Jon Z. Greenberg is a Senior Correspondent at PolitiFact, a not-for-profit news organization that seeks to present the true facts, unaffected by agenda or biases. We discuss who gets fact-checked, how it works, and why speaking truth to power is one of the most important things we can do.

Nancy Rosenblum is Professor of Ethics in Politics and Government at Harvard University and co-author of A Lot of People are Saying: The New Conspiracism and the Assault on Democracy. We discuss why this kind of conspiracism is deeply destructive to our society and how enacting democracy can protect reality and relegimitate our institutions.

Lt. Col. Travis I. Trammell worked with Stanford Professor Elisabeth Paté-Cornell to analyze the risks of fake news and create a management decision model to combat disinformation. We discuss the national security risks posed by fake news from other nation states, the kind of influence campaign to expect in 2020, and the most effective countermeasures.

George Lakoff is an emeritus professor of cognitive science and linguistics at UC Berkeley whose research includes the language of politics in which we reside. We discuss the importance of framing the truth first, his famous "truth sandwich," and why the press is critical to a functioning democracy.

Lee C. McIntyre is the author of Post-Truth and a Research Fellow at the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University. We discuss what post-truth means and where it started, what the function of fake news is, and how propaganda plays a role in subordinating a population.

Thomas O. Melia is the Washington Director of PEN America, a non-profit organization that champions free speech and defends the liberties that make it possible. We talk about authoritarians worldwide consolidating power under cover of COVID, the ever-encroaching surveillance state, and the public perception of Trump’s pandemic response.

Geoffrey Supran is a Research Associate at Harvard University, and co-author of Assessing ExxonMobil's Climate Change Communications (1977–2014). We discuss what ExxonMobil knew about climate change, its relentless campaign to deny the reality of climate science, and the importance of speaking truth to power.

Fred Pearce is the author of Fallout: Disasters, Lies, and the Legacy of the Nuclear Age, and has reported on environmental, science, and development issues from 88 countries over the past thirty years. We discuss the legacy of secrecy surrounding nuclear technology, the true cost of waste management, and whether we're nearing the end of the Nuclear Era.

Ken Buesseler is a marine radiochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution who studies the fate and distribution of radioactive elements in the ocean. We discuss the safety of the Pacific Ocean, the natural occurence of radioactivity in our environment, and a citizen scientist project for oceanic testing.

Mark Z. Jacobson is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Senior Fellow of the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. We discuss the various practical problems that make nuclear energy not a viable solution for decarbonization, which renewable sources work better, and why electrifying our lives is a big part of the solution.

Bonus episode! We share four perspectives about the impact the global pandemic is having on America’s poor. We discuss healthcare, housing, cash transfers, homelessness, and bail.

Joshua Goldstein is a political scientist, nuclear advocate, and co-author of Bright Future, How Some Countries Have Solved Climate Change and the Rest Can Follow. We discuss why we should be thinking of nuclear as a clean alternative to coal, and how nuclear energy could be the technology for rapid decarbonization and a green future.

Jojo Mehta is the co-founder and director of Ecological Defense Integrity, a non-profit organization working to establish ecocide as a core international crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. We discuss the power of criminalizing ecocide in order to change the behavior of corporate perpetrators.

Leah Stokes is a professor at UCSB and the author of Short Circuiting Policy. She works on energy, climate and environmental politics. We talk about the successes and failures of clean energy policy in the US, and how energy companies are fighting back against decarbonizing the energy system.

Julian Brave NoiseCat is Vice President of Policy and Strategy at Data for Progress, Narrative Change Director of The Natural History Museum, author, and a First Nations member. We discuss the need for climate justice, what we can learn from our indigenous communities, and why durable clean energy policy is key to stopping climate change.

Jerry Taylor is the President and co-founder of the Niskanen Center, a non-partisan think tank that works to promote an open society. We talk about his conversion from climate denier to climate advocate, working behind the scenes to persuade Republican lawmakers to act on climate change, and why a carbon tax is the most effective public policy to do so.

Jussara Lee is a renowned fashion designer living in New York City. She promotes ‘slow fashion’, hand-made garments, as well as reusing and recycling clothing. We talk about the high cost of fast fashion, our purchasing power as consumers, and the future of sustainable fashion.

Lenore Newman holds the Canada Research Chair in Food Security and Environment at the University of the Fraser Valley. Her latest book is Lost Feast: Culinary Extinction and the Future of Food. We discuss achieving food security through better management of food supplies, which include eating lower on the food chain and using technology such as artificial meats.

Bill McKibben is an author, educator, and legendary environmentalist. He is the Founder of 350.org, spearheaded the resistance to the Keystone Pipeline, and launched the fast-growing fossil fuel divestment movement. We talk about his new book Falter, reducing our carbon footprint, and the power of working together to face climate change.