In this episode, Kyla and Kristen talk about everyone’s favourite work drug: coffee. Topics: how coffee is made; coffee history; the coffee industry; working conditions on coffee farms; what is a fair price for coffee; the environment and coffee growing, brewing, packaging, and accompaniments; what you can do.
Read More“Does that include the people who think both of them are a hoax?” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by climate activist Robert Miller. Following another Global Climate Strike, they reflect on the California wildfires and climate activism in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics: West Coast wildfires; the climate movement in 2020; impact of the pandemic on climate activism; racial justice and climate activism; will governments choose a green recovery?
Read MoreIn this episode Kyla and Kristen spill the tea on tea production. Kristen tries to make chai and vows to leave future attempts to the experts. Kyla disses George Orwell’s formula for the perfect cup of tea. Topics: what is tea; how tea is produced; the tea supply chain; tea and the environment; tea and human rights; what to do about it.
Read More“So instead of being the Paper Bag Princess, we’re all kind of the plastic bag Princesses.” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen try out plastic-free July. Kyla discovers that coffee cups are plastic. Kristen joneses for chips. Topics: what even is plastic; the history of plastic; common types of plastic; plastic pollution; recycling plastics; and bioplastics.
Read MoreIn this episode, Kristen interviews Michelle Desilets, the Executive Director of Orangutan Land Trust. Michelle shares her personal and professional journey in orangutan conservation, her love of orangutans, and the work of Orangutan Land Trust. Topics: orangutan conservation, the threats orangutans face, palm oil, the boycott v. sustainable palm oil debate, the future of sustainable palm oil, and what you can do.
Read MoreIn this episode, Kyla and Kristen talk about palm oil and the environment. Kyla flummoxes two McDonald’s employees. Kristen can’t pronounce the palm derivatives in her makeup. Topics: what is palm oil; why is palm oil in everything; palm oil and deforestation, biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution.
Read MoreIn this episode, Kyla and Kristen uncork the topic of ethics and wine. Topics: South African wine and Apartheid legacies; Fairtrade wine; migrant labour and wineries; pesticide use on vineyards; organic wine; biodynamic wine; salmon-safe vineyards; climate change and wine; boxed versus bottled; and animal welfare and wine.
Read MoreIn part two of this two-part seafood series, Kyla and Kristen explore questions about animal welfare and human rights in fishing and fish farming. Kristen talks about her seafood-alternative kitchen disaster. Kyla considers getting a monkfish as a pet. Topics: animal welfare and wild-caught versus farmed fish; human trafficking and the fishing industry; seafood sustainability labels; what to think about when choosing ethical seafood.
Read MoreIn part one of this two-part seafood series, Kristen explains how fishing works and the problems behind the overfishing crisis. Kyla discovers what a monkfish looks like. Topics: overfishing; illegal, irregular, and unreported fishing; seafood fraud; different fishing methods; and the environmental impacts of fishing and aquaculture.
Read More“You’re just giving side-eye to all of the dogs in the airport, being like: ‘Hey! Don’t narc!’” In this episode – recorded on 4/20 – Kristen and Kyla talk cannabis. Topics: how cannabis works; the cannabis supply chain; legalisation; the Canadian cannabis market; the Mormon grandma story; Cannabis and the environment; and which method of consumption is best (it’s not disposable vapes).
Read More“Certainly that feeling of apocalypse is amplified when you wake up and it’s like 9:00am in the summer, the sun should be high in the sky, and you’re like, ‘It’s dark out.’” In this episode, Kristen and Kyla are joined by Robert Miller, a progressive activist and Extinction Rebellion organizer in the heart of oil country. The discussion is all about personal behaviour changes and where they fit in the global climate movement. Topics: the Wetsuweten solidarity blockades; protest and our relationship with public spaces; Robert’s climate crisis awakening; belief and the climate crisis; climate anxiety; the most important personal behaviour change for the climate; community-building as democracy; first steps to joining the climate movement.
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“I mean I just smell like vinegar. I don’t know if that’s better.” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen fail at the ultimate sustainability challenge: going zero waste. Kyla and Kristen are not ready for handkerchiefs or reusable toilet paper. Topics: what is zero waste; the disposable society; single-use plastics and our oceans; the zero waste movement; zero waste principles (reduce, reuse, recycle, compost); how to go zero waste(ish); waste-free shops; Kristen and Kyla try DIY zero waste recipes while #socialdistancing.
Read MoreKyla runs the show for this special collaborative episode on movies, featuring Kieran and Matty D. from Potential Spoilers (a podcast that predicts the plot of movies from the trailer). Topics: diversity in Hollywood; the environmental impact of the film industry; animals and film; child actors; baby burlesque used to be a thing and it is just as horrifying as it sounds; what you can do to help; Kyla, Kristen, Matty D., and Kieran see independent movies.
Read More“That’s like our whole show: ‘Better than nothing, I guess!’” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen talk about the environmental impact of clothing. Topics: the environmental impact of polyester, other synthetics, cotton, cellulosic fibres, wool, and bast fibres (best fibres!); pollution, water use, and emissions in the production of clothing; tools you can use to find sustainable clothing; the environmental impact of tossing clothes; Kyla and Kristen do an impact inventory of their wardrobes.
Read MoreVeganuary — it’s what’s for dinner! (And breakfast, and lunch…) In this episode, Kristen and Kyla talk about veganism. This episode looks at the history of veganism and vegan activism, as well as vegan eating. Topics: Veganuary at the Golden Globes; veganism is getting more woke (but it hasn’t always been); there’s secret meat in everything; meat substitutes; and cultured meat. Kyla and Kristen also discuss their Veganuary successes and failures.
Read More“Convert it into a wetland! — that should be the new ‘burn it down’.” In the second part of our two-parter on vegetarianism, Kyla and Kristen look at the environmental impact of animal- versus plant-based protein. They also discuss their challenges. Topics: the new Canada food guide; environmental gains from eating less meat (emissions, land use, water use, air pollution, ocean dead zones); Kristen’s excellent vegan wine adventure; Kyla just wants a cheeseburger.
Read MoreCheers to a new decade! In this special New Years episode, Kyla and Kristen sip their most ethical alcohol choices while talking about alcohol, and especially beer. Topics include: alcohol fun facts; the environmental impact of brewing/distilling alcohol; is it better to go with a big or small brewery; do cans or bottles have a lower environmental footprint; where does labour fit into all of this; and what about the alcohol industry’s complicity in substance abuse. Then Kristen and Kyla make New Year’s resolutions.
Read MoreIn this episode, Kristen and Kyla sink their teeth into the ethics of dental hygiene — toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, and mouthwash. Topics: Kristen wants to feel the burn; what’s in toothpaste, anyway; toothbrushes and the environment; and why it is so hard to get a waste-free, fluoridated toothpaste. 2/2 podcasters agree that Kyla’s homemade toothpaste should not have been sweating.
Read MoreIn this episode, Kristen and Kyla tackle the question on every millennial’s mind: will I be sent to the Bad Place for drinking almond milk? TL;DL: no. Topics: alternative milks and their amazing rise; the alt-milk OGs; and which alt-milk is best for people, animals, and planet. We also provide amateur-tips on making your own alternative milk, so you can avoid our mistakes. No dogs were milked in the making of this episode.
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