Latest episodes and posts
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Episode 116: Subsistence Living in Alaska with Zephyr Sincerny
Alaska is considered by many to be the last frontier. One of the few remaining places where true pristine wilderness still exists. Without a doubt, this largest state in the United States is a fantastic place for outdoorsmen or anyone who wants to live close to nature and away from the crowds. This is because, although Alaska is huge, it has a tiny population located in just a few urban areas. As you can imagine, hunting and fishing are in…
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Wildwoods by Richard Nairn – A Book Review
The subject of Irish native woodlands has come up on the podcast more than once. For instance, I devoted an entire episode to this subject in 2018. Being born and raised in a country with much more tree cover than Ireland, broadleaf woodlands are one of the features of the natural landscape that I miss the most. Early this year, after visiting a few local patches of remaining native woods I decided to read and learn more about Irish woodlands.…
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Episode 115: Coexisting with Large Carnivores with John Linnell
Large terrestrial carnivores, like wolves, bears and lynx, are the poster children for conservation and rewilding efforts. Also, they are usually right in the epicentre of the human-wildlife conflict which always sparks emotions. That makes it easy to use them to politicize conservation. In many previous podcasts, our discussions about rewilding inevitably led us to talk about the issues surrounding large carnivores. But this episode is solely dedicated to our coexistence with these predators. And that’s because today’s guest is…
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Episode 114: The Implausible Rewilding with Steve Cracknell
It’s no exaggeration to say that this was the most anticipated book of the year for me. This shouldn’t come as a surprise since, as regular listeners know, I’m keenly interested in rewilding and the conflict surrounding it. Therefore, it was my pleasure to chat with the author, Steve Cracknell, about the book, how it came to be and some particular situations portrayed in it. In his book “The Implausible Rewilding of the Pyrenees” Steve takes the reader into the…
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The Wizard and the Prophet by Charles C. Mann – A Book Review
I’m not exactly sure who recommended this book to me but I think it was one of my followers on social media. As always in such cases, I bookmarked it for later. After a few months I finally, and I must admit reluctantly, decided to give it a try. And boy, did I not regret it! So I’m writing this short review to return the favour and recommend it to you. Given the topic of my podcast I am often…
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Episode 113: Coastal Processes with Melanie Biausque and Edoardo Grottoli
If you are a sea angler or just like to walk your dog on the beach, you might have noticed how the coastline changes from year to year. Some of us who have frequented the same spots for years might even have noticed changes that have occurred over a greater time span. Sometimes up to decades. Whether it is a channel in the sand that deepens each year after the winter storms or a soft sandy beach that becomes increasingly…
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Episode 112: Sizzlin Arrow with Paul Rhoades
This episode is like a Christmas Special. Not only because of the publication date but also because we talk about a subject I have wanted to discuss for a long time. Bowhunting. And, it is always a great pleasure to talk with a fellow hunter and, in this case, also a fellow podcaster. Our guest, Paul Rhoades, is the founder of Sizzlin Arrow Outdoors, a community website that is the gateway to eating clean, organic food. Their primary focus is…
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The Implausible Rewilding of the Pyrenees by Steve Cracknell – A Book Review
I have followed Steve Cracknell’s work for some time and so, as soon as I learned that he was going to publish a new book, I began to wait for the release date. Without exaggeration, I can say that for me it was the most anticipated book of the year. And when I finally got it in my hands, it not only lived up to but exceeded my expectations! (I obviously couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk with Steve…
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Episode 111: Shepherds of Wildlife with Tom Opre
Recently I’ve noticed, and sometimes participated, in discussions about the fact that wildlife conservation can never be successful if the needs of local, indigenous peoples are not taken care of first. It becomes especially apparent when Western environmental NGOs move into Africa with poorly designed conservation programs. On my podcast we’ve also pointed out that hunting can provide an excellent alternative conservation approach that equally benefits both locals and wildlife. Today, I am absolutely delighted to bring you my conversation…
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Episode 110: StreamScapes with Mark Boyden
In this episode, once again, we’re going to talk about environmental education. Our guest is Mark Boyden, one of the founders of the Coomhola Salmon Trust. Mark was involved in producing native salmon stocking projects for rivers in the Irish South-West and in the efforts to reintroduce salmon to the great River Rhine. He also participated in successful captive freshwater pearl mussel breeding research. Out of these programs, a biodiversity community engagement project called StreamScapes was born. My conversation with…