Pullback

Kristen and Kyla take a break from taking a break to discuss The Age of Insecurity by Astra Taylor. Published in October 2023, this book explores how crises of inequality, mental health, authoritarianism, and ecological collapse could all be addressed by re-evaluating our culture of insecurity. Institutions that promise to make us more secure are functioning to undermine us in this moment, including housing, education, policing, and the wellness industry, and Taylor has some ideas for how we can change society for the better. Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? Want more book club episodes? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

Kristen and Kyla are joined by Dr. Jennifer Jill Fellows (Gender, Sex, and Tech), Kattie Laur (Curious Tourism | Pod The North), and Eric Wickham (Unrigged | Big Shiny Takes) on the annual year end quiz panel show, revisiting the big talking points of 2023. Jennifer's links https://gendersextech.opened.ca/2022/03/28/hello-and-welcome/ https://indspire.ca/ Kattie's links https://pinatravels.org/responsibletravelpod/ https://podthenorth.substack.com/ https://waterfirst.ngo/donate/ Eric's links https://www.unrigged.ca/ https://bigshinytakes.com/ https://saintstephens.ca/contact Kristen's link https://www.doctorswithoutborders.ca/gaza-crisis/ Kyla's link https://dogwoodbc.ca/ Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback  

Canadian journalism has been struggling for quite a while, with layoffs and local newspapers closing shop. Facebook’s reaction to the Online News Act and has added a layer of difficulty for independent news, who will lose a key platform for sharing their content. Can working together save independent journalism? On today’s episode we talked to Andre Goulet and Eric Wickham about their new initiative that brings together news from 20 independent, local, regional, and national media outlets from across Canada. Unrigged provides up-to-the-hour news from across the country, from organizations such as The Hoser, The Progress Report, The Breach, Ricochet, PressProgress and more. Check out Unrigged: https://www.unrigged.ca/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/unrigged Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

The country is pretty divided on climate change and what to do about it. Can deep canvassing help to get people on board with decarbonization? Is deep canvassing the pixie dust necessary to bridge political divisions? How does it work, anyway? On today’s episode Kristen spoke with Montana Burgess, the Executive Director of Neighbours United, an organization based in interior BC that led the first complete deep canvassing program on climate anywhere in the world. Neighbours United is such a cool organization, and they are working to promote community engagement for climate action across Canada. Listen in on our conversation about what it’s like talking to people about climate change, and how deep canvassing can help to not only build consensus but also shows that we all have a lot more in common than we might think.  Check out Neighbours United: https://neighboursunited.org/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/deepcanvassing Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

The five day work week was designed for an economy that relied mostly on physical labour. But does that framework need updating for the knowledge economy? In other words, should we be moving toward a four day work week? On today’s episode we talk to Dr. Dale Whelehan, the CEO of 4 Day Week Global, a company that helps businesses pilot a four-day work week. Prior to joining 4 Day Week Global, Dale did his PhD on fatigue and sleep deprivation in healthcare workers, so he is the perfect person to talk to about why we’re all so burnt out all the damned time.  Learn more about 4 Day Week Global: https://www.4dayweek.com/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/4dayweek Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

As countries look to reach net-zero and to reduce their energy dependence on Russia, nuclear is having a moment. Nuclear energy is a non-emitting source of energy, but it also comes with some pretty big risks. Should countries be building new nuclear power plants? Or would this solution cause bigger problems? Environmentalists have been divided on nuclear energy for quite a while, and that debate is getting even more heated as the climate crisis becomes part of our everyday lives. On today’s Halloween episode we are joined by friend of the pod, climate activist, and recovering scientist Robert Miller to talk about the two spookiest things we could think of: climate change and nuclear winter. Robbie recommends this New Socialist article: https://newsocialist.org.uk/stop-trying-make-nuclear-power-happen/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/s2-nuclearenergy Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

It feels like everyone is struggling to get by. With poverty and inequality on the rise, is unconditional cash the ticket to a happier, healthier, more equal society? Universal basic income is gaining momentum around the world – including in Canada, where the Senate is currently considering Bill S-233, which would require the federal government to develop a national framework for implementing a guaranteed livable income. There are now dozens of UBI pilot projects underway in cities around the world. So, what does the evidence tell us about Universal Basic Income programs and their impact on people, communities, and the environment? We are joined by Sean Kline, the Director of Stanford University’s Basic Income Lab, to discuss UBI pilots in America and around the world. Learn more about Sean's work here:https://basicincome.stanford.edu/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/s2-ubi Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

