Episodes

May 11, 2020

GOOD NEWS: Can Zebrafish Beat Childhood Cancer?

In Episode 75 , Quinn & Brian discussed: Beating the crap out of childhood cancer with science and... zebrafish? Our guests are Dr. Jaclyn Taroni and Dr. Genevieve Kendall . Dr. Kendall is a Postdoctoral scholar at UT Southwe...

May 4, 2020

WEBBY NOMINEE: "Who's Fixing The People Fixing The Planet?"

If you haven’t already heard, we received a Webby nomination for Best Podcast Episode in the Science & Education category. We’re really proud to be nominated again… but, we also really want to win. So, today, we’re re-airing ...

April 29, 2020

Holy Cow We're Nominated For Two Webbys

That's right, we are now a four-time Webby-nominated podcast! But what we really want is to be a Webby-winning podcast. So, please, go vote! It's free and you can stick it to the AARP. Vote for Important, Not Important for Be...

April 27, 2020

GOOD NEWS: Did A.I. Just Make My Life’s Work Obsolete?

In Episode 73 , Quinn & Brian asked: Did A.I. take our jobs? Of course, we aren’t talking about our jobs. If A.I. took our jobs, the show would have won that goddamn Webby. No, no — we’re talking about really, really importan...

April 20, 2020

GOOD NEWS: So We Can’t Just Blow Up Asteroids, Then?

Our “Good News” series of replays begins today with Episode 66 , when Quinn & Brian hosted a delightfully important discussion: Why, apparently, we shouldn’t just blow up asteroids. Our guest is: Professor K.T. Ramesh , who i...

April 13, 2020

#90: What It’s Like to be a COVID-19 Lab Rat

In Episode 90 , Quinn & Brian discuss: What it’s like to be a COVID-19 Lab Rat. Our guest is: Allie Broas , an almost-MBA and one of Quinn’s many, many cousins. We weren’t exactly planning to do more of these episodes right n...

April 7, 2020

BEST OF THE BEST: Air Pollution: The Low Hanging Fruit of Our Hellish Future

Cast your mind back to Episode 79 , when Quinn & Brian discussed: Optimism in the air (can it be?). Our guest is: Beth Gardiner , an environmental journalist and the author of Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Polluti...

March 31, 2020

BEST OF THE BEST: Is COVID-19 America’s Chernobyl?

Way back in Episode 65 , Quinn asked: Was Chernobyl a preventable and rare accident from the past, or a vivid picture of what happens when the government abandons its citizens during a crisis? FUN STORY: turns out, it’s B! We...

March 27, 2020

Special Edition: How You Can Help — And (Mostly) Still Stay Home

If you've been wondering how else you can help fight coronavirus besides staying at home in sweatpants, this episode is for you. Please share widely. You can find links and additional details at importantnotimportant.com/blog...

March 23, 2020

#89: Why Does It Require a PhD in Neuroscience Just to Support a Green New Deal?

In Episode 89 , Quinn & Brian discuss: Taking down the white guy who politically stabbed you (and the planet) in the back. Our guest is: Dr. Arati Kreibich. She gave us a call a couple weeks back to explain that she’s a fresh...

March 16, 2020

#88: You Voted for Clean Energy… So Where The Hell Is it?

In Episode 88 , Quinn & Brian ask: You voted for clean energy… so why hasn’t it become a thing yet? Our guest is: Dr. Leah Stokes , author of the new book Short Circuiting Policy: Interest Groups and the Battle Over Clean Ene...

March 9, 2020

#87: What's In Your Moisturizer, Anyways?

In Episode 87 , Quinn & Brian ask: What, exactly, are we putting on our bodies (and why aren’t more people asking questions about it)? Our guest is: Gregg Renfrew . Gregg is a serial entrepreneur who most recently founded Bea...

March 3, 2020

Special Edition: How to Survive the Coronavirus (With Your Sanity Intact)

In this special episode, Quinn (with some help from our friends at the CDC and elsewhere) talks you through everything you need to know about the coronavirus, what you can do to prepare, and — maybe most importantly — what yo...

March 2, 2020

#86: Farming While Black: The Past and The Future

In Episode 86, Quinn & Brian ask: What can we do to support the black farmers who have the ancient answers to rebuilding our soil, farms, and food system? Our guest is: Leah Penniman , Co-Director and Farm Manager of Soul Fir...

Feb. 24, 2020

#85: A Blueprint for Fighting Food Waste in Your Community

In Episode 85 , Quinn asks: Is there a blueprint for fighting food waste in your city? Our guest is: Rick Nahmias. As Founder and Executive Director of Food Forward , Rick has spent more than a decade harvesting the bounty of...

Feb. 17, 2020

#84: How is Climate Change (Already) Affecting Immigration to the USA?

We’re back! In Episode 84 , Quinn & Brian ask: Is the USA responsible for climate refugees (and then turning them away)? Our guest is: Jessica Cisneros , a 26-year-old immigration and human rights attorney and proud Mexican-A...

Feb. 14, 2020

SPECIAL PREVIEW: Issue #169: CRISPR’ing Cancer, BP Oil, & Democrats Campaigning on Soil

This is a special preview of our new weekly audio newsletter . It's all the most vital science news you missed, with action steps you can take to fight back, delivered in five minutes and read by Brian. After this week, it's ...

Feb. 13, 2020

Introducing the Important, Not Important: Sh*t-Giver Edition!

We’re very excited to announce the launch of our new premium podcast feed — The Shit-Giver Edition! Our main feed (this one) will always be free, and will always host the latest in our award-nominated "save the world" convers...

Nov. 5, 2019

#83: Knock Knock. Who’s There? Climate Change. Climate Change Who? Climate Change Pooped On Your Head. (A Conversation About Mangroves)

In Episode 83 , Quinn & Brian discuss: Blue carbon, the patriarchy, and how one of those two things has ruined the other (we’ll give you three guesses). Our guests are Dr. Sarah Myhre and Priya Shukla . Dr. Myhre is a leading...

BONUS: Help Dr. Ghazala Hashmi Flip Virginia

Oct. 29, 2019