What are the best holiday gifts that aren't privacy nightmares? That's today's big question, and my guest is Jen Caltrider. Jen is the lead researcher for Mozilla's Privacy Not Included program where since 2017 Mozilla has published 15 editions of Privacy Not Included, their Consumer Tech Buyer's Guide. They've reviewed…
This week: How the hell does the brain work? And what does it have to do with lemonade stands and school supplies? Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to support The Markup’s (https://link.mail.beehiiv.com/ss/c/w3dYILNc3lH6MOK0tu1At4Mdv4ONtzNlKvwBZOiz4z_sLNRL3s8rk1V8aoTniaJ-8Z2U59id7j8MRBrTJfs6nqDoISV-U-kP26pOoGxkV2w8vuhQtqv6t8LoEGrxYSlqZuIXmTPtCG3GJG8Kq2SO_gECwOFjiPlO3ehPSU_za0v6_9PHdFJu_OvxUYu3rcOj/41d/gd10p0QcTVaw38xtacaw3g/h7/-CD08gnfyzAA3JOxnzYLePU2_oEJlb2RUrefksD8zLI) invaluable work examining the ways technology is being used to change society. • Volunteer with your…
I think about time a lot. Some days I feel ancient, some days I can’t believe how old I am. I’ve got kids, too. I can’t believe how fast they’ve grown up already. They love so many things. Swimming. Cooking. Plain pasta. The beach. Vegetables, somehow. Their friends. Their family.…
How did the female body drive 200 million years of human evolution? And why the hell are we just finding out about it now? That's today's big question, and my guest is Cat Bohannon. Cat is the author of the incredible new book, “Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200…
How did the female body drive 200 million years of human evolution? And why the hell are we just finding out about it now? That's today's big question, and my guest is Cat Bohannon. Cat is the author of the incredible new book, “Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200…
This week: Will coffee survive climate change? Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to support African farmers by increasing incomes and improving food security through the Alliance for a Green Africa (https://agra.org/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=coffee-back-to-the-future). • Volunteer to join the Coffee & Climate Network (https://coffeeandclimate.org/join-the-network/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=coffee-back-to-the-future), an organization that connects stakeholders in coffee…
Can your gut composition predict Alzheimer's? That's today's big question and my returning guest is Gautam Dantas. Gautam heads up the Dantas Lab at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His lab works at the interface of microbiogenomics, ecology, synthetic biology, and systems biology to understand, harness,…
Can your gut composition predict Alzheimer's? That's today's big question and my returning guest is Gautam Dantas. Gautam heads up the Dantas Lab at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His lab works at the interface of microbiogenomics, ecology, synthetic biology, and systems biology to understand, harness,…
This week: How I think about how to think about what’s next Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to help the BlueGreen Alliance (https://www.bluegreenalliance.org/take-action/actions/donate/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=how-i-think-about-how-to-think-about-what-s-next)unite labor unions and environmental organizations to create clean jobs, develop clean infrastructure, and pursue fair trade. • Volunteer with 3.14 Action (https://314action.org/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=how-i-think-about-how-to-think-about-what-s-next)and help get people…
Content Warning: We're going to be talking about stress and anxiety, depression, suicide, and more today. If any of this could be triggering to you in any way, please feel free to just skip over this one. Nothing in this conversation should be taken as medical advice. If a treatment…
Content Warning We're going to be talking about stress and anxiety, depression, suicide, and more today.If any of this could be triggering to you in any way, please feel free to just skip over this one. Nothing in this conversation should be taken as medical advice. If a treatment or…
This week: Exactly why the youths are so pissed off. Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to the Steve Fund (https://stevefund.org/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=the-disconnect) to support the mental health of young people of color. • Volunteer with Everytown (https://www.everytown.org/?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=the-disconnect) so youth can grow up in communities free from gun violence. • Get…
This week: It can be difficult as hell to understand when we don’t actually have a choice — and when we’ve got more options than we think. Deciphering the two is the key to the good stuff getting built way, way faster. Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to…
