In this episode, we dive into environmental literature and climate fiction (Cli-Fi) with Professor Dylan Winchock. We discuss what counts as ‘environmental lit,’ how stories can change how we think and act, and how Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake helps students grapple with the ethics of technology and climate justice. We unpack how literature differs from news and social media disaster narratives and explore how good stories can help us process feelings of dread and grief and move us from fear to agency. 

CREDITS  

Guest: Dylan Winchock 

Hosts: Saturn Salama 

Producers: Elden Cadena and Saturn Salama 

Editor: Elden Cadena 

Research: Saturn Salama 

Script: Saturn Salama 

Social Media Content: Molly Saruwatari 

Music: Marios Panousos 

Faculty Advisor: Anne Dabb  

Climate to Action: A CSUSM Student Podcast is an initiative of the CSUSM Climate Action and Sustainability Center. The podcast is advised by faculty from the Philosophy Department and the Environment Studies Program in the College of Humanities, Arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences. Climate to Action is produced at Inspiration Studios on the campus of California State University, San Marcos.

CSUSM’s own Dr. Elizabeth Ridder joins us to talk about what first drew her to geography and conservation work and why the Mediterranean basin is such a vital—and vulnerable—hotspot for biodiversity and climate resilience. We explore what makes this region unique, the climate pressures it’s facing, and how her fieldwork connects to the bigger picture of global environmental change.

From U.S. national parks to protected areas around the world, Dr. Ridder breaks down what funding cuts really mean on the ground and how conservation can support communities.

CREDITS 

Guests: Dr. Elizabeth Ridder

Host: Molly Saruwatari

Producers: Elden Cadena and Saturn Salama 

Editor: Elden Cadena 

Research: Molly Saruwatari and Saturn Salama

Script: Molly Saruwatari

Social Media: Molly Saruwatari

Music: Marios Panousos 

Faculty Advisor: Anne Dabb 

Erika Rodriguez joins us to share the moment a Category 4 storm in Fiji pulled her into climate action—and how that experience helped spark San Diego Climate Week. We dig into what it takes to build a city-wide movement, how she measures success beyond a single week, and why her long-term hope is that someday, we won’t need a “Climate Week” at all! Tune in to hear why.

Recorded live in the barn at Coastal Roots Farm in Encinitas during the inaugural San Diego Climate Week.

CREDITS 

Guests: Erika Rodriguez

Hosts: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama   

Producers: Elden Cadena and Saturn Salama 

Editor: Elden Cadena 

Research: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama

Script: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama

Social Media: Molly Saruwatari

Music: Marios Panousos 

Faculty Advisor: Anne Dabb 

Climate to Action: A CSUSM Student Podcast is an initiative of the CSUSM Climate Action and Sustainability Center. The podcast is advised by faculty from the Philosophy Department and the Environment Studies Program in the College of Humanities, Arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences. Climate to Action is produced at Inspiration Studios on the campus of California State University, San Marcos.