Chrysalis with John Fiege

John Fiege
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I’m a professor, filmmaker, and storyteller interested in the question of how we can transform ourselves—as individuals, as societies, as an entire species—in ways that allow our planet’s ecological systems to thrive. I began this work through the study of environmental history and cultural geography. I then became a filmmaker and photographer focused on stories of transformation in the face of ecological peril. Most recently, I launched the Chrysalis newsletter and podcast to have conversations with a wide variety of environmental thinkers, as well as to share my writing on our relationship with the natural world. My newsletter, podcast, and photographs are available for free to anyone. By becoming a paid subscriber on johnfiege.earth—what we call a Butterfly Subscriber—you can also stream my films and post on the community comments section of the newsletter. Your support provides essential resources for the newsletter and podcast to grow and remain free and ad-free for everyone. Humanity has been a very hungry caterpillar, eating everything in sight. Can we now transform into a beautiful butterfly ready to pollinate the flowers, rather than just eat the leaves? This is the question that animates me—and I believe that digging deeply into the question itself can catalyze transformation.

  1. 2d ago

    41. Martin Melosi — The Origins of Our Waste Crisis

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/41-martin-melosi-the-origins-of-our-waste-crisis Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. Waste is a massive global environmental and social justice problem—and it grows larger every year. Over the last century, while the human population has quadrupled, our global waste production has exploded at an even higher rate. Listen on Apple Podcasts Waste is a major source of greenhouse gases, polluting our land, air, and water while destroying vital habitats. It is also a profound issue of environmental justice: wealthy nations produce the vast majority of global waste, often shipping it to poorer countries—with or without their consent. Nowhere is this crisis more visible than in our obsession with plastic, which has grown nearly 230-fold since 1950. Without a dramatic systemic overhaul, the annual flow of plastic into our oceans is expected to triple in the next two decades. Listen on Spotify Solving our waste crisis can feel like an impossible task. But it is simply too big to ignore. And to figure out where we are going, we first have to understand how we got here. Listen on Captivate Martin Melosi is a historian who has spent decades investigating how our waste systems developed. His work focuses on urban environmental history, with seminal books like Garbage in the Cities, The Sanitary City, and Fresh Kills: A History of Consuming and Discarding in New York City. He is the Cullen Professor Emeritus and the Founding Director of the Center for Public History at the University of Houston. Listen on YouTube For several years, I have been working with Marty on a documentary film about consumption and waste in New York City. We recorded this conversation at his home in Houston on November 8, 2025. We talk about the infamous Fresh Kills Landfill, the history of consumption and waste, and how historical perspective is a vital tool in tackling the waste crisis. Garbage in the Cities: Refuse, Reform, and the Environment I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Here is Martin Melosi. Notes and Media RecommendationsMartin Melosi: Faculty Profile at the University of Houston Department of Historyhttps://www.uh.edu/class/history/faculty-and-staff/melosi_m/index.phpThe History of New York, Told Through Its Trashhttps://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/the-history-of-new-york-told-through-its-trashMartin V. Melosi: Fresh Kills: A History of Consuming and Discarding in New York Cityhttps://cup.columbia.edu/book/fresh-kills/9780231189484/Martin V. Melosi: Garbage in the Cities: Refuse, Reform, and the Environmenthttps://upittpress.org/books/9780822958574/Martin V. Melosi: The Sanitary City: Environmental Services in Urban America from Colonial Times to the Presenthttps://upittpress.org/books/9780822959830/World waste: statistics by country and brief factshttps://www.developmentaid.org/news-stream/post/158158/world-waste-statistics-by-countryThe World has a Waste Problem. Here’s How to Fix Ithttps://www.ifc.org/en/blogs/2024/the-world-has-a-waste-problem#:~:text=Waste%20is%20responsible%20for%20a,up%20in%20dumpsites%20every%20day.The Pew Charitable Trusts and SYSTEMIQ: Breaking the Plastic Wave: Top Findings for Preventing Plastic Pollutionhttps://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2020/07/23/breaking-the-plastic-wave-top-findingsOECD: Global Plastics Outlook: Economic Drivers, Environmental Impacts and Policy Optionshttps://www.oecd.org/en/publications/global-plastics-outlook_de747aef-en.htmlFreshkills Park Alliance: The Transformation of the World's Largest Landfill into a Public Parkhttps://freshkillspark.org/Basel Action Network: Tracking the Global Trade of Toxic Waste and Plastic Pollutionhttps://www.ban.org/ CreditsThis episode was edited by Sofia Chang. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  2. Oct 29

