Brain on Nature

A playgroup in Sydney is turning despair about the planet's future into hope by taking action and connecting with people who share their concerns and motivations. Rosa Brown, mum and English teacher, set up the Inner West Families For Climate Action playgroup. She decided to foster connections with other new local parents, and hopes this group will encourage deeper conversations and committed action around climate and the environment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every weekend, and some weekdays too, you'll find Mudcrabs along the banks of the Cooks River. Not crustaceans, although they're slowly returning as their habitat is restored, but a group of dedicated volunteers who are rehabilitating what was once the most polluted river in Australia. With prosthetic pincers, they pick up rubbish from in and around the river. They plant trees and shrubs to revegetate bushland that's been lost, and weed and protect the new bush. This episode documents how the Mudcrabs have rehabilitated the Cooks River, and how the benefits flow two ways. For many Mudcrabs, their work connects them with natural world and improves their own health and wellbeing too. This episode was made on the lands of the Gadigal/Wangal people. It was supported by an Inner West Council Environment grant. Special thanks to all the Mudcrabs we spoke to. To find out more about the Mudcrabs, and to get involved, visit www.crva.org.au/mudcrabs Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Indie podcast Out There explores big questions through intimate stories outdoors. In this award-winning episode, producer Sam Anderson goes hunting for the first time and finds it confronting. And as a vegetarian, so did I. But Sam explores his questions around what it takes to pull the trigger. Are we all capable of it? And if we can take a life, what does that say about us? How does Killing an animal change us? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A quick update about what’s been happening since we released season one. We're planning for a second season but need your help. It’s about how getting off screens back outside and into the natural world can change the brains of young people. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

While you wait for season two, here's an inspiring story from a father and daughter about their first overnight hiking adventure. As they hike into Utah's Bryce Canyon in late November, things don't go according to plan. But they both emerge positive about being pushed to the edge by nature's unpredictability. This story comes from HumaNature, a Wyoming Public Media podcast that tells real stories about humans in the natural world. You can find them wherever you get your podcasts, or here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.