//podcastplus.net/feed/the-good-dirt-with-byron-smith~e95b14a0 Dr Byron Smith and a variety of guests unearth overlooked news stories about forces shaping our world. Tue, 01 Sep 2026 15:20:02 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/8f76d2/S01E11_Brooke_Prentis.mp3 A conversation with Brooke Prentis, Waka Waka woman, Aboriginal Spokesperson for Common Grace, Coordinator of the Grasstree Gathering. Brooke is currently a Senior Fellow at Anglican Deaconness Ministries, Director of PEACEtalks here at Paddington Anglican, and in a delightful piece of news, Common Grace have recently announced that Brooke will be their next CEO, starting in February.   Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Byron chats with Brooke about the difference between being political vs being partisan, arguing that the former is inevitable but that the latter needn't be. Being political in this broad sense is a neutral term to do with the distribution and application of power in society. Being partisan means to take actions that are intended to benefit or advance the agenda of a particular organised political party. People's aversion to being partisan sometimes leads them to seek to avoid being political, but this turns out to be impossible since even the attempt at neutrality is it... Tue, 28 Jan 2020 10:27:40 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/8f76d2/S01E11_Brooke_Prentis.mp3 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/68epmv/S01E10_TGD_Adam_Wood.m4a A conversation with Adam Wood, a secondary school teacher at a large well-known private school in Sydney, teaching Legal and Christian Studies. Adam used to be a corporate lawyer, until he decided to use his powers for good. He is married to Emma and they have two small children.  Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Byron chats with Adam Wood about intergenerational injustice, particularly as it relates to climate disruption. As a complex, global, cumulative crisis with a significant lag time between combustion and climate disruption, it is easy for each generation to enjoy the immediate benefits of burning fossil fuels while passing on to coming generations the full costs of that combustion. This creates a fundamental structural injustice by creating a gap between the beneficiaries of an activity and those who suffer from its consequences. How do we connect empathetically and ethically with those downstream from us, whose future suffering or flourishing is dependent upon our choices today?... Tue, 26 Nov 2019 00:03:25 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/68epmv/S01E10_TGD_Adam_Wood.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/e294pj/S01E09_Mick_Pope.m4a A conversation with Dr Mick Pope, who has a PhD in Meteorology from Monash University and is completing a Masters in Theology at the University of Divinity. He is a lecturer in Meteorology at the Bureau of Meterology, Professor in Environmental Theology at Missional University, and a member of the Centre for Religion and Social Policy (RASP). Mick is the author of three books on climate and faith. A Climate of Hope: Church and Mission in a Warming World , co-authored with Claire Dawson A Climate of Justice: Loving your Neighbour in a Warming World All Things New: God’s plan to renew our world Byron and Mick are moderators of the Australian Christian Environmental Group on Facebook. Mick also has an author's page on Facebook.   Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Byron chats with Mick Pope about the Anthropocene, the proposed new geological epoch named after the most dominant force shaping the planet: anthropoi , i.e. us humans. They explore the history of the t... Fri, 15 Nov 2019 10:41:11 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/e294pj/S01E09_Mick_Pope.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/bvmqnx/S01E08_David_Clough.m4a A conversation with Prof David Clough, Professor of Theological Ethics at the University of Chester and who has just finished a term as President of the Society for the Study of Christian Ethics. Prof Clough co-wrote Faith and Force: A Christian Debate about War (2007), debating just war and pacifism in a 21st century context, and has recently completed the landmark two-volume monograph On Animals ( 2012 , 2018 ), on the place of animals in Christian theology and ethics. He is the founder of CreatureKind , a project aiming to engage Christians with farmed animal welfare, and Principal Investigator for a three-year UK Research Council funded project on the Christian Ethics of Farmed Animal Welfare in partnership with major UK churches and Compassion in World Farming . He is a Methodist lay preacher and has represented the Methodist Church on national ecumenical working groups on the ethics of warfare and climate change .    Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Byron chats w... Wed, 03 Jul 2019 17:44:59 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/bvmqnx/S01E08_David_Clough.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/8pv2j2/S01E07_Ep7_Jason_John.m4a Rev Dr Jason John is a eco-theologian working for Uniting Earth . With a background studying zoology, environment and theology, Jason's PhD explored the interconnections between evolution, ecology, environmentalism and faith. He has been a university chaplain, an environmental officer, a researcher and a congregational minister. He has started a couple of ecofaith outdoor worship communities with the Uniting Church, has written three books , hosted a radio show that ran for over 100 episodes ( Ecofaith on the Air ), has a few talks on his YouTube channel and is an active part of Common Grace's Creation and Climate Justice team. He lives with his family on the edge of a forest near Bellingen on the NSW north coast.   Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Byron chats with Jason John about some of the tricks our brain plays on us when we get news we don't like, a phenomena psychologists call identity protective cognition . When we come across new information that threatens our ... Thu, 13 Jun 2019 15:25:54 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/8pv2j2/S01E07_Ep7_Jason_John.