Free Daily Podcast Summary
The Poor Prole’s Almanac: Daily Summaries Delivered
by The Poor Prole’s Alamanac, Bleav
Climate Change got you down? Worried about the fact that *everything* seems to be getting worse? Wondering how we got to this point in the first place, and what can we do to build a more resilient future? We take a look at historical pastoral & agricultural societies to see what worked and what didn’t, as well as what resources we have today to make better decisions to build equitable systems. We don’t just discuss ecology and history but also take a leftist perspective on prepping, foraging, homesteading, weapons, community-building, and basically anything that needs discussing during late-stage capitalism.
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The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- 1 weeks ago36 min
Return of the Water Humans; Ben Goldfarb and the Beavers that Built America
What if one of the most effective tools for restoring North America’s natural landscapes has four legs, a flat tail, and a habit of building dams? In this episode, we talk with environmental journalist and author Ben Goldfarb about beavers, their remarkable influence on ecosystems, and the growing movement to bring them back to landscapes where they once thrived. Drawing on his award-winning book Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, Ben explores how the widespread trapping and removal of beavers transformed North America’s rivers, wetlands, and watersheds—and how their return can help restore them. From creating habitat for fish and wildlife to storing water, mitigating drought, and potentially reducing wildfire risks, beavers can have an outsized impact on the environments they inhabit. We discuss the science behind these natural engineers, the challenges of reintroducing them, and what it takes for people and beavers to coexist. We also explore Ben’s broader work, including Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet, which examines how roads fragment habitats and disrupt wildlife movement. Together, these topics offer a fresh perspective on conservation: understanding how human activity has reshaped the natural world, and how we can work with natural processes to build healthier, more resilient landscapes. Check out Ben's writing at https://www.bengoldfarb.com/ For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 3 weeks ago39 min
Oak Savanna Rising: Heather Holm on Native Pollinators and Fire-Dependent Landscapes
Most of us have heard “save the bees,” but which bees? Minnesota alone is home to hundreds of native bee species, and roughly 90% are solitary, nesting in soil, stems, and logs rather than hives. Pollinator conservationist, photographer, and author Heather Holm has spent years documenting these insects and the native plants they depend on. Her books Pollinators of Native Plants, Bees, Wasps, and Common Native Bees of the Eastern United States have earned the American Horticultural Society Book Award twice, and she founded Minnesota Native Bees, an online field guide to the state’s bees. Heather is also deeply involved in ecological restoration, including a 13-acre oak savanna restoration at Cullen Nature Preserve and the new Minnesota Oak Savanna chapter of The Prairie Enthusiasts. We talk about what makes fire-dependent ecosystems like oak savannas so valuable for pollinators, why prescribed fire can increase floral diversity and benefit bees despite its reputation, and how pollen specialists, ground nesters, and stem nesters fit into the picture. We also dig into overlooked habitat like leaf litter, logs, and stem stubble, and the “soft landings” concept for giving caterpillars and other beneficial insects a place to complete their life cycles beneath trees. Finally, we zoom out to the bigger questions that matter for agroecology: how diverse native habitat near farms can support crop pollination, what home gardens can and can’t accomplish when the surrounding landscape matters so much, and where a listener with a modest piece of land should start. Along the way, Heather shares some surprising natural history, from wasps that deserve a better reputation to bees with highly specialized relationships to single plants. Learn more at pollinatorsnativeplants.com and beesmn.org. For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Sep 20, 20261h 12m
The Last Man at Sunny Ridge Part 2: William Wiley and the World of J. Russell Smith
At ninety-two, William Wiley is one of the last people who can tell it first-hand. Born in 1933, he grew up on the mountain farms of J. Russell Smith — the geographer whose 1929 classic Tree Crops: A Permanent Agriculture helped seed the entire agroforestry movement — and spent his boyhood grafting, budding, and shipping trainloads of chestnut, persimmon, hickory, and honey locust out of Smith's Sunny Ridge Nursery near Round Hill, Virginia. In this conversation, recorded at the Taylor farm alongside Zach Elfers of Future Forest Plants and William's son Rob, we go after the things the history books can't hold: how the old balled-and-burlapped nurseries actually ran, the lost honey locust cultivars and the contests that named them, the Chinese chestnuts that replaced a blighted forest, prescribed fire and the Appalachian frost line, the Quaker communities that tied it all together, and the quiet lessons in generosity and honesty that a boy absorbed from a professor who once turned down a seat in FDR's cabinet. It's a firsthand look at a man, a place, and a way of working that's nearly slipped out of living memory — and a reminder of how much we lose the moment we stop asking. For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Aug 8, 20261h 17m