    40. Tom Stolp — Inside the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs Scandal

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/40-tom-stolp-inside-the-cedar-gorge-clay-bluffs-scandal Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. Tom Stolp was on the frontlines of the fight to protect the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs project in Wisconsin back in 2022. At the time, he was the executive director of the Ozaukee Washington Land Trust. Today, he leads Restoring Lands, a land trust focused on the Milwaukee River Basin, which was formed in 2025 through the merger of his former organization with the River Revitalization Foundation. On our last episode, I spoke with Tom’s colleague, Charles Carlin of Gathering Waters, an alliance of Wisconsin’s land trusts. Charles discussed the critical role of land trusts and introduced the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs scandal as it was unfolding. If you haven’t heard that conversation yet, I highly recommend listening to it alongside this one. Listen on Apple Podcasts I spoke with Tom on August 24, 2022—just days after Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers rescued the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs project. He used federal pandemic recovery funds to bypass a legislative loophole that allowed an anonymous Republican lawmaker to block a state conservation grant with a secret pocket veto. As I explained in the last episode, this specific scandal set off a chain reaction. It ultimately led Wisconsin’s gerrymandered, Republican-controlled legislature to completely defund the state’s beloved conservation fund, the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, allowing it to expire on June 30, 2026. Listen on Spotify Now, the future of the program rests on the upcoming election on November 3, 2026. Voters will go to the polls to decide who will succeed Governor Evers and which party will control the legislature. Most importantly, this marks the first time the entire state legislature will be decided under fair, non-gerrymandered maps. Listen on Captivate While the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs survived this political battle, the broader future of Wisconsin's land stewardship is on the ballot next week. The story Tom tells in the midst of this scandal shines a light on what is at stake. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Listen on YouTube I begin my conversation with Tom talking about the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs on the shores of Lake Michigan. Here is Tom Stolp. Notes and Media Recommendations Tom Stolp, Executive Director of Restoring Landshttps://restoringlands.org/staff/Restoring Lands: The 2025 Merger of Ozaukee Washington Land Trust and River Revitalization Foundationhttps://restoringlands.org/history/Gathering Waters: The Story of the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs Nature Preservehttps://gatheringwaters.org/cedar-gorge-clay-bluffs-a-story-of-perseverance-determination/Gov. Evers Funds Major Conservation Projects, Including Cedar Gorge-Clay Bluffshttps://knowlesnelson.org/gov-evers-funds-cedar-gorge-knowles-nelson/Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision: Evers v. Marklein (2025 WI 36)https://www.wicourts.gov/sc/opinion/DisplayDocument.pdf?content=pdf&seqNo=980186Legislature’s finance committee rejects funding for Wisconsin’s largest land conservation efforthttps://www.wpr.org/economy/jfc-wisconsin-legislature-finance-funding-land-conservation-pelican-river-forestWhat States Can Learn from Wisconsin’s Win for Fair Mapshttps://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/what-states-can-learn-wisconsins-win-fair-mapsThe Cap Times: Skewed priorities led to death of Knowles-Nelsonhttps://captimes.com/opinion/dave-zweifel/opinion-skewed-priorities-led-to-death-of-knowles-nelson/article_4dd9110c-717d-40b8-9dbd-3e6847494629.htmlChrysalis Podcast: Episode 39 — Interview with Charles Carlinhttps://www.johnfiege.earth/39-charles-carlin-land-stewardship-and-political-sabotage-in-wisconsin/ Credits This episode was researched by Brodie Mutschler and edited by Sarah Westrich and Alice McClain. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  3. Oct 27

