Nonviolence Radio

What does it mean to live simply in a culture built on excess? In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , Stephanie Van Hook and Michael Nagler speak with environmental activist Robin Greenfield, whose latest experiment is to forage 100% of his food and medicine while traveling the country to help people rediscover their relationship with the Earth. Together they explore simplicity as a practice of no...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , we speak with animal rights activist Zoe Rosenberg about nonviolent direct action, open rescue, and the personal costs of standing up for animals. A recent graduate of UC Berkeley, where she designed her own major in social movement strategy, Zoe brings both practical experience and thoughtful analysis to the challenges facing today's animal rights movem...

On this episode of Nonviolence Radio , we continue our exploration of restorative justice with Jonathan Bradley, co-executive director of SEEDS Community Resolution Center. Drawing from years of experience in schools and communities, Bradley reflects on restorative justice not simply as a set of techniques, but as a practice that challenges the assumptions of punitive culture and invites people in...

In this conversation, restorative justice practitioner Dominic Barter reflects on more than three decades of work at the intersection of community, justice, and nonviolence. Beginning with his early experiences in Rio de Janeiro, he describes how communities already hold a “dialogical” capacity to respond to harm—one rooted in listening, relationship, and shared needs. From grassroots work in fave...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , Stephanie Van Hook speaks with nonviolence educator and Metta Center board member Francesca Po about communication as a living practice of nonviolence. Moving beyond any single method or formula, they explore how curiosity, dignity, and self-awareness shape the way we engage across disagreement. Together, they reflect on what it means to stay in relationship...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , we speak with journalist Emily Yellin about her collaboration on Nonviolent: A Memoir of Resistance, Agitation, and Love , offering a rare and deeply personal window into the life and thought of Reverend James Lawson—one of the most important yet often overlooked architects of the U.S. nonviolent movement. Drawing from years of conversations and archival rese...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , we speak with civil rights leader and Revolutionary Love Project founder Valarie Kaur about love as a force for transformation in our lives and movements. Kaur describes revolutionary love as “the choice to see no stranger… to risk ourselves for each other,” and shares stories from communities across the country where people are practicing courage, care, and...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio, we speak with Latin American peace educator and activist Pietro Ameglio about civil resistance in Mexico and the deeper dynamics of nonviolent struggle. Drawing on decades of organizing with grassroots communities, families of the disappeared, and movements confronting cartel violence, Ameglio reflects on concepts such as the “spiral of violence,” the differen...

We are living in a time when cruelty is normalized, war is justified as inevitable, and violence is often explained away as simply “human nature.” But what if that story is wrong? On this episode of Nonviolence Radio , we speak with peace anthropologist Doug Fry about the evidence — archaeological, cross-cultural, and contemporary — that challenges the assumption that humans are wired for war. Dra...

This episode of Nonviolence Radio opens with neuroscientist Marco Iacoboni on empathy, imitation, and the “dark side” of emotional contagion, followed by reflections on Martin Luther King Jr. ’s “Love Your Enemy” sermon and Michael’s Nonviolence Report . A thoughtful exploration of how understanding human behavior can strengthen the practice of nonviolence. Transcript available at nonviolenceradio...

On this episode of Nonviolence Radio, we explore Active Hope—the practice of choosing a direction and moving toward it, even when the future feels uncertain. We  begin with Chris Johnstone (co-author of Active Hope with Joanna Macy), who shares a grounded, non-sugarcoated view of hope as something we activate: by naming what we love, honoring our pain for the world, and building the emotional and...

In this first episode of 2026, Nonviolence Radio welcomes visionary scholar Riane Eisler for a spacious and deeply human conversation about the cultural shift our world is being asked to make—from systems of domination toward cultures of partnership. Drawing on Eisler’s lifelong work, including The Chalice and the Blade and Nurturing Our Humanity , we move through memory, trauma, economics, educat...

