The Dirt and Dust

7 Episodes

Reverse

Fire is Life

2024-07-2529:32

Fire. The word itself is powerful, conjuring up conflicting images of fear and also comfort, of destruction and barbecues. Fire is not a malicious force. It has no more malicious intentions than a penny falling from a skyscraper. But the impacts can range from helpful to horrible, depending on how humans interact and have historically interacted with the landscape.This is a story of when fire helped. It’s a story that often isn’t told but one that can spark renewed belief of how our actions c...

Water is Life

2024-06-0128:29

We have the power to change the notion of watershed in an instant, connecting spaces in unforeseen ways through things like diversions. The upper Navajo River in southern Colorado is one such example, where water is diverted from the San Juan River basin into the Rio Chama and eventually the Rio Grande, providing the majority of drinking water for Santa Fe and Albuquerque. The headwaters of the Navajo River therefore jump out as a vital location for how we think about land, forests, fire, and...

Becoming Beavers

2024-02-2929:00

What would nature do? We often don't know until a critical piece of nature no longer functions, and we have to replace it. If we want that replacement to last, it must align with the way nature already works. It is not a machine with parts, but an ecosystem of emergence. What does that mean to embody the critical connection in nature? What does it mean to embody a beaver!? Stream restoration starts with pushing the understanding of how streams work and how much they rely on beavers. This epis...

Monks of the Rio Chama, part II

2024-01-0729:00

With enough time, we can all become attentive to the place we exist, though we must be intentional in that endeavor. What better way to learn the work of being present than from the assiduous, industrious, and philosophical monks of the Christ in the Desert Monastery.In this episode, Alex talks with Brother David about his role at the monastery and his sense of duty and purpose. Then, Alex continues the conversation with Brother Bede, delving deeper into the idea of knowing the landscape and ...

Monks of the Rio Chama, part I

2023-12-1122:12

How can we find stability? How can we work towards a stable future? The Rio Chama is the beating heart of the eponymous Rio Chama Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project, the largest project of the 2-3-2 Partnership. Along the river lies the Christ in the Desert Monastery where Brother Bede Bissonnette's curiosity leads him to ask questions about the environment whose implications go far beyond the monastery's boundary. Understanding the conditions in which we live helps us m...

A Bar in Chama

2023-10-2621:00

Where does the 2-3-2 Partnership start? It's a hard question, on par with asking where an ocean wave starts, meaning that the genesis of a multidimensional collaborative project cannot be attributed to one particular moment.Or can it?During several conversations, your host, Alex Handloff learned that a bar in Chama, NM was the location of a foundational moment in the 2-3-2's formation. No better way to find out than to visit the bar, explore Chama, and talk to the people who live there.In thi...

Five Million Acres or Roughly the Size of the Moon

2023-09-1118:00

How do you know space? How are you shaped by the landscape you live in?The folks at the 2 Watersheds - 3 Rivers - 2 States Cohesive Strategy Partnership (the 2-3-2) like to remind themselves that their work is the world we live in, the one right in front of our noses (once we leave the office).But what about beyond our noses? For example, how can we know five million acres?Five million acres happens to be the size of the 2 Watersheds - 3 Rivers - 2 States Cohesive Strategy Partnership (the 2-...

#box-pro-ellipsis-172586027825830{-webkit-line-clamp:2;}The Dirt and Dust