Reacts: Seaspiracy
Kristen and Kyla are joined by vegan climate activist Robert Miller to discuss the controversial Netflix documentary Seaspiracy.
Read MoreFlowers
"Whoa. I had not thought about that. Very Dystopian."
Kristen and Kyla stop to smell the roses, only to find the ones from the Netherlands don't smell like anything anymore. Listen in for a discussion on the cut flowers industry! Topics: Dutch flower auctions; worker's rights; greenhouses vs. airplanes; ethical certifications; bursting the tulip bulb trading bubble.
Plastic Free Periods with Jasmine Tribe
In this episode, Kristen talks plastic free periods with Jasmine Tribe, Campaign Manager of City to Sea’s Plastic Free Periods campaign. City to Sea is an environmental nonprofit working to stop plastic pollution. Topics: the Plastic Free Periods campaign, period products and plastic pollution, why you shouldn’t flush period products, reusable alternatives, the Rethink Periods program, period poverty, and access to free period products.
Looking to try something new? Reusable period product discount codes are available at the City to Sea website! Link here: https://www.citytosea.org.uk/campaign/plastic-free-periods/products/
Read MoreEthical Periods
“I always feel so metal holding a chalice of my own blood.“ In this episode, Kyla and Kristen open up a discussion about menstruation, period stigma, and a range of reusable period products. Topics: period positivity, period poverty, the free bleeding movement, menstruation and the environment, plastic free period products (plastic free tampons, menstrual cups, reusable pads, period underwear).
Read MoreThe Fallout from COVID-19 with Steven Ayer
This is a special episode on COVID-19’s impacts and the prospects for a just recovery, created in partnership with PhiLab, the Canadian Philanthropy Partnership Research Network. Kristen and Kyla are joined by Steven Ayer to discuss the Toronto Fallout Report. Steve is the President of Common Good Strategies. He is also the lead researcher and author of the Toronto Foundation’s Vital Signs Report and, most recently, the Fallout Report. The Fallout Report explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto. Listen in for a discussion covering topics from health inequality to food insecurity, mental health, economic challenges, housing, and the future of the nonprofit sector.
Read MoreCultured Meat
Would you buy lab-grown meat if you could? Cell-cultured meat is now being sold in Singapore, and it is coming soon everywhere else. In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by climate activist Robert Miller to discuss the promise and dilemmas of cell-cultured meat. Topics: how cultured meat works; the race to bring lab grown meat to market; justifications (animal welfare, climate change, hunger, antibiotic resistance); is cultured meat a good solution and can people get over the “weird” factor.
Read MoreChocolate with Samantha Luc
“We call it an ugly fruit…the uglier it is on the outside, the more beautiful it’s going to taste on the inside.” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by Samantha Luc to talk about chocolate. Samantha is a former professional chocolate eater! She used to be the Head of Traceability and Tastings and Education at Soma Chocolatemaker. Now she is working with companies across a variety of industries to support their traceability efforts with Wherefour ERP. Topics: what is chocolate; the history of chocolate; chocolate and colonialism; poverty and the price of chocolate; child labour; deforestation and chocolate.
Read MoreBiogas With Peter Harris
"Our politicians aren't experts. I think that was quite evident when a man was made minister for women."
Kyla and Kristen are joined by Peter Harris, post-doctoral research fellow for the Centre for Agricultural Engineering in Australia, working on the bioenergy and bio-resource recovery team. He works on projects involving a process called anaerobic digestion, which can be used to turn biowaste into energy, while recovering useful elements. Pete discusses: the history of anaerobic digestion, what is biogas, can cow-farts be turned into energy, the potential for biogas as a sustainable energy source, barriers to biogas adoption, and how can we best utilize this technology?
Winter Gear
“I’ve just googled, and a Canada goose can live to be 24 years old so. There ya go.”
”Ah. It’s further proof that meanness makes you live longer.”
Kristen and Kyla examine winter boots and jackets in an attempt to answer the question: is it even possible to buy ethical winter gear? Topics: synthetic vs animal products, winter boots vs snow boots, how long do ducks live.
Read More2020 Wrap-up Quiz
"So if you combine the estimated wealth of those 2153 billionaires, it exceeds the wealth of how many other people on the planet?"
