Veronica, a native Argentinian, is the Central Texas Conservation Project Director for A Rocha, the international creation care ministry. She is passionate about connecting people with God's creation, caring for His creation, and growing awareness of creation care in the church. In this interview, you'll hear about A Rocha's work on 6 continents, Veronica's projects in the Central Texas area, and how we can be involved personally in caring for God's good creation.
Dec 06, 2024•58 min
John Davis, Wildlife Biologist, worked for Texas Parks and Wildlife for 30 years and currently serves as the new Conservation Program Manager with the Kyle Parks and Rec Department, working to improve the native wildlife and plant conservation efforts in Kyle. Larry and John discuss environmental stewardship, creation care, and the spectrum of things individual residents can do to improve the health and sustainability of their local environment.
Nov 20, 2024•58 min
See inside the day-to-day realities of this couple faithfully serving the least of these in the Ukraine. Chris & Christy Hill of Program for Humanitarian Aid talk with Larry about the orphans and other individuals they are caring for in Ukraine.
Jun 06, 2024•54 min
The Hill Country Institute is non-partisan; however, we like to talk to Christians who are in the political arena about how their faith impacts their approach to governance, how we develop and live as good citizens, and how we initiate and sustain gracious, respectful dialogue in our pluralistic culture. Josh Graham is an independent candidate for U.S. Congress in the 37th District. He has a fascinating background including working for the CIA, assisting companies in developing international mar...
Apr 28, 2024•58 min
In this fascinating interview, Larry talks with General Robert Neller about Just War Theory; the increasing security risks our country faces from the alliance of China, Russia, and Iran; the importance of Allies to the United States; and our commitment to Ukraine from the time they gave up nuclear weapons. General Neller served in the U.S. Marine Corps for forty-four years. He was the 37th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps and served as member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. ...
Apr 28, 2024•58 min
In this interview with Dr. Vlasta Zekulic, Head of Strategic Issues and Engagements of the Supreme Allied Command Transformation of NATO, we discuss Dr. Zekulic's calling to military service and the challenging and rewarding career it can be for women, the role of her faith in her career, Just War Theory applied, the complexity of warfare today, and the need for alliances to share expenses and technology to meet the increased risks the United States faces. Dr. Zekulic earned her undergraduate de...
Apr 02, 2024•58 min
In this interview, Larry and Father Captain Herb Bailey, a motorcycle-riding, Anglican priest and artist, discuss the amazing way God has worked in Father Herb's life, how we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and how to be an evangelist where God has called us. You'll hear an amazing personal story of God’s moving in this man's life and calling him to ministry. Before he recently moved to Austin, Father Herb was leading a ministry center, a Christian coffee shop, in the Pittsburgh area, as ...
Feb 08, 2024•58 min
In this interview, Larry talks with Bob O’Dell, tech entrepreneur, author, screenwriter, and movie producer, about the little-known history of the impact that the Tonkawa Tribe had on the city of Austin, Texas. Bob and others are working on bringing friendship and recognition to the Tonkawa Tribe, and Bob is in the process of producing a documentary on the Tribe’s history. They also discuss how the guidance of the Holy Spirit in making life decisions and how listening to the Holy Spirit's leadin...
Jan 26, 2024•58 min
Presenting at Concordia University in Austin, Texas, Larry presents three perspectives from which we should consider creation care: 1) God's Word, the Bible; 2) God's World - what we observe as we study God's good creation; and 3) God's Work - what we do to take care of His amazing and bountiful creation. Areas of concern which he addresses are loss of biodiversity, the growing accumulation of waste and trash, pollution in various forms, and a warming planet.
Dec 03, 2023•58 min
Water is an issue for Texans. We face droughts, floods, aging infrastructure, and increasing population. What is a Christian response to the problems we're experiencing, and how do we plan for the future? Larry discusses these and other issues with Chairman Tracy King, Representative for Texas House District 80, Chairman of the powerful House Natural Resources Committee, and member of the Energy Resources Committee.
