Chinese balloons

Jason asks Chris what is going on in the United States, to which Chris replies nothing. He then asks if Chinese balloons ever float over Australian airspace. Jason points out that 90% of Australia is desert and that there’s nothing to see there.

The Pandemic

Jason and Chris then discuss how it was a bit more difficult to pull of season 2 post-pandemic. The pandemic gave them the chance to slow down and freed up a lot fo their time when they first started The Recombobulator Lab but now they are back to business as usual. 

Chris says that pre-recording episodes helped them keep on top of it as they were both travelling a lot with work. 

Highlights of Season Two

To wrap up the episode, Jason and Chris talk about the highlights of season two. They talk about youth alcohol consumption (Ep. 10 with Dr Amy Pennay), fake meat (Ep. 11 with Dr. Tani Khara), and e-cigarettes (Ep. 16 with Dr Laura Crotty). Chris points out that the e-cigarettes episode was terrifying, and that the health harms just aren’t talked about in general conversation. Jason believes this is similar to a lot of the things they discuss on the show. 

Other highlights included learning about the BeReal app with Mike Hanley (Ep.9) and getting into the reeds about authoritarianism with Dr Doug Keene (Ep. 4) and discussing guns and gambling in episode 5. 

The origins of vaping

E-cigarettes were invented in China in 2003 and went international in 2007. They rapidly evolved from looking like cigarettes to becoming more advanced and sleek devices that heat up a fluid containing nicotine and chemicals, turning it into an aerosol that users inhale. 

While e-cigarettes were invented to help people quit smoking, the original devices did not achieve this goal. However, more modern e-cigarettes contain 10 to 15 times more nicotine, making them more helpful for quitting smoking. It has not been proven that they are more effective than nicotine patches, gum, or inhalers.

The Vaping Epidemic in the US

According to the FDA's 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey, more than 2 million middle and high school students use e-cigarettes in the US, and 85% of them use flavored products. This trend has led to concerns about the dangers of vaping, particularly in young people who have never smoked tobacco.

The Dangers of Vaping

Dr. Crotty Alexander and her team conducted a small study on the effects of vaping on teenagers who had never smoked tobacco. The study found that vaping alters inflammation and the immune system all over the body and causes DNA damage to cells, which is recognized as a critical factor in cancer development. The study also found that even e-cigarettes claiming to not contain nicotine actually do contain it. 

Reducing E-Cigarette Use

Dr. Crotty Alexander believes that to reduce e-cigarette use, the nicotine content should be reduced, and flavors should be limited to only tobacco. The big myth about e-cigarettes is that they contain water vapor and nicotine, but in reality, each puff of an e-cigarette contains 60-120 chemicals.

Conclusion

Dr. Crotty Alexander wants adults to have access to as much information as possible about the dangers of vaping so they can make informed decisions. The messaging around vaping is mixed, but it is more clear with regards to cigarettes, with many countries having warnings on the boxes and using price as a deterrent.

The Dangers of CTE

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) brain condition thought to be linked to repeated head trauma. Unfortunately, the only way to diagnose CTE is through an autopsy, making it difficult to determine the extent of the problem in living patients. Symptoms of CTE can be similar to those of ADHD or depression, making it even more challenging to diagnose.

Ryan became interested in CTE as a chiropractor, observing patients who had prolonged symptoms after a concussion. He wondered why some people made a full recovery from concussion while others had prolonged symptoms. 

Concussions in children 

Jason mentions that his son has had a lot of concussions from a variety of sports and activities and Jason wonders whether he should be worried. Ryan says there are a number of studies looking into potential neurodegenerative problems that may arise from repeated concussions or subconcussive events, such as too many headers in soccer.

Using Technology to Monitor Concussions

One of the methods used in these studies is the use of accelerometers in mouth guards or helmets. These devices can track the impact of hits to the head and provide data on where on the field there is more impact and at what age people can handle these impacts. This data can be used to help determine when certain elements of sports should be introduced, such as contact in baseball or headers in soccer. Ryan’s team are also using these in their research.

The Importance of Sleep in Concussion Recovery

Ryan's research explores the relationship between concussions and sleep. His research is looking at two things: 

1. How a concussion results in injury to sleep centers thus causing sleep disturbances
2. How these sleep disturbances impact recovery 

The use of incineration in waste management 

According to Yobel, incineration is a problem for a number of reasons

• In some countries, rubbish is not separated, so everything gets burned in incinerators. 
• Incineration is expensive for countries that can't afford the fees- incineration is the most expensive way to get rid of waste
• Incineration is much more carbon intensive than burning coal. 

Essentially incineration contributes to both the climate crisis and the debt crisis. Yobel pointed out that the environmental issue is a social issue as well. 

Unilever sachet recycling programme 

And now, the sachets. Yobel discusses the Unilever project in Indonesia that attempted to recycle sachets using a pilot technology called CreaSolv. The project was rushed through without proper permits and licensing, and the factory has since shut down. Yobel says the claim that it could recycle sachets, has since been debunked as a myth .

He discussed a waste bank in Indonesia that pays people to collect sachets and separates them for recycling, but the sachets are no longer being collected by the recycling facility. The waste bank has continued to collect sachets, however, because people have created the habit of recycling them. 

Indonesia as a young country 

Instead, Yobel suggests that the solution lies in education and meaningful dialogue with communities.

He emphasized the importance of accountability and preventing factories from shutting down without proper arrangements. Indonesia is a young country with opportunities to avoid the mistakes of the global north, leapfrogging right to sustainable solutions.

Zero Waste Month 

January is Zero Waste Month. Yobel says it is a month to celebrate the progress we have made in so many areas. The theme for this year's festival is Zero Waste Month is Zero Waste for Zero Emissions. 

GAIA is hosting a number of events throughout the month. Events will be happening online and in person. The Zero Waste Digital Film Festival is taking place online for the rest of January. There are several conferences, marches and launches taking place throughout the month in India, The Philippines and around Asia. 

Anyone interested can find more information can visit www.no-burn.org and zwmonth.zerowaste.asia or follow GAIA Asia Pacific on social media: Facebook,  Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. You can listen to more about Zero Waste Month in our podcast with Froilan Grate, Executive Director of GAIA Philippines. 

