Why do we grow in our gardens? Are we searching for closeness to the mystery and magic of the natural world, or working to feed ourselves? Do we grow to create habitat for pollinators or enrich precious soil? Do we grow to foster community, or to grasp control in a scary world? Do we grow because we love beauty?

Wise and curious guest Alice Vincent delves into her new book, Why Women Grow: Stories of Soil, Sisterhood and Survival. Alice is a writer, broadcaster, career-journalist, and multi-platform storyteller, and her book Rootbound: Rewilding a Life was longlisted for the Wainwright Prize. Beyond the page, Alice is the host of the Why Women Grow podcast, which unearths stories of the land with inspiring women.

This beautiful and rich conversation roots into our relationships with nature and gardening in cities. We discuss perfectionism, being drawn to the soil, and motherhood. We refurl stories of women in their gardens, and pay homage to the gardens who raised us.

This mini-documentary chronicles the journey of host Alice Irene Whittaker in 2019, when she traveled pregnant with her third child to Colorado to interview acclaimed, award-winning environmental economist and regenerative rancher Hunter Lovins.

Around a kitchen table in her regenerative ranch, Hunter answers curiosities about a circular economy that is modelled on nature’s cycles, and envisions the large-scale transition to renewable energy and ecologically-responsible business. Hunter reflects on her lived and professional experience in transforming landscapes and soil through regenerative agriculture.

A moment in time between two women is captured in this thought-provoking conversation that unfolds surrounded by horses, the homes of herons, and wide open sky. This episode challenges economic growth as a concept, dreams of the demise of the fossil fuel industry, and encourages designing an economy that fosters happiness and well-being.

Imagine creating a food future where all people have access to nourishing affordable food, growing practices are regenerative, and our food systems transition from being global and fragile to regional and resilient.

An expert in reimagining resilient local food systems, Barbara Swartzentruber is currently Executive Director of the Smart Cities Office at the City of Guelph, where the City and County of Wellington are collaborating with public and private sector partners to build a circular, regenerative regional food system.

Facing international problems of daunting proportions, we interrogate: what are the roles of individuals, communities, and cities? Can we stomach the current economic model, and what are the alternatives? How can food connect and strengthen community?

Rebecca Burgess of Fibershed on rebuilding regenerative textile communities that are carbon beneficial and regenerate soil, while restoring livelihoods to rural communities.