How are koalas faring after the great climate fires that bore down on Australia in 2019-20? One of the best people to ask is Cate Faehrmann, Member of Parliament for the New South Wales Greens Party. Also an environmental activist, Cate chaired

Understanding Environmental Grief with Dr. Kriss Kevorkian

1 Apr 21st, 2021 32m 9s

Witnessing the decline of species and habitat in this time of mass extinction is deeply painful.In 2001, thanatologist Dr. Kriss Kevorkian gave a name to what many of us are feeling – environmental (and ecological) grief. In our first Sentient

S2 The Long Road to Liberation with Jo-Anne McArthur

1 Aug 12th, 2021 59m 9s

We're honored to launch Season 2 with this guest, the acclaimed animal photojournalist, author, humane educator and founder of We Animals Media, Jo-Anne McArthur. Perhaps no human has done more to bring the suffering of our animal kin into the

Trailer

Hello! First Episodes Land On Earth Day 2021

1 Apr 2nd, 2021 30s

A new podcast about our kinship with animals. Our first episodes land on Earth Day, April 22.Music: "The Spaces Between" by Scott Buckley.

S3 Giving Haven to Animals Most in Need

2 Feb 3rd, 2022 45m 29s

If you've ever thought about rescuing and providing sanctuary to an animal in need, this episode is for you!Guests Kate Tsyrklevich and Hope Hilman run Heartwood Haven, a popular microsanctuary for farmed animals in Gig Harbor, Washington, USA.

S3 The Weight of Empathy with Lucas Spiegel

1 Dec 13th, 2021 45m 32s

We're so happy to release the first episode of Sentient Planet – Season 3! Today’s guest is the vegan writer, photographer and lover of all creatures – Lucas Spiegel. Lucas quit his job as an architect in North America to spend nearly two years

S2 For the Love of Moon Bears with Jill Robinson

Sep 9th, 2021 47m 55s

Jill Robinson first encountered a captive Moon Bear in 1993. The experience, which she recounts in our interview, changed her life. It also sparked the beginning of the end of the horrific bear bile industry.Moon Bears are Asian Black Bears. Th

S2 Living Through Fire with Danielle Celermajer

Aug 26th, 2021 55m 7s

This week's guest is the profound Australian author, Professor Danielle Celermajer. Dany is a philosopher, the director of the Multispecies Justice Project at the University of Sydney, and the author of Summertime: Reflections on a Vanishing Fu

Bonus

S2 Bonus Episode: A Prayer for All Beings with Jo McArthur

1 Aug 12th, 2021 2m 8s

This bonus episode, exclusive to Sentient Planet listeners, accompanies our Season 2 episode "The Long Road to Liberation with Jo-Anne McArthur."Jo talks about the award-winning photo collection, "HIDDEN: Animals in the Anthropocene," and she r

Rivers Are Life with Amy Souers Kober

1 Jun 3rd, 2021 42m 23s

In our last episode for Season 1, Amy Souers Kober, of American Rivers, talks about the rising global movement to restore free-flowing river ecosystems, upon which so much sentient life depends.We discuss the benefits of removing the thousands

Podfather: One Man's Journey to Save the Southern Resident Orca

1 May 6th, 2021 28m 34s

This week's episode is from the field! Susan interviews whale researcher Ken Balcomb. The interview takes place at Ken's Big Salmon Ranch property on the beautiful Elwha River, acquired to preserve a key salmon-spawning habitat that is vital to

A Writer's Connection to the Salish Sea with Rena Priest

1 Apr 29th, 2021 36m 14s

Rena Priest is an award-winning poet and writer, a National Geographic Explorer and a member of the Lummi Nation. In April, she was named Washington State Poet Laureate - the first time Washington has awarded this role to an indigenous poet. To

Bringing Her Home: The Lummi Claim to a Captive Orca

1 Apr 21st, 2021 36m 31s

In honor of Earth Day, we dedicate the first ever Sentient Planet audio documentary to Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut (also known as Tokitae and Lolita) – a wild Southern Resident orca confined to a tank in the Miami Seaquarium for the past 50 years – and

