Waste Not Why Not
A science podcast on sustainability and how _not_ to save the environment. We look at some of the misinformed ways people try to protect the planet, and what we should be doing instead. Hosted by Nature N8 (Nate Maynard), an environmental researcher working on energy, ocean, and waste issues. Recognized by SITRA Fund as a circular economy solution. 這是是一個挑戰大家對「環保」的既定觀念的環保節目，點評一些所謂環保，但實質上只有反效果的環保運動。主持人 Nate Maynard 致力於研究再生能源、海洋生態和廢棄物議題。 本節目入選芬蘭國家研發基金 SITRA Fund 的循環經濟解決方案。
Episodes
April 21, 2021 • 17 min
Nature N8 is too old and tired to debunk any more bad environmental hogwash baloney. So he’s definitely not debunking Seaspiracy, the new 2021 Netflix documentary that's trending all over social media and press coverages. Nope. Not doing it.
What we WILL do is share an open letter: Podcasters Declare. A group of Climate Podcasters is calling Apple Podcast to add a new category: Climate! This would help podcast listeners like ...
Share
Mark as Played
February 24, 2021 • 16 min
N8’s noticing some viral trends on Twitter, again. This time, media pieces are comparing COVID-19 to Climate Change. (Spoilers: they’re not comparable.)
We also want to share an open letter that our friend Mark from the Climactic podcast is helping organize: Podcasters Declare. A group of Climate Podcasters is calling Apple Podcast to add a new category: Climate! This would greatly help listeners like you find more thoughtful d...
Share
Mark as Played
February 8, 2021 • 43 min
We’re back at the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) for a second year! This time, Nature N8 chats with Representative Dr. Jasmine Clark of Georgia.
Dr. Clark is a microbiologist who organized the March for Science in Atlanta and was part of the following wave of scientists that ran for office in the United States.
N8 and Dr. Clark discuss Georgia’s challenges in diversifying its energy portfolio, publi...
Share
Mark as Played
January 27, 2021 • 48 min
Surprise! Nature N8 embarks on yet another field trip—this time to a waste recycling facility. Specifically, an electronic waste facility. If you’re reading this, you’re creating e-waste right now! What are you gonna do with it?!
Corporate eWaste Solutions is a company that disassembles, recycles, and reuses e-waste for other businesses. N8 goes to their facility in Brea to talk with John (Environmental Health & Safety special...
Share
Mark as Played
December 30, 2020 • 20 min
*in some cases.
Here’s another short(er) episode where N8 talks about whatever’s in the news!
The International Energy Agency’s annual report just came out, and it finally recognizes the growing trend of solar energy. Solar is now the cheapest source of energy in certain areas of the world! These are incredible developments in spite of the pandemic that disrupted so many renewable plans. N8 dives into the IEA report to look at t...
Share
Mark as Played
December 16, 2020 • 38 min
Do you ever wish you were smarter? Well, turns out you need a smart window first.
This episode, Nature N8 looks into a smart windows company: View, to chat with Piers MacNaughton. Piers is the Director of Health Strategy at View, a Research Associate at the Harvard School of Public Health, and an expert on how our living space changes our daily performance. He sheds light on how smart windows conserve energy, save money, and also...
Share
Mark as Played
November 16, 2020 • 15 min
We’re testing a new format this week! From Taiwan, Nature N8 gives a quick quip about recent news that other Asian countries are going “carbon neutral,” specifically: China, Japan, and South Korea. N8 compares 3 countries in terms of their progress, touches on what comes after carbon neutrality, and suspects that China’s commitment may not be as sincere as it seems.
For more info on the industrial complex that sprung up around ca...
Share
Mark as Played
September 18, 2020 • 1 min
N8’s currently AFK on a trip to Taitung!
But don’t worry, we’re still working on episodes while he’s gone, and you can expect more newsletters from Alisha, too! We have exciting things coming to you later this year!
In the meantime, check out our earlier stuff if you haven’t already, google the beautiful views of Taitung, and send us trash memes on Twitter if you miss us. Catch you soon.
Support “Waste Not Why Not” on Patreo...
Share
Mark as Played
September 11, 2020 • 38 min
Jobs? In this apocalypse? It’s more likely than you think. It’ll also be more likely if we would just PAY ATTENTION to the ocean. That’s what Dr. Jason Scorse gave Nature N8 as his professor: protecting our seas is good for the economy.
Jason is the Director of the Center for the Blue Economy, and a professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, where N8 did his Master’s! During their conversation, N8 and Jason ta...
Share
Mark as Played
August 26, 2020 • 37 min
You’ve heard about this. Bees are dying. And we’re gonna go down with them. But maybe you haven’t heard that life in the ocean is just as crucial for human survival as those on land.
