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 superpower: when was the first time you realized you had the power of change? To make a change, we have to believe change is possible. We're going to look back at some of the responses we've received to give you all some proof that it is! Have fe...
Aug 30, 2021•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast 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 Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Aug 27, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast 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 insight that give us a glimpse at how we all have some role to play in our survival as a species. Today, we’re taking a look back to highlight some of those responses and hopefully give us some hope for...
Aug 23, 2021•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast 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 Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Aug 20, 2021•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast 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 build a new ethical backbone into Twitter from the inside out. On every social media platform you interact with on a regular basis, there is some type of machine learning or algorithm determining w...
Aug 16, 2021•1 hr•Ep 122•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode #121 , Quinn’s got a fantastic new guest to help answer his favorite question: “ What can I do? ” Isaias Hernandez – or, as he’s known pretty much everywhere on the internet, Queer Brown Vegan -- shares the mic today. He’s built a massive following using an intersectional approach to reach people through empathy and education. In this series, we look at how young people are using their passions and lived experiences to participate in this transformational moment in history. Isaias exe...
Aug 09, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 121•Transcript available on Metacast This week: 50% isn’t good enough; Facebook fossil fuel ads; How to get shots to Africa; Oysters!?; Why has AI failed to help during COVID? Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Aug 06, 2021•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 120 , Quinn discusses retraining our mind to understand and operate in the discontinuity we are in. Let’s get META. HIs guest is Alex Steffen, a longtime climate reporter and futurist, as well as writer of the forthcoming book The Snap Forward . The world as we know it is changing – in fact, it’s already changed. The changes brought on by human-made effects on climate are now the context in which we live our lives. Whether you’ve been fighting the powers behind climate change for year...
Aug 04, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep 120•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 119 , Quinn asks: what’s in wildfire smoke, what does it do to your body, and how can you stay safe? Our guest is Dr. Mary Prunicki , the director of air pollution and health research at Stanford University under The Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research. Her lab examines the impact of air pollution and wildfires on health – specifically, immune health. We’re going to talk about something timely: the wildfires ravaging the western side of the country, and the smoke tha...
Aug 02, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep 119•Transcript available on Metacast This week: FDA got next?; Flooded subways; Delta's a game-changer; Epic (AI) fail; Fire predictions; Food stamp groceries delivered. Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Aug 02, 2021•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast I don't have to tell you folks – climate change is the story of our time. There’s been a sharp rise (like last week) in people are anxious, angry, and want action – and the opening for bold climate action has never been wider. And “A Matter of Degrees” gives them a place to find community: it's a narrative podcast from two of INI’s fan-favorite former pod guests, Dr. Leah Stokes & Dr. Katharine Wilkinson! The show helps listeners understand the climate story in a deeper way. They explore the...
Jul 26, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week: The climate crisis kicked down the door of the west and global north this week; The Pizza King of Vaccines; Mental health care now available everywhere; The Human-Machine interface; You like drugs, Danny? Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jul 23, 2021•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 118 , Quinn discusses: the big mosquito problem . Our guest is Dr. Omar Akbari , one of the world’s pre-eminent biotechnology and mosquito researchers. For how afraid people are of sharks, mountain lions, or even just other people (the worst), mosquitoes have actually killed more humans than pretty much anything on the planet. Ever. So, the fact that the problem is only getting worse… really fucking sucks. Table stakes: The increase in mosquito populations is being exacerbated by – su...
Jul 19, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 118•Transcript available on Metacast This week: deep breath; COVID all around the world; there are two Americas and it’s obvious why; the global hungry jump to 768 million; call your doctor!; money for nothing; held hostage by hackers. Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jul 16, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 117 , Quinn discusses: how accountability works – and doesn’t – in the climate movement, how you can get involved, and how the best in the world are doing it. Our guests are Mary Annaïse Heglar and Amy Westervelt . The duo makes up Hot Take , a podcast and newsletter that gives an honest look at the climate crisis while providing some of the most empathetic voices in the climate justice movement. We’ve heard it again and again: the biggest barrier to climate action is political will, ...
Jul 12, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep 117•Transcript available on Metacast This week: To understand Africa, look to India -- or not; Reverse course; Don’t believe everything you read -- especially Best Buy food labels; New headline, who dis? Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jul 09, 2021•13 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Quinn is proud to share a new favorite podcast: “The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women (HERO).” Could empowering women in the workplace be the simplest way to boost the global economy? In a word: “yes,” but how do we get there? “The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women” is a new limited series podcast from Foreign Policy. Supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the show is about women around the world who are shaking up the status quo in surprising ways.&n...
