Edible Empire

Ryan Andrews , MS, MA, RD, RYT, CSCS, is a man who wears many hats; he is a registered dietitian, author, yoga teacher, certified movement and exercise coach and a sustainable food systems advocate. Ryan believes it’s possible to create a more equitably, sustainable, healthful and human food system – and he wants to help build it! Recently publishing his latest book titled ‘ Swole Planet: Building...

We’ve been honoured to share some incredible wisdom and science with you this year, courtesy of our phenomenal guests. Last season we recapped with a look back at the year that was, but this season we thought we’d finish by bringing you the stories behind the science of climate change and humanity’s unsteady relationship with the natural world. The climate emergency is complex and emotive, but in...

This episode is a dedicated Q&A show, following on from Ben and Emma’s presentation at the Doctors For The Environment (DEA) 2021 conference, where they discussed food solutions for planetary health. If you haven’t already done so, it makes sense to listen to Season 2 Episode 44 before diving into this one, as there you will be able to listen to the presentation recording in full. We had some...

In this episode, we bring you the third and final recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ Wellington/online event. In this episode Dr Luke Wilson discusses the need to change nutrition guidelines, pivoting away from animal products and processed foods, towards plants. Luke is a Wellington GP and is Board Certified by the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine. Dr Wilson is a previous...

In this episode, we bring you the second recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ Wellington/online event, this time hearing from Dr Mike Joy . Mike has been working for two decades at the interface of science and policy in New Zealand, with a goal of strengthening connections between science, policy and real outcomes to address the multiple environmental issues facing Aotearoa. Here he...

In this episode, we bring you a recording of Dr Cristina Cleghorn ’s lecture at the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ event. Hosted in Wellington, and online, on 30th October 2021, this event was focused on the Ministry of Health. Dr Cleghorn’s recording is the first of three presentations. Cristina is a Public Health Nutrition Researcher at the Department of Public Health at the University of Otago...

Jono Lester loves driving fast, running far and eating plants. Jono is a third-generation racing driver who’s been in the driver’s seat since age 13. Jono is also an SPCA spokesperson and a passionate plant-based advocate. Typically, busy racing GT cars in Asia, Jono has been increasingly involved in ultra and long-distance trail running since Covid-19 has seen him grounded in NZ. We also have an...

Ben and Emma recently presented at the Doctors For The Environment (DEA) annual conference, titled iDEA 2021: Planet Health and Hope. The conference provided an honest appraisal of the climate crisis from scientific, medical, cultural and political perspectives, with a stellar line-up of presenters. In this episode , we bring you the recording of Ben and Emma’s presentation, where they discuss the...

Lillian Stewart is a PhD Candidate currently focusing on waste management and marine plastics on remote islands. Harrison Talarico is very soon to complete his honours project using bioacoustics to monitor the phenology of short-tailed shearwaters. Both Lillian and Harrison are members of the Adrift Lab team, (at the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies , University of Tasmania) a dedicated g...

In this episode, we bring you the third and final recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ Auckland/online event. In this episode, Dr Mark Craig discusses a new approach to preventative care and refers to overseas hospital plant-based policy success and community plant-based courses. Mark is an Auckland GP and also a founding member and Vice-Chair of Evidence-Based Eating New Zealand. Ma...

In this episode, we bring you the second recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ Auckland/online event, this time hearing from Professor Boyd Swinburn . Boyd is Professor of Population Nutrition and Global Health at the University of Auckland, and Honorary Professor at the Global Centre at Deakin University in Australia. Here he talks about fixing our obesogenic landscape; how our Distr...

In this episode, we bring you a recording of Fuchsia Goldsmith ’s lecture at the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ event. Hosted online on 9th October 2021, due to Auckland’s lockdown restrictions, this event was themed ‘Focus on Hospitals’ and this recording is the first of three presentations. Fuchsia Goldsmith is a Nutritionist and Dietitian based in Auckland and here she discusses nutrition and...