    39. Charles Carlin — Land Stewardship and Political Sabotage in Wisconsin

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/39-charles-carlin-land-stewardship-and-political-sabotage-in-wisconsin Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. Wisconsin has an unusual statewide conservation fund called the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. Named after Warren Knowles, a former Republican governor, and Gaylord Nelson, a former Democratic governor and U.S. Senator, the fund was designed to represent land stewardship as a bipartisan priority. For nearly 40 years, the protection of Wisconsin’s forests, prairies, shorelines, and wetlands enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support, protecting well over half a million acres of land. But in our current political climate, this unity has fractured. Listen on Apple Podcasts In 2022, a political scandal erupted around the program. The Ozaukee Washington Land Trust, in partnership with Ozaukee County, was awarded a $2.3 million matching grant to buy and protect a beautiful stretch of Lake Michigan coastline called the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs. However, the grant was suddenly blocked by an anonymous Republican legislator using a loophole in the state's legislative procedures. While Governor Tony Evers, a Democrat, ultimately saved the project using federal pandemic recovery funds, the battle was far from over. The very next year, another anonymous legislator blocked a grant for an even larger project: the Pelican River Forest in northern Wisconsin. Governor Evers had enough and sued the legislature. In 2024, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 6-1 that the legislature’s anonymous veto power over conservation grants was unconstitutional. Listen on Spotify Then, the Republican-controlled legislature retaliated. After failing to pass a weakened compromise bill that would have permanently stripped the program of its land-buying power, legislative leadership allowed the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program to completely expire on June 30, 2026. While the program remains on the books, it is officially out of money. If the Republicans could not keep their secret vetoes, they were going to let the entire program die—ignoring its massive popularity among Wisconsin voters. Now, Wisconsinites are out of options, except for one last chance. Next week, on November 3, 2026, Wisconsin voters will go to the polls to decide who will succeed Governor Evers and which party will control the legislature. For years, extreme Republican gerrymandering allowed the GOP to hold a near-supermajority in the legislature despite a roughly 50/50 statewide vote split. But after the state Supreme Court ruled those maps unconstitutional, next week’s election marks the first time the entire state legislature will be decided under fair, non-gerrymandered maps. Listen on Captivate The future of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program rests on this 2026 election. This week, I am releasing two interviews recorded in 2022 in the midst of the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs scandal. They serve as an essential time capsule of how we reached this crisis point. In this episode, I speak with Charles Carlin of Gathering Waters, an alliance of Wisconsin’s land trusts. We discuss the critical role land trusts play in protecting ecosystems and dive into the mechanics of the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs scandal. We spoke on July 26, 2022—after the grant was vetoed, but before the governor rescued the project. Later this week, I’ll release my conversation with Tom Stolp, executive director of Restoring Lands—known back in 2022 as the Ozaukee Washington Land Trust. Together, Charles and Tom paint a dramatic picture of this crisis as it unfolds, revealing why these land trusts are vital to Wisconsin's ecological future. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Here is Charles Carlin. Notes and Media RecommendationsCharles Carlin, Gathering Waters Chief Strategy Officerhttps://gatheringwaters.org/charles-carlin/Gathering Waters: The Story of the Cedar Gorge Clay Bluffs Nature Preservehttps://gatheringwaters.org/cedar-gorge-clay-bluffs-a-story-of-perseverance-determination/About the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Programhttps://knowlesnelson.org/about-knowles-nelson/Gov. Evers Funds Major Conservation Projects, Including Cedar Gorge-Clay Bluffshttps://knowlesnelson.org/gov-evers-funds-cedar-gorge-knowles-nelson/Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision: Evers v. Marklein (2025 WI 36)https://www.wicourts.gov/sc/opinion/DisplayDocument.pdf?content=pdf&seqNo=980186Legislature’s finance committee rejects funding for Wisconsin’s largest land conservation efforthttps://www.wpr.org/economy/jfc-wisconsin-legislature-finance-funding-land-conservation-pelican-river-forestWhat States Can Learn from Wisconsin’s Win for Fair Mapshttps://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/what-states-can-learn-wisconsins-win-fair-mapsThe Cap Times: Skewed priorities led to death of Knowles-Nelsonhttps://captimes.com/opinion/dave-zweifel/opinion-skewed-priorities-led-to-death-of-knowles-nelson/article_4dd9110c-717d-40b8-9dbd-3e6847494629.htmlKnowles-Nelson Advocacy Toolkithttps://knowlesnelson.org/toolkit/ CreditsThis episode was researched by Brodie Mutschler and edited by Kathryn Fair, Arthur Koenig, and Sarah Westrich. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  4. Oct 20

