Tree Speech
41 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago -Alight Theater Guild presents Tree Speech, a blend of narrative storytelling, interviews, and wanderlust at the intersection of the personal, historical and cultural ways that trees impact our lives. Each episode seeks to find new understandings to the tangled relationships we have with the natural world in which we inhabit. We examine folklore, history, holidays, and current events while exploring trees in our conversations around race, religion, and resources with people who all share deep connections to them-from artists and writers to historians and educators, advocates to activists.
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Episodes
RACIST TREES with filmmakers Sara Newens and Mina T. Son
March 24, 2024 16:18 - 36 minutes - 35.5 MBWelcome back, Tree Speechers! We’re thrilled to begin Season 5 with a new conversation in a clearing, as we continue to find new understandings to the tangled relationships we have with the natural world in which we inhabit. We open this season interviewing filmmakers Mina T. Son and Sara Newens who made the eye-opening and thoughtful documentary, RACIST TREES. This intimate film captures an inside look at the frustrations of residents of the historically Black Lawrence Crossley Tract neig...
REPLAY-Winter Solstice: Let the Light In
December 24, 2023 15:01 - 33 minutes - 38.3 MBIn honor of the recent Winter Solstice and this holiday season, we are re-releasing our episode Let the Light In. Celebrate this moment of transition with a walk in the woods as we share stories of solstice celebration’s from around the world. From old legends to new traditions, join us as we explore how, even during these darker months, we can find ways to let light into our lives. New episodes forthcoming in 2024! In this episode, we share several folk tales about the season, rituals ol...
REPLAY-The Return of Spooky Trees
October 28, 2023 19:36 - 27 minutes - 25.1 MBHappy Halloween! We are busy working on future episodes to be released soon, but couldn't let this magical time of year pass without a frightful celebration! As the full moon rises, we gather around the campfire for a replay of our special Spooky Trees episode! Join us for supernatural, mysterious, and unexpected tree tales from around the world to get you into the Samhain spirit. Special thanks to actor, educator, actor Peril - I mean, Cheryl Mullings, and dialect coach Charles Linshaw fo...
REPLAY-The 9/11 Survivor Tree with Ron Vega
September 11, 2023 00:07 - 38 minutes - 37.3 MBTo commemorate the anniversary of Sept. 11, we share this replay of our episode that featured the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear tree found during the excavation of Ground Zero in NYC. Our guest, Ron Vega, shares his insightful and touching story of how he championed and helped nurture the tree from a wounded, burned stump to the powerful sign of hope and survival that it represents today. Learn more about the podcast at: www.treespeechpodcast.com, and IG: treespeechpodcast Addi...
REPLAY- Tree of Life and Mother's Day
May 13, 2023 20:36 - 38 minutes - 36.1 MBWe at Tree Speech are incredibly grateful to Stephanie Kaza and our mothers, Miriam Robinson, Anne-Marie Roach and Jackie Vandenberg for joining us today. Dr. Stephanie Kaza is Professor Emerita of Environmental Studies at the University of Vermont and former Director of the UVM Environmental Program. She co-founded the Environmental Council at UVM and served as faculty director for the Sustainability Faculty Fellows program. In 2011 Dr. Kaza received the UVM George V. Kidder Outstanding Fa...
Tu B’Shevat and Season Wrap-Up
February 10, 2023 14:03 - 35 minutes - 32.5 MBIn the final episode of our fourth season, producer and co-writer Jonathan Zautner interviews podcast host Dori Robinson about the Jewish “New Year of the Trees” - Tu B’Shevat. We continue to commemorate the close of the season by discussing our thoughts on the guests and topics we have covered. Did you have a favorite episode, a thought about family trees, or a suggestion about what we should discuss next? Please message us on www.treespeechpodcast.com, or leave us a voice memo on Anchor. ...
TREES, INC.: Transgender Resource, Education & Enrichment Services with Meghan Buell
January 20, 2023 19:52 - 34 minutes - 33 MBIn this episode, we speak with Meghan Buell, the founder of TREES, Inc., the Transgender Resource, Education, and Enrichment Services organization that she created and leads to provide transgender education to small towns and rural America. TREES, Inc. is driven by the need to stem the rash of transgender discrimination by using education to create a more inclusive environment for trangender identifying individuals to live an enriched, safe, and successful life free of violence and strife. ...
Open-Air Life with Linda Åkeson McGurk
January 06, 2023 20:09 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MBHappy New Year, Tree Speechers! We celebrate 2023 and our 30th episode by speaking with Swedish-American author Linda Åkeson McGurk, whose book "The Open-Air Life: Discover the Nordic Art of Friluftsliv and Embrace Nature Every Day