Terra Informa

When you think of an environmentalist, what kind of person do you imagine? Does gender, race, or income influence this image? Is it all about eating organic avocado toast? Terra Informer Dylan Hall had the chance to investigate the complex and social ways we understand environmentalism and environmental practices by  interviewing Dr. Emily Huddart Kennedy, sociology professor at the University of British Columbia. We hear a snippet of a talk given by Dr. Kennedy in February at the University of Alberta’s International Week, followed by a deeper investigation and interview with Dylan.★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we’re talking about all things Sustainability. Listen in to hear what our UAlberta undergraduate SU presidential candidates, Akanksha Bhatnagar and Andre Bourgeois are thinking about the future of sustainability resources on campus, the position they are taking on the environmental issues of today, and a sneak preview of their platform. […]★ Support this podcast ★

This week we’re bringing you a radio documentary produced by Roisin Graham. It was produced as a part of a CSL project for the course AREC 173 at the University of Alberta. This short documentary explores the challenges to Indigenous food sovereignty. Roisin interviewed indigenous activist, Nigel Henri-Robinson, and treaty 8 consultant, Jessica Cardinal. They […]★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, Sofia Osborne (a Terra Informer herself) reads us a piece she recently wrote for The Tyee, an independent, Canadian, online magazine. The story recounts Sofia's experience being isolated on Saturna Island during the worst wind storm in BC Hydro history. The storm rocked BC's west coast this past December, while Sofia's article was just released. We’ll chat about the piece, the future of dealing with these massive storms, and journalism!★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we have an interview from illustrator and designer, Amanda Schutz. You may have seen her nature inspired artwork and whimsical designs all over Edmonton, particularly at the newly opened Royal Alberta Museum. Terra Informers Charlotte Thomasson and Kesia Dias got the chance to sit down with her and find out about all things lichen.★ Support this podcast ★

This week we present a single interview, between Terra Informer Sofia Osborne and Sharon Riley, an investigative journalist covering energy and the environment in Alberta for The Narwhal, an independent online magazine that reports on the basis that climate change is a real and happening issue.★ Support this podcast ★

What if we could bring extinct animal species back from the dead? This week, Terra Informer Sofia Osborne brings us a story about de-extinction: the use of selective breeding, cloning, and genetic engineering to “resurrect” extinct species. This technology poses a lot of moral and ethical questions—would these “de-extincted” animal species be authentic? Could they ever be wild? Do we owe it to the species we’ve driven to extinction to bring them back? And who should decide whether we use this technology? Listen now to dive into these questions and more.★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we return to The Ballad of Myrtle and Charlie Ed, a documentary from our archives, presented by Anthony Goertz. This is story about discovering a story - one filled with charm, heart, and a great elephant escape! Headlines cover Canada's reception at COP24, Chinese internment of Uyghurs and Muslims in East Turkistan, and new research on cooperative bat behaviour.★ Support this podcast ★

Terra Informer Jeremie Mahaux speaks with Nathan Grant, a graduate student at the University of Alberta.★ Support this podcast ★

This week we bring you two wintry archives! First a debate: which is "greener"? An artificial or a real Christmas tree? Carson Fong finds out! Then winter cycling - sounds scary? Turns out it might not be as awful as it sounds.★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we dig in to COP24 and follow a conversation between new Terra Informer Kesia and outdoor enthusiast Yuliya Fakhr. Kesia and Yuliya explore the independence and liberation experienced in the Great Outdoors, the connection between spirituality and nature, and what it's like to be a first-time rock climber. ★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we have an interview with Dr. Ginger Gibson, one of the directors and founders of the Firelight Group, an organization that works to support Indigenous peoples and governments defending their rights and their land. Terra Informer Dylan Hall spoke with Ginger about the Firelight Group and the successes they’ve seen, […]★ Support this podcast ★

This week we dive into an interview with Natalie Baird, a Masters student using participatory art methods to document Inuit knowledge in Canada’s north, and explore how this knowledge can be applied to climate change. Natalie’s work takes place in Pangnirtung - an Inuit community in Nunavut, located on Baffin Island. In the interview, Hannah and Natalie talk about sharing local knowledge, the accessibility of climate change science, how to make a pinhole camera, and much more. Headlines include the launch of the brand new Energy Efficiency Canada program, and the announcement of new (and much-needed) funding for conservation of Species at Risk.★ Support this podcast ★

What is it like to be a plant? Do plants make choices? Do they...think? This week on Terra Informa, we turn to Charly Blais' interview with Megan Ljubotina, a graduate student at the University of Alberta to find out about the ways plants make decisions to improve their vitality, survival and fitness.★ Support this podcast ★

This week we're bringing you a ~ spooky ~ recap of our FunDrive episode that aired LIVE in Edmonton last week. FunDrive is CJSR 88.5fm's annual fundraiser and thanks to you we surpassed our goal! For this show, we summoned the ghosts of past terra informers and reminisced with these apparitions about the best parts of community radio and podcasting!★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we get batty for Calgary Bat Week with an archive discussing the challenges faced by our flying furry friends, plus we re-air an interview with Edmonton’s resident Moss Man, Dr. René Bellend, about the boss that is moss!★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we look back at the past two weeks of climate change news with the release of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ’s most recent “Special Report,” which discusses the impacts of an increased mean global temperature of 1.5 degrees Celsius. We follow this with an archived interview with an IPCC working group co-chair from last March when we covered the panel’s cities and climate change conference here in Edmonton.★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa, we hear some of Buffy Sainte-Marie's advice for young people: words of wisdom for young activists, how music can be an expression of play, and how creativity is a connection to the Creator. Terra Informer Sydney Karbonik and three of her friends get to choose one question each to ask Sainte-Marie at the Edmonton Folk Fest this past summer.  Then we get to dig into the archives and hear from Eriel Derange, an indigenous rights advocate and a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. Deranger highlights the climate crises faced by Indigenous peoples of Alberta and the moral and legal obligation of governments to work with Indigenous peoples in building progressive and aggressive climate change solutions.★ Support this podcast ★

This week on Terra Informa we explore the relationship between place and language with Nicholas Bradley, a Victoria based poet and educator. Bradley’s collection of poetry encourages readers to consider the  strange, wonderful and concerning ways that humans across Western Canada and the pacific Northwest relate to the places we travel and inhabit.★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode, listen to culture worker Stephen Jenkinson speaking about death, age, and grief, particularly in relation to this time of environmental loss and trouble. Download episode What happens when we live in a culture that rejects aging, death, and any kind of frailty or limit? Why is grief largely absent, at least publicly, […]★ Support this podcast ★