    38. Brendan Hoffman — Photographing Ecocide in Ukraine

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/38-brendan-hoffman-photographing-ecocide-in-ukraine Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. We are a few months away from the five-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The horrors of this war pepper the news on a daily basis. The victims are soldiers and civilians, adults and children, parents and grandparents. Russia is increasingly hitting civilian targets in Kyiv and destroying infrastructure across the country. With this kind of constant trauma and suffering, it’s easy to lose track of the war’s impact on the non-human world. We might even feel guilty asking about the impacts on the natural world when entire towns are being destroyed and families are bombed as they sleep. Listen on Apple Podcasts But the assault on nature is a vitally important part of understanding the consequences of war. Rather than detracting from the human costs of conflict, looking closely at the ecological devastation expands and deepens our understanding of how people are affected by violence on this scale. Brendan Hoffman is an acclaimed photographer whose work has been featured in National Geographic and shown at festivals and in galleries globally, earning him the Philip Jones Griffiths Award and support from the Magnum Foundation and the Pulitzer Center. Listen on Spotify Brendan was living in Moscow when Putin attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Immediately, he began to cover the war, and he soon relocated to Kyiv, where he spent years covering the conflict for The New York Times. As the war dragged on, a moment of relative calm within the fast-paced world of breaking news allowed Brendan to ask what impact this violence was having on nature. What he discovered was evidence of the destruction of nature being used as an active weapon of war. Much of his reporting began to circle around the relatively new concept of ecocide. Listen on YouTube But the ecological legacy of war is complex. While the direct impacts are horrendous, war can sometimes lead to unexpected ecological resilience—for example, with the absence of human activity. Brendan’s work dives deeply into this nuance and complexity. In addition to documenting the assault on nature with his camera, Brendan also picked up a pen, culminating in a major article in The New York Times in 2025 called “Ukraine’s Ravaged Environment.” Listen on Captivate Brendan now has a young child and is spending the year back in the U.S., where his wife, who is Ukrainian and also a photographer, has a prestigious Nieman Fellowship at Harvard. I caught up with him last month when he was at the University at Buffalo giving a talk on his work. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Here is Brendan Hoffman. Notes and Media RecommendationsThe New York Times: “Ukraine’s Ravaged Environment” by Brendan Hoffmanhttps://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/04/02/world/europe/ukraine-russia-war-environment.htmlBrendan Hoffman: Official Website and Ukraine War Portfoliohttps://www.brendanhoffman.com/The Pulitzer Center: Brendan Hoffman Journalist Profile & Grantee Projectshttps://pulitzercenter.org/people/brendan-hoffmanThe Guardian: Ukraine to Prosecute Russia for 'Ecocide' Over Environmental War Crimeshttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/30/ukraine-to-prosecute-russia-for-ecocide-over-environmental-war-crimesUnited Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): The Environmental Toll of the Conflict in Ukrainehttps://www.unep.org/resources/report/environmental-consequences-conflict-ukraineTurning Point Magazine: Ukraine: Love+War, a Reviewhttps://turningpointmag.org/2024/10/16/ukraine-lovewar-a-review/ CreditsThis episode was edited by Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  5. Oct 13

