Quality Is a Strategy: Creating Regenerative Economies with Kristi Wiedemann

How can local systems solve global problems? Will we ever know the true cost of convenience? Can the profound act of caring transform economic systems?In this episode, PhD researcher Kristi Wiedemann shares with Sonja and Jamie  insights from her work studying local fiber systems in New York, where farmers, makers, and textile producers are experimenting with more regenerative ways of creating clothing and other fiber products. Together, they explore the environmental and social costs of fast fashion, the promise and challenges of regional production, and why care—for land, animals, workers, and consumers—may be one of the most overlooked ingredients in sustainability.Beyond textiles, the conversation reaches toward larger questions about efficiency, consumption, mental health, and what we lose when speed and convenience become our primary values. From soil-to-soil production systems to the joy people find in making things by hand, a hopeful vision of a future built on quality, connection, and long-term thinking emerges.