Yobel says that zero waste is easier together and that the driver should be love, not fear. As we move into 2023, let's focus on hope and love for people, the planet, and the environment.

News from GAIA: Zero Waste Film Fest date change 

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!
Our Zero Waste Film Fest screening has been moved to January 27, Friday, at the Trinoma Activity Center. Don't miss the chance to watch these two highly-acclaimed documentaries - “The Story of Plastics” and “Girls For Future”. Both features tell the story of how the citizens of the world can work together to change the dynamics of waste management. 

All community members are welcome to join - households, students, members of the workforce, public servants, and civil service employees - as all of the conversations deserve to be heard by everyone regardless of their position in society.
#ZeroWasteMonth2023 #IZWM2023 #ZeroWasteZeroEmission#GoForZeroWaste #ZeroWasteOurFuture

More news from GAIA: The Zero Waste Journalist Network 

In conjucntion with GAIA The Zero Waste Journalist Network was formally launched on January 19, 2023 as part of the observance of the International Zero Waste Month.

Among the journalists are Gerry Lirio (Philippines - Southeast Asia), who after the devastation of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) realized the importance of environmental reporting, especially climate reporting from small island nations, and advocated the creation of a “green” desk for media outlets in the Philippines; Ben Bilua (Solomon Islands - Pacific) who sees the importance of climate reporting especially for island nations like his; and Abhishek Kumar (India - South Asia), who stressed on the importance of highlighting Zero Waste (ZW) work in Asia Pacific and showing the global north that we have solutions here.

This historic launch of the Zero Waste Journalists Network will give voice to Zero Waste and climate discussions as seen from the lens of journalists.

Inflation and employment 

Chris and Jason note that inflation is super high at the moment in both the US and Australia. Chris notes that in his local shop free range chicken cost $9.99 for about a pound, but the organic one was $19.99. Chris quotes a friend of his: “Why do we have to pay more for someone not to poison us?”

As well as this high inflation is a very high employment rate, but the tables are turning in this. Lay-offs are starting in some companies in the US. Amazon recently let a lot of staff go. 

The prediction: Inflation will continue for a while anyway. 

ChatGPT

The guys speak about AI software ChatGPT, an AI bot where you enter a question or prompt and it writes content based on this. 

Jason even challenged it to write in certain referencing and writing styles and it did a great job. And the writing was plagiarism free. 

The prediction: that this won’t actually take people's jobs, but make them a lot easier. 

Elon Musk  

Jason and Christ discuss Elon Musk's latest negative publicity. He’s saying more outrageous things and his reputation is going down. 

We can’t forget that he’s a genius with tech but Twitter is a different game. It is a sociological exercise, where he is potentially in over his head. 

The prediction: Chat GP said it is hard to tell if Twitter will survive Elons leadership but based on his past history of success he might. 

Work from home 

Will we still do this in 2023? Chris and Jason think that the way we work will never be the same again. People have gotten used to a certain way of living that communing into an office does not allow. People may go to coworking spaces or work in the office sometimes but not full time. 

Chris sees the benefit of the new remote work culture as in his company Tsongas they can now hire from all over the country. They have a much larger pool of potential employees to choose from, and on the flipside knowledge or support workers don’t have to choose between their career and their preferred homebase. 

The prediction: online/computer work will never be the same again. 

Chris and Jason are fascinated by this rapid growth and want to know more. They are joined by Irish journalist Ronan O’Flaherty to learn more. 

MMA versus Boxing 

The UFC is now a billion dollar organisation and is overtaking boxing in popularity. Ronan discusses a number of reasons for this growth. 

To start, people enjoy watching organised fighting with a ref. But why the UFC over boxing? Ronan says that boxing has become progressively damaged as a spectator sport because there are so many different governing bodies. Boxers could avoid fights by being in different competitions. 

In MMA there are also lots of bodies and competitions but the UFC “is the only show in town”, Ronan says. “For a fighter starting out it's the only place to be.”

Because of this unified organisation fighters can’t avoid each other making it much more satisfying for fans. 

History of UFC 

Jason asks Ronan about some of the previous UFC fighters, Ronda Rousey, Anderson Silva and Chuck Liddell. 

Ronan says Ronda Rousey was one of the big fighters at the beginning of the current MMA boom. Anderson Silva still holds the record for longest undefeated streak as middleweight champion. And Chuck Liddell is one of the OGs in MMA. 

But where did it all start? The UFC organisation was founded in 1993 in Denver, Colorado. Back then the fights basically had no rules. There were legal headbutts, hair pulling etc. Ronan says the fighting then couldn't even be classified as what we know as MMA today. 

There were no regulations on what people wore either. Some wore tracksuit bottoms and no shirt, while others wore the traditional martial arts gi. 

Winners would fight multiple times in one night in a knockout style tournament until one was crowned champion in the final. There was a “gladiatorial element to it”, Ronan says. MMA wasn’t allowed in every state in America. It had to change hugely and rules were brought in after a few years. 

Chris notes that it didn’t form from martial arts competitions but was rather closer to fight club in its origins. 

Pay per view 

As soon as a fighter becomes popular Dana White,president of the UFC, gets them involved in the big performance fights to draw a pay per view audience. These fights are based in the US and fought at the right time for US audiences. US audiences are the most willing to pay for sports TV. Pay per view isn’t a big thing elsewhere in the world. 

Irish fighter Conor McGregor fought Russian Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018 and it  was the biggest pay per view fight in the UFC with 2.4 million views. 

Concussion and injury in UFC

UFC released a document on this a few years back addressing the dangers and guidelines about concussion. It was a huge document but Ronan believes it was unsatisfactory. They do have medical suspensions after big injuries though.  

The UFC has a long way to go in dealing with concussion and injury, Ronan thinks. 

Above 30 fights is very dangerous. It's generally not one fight that damages you, Ronan says, it's an accumulation of fights over a career. 

Total Extreme Fighting, Ireland 

In 2018 an Irish MMA organisation organised its first event. Irish fighter Charlie Ward took on Portuguese Joao Carvalho. Charlie won with Joao taking 41 blows to the head. Both fighters were assessed and deemed fine after the fight until Carvalho had headaches and got rushed to hospital. He died 2 days later from head injuries. 

