Sustainable Minimalists

Plastic has infiltrated our wardrobes, our water and even our bloodstreams, where it is quietly disrupting our hormonal health.

That’s the premise of Netflix’s ground-breaking new documentary, “The Plastic Detox”.
On today’s show Dr. Shanna Swan, the renowned environmental epidemiologist from the film, exposes exactly how plastic chemicals are quietly reshaping our health.

Here’s a preview:

[6:00] What’s “Phthalates Syndrome,” and what is this class of chemicals doing to masculinity? What about their evil twins, bisphenols?

[19:00] Stop assuming that products on store shelves are safe! (And other advice for listeners who feel they have too much on their plate to worry about microscopic amounts of chemicals.)

[24:00] “It’s definitely not easy, but it’s also not that hard.” Here’s how Dr. Swan avoids plastic in her own life

[32:00] Hormone disrupting chemicals are in EVERYthing. How to identify which lifestyle swaps actually move the needle and which are just noise

[34:00] Are older items less dangerous?

Resources mentioned:

The Plastic Detox (via Netflix)

Unplasticyourlife.com

Episode #393: Single-Use Poison (via Apple Podcasts, with investigative journalist Matt Simon)

Environmental Working Group consumer guide 

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We’ve all seen the images. The stark white rooms, the single designer chair, the perfectly curated capsule wardrobe. We’re told that if we just clear the clutter, we’ll find peace. 

But if we’re not careful, the minimalist aesthetic can become just another thing to buy, another thing to consume. 

On today’s show, Melora Johnson deconstructs the modern minimalist movement so that each of us can move from the clutter-free, beige-everything  minimalist aesthetic to a deeper, more sustainable practice rooted in intentionality.

Here’s a preview: 

[7:30] Feeling that donation high? Here’s why decluttering and donating feels so good in the moment but often fails to stop the cycle of re-accumulation

[11:30] Can authentic minimalism exist in a consumerist culture?

[16:00] Candid thoughts on how and why minimalism has been commercialized

[25:00] How to tell if your minimalism is driving more shopping or actually shrinking your ecological footprint

[28:30] Listen to your whispers! 

Resources mentioned: 

Sustainably Styled by Melora

Melora on Instagram 

Our Book Club pick for Mon. March 2: Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life

 

This show is listener-supported. Thank you for supporting!

Join our (free!) Facebook community here.

Find your tribe. Sustainable Minimalists are on Facebook, Instagram + Youtube @sustainableminimalists

Say hello! [email protected].

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We’ve all heard the minimalist mantra: If you want peace, clear the clutter. But while clearing clutter reduces the “noise,” it doesn’t automatically fill the void.

On today’s show author Suzanne Searcy Johnson argues that the true antidote to our “more is more” culture isn’t just owning less—it’s connection. And to truly connect, we must first peel back the layers of noise, clutter, and distraction to find what’s actually real.

Here’s a preview:

[4:00] The materialism myth: We don’t buy things out of greed. We buy them because we’re disconnected

[9:00] Are you disconnected? Here are some warning signs

[11:45] Health! Clarity! Stress reduction! A laundry list of problems that reconnecting with nature can help solve

[18:30] Thoughts on embracing the beautiful mess of real-life relationships

[28:00] When we’re disconnected to ourselves, we’ve blocked our intuition

 

Resources mentioned:

Beyond Decluttering Book

Suzanne on Instagram

Suzanne’s free resources

Our Book Club pick for Mon. March 3: Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life

This show is listener-supported. Thank you for supporting!

Join our (free!) Facebook community here.

Find your tribe. Sustainable Minimalists are on Facebook, Instagram + Youtube @sustainableminimalists

Say hello! [email protected].

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

American culture tends to market aging as a slow fade into the background. After all, women are told that getting older comes with a loss of relevance, memory, and attractiveness.

But what if the season of midlife isn’t a crisis?

We aren’t just getting older; in fact, we’re getting louder, bolder, and more authentic. On today’s show podcast host Stacey Hutson dismantles the myth that our best years are behind us by breaking down the the science behind those hormonal shifts while also celebrating the fierce second act that follows.

Here’s a preview:

[7:00] IDGAF Energy: How hormonal shifts can actually fuel a powerful new sense of assertiveness and boundaries

[16:00] Science-backed ways to navigate the intersection of “puberty in reverse” and the relentless mental load of motherhood

[19:00] Mindfulness, cycle syncing, creatine, and other “buffer supporting” practices

[25:00] Musings on why our culture tends to dismiss older women

[28:00] Rejecting the idea that aging equals irrelevance, plus: Thoughts on leaning into the mundane

 

Resources mentioned:

The Next Phase podcast

Explain Cycle Syncing to Me: Your Guide to Aligning Food, Fitness & Energy with Your Hormones (via Apple Podcasts)

How to Eat With Your Cycle to Balance Hormones in Perimenopause (via Apple Podcasts)

Fair Play (via Bookshop.org)

Stacey on Substack

Our Book Club pick for Mon. March 3: Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life

 

This show is listener-supported. Thank you for supporting!

Join our (free!) Facebook community here.

Find your tribe. Sustainable Minimalists are on Facebook, Instagram + Youtube @sustainableminimalists

Say hello! [email protected].

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Behind every clever AI response is a massive, windowless data center humming with heat.

From the water-starved plains of West Texas to the sprawling 'Stargate' megaprojects in Wisconsin, the infrastructure that powers ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude is eating up natural resources and altering the landscapes of countless communities.

And while news headlines are hyper-focused on what AI can do, the real story lies in the uncovering the important resources it's devouring. On today's show we're pulling back the curtain on AI data centers to reveal the good, the bad, and the ugly. We're also outlining action steps if a data center is in your community.

Here's a preview:

[5:00] Data centers simply must stay on 99.999% of the time (and other little-known data center facts)

[10:00] A single AI query emits ten times more carbon into the atmosphere. Plus: Rising electricity prices for everyone!

[21:00] Cognitive offloading? AI offloads *thinking*

[25:00] Your attention is your most valuable currency

[27:00] Not in your backyard! If a data center being planned in your community, stop, drop, and follow these action steps

Resources mentioned:

What We Can Know by Ian McKewan

Community Action Works

This show is listener-supported. Thank you for supporting!

Join our (free!) Facebook community here.

Find your tribe. Sustainable Minimalists are on Facebook, Instagram + Youtube @sustainableminimalists

Say hello! [email protected].

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.