Amy Taylor is an award-winning filmmaker and the owner of Ahimsa Films and Chris Huriwai is a vegan advocate, a world champion unicyclist and an extreme sportsman. Together they make up part of the phenomenal team behind the new documentary Milked , a feature documentary that exposes the whitewash of New Zealand’s multi-billion dollar dairy industry. This Documentary follows Chris’s journey around...

Bianca Keys is an honours student and Karli Mylius is completing her Master of Science, with both ladies involved in projects at Adrift Lab , Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies , University of Tasmania. This is the third conversation we’ve had with members of the brilliant Adrift Lab team, discussing plastics and their impact on marine life – in particular seabirds and shorebirds. Bianca an...

Michael Mayell founded Cookie Time , one of New Zealand’s best-loved brands, in his early twenties and has gone on to create multiple successful businesses since then. However, Michael’s focus is now much bigger than simply building businesses – he’s on a mission to build a prosperous New Zealand where both people and the environment flourish. Michael is spearheading a number of social enterprise...

Megan Grant is currently undertaking her PhD exploring the relationship between seabirds and their terrestrial habitats, while Gabrielle Henderson is in the process of completing her undergraduate studies in Marine Biology at the University of Tasmania. Both ladies are involved in projects at Adrift Lab . We first broached the issue of marine plastics and their impact on seabirds in Season 2 Episo...

Andre Borell is a successful entrepreneur whose love of the ocean spurred him on to more recently add film director and producer to his already impressive CV. Andre is the filmmaker behind the new documentary Envoy: Shark Cull , which sheds light on the long-running ‘shark safety’ programs in place off of the Queensland and New South Wales coastlines. Narrated by Aussie actor Eric Bana and with in...

Dr Malcolm Mackay and Jenny Cameron are two of the pioneers of the plant-based movement in Australasia. Malcolm is a GP and board-certified lifestyle medicine practitioner and Jenny is a nutritionist, wellness coach and research librarian. Together they offer consultations, group education programs and resources through the website Whole Foods Plant Based Health . Recently, along with Dietitian Dr...

Dr Jack Auty is a lecturer in the Medical Sciences in the School of Medicine at the University of Tasmania. His research focus is how inflammation can contribute to disease. Jack has a broad range of research interests; from how microplastics induce lung and gut inflammation to whether commonly use anti-inflammatories can be used to treat Alzheimer's disease. Jack is a master communicator and...

In this episode, we bring you the third and final recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ event in Dunedin. In this episode Professor Jim Mann discusses New Zealand’s looming diabetes disaster and the role of plant-based diets in tackling this issue. Jim has been a Professor in Human Nutrition and Medicine at the University of Otago and a consultant Endocrinologist in Dunedin Hospital f...

In this episode, we bring you the second recording from the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ event in Dunedin, this time hearing from Yvette Hall. Yvette is a medical student and here she discusses her personal and family journey to adopting a plant-based lifestyle and the lack of nutrition in medical training. Please note there were technical issues at this event, hence the short duration of this...

In this episode, we bring you a recording of Dr Martyn Williamson ’s lecture at the recent Evidence Based Eating NZ event in Dunedin. The Dunedin event, held on 1 August 2021, was themed ‘Avoiding Severe Illness’ and this recording is the first of three presentations. Martyn is a GP and university lecturer based in Alexandra, NZ. Here Martyn discusses medical training and why holistic nutrition is...

Julia Rucklidge , PhD is a Professor of Clinical Psychology in the School of Psychology, Speech and Hearing at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. Julia has over 130 peer-reviewed publications and textbook contributions and is currently on the executive committee for the International Society of Nutritional Psychiatry Research. Julia was named in the Top 100 Most Influential...

Still holding the record for most popular guest ever, Dr Mike Joy returns to the podcast for round two. If you’re new to the force that is Mike Joy we suggest checking out our first conversation, Episode 12 on Season 1 . Mike is a Senior Researcher at the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. In this episode, Mike gives us his reaction to th...

Dr Sally Gillespie is a writer, workshop facilitator, lecturer and public speaker with a background in depth psychology and ecopsychology. Sally’s recently published book Climate Crisis and Consciousness: Reimagining Our World and Ourselves , explores the psychological experience of engaging with climate change and related ecological concerns. There is a growing awareness of the climate emergency...