Oct 21, 2023•58 min
Two leading analysts and advocates for a data-driven, comprehensive approach to water policy in Texas, Sarah Rountree Schlessinger, CEO of the Texas Water Foundation, and Jeremy Mazur, Senior Policy Analyst with Texas 2036 have a conversation with Larry on the water issues of Texas and the potential impact of Proposition 6 on meeting those challenges. Both Sarah and Jeremy are highly regarded for the important research and data they develop with their teams. They are both called on frequently to...
Oct 14, 2023•58 min
Third in a series of conversations related to the Dream Together2023 initiative which begins on August 28, 2023. Kim Patton, Executive Director of Life Anew Restorative Justice, talks about how their team works to rebuild lives and communities in a Biblical, restorative way. Bianca Neal, wife of hiphop artist SaulPaul and Executive Director of the SaulPaul Foundation, discusses the challenges and opportunities for ministry through SaulPaul Productions as well as her interest in higher education ...
Aug 25, 2023•58 min
Pastor Edwin Pope and Pete Inman, both business leaders in the Austin Metro area as well as leaders in various Christian ministries in Round Rock and Austin, talk with Larry about Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr's "I Have a Dream Speech" and Dream Together 2030, the event on August 28 at the State Capitol which kicks off the Seven-Year Initiative to develop Dr. King’s vision of the Beloved Community in Austin. Please join us on the steps on the south side of the Texas State Capitol on Monday, Au...
Aug 18, 2023•54 min
Joe Bland, a contractor in Austin who was led by God to begin Dream Together 2030, and Dr. Archbishop Sterling Lands, a key leader of the initiative, are interviewed by Larry on this episode of Hill Country Institute Live. They discuss the upcoming kickoff of the Dream Together 2030 initiative on August 28 at the Texas State Capital. The mission of Dream Together 2030 is to create a new season of flourishing, justice, and equity for greater Austin and the surrounding communities. The vision is t...
Aug 12, 2023•57 min
Doug Lewin, President of Stoic Energy, is a nationally recognized energy expert, particularly in the electric grid, renewable energy, energy efficiency, demand response, utility regulation, and pollution reduction. He is regularly featured in local, state, and national broadcasts and publications on energy issues. In this interview, Larry and Doug talk about the electric grid in Texas - the issues we face, what happened during Winter Storm Uri in 2021 and the winter storm of December 2022; the a...
May 11, 2023•53 min
Dr. Daniel Cohan, an atmospheric scientist and environmental engineer, is an Associate Professor of Environmental Engineering at Rice University, as well as a Rice Faculty Scholar at the Baker Institute for Public Policy. Clean air, water, and energy are important to the life and health of Texans and people around the world. Larry and Dr. Cohan discuss the health impacts of pollution, how Texas should address the issues we face with increasing numbers of ozone alert days in our major metropolita...
Apr 22, 2023•58 min
Senator Perry represents District 28, which is the largest Senate District, geographically, in the State of Texas. We’ll be discussing water issues Texas is facing such as boil water notices, drought, flooding, and population growth. We'll also talk about Senate Bill 28, which Senator Perry authored and has bipartisan support as it advances through the Texas Legislature. Due to the severity of the water crisis facing Texas, we encourage our listeners to learn about water policy in Texas and cont...
Apr 08, 2023•42 min
Schuyler Wight is a fourth-generation rancher who has raised cattle near Fort Stockton for decades. Now he's fighting a battle he did not create. Scattered across his sprawling 20,000-acre ranch are more than 100 abandoned oil and gas wells left behind by oil and gas companies. Water is now bubbling up from these abandoned oil wells and is polluting Wight's pasture and killing his cows. Abandoned “dry hole” oil wells are polluting Texas farms, ranches and groundwater. The state and the oil and g...
Mar 18, 2023•58 min
Barry Smitherman is an attorney, consultant, private investor, author, and board member for not-for-profit and for-profit organizations. He is the only person to have served as Chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Texas (PUCT) and the Texas Railroad Commission. He probably has as much knowledge of the oil and gas and the electricity business as anyone in the U.S. He is now Chairman of the Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance. Barry authored the book, If Jesus Were an Investment Banker (or ...
