The Global Grit Experience

Yowza that was a real blow with the recent Senate’s vote to overturn a 20-year ban on mining near the Boundary Waters. Argh! That vote from the House and then the Senate means voiding the protection of 225,000 acres in the Superior National Forest allowing the advancement to Twin Metals sulfide-ore copper mining upstream of the Boundary Waters wilderness near Ely, MN. This isn’t just about the Boundary Waters. These kinds of votes can set a precedent for other protected areas as well in the U.S. I’m just so disgusted as I know many of you are, too. So, let’s talk about it, get some info, see what’s next, and what we can do. My guest today is Sam Chadwick.Since 2014, Sam has helped lead the Ely, Minnesota-based national campaign to protect America's most-visited wilderness from proposed copper mining. As the Associate Director for Save the Boundary Waters and Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness, she's involved in advocacy, partnerships, and creative projects for this coalition of 400+ businesses, conservation, access, and sporting allies. Sam lives in Minnesota and loves exploring the outdoors with her kids.You can learn more and take action at www.SavetheBoundaryWaters.org

I love adventure stories! If you have one, message me to be a guest on my podcast @theglobalgritexperience.This one's about a strange thing that happened on a film shoot in Honduras.Hugs!

Today’s guest is Hallie Pond from Pine River, MN. I asked her to be a guest because I don’t know about you, but I can get so damn angry and frustrated with things going on in the world….and with our fellow human beings, who some, I’m confident we can all agree, are real shits.But, anger builds conflict and conflict can start to break down communication. And, what we need now more than ever is clear, honest, bold communication.Hallie Pond is the founder of Truespace Consulting. She helps people connect more authentically, building skills to enhance communication and engage in conflict in healthy, dignified (I don’t think that includes dropping the f-bomb) and courageous ways. She holds a masters in Organizational Psychology and an advanced certificate in Cooperation and Conflict Resolution from Columbia University.So, deep breath...let’s pick up a few tips from Hallie on how to go forth in this crazy world.You can learn more at truespaceconsulting.com about Hallie's conflict resiliency training, coaching and mediation for businesses, schools, and communities.

Scott is SO INSPIRING! Man, he in his signature black cowboy hat has been making serious headway for nature in southwest Minnesota.I’ve been to his land, got to walk among his restored prairie and soak in the quiet, see all sorts of wild flowers and watch more fireflies at night than I’ve seen since I was a kid.Scott Rall runs his own business by day and is a conservationist every other second of his life. He’s a 30-year volunteer for Pheasants Forever, was awarded the Hero of Conservation Award by Field and Stream magazine, and has SO Much GRIT dedicated to giving wildlife a place to breath.Scott wanted me to let you know he’d love to talk with any of you interested in as he calls it, 'catching the conservation fever'. He’d be happy to give any tips or help on how to do restoration work or taking steps in conservation.You can reach him on socials @habitatchampionHis number is 507.360.6027Or email is [email protected]

Kelly Blackledge knows her birds! She's so much fun to talk with, especially this time of year during spring migration as the woods, wetlands, lakes and bird feeders start getting busy baby. And, beautifully noisy! It's SO much fun hearing the first sandhill crane of the year, or the loon, or so many other birds we all love.Kelly has over 30 years' experience as an Interpretive Park Ranger and a degree in Animal Ecology. She helps coordinate her local Detroit Lakes Festival of Birds, is a volunteer for the Minnesota loon watcher survey, and you’ll be able to tell… LOVES birds. Listen in, hear some bird calls, and impress your friends with a few fun facts.Resources: https://birdcast.org/https://journeynorth.org/

A scuba debacle with my little brother.If you have an adventure story, message me on FB or IG! It would be fun to share it.Thanks for being a part of the Global Grit Experience!

Today’s guest is another kick ass and inspiring person I wanted to share with you. I recorded this episode before I even had a podcast. I love her grit and wanted to share her perspective as a teenager on climate action.Myiesha Antoni is an 18 year-old dual enrollment senior in high school and getting her associates degree. Dang girl. She’s from Henning Minnesota and lobbied for climate action in Washington, DC with Citizens Climate Lobby. Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, grassroots advocacy climate change organization with nationwide and international chapters. Let’s meet this awesome girl who has A LOT of grit.

My guest today is Jim Etzel from Hackensack, Minnesota. He’s the owner of Earth is Our Home Environmental Solutions. He’s all about having healthy soils to have healthy food and a healthy world. I met Jim at a recent community event through West Central Initiative and learned about his passion for composting….but not your typical composting. Yep, today, we’re having what he calls, the poop talk. "It's like baking cookies. You gotta get the recipe right. You gotta get the ingredients right. It breaks this material down from the ‘ew’ to topsoil." Jim Etzel If you want to get a hold of Jim, you can go to earthisourhome.net or call 218.252.3258. He'd love to talk with you.

We're asked to make calls, write letters, sign petitions, protest…to make our voices heard to the higher ups in congress. But does it matter? Do our efforts actually ever make it up the food chain to make a difference?I invited Ben Anderson to give us a little insight into this. Ben has worked for three members of congress from Minnesota, the US House Committee on Agriculture, and at the US Department of Agriculture. He shares what he thinks works, matters, and is most effective.