Zero Waste Month with GAIA

The Recombobulator Lab is media partners with the global alliance for incinerator alternatives or GAIA for Zero Waste Month. GAIA is a network of grassroots groups as well as national and regional alliances representing more than 1000 organisations from 92 countries.

Events will be taking place throughout the month online and in person in India, The Philippines and around Asia.

For more information, visit www.no-burn.org or follow GAIA Asia Pacific on social media: Facebook,  Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.

For the latest news from GAIA please click here. 

India and vegetarianism 

20-30% of people report being vegetarian in India. 

Religion and consumption 

Only some types of Hinduism or certain practices within some types of Hinduism are prohibited from consuming all meat. 

In Islam, Christianity and Judiasm people can usually consume meat, with some restrictions. 

Hypocrisy in meat consumption 

India is one of the biggest beef exporters in the world, despite their low consumption internally. Tani thinks this is a “nationalistic, right wing, religious protocol”. 

Live export of beef from Australia 

Jason asks Tani if the reason Australia exports cattle live to the Middle East is for halal purposes. She says it’s a factor, as well as freshness. 

For any listeners wondering what halal is- it is a certification given to food meaning it has been prepared in a certain way in accordance with the Islamic faith. 

Meat consumption and stomach cancer 

In Japan as beef consumption increased so too did cases of stomach cancer. Tani says there is a lot of data on meat consumption, especially red meat consumption, and its association with diabetes, obesity and cancer. 

The World Health Organisation also released a study about the carcinogens in red meat causing cancer. 

Secret meat eaters in Dr Khara’s research 

There is a taboo associated with eating meat in India. Tani has a whole paper about the different kinds of secret meat eating in the different segments of Indian society. 

People in the study ate meat in secret during certain festivals or days of the week where they weren’t supposed to be eating meat. Or some weren’t allowed to eat meat in their homes so went to restaurants to consume meat in secret. 

Protein based meat alternatives 

These are meat alternatives made from other protein rich, plant based sources. Tani says these can include soy and legumes. Another option in mycoprotein, which is a fermented fungus product. 

Dr Khara’s research 

In a recent study Tani did with the Institute of Sustainable Futures (ISF) they found out replacing just 25% of beef consumption with plant based protein would:

• Be the equivalent to taking 125,000 cars off the road
• Save 5,200 Olympic swimming pools worth of water 
• Save 35,000 Melbourne cricket ground stadiums worth of land 

Links

Documentary: From Farm to Fridge by Mercy for Animals 

Amy is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research at La Trobe University. Within CAPR she is the Strategic Lead of the 'Intersections of drinking cultures, health and policy' program.She has done extensive research on youth drinking patterns including the 2021 paper entitled Trends in adolescent drinking across 39 high-income countries: exploring the timing and magnitude of decline. 

How Dr Amy Pennay started working in alcohol research 

Amy joked that she has always enjoyed a drink and that as a young student the idea of doing studies in a nightclub seemed very appealing. Chris mentions that friend of the show, psychologist Dr Doug Keene said a lot of people in the field of psychology got into that to better understand their own issues. 

Alcohol consumption in Australia 

Australia is a ‘dry’ country, you might be surprised to hear. But ‘dry’ in this context has nothing to do with abstaining from alcohol but rather when most people drink said alcohol. A ‘dry’ country is somewhere where people don’t drink a lot during the week but binge on the weekends. Places like France and Italy would be considered ‘wet’ countries as they drink throughout the week in more measured doses. 

Comparing alcohol consumption in Australia to other parts of the world, Aussies drink less than Americans, but are on par with the British. 

Youth alcohol consumption in Australia 

The current trend in youth alcohol consumption is that young people in all high income countries are drinking less. English speaking countries are noticing the highest decrease while Mediterranean and Eastern European countries are seeing the least change. This trend started around 2003. 

This pattern is particularly noticeable in under age drinking but young adults of drinking age or older are also drinking less. 

Is the reduction in youth alcohol consumption related to government intervention? 

Researchers are struggling to identify policy changes as a driving factor to the change in behaviour. In Australia there have been no significant policy changes to affect behaviour. 

However, education around alcohol has definitely increased and there is a lot more research showing the harms alcohol causes. 

Impact of social media on youth drinking rates 

Jason heard anecdotally that young people are more cautious with alcohol as everything could be recorded and put on social media. Young people are aware that content on social media lives there forever and could affect future job opportunities or affect relationships with friends and family. 

Amy says this comes up a lot in their qualitative research and that it is a potential driver in young people consuming less alcohol. 

However, in other ways social media can encourage young people to go out socialising more as they see other people out and about and may get FOMO. It also helps people keep in touch and make plans very easily. 

Right now identifying social media’s impact on youth alcohol consumption is complicated. 

Furphy

Chris calls Jason up on his use of the word ‘furphy’. For our non-Australian audience, a furphy is a lie. 

An alternative approach to declining youth alcohol consumption 

In Japan the government worried about the declining tax earnings caused by the decline in alcohol consumption amongst youths. Believe it or not the government created a marketing campaign to encourage young people to drink MORE. 

Amy said this news was completely unprecedented and her and her colleagues couldn’t believe it. 

The harmful effects of alcohol 

Research now is revealing that alcohol consumption is a lot more harmful than we originally thought. There are 200 diseases that are causally exacerbated by alcohol. 

However in studies this does not come up as a main reason why young people don’t drink. General health and wellness is the main reason that actually comes up, according to Amy. 

COVID lockdown and youth alcohol consumption. 

Alcohol consumption generally went down during the COVID lockdown. A lot of people drank a lot more during lockdown but young people drank way less, which pulled the average down. 

Alcohol free drinks 

There has been a huge push in alcohol free drinks. Chris, Jason and Amy all agree that they taste pretty good. Availability of these drinks is always increasing and there’s even an alcohol free bar in Melbourne. 

Research on attitudes to non-drinkers 

Research into attitudes to non-drinkers reveals that drinkers in Australia feel threatened by non-drinkers. Drinkers see non-drinkers as a threat to fun, social connection and force them to think about their own drinking. 

Mike has also served the World Economic Forum for over eight years before founding The Content Engine, a team that combines new technologies, including machine-learning, with best-in-class editorial and workflow processes to generate tailored, high-quality content at very high volumes for its clients. He comes with a trove of insights about social media, content marketing, and the degree of “realness” of social media platforms, and what can be done towards improving them. In today’s episode, sit with Mike, Chris and Jason, as they dig into it headfirst.

