036: Shannon Brescher Shea: Sustainability on the Home Front

Soul Soil: Where Agriculture and Spirit Intersect with Brooke Kornegay

“Parenthood is EASY!” said no one, ever. Raising children to be conscious, kind, sustainably-minded adults can be extra challenging in an age of global ecological collapse, and in a country characterized by immediate gratification, polarization, and single-use EVERYTHING. Today we talk with Shannon Brescher Shea about how to bridge our desire to be part of the solution, with being caretakers and models for the little people in our lives.

Shannon Brescher Shea is devoted to telling authentic stories about green living and parenting. She's the author of the environmental parenting advice book Growing Sustainable Together: Practical Resources to Raise Kind, Engaged, Resilient Children and writes the parenting blog We'll Eat You Up, We Love You So. After receiving a master's degree from Oxford University in Nature, Society, and Environmental Policy, she worked for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and U.S. Department of Energy. She biked from New York City to Washington D.C. to raise money for climate change advocacy, protested the Keystone XL pipeline when she was pregnant, and led family community bike rides. Shea has bylines in numerous publications, including the Washington Post, Sierra Magazine, Scary Mommy, and Romper. She lives in the Washington D.C. suburbs with her husband and two kids.

In this episode…

• Mom Guilt: the struggle between spending time on climate activism vs. being present for your children
• The many aspects of sustainability that arise in a family’s daily life that are all teachable moments
• Lessons children can learn from working in gardens (see article below)
• Kids who garden are more likely to try new foods!
• Psychological benefits to spending time outdoors (especially for children diagnosed with ADHD)
• Teaching kindness to children in words and action, especially regarding those who are different or have different circumstances
• Introducing children to environmental action in a playful way that empowers them to influence the power structures that affect us all
• Helping kids want less stuff by limiting their exposure to advertisements and helping them think critically about them
• Bringing awareness to the way the activities we choose to engage in impact the people, community, and world around us; making conscious choices

Resources

• Growing Sustainable Together: Practical Resources to Raise Kind, Engaged, Resilient Children by Shannon Brescher Shea

• https://welleatyouupweloveyouso.com/

• How gardening can help build healthier, happier kids by Shannon Brescher Shea (Washington Post)

• Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke

• The Broken Earth Trilogy: The Fifth Season, The Obelisk Gate, The Stone Sky by N.K. Jemisin

• Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner

• Soul Soil Podcast Patreon Page

• Soul Soil Grow and Glow package