As we come to the close of the year, we’re offering two reflections from Michael Nagler’s Nonviolent Moment —previously aired pieces brought together as a single, contemplative year-end offering. We’ll return with new recordings in January. Until then, we invite you to pause, listen, and carry these moments gently into the turning year.

In this end-of-year episode of Nonviolence Radio , we reflect briefly on the long arc of nonviolence—its strengths, its strains, and the importance of staying grounded during a season that can feel heavy and uncertain. The heart of the program is a deeply nourishing conversation with John Blue, a Taoist monk and doctor of Chinese medicine, who invites listeners into the inner practice of nonviolen...

In this episode, we speak with Sudanese organizer and activist Mubarak Elamin about the unfolding crisis in Sudan. Mubarak offers a perspective on the nonviolent history of the country and how the current war is not a civil war but a proxy war, and what we can do as part of an international community of solidarity. 

In this episode, Nonviolence Radio speaks with Sheila McCarthy of Meta Peace Team about her recent month in the West Bank providing unarmed civilian protection. She shares stories of courage and daily life under occupation—from olive harvests under threat to villages gated off by the Israeli military—and reflects on how standing nonviolently with others becomes an act of resistance and hope. Trans...

Sarah Van Gelder has spent decades asking a vital question: how do we build power rooted in love and community? As the founding editor of YES! Magazine (now on Truthout ), and through her Substack, How We Rise , she explores ideas and stories that help us resist authoritarianism and create systems that work for everyone. Join us for an inspiring conversation about what it means to rise together in...

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , hosts Stephanie Van Hook and Michael Nagler speak with Kathy Kelly, board president of World Beyond War , about the urgent need to move beyond militarism and the false promises of security through violence. Sparked by a recent speech from U.S. official Pete Hegseth glorifying lethality and dismissing pacifism, the conversation dives into the deeper truths abo...

In this interview, we speak with Dr. Deb Roman, an integrative physician and advocate for compassionate health care. Together, they explore the current state of health care—what’s working, what’s not, and how we can move toward a more humane, whole-person approach to healing. Deb shares insights from her experience in medicine, as well as her vision for a system that better supports both patients...

Journalist and author John Washington joins Nonviolence Radio to examine immigration, border enforcement, and the human costs of closed borders. From the militarization of the U.S.-Mexico border to the deeper forces driving migration, Washington challenges common assumptions and explores how solidarity, awareness, and principled action can foster more humane and just policies.

What if staying curious — even when it feels risky — is an act of courage? In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , journalist and bridgebuilder Monica Guzmán joins us to talk about the power of curiosity in a polarized world. Together we explore how fear, pain, and technology amplify division, and how curiosity can become a nonviolent force that keeps bridges standing, even when crossing them feels...

Pastor Michael Neely, a survivor of domestic abuse, provides support to individuals grappling with the decision to remain in abusive relationships influenced by religious beliefs, and advocates for reforming church responses to better assist survivors.

On this episode of Nonviolence Radio, Michael and Stephanie begin with a discussion on Gandhian economics, highlighting its emphasis on simplicity, local self-reliance, and the moral dimensions of economic life. They then welcome Erin Axelrod from LIFT Economy, a worker-owned cooperative dedicated to accelerating the transition to a regenerative, just, and inclusive economy. Together, they explore...

In this intimate conversation, Anne Symens-Bucher invites us into the sacred territory of being blessed and broken — the honest work of grief, forgiveness, and transformation. Guided by the wisdom of Joanna Macy, Anne reflects on what it means to stay open-hearted in a wounded world, to turn toward our pain for the world, and to find renewal through connection and courage.

In this episode of Nonviolence Radio , Michael and Stephanie speak with nonviolence trainer and educator Kazu Haga about trauma healing and nonviolence — what he calls “fierce vulnerability” (also the title of his most recent book). Because, as he insists, all violence stems from trauma, Kazu reminds us that we cannot simply “shut down” injustice. At the same time, we need to bring trauma healing...