Kelp Farming, for the Climate

Kelp Farming, for the Climate

Author: Gimlet February 18, 2021 Duration: 52:32
Seaweed and giant kelp are sometimes called “the sequoias of the sea.” Yet at a time when so many people are talking about climate solutions and reforestation — there aren’t nearly enough people talking about how the ocean can be part of that. In part one of our two-part series, we go out on the water to see how seaweed can play a role in addressing climate change, and how a fisherman named Bren Smith became kelp’s unlikely evangelist. Calls to action:  Check out Bren Smith's book called “Eat Like a Fish” Check out Bren’s nonprofit GreenWave: A simple and direct way to help is to support GreenWave’s work, whose team is building 10 reefs and sponsoring 500 farms in the next five years. Start your own hatchery, farm, or underwater garden: Check out the University of Connecticut and Ocean Approved manuals and GreenWave’s Regenerative Ocean Farming toolkit.  Study ocean agriculture through the Algae Technology Education Consortium (ATEC) at the community college level or through Coursera courses Intro to Algae and Algae Biotechnology. Check out our Calls to Action archive here for all of the actions we've recommended on the show. And if you take any of the actions we recommend, tell us about it! Send us your voice message, ideas or feedback with our Listener Mail Form. We might use it in an upcoming episode. Sign up for our newsletter here. And follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Special thanks to our guests: Bren Smith and Casey Emmett This episode of How to Save a Planet was produced by our senior producer Lauren Silverman. The rest of our reporting and producing team includes Kendra Pierre-Louis, Rachel Waldholz and Anna Ladd. Our intern is Ayo Oti. Our editor is Caitlin Kenney. Sound design and mixing by Peter Leonard with original music from Emma Munger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Looking for a way to engage with the climate crisis that goes beyond the headlines of doom? How to Save a Planet is that conversation. Hosted by journalist Alex Blumberg and marine biologist and policy expert Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, this Gimlet podcast digs into the practical, human, and often surprising realities of addressing our planet's greatest challenge. The show moves past abstract fears to explore tangible solutions, asking not just what needs to be done but how we can actually get it done. Each episode is a journey, scouring the earth for ideas and talking to the people on the front lines-from scientists and activists to policymakers and innovators-who are crafting real-world answers. The tone is grounded yet hopeful, blending serious investigation with relatable curiosity and the occasional dumb joke. Listening to this podcast means joining a search for agency and understanding, breaking down a monumental problem into stories about our collective power, systemic change, and the unexpected paths forward. It’s for anyone who feels the weight of the issue and wants to be part of a smarter, more constructive dialogue about our future.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

How to Save a Planet
Podcast Episodes
Presenting: A Matter of Degrees [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:24
Presenting: A Matter of Degrees What happens if your electric utility starts doing things you don’t agree with? What if they start attacking solar and proposing to build more and more fossil gas plants? What if they acti…
Kelp Farming, for the Climate (Part II) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:45
So, what do you do with 579 pounds of seaweed? In our last episode, we ventured into the ocean to learn how seaweed farming can help solve climate change. In part II, we ask: What do we do with all that kelp? Plus our te…
Party Like It's 2035 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:15
President Biden has set a goal of reaching 100% clean electricity in the U.S. by 2035. That means cutting all carbon emissions from the entire electricity sector in just 15 years. So... is that even possible? And if so,…
The Tribe that's Moving Earth (and Water) to Solve the Climate Crisis [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:51
The Yurok tribe is reversing centuries of ecological damage to their land and making it more resilient to climate change by marrying two systems that might seem contradictory: indigenous land management practices and mod…
Presenting: Timber Wars [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:10
When loggers with chainsaws headed into the Willamette National Forest on Easter Sunday in 1989, they found a line of protesters blocking their way. Some buried themselves in front of bulldozers. Others spent months sitt…
Recycling! Is it BS? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:46
The recycling bin — many of us have learned to view this humble container as an environmental superhero. It is, after all, the critical first step in turning our trash into… well, not treasure, but at least more stuff. O…
Meet Your New Climate Czar [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:50
Gina McCarthy will serve as the first-ever National Climate Advisor, heading up the newly formed White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy. So, who is she? We spent time with her before the nomination and talked abou…
Soil: The Dirty Climate Solution [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:33
On this week's episode, we meet two farmers who, at first glance, seem very different. One is a first-generation farmer in upstate New York raising fruits and vegetables for the local community. The other is a third gene…
Presenting: Resistance [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:07
How do you take a global movement local? What happens when you refuse to accept things as they are? This week, we’re excited to bring you an episode of a new Gimlet show called Resistance. Resistance is a show full of st…
Presenting: Science Vs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:27
We know that carbon dioxide is rising and we know that it’s warming the world, but how did scientists figure that out in the first place? And what will all this warming mean for our future? Our friends at the Gimlet podc…