Jul 06, 2021•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week: What’s a dew point, anyways?; The COVID Delta variant is here; And then there were six; An all female Justice League of social media. #51: Are We Talking About CRISPR All Wrong? Also, What The Hell Is CRISPR? Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jul 02, 2021•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 116 , Quinn wants to know: why is simply giving people money the most effective way to 1) help them make positive changes to their lives and 2) erase global poverty along the way? To help him understand the answer, he brought on Caroline Teti and Michael Faye from GiveDirectly . Caroline Teti (or just Teti, as she likes to be called, we swear) works on the ground in Kenya, Nairobi, handling recipient advocacy for GiveDirectly’s global operations. She’s our new favorite person, sorry M...
Jun 28, 2021•1 hr 24 min•Ep 116•Transcript available on Metacast This week: it’s Bolsonaro all the way down; the 99%; 44 thousand patients can’t be wrong; “fire beats water” should be relegated to D&D; Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jun 25, 2021•12 min•Transcript available on Metacast In light of new research on toxic ingredients, it looks like America might finally start regulating cosmetic products, so it’s a great moment to re-run one of our most popular episodes with Beautycounter CEO Gregg Renfrew. 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 Beautycounter to increase transparency and safety...
Jun 22, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast In celebration of New York state passing Bill S6532A, permitting underwater kelp cultivation, we’re re-playing one of our coolest (and most entertaining) episodes. Kelp could be THE crop of the 21st century. But why? Listen in to find out. In Episode 81 , Quinn & Brian discuss: legalizing the weed of the sea. Our guests are Bren Smith and Tom Ford , two fine, clean-living gentlemen who are out on the water every day. They’re trying to change the way that we eat to our benefit and, more impor...
Jun 14, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week: “Do not come”; The pandemic is not over for everyone; We can do better, can’t we? Cover crops; Language barriers in AI. Visit ImportantJobs.com to find your next role working on the frontlines of the future. Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jun 11, 2021•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 115 , Quinn & Brian discuss: How to stop fossil fuel advertising. Our guests are JaRel Clay and Jamie Henn. JaRel Clay is the Digital Director of Hip Hop Caucus, a national nonprofit focused on ending the climate crisis, having some fun, and tackling racial justice along the way. No big deal. Jamie is a climate activist, strategist, and communicator. He’s the Director of Fossil Free Media, a nonprofit communications lab to boost groups taking on the fossil fuel industry. Tog...
Jun 07, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 115•Transcript available on Metacast This week: bigger doesn’t mean better; COVAX has got next, finally; a brand new day… and vaccine; AI and medicine – so close, and yet so far. Visit ImportantJobs.com to find your next role working on the frontlines of the future. Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
Jun 04, 2021•13 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 114 , Quinn asks: What are carbon offsets, and do they even work? Our returning guest is Akshat Rathi , a reporter at Bloomberg Green. Carbon offsets -- like our planet -- are so hot right now. And like our planet -- they kind of don’t work! So fun. But they could -- and while missions #1 to #11 are eliminate emissions, everywhere, we’ve gotta go negative at some point, so we might as well figure it out, and figure out how to scale them, like yesterday. You need the...
May 31, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Ep 114•Transcript available on Metacast This week: a brutal day for oil; fungi on the move (not great); wastewater: so hot right now; paying for climate protection; vaccine inequities; and facial recognition on the way out (for now). Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
May 28, 2021•13 min•Transcript available on Metacast Synopsis: We can time travel to the past to understand how we got to where we are today. But the past doesn’t dictate the future - not anymore. So we have to look forward. The decisions we make today will guarantee that the world of 2041 is cleaner, safer, and more equitable than 2021. Do Better Better essays help you build mental models and ask questions about our changing world — for yourself, your family, and your business. These essays compliment the audio version of our weekly newsletter, a...
May 26, 2021•12 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Episode 113 , Quinn asks: What can we learn from plants? The answer, it turns out, is: A whole heck of a lot. Our guest is the wonderful and way overqualified Dr. Beronda Montgomery -- PhD, writer, researcher, scholar, and author of “Lessons from Plants.” Dr. Montgomery’s dedicated her work to understanding how individuals are impacted by their environment. Life as a human is hard . I mean, that’s why we open every episode with the question, “Why are you vital to the survival of the species?”...
May 24, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Ep 113•Transcript available on Metacast This week: An electric truck for the masses; India’s vaccine production stays home; Better cancer screening; Beef emissions. Find links from this newsletter and more at importantnotimportant.com/newsletter Got feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.com Follow us on Twitter at @importantnotimp Important, Not Important is produced by Crate Media...
May 21, 2021•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