Among the things they get into:

Social Media: A Beautiful Constraint?

A beautiful constraint, Mike explains, is a time or space constraint put to something essential, like explaining a thesis in 5 minutes for example. Social media relies on this beautiful constraint to capture people’s attention quickly. What one needs to remember, however, is that we don't have to capture everybody with every post/piece. As long as we capture somebody with every piece.

Social Media: Faking Reality?

Social media has democratized our society more powerfully than anything else in recent times, giving people authority over their lives, thoughts, and opinion, and strengthening free speech. But it has also become more toxic than flavorful, given how some people are using it to show lies and tinted realities. It’s also being used to create fake lives.

Be Real: A Better Future for Social Media

Be Real, a new social media app, is calling out on fake social media behavior by building what they call is the social graph – a network of connections that form by identifying the chain of people you know. There’s no advertising involved in their platform. It works by having everyone capture a photo within 2 minutes every day at a different time. While this sounds like a good place to begin the end of the fake social media game, we’ll have to wait for time to tell if it turns out well.

Listen to this conversation to dive deeper into Mike’s knowledge database, including his experience meeting some of the world’s most renowned personalities like Bill and Melinda Gates, and discussing Microsoft’s neo-Nazi sexbot!

Technically speaking, greenwashing refers to the act of companies making unsupported environmental claims in a bid to convince consumers to buy their products. While this seemed like a small thing to do in the past, the practice has snowballed over time into an industrial scale, becoming a major issue, simply because of the enormous business gain it has brought for companies!

How The Greenwashing Wave Hit Our Shores

A few reasons that have contributed to the greenwashing wave in the US:

One, the FTC in the US is apparently very weak unlike in the UK, for example, which seems to have nailed some of the biggest fashion brands like H&M and Zara among others. There need to be better laws against greenwashing to discourage it from the root.

Another thing that makes people fall prey to greenwashing is its ability to hide behind mountains of technical language, dancing on the head of pin distinctions that most people not only wouldn't know how to evaluate, but don't want to evaluate. It is worthwhile to note here that despite the brain having a lot of capacity to process information, it only has so much attention. So, no matter the amount of information readily available about advertising puffery, the brain is drawn into patterns and habits, often leading us to repeat things that don’t serve us well. In fact, as Tom says, 80% of our choices are not even our real choices. Those are just our reactions to systemic behaviors and patterns that we’re part of.

The World’s Biggest Polluters Start The World’s Biggest Environment Campaigns

Surprising? We know. Consider the ‘Keep America Beautiful’ campaign, which was started by PepsiCo and Coca-Cola (among others)  – some of the biggest polluters in America in the 50s – to reduce litter. The whole idea translated to asking people to clean up their garbage, for the trash was largely generated by them. Irony much? But that’s not all. More for-environment campaigns like Keep Britain Tidy and Keep Australia Beautiful have followed over the years. The focus of the participating companies being recycling THEIR mess.

Capitalism adds to these greenwashing scandals, making the campaigns even more deceptive. Is there a tidy way to go forward in society without letting greenwashing trick us? What more should we know about dissuading undeserving consumer brands and companies and making way for cleaner and honest ones? We unravel a lot of that stuff in this episode. Make sure to give it a listen!

Zero Waste Month has traditionally been a South East Asian event but this year GAIA is encouraging people all around the globe to get involved. Froilan speaks to the guys about GAIAs mission and about the events we can look forward to for Zero Waste Month. 

What is zero waste and how do we get there?

Froilan says Zero Waste is both a destination and a journey. The idea is to reduce the amount of waste produced by managing resources. The movement wants to reduce toxicity in the world by making goods without toxic chemicals and avoiding burning and burying waste. 

Is burning waste bad for the environment?

Burning waste can be on a small scale or a larger scale. Small scale burning, called open burning, is people burning their own rubbish. 

Incineration is when waste is burned on a large scale as part of a country or city’s waste management process. 

Froilan says that either way, burning waste is problematic. These are some of the issues with burning waste: 

1. Impact on human health 

Burning waste pollutes the air, releasing toxic dioxin chemicals into the air. 

2. The climate 

Incineration releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere which contribute to climate change. 

3. Wasting finite resources

Resources used to make the products we use are finite. Burning these is a total waste of these finite resources. 

4. Waste of government or municipal resources

Building incinerators is expensive and they cost a lot to maintain. Typically governments will invest in incinerators and offset the cost over multiple decades. Making the initial decision to incinerate waste in a country means that country is committed to incinerating for the foreseeable future. 

5. Impact on livelihood 

There are far less jobs in incineration than there are in recycling. 

Incineration around the world 

Incineration has been “rebranded” around the world. Incineration companies refer to it as “waste to energy” processing. 

Japan

Jason spoke about his time in Japan and can remember since as long as he’s been going there that they have ‘burnable’ and ‘non-burnable’ bins. Incineration is deeply woven into societal norms there. 

Hawaii

In Hawaii they have a “waste to energy” system on Ohau. However, with the small population they struggle to produce enough waste to justify having the privately owned incinerator. This results in the city paying penalties. 

Europe 

In Europe a lot of countries are scaling down incineration. However, due to the high start up costs or contract agreements a lot of countries are locked into incineration for 20+ years. 

Waste colonialism

Aside from Japan, Asian countries don’t incinerate waste, yet. Incineration companies are targeting these countries now as their European business dries up. Froilan calls this waste colonialism. 

Jason notes that this is similar to what happened in Australia when they previously did not have regulations on car emissions. Companies like Ford and General Motors who could no longer use certain engines in North America and Europe started selling them in Australia. 

How waste ends up in South East Asia 

South East Asia and specifically Indonesia has to deal with waste from all over the world. This is for two reasons. 

1. The ocean 

The ocean has long term currents and these currents bring waste to the same parts of South East Asia, meaning they have a constant issue of waste washing up on their coasts. 

2. Waste is sent from other countries 

Countries around the world send waste to South East Asia for recycling. The waste is often not sorted and can contain a lot that cannot be recycled. 

GAIA Zero Waste Month 

The theme for this years Zero Waste Month is Zero Waste for Zero Emissions. 

