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Second Nature

Second Nature

By: Commons
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About this listen

How can we live sustainably in an unsustainable world? Second Nature is a podcast by Commons exploring how our sustainable choices impact our lives and the planet. Every week hear how listeners are taking public transit, composting food waste, eating more plant-based meals and practicing deconsumption to create the kind of world they want to live in. We'll calculate the carbon impact of collective action and get expert answers to your burning climate questions. Everyone’s sustainable life is unique. Tell us about yours. thecommons.earth/podcast 🌎 Join a community of tens of thousands of people using the Commons app to track their emissions and get rewarded for sustainable living: https://www.thecommons.earth/get-the-app-second-nature Follow us on Instagram to get behind-the-scenes footage and more stories from Commons' climate community: https://instagram.com/secondnatureearth© 2024 Commons Social Sciences
Episodes
  • We Want to Hear from You! Season 5 Call for Submissions
    Mar 27 2026

    Have you always wanted to be one of the worldwide community of voices you hear on Second Nature? Now's the time! We're accepting submissions for season 5 and we can't wait to hear from you. For the best shot at getting on season 5, please send in your submissions by April 3. But feel free to continue submitting through April as well.


    Submitting to the show is easy!

    1. Fill out this form to start your submission to Second Nature.
    2. After you fill out the form, you'll receive questions based on the topics you chose, with details about how to submit your audio.
    3. Record your audio and send it our way!
    • (00:00) - We want to hear from you on season 5!
    • (00:40) - How to submit
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    2 mins
  • Reconnection Through Reciprocity: Learning From Nature
    Feb 25 2026

    All season, we’ve rooted ourselves in community. Inspired by vast, underground webs of mycellium we’ve shared ways to create local networks of support, information, and resilience. We’ve talked about how we can use our collective power to prep for climate disasters, protect the water, and use our dollars to resist consumption and combat greenwashing.


    On this episode, we're ending the season by reminding ourselves that we’re part of nature and that we can look to our fellow animals, as well as plants and fungi, at any time for lessons in community, resilience, and patience.


    📱 Download the Commons app.

    🌎 Find citations and further reading in the full show notes.

    📞 Want to submit your Community Classified? We'd love to hear from you!

    📷 Follow Second Nature on Instagram.


    Episode Credits

    • Listener contributions: Amber Sit, Ashley Walker, Grace Hebert, Justina, Leena Joshi, Kasia Hertz, Inanna McCarty, Gabrielle Gustilo, Janna, Hockenjos, Mary Klene
    • Editing and engineering: Evan Goodchild‍
    • Hosting and production: Katelan Cunningham
    • (00:00) - Introduction
    • (01:41) - We’re all connected
    • (03:40) - What our community has learned from nature
    • (09:17) - Tracing back the thread of life with Robin Wall Kimmerer
    • (29:14) - Looking back at season 4 and what’s to come
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    36 mins
  • Where Did All the Water Go?
    Feb 18 2026

    Humans have a way of abstracting nature so far from its source that we take something as huge and powerful as water and isolate it, viewing it only as a resource for ourselves rather than an integral part of something much, much bigger than our sinks, showers, and dishwashers.

    On this episode, we’re going to try to shrink the distance between ourselves and the water that keeps us alive, we’re going to hear how you’re connecting with water, and we're going to take stock of the ecological and financial impacts of trying to control water. Plus, we’re going to talk to journalist Erica Gies about how we need to change our relationship with water for our safety, our health, and the health of the ecosystems we’re a part of.


    📱 Download the Commons app.

    🌎 Find citations and further reading in the full show notes.

    📞 Want to submit your Community Classified? We'd love to hear from you!

    📷 Follow Second Nature on Instagram.


    Episode Credits

    • Listener contributions: Ally, Braden Marazzo-Nowicki, Leïla Six, Louka, Markos Delaportas, Nick Blocha, Sunseed Desert Technology, Tavia, Danielle Bird
    • Editing and engineering: Evan Goodchild‍
    • Hosting and production: Katelan Cunningham
    • (00:20) - Where does our water come from?
    • (01:45) - What is water bankruptcy?
    • (04:35) - Our relationship with water
    • (09:37) - How did we get here?
    • (31:48) - How much is our water neglect costing us?
    • (34:19) - Community classifieds
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    44 mins
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