This year of cascading disasters is a good reminder that climate change has arrived, and some impacts are here to stay even after we reach net-zero. Is climate repair an opportunity to get back to a place of relative safety for humanity? Or is it just another delay tactic? On today’s episode we dig into the debate on climate repair with Andrew Dana Hudson. Andrew is a sustainability researcher and a speculative fiction writer who has written Our Shared Storm, a novel imagining five possible realities of our climate future. Andrew explains what climate repair is and the role that technologies like direct air capture can play even after we transition off of fossil fuels. We also talked about speculative fiction and its role in confronting climate change in our collective imagination. Get a copy of Andrew's Book here: https://www.fordhampress.com/9780823299546/our-shared-storm/ Read Andrew's Jacobin piece: https://jacobin.com/2022/08/zero-emissions-climate-repaire-crisis-carbon-dioxide-removal Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/s2-climaterepair Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? You can now support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

Sure, the rent is too damned high – but are we currently in a housing crisis? Or is the housing market working exactly as it was intended? On the first episode of our brand new season, we were joined by Ricardo Tranjan of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives to talk housing. Ricardo just wrote a fantastic new book called the Tenant Class, which makes the argument that tenants are an exploited class and calls for more tenant organizing as a solution. Pickup a copy of Tenant Class from your local bookstore! https://btlbooks.com/book/the-tenant-class Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/s2-tenantorganizing Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? Support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

We are living in a biodiversity crisis: 42,000 animal species are currently threatened with extinction, which is more than a quarter of all species that have been assessed for the International Union of Concerned Scientists’ Red List. But are zoos a solution? On today’s episode we talked to Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde, a Professor in the School of Natural Sciences at Laurentian University. Albrecht is an evolutionary ecologist who has worked with the Toronto Zoo, so we asked him all about his work with zoos and how accredited zoos work to promote conservation. Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/s2-zoos Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join Enjoy our work? Support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback

A lot of settlers in so-called Canada want to walk the path of reconciliation with the Indigenous peoples who have always been here. On our last episode of season 1, we’re joined by Riley Yesno to discuss the land back movement that seeks to reclaim Indigenous rights and rebalance our relationships with one another and the land. Riley is an Anishinaabe scholar, writer, and commentator from Eabametoong First Nation. She has been a contributor and commentator for some of the largest media outlets in Canada and the world, including the New York Times, BBC World News, The Globe and Mail, and CBC National News. Her main project right now is teaching Indigenous governance and justice at Toronto Metropolitan University, and completing her Ph.D. at the University of Toronto, where she studies Indigenous/Canadian politics and is a Vanier Scholar. Riley Yesno: https://rileyyesno.com Redsurgence: https://rileyyesno.com/home#work CBC Land Back Podcast: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/1341-landback CBC Kuper Island Podcast: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/1062-kuper-island CBC Secret Life of Canada episode about the Indian Act: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/203-the-secret-life-of-canada/episode/15721469-s2-the-indian-act Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/111 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

Effective altruism is a moral theory that says we need to give as much money as possible to the most effective charities. Is that a harmless idea, or a hyper-capitalist ideology that helps billionaires like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffet launder their reputations? On today’s episode we dig into a utilitarian-flavored philanthropic movement that has become very popular in Silicon Valley. Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/110 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

Kristen and Kyla are coming for your burgers in their ongoing fight against their arch-nemesis; Big Agriculture. Plant based foods are having a moment; sales for “meat” substitutes alone are projected to grow to $85 billion by 2030, and demand for plant based ingredients is expected to grow to $13 trillion by 2025. As we continue to reckon with the climate crisis and the cruelty of the modern world, this trend is likely to continue. Special guest AJ Albrecht, Managing Director of Mercy For Animals, attorney, and animal rights advocate, discusses how industrial animal agriculture is a nightmare for farmers, farm workers, farm animals, the people who live around farms, people experiencing the effects of climate change – pretty much everyone, really. This episode explores ways to grant farms more autonomy and freedom from the debt treadmill of Big Ag, and the pathways for transferring away from livestock to plant based crops entirely. Watch the 11 minute video on The True Cost of Cheap Chicken (CW animal violence, death, exploitation): https://mercyforanimals.org/blog/bacon-fear-mongering-prop-12-california/ Learn more about animal cruelty with one of our very first episodes: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/episode04 Transfarmation: https://thetransfarmationproject.org Proposition 12: https://mercyforanimals.org/blog/bacon-fear-mongering-prop-12-california/ Mercy for Animals: https://mercyforanimals.org/about/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/109 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

