The Good Dirt: Sustainability Explained

The Good Dirt: Sustainability Explained

Start living more sustainably. The Good Dirt podcast explores all aspects of a sustainable lifestyle with healthy soil as the touchpoint and metaphor for the healing of our relationship with the planet. Mother and daughter team Mary & Emma bring you weekly interviews with farmers, artists, authors, and leaders in the regenerative and sustainable living space.

Episodes

February 14, 2025 61 mins
Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return next spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 7/21/23. Did you know that in this country, we have an area totaling the size of Washington State that is mowed lawns? Our guest is Owen Wormser, author of Lawns Into Meadows, who helps to weave people and the natural world back together through his work building regenerative landscapes. In this conversation, we ...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return in the spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 2/24/23. Our guest today is someone who began her plastic-free journey in her kitchen, and has now become the renowned Zero Waste Chef, Anne-Marie Bonneau! Starting as a Zero Plastic Chef, she took the next step in her sustainability journey and became the Zero Waste Chef working towards producing zero waste in...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return in the spring. Please enjoy this episode that was last aired on 1/31/2023 Today's episode is about Brigid, saint and legend, known for her skills at the hearth, the loom, midwifery, healing, poetry and animal husbandry. Kathy Spaar, spiritual director, pilgrimage leader and nature educator shares many of the folklore and stories of this legendary figure from Celtic tradition. As ...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return next spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 10/20/23. How can we reconnect ourselves to nature, to the plants and animals around us, and the very Earth we walk upon? This is the topic of discussion with our guest Asia Suler, writer, teacher, mother, earth intuitive, ecological philosopher and author of Mirrors in the Earth: Reflections on Self-Healing from...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return next spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 11/10/2023. Our guest for today is Jill Winger, creator of The Prairie Homestead who over the last 10 years has influenced thousands of people in rediscovering some of the simpler ways of life–helping people grow their own food, cook healthy meals, raise chickens, bake bread—and SO many other things. And yes, s...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return next spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 11/17/23. Our guest today is Baron Wormser, award winning poet, professor and author of "The Road Washes Out in Spring: A Poet's Memoir of Living Off the Grid". In this episode, Baron shares stories from his experience living and raising a family off the grid in rural Maine for 23 years, as well as his insight i...
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Mary & Emma are on a brief hiatus and plan to return next spring. Please enjoy this episode that was originally aired on 12/8/2023. We’re talking to Christina Schindler, who after spending 20 years in public education as a teacher and administrator, has embarked on a business venture with her family as the CEO of the Modern Stone Age Kitchen, a restaurant in Chestertown, MD that optimizes nutrition in modern foods through ancestra...
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In this episode, Mary & Emma conclude their 'Intro to Slow Living' series by reflecting on the evolution of the slow living concept in their experience over the past eight years. They discuss the importance of intentionality, how slow living has transformed from a term to a mindset, and personal experiences with slow living in areas like fashion and daily choices. They announce a hiatus over the winter to rest and reassess their fu...
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In this special episode, we're bringing back two cherished holiday-themed recordings from our archives. Whether it’s the miracle of light, the birth of a Holy Child, or the warmth of family traditions, December celebrations connect us to a shared human experience rooted in vulnerability to nature’s rhythms. First, in this excerpt from the December episode of Mary's Slow Living Through the Seasons series from 2023, Mary reflects on ...
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In today’s episode, we’re talking to Melissa and Jaci from Pinetree Garden Seeds, a family owned and operated business since 1979. Pinetree Garden Seeds was founded with the simple mission of offering low prices on quality seeds to the home gardener. Over the years offerings have expanded to include over 1300 varieties of seeds, including many heirlooms & organics, a huge assortment of tools and gardening gear, books, and live plan...
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In this episode of The Good Dirt Podcast, hosts Mary Kingsley and her daughter Emma talk with Florence Reed, founder of Sustainable Harvest International, a nonprofit that has worked with smallholder farmers in Central America for over 27 years in adopting regenerative farming practices. Florence tells the story of how Sustainable Harvest International got its start, and highlights the importance of healthy soil, biodiversity, and ...
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In celebration of the holiday this week, and upcoming "Black Friday", we're re-airing our favorite slow-living take on the matter...Slow Friday! RE-AIR FROM 11/26/21 You're in for something a little different this Friday...it's a solo show with Mary and Emma! At Lady Farmer, we're always thinking about ways to shift our thinking to live into a more slow and sustainable lifestyle, and today is a great opportunity to do just that. ...
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In this episode, Zandra Zuraw, founder of Slow Style Home, shares her insights on interior design. Slow Style Home is an interior design coaching platform for people looking to create a beautiful, meaningful home without breaking the bank, hiring a designer, or hurting the planet to get one. Zandra discusses her step-by-step framework, the importance of a vision for your space, and offers tips for decluttering and balancing aesthet...
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In this conversation, Casey and Brooke Oberg from Detroit Mulch Company share their journey of transforming tree waste into mulch in the urban landscape of Detroit. They discuss their backgrounds, how they came to the project, various types of mulch, the significance of topsoil and the role of composting in community engagement. The conversation highlights the community impact of their work repurposing organic materials into benefi...
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In this episode of The Good Dirt, Mary & Emma explore sustainability in the spirits industry with Harrison Holditch of Half Shell Vodka. At just 33 years old, Harrison has pioneered innovative sustainable practices in producing vodka, including using recycled materials and local partnerships. Among Half Shell Vodka's noteworthy achievements is its revolutionary 100% recyclable cardboard bottle made from 94% recycled materials. The ...
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What are more sustainable death practices that we can can consider as alternatives to the expensive and consumptive services offered in the modern funeral industry? CEO of Endswell Cremation Hunter Beattie is our guest today, here to discuss the green burial movement, the problems with our current death rituals and practices and how the process of aquamation offered by his company is another choice over cremation or burial. Hunter ...
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Join Mary and Emma as they discuss a slow living Halloween, the second largest consumer season in the US. From the ancient traditions of the Celtic Samhain celebrations, to the modern day spook fest that dominates this time of year, you'll hear how you can embrace the special beauty and magic of nature during this time, letting go of much of the waste and frenzy but keeping all of the fun! Things Mentioned: Zero Waste Candy Altern...
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In this episode, Mary welcomes back Krista Arias and her daughter, Fia, from Tierra Soul, a homestead and learning space in Magdalena, New Mexico. They catch up on their conversation from a year ago, discussing ongoing and new projects at Tierra Soul, such as the community cafe project and plans for their first holistic homesteading festival. They also discuss their signature 8 week holistic homesteading online program,"Lazy Lady L...
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In this episode, Mary & Emma begin their discussion on consumerism by reflecting on a recent social media trend dubbed "underconsumption', and how that idea overlaps with the fundamentals of slow living. They ask the questions, are we drawn to the true ideals of a lifestyle or the visual aesthetics as represented on social media, and how likely are we to feel compelled to "buy" into it due to feelings of lack in our own lives? Mary...
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How do you pursue homesteading while honoring the wildness of the nature around you? The flowers, animals, and flora that live on the land can impact the way you approach your garden. Julie Stonefelt, a full-time park ranger and co-founder of Wild Homestead Living with her husband Kevin, has sought to live off the land while preserving the natural ecosystem of her 2 acre property in the state of Washington. Despite a suburban upbri...
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