This episode, Nature N8 speaks with Dr. Enric Sala about his new book: The Nature of Nature - Why We Need the Wild, which lays out precisely how we are integrated in this planet’s wondrous and irreplaceable ecosystem. Dr. Enric Sala was a professor ...
Share
Mark as Played
August 4, 2020 • 33 min
Nature N8 reads a book and talks about it with the author!
This book is a mix of nature writing and memoir, that follows the narrator through Taiwan’s landscape and history. Born from an immigrant family that moved across 3 continents within 3 generations, Jessica uses her training in natural history to uncover her connections to Taiwan.
Jessica J. Lee is a British-Canadian-Taiwanese author based in Berlin. In this episode, she...
Share
Mark as Played
July 23, 2020 • 42 min
Renewable energy is the future. But before we get there, we still need to figure out how to store renewable energy properly — and there are a billion ideas trying to do this. This week, Nature N8 talks to Dr. Antonio Baclig about one of the possible solutions: vanadium flow batteries.
Antonio is a postdoc at Stanford University's Department of Materials Science and Engineering, working in The Chueh Group. He discusses the inte...
Share
Mark as Played
July 8, 2020 • 38 min
Do you ever wonder where food comes from? Well, you should. Nature N8 tours a secret food lab. And it’s actually not that secret. It’s Mattson. Based in Silicon Valley.
Mattson is a food innovation company that creates food for almost all of our favorite grocery stores and restaurants. N8 grabs a bite with Mattson’s food technician Maddison Gurrola and vice president Al Banisch to discuss how they keep sustainability in mind ...
Share
Mark as Played
June 9, 2020 • 36 min
Nature N8 is calling out food companies that greenwash their products and limit our food options. On our last live recording at the 2020 AAAS Annual Meeting, N8 has a chat with Lydia Zepeda.
Zepeda is a Professor Emeritus of University of Wisconsin-Madison and an expert on food systems. She gives us a taste of everything food-related from food (mis)labeling to delivery services, and how we can make food choices that are healthier...
Share
Mark as Played
May 18, 2020 • 50 min
What is it like working for giant corporations? What is it like holding corporate executives responsible for their impact on society? Nature N8 sits down with Christine Bader, former head of CSR for Amazon, and before that, a long-term employee at BP. We discuss how Christine’s experiences in Indonesia, China, and the U.K. led her to revelations about sustainability and work culture, and where we can begin to think about the lif...
Share
Mark as Played
April 29, 2020 • 59 min
Cannabis is legal for recreational use in eleven U.S. states and allowed for medical use in another 33. After decades of criminalization, what does the blooming cannabis industry mean for sustainability? Nature N8 sits down with Dr. Jeff Chen, a doctor and entrepreneur who specializes in cannabis research and commercialization. We’ve heard that hemp can strengthen concrete, be used in automotive manufacturing, or even make super ...
Share
Mark as Played
April 22, 2020 • 22 min
It’s our one-year anniversary! Hurray! We were launched last year on Earth Day as a sarcastic podcast fighting against greenwashing. The show has since become so much more. For this special episode, Nature N8 looks back on his journey with our new production assistant, Yu-Chen. They interview almost everyone who had a hand in creating Waste Not Why Not, and find out what it really means to work on a science podcast.
Support “Wa...
Share
Mark as Played
April 13, 2020 • 31 min
The Honorable Dr. Jane Lubchenco was the appointed Administrator of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) from 2009 to 2013 under U.S. President Obama. This episode, Dr. Jane discuss with Nature N8 the responsibility of scientists, her intense four years administering NOAA, and the future of the ocean. Fellow disciples of the ocean: it’s here! Our interview with the “ocean goddess” herself is finally here! This ep...
Share
Mark as Played
April 6, 2020 • 18 min
At AAAS, N8 and Emily spoke to the Honorable Dr. Jane Lubchenco, former head of NOAA under US President Obama and current Ocean Goddess. But wait! That’s next episode. First, what even is NOAA?! This week, Nature N8 talks about the US “ocean department”: its Frankenstein birth, its role in the GDP, and how its latest leader weathered through 770 tornados, 70 hurricanes and tropical storms, 6 floods, 3 tsunamis, and a partridge pe...
Share
Mark as Played
March 24, 2020 • 32 min
We’ve spent the past couple decades trying to get through to climate skeptics, but WHY exactly are conspiracy theories so credible for some people? This week, Nature N8 chats with Professor Stephan Lewandowsky about the psychological nature of science denialism. Professor Lewandowsky is the chair of Cognitive Psychology at the School of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol. He has studied people’s belief in conspiracy the...
Share
Mark as Played
Chat About Waste Not Why Not
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people.
The Daily
This is what the news should sound like. The biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world. Hosted by Michael Barbaro. Twenty minutes a day, five days a week, ready by 6 a.m.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.