Apocalyptic Optimist Podcast
Real talk about what’s broken and how to fix it.
When federal environmental guardrails start buckling, who steps up? Meet Dominique Browning, who pivoted from a career as an editor at Condé Nast into building a 1.6-million-strong army of caregivers fighting for clean air and healthy kids. Alongside host Dr. Dana Fisher, Dominique breaks down how Moms Clean Air Force is shutting down toxic industry facilities locally, protecting electric school buses, and leveraging "mom-partisanship" to demand accountability from lawmakers. Tune in to find out why anger mixed with radical love might just be the most unstoppable force in climate action today.
When Chief Meteorologist Chris Gloninger started connecting the dots between extreme weather and climate change in a red state, he expected a challenge—but he didn’t expect a death threat. In this episode, host Dr. Dana Fisher digs into Chris's journey from a censored newsroom to the cutting edge of climate risk communication at Woods Hole. Discover how we can cut through the noise of partisan echo chambers, find common ground, and brace for the upcoming Super El Niño without losing our collective optimism.
In this episode of The Apocalyptic Optimist, Dr. Dana Fisher sits down with best-selling climate writer, strategist, and teacher Dr. Katharine Wilkinson (All We Can Save, Climate Wayfinding) to discuss how we keep going in this mapless political moment. Moving from climate optimism to the current reality, Katharine outlines why our greatest tool isn't another technical policy paper-- it's each other.
What happens when a global superpower starts dismantling its own scientific infrastructure to protect a dying industry? In this episode, Dr. Dana Fisher sits down with acclaimed Harvard historian Dr. Naomi Oreskes to map out the terrifying parallels between current American rollbacks in science and historic authoritarian regimes. They break down the mechanics of modern disinformation networks, explain how market forces are winning the green transition anyway, and reveal why Big Oil's recent political bribes are actually a sign of sheer panic. Forget passive "hope"—this episode is a call to turn appropriate, targeted anger into the fuel that drives real systemic climate action and pushes back against authoritarianism.
Political power isn’t what you think…The algorithms thrive on your anger, keeping you stuck in a cycle of doomscrolling, posting, and feeling utterly powerless. Comedian, writer, and labor activist Adam Conover (creator of Adam Ruins Everything and The G Word) knows we’ve been looking at political change all wrong.
In the first episode of the Apocalypric Optimist Podcast, Dr. Dana R. Fisher speaks with Rachel O’Leary Carmona and Tamika Middleton from the Women’s March on what we can learn from the Free America Walkout.
In Episode 2 of the Apocalyptic Optimist Podcast , Dana talks with Dr. Rashawn Ray about the realities of building solidarity in a deeply divided moment. From his work with communities-of-color and police departments to learning from the Black Lives Matter movement, Dr. Ray breaks down what works, what doesn’t, and how people can show up as more effective racial justice advocates right now.