As part of Zero Waste Month GAIA is organising:

• A Zero Waste Film Festival
• The International Zero Waste Cities Conference 
• The Zero Waste Festival

For more information on these you can check out @zerowasteasia on Instagram and Twitter. 

Luckily for us, Tom Osdoba has qualified arguments explaining the factors that led to this crisis-laden state of the world. Tom is the Director of NetZeroCities EU and the Senior Advisor at Climate-KIC.

Aside from our varying levels of cynicism the factors in question are as follows:

• be the loose state of country-to-country governance
• the stealthy impact of capitalism on environmentalism
• poor centralized control -yes, by forums and organizations like the UN and the G7

Chris and Jason invite Tom to The Recombobulator Podcast today to logically explain these factors. Tom's work on sustainability and core ecosystem preservation is laudable, his plans even more so. Tom intends to mobilize 100 cities to be climate-neutral by 2030! (Wait till you hear him get into the practical side of it today.)

Listen in for all the knowledge you must know about the ongoing environmental crisis.

A few important highlights from today’s conversation:

What does capitalism have to do with governance and environmentalism?

Capitalism has flourished in the absence of strong governance of markets and ownership structures. It’s challenging when governments lack the ability to make changes and pass necessary laws (including environmental laws) at the scale, speed, and precision needed.

How do carbon footprints work?

It’s the same as getting tax credits when paying taxes. When you invest in carbon-reducing activities somewhere, you’re allowed to represent your proportionate reduction in the global contribution. In some cases, the resources invested definitely move to places that can make meaningful progress. You'll have to do your research to figure this out.

How does capitalism threaten governance?

Capitalism deflects attention away from our own role in contributing to the systems that we participate in, even elections. The power of democratic capitalism lies in the creativity of the economic cycles.

Tom will be back next week on the podcast to continue today’s discussion, and to talk a bit more about “greenwashing”! So, stay tuned!

In today’s episode of The Recombobulator Lab, Chris and Jason get to discuss their respective country’s biggest issues. They have been kicking the idea around for a long time and have even teased it a bit in a previous episode. These issues are guns in America and gambling in Australia.

Chris and Jason share a quiz on gun and gambling statics in both countries. They discuss the problem and share their thoughts on what can be done to curb the issues.

Gun and Gambling Quiz

Question 1: What are the top 3 gambling countries in the world?

Answer 1: Australia, Singapore, and Ireland.

Question 2: What percentage of Australians participated in some form of gambling last year?

Answer 2: 66% of the adult Australian population.

Question 3: If we think about 60% of Australians participating in some form of gambling, how many millions of people would've gambled 10% or more of their annual income each year?

Answer 3: 10%

Question 4: How many dollars would the average American spend a year gambling?

Answer 4: $400

Question 5: How much more do you think the Irish gamble than Americans per person per year?

Answer 5: $600

Question 6: What do you think the average Australian spends a year on gambling?

Answer 6: $1600

Question 7: What does the average Australian poker machine player spend?

Answer 7: $2400

Question 8: How many people in the United States died from gun-related injuries in 2020?

Answer 8: 45,000 people

Question 9: What percentage of those deaths were suicides?

Answer 9: 54%

Question 10: What share of all murders and suicides in the US involve a gun?

Answer 10: 79%

Question 11: What 3 states have the most gun-related deaths?

Answer 11: Louisiana, Mississippi, and Wyoming.

Question 12: How many active shooter incidents were there in 2020?

Answer 12: 40 moments

Gambling addiction in Australia

One of the problems with gambling addiction in Australia is that the government benefits from it. The government takes a cut of every dollar gambled and then throws it back into gamble responsibly education. Twenty billion dollars a year is spent on gambling, and 10 billion of it is on just the pokies or gaming machines. Jason explains how pubs in Australia are now valued purely on gambling revenue when selling rather than beer and food.

Suicide rates are connected to gambling too as addiction is a mental health issue.

The American gun problem

When it comes to guns, in countries like Switzerland and Israel everyone has to do some time in the military so they learn about gun safety. In America, however, anyone can just get a gun without necessarily taking a test or anything of the sort.

Guns have always existed in America, but the crimes have only accelerated since the year 2000. Could the internet be the problem? For years, murders and suicides have been increasing which could be related to the publicity other such incidents get.

What could be done about it?

Most people would like to see some form of gun restriction and also better mental health care. Chris would advocate that people retain their right to own guns but also take tests when upgrading. There has to be a way to make it reasonable for everyone.

What is authoritarianism?

Authoritarianism is the process and exchange where there is essentially a strong leader and a subject that will be expected to comply with the instructions or guidance of the strong leader. Authoritarianism is not purely political. There are lots and lots of circumstances where people either turn toward or against authoritarian leadership. It could be in religion or it's how children are parented. In general, Doug says, people may look toward authoritarian solutions when they're scared. 

The Stanley Milgram Experiment

In the 60s’, American social psychologist Stanley Milgram conducted research on how far people would go to comply with authority figures' commands. A researcher instructed the participants to shock a different person with electric shocks that got stronger. Two-thirds of the subjects were willing to continue shocking them even after they stopped responding. This was horrifying to Milgram, who had expected 3% or 4%, somewhere in that range. The participants were unaware that the shocks were phony and that the person receiving them was an actor.

Authoritarianism and American individualism

Doug thinks American Individualism is a a form of autocracy.

The idea being that "The cultural and environmental bath we have been stewing in from birth just makes us singularly qualified to accomplish great things and representative of all things good, which is incredibly autocratic."

One myth about authoritarianism

Doug would do away with fake news and the alternative realities people are trying to spin up, creating constant anxiety and fear. It's really important that people monitor the way it's affecting them and the degree to which they expose themselves to fake news, making sure it gets balanced and counterweighted with things that are authentically loving and genuine.

Pros of authoritarianism

1. It has the ability to deliver reliable outcomes across the country.
2. It saves time during the decision-making process.
3. It puts the burden on having to decide on the leader.
4. It improves hierarchy within the executive branch of government.
5. It could be used to attempt to lessen economic inequality across society.

