Maree Lowes is best known as the actress and storyteller behind dirtgirl, from the acclaimed children’s television series dirtgirlworld. She uses video, words and action to advocate for people & planet, moving in the pursuit of reciprocity with each other & our non-human kin. Maree has evolved beyond the screen to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with families, farmers and First Nations communities, championing regenerative thinking and modes of regenerative agriculture. This is how she came to...
Feb 21, 2022•43 min
On this episode, we have unlearner, uneducator Manish Jain. Manish is deeply committed to regenerating our diverse local knowledge systems and cultural imaginations. He is one of the leading voices on the planet for “de-schooling” our lives and co-founded some of the most innovative educational experiments in the world, including the Swaraj University, India's first university dedicated to regenerating local cultures, economies and ecologies. The interview was held by Alex Jensen from Local Futu...
Feb 14, 2022•47 min
This episode is a lecture from one of the wisest and most masterful storytellers of our time, the Canadian teacher, writer and culture activist, Stephen Jenkinson.Stephen is a former palliative care specialist who has written two internationally acclaimed books, Die Wise: A manifesto for sanity and soul, and Come of Age, the case for elderhood in a time of trouble.He is also a farmer, and co-founder of Orphan Wisdom, a teaching house for the skills of deep living and making human culture. This l...
Jan 31, 2022•57 min
Robyn Davidson is best known as ‘the camel lady’—a reference to her journey as a young woman crossing the Australian desert with four camels and her dog in 1977. Today, Robyn feels like a different person, yet there’s one quality that has remained a constant in her life: her ability to adapt to change.In 2017, Robyn sat down in front of a live audience with our publisher, Berry Liberman, to talk about adaptability—and how to embrace the flux that is ever present in our lives. Hosted on Acast. Se...
Jan 12, 2022•37 min
Spiritual teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee reads one of his writings for Dumbo Feather, titled, “A Letter to My Granddaughter.” Llewellyn is a writer and teacher based in Northern California whose work focuses on spiritual responsibility in our present time of transition. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 28, 2021•16 min
In this episode, we get to know Pat McCabe, a Navaho mother, grandmother, artist and ceremonial leader who has been deeply immersed in indigenous, land-based ways of living. Having grown up in a multicultural neighbourhood in California, she is also accustomed to the realities of the industrialised world. It makes her an invaluable bridge-builder and cross-cultural communicator, and a powerful voice for the transformation needed to deal with our ecological and social crises. In this conversation...
Dec 21, 2021•33 min
Hey there! In this episode we share an interview we did back in 2017 with Tim Winton, one of Australia’s most beloved and prolific writers. At the time, Tim was on a publicity tour for his collection of non-fiction essays, The Boy Behind the Curtain, which, among many things, explores class. In this chat with Dumbo Feather interviewer Myke Bartlett, Tim shares some of his insights on Australia’s changing socio-economic landscape, and how he has confronted snobbery to open himself up to many diff...
Dec 13, 2021•25 min
This week on the podcast we have Dr Tim Dean – author of "How We Became Human, and Why We Need to Change," a book about how our evolved moral minds are out of step with the modern world. Tim has a Doctorate in philosophy from the University of New South Wales on the evolution of morality and has expertise in ethics, philosophy of biology and critical thinking. This chat with Berry spans some of the big ideas and questions around his most recent inquiry into human morality.If you’d like to spend ...
Nov 26, 2021•41 min
We have just launched issue 68 of Dumbo Feather magazine – themed “Treasured Spaces,” and one of the conversations we had for that was with author and TV presenter Holly Ringland. We came to know Holly through the ABC series, Back to Nature, in which she and actor Aaron Pedersen travel through vast, awe-inspiring Australian landscapes hearing the stories of the land. In this chat, Holly speaks with Dumbo Feather editor Nathan Scolaro about her experiences making the show, and the importance of t...
Nov 17, 2021•35 min
Welcome to our third and final instalment of the Dumbo Feather music mini-series. Our guest is a very good friend, someone we’ve had in the mag before and worked a lot with over the years, Dr Catherine Crock. Catherine’s a paediatrician at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, and 20 years ago, she founded a remarkable foundation and program called Hush – which brings musicians into hospital environments to compose music that will reduce anxiety and stress for patients and their family and...
