How much does the transportation sector contribute to the climate crisis? What communities are getting public transit right? How can we all work to get more public transit options in our communities? Here to share about why the future is public transit are MOVE MN Executive Director MJ Carpio and Joon Community Executive Director Reza Cristián. Carly chats with her guests about how they got into transit work, why transportation is a top carbon polluter (especially in Minnesota - did not know that!), and how highways and land-use planning have shaped car dependence, sprawl, and community harm since the 1950s. They also get into the influence the oil and gas companies have on politics and ever-rising gas prices. The guests share models of public transit abroad that are getting it right (Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Paris) and practical ways to act locally—vote, engage public works staff (they work for us, remember!), ride transit to boost ridership metrics, and join community bus tours like #BusBabes.

Learn more about Move MN and Joon Community.

Find zines, take classes with Carly, and more: unwindmovementmedia.com

Subscribe to Unwind and support the pod on Substack: unwindmovementmedia.substack.com

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media

What does grief have to teach us about the environment? What does solar have to teach us about love? And how can a polar bear teach us about renewable energy? Here to answer these questions today is Bob Blake, the owner of the Minneapolis-based solar developer Solar Bear. Bob has a beautiful way of connecting our own healing to the healing of the planet, and he’s doing that through real tangible projects based in community. Blake shares how grief after his brother’s death inspired the “Solar Bear” persona, led him to write a business plan in college, and became a life-saving purpose (obsession!) that evolved into climate action. A lesson Carly can't stop thinking about from this episode: the way Bob uses empathy when facing pushback against renewables. Blake shares updates on projects like electric school buses, EV infrastructure, and e-bike grants for Red Lake, and the Solar Cub program—an open-source, culture- and language-integrated STEM curriculum expanding across grades and communities. He also discusses workforce development for formerly incarcerated citizens and military veterans. To say Bob is inspiring is an understatement.

Learn more about Solar Bear.

Find zines, take classes with Carly, and more: unwindmovementmedia.com

Subscribe to Unwind and support the pod on Substack: unwindmovementmedia.substack.com

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media

What the actual f is going on with climate politics right now? What regulations are cancelled? How much of it is fear mongering? And what can we do about it? Thank goodness today’s guest, Chris Conry—campaign director of 100% Minnesota and longtime labor and community organizer—has some insight to share about all of this and more. Speaking of politics, we are in primary voting season here in the U.S. Check out voting resources below. Chris started by sharing how his daughter’s March for Science speech pushed him toward climate work. Chris outlines Trump-era actions: executive orders targeting regulations (including the endangerment finding), congressional rollbacks of Biden-era clean energy investments, illegal impoundment of climate funds (including FEMA grants), increased costs for wind and solar, disinformation on climate science, and fossil-fuel-driven foreign policy. Boooo. He argues faux populism exploits real grievances with false blame, and believes climate solutions should improve material conditions through affordability, efficiency, electrification, updated building codes, thermal energy networks, industrial decarbonization, and pragmatic adaptation for floods and heat. As is becoming a regular part of the conversation on the pod, Chris emphasizes curiosity and participation, and suggests people join climate organizing in ways that match their skills—from advocacy and voting to creative work.

Check out 100% Minnesota to learn more about the work Chris is doing: 100percentmn.org

Find the climate action that fits your skills and passions: Climate Action Venn Diagram by Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson

Make sure you’re registered by heading to vote.org.

Compare candidates and track their voting records using knowyourvotes.com.

And finally, as Chris reminded us, these issues all intersect, from here to Palestine. Use trackaipac.com to see what politicians are serving the interests of corrupt lobbies before yours.

Find zines, take classes with Carly, and more: unwindmovementmedia.com

Subscribe to Unwind and support the pod on Substack: unwindmovementmedia.substack.com

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media

This episode with guest Arielle V. King (she/they) focuses on storytelling, attention, and whose voices get heard in the climate crisis and whose do not. Arielle V. King is a strategist and The Joy Report host with training in environmental law, civil rights, and environmental justice, including research on the Flint water crisis. Ariel discusses the importance of translating complex science for everyday people, the need to center and compensate lived expertise in environmental justice, and defines environmental racism as the targeting of communities of color with polluting infrastructure. She shares examples such as Cancer Alley and the South Bronx’s “Asthma Alley,” rooted in redlining and layered policy. They connect current data center expansion to environmental injustice, emphasize radical imagination (this keeps coming up!), critique hyper-consumerism and forced tech adoption, and explore how storytelling builds empathy and supports policy change. Carly and Ariel talk about how our futures are all at stake when we don’t hear everyone’s story. Ariel shares what sustains her hope and how she unwinds through food, music, time outside, and community. Listen now as Arielle brings a dose of joy from her show to Unwind.