Feb 26, 2023•56 min
Join us as we consider the wisdom and experiences of a Godly man of faith, science, and scholarship. Walter Bradley has been a longtime friend to the Hill Country Institute and is a Fellow of the Institute. He partnered with us to bring Christian leaders together with differing views on faith and science in our Vibrant Dance of Faith and Science Initiative. His statesmanship made it comfortable for people to come together as fellow believers who want to study science, theology, and philosophy, b...
Nov 13, 2022•1 hr 11 min
Seen in its proper light, the market order is as awe-inspiring as a sunset or a perfect eclipse. It might not be enough to convince a skeptic that God exists, but surely the believer should see in it God’s glory. At the very least, it should settle the question: Can a Christian support free enterprise? The answer is surely yes. — Jay Wesley Richards, Money, Greed, and God: The Christian Case for Free Enterprise In this interview, Larry and Jay consider whether free markets or socialism provide t...
Nov 05, 2022•58 min
Pastor Dukes is a friend and classmate of Larry's from junior high school and high school. In this interview, Larry and Pastor Dukes discuss their experiences growing up in a small town in Texas and going through integration together. Pastor Phillip M Dukes is African American and Larry is European American, so their lives as young people were quite different. Black people were not allowed to eat in the dining rooms of restaurants, were not allowed to swim in the public pools, were not allowed t...
Oct 22, 2022•57 min
Ed Brown is Director and CEO of Care of Creation, an organization which partners with the Lausanne Movement and the World Evangelical Alliance to encourage Christian stewardship of God’s good creation. Ed has recently completed a series of twelve consultations around the world with pastors and leaders in various geophysical areas to address how the Body of Christ might come to better understand the theology of creation care (God’s Word), the issues we face (God’s World), and how we should procee...
Oct 18, 2022•58 min
Sep 16, 2022•58 min
Living a Holy Life is an aspect of our calling as Christians. Have you ever considered how we treat our garbage as a part of being Holy? We’re called to take care of God’s good creation, but trash and waste encroach on the beauty of the earth and its capacity to support life. Caleb Haynes is the author of Garbage Theology: The Unseen World of Waste and What It Means to Every Person, Every Place, and Every Thing. In this podcast, he shares his insights and experiences both theologically and as a ...
Jul 23, 2022•57 min
Larry talks with Frank McCamant, independent consultant with over 35 years’ experience as a leader in the electric power market in Texas. He works with many participants in the market for electricity-evaluating investment opportunities, structuring joint ventures, advising on regulatory issues, and more. They discuss how he lives his Christian faith in the workplace, the complexity of the market for electricity, and what has been done, and remains to be done, to adapt the Texas Electric Energy m...
Jul 03, 2022•57 min
Larry chats with Emily Jansen, author of A Wilder Eden: How to Keep Dreaming in a World of Disappointment. Emily encourages us to acknowledge the dreams which have not worked out, to step into our own identity and uniqueness as a beloved child of God, and to step into a new place, a place of yieldedness to God, a place she refers to as "A Wilder Eden". In her book, Emily shares from her personal experience and heart for seeking God’s dream for each of us and bathes the story in scripture. Even i...
Jun 18, 2022•57 min
Perspectives of an African American and a European American on growing up in a town with Jim Crow restrictions such as white only restrooms and closing the separate schools for black students when Greenville, TX, integrated.
Jun 14, 2022•58 min
Eric Bryant, Pastor of Gateway South in Austin and author of "Not Like Me: Learning to Love, Serve and Influence Our Divided World", interviews Larry on environmental stewardship. They discuss the biblical calling to care for God's good creation, the issues we face today, and how the Body of Christ can be involved in solutions to those problems. We consider caring for the poor as well as future generations.
May 28, 2022•18 min
Larry speaks with Dr. Reyes about her new book and how we learn from people with diverse cultural backgrounds and develop relationships, and how Christmas traditions from other cultures can both help us to better understand aspects of the Advent and Christmas stories and how diverse cultures celebrate this special time.
Dec 29, 2021•58 min