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/53ktzp/190404_S01E06_Ben_Thurley.m4a Election special! With Ben Thurley. Ben is CEO of International Nepal Fellowship Australia . He has spent years working in Nepal with villages facing poverty, harsh and remote conditions in the Himalayas, and worsening climate impacts. He is also a keen and insightful observer of Australian politics and he joins Byron Smith for a discussion that remains timely ever after the election. This episode with Ben Thurley was recorded a month or so ago, when the government's budget was still merely a campaign document, but the discussion has become all the more relevant after the recent election result. Given the election context, this episode is more directly party political than usual as we discuss budgets and policies. But with a new government freshly elected, it is worth spending some time considering their priorities and in particular casting a critical eye over their climate policy.   Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? The Overton Window is a concept in political theory that names the... Tue, 21 May 2019 07:29:30 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/53ktzp/190404_S01E06_Ben_Thurley.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/6xw5yd/S01E05_TGD_Miriam_Pepper.m4a Episode Five: A Dying River? "Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!" - Amos 5.24 What does it mean when a river stops flowing? Australia's longest, largest, most crucial and most controversial river system is the Murray-Darling. Winding its way across thousands of kilometres and draining a basin one seventh of the continent in area, the waters of the Murray Darling have sustained many Aboriginal nations for thousands of years, are now also the lifeblood of dozens of towns, irrigate a large chunk of Australian agriculture and are home to a broad diversity of species. Yet this great system is polluted, parched and partitioned: its fish dying, its flow interrupted, its management hotly disputed. In this episode, we depart somewhat from our usual format to explore the causes of and challenges resulting from a river in crisis, as well as what might be done about it. Byron Smith talks with Dr Miriam Pepper, Researcher with National Church Life Survey, Resear... Thu, 18 Apr 2019 07:25:59 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/6xw5yd/S01E05_TGD_Miriam_Pepper.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/49k37b/S01E04_Josh_Dowton.m4a We're back! After a summer hiatus that lasted a little longer than expected, Byron Smith talks with Josh Dowton, associate pastor at Northside Baptist Church , New Testament scholar and permaculturist.   Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? The epistemic priority of the oppressed is a fancy way of saying that in seeking to understand any situation of conflict, we ought to listen first and most carefully to the weaker party, because their voice is more easily dismissed, undermined or sidelined.   An opinion piece giving an overview of some of those who rushed to defend George Pell after his conviction for crimes of sexual violence against teenagers:  The inconsistencies of George Pell's defenders just display their power .   II. What's going on? Story #1: 26th January, #changethedate vs #changethenation vs #changetheheart Why I no longer support #changethedate #Changetheheart prayer services for 2019 The Killing Times  (new Guardian series) Lifeline: 13 11 ... Thu, 14 Mar 2019 18:39:45 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/49k37b/S01E04_Josh_Dowton.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/c3jt6k/S01E03_Lisa_Sharon_Harper.m4a In our third episode, Lisa Sharon Harper - US author, activist, faith leader - talks with Byron Smith about her work helping people from many backgrounds journey towards justice and wholeness. Amongst numerous other initiatives, recently Lisa has been particularly involved with Freedom Road , whose tagline is "We consult, coach, train and design experiences that help groups in multiple sectors do justice in just ways." Freedom Road Podcast  with Lisa. Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? Core Spiritual Lies are false ways we have learned to see ourselves with respect to God, others and the land. If we can unearth and articulate such false beliefs, noting the ways that they are expressed in our culture and power structures, then we may be able to respond with spiritual truths that can liberate and heal. • Uluru Statement from the Heart  • Tony Abbott: 'Nothing but bush'   II. What's going on? Story #1: Australia's authority in the Pacific 'being eroded by refusal ... Fri, 21 Dec 2018 15:57:55 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/c3jt6k/S01E03_Lisa_Sharon_Harper.m4a https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/pcvfba/GoodDirt2-BrookePrentis_AAC_.m4a In which Brooke Prentis - Waka Waka woman, Aboriginal Christian leader, Grasstree Gathering coordinator, Common Grace spokesperson - kicks Byron Smith's backside in trivia. And of course, together they explore some major contemporary issues facing those living in Australia and beyond, seeking to connect the dots and unearth the stories that matter. Episode Outline I. What's the big idea? "Just world belief" is the idea that, fundamentally, the world is just, that we each get (more or less) what we deserve, that success is typically earned - and so is failure. It is a foundational conviction for many people, but has some disturbing consequences... •  Milgrim Lerner psychology experiment studying victim-blaming     II. What's going on? Story #1: More than 400 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have died in custody since the end of the royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody in 1991 Story #2: Yatala Prison Inquest: Guards refused to cooperate over Wayne Mo... Thu, 13 Dec 2018 22:00:00 +0000 https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/pcvfba/GoodDirt2-BrookePrentis_AAC_.m4a