Oct 29, 2021•45 min
This episode we’re bringing back an old favourite, a conversation we recorded in 2018 with psychotherapist Esther Perel who has changed the way we think about love, connection and sex. Her books, Ted Talks and podcast “Where Should We Begin” have all become international sensations as she focuses on relational intelligence, and often brings us inside the therapy room to explore intimacy and eroticism and where those parts of ourselves become stuck. In this chat with Berry, Esther explores why mo...
Oct 12, 2021•51 min
This week's chat is led by our good friend Helena Norberg-Hodge, champion of all things localising. She is joined by none other than Johann Hari, the Swiss-British journalist behind the smash hit book Lost Connections, which uncovers the real causes behind depression and the unexpected solutions, some of which land right in Helena’s work – connecting with community.This episode is brought to you by our friends at Patagonia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 23, 2021•41 min
Much-loved Dumbo Feather friend Hugh Mackay joins us on the podcast this week, sharing the insights, research and thinking behind his latest book "The Kindness Revolution." Hugh spoke with us as part of an interactive Small Giants Academy conversation event in July, hosted by our head of programming, Eleanor Gammell. Thanks to Australian Ethical for partnering with us on this episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sep 15, 2021•35 min
In May 2021, we ran our first four-week Storytelling for Change Course at Small Giants Academy. Each Wednesday, 15 participants would gather in the Zoom room to talk about how story shapes our individual lives and the cultures we are part of. We learned skills for finessing our stories and were joined by some of our much-loved Dumbo Feather storytellers, including Padraig O Tuama, Lydia Fairhall and Danielle Caruana.Across the course, participants were tasked with composing a story from their li...
Sep 01, 2021•26 min
Welcome to episode 2 of our music mini-series on the Dumbo Feather podcast, where we’re sharing readings, conversations and most importantly music to celebrate our latest issue of Dumbo Feather magazine. In this episode, we’re bringing you a reading by Melbourne-based recorder virtuoso Genevieve Lacey. Genevieve creates poetic, sensual worlds in a variety of contexts – from the stage to the garden to the radio.During the ups and downs of 2020, Genevieve created the album Bower. In the following ...
Aug 25, 2021•30 min
Meet Jade Miles from Black Barn Farm! Black Barn is a regenerative, intentional orchard and nursery that operates on permaculture principles. They run farm tours and workshops, and promote homesteading within the rhythms of the seasons. Jade recently released a beautiful book called Futuresteading: Live Like Tomorrow Matter which is full of practical skills, recipes and rituals for connecting with your environment and community, and embracing a simpler, steadier way of being. Jade shares her sto...
Aug 17, 2021•48 min
Lydia Fairhall reads her essay from Issue 64 of Dumbo Feather magazine titled "On Healing." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jul 30, 2021•14 min
Greetings friends! This is the first of three music episodes of the Dumbo Feather podcast, a mini-series we’ve put together to celebrate our music issue of the magazine, which you can get over at our website dumbofeather.com or at speciality newsagents and retailers.For the next three months, we’re going to spotlight some of the musicians featured in the pages of the issue and bring their stories and music to you ears.We’ve got two musical powerhouses for you in this episode. Indigenous opera si...
Jul 22, 2021•24 min
Today we're sharing the recording from the launch event of our truth issue of Dumo Feather - it’s a conversation between two familiar voices on the podcast – author and activist, Sarah Wilson, and publisher of Dumbo Feather Berry Liberman. We are very sorry about the poor audio quality. The event was recorded live in Sydney and streamed over Zoom, hence the sound didn't come out so great. But, the conversation is so insightful and useful for anyone grappling with the divisiveness and mistruths o...
Jul 15, 2021•30 min
Hello! Today we are sharing a conversation between two extraordinary women who have both featured in the pages of our magazine, Claire Dunn and Ella Noah Bancroft. Both are passionate rewilding facilitators, leading their communities into deeper relationship with the natural world, them selves and others. Claire has just released her second book, Rewilding the Urban Soul, which we’ll be hearing more about in an episode down the track. Here, she is getting us acquainted with Ella’s mission. Ella ...