The Last Man at Sunny Ridge: William Wiley and the World of J. Russell Smith
At ninety-two, William Wiley is one of the last people who can tell it first-hand. Born in 1933, he grew up on the mountain farms of J. Russell Smith — the geographer whose 1929 classic Tree Crops: A Permanent Agriculture helped seed the entire agroforestry movement — and spent his boyhood grafting, budding, and shipping trainloads of chestnut, persimmon, hickory, and honey locust out of Smith's Sunny Ridge Nursery near Round Hill, Virginia. In this conversation, recorded at the Taylor farm alongside Zach Elfers of Future Forest Plants and William's son Rob, we go after the things the history books can't hold: how the old balled-and-burlapped nurseries actually ran, the lost honey locust cultivars and the contests that named them, the Chinese chestnuts that replaced a blighted forest, prescribed fire and the Appalachian frost line, the Quaker communities that tied it all together, and the quiet lessons in generosity and honesty that a boy absorbed from a professor who once turned down a seat in FDR's cabinet. It's a firsthand look at a man, a place, and a way of working that's nearly slipped out of living memory — and a reminder of how much we lose the moment we stop asking. For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- May 28, 202615 min
The Quiet Ecology of Mid-Century Design
What if Mid-Century Modern design is more than just a collection of "clean lines" and "warm wood"? This talk peels back the aesthetic surface to reveal a deep ecological and political argument about how we inhabit the world. It begins with the "disorienting pause" of bringing home a vintage piece of furniture—an object that carries the fingerprints of time and refuses the modern rhythm of disposable consumption. From there, the discussion explores Lewis Mumford’s vision of an "organic society"—one that remains rooted in locality and ecological limits rather than abstract efficiency. You will discover: Architecture as a Partner: Learn why Richard Neutra’s Kaufman Desert House isn't just a glass icon, but a masterpiece of "ecological legibility" that listens to the desert rather than trying to subdue it. The Power of Emptiness: Explore how Mid-Century minimalism functions as a spatial refusal of saturation, keeping the home open enough for light, proportion, and landscape to remain active participants in daily life. Sustainability vs. Optimization: A provocative comparison between "active transformation" and a model of sustainability that focuses on ongoing responsiveness to place. This talk is a journey into the "quiet political charge" of design. It offers a powerful reminder that human life is always shaped by climate, terrain, and material constraint. If you’ve ever wondered how modern life might be rearranged at a scale where "place remains perceptible," this is a must-listen. It's a reminder embedded in wood and glass that "life is still happening somewhere specific". For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- May 6, 20261h 2m
The Universe is Before Us: A Conversation on Quantum Physics and Existence with Dr. Chris Fuchs
In this podcast episode, hosts Nash Flynn and Andy from Tomorrow, Today interview Dr. Christopher Fuchs, a prominent physicist often recognized as the father of QBism, or Quantum Bayesianism. This scientific framework suggests that quantum mechanics is not an objective description of external reality, but rather a tool for individuals to manage their own probabilities and expectations. By re-centering the human agent within the laws of physics, Fuchs argues that our personal choices and actions fundamentally participate in shaping the universe. The discussion highlights how this perspective challenges traditional notions of a rigid, pre-determined world and explicitly rejects the multiverse theory in favor of a meaningful, malleable reality. Ultimately, the sources illustrate a bridge between rigorous science and philosophy, suggesting that the universe is an ongoing project where individual participation matters. For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 29, 202645 min
Death is Common in Every Species with Dr. Susana Monsó
