Videos
Nov. 29, 2021
128. The Best Olive Oil You’ve Never Had
In Episode 128, Quinn unpacks the most delicious olive oil in the world, how it came to be, and what it means to start a food business in the age of climate change. Our guest is Aishwarya Iyer, dreamer, doer, and eternal optimist. Ash is the founder and CEO of…
Nov. 22, 2021
Issue #256: Alexa. Knows. Everything.
This Week: Is there a green bubble?; Can you get a booster?; Where to find clean water; Why health workers are quitting; Amazon’s privacy nightmare • Find links from this newsletter and more at newsletter.importantnotimportant.com (http://newsletter.importantnotimportant.com/) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp…
Nov. 22, 2021
127. How To Innovate
In Episode 127, Quinn wants to know just how the hell “innovation” actually works. His guest is Christopher Mims, a journalist for the Wall Street Journal, who’s spent a career asking big questions about the most pressing technological and societal issues we face, from robot trains to the future of…
Nov. 16, 2021
126. Climate Tech $ Above The Fold
In Episode 126, Quinn meets his newsletter heroes: Kim Zou & Sophie Purdom, co-founders of the independent media outlet Climate Tech VC. Kim works with Energy Impact Partners, a venture capital firm investing in climate technology. Sophie works as an investor in early stage climate technology businesses. Together they write…
Nov. 15, 2021
Issue #255: It’s My Birthday, Let’s Ban Coal
This Week: China takes on methane; Moderna's downturn; Inflated food costs; Measles on the rebound; Google's new drug company • Find links from this newsletter and more at newsletter.importantnotimportant.com • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not Important is produced by…
Nov. 8, 2021
125. Elevating Climate Venture Capital
In Episode 125, Quinn asks: How can venture capital offer solutions to two of the biggest problems of our time? His guests are Vida Asiegbu and Anthony Oni, two incredible climate venture capitalists with Elevate Future Fund. Vida Asiegbu is a Principal within the Elevate Future Fund, working to make…
Nov. 5, 2021
Issue #254: Delete Your (Face)Book
This week: Checking in on COP; How is this still happening?; An Impossible evaluation; Digitizing Medicade; Facebook is deleting your face; Did Big Oil lie in front of Congress? • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us…
Nov. 1, 2021
Issue #253: Here’s The Deal
This Week: Biden's agreement, revealed; Why vaccinating kids matters for everyone; Plant-based meat emissions questioned; Public health's original sin; Fixing Facebook • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not Important…
Nov. 1, 2021
124. Birth Control 2.0
In Episode 124, Quinn interviews Dr. Elizabeth Ruzzo, a brilliant human geneticist who left the world of academia to launch adyn, her effort to help women find the best birth control for their unique bodies. Family planning affects everybody – whether they use it themselves or not. With 200 forms…
Oct. 25, 2021
Newsletter #252: What Comes After Manchin
This Week, Summarized: Moving on from Manchin; Kids shots; Forever chemicals regulated (finally); Google vs. Iran • Get Action Steps and more at newsletter.importantnotimportant.com (http://newsletter.importantnotimportant.com) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media (http://crate.media/)
Oct. 25, 2021
123. Snapchat Runs for Office
In Episode #123, Quinn gets a masterclass on Snapchat AND running for office with RFS co-founder, returning guest, and our favorite human alive, Amanda Litman! Amanda’s helped thousands of progressive young people run and get elected to office across the country. Now, she’s here to tell us how Snapchat can…
Oct. 15, 2021
Issue #251: Moderna Made How Much?
This week: climate finance exposed; Moderna’s COVID profits are… a lot; beef’s emissions problem examined; startups for aging, and who gets to write the AI Bill of Rights? • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on…
Oct. 8, 2021
Issue #250: Bye Malaria
This week: How to reduce methane; America’s out of diapers; COVID questions; A new day against malaria; Food systems examined; How you’re tracked • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important,…
Oct. 4, 2021
The First Black Female Space Pilot
We’re bringing back one of our all-time most popular conversations, and not just because it kicks ass. When this interview was recorded back in 2018, Dr. Sian Proctor was almost an astronaut. Now, in 2021, Dr. Proctor has just returned to Earth after becoming the first black, female pilot of…
Oct. 1, 2021
Issue #249: It's Climate Day in America (I Hope)
This week: It’s Climate Day; How to defeat the next pandemic; Telehealth in red states; Is lab-grown meat a myth; Facebook’s very bad month continues • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp…
Sept. 24, 2021
#248: How We Deal With Facebook
This week: Manchin wields a dirty pen; Our new COVID rules; Fighting for expanded telehealth; 200 million climate migrants; Even more trolls • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not…
Sept. 13, 2021
How We Deal With Drought: From NOVA Now
I’m very excited to share an awesome show with you today, from the fine folks at PBS! God, I love PBS. The show is called “NOVA Now” and I’m a longtime huge fan. This episode is near and dear to the moment we’re in. As the Western U.S. faces increasingly…
Sept. 10, 2021
Issue #247: Close Your Rings
This week: Solar’s wilding out; $65 billion for the next pandemic; Better, cheaper, more inclusive clinical trials; Protecting farmworkers; Biden’s AI board • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not…
Sept. 3, 2021
Issue #246: Is This The Metaverse?
This week: Climate tech billions; COVID goals; A new hope for neurodegenerative diseases; An IPCC for food; Facial recognition knows no bounds. • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not…
Aug. 30, 2021
Mixtape Vol 2: "When was the first time you had the power of change?"
If we're going to make this world a better place, things have to change. That's why we talk with the changemakers who have the power – and the courage – to get things done. We wrap up every conversation with one question meant to get to the root of that…
Aug. 27, 2021
Issue #245: Will The Levees Hold?
This week: Wind NIMBY’s; More nurses, stat; Diabetes on the rise; Evictions; Cybersecurity commitments. • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com • Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp (https://www.twitter.com/importantnotimp) Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media (http://crate.media/)
Aug. 23, 2021
Mixtape Vol 1: “Why are you vital to the survival of the species?”
Each week we kick off our conversations with the smartest people in the universe with one humble question: “Why are you vital to the survival of the species?” The responses typically range from laughter, modest denial, to audible discomfort. But when the air clears, we typically get some gems of…
Aug. 20, 2021
Issue #244: These Are The Easy Wins
This week: Operate from a place of self-awareness; God, we are so bad at math; A half-century later; Drive pediatric cancer research; What’s the future of meat work? TikTok misinformation enters the chat. • Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter (http://importantnotimportant.com/newsletter) • Got feedback? Email us at…
Aug. 16, 2021
122. We Are The Algorithm
In Episode 122, Quinn has big questions about AI ethics and, like many other situations, is left wondering: was Dr. Ian Malcolm right all along? Our guest is Dr. Rumman Chowdury. She is the director of the Machine Ethics Transparency & Accountability (META) team at Twitter, where she’s helping to…
Listen On