Every single one of us needs air, water, food, shelter, and energy. So why are the infrastructure that provides them, the systems we are most reliant on hidden in plain sight? How can we reconnect with them, appreciate them, rebuild them, reinforce the ones we already have, and build new…
Every single one of us needs air, water, food, shelter, and energy. So why are the infrastructure that provides them, the systems we are most reliant on hidden in plain sight? How can we reconnect with them, appreciate them, rebuild them, reinforce the ones we already have, and build new…
This week: Why was this year so hot? Will it keep getting hotter, and for how long? It’s not an easy read, but it’s important you know and keep in mind the inputs and externalities. Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to Climate CREW (https://www.climatecrew.org/resilience_hubs?utm_source=importantnotimportant.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=the-coolest-year-of-the-rest-of-your-life) to help build resilience…
This week: Tolkien described life (and often, his stories) as a "long defeat", where evil frequently, inevitably wins. But he allowed for "eucatastrophe" - sudden joyous turns, just like breakthroughs in voting rights. We must keep fighting, to hold off the darkness. Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to…
What are microplastics doing to us? And how do we stop putting them into our water, and our bloodstreams, and our food? That's today's big question, and my guest is Julia Yan. Julia is the co-founder and CEO at Baleena, a closed-loop, consumer-facing laundry startup working to tackle ocean microplastic…
What are microplastics doing to us? And how do we stop putting them into our water, and our bloodstreams, and our food? That's today's big question, and my guest is Julia Yan. Julia is the co-founder and CEO at Baleena, a closed-loop, consumer-facing laundry startup working to tackle ocean microplastic…
This week: Are you ready for the next big test? Here's What You Can Do: • Donate to Cooperation Humboldt (https://flight.beehiiv.net/v2/clicks/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2Nvb3BlcmF0aW9uaHVtYm9sZHQuY29tLz91dG1fc291cmNlPWltcG9ydGFudG5vdGltcG9ydGFudC5jb20mdXRtX21lZGl1bT1yZWZlcnJhbCZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249dGhlLW5leHQtYmlnLXRlc3QiLCJwb3N0X2lkIjoiODQ0Y2Y3NTEtNDQyMC00ZGVmLWI4NzAtYzgzNGI1NGFjN2VkIiwicHVibGljYXRpb25faWQiOiJhNzg0Yzc1Zi1mYTg3LTRjZDItODllMS02MTA2NzU2MGIxOWMiLCJ2aXNpdF90b2tlbiI6IjA1ZDRkOTExLWZhMjMtNDM0Yi05ZGQxLWUwZTNmMzRjNjVmNiIsImlhdCI6MTY5NTQwNjg5NCwiaXNzIjoib3JjaGlkIn0.5Nr4O-z6HL9XlqpAh8KjjAKDiY14VmaS9X3n_x2b_Qw), a worker-led, non-hierarchical non-profit that delivers programming in seven areas that are key to basic human rights. • Volunteer with Global.health (https://flight.beehiiv.net/v2/clicks/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2dsb2JhbC5oZWFsdGgvYWJvdXQvP3V0bV9zb3VyY2U9aW1wb3J0YW50bm90aW1wb3J0YW50LmNvbSZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPXJlZmVycmFsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj10aGUtbmV4dC1iaWctdGVzdCNnZXQtaW52b2x2ZWQiLCJwb3N0X2lkIjoiODQ0Y2Y3NTEtNDQyMC00ZGVmLWI4NzAtYzgzNGI1NGFjN2VkIiwicHVibGljYXRpb25faWQiOiJhNzg0Yzc1Zi1mYTg3LTRjZDItODllMS02MTA2NzU2MGIxOWMiLCJ2aXNpdF90b2tlbiI6IjA1ZDRkOTExLWZhMjMtNDM0Yi05ZGQxLWUwZTNmMzRjNjVmNiIsImlhdCI6MTY5NTQwNjg5NCwiaXNzIjoib3JjaGlkIn0.9Fz20t1O5YNNMRVA7Z18XTg7HhcASq4FwwAf_Bud5yU) to help create a global resource of…
This week: Because I am a sap, I have been thinking about my kids a lot lately. And kids in general. They’re going to grow up and live in a world that’s very different from ours, and it’s important to me that they’re all as ready for that as they…
Over the past few years, more and more voters have cited “action on climate” as a reason for voting the way they do. But here’s the thing: lots of voters who are registered, and even those who do vote in presidential elections – don’t turn out for midterms. Much less…
Voluntary carbon credits are a lot like used cars: You really have no idea what their quality might be. Or maybe they’re more like expensive bottles of wine. Many people (or at least Shayle) can’t tell whether they’re actually buying good-quality wine. If it’s expensive, it must be good, right?…
This Week: Telling better stories is a type of Compound Action. Here's What You Can Do: • Check out the Good Energy Project's (https://www.goodenergystories.com/) playbook on how to tell better climate stories. • Donate to Experiment (https://link.mail.beehiiv.com/ss/c/N5VPMbd61mETFbSU3e12aP0pdnQ5ix4rVUcLnPZ0Ba8B1U7lYJExJdGPkH_qBSst_VU3XezZ1G7cbVzq0Nvqbre220Eg_0O0YH2aENq3y15bIW9Dz_qQVnC1QupTiOq1XxXAsQUxlzmkfC8fSNzNaeoTRpnziHCOhsPn3sTNRk96HjxloDzVFX_IoyNDHY-w/3z1/1pXMbmzNROC90AmDWOj8eg/h5/wZiOFa1IZN037JhJQe8SYkhct_xUXqObjr2VY5WxUDQ), a platform where scientists can crowdfund their research, and you can pick and…