This episode is a call to optimism — proof that regeneration is not only possible, but already happening. Across the world, lands once barren are coming back to life within years, not decades. By following the pillars of life, we can restore biodiversity, draw down carbon, and heal the planet that sustains us.

My guest is Ananda Fitzsimmons — the President of the Board of Directors at Regeneration Canada, an author, advocate, and visionary voice for ecorestoration and regenerative agriculture.
She’s written two books: Hydrate the Earth: The Forgotten Role of Water in the Climate Crisis, and her latest, Restoring the Pillars of Life.

Ananda also founded Concentric Agriculture, a company that manufactures soil amendments from beneficial microorganisms — literally rebuilding the health of our planet from the ground up.

• Introduction: Celebrating Ananda’s achievement as the author of Restoring the Pillars of Life. She explains the three pillars of life — carbon, water, and biodiversity.

• Empowering everyday action: Ananda reminds us that real change doesn’t just come from governments or corporations — everyday people can play a powerful role in regeneration.

• A startling truth: The total mass of man-made materials has now surpassed all living biomass on Earth.

• Education and empowerment: Are schools teaching our children enough about the environment and the essential pillars of life? Ananda discusses how we can do more to empower youth, showing that focusing solely on carbon emissions misses the bigger story.

• “The antidote to despair is seeing a way forward.”

• Case study: The Loess Plateau in China stands as a living example of re-greening — restoring biodiversity to once-dead land.

• Beyond net zero: Getting to net zero carbon isn’t enough — it doesn’t regenerate land or restore the ecosystems that support life.

• Microscopic life: Most of the planet’s biodiversity exists at the microscopic level. It’s there that the complex activities sustaining all life take place — when we disrupt these cycles, we endanger the natural balance that supports us.

• Deforestation and rainfall: Deforestation plays a major role in reduced rainfall. Ananda draws a fascinating comparison between the human microbiome and the microorganisms in soil — both essential to keeping their hosts healthy. She also shares emerging innovations in sustainable agriculture that work with, not against, nature.

• Profit through regeneration: Regenerative agriculture can be more profitable because it reduces the need for external inputs, restoring soil health naturally.

• Reimagining social systems: Building cooperative models — rather than purely competitive ones — helps align human systems with nature’s regenerative patterns.

• Hope in action: The Loess Plateau stands as living proof that regeneration can happen faster than we think. The work of John D. Liu is just one of many inspiring examples.

Ananda’s books:

Restoring The Pillars Of Life: https://a.co/d/fKIVhfv

Hydrate The Earth: https://a.co/d/iHBK9kJ

Ananda Fitzsimmons: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ananda-fitzsimmons-b8b78420/

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.regenerationcanada.org/

John D. Liu: https://youtu.be/bLdNhZ6kAzo?si=_EP2cKPcJxrUfvvv

Acknowledgements:

Music by Poradovskyi Andrii you can find him on

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