We follow Javier through the ups and downs of his journey and how he ultimately found his way back to ten...

S2 E6: “Oh my gosh, this is my very best self. And I am happier than I have ever been.”  Virginia Rose grew up loving nature. She rode horses and went backpacking with her family until a sudden accident changed her life forever. Virginia would go on to pursue a career in education. After retiring, Virginia found an unlikely hobby that would reconnect her with the outdoors and with an integral part...

S2 E5: “That started my journey to being an activist and an artist.”  In 2022, Staten Island’s Elizabeth Shvarts was named New York’s Youth Poet Laureate. Ten years earlier, her home was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy; the experience opened her eyes to the devastating impacts of climate change at a young age. Elizabeth devoted herself to poetry and channeled her exceptional gift into climate action,...

S2 E4: “You have to figure out how to use your wings and what they're for.”  Nichole Alexander spent three years raising endangered butterflies while incarcerated. The butterflies weren’t the only beings that metamorphosed along the way. Nichole had experienced immense loss and years of discouragement within the prison system. Nature provided respite, a healing environment, and newfound confidence...

S2 E3: “Nature saved my spirit, saved my marriage and created a safe place for me to...find purpose and meaning in what life really is about.”  Sonya and Necota Staples fell in love in college, got married, and bought a house in the suburbs of Atlanta. But happily ever after wouldn’t be that simple. They tell a story about the camping trip that changed the trajectory of their marriage, and their r...

S2 E2: “It was almost the revelation of my own humanity.”  Spending just two hours a week in nature could improve your mental and physical health. That’s the conclusion researchers at the University of Exeter Medical School came to in their 2019 study ; that analysis would change Mike Fuhrmann’s life forever. After struggling with anxiety and depression, he would go on to hike over 13,000 miles of...

S2 E1: “One of the powers of this little canoe...is keeping these really important parts of our culture, our history, and our traditions alive.”  Thousands of years ago, Polynesian seafarers did something remarkable: they navigated their way across endless miles of open ocean guided only by the stars, the wind, and the sea, ultimately arriving in Hawaii. As a child, Lehua Kamalu grew up hearing th...

S1 E8: What can one person do about the climate crisis?  It’s a question that’s nagged Christina from the beginning of this podcast, and one she seeks to answer in the final episode of our series. With seven episodes under her belt, she wants to know how she can put all of these learnings into practice in her own life, and perhaps most importantly, how to share everything she’s picked up with the...

S1 E7: It’s the penultimate episode of A Little Green and it’s time to talk policy. Christina gets up to speed on the latest climate action in Washington. What’s on the table? And who’s at the table?  What becomes clear is that it’s going to take bold, transformational climate action to steer us toward a livable future, and the Green New Deal has come to symbolize just that. Christina talks with f...

S1 E6: We’ve heard about the physical tolls of climate change; the catastrophic weather events like wildfires and heat waves. Now, Christina wants to know about how it’s affecting our mental health. How do we cope with all of the big emotions that climate change brings up? What do we do with feelings like anxiety, grief, anger, and fear? And, is there a role for the other side of the emotional spe...

S1 E5: We know that climate change is here. In this episode, Christina looks for ways to not only live with climate change, but to also reshape our future in a more livable and equitable way. She looks at three complementary pathways forward; mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.   But first, she debunks the “great equalizer” myth -- that people are affected by huge catastrophes equally . She le...

S1 E4: Each week seems to bring news of another catastrophic weather event, from hurricanes to flash floods. It’s clear that these events -- that many communities have been facing for years -- are now intensifying and playing out all over the world.  Christina wakes up to the aftermath of one such event: the 2021 Bootleg wildfire. The massive West Coast wildfire spewed unhealthy amounts of smoke a...

S1 E3: We make decisions about what to buy (and who to buy it from) every day. Choosing environmentally-responsible products and brands is important to many of us, especially in light of what’s happening with our climate. But these choices can be difficult to make when we’re surrounded by persuasive advertising and most of us don’t have the time to research every bottle of detergent or pair of sho...

S1 E2: Recycling. It’s something a lot of us do on a daily basis that helps protect our planet. Sorting out plastic, cans, and cardboard seems almost second nature at this point, right? But, in this episode, Christina learns that this isn’t necessarily the case for everyone, and she sets out to learn more about how we deal with our waste.  Is there more to it? What are the big recycling dos and do...

S1 E1: How do we even begin to understand -- let alone act on -- a problem as big and complex as climate change? Christina Thompson is on a mission to find out.  She starts by going back to basics, and high school science teacher Sofia Di Bari is here to answer the questions that some of us might be a little hesitant to ask, like, are we even calling it global warming anymore?! After gaining a bet...