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Second Nature

Second Nature

By: Commons
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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
  • Can We Vote Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis?

    Can We Vote Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis?
    May 27 2026

    Government seems to move slower than the pace of climate change, so do our votes for climate candidates and policies actually make a difference?

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    In this episode, we're connecting the dots between climate and policy and hearing from people around the world about how their governments’ policies are affecting their lives and their regions. We're also catching up with HEATED editor-in-chief Emily Atkin to hear how climate reporting has changed over the past couple of presidential terms and how she keeps her head above water after a decade of reporting on climate. We'll also talk to Commons founder Sanchali Seth Pal about climate policies around the world that have actually worked.

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    If you're looking for resources to help you vote for the planet in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, or any upcoming U.S. election, here are some resources that could help: Vote Climate U.S. PAC's Voter Guide, Climate Cabinet's Climate Scorecard, League of Conservation Voter Scorecard.


    📱 Want to make your money count? Download the Commons app .

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

    📞 Want to submit to the show? We'd love to hear from you!

    📷 Follow Second Nature on Instagram.


    Episode Credits

    • Listener contributions: Anandi Yadav, Clara, Danielle Bird, Lindsay Kerns, Michael Chase, Nick Blocha, Shai
    • Editing and engineer: Evan Goodchild‍
    • Hosting and production: Katelan Cunningham


    Episode rundown:

    • (01:29) - Every vote you cast is a climate vote
    • (03:34) - The price tag on our planet's worst year yet
    • (10:46) - Emily Atkin won't let Big Oil off the hook
    • (30:06) - Which climate laws are actually working?
    • (39:30) - Local elections are crucial
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    43 mins
  • Can We Shop Our Way to "Clean"?

    Can We Shop Our Way to "Clean"?
    May 20 2026
    The word "clean" on your shampoo bottle means exactly nothing — legally, anyway. The U.S. has taken so long to update regulations that it's created a huge gap between what consumers want — products without toxic chemicals — and what the government regulates. This means only a small portion of toxic chemicals used in manufacturing are actually regulated at a national level. Folks like advocate and author Lindsay Dahl have been working for decades to close this gap, passing dozens of laws in the process. But the regulatory gap has left space for a "clean" industry to emerge, and rack up lots of cash. The "clean" beauty industry alone is worth $7 billion. In this episode, we talk to Lindsay Dahl about how we've gone this far without adequate toxicity regulation and how to shop smarter, we hear how big beauty brands have pushed back against regulation, we find out how to use our voices for federal-level change, and we hear how our community is navigating this tricky landscape.If you want to check out any of the orgs Lindsay mentioned, you can find some here, and the full list is in her book, Cleaning House: Toxic Free FutureNatural Resources Defense CouncilEnvironmental Defense FundEnvironmental Working GroupSaferstates.org Episode rundown: (00:36) - Why is this my job? (01:49) - The history of chemical regulation (05:49) - What does “clean” mean to you? (12:06) - The fight rid our homes of toxic chemicals (29:24) - Following the money (38:17) - What you can do (40:14) - Community Classified📱 Want to make your money count? Download the Commons app .🌎 Find citations and further reading in the full show notes.📞 Want to submit to the show? We'd love to hear from you!📷 Follow Second Nature on Instagram.Episode CreditsListener contributions: Anna, Darice Chang, Nyiah, Kayla Joy , Sawyer, Grace Hebert, Dom AltomariResearch: Makenna McBriertyEditing and engineering: Evan Goodchild‍Hosting and production: Katelan Cunningham
    Show More Show Less
    41 mins
  • War Has Always Been a Climate Issue

    War Has Always Been a Climate Issue
    May 13 2026

    Your workout leggings, your morning commute, and the fertilizer to grow your food — what do they have in common? They're all fossil fuel legacies of war. In this episode, we connect the dots between the military and the climate crisis, tracing how wartime decisions made decades ago still shape and pollute our everyday lives.

    We sit down with Neta C. Crawford, professor of international relations at the University of St. Andrews and author of The Pentagon, Climate Change, and War, to unpack a staggering blind spot in our global emissions picture: the military. We also follow the money with Commons co-founder Sanchali Pal to understand how the U.S. kept military missions out of the Kyoto Protocol, and what that means for climate targets today. We also hear how our community feels about using their money to avoid funding wars they don't support.

    Episode rundown:

    • (00:22) - The US military is the world's single largest institutional fossil fuel consumer.
    • (01:31) - War's Industrial Afterlife: Nylon, fertilizer, and freeways.
    • (05:55) - Community action: from campus divestment campaigns to rethinking their everyday spending.
    • (09:02) - A deep dive into military emissions, hidden history, and the case for diplomacy.
    • (38:07) - Following the Money: How Big Oil lobbied to keep military emissions off the global books
    • (44:18) - Your vote and your wallet are more powerful climate tools than you think.
    • (46:10) - Community Classified: Citizens’ Climate Lobby


    📱 Want to make your money count? Download the Commons app .

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

    📞 Want to submit to the show? We'd love to hear from you!

    📷 Follow Second Nature on Instagram.


    Episode Credits

    • Listener contributions: Braden Marazzo-Nowicki, Diana Holguin, Drew, Julia Nolasco, Fionaa Bhatia, Nicole Collins
    • Research: Makenna McBrierty
    • Editing and engineering: Evan Goodchild‍
    • Hosting and production: Katelan Cunningham
    Show More Show Less
    47 mins
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