In this episode, Kyla and Kristen say goodbye to 2020 with a wrap-up quiz, featuring previous guests Brianna Botchwey, Fariya Mohiuddin, and Alexandra Sundarsingh. The group looks back at ethical consumption trends and issues from throughout the year.
Holiday Episode: Ethical Past, Present, and Future
“The Ghost of Christmas Present’s call to action is… yikes.”
In this special Christmas Carol-themed holiday episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by Robert Miller to discuss ethical consumption’s past, present, and future. Kristen shares the story of Florence Kelley and the anti-sweatshop White Label Campaign; Kyla canvasses 2020 for good news (yikes); and Robert imagines alternative futures.
Ethical Money
What do banks do with your money and how can you make it more ethical? In this episode, Kyla and Kristen talk about ethical money. Topics: ethical problems in banking and finance; environment, social, and governance campaigns targeted at banks; what is ethical finance; tips for approaching banking and finance ethically.
Read MoreTax Justice with Fariya Mohiuddin
"And when I say 'generational wealth' this is a Duke, right? This dude has been inheriting wealth since, as far as we know, Camelot."
Kyla and Kristen are joined this week by Fariya Mohiuddin to talk about tax justice. Fariya has a masters degree in Global Affairs and works as the Senior Program Officer for the International Budget Partnership's Tax Equity Initiative. Topics: What is tax evasion and tax avoidance? Why is tax avoidance a problem? How big is the problem? How would a wealth tax work? How do we support businesses that pay their fair share, and what other solutions exist?
Read MoreExclusion, Privilege, and Ethical Consumption
In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by Brianna Scrimshaw Botchwey to talk about exclusion, privilege, and ethical consumption. Brianna is an aspiring zero waster and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on sustainable development and foreign aid. Kristen, Kyla, and Brianna talk about the different ways that ethical fashion companies exclude people and what you can do about it. Topics: barriers to participating in sustainable fashion; big brands and ex/inclusive sizing; sustainable fashion brands and ex/inclusive sizing; thrift shopping; ethical fashion and affordability; and solutions.
Read MoreHalloween 2020
"Pumpkin pie is so good, I didn't have it until like... I think the first time I ate pumpkin pie was like two years ago? Game changer, I could not believe what I had been missing for so many years."
In this episode, Kyla and Kristen take on the spookiest day of the year by challenging themselves to find ethical Halloween solutions. Topics: costumes and cultural appropriation; sustainable costumes; ethical candy; and ethical decorations.
COVID-19, Wildfires, and the Climate Crisis
“Does that include the people who think both of them are a hoax?” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by climate activist Robert Miller. Following another Global Climate Strike, they reflect on the California wildfires and climate activism in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics: West Coast wildfires; the climate movement in 2020; impact of the pandemic on climate activism; racial justice and climate activism; will governments choose a green recovery?
Read MoreEthical Tea
In this episode Kyla and Kristen spill the tea on tea production. Kristen tries to make chai and vows to leave future attempts to the experts. Kyla disses George Orwell’s formula for the perfect cup of tea. Topics: what is tea; how tea is produced; the tea supply chain; tea and the environment; tea and human rights; what to do about it.
Read MoreForced Labour Part Two
For part two of the forced labour series, Kristen and Kyla discuss what consumers should do to address forced labour. Kyla is sad about how Christmas lights are made. Kristen learns about three different kinds of forced labour in rice production. Topics: forced labour in global supply chains; leading big brands; fair trade; boycott?; use your voice to promote human rights; our challenges.
Read MoreForced Labour Part One
In this episode, Kyla and Kristen are joined by Alexandra Sundarsingh to discuss the topic of forced labour. Alexandra (Lex) Sundarsingh is a second year PhD student in the department of history at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Topics: what is forced labour; the scale of forced labour; where it occurs; who is affected; and causes.
Read MoreEating Insects
“Apparently stinkbugs taste like apples.” In this episode, Kyla and Kristen try cricket powder and dig in to the subject of eating insects as food. Is this a fad, or the future of food? Topics: History of eating insects, environmental and health benefits, the ethics of farming insects, and the potential downsides of scaling up the industry.
Read More