Should we be taxing Scrooge McDuck wealth? Can we? We talk with friend of the pod Fariya Mohiuddin, a Senior Program Officer with the International Budget Partnership's Tax Equity Program, and our favourite tax justice researcher and activist. Topics include: what does a wealth tax really look like; why we need an asset registry; how we could implement these items; what a world with more equitably distributed wealth might look like. Want to act? Canadians for Tax Fairness: https://www.taxfairness.ca/en Oxfam Canada: https://www.oxfam.ca/campaign/wealth-tax-on-the-richest-now Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/107 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

Politics seem more divided than ever. Can we save democracy through persuasion? On today’s episode we were joined by activist Robert Miller to talk about Anand Giridharadas’ latest book, The Persuaders. Our discussion covered all kinds of topics, including whether political polarisation is really a new problem, how a person might get swept up in conspiracies and cults (such as the Moonies, QAnon, or Satanic worship), and whether promising new strategies like deep canvassing can help build solidarity. If your local library is out of stock, we recommend pickup up your copy of The Persuaders from your local indie bookshop, or online here: https://thepersuadersbook.com/ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/106 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

We know the world is getting hotter. Is spraying sulphate into the atmosphere a solution? On today’s episode we talk all about geoengineering with Green Majority Radio’s Lauren Latour and Stefan Hostetter and David Camfield, academic and author of Future on Fire: Capitalism and the Politics of Climate Change. We learned that geoengineering doesn’t always have to mean seeding clouds over countries, or blasting mirrors into space. It can (and should) also mean regenerative farming, land back, re-imagining our transit systems and solving our issues from their roots rather than trying to treat the symptoms.   Green Majority Radio: http://www.greenmajority.ca/the-podcast Future on Fire: https://fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/future-on-fire Victor's Children: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/show/victors-children/ Lauren Latour: https://twitter.com/LaurenLatour Stefan Hostetter: https://twitter.com/Steho_ Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/105 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

Can euthanasia ever be just in an unjust society? On today’s episode we talked to disabilities justice expert Megan Linton about Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying program: how it works, its limitations, and where expansions may take it. Megan is the host of Invisible Institutions, a documentary podcast exploring the past and present of institutions for people labelled with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Canada. Canada’s Suicide Prevention Sources: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/suicide-prevention.html Invisible Institutions: http://invisibleinstitutions.com Donate to Michal Kaliszan’s GoFundMe for home care: https://www.gofundme.com/f/home-care-for-michal-kaliszan Contact Sylvia Jones about Michal’s case: https://sylviajonesmpp.ca/contact/ Megan recommends the book Bleed by Tracey Lindeman: https://www.bleedthebook.com Get involved with disability justice: https://www.djno.ca Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/104 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join

When the internet started to take off, it was supposed to democratize information. Now everything’s owned by a handful of mega-corporations. Can Web 3 decentralize the internet? Do you have to learn what a Blockchain is? We talk to Paris Marx of the Tech Won’t Save Us podcast about Web 3.0, which some are saying will lead to a more secure, private, and decentralized internet. But others see it as a buzzword, and worry about the environmental and societal impacts of running social networks, game marketplaces, and currencies on the blockchain. Paris on Twitter: https://twitter.com/parismarx Subscribe to Disconnect newsletter: https://www.disconnect.blog/ Listen to Tech Won't Save Us: https://www.techwontsave.us/ Read Road to Nowhere: https://www.versobooks.com/books/3995-road-to-nowhere Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/103 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join  

So, there’s no ethical consumption under capitalism. Does that mean there’s no value to movements like slow fashion, eating local, and Fairtrade? This is the first episode of our new spin on the power we have as individuals. We’ll explore big new ideas and ask: is this a real solution or a distraction? To introduce our new format, we look back on the question that animated the first 101 episodes of the podcast: is ethical consumption really possible? Should we try anyway? Website: https://www.pullback.org/episode-notes/102 Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/join  

Kristen and Kyla read Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez. This book explores the gender data gap in research when the "male body" is treated as default and "female body" as atypical, revealing how this bias bakes discrimination into systems as far reaching as healthcare, education, public policy, and economic development. Get a copy of the book! https://carolinecriadoperez.com/book/invisible-women/ Find more from the Harbinger Media Network: https://harbingermedianetwork.com/ Want more Book Club? Support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/Pullback