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Today I'm going to ask some more personal questions. If you aren't interested in examining your values and your behavior, this might not be the right episode for you. I'm not going to have you answer to other people but I'm going to ask some questions that I think will make some people feel uncomfortable but that's in the short term. In the long term, I think this will get you to act. I mean my goal is to get you to act more consistently with your values which values evaluate better or worse. I think it will lead you to live a better life. And I am going to begin with a question. It sounds really… Well, here's the question. Which is easier: freeing…

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm pleased to announce Leadership in the Environment's first Panel of Experts and in-person event here in Manhattan, in lower Manhattan. Why? Because leadership and the Leadership and the Environment podcast are about community, about not feeling alone. This feeling that so many people have, "If I act but no one else does, it won't make a difference." People are acting, a lot of people are acting and you are not alone. So first, the logistics. This will be at NYU, at 100 Washington Square East on Scenic Washington Square Park. Oh, you don't have to write this down because it's on the web page. So just click to go to the web page, you can find the details there. But again,…

Having worked with many people and generations, Frances sees great hope in millennials. She points to research that they are like the so-called Greatest Generation, who fought World War II and then helped rebuild the world. Moreover, we see them as having done it because "it was the right thing to do," not fame or fortune. The environment could use such perspective and results. I hope she's right. I recommend listening to how she has made her life about taking on challenges, which bring her emotional reward. She takes them on deliberately. I believe she expects that work serving others will create emotional reward and meaning. I didn't hear her talk about pursuing comfort and convenience. I think she knows that taking easy, traditional routes…

Thank you for being a guest on the This Sustainable Life podcast. Guests love the interviews and personal challenges. Here is a one-page description of the podcast. Click here for a pdf version. Please scan the list of all episodes for a name you like. Some episodes that for background and strategy (scroll down for a list of popular guests): You'll be in great company. Popular downloads include Sir Ken Robinson, bestselling author, speaker on education with most-viewed TED talk of all time Seth Shelden Nobel Peace Prize Laureate International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons member Dominic Barton, McKinsey’s 3-time Global Managing Director Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art and The Legend of Bagger Vance James Altucher, entrepreneur, author, chess master, comedian Seth…

Our world is filled with systems based on beliefs that made sense in the past, but that evidence contradicts. Growth and technology are contributing to environmental degradation. The invisible hand doesn't win against the tragedy of the commons. And so on. We didn't create these systems but we can act to create new ones based on new beliefs, such as accepting having enough, or considering the results of our actions on others more, say, when we pollute or expand into new territory. Actions are easier when we adopt beliefs that will work in the future, based on what we know about the planet that we didn't before. In this episode I look at our world from a future where we've made things work to guide…

David Biello is one of the few people I've met who understands environmental issues, doesn't complain or vent doom and gloom. Instead he approaches with a simple, but responsible and thoughtful perspective. I met David after reading a review of his book, The Unnatural World: The Race to Remake Civilization in Earth's Newest Age, saying that David says: we already have the money and technology to make profound environmental change; what we need is large-scale motivation. With a defiantly hopeful tone, he profiles some of the most effective change-makers. Large-scale motivation means leadership to me. Having heard this view almost nowhere, but considering it the most important, I contacted him. He writes for Scientific American and elsewhere and is the Science Curator for TED. If…

Not often when two men chat on the internet do tears well up and they get choked up. Listen to the conversation. I loved this conversation for its being unscripted and unguarded. Daniel allowed himself to be vulnerable. He asked about posting this interview on his podcast because of the rawness of the emotion that came up. We laughed a lot too. My mistake I recorded this conversation early and I dropped the ball on leading Daniel. If you listen to this podcast in part to learn to lead, when we reach talking about the environment, you'll hear me make big mistakes that provoked resistance. I led him to do the opposite of committing to a personal challenge---he lectured me on what I should and…