    37. Isabel Duarte-Gray — “Tennessee Valley Authority”

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/37-isabel-duarte-gray-tennessee-valley-authority Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. Isabel Duarte-Gray’s poem, “Tennessee Valley Authority,” takes its title from the energy company and public utility created by Congress during the New Deal and owned, to this day, by the federal government. Through hydropower projects and other economic development programs, the Tennessee Valley Authority sought to modernize and electrify the Tennessee River Valley, which stretches across parts of Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. Listen on Apple Podcasts By damming the river to create lakes and power, the Tennessee Valley Authority successfully created many jobs and lifted multitudes out of poverty, but there was a price for these large scale transformations. Entire towns and the surrounding ecosystems were flooded. 125,000 people were relocated. In 1966, the Tennessee Valley Authority dammed the Cumberland River, submerging the town of Kuttawa in Western Kentucky. All of the town’s residents were moved to a new location, which was then also named Kuttawa. This town, Kuttawa, is where Isabel Duarte-Gray grew up—just one fascinating piece of her background. Her mom’s family has lived in the area for generations, but her dad walked with his siblings, unaccompanied, to the United States from Mexico when he was eight years old. Isabel grew up poor, between Mexican and white Western Kentuckian cultures, not fully at home in either, and then she found herself at Amherst College, followed by Harvard University for her PhD. Listen on Spotify “Tennessee Valley Authority” probes this history and relationship to land, imagining the creatures that have been displaced and observing the ones that have taken their place. Isabel explores her complex relationship to home, which invites us to do the same. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Listen on YouTube “Tennessee Valley Authority” is one of the poems in Isabel Duarte-Gray’s collection of poetry, Even Shorn, which won the Linda Bruckheimer Series in Kentucky Literature, was a finalist in Poetry for the New England Book Awards, and was named to “The Best Books of 2021” from the Boston Globe. She is now Assistant Professor at Loyola University in New Orleans. Listen on Captivate This episode of Chrysalis is part of the Chrysalis Poets series. I spoke with Isabel on June 29, 2022. Here is Isabel Duarte-Gray reading her poem, “Tennessee Valley Authority.” Tennessee Valley Authority by Isabel Duarte-Gray The corpse boat split the lilies in a black and heaving ribbon in a final day on earth. This lake ain't lake the way a god shapes lakes with claws of ice. A living man remembers when this hole was not a place of many waters but a city drowned in just a day. Underneath the lilies can't you see the roofs where finches threw a nest for sowing panic grass and babies. There was brides made in this place where herons sweep at corners. Mudcats breed here now their knowing whiskers rooted. Home the only thing to root here in these rooms we cannot save. Notes and Media Recommendations Even Shorn by Isabel Duarte-Grayhttps://www.sarabandebooks.org/all-titles/p/even-shorn-isabel-duarte-greyIsabel Duarte-Gray's Loyola University Pagehttps://www.loyno.edu/academics/faculty-and-staff-directory/isabel-duarte-grayIsabel Duarte-Gray's Poetry Foundation Page https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/isabel-duarte-gray-6161ff74a720c"Fallen Bridge" by Isabel Duarte-Gray https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/156609/fallen-bridge"Garden" by Isabel Duarte-Greyhttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/156608/garden-61644221ab64a"Like As of Fire" by Isabel Duarte Grayhttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/162600/like-as-of-fire"Like Hell You Are" by Isabel Duarte-Grayhttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/156606/like-hell-you-are"Tennessee Valley Authority" by Isabel Duarte-Grayhttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/156607/tennesse-valley-authority"Groom XII" by Isabel Duarte-Grayhttps://www.thedriftmag.com/groom-xii/"Cutter Quilt" by Isabel Duarte-Grayhttps://www.brinkerhoffpoetry.org/poems/cutter-quilt Credits This episode was researched by Lydia Montgomery and edited by Sarah Westrich. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  6. Oct 6

