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Kestrel on vulnerability, personal health, podcast evolutions & a question to sustainable fashion folks: are you OK?

Conscious Chatter

Release Date: 10/15/2024

Designer Olivia Cueva of Oakland Style Lab on the overlapping of biomaterials research, fashion design, & community-centered education as a multifaceted approach to rethinking fashion's systems show art Designer Olivia Cueva of Oakland Style Lab on the overlapping of biomaterials research, fashion design, & community-centered education as a multifaceted approach to rethinking fashion's systems

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 342, Kestrel welcomes Olivia Cueva, a radical dreamer, designer, technologist, and researcher, to the show. bridges creative technology, fashion, biomaterials, and storytelling to explore transformation, regeneration, and collective care. Her practice moves fluidly between community-centered education, speculative design, and research into sustainable and bio-based materials—always with the aim of sparking dialogue, nurturing resilience, and envisioning more just futures. “A lot of the research that I do now is focused on natural dyes and working with plants and seeing how the...

info_outline Dr. Joanne Brasch of the California Product Stewardship Council on SB 707 The Textile Recovery Act Of 2024 - the nation's first textile EPR bill show art Dr. Joanne Brasch of the California Product Stewardship Council on SB 707 The Textile Recovery Act Of 2024 - the nation's first textile EPR bill

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 341, Kestrel welcomes Dr. Joanne Brasch, the Assistant Director at the California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC), to the show. A network of local governments, non-government organizations, businesses, and individuals supporting policies and projects where producers share in the responsibility for managing problem products at their end of life, is California’s thought leader and expert on Product Stewardship and the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) movement. “We're most proud of our textile EPR program because we achieved a lot in SB 707 that set a new level, a new...

info_outline Constanza Gomez of Sortile on the questions we should be asking around EPR policy, a tool to support textile recycling, and the need for more research and data in the textile sector show art Constanza Gomez of Sortile on the questions we should be asking around EPR policy, a tool to support textile recycling, and the need for more research and data in the textile sector

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 340, Kestrel welcomes Constanza Gomez, the cofounder and CEO of Sortile, to the show. is a company focused on empowering the textile recycling industry with technology that enables the identification, sorting and traceability of textiles. “I was a much more hopeful person when I started this company and I've slowly become more of a skeptic. But that means I've leaned more heavily on the need for regulation versus people acting of their own free and good hearts. And so I think the opportunity is great. You can redefine and set real incentives to manage end of life better.”...

info_outline Beth Jensen of Textile Exchange on fashion's complex history with data, how the organization is addressing it through their open-source reporting and the need to ensure the search for *perfect data* doesn't hinder real action show art Beth Jensen of Textile Exchange on fashion's complex history with data, how the organization is addressing it through their open-source reporting and the need to ensure the search for *perfect data* doesn't hinder real action

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 339, Kestrel welcomes Beth Jensen, the Chief Impact Officer at Textile Exchange, to the show. Leading the organization’s efforts to achieve beneficial climate and nature impacts, Beth oversees key functions at including impact data and Life Cycle Assessment studies; impact tools and reporting mechanisms; reports and research; fundraising; and public affairs/policy. “A big part of vulnerability is really admitting that you don't have all the answers. So in sustainability, in fashion, apparel, and textile space, this is just the way we have...

info_outline Miranda Green of Atmos on disappearing climate data, how it's impacting journalists & their ability to tell important stories, and what we can do about it show art Miranda Green of Atmos on disappearing climate data, how it's impacting journalists & their ability to tell important stories, and what we can do about it

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 338, Kestrel welcomes Miranda Green, an investigative journalist focused on politics and climate change, to the show. As the author of Atmos Magazine’s weekly newsletter, , Miranda takes a weekly look behind the climate headlines to question how decisions are made, why they matter, and what they reveal about this moment. “I think data to me is, they’re facts. It's hard facts. It's looking at points that have been, you know, they're determined by scientists. They've been measured. They are proven points that then, I can use as building blocks to tell my story.” -Miranda THEME...

info_outline Gail Gallie of THE NAT on their inaugural gala and the need to focus on galvanizing global capital to close the nature finance gap show art Gail Gallie of THE NAT on their inaugural gala and the need to focus on galvanizing global capital to close the nature finance gap

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 337, Kestrel welcomes Gail Gallie, the founder of THE NAT, to the show. A new convening force for Nature, is primarily focused on galvanizing the private capital needed to close the nature finance gap; they just held their inaugural NAT Gala “Night For Nature” in September 2025. From working in advertising to co-leading the creation of the UN Global Goals Campaign, Gail has an extensive background in global advocacy and campaigning.  “I was pretty blown away that you could quantify the amount of money that was needed to fix where we are now to where we need to get to in...