Check out Intersectional Environmentalist to learn more about her work and listen to the Joy Report: intersectionalenvironmentalist.com

Find zines, take classes with Carly, and more: unwindmovementmedia.com

Subscribe to Unwind and support the pod on Substack: unwindmovementmedia.substack.com

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media

Grab your space suits; it's time to time-travel. Carly kicks off a new season of Unwind with a focus on radical imagination. In a new segment, Carly first chats with comrade Claire Howe about sustaining hope amid collective hopelessness, balancing engagement with overwhelm, and making space to dream by limiting social media. Carly then interviews Rob Hopkins, co-founder of Transition Network, which began in Totnes 20 years ago to help communities wean off fossil fuels through local food, energy, and housing projects now spanning thousands of groups in about 50 countries. Rob traces his roots to punk and permaculture, defines imagination as seeing things as if they could be otherwise, and argues the climate crisis demands bold, systemic reimagining rather than incremental fixes. Rob shares how hope grows from action, highlighting real-world examples of better futures. Rob and Carly wrap up by talking about the importance of playfulness. And of course, Carly can't help but bring up social media. Rob warns that social media erodes attention and deep understanding, and suggests practices like seeking solution stories, creating imaginative space, and learning improv. Zip zap zop for the climate?

Check out Rob's website to learn more about his work and buy his book: robhopkins.net

Subscribe to Unwind and support the pod on Substack: unwindmovementmedia.substack.com

Find zines, take classes with Carly, and more: unwindmovementmedia.com

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media

I took a "quick" break from podcasting and ended up rebranding my whole business. Oops.

Tune in to hear how my business has shifted into its next evolution like a Pokémon and what's next for the podcast.

Check out the NEW website.

Subscribe on Substack.

Music produced by M Baxley of Bear Witness Media.

REPLAY: This episode with Calen Otto is from the vault and originally premiered on October 30, 2024.

Calen is a queer, anti-speciesist travel blogger who explores the big, wide world on a very small budget and is our most recurring guest on this podcast. Calen and I connected through the world of podcasting and became friends pretty instantly. It’s been over a year since Hurricane Helene devastated the Southeast part of the United States, so it felt like a good time to replay this important episode. In this episode, Calen helps us explore the profound impacts of Hurricane Helene on North Carolina. Calen shares their personal experiences during the hurricane and reads a poignant essay weaving themes of climate change, speciesism, and social justice. Calen shared this essay on their podcast, and I instantly knew Consciously Clueless listeners needed to hear!

Guest Bio: Calen Ann Otto is a queer, anti-speciesist travel blogger who explores the big, wide world on a very small budget. After completing a solo trip across the USA at the age of 19 with only $300 and a bike, Calen discovered that there are so many alternative ways to travel that cost less. Inspired by their love of meeting strangers and sharing their incredible stories, Calen created the Unruly Travel blog. There, they share photos, videos, articles, and podcast episodes from their unique travels in hopes of inspiring others to get out and grow. Calen has been to 5 continents, 35 states, 20 National Parks, and more than 20 countries as a vegan and is passionate about doing the least amount of harm wherever they go. They wrote and published 'The Art Of Unruly Travel On A Budget' travel guidebook to make travel more accessible to all.

Thanks for listening to another episode. Follow, review, and share to help Consciously Clueless grow!

Music by M Baxley

Helpful Links from Calen:

• Hurricane Helene Essay: wanderwoman.online/index.php/2024/…north-carolina/
• Donate to mutual aid orgs in WNC: preview.mailerlite.io/preview/757985…69466110330501
• Episode #24 on Hurricane Florence: Unrulytravel-podcast – Modern-love-story-pig-rescue-hurricane-florence-north-carolina

REPLAY: This episode is from the vault and originally premiered on July 17, 2024.

Navigating the realm of sustainability and lifestyle choices can seem overwhelming, but this conversation with Tyler Chanel brings clarity and encouragement. Together, we explore small steps to reduce plastic consumption, discuss balancing convenience with sustainability, and challenge the pressure of achieving perfect sustainability. Tune in, re-learn from Tyler's experiences, and discover the seemingly small ways you can embrace a more sustainable lifestyle today.

Guest bio: Tyler Chanel is an ethical blogger and model based in Los Angeles, California. Her blog and YouTube Channel, Thrifts & Tangles, provides educational tips to inspire others to give thrifting, sustainability, and their natural selves a chance.

Thanks for listening to another episode. Follow, review, and share to help Consciously Clueless grow!

Music by M Baxley