    36. Matt McPherson — Apple Ketchup

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/36-matt-mcpherson-apple-ketchup Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. It’s not everyday that you encounter a new recipe for ketchup. Most people wouldn’t even think of making their own ketchup. It’s one of the most ubiquitous and cheapest condiments in America. Listen on Apple Podcasts When we asked the celebrated Boston chef, Matt McPherson, to share a recipe on the podcast that represents sustainable food for him, he decided to bring a recipe for Apple Ketchup. This is not your typical ketchup, and Matt is not your typical chef. Listen on Spotify For Matt, sustainability is an idea that applies to every aspect of the restaurant business and the food system. His approach to sustainability is expansive. It includes the food he buys, the meals he cooks, and the way he works with his employees. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Listen on YouTube This episode of Chrysalis is part of the Chrysalis Kitchen series. I spoke with Matt on September 20, 2022, when he was running his first restaurant, Cafe Iterum, located in East Boston. Here is Matt McPherson describing the recipe he brought with him: Apple Ketchup. Listen on Captivate Notes and Media RecommendationsIterum Foods Websitehttps://iterumfoods.com/Matt McPherson's Medium profilehttps://medium.com/@matt_41270Matt McPherson's instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/chefmcpherson/?hl=enMatt McPherson's Take a Chef profile https://www.takeachef.com/en-us/chef/matthew-mcpherson?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic-seo&utm_content=en-us-chef-matthew-mcpherson CreditsThis episode was researched by Nina Bunn and edited by James Bowers. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  7. Sep 29

    35. Jennifer Huang — “From the Taiwan Cypress in Alishan”

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/35-jennifer-huang-from-the-taiwan-cypress-in-alishan Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. There is so much going on Jennifer Huang’s poem, “From the Taiwan Cypress in Alishan,” starting with how the words are laid out on the page, with a wide blank space between two columns. It makes me wonder whether I should read across the page or down one column and then the other. The poem works either way. Jennifer takes on the persona of the Cypress tree itself, and the magic flows from there. I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Listen on Spotify Jennifer Huang was born in Maryland to Taiwanese immigrants and is the author of Return Flight, winner of the 2021 Ballard Spahr Prize for Poetry from Milkweed Editions. Jennifer holds an MFA in poetry from the Helen Zell Writers’ Program at the University of Michigan, and their poems have appeared in POETRY, The Rumpus, Narrative Magazine, and many other publications. Their other recognitions include The Academy of American Poets Prize, The Bain-Swiggett Poetry Prize, and the Brooklyn Poets Fellowship. Listen on YouTube This episode of Chrysalis is part of the Chrysalis Poets series. I spoke with Jennifer on October 5, 2022. Here is Jennifer Huang reading their poem, “From the Taiwan Cypress in Alishan.” Listen on Captivate Notes and Media Recommendations Return Flight by Jennifer Huanghttps://milkweed.org/book/return-flight?srsltid=AU7gw4VdCtQtUTmS0vf-kTrPWDfgnchilHob9Cpz2pI4mIILy5BOQgzfJennifer Huang's websitehttps://www.huangjennifer.com/Jennifer Huang's Substackhttps://wildlyrewilding.substack.com/Jennifer Huang's poets.org pagehttps://poets.org/poet/jennifer-huang“Departure” by Jennifer Huanghttps://onbeing.org/programs/jennifer-huang-departure/“Manifest” by Jennifer Huanghttps://www.poetrynw.org/poetry/jennifer-huang-manifest/“That dawn at the beach” and “Notes on Orange” by Jennifer Huanghttps://aaww.org/two-poems-by-jennifer-huang/“Procedure” by Jennifer Huanghttps://poems.com/poem/procedure/“Zuihitsu for Yushan” by Jennifer Huanghttps://aaww.org/zuihitsu-for-yushan/ CreditsThis episode was researched by Elena Cebulash, Lydia Montgomery, and Nina Bunn and edited by Sarah Westrich and Kathryn Fair. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