S3 Ratifying Animal Sentience with Claire Bass

1 Dec 30th, 2021 52m 34s

In November 2021, the United Kingdom recognized crabs, lobsters, octopus and other decapod crustaceans and cephalopod invertebrates as sentient beings. The animals were added to the UK's new Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill, which will protect t

S2 What is Sentience with Roshi Susan Murphy

Sep 16th, 2021 53m 51s

What is sentience? If we're to ask the question directly, perhaps a good place to seek an answer is with a great teacher.This week, it's our honor to welcome and share the Earth wisdom of the joyful Dr. Susan Murphy. Susan is a Roshi, a learned

S2 An Icon for Our Sentient Planet with Mark Stoop

Sep 2nd, 2021 40m 40s

What a treat to introduce the Dutch nature photographer and our far-flung team member, Mark Stoop.Mark lives in Singapore, where he works as a marketing director and indulges his passion for photographing the biodiverse animals who live around

Bonus

S2 Bonus Episode: "The Face" with Dany Celermajer

Aug 26th, 2021 10m 18s

This bonus episode, exclusive to Sentient Planet listeners, accompanies our Season 2 episode, "Living Through Fire with Danielle Celermajer."Dany reads "The Face," a short chapter from Summertime: Reflections on a Vanishing Future (Penguin Book

S2 Communicating Animal Sentience with Carl Safina

Aug 19th, 2021 56m 41s

On the topic of non-human animal sentience, Carl Safina is one of the most experienced observers and gifted communicators in the world.The renowned ecologist turned bestselling author has penned 10 books about our human relationship to nature a

The Custodians of Creation with Tyson Yunkaporta

May 20th, 2021 56m 35s

This week, we switch hemispheres and head Down Under for an out-of-the-ordinary conversation with the Australian indigenous writer, academic and traditional wood carver Tyson Yunkaporta. Tyson reflects on the dominant global order behind our cu

Bonus

Bonus Episode: Researcher Ken Balcomb Talks Orca

May 20th, 2021 46m 31s

For those who can't get enough of "podfather" Ken Balcomb – and those new to his lifetime of dedication to the Southern Resident Orca (SRO) – here's the additional interview we promised.Listen to Ken describe the staggering natural beauty that

Mapping the Salish Sea with Stefan Freelan

May 13th, 2021 31m 17s

This week, we step back from the Southern Resident Orca to discover more about their watery home through the eyes of a mapmaker.Stefan Freelan is the cartographer from Western Washington University who created the Salish Sea & Surrounding Basin

Bonus

Bonus Episode: Poet Rena Priest Reads "Words of Encouragement"

Apr 29th, 2021 2m 1s

Congratulations to Rena Priest, named Washington's Poet Laureate in April 2021. She is the first indigenous poet to hold this prestigious position in Washington state."Words of Encouragement" appears in For Love of Orcas: An Anthology, publishe

Season 1 Introduction

Apr 20th, 2021 5m 7s

A short conversation with the creators of Sentient Planet about the podcast's intention and what to expect in Season 1. Music (with great thanks): "Galaxies" by Stellardrone.

S3 Kangaroo Massacres: Australia's Dirty Secret

Feb 10th, 2022 48m 41s

Guests Kate McIntyre Clere and Mick McIntyre come on the show to discuss a difficult topic – the commercial killing of wild kangaroos and their joeys. Kate and Mick are an Aussie filmmaking duo with Second Nature Films. Back in 2018, they relea

S3 The Land Stand of the Mountain Caribou with David Moskowitz

Jan 20th, 2022 42m 38s

In British Columbia, Canada, an elusive animal has been adapting to co-exist with the world's largest remaining inland temperate rainforest since the last ice age. They're the gentle and beautiful mountain caribou, and our guest this week is pe