Jun 29, 2021•43 min
In anticipation of our music issue of Dumbo Feather, we're sharing an oldie but a goodie with you all. It’s our chat with Aussie music legend Xavier Rudd, which took place a few year’s back. Xavier is a folk, blues artist and multi-instrumentalist, whose songs speak to the heart of many environmental and social issues. He’s speaking here with another familiar voice, songwriter and Dumbo Feather friend, Lydia Fairhall. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Jun 16, 2021•29 min
In this episode we hear from Fiona Armstrong, Executive Director of the Climate and Health Alliance. These legends exist to highlight the health impacts of climate change, believing that if the health sector leads on climate advocacy, then decision-makers and the public will act, because we the community care about health and trusts health voices. Earlier this year, The Climate and Health Alliance released a fascinating study titled “Australia in 2030” which presents narrative scenarios of 5 pos...
Jun 07, 2021•40 min
One of the things we love at Dumbo Feather is learning about new models of success which we can implement in our communities and nations to ensure more prosperity across the board - for people and planet, not just the top one percent. A trailblazer in this work is Kate Raworth, an economist for the University of Oxford who devised the doughnut economic model, which defines the social and environmental boundaries we must live within in order to thrive. If you haven’t come across this work already...
May 18, 2021•44 min
In this conversation, we hear from one of the seminal writers in tree communication, Peter Wohlleben, who’s book “The Hidden Life of Trees” revolutionised our understanding of how trees nurture and talk to each other. The international bestseller draws on groundbreaking scientific discoveries to reveal the ways in which trees are like human families and communities, supporting the young ones as they grow, sharing nutrients to those who are sick or struggling, even warning each other of impending...
Apr 28, 2021•25 min
Two years ago, our publisher Berry Liberman sat down with Worimi singer-songwriter Lydia Fairhall for one of the richest and most joyful inquiries of our inner and outer landscapes. Since then, Lydia has become a mentor and friend, whose wise counsel has expanded so much of our thinking and work. The conversation featured in our commemorative 60th edition of Dumbo Feather, titled "Belonging." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Apr 16, 2021•47 min
Our current issue of Dumbo Feather magazine is all about truth and critical thinking. Our editor-in-chief Berry Liberman sat down with the wonderful Lisa Marchiano, a social worker and Jungian analyst based in Philadelphia (who you might know from her podcast This Jungian Life), to discuss discernment, the challenges posed by mass movements, and why we need to make friends with doubt.If these ideas sparked your curiosity, then get a hold of issue 66 of Dumbo Feather magazine, available at select...
Mar 26, 2021•41 min
International dharma teacher and Dumbo Feather friend Catherine Ingram attended a recent Small Giants team huddle and shared this potent reflection on uncertainty with us. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 10, 2021•16 min
This episode we bring you a reading of one of our essays from the Rest issue of Dumbo Feather magazine. It's by our much-loved contributor Lauren L. Hill, who you can also hear over at the Water People podcast, and it's called "Minding My Mothers." Thanks to the guys at Cheshire Audio and Yaga for editing this episode and weaving together music, sound and voice so beautifully. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 25, 2021•12 min
We are catching waves on the podcast this month with longboarding champion Belinda Baggs, who hails from Torquay, Australia. Belinda is a surfing ambassador for Patagonia Australia and the co-founder of Surfers for Climate, a sea-roots movement dedicated to positive climate action. She chats with Dumbo Feather favourite and fellow champion surfer, Lauren Hill. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 11, 2021•39 min
This month's chat is with the delightful & insightful Lucy Peach, author of the book Period Queen. Hailing from Fremantle WA, Lucy is a folk singer, performer & a long time champion of the power of the menstrual cycle. We love the way Lucy talks about the period and the invitation that is present in each stage of that cycle. This conversation was had in October last year for our current issue of Dumbo Feather magazine, which is all about rest and the cycles that we are both part of and a...
Jan 20, 2021•39 min