There's no better time than NOW to freshen up our skills on being grounded, centered and living our authentic lives, especially when everything is cray-cray and some of us are about to go off the rails (if we haven't already). I feel 'ya.I’m big into mental health and I’m super excited about my guest, Tessa Wolden, whose going to give us some good tips on how to manage today's roller coaster(s) and tap into nature and the outdoors to help.Tessa is a Board Certified Art Therapist and Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor with over 13 years of experience. She’s recently launched her own private practice, Wind Wave Counseling, based in Edina, Minnesota.Resources:https://www.climatementalhealth.net/https://workthatreconnects.org/www.windwavecounseling.com

This was kind of a deep dive that I absolutely loved. I learned so much from Dennis in this episode. Dennis Jacobs is a retired physics professor, pilot, and aeronautical engineer. He’s the author of multiple books including The Search for Science and From McEnergy to EcoEnergy, America’s Transition to Sustainable Energy, cowritten with Sociology Professor and wife, Dr. Karen Branden (also a prior podcast guest). He and Karen built and live in an environmentally friendly house in Northern Minnesota.I could talk with Dennis about a kazillion awesome topics but I asked him what he’s most passionate about sharing and sees as a major concern when it comes to the environment. His answer….the rise of populism.

Sometimes it's fun to just hear some outdoor adventure stories. This short story was an adventures with my dad.

Van and his wife Sue built a net-zero energy home 12 miles out of Alexandria, MN. As much as I wanted to know how they did it, it was why they did it that intrigued me.Dr. Van Gooch is a retired professor of Biology from the University of Minnesota at Morris, where he taught for 35 years. After retirement, he and Sue set themselves to this challenge.And, even if building a net-zero home isn’t in your cards, Van has good tips on what we can each do to save energy and money in where we live.... and how we live.If you have questions or would like to talk with Van about building a net-zero or energy efficient home, you can reach him at:[email protected]

I find it interesting why we do the things we do. And, why we feel compelled to play nicey-nice when it comes to talking about the environment and climate action. I get it. No one, including myself, wants to be beaten over the head with anything, especially 'shoulds', 'coulds' or major ass guilt trips. But yet, we want to take action and action can sometimes be SO damn overwhelming and frustrating as 'f'. Especially when we don't see the results we want fast enough or even sometimes, at all.Today’s guest, Dr. Karen Branden, is going to give us a bit of an inside look from a sociologist’s perspective on how we work, especially when it comes to creating change and when, yep, sometimes, it's okay to be our fierce selves.Dr. Karen Branden has a PhD in Sociology, and has been a professor of Sociology for over 20 years. She’s taught at schools around the world and is currently a professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Minnesota State University Moorhead. One of the classes she teaches, that really piqued my interest, is Society and the Environment. Karen’s joining us from her home in Rochert, MN.

Today, we’re talking with Pastor Beth Monke. I wanted to talk with Beth to hear about climate action from a religious or spiritual perspective. Beth is a Pastor at the Grove Lake Lutheran Church in Pelican Rapids, Minnesota AND she’s a climate activist! Whoop! Whoop! Beth is the Citizen's Climate Lobby (CCL) co-leader for the Fergus Falls, MN chapter. Beth has a lot of depth and wisdom you'll love to hear.Citizen's Climate Lobby is a nonpartisan organization that empowers every day people (like you and me) to work together on climate policy. There are 420+ chapters across the US and 150+ international chapters on 6 continents. Pretty cool if you’re looking for ways to get involved in your own community. Beth is also a former outpatient mental health therapist.

Dacia Dauner built an outdoor nature school in Bemidji, MN. Picture a combo of a twenty something below winter and kids in cozy yurts for classrooms…. and you have Apple Blossom Nature School. She (and the kids and other teachers) have GRiT!Dacia Dauner is the founder of Apple Blossom Village, a micro-school that provides nature-based programs for kids, families and the community year round.

One of the biggest things we can do for the outdoor places we love and a world we want to see where nature is priority and not a commodity is vote. Speaking up, standing up and voting for nature takes GRiT… but like I say, nature deserves some of our grit, right? Let’s learn a few tips on what we can do without losing our wits in the process.Celeste Koppe is the Communications Officer on the Board of Directors for the Detroit Lakes Minnesota League of Women Voters. League of Women voters is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization working to protect and expand voting rights and ensure everyone is represented in our democracy.

The Global Grit Experience is about having GRIT... passion and perseverance and an unwavering dedication to protecting nature despite challenges. And there are a lot of challenges out there right now, holy hell. Especially for the environment.But, having grit can sound exhausting, right? Especially when we’re worn out, overwhelmed and want to hide under the covers.So, I thought it would be good to kick this baby off with what I think is top tier important…your mental health. Because, without it, we burn out and drop out and that’s not good for you, for us, or for our precious outdoors. Because we each have something to contribute! Right? We’re amazing!My first guest...whoop whoop... is Dr. Aligada here in my hometown.Dr. Jonathan Aligada is an adult clinical psychologist at Sanford Health in Detroit Lakes, MN. I’ve interviewed Dr. Aligada before for a mental health video series and am SO grateful he’s able to join us for this podcast.Thanks for tuning in!