In this episode, we go back to an older episode of Tomorrow, Today, where the duo dives into a subject most people go to great lengths to avoid: death. From the Victorian-era "funeral culture" that commodified grief to the modern sanitization of the "great beyond," Nash Flynn and Andy discuss how humanity has lost its intimacy with mortality. The episode features an in-depth interview with Dr. Susana Monsó, a doctor at the Spanish National University specializing in animal ethics. Together, they dismantle the myth of "human exceptionalism"—the idea that humans are the only creatures capable of understanding death. Dr. Monsó introduces the "minimal concept of death," arguing that an understanding of non-functionality and irreversibility is likely widespread across the animal kingdom. Highlights include: The Whale’s Vigil: Why an orca carrying her dead calf for 1,000 miles challenges our definitions of grief and understanding. The "Face-Eating" Truth: A fascinating (and slightly disturbing) look at why pets sometimes feed on their deceased owners and what it tells us about their perception of us. A "Minimal" Understanding: How children and animals alike develop a concept of death as a spectrum rather than a binary switch. Reconciling with Nature: Why accepting our "animal nature" might be the key to helping us—and our grandmothers—talk about death in peace. Whether you’re interested in the evolution of cognition, animal ethics, or just looking for a way to be less uncomfortable with your own mortality, join us for a conversation that is as hilarious as it is profound. Tune in to Tomorrow Today—because death is common, and so is understanding it. For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Key words: Minimal concept of death, non-functionality, irreversibility, human exceptionalism, animal ethics, emotional anthropocentrism, Victorian funeral culture, commodification of grief, WEIRD societies, Taliqua the orca, pet scavenging, universality, causality, personal mortality, inevitability, unpredictability, Schrödinger’s Opossum, animal nature, human superiority, sanitization of death Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 20, 20261h 1m
Biodisaster X, Artificial Intelligence, and 6G with Dr. Dean McDonnell
(Originally release 3/07/22) This episode of Tomorrow Today features hosts Andy and Nash discussing the intersection of rapidly evolving technology and the looming threat of biological disasters. They are joined by Dr. Dean McDonald from the Carlow Institute of Technology to explore how 6G and Artificial Intelligence (AI) might be the keys to surviving future pandemics. Key Topics Covered: The Evolution of "Gs": The hosts trace the history of mobile technology from 1G analog waves to the digital revolution of 2G, which introduced texting. They discuss the current shift toward 6G, which promises nearly instantaneous data transfer—potentially a terabyte every few seconds—enabling real-time city-wide analysis for tracking trends like disease outbreaks. The History of Biological Warfare: Andy and Nash provide a grim look at historical "bio-disasters," ranging from ancient Carthaginian tactics involving snakes in clay pots to the use of plague-infected bodies as weapons during the Black Death. They also reflect on more modern scares, such as the 2001 anthrax attacks. Disease X vs. Biodisaster X: Dr. McDonald clarifies the difference between these terms: Disease X typically refers to unknown, naturalistic threats (like COVID-19), while Biodisaster X often implies a threat developed by a human agent or intended for bioterrorism. Technology as a Support Tool: Dr. McDonald emphasizes that while AI and technology are powerful, they cannot replace human interaction, especially in mental health. He discusses "forced empathy" through Virtual Reality (VR), which allows practitioners to experience hallucinations associated with schizophrenia to better understand their patients. Predicting Pandemics via Sewers: A significant focus of the interview is the potential for 6G-enabled sensors in sewage and wastewater systems to detect stool samples for new variants of diseases, allowing authorities to identify and limit spreads in real time before they become global disasters In this episode, we discuss Dr. McDonnell's work “Addressing Biodisaster X Threats With Artificial Intelligence and 6G Technologies”Check out Dr. McDonnell’s work: https://www.itcarlow.ie/research/researchers/meet-researchers-e-n/dr-dean-mcdonnell.htm For sources, transcripts, and to read more about this subject, visit: www.agroecologies.org To support this podcast, join our patreon for early, commercial-free episode access at https://www.patreon.com/poorprolesalmanac For PPA Restoration Content, visit: www.restorationagroecology.com For PPA Merch, visit: https://breadandrosespress.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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About The Poor Prole’s Almanac
Climate Change got you down? Worried about the fact that *everything* seems to be getting worse? Wondering how we got to this point in the first place, and what can we do to build a more resilient future? We take a look at historical pastoral & agricultural societies to see what worked and what didn’t, as well as what resources we have today to make better decisions to build equitable systems. We don’t just discuss ecology and history but also take a leftist perspective on prepping, foraging, homesteading, weapons, community-building, and basically anything that needs discussing during late-stage capitalism.
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