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This article appears in the April Relocalize Newsletter. See all past newsletters here.
This month we caught up with Deborah and Spencer Lindsay, in Monterey, California. Together they produce and host Tomorrow Matters, a talk radio program that puts the spotlight on environmental solutions to the global ecological crises — for a better world tomorrow. Topics on the show include climate change, peak oil, permaculture, green business, alternative transportation, renewable energy and more.
We first met Deborah Lindsay through her involvement with the Relocalization Network as co-founder of Sustainable Monterey County, one of the first groups to join the Network. She has been involved in educating communities about peak oil and climate change for many years, and has extensive experience in media and event production. While a student at New College in Santa Rosa, CA, she also studied with now Post Carbon Senior Fellow Richard Heinberg. Read her full bio here.
Having had experience in event production, community networking and communications, she decided to venture into radio in 2006 to take advantage of a medium with the potential to reach a much wider audience beyond the local community. She approached the local radio station and pitched her idea for a show that would focus on the implications of climate change and peak oil, and how we on an individual and community level can take steps to transition to a more sustainable path. Needless to say her idea was met with enthusiasm and her weekly talk show turned into a daily talk show as of May 2007. So far she has hosted over 200 shows and, she estimates based on letters and phone calls, garnered up to 5,000 listeners a day from Vancouver, BC, to San Diego, CA to Pheonix, AZ to London, UK.
The radio station itself is relatively young and has grown through media partnerships, like promotions for the local film festival. “The costs of the show are paid through selling short commercials, but the good side is that you can choose who to partner with – I look to partner with local businesses and organizations that are doing positive actions that can serve the community, for example, a local solar company” she said.
To be a guest on the show, individuals must be working on modeling solutions ‘for a better tomorrow.’ Guests have included Liz Walker of the Ithaca Eco Village, Jason Bradford of Willits Economic Localization, and Daniel Lerch, Program Manager of Post Carbon Cities. Deborah arranges interviews with a six week lead time and does advance research and preparations before the shows. '"The final question I ask guests is 'What is one thing that people can do to start making the transition?' There have been some great answers. One answer was, 'The best thing you can do is share a meal together…have one slow meal a week.’" All in all, hosting this radio show has highlighted for her our need to change our ideas of how we’re going into the green economy.
“For the immediate future, the goal is to get podcasting, and to have some syndication for other stations to broadcast the show in their community. Ultimately, we’ll be looking for ways to make it fiscally sustainable,” she said. Stay tuned for details.
Tomorrow Matters - "Talk radio for a Better Tomorrow" airs weekdays from 2 to 3 pm on KRXA 540 AM based out of Sand City, CA and is available live from the KRXA website at www.krxa540.com. Deborah also led KRXA to became the first Green Certified Radio Station in the Central Coast region through the Monterey Bay Green Business Certification Program. Visit the website, www.deborahlindsay.com, for show details.
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