Ep. 99: Fungi for the People - Understanding Bioremediation & Engaging Fungal Allies (feat. Ja Schindler)

Today on the Mushroom Hour we are excited to have the chance to learn from Ja Schindler. Ja is a fungi researcher/ teacher/ activist/ farmer based in the Southeast Cascade Mountains of Oregon on traditional lands of the Kalapooya peoples. Motivated by desires to challenge issues of environmental injustice, Ja founded Fungi For the People in 2010, which serves as an outlet for collaboratively developing appropriate methods for cultivating and problem solving with people and fungi. As a hands-on cultivator and community organizer he is a focal point of the inspiring community science movement. I can’t wait to hear his take on the role community mycology can play in empowering people and helping us develop a more balanced relationship with our environment.   TOPICS COVERED:   Early Inspirations from the “Rebound Ecology” of Detroit   Moving West, Working with Applied Mycology   Community Evolution of Fungi for the People   Ecological Restoration & Mycoremediation   Impact of Arbuscular Mycorrhizae    Advantages of Site-Based Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi   Bioremediation Work in Contaminated Mining Sites   Advice on “Skilling Up” for Bioremediation Projects   Background on the EPA and How it Works   How EPA Regulates & Facilitates Environmental Cleanups   Engaging with Institutional & Regulatory Frameworks     Working with Ectomycorrhizal and Endomycorrhizal Fungi at Home   Decentralized Future of Medicinal Mushroom Cultivation   Impact and Upside of a Parkinson’s Diagnosis   EPISODE RESOURCES:   Fungi for the People Website: https://fungiforthepeople.org/   Fungi for the People FB: https://www.facebook.com/FungiForThePeople   Fungi for the People IG: https://www.instagram.com/fungiforthepeople/   EPA "CLU-IN" Resource: https://clu-in.org/   "Mycoremediation: Fungal Bioremediation" (Book): https://www.amazon.com/Mycoremediation-Fungal-Bioremediation-Harbhajan-Singh/dp/047175501X    Fomitopsis pinicola (Fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/fomitopsis_pinicola.html