Cons of authoritarianism

1. Governments that are authoritarian can aim to hold onto power indefinitely.
2. Authoritarian governments invite rebellion in society.
3. Authoritarian regimes frequently impose their will emotionally rather than rationally.
4. Authoritarian governments can damage societal morale.
5. Authoritarian regimes frequently reign without opposition.

Comedians and Offense

Zane begins by quoting Ricky Gervais in that there is a certain “arrogance” in the belief that “everyone can walk around the world and not be offended.” Chris agrees stating that if Gervais or Dave Chappelle walk off stage and no one is offended, they would question where they went wrong.

What offends you ?

Jason asks Zane what he gets offended by, to which Zane concludes that “everyone gets offended by something” and that “we all have these triggers”, referring again to one of many people’s earliest memories: our siblings offending us as they “know our triggers” more than most.

Onstage presence

Zane highlights the importance of “being in the best state of mind” before going on stage, divulging his pre-show routine of calling his wife to “talk about nothing” because she puts him “in a good mood”.

Warriors in a Culture War ?

Jason highlights the contemporary issue of ‘third-party’ offense on social media wherein people get offended by another person offending someone else. Zane describes who he calls the ‘PC Police’ who are “speaking on someone else’s behalf.” Chris chimes in with the concerning matter of people who “are looking for an opportunity to blow something up” and consequently receive “free media” attention.

You don’t know me

Zane makes a connection between people who comment on other people as someone “who had a trigger” themselves and describes the internet as a place “where you can speak before you think”, leaving the mess to be cleaned up by other people.

Pleepleus

Zane discusses the struggle for his apparel company in competing with “the big dogs” and their name switch from ‘Adventure’ to ‘Pleepleus’, the uniqueness of which Chris compliments Zane on, which originally came to Zane during his trip to Galway, Ireland.

Rebranding

Zane discusses the importance of reminding people that he is a comedian, and of rebranding himself to allow him to continue growing his brand today.

Lightly toasted

Introducing ‘Lightly Toasted’, Zane’s new podcast. Chris describes it as “a vehicle” to “extend the brand”. Zane agrees, saying that he is “making himself relevant by talking to people on a podcast about current things”.

Zane Lamprey- also known as the Anothony Bourdain of drinking- joins The Recombobulator Lab to help tease this out. Together they try to identify 'the line' in part 1 of this 2 part episode and better understand the idea of taking offense. 

After such a fun episode in season 1 with Zane, Chris and Jason couldn't wait to get him back on for season 2 to talk about the hot topic of taking offense. Since they spoke last Zane has been doing a stand-up tour around breweries in the US. He also did a show at a weed farm. It was a shareholders night with a difference. Everyone was h1gh and Zane had to figure out the audience dynamic a little differently to how he usually does.

Zane addresses a question that is on a lot of people's minds about being a comedian on tour. How on earth do they stay in shape while drinking at every show? Alcohol and comedy go hand in hand almost as well as comedy and offense. So what is Zane's secret and how does he stay such an 'attractive man' to quote Jason?

The topic of offense is on the tip of everyone's tongues in interviews with comedians, according to Zane. The way he sees it the landscape is always changing. Comedians are consistently setting and moving the bar. That's how comedy works. the problem now is that there's video. Things that were ok to say 10 years ago can be shown again now and ruin someone's life. The job of a comedian is to push the envelope and ride the edge but the edge is always moving.

Zane thinks that some people deliberately keep things up their sleeves as ammunition and use it at a time that will really hurt someone's career or life.

This is part 1 of a 2 part episode. In episode 2 Chris and Jason will talk about Ricky Gervais' view on taking offense and hear more of Zane's stories.

For more about Zane Lamprey see https://zanelamprey.com/

This episode Chris has a COVID quiz for Jason and the guys discuss their highs and lows of the pandemic. Why bring COVID back up, you might ask? To package it up and put it away for good.

Thanks to everyone who made season 1 such a success and for making season 2 possible.  

Since the pandemic eased both Jason and Chris have been travelling with work. Jason and his wife had the honour of doing a presentation at the World Economic Forum about G-Diapers, their environmentally friendly diaper company. Some highlights of the trip include sharing an umbrella with Bill Gates and finding out that the world is not being controlled by 3 people. 

Chris has also been ‘back on the big metal bird’ since last season with work trips to Longview, Texas; Seattle, Washington; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Oklahoma City; Dallas, Texas; Eugene, Oregon; Las Cruces, New Mexico; Washington DC; Las Vegas, Nevada and Denver, Colorado. He learned a thing or two on his travels including the fact that the view in Longview is actually not that long. There’s not much of a view at all. 

COVID podcast quiz 

Question 1: In the first half of 2020 name 5 Google searches that saw a huge percentage increase. Eg. Yeast grew (or rose?) 280% 

Answer 1: Any of 5 of the following. 

1. Take out 
2. Dumbell 
3. Standing desk 
4. Paint-by-numbers 
5. Hair clippers 
6. Netflix 
7. Recipe 
8. Electric bike 
9. Blender 

Question 2: How many people died in Australia during the COVID 19 pandemic as of Aug 2022? 

Answer 2: 13,000 people

Question 3: How many people died in the US during the COVID 19 pandemic as of Aug 2022? 

Answer 3: 1 million people 

Question 4: What percentage of the world is fully vaccinated?

Answer 4: 62.8% 

Question 5: What percentage of the US is fully vaccinated?

Answer 5: 67.8%

Question 6: What percentage of Austrailia is fully vaccinated?

Question 6: 84.7% 

Question 7: What percentage of Australians feel they can trust their healthcare system?  

Answer 7: 76% 

Question 8: What percentage of Americans feel they can trust their healthcare system?  

Answer 8: 34% 

Make sure to listen to the podcast to see how Jason did. 

Highs and Lows of the Pandemic 

Lows: 

The effect on mental health, the impact on teenagers, the impact on those graduating and starting college. 

The pandemic changed the experiences of a generation of people

Highs: 

Learning to not take things for granted, things have slowed down, pandemic forced a behaviour change, everyone was forced to use things like Zoom meaning people can move to where they want to and not be dependent on cities, people questioning their pay and their jobs which led to ‘The Great Resignation’  

"The Lab" is hosted each episode by the Co-Founder of gDiapers, Jason Graham-Nye, from Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia, and The President of Tsongas Litigation Consulting, Chris Dominic, from Portland, Oregon, USA.