info_outline Carry Somers on her new book Carry Somers on her new book "The Nature Of Fashion" and the importance of both restoring fashion's connection with nature and repositioning fashion in the broader narrative of ecology as a mirror of who we are

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 336, Kestrel welcomes author and visionary changemaker, Carry Somers, to the show. Co-founder of , the world’s largest fashion activism movement, and the author of a new book – , Carry has worked across the fashion space in various capacities, advocating for a shift towards transparency, fairness, and sustainability in supply chains. “Textiles reflect our connection with the natural world, but they're not just about utility. They're definitely about beauty as well. But they're also really an echo of our disconnection from it. And I realized during my research that that rift...

info_outline Lisa Kibutu of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) on developing textiles in Africa from Indigenous agricultural waste and embracing AI (ancestral intelligence) show art Lisa Kibutu of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) on developing textiles in Africa from Indigenous agricultural waste and embracing AI (ancestral intelligence)

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 335, Kestrel welcomes Lisa Kibutu, the founder of Regenerative Fashion Collaborative Exchange (REFACE) and Regenerative Textile Development Institute (RTDI), to the show. A tech-led social enterprise, was created to holistically address the negative impact of the global fashion industry on climate change, biodiversity, and the environment in Africa. With , she is building a pioneering research and development institution that leverages blockchain technology, zero waste operations, and regenerative agriculture to transform agricultural waste from Indigenous grain crops into...

info_outline Emily Mikhaiel of Nazeerah on honoring her ancestors and Egyptian cotton through regenerative, organic farming practices and a localized supply chain show art Emily Mikhaiel of Nazeerah on honoring her ancestors and Egyptian cotton through regenerative, organic farming practices and a localized supply chain

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 334, Kestrel welcomes Emily Mikhaiel, the cofounder and creative director of Nazeerah, to the show. A clothing brand inspired by the legacy of her grandmother, supports organic and regenerative farming practices to honor Egyptian cotton, and produces locally in Egypt to maintain direct relationships with their suppliers and reduce their carbon footprint. “There really wasn't waste while my father was growing up. Everything was either composted or if it was metal, it was recycled or reused or repurposed. If a garment was no longer wearable, they'd cut it up into strips and weave...

info_outline Cate Havstad-Casad of Range Revolution on building a leather supply chain that centers traceability and regenerative practices for the land, people & community show art Cate Havstad-Casad of Range Revolution on building a leather supply chain that centers traceability and regenerative practices for the land, people & community

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 333, Kestrel welcomes Cate Havstad-Casad, a designer, entrepreneur, and first-generation regenerative rancher, to the show. Cate’s work as a designer and land steward has evolved a great deal since she founded Havstad Hat Company in 2014. Today she manages Casad Family Farms with her husband, while building , a luxury leather goods brand focused on using 100% American, regeneratively sourced hides. “I love the idea of having things forever. I love the idea of a great leather boot being resoled again and again. My work in hats, I'm like the anti-growth capitalist. I'm like, you...

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More Episodes

Episode 323 features Kestrel (just me!) in the first-ever solo episode of the show. With a primary focus on vulnerability, Kestrel shares some of the rollercoasters she has faced personally over the last year (from health to finances), why she and Nat are parting ways when it comes to regularly hosting the show, the true costs of producing a podcast, as well as a question on whether performative vulnerability is what we are seeing too often from the industry.

“To all of you interested in sustainable fashion or those of you who work in the industry - I want to ask you a question: are you ok!?”-Kestrel

OCTOBER THEME — MAYBE VULNERABILITY IS WHAT FASHION REALLY NEEDS

As you can see, Nat is not here. It’s super bittersweet, as doing the show hand-in-hand with someone I love, a best friend, and someone I admire deeply was truly magical. At the same time, realities happen, things shift, and sometimes what you anticipate doesn’t actually work out in the end. 

Being honest about the journey is, and always has been important to me.

Nat is amazing as many of you already know. Moving forward, she won’t be cohosting with me on a regular basis, but she will jump back in as a guest or cohost on the show on and off down the line. 

I know this might be confusing for you since there have been a lot of shifts on and off throughout the year. First of all, thanks for sticking around, for caring deeply about the show, and believing in the potential power of change in the fashion space.

This episode is all about vulnerability — I hope you can feel my hope to tear down some of the curtains that often separate us for connecting on a deeper level. 

Here’s what you'll hear from me:

  • A bit about my person health stuff I’ve gone through over the last year

  • Why it wasn’t possible for Nat and I to continue co-hosting together - hint, hint: independent media is hard

  • A little insider info on what it costs to run a podcast 

  • Some musings on whether it’s possible for the sustainable fashion / fashion realm as a whole to get vulnerable and what that could look like