  8. Sep 22

    34. Anne Haven McDonnell — “The Study”

    Subscribe to Chrysalis at https://www.johnfiege.earth/ Show notes: https://www.johnfiege.earth/34-anne-haven-mcdonnell-the-study Listen to Chrysalis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Captivate. When she was in her twenties, Anne Haven McDonnell worked on an organic farm on an island in British Columbia. She made good friends and visited frequently in the years that followed. In her time there, she had some encounters with wolves, who live wild on the island, and she began to explore the tensions around co-existence with wolves. As Anne turned her attention full-time to poetry, she began to write about wolves and the people who share space with them. On this episode, we dive into one of those poems: “The Study.” Listen on Spotify I’m John Fiege, and this is Chrysalis. You can subscribe at johnfiege.earth, where you will also find show notes and all episodes of the podcast, plus my writing, photographs, and films. Anne Haven McDonnell lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she teaches at the Institute of American Indian Arts. Her poems have been published widely, including in Orion Magazine, The American Journal of Poetry, and The Georgia Review. She is the author of Singing Under Snow, winner of the Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize, and Breath on a Coal, winner of the Halcyon Poetry Prize. She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Poetry and a MacDowell fellowship, and she has held residencies at the Andrews Forest and the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. Listen on YouTube This episode of Chrysalis is part of the Chrysalis Poets series. I spoke with Anne on September 13, 2022. Listen on Captivate Here is Anne Haven McDonnell reading her poem, “The Study.” Notes and Media RecommendationsSinging Under Snow by Anne Haven McDonnellhttps://msupress.org/9781611865639/singing-under-snow/Breath on a Coal by Anne Haven McDonnellhttps://bookshop.org/p/books/breath-on-a-coal-anne-haven-mcdonnell/a856cb6da59bc77c?ean=9781734820898&affiliate=20964Living with Wolves by Anne Haven McDonnellhttps://www.splitrockreview.org/store/living-with-wolvesAnne Haven McDonnell's profile on National Endowment for the Artshttps://www.arts.gov/impact/literary-arts/creative-writing-fellows/anne-haven-mcdonnellAnne Haven McDonnell's profile on poets.org https://poets.org/poet/anne-haven-mcdonnellAnne Haven McDonnell's profile on MacDowellhttps://www.macdowell.org/artists/anne-haven-mcdonnell Credits This episode was researched by Nina Bunn and edited by Sarah Westrich, Kathryn Fair, and Alice McClain. The podcast assistant is Domenica Klamm. Music is by Daniel Rodríguez Vivas. Mixing is by Morgan Honaker. ----------- Subscribe at https://www.johnfiege.earth/

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7 Ratings

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I’m a professor, filmmaker, and storyteller interested in the question of how we can transform ourselves—as individuals, as societies, as an entire species—in ways that allow our planet’s ecological systems to thrive. I began this work through the study of environmental history and cultural geography. I then became a filmmaker and photographer focused on stories of transformation in the face of ecological peril. Most recently, I launched the Chrysalis newsletter and podcast to have conversations with a wide variety of environmental thinkers, as well as to share my writing on our relationship with the natural world. My newsletter, podcast, and photographs are available for free to anyone. By becoming a paid subscriber on johnfiege.earth—what we call a Butterfly Subscriber—you can also stream my films and post on the community comments section of the newsletter. Your support provides essential resources for the newsletter and podcast to grow and remain free and ad-free for everyone. Humanity has been a very hungry caterpillar, eating everything in sight. Can we now transform into a beautiful butterfly ready to pollinate the flowers, rather than just eat the leaves? This is the question that animates me—and I believe that digging deeply into the question itself can catalyze transformation.

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