Christy describes the good news of how the current Presidential administration is approaching maternal healthcare and takes on a myth to debunk before describing Every Mother Counts' "special sauce." 

Then the three talk about coming out of the pandemic and some of the good things that come with them, including Christy going to a baseball game to see Chris's favorite team, the San Francisco Giants.

Chris and Jason catch up after the interview, befuddled by the realization that Maternal health was such a problem in the first place. Then the two rant about the problems with guns in America and gambling in Australia. Chris shares some Good News and the two discuss the next episode with Doug Keene.

MealPass inquiries, please contact Jason Graham-Nye at jason@mealpass.org.

Then the two transition to their interview with the Founder of Every Mother Counts, Christy Turlington. Jason and Christy talk about their history together, including their different takes on Vegemite.

Christy gets into the personal origins of Every Mother Counts, an organization she founded after her own experience in childbirth and learning about the shocking number of preventative childbirth deaths of mothers globally.

Then Christy and Jason talk about marathon running and how it’s been a steady part of fundraising for EMC. 

Chris inquires about the problem in the United States—the only industrialized nation with a consistently rising maternal mortality rate. The two get into some troubling statistics involving race, and the conversation pauses until episode 29.

MealPass inquiries please contact Jason Graham-Nye at jason@mealpass.org

Then the two switches to their interview with Jenn Heinrich, CEO of Girls Rugby, Inc. and former Executive Director of Rugby Oregon from 2002-2019, developing America's first youth and High School State Rugby organization—a model that 46 other states have emulated.

Jenn talks about how she discovered Rugby and some of the benefits of youth Rugby, including some of its unique benefits in the sports community. The three then get into a deeper conversation about the success of Rugby Oregon, intentionally teaching life skills that make better citizens.

Chris shares good news and Jason compares the literal darkness in France with the 3^rd wave in COVID infections in France. 

Chris pits Tom against Jason in a competitive Annoying Business Jargon quiz. Then the three get into the pros and cons of the remote vs. traditional office post-pandemic workplace.

Quiz soundtrack, Giulia's Chase, © 2020 by Casting Nail.

Bronte talks about the challenge of training for the Tokyo Olympics after the delay from the pandemic. Chris talks about the different orientations people can have toward competitiveness, and Bronte explains just how competitive the field is. Chris curiously asks about the mysterious timing plate in the pool, and Jason inquires as to how Bronte gets ahead. Bronte takes the two through how she performs better by letting go of control and staying creative. 

Then the three talk about the similarities and differences between the Olympics and the World Championships and then drift into the cultural differences speaking to the media in Australia and the US when you are an athlete. Bronte finishes the discussion by debunking a myth.

Then the two talk with Zimbabwean-born UK recording artist Jerome Arab. His music has produced half a million streams, and he has set the ambitious goal to produce a track a week in 2021.

However, Jason immediately takes the conversation off to Rugby and makes strong attempts at linking his comments to the topic. Jerome talks about how he moved from Zimbabwe and Zambia at a young age to Manchester, how he realized the arts and music specifically spoke to him at a young age, and shares the construct he uses to find creativity and flow in anything.

Jason inquires how Jerome’s perspective can help his golf game, and Jerome has an answer! Chris inquires about Jerome's pressure on himself and how he manages the pressure to create in volume. Jerome explains his mindset and motivation that helps him through writer’s block.

Jason applies Jerome’s method to the business world, which transitions the group to talk about the business of music and the importance of considering the pros and cons of working with labels. Then, in a natural turn in the conversation, Jason debunks an important myth about certain business entities. Jerome then provides an unexpected take about the modern music business, being entrepreneurial, and the importance of marketing skills.

Jerome Arab’s music is available on many platforms such as Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Music.

Quiz soundtrack, Giulia's Chase, © 2020 by Casting Nail.

Chanel discusses how discussions with her friends developed into a questionnaire asking others if they had experienced sexual assault and how in 24 hours, hundreds of people said yes. She then goes into some of the cultural elements that foster these experiences--including three things contributing to toxic masculinity.

The three explore the parallels to, and the problems with, the defensive reactions to Chanel’s petition akin to the “all lives matter” responses to the “Black lives matter" movement. Chris asks Chanel how she balances out the stress and strain of processing so many painful stories. She answers that question and discusses some of the research she is currently pursuing before debunking a myth.

The three then explore the question of what can be done to make things better, including exploring the question, “is empathy teachable?” and finish up by identifying how black and white thinking contributes to the problem and how healthy intimacy can be a part of the solution. Chanel closes with a tip on how anyone can make things better.  

Listeners are welcome to read testimonies, add testimonies and sign the petition at https://www.teachusconsent.com/. 

Tom Kelley talks about how the powerful Nike ad campaigns that were developed during his time at Nike and Weiden + Kennedy started with staying on mission by listening to the “voice of the athlete,” which is democratized by another element of the mission “if you have a body then you are an athlete.”

Chris asks Tom what it takes to make decisions that are bold and brave and potentially not in the short-term business interests of a large, for-profit company. Tom takes the concept further to describe the importance of courage in expressing a perspective for anyone. He also reminds us that this has been a part of Nike’s DNA since the early days with the outspoken Steve Prefontaine.

Tom talks about the importance of culture in an organization, where he thinks it comes from, and names three things that help make a culture worth being in.

Jason, Chris, & Tom discuss some of the marketing field changes over the last 10 years as direct marketing principles that have worked their way into traditional marketing are the tension of considering the consumers you serve with consumers being nodes of information and the importance of considering how you earn your way into the conversation. 

Tom discusses his time managing the Jordan Brand for Nike, including the challenge of being the steward for an already elite brand and taking it somewhere new. Tom then wraps with the next chapter in his career, starting his own firm.

Quiz soundtrack, Giulia's Chase, © 2020 by Casting Nail.

Kendal discusses the untapped potential in athletes in the emotional and spiritual space and society's pressure to listen to others instead of what your body is telling you. She talks about what makes Sydney so special to her and what playing in Portland's massive crowds was like.

Jason and Chris ask Kendall about what's next for her, and she talks about somatic work and her "come forward." She discusses how she uses energy more intentionally and productively in her workouts, now being her "own guru."

Quiz soundtrack, Giulia's Chase, © 2020 by Casting Nail.

Chris quizzes Jason over the five most full democracies and the five most authoritarian regimes based on five criteria.

Then the two interview New York City mayoral candidate, Art Chang. Art talks about why he's running and spells out some specific systemic changes he plans to make to avoid past mistakes and push the city into the 21st century technologically. 

Art talks about his work for the last four mayors and his work in organizational change with JP Morgan Chase, as well as the importance of empathy in the process of making the city work for everyone.

Quiz soundtrack, Giulia's Chase, © 2020 by Casting Nail.

Jason tests Zane on his Japanese, and Zane explains the method to his madness. Jason speaks for his country as he often does. Zane explains how he plans to do a 90-date stand-up comedy tour that involves him performing at breweries and doing collaboration beers in each location.

Jason offers to be Zane's "fixer" for Australia. And finally, Zane busts a myth about hangover cures and shares his secret weapon that he sought after for four years. Zane closes by explaining why he's moving from travelogues to stand-up comedy. 

Tickets go on sale on St.Patrick's Day--the day this episode drops in the US!

Zane goes deep about how to stay real without coming on too strong with your personal beliefs (except that if you hate trees, Zane thinks you should go to hell right now). Chris tells Zane he refers to him as the "Anthony Bourdain of Drinking," and Zane shares how he approves and how Bourdain was a mentor to him, along with a few stories.

The two and Zane talk about authenticity and its importance in all of Zane's endeavors. This leads to Zane talking about his preparations for his comedy performance and some lousy advice he got along the way.

Jason gives Zane a "great" grade for his episode of Chug in Sydney because he gets to real Aussies and maybe taught them a thing or two. Then the three get into the inevitable discussion of the cultural difference between Americans and Australians.

Jason puts the timeline of human impact on the Earth in perspective before Tom discusses the good news from the US rejoining the Paris Agreement and General Motors' recent commitment to develop 30 electric vehicles and add to the charging infrastructure by 2025.

Chris explores philanthropic institutions' role with technological solutions and primes the conversation with the example of the floating Pacific Ocean plastic harvester, The 8th Continent.

Tom then discusses how changing systems before attempting to persuade individuals to change is significantly more effective than the inverse approach. Chris links the system first approach to motivated reasoning to show how it helps the persuasion and change adoption process. Jason and Tom close with tips for individuals who are already motivated to be a part of the solution by revealing some actions that can make the most significant difference daily.

The two then interview Author Todd Downing about his early 1980s period piece, Calico Kids. Todd shares his typical writing and audiobook development processes and his inspiration to create a Spotify playlist of deep tracks from the early 1980s that goes with the book. Todd does some myth-busting about publishing, and the three then dive into their shared experiences from their teenage years.

Introduction music, "Why" by the Rise (Paul Kreutz, Dan Plock, Bill Davis, & Chris Dominic) Copyright 1986 KPDD music.

Steve then talks about his favorite elements of the College experience in the United States and how different it can be from Australia. Steve explains just how intense his training is, and Chris links it to his experiences with performance improvement work.

Steve then links how his experiences performing at a peak level transfer to his career at Uber Eats.

Chris and Jason wrap up with their big takeaways. Jason generates a rant from Chris with the big question, "What advice would you give to people struggling to improve?" Jason then enlightens us to the Blue Bottle jellyfish invasion that happened at Bondi Beach.

Steve admits that he's actually faster than Usain Bolt in the 400. Chris hijacks the interview and quizzes, Jason and Steve, as a team, on the subject of track and field.

Then Steve discusses performance--what has helped him and other elite athletes achieve greatness on the track and life. He also discusses how his failures have helped him learn about himself.

Then the two speak to Sydney University's Michael Anderson, Ph.D., about how even though education is a shadow of what it could be, there are ways to transform it that are happening now.

Jason and Chris talk about where the name Ben Buckler comes from. Jason drives Chris to drink before providing updates on his environmental research and the shark alarm at Bondi beach going off. Chris updates Jason on the latest in his world, including participation in his second all-remote trial.

The two discuss how websites have changed over the years before Jason explains how Australians pronounce "Buoy" before informing Chris that Australia picked the wrong vaccine. Chris lays out Oregon's "vactation" schedule before Jason quizzes (AKA slaughters)  Chris on colonialism.

The show ends with Jason translating a ridiculous English phrase into Japanese.

Then Chris quizzes Jason on recording artists before going to interview Sonic Boom writer Peter Ames Carlin.

Peter describes his experiences shadowing Bruce Springsteen for the bestselling book Bruce and then discusses his latest work, Sonic Boom, about the incredible run Warner Bros. Records had with their unusual strategy of finding the best talent and helping the artists get opposed to replicate the sounds and style of previous hits. 

Chris then quizzes Jason on different forms of government which turns out to be far more fun and entertaining than it sounds.

Then the two interview award winning Broadway Producer, Sam Levy about his disagreement with Jason than compulsory voting and bi-partisanship are inherently good while getting in a story about Tom Hanks.

The two then interview retired Clinical Psychologist and Past President of the American Society of Trial Consultants, Doug Keene, Ph.D.  

Doug drops some wisdom about the structures and motivations at play and then shares a way to talk to people you care about who have a very different view of truth than you do.

After sharing their predictions (and hopes and dreams) for 2021, Chris and Jason share their plan for the podcast in 2021--including inviting the listeners to tell them what topics to cover and who to interview in 2021.

Few understand the dynamic of being around people who believe what they want to be true, regardless of the evidence, more than Dale Scott. Dale was a Major League umpire for almost 4,000 games. In his interview with Chris & Jason, he talks about:

Recognizing when someone's heart, not their head, is running the show.

How to handle conflict with someone convinced they are right.

The problem with being convinced you're right.

His experience umpiring with the MLB in Australia.

Being the first major sports official in America to come out.

And of course, a few good stories about what probably looked different on television than what actually happened.

The two then interview each other over some of the best and worst they have seen, experienced, and participated in leading organizations and running businesses.

Jason asks Chris about jury consulting in America and how the American justice system differs from the UK/Australian system.

The conversation shifts to propaganda within democracies and their inhibitors such as the previous USA "Fairness doctrine" and their contributors, large well funded private media empires. In the process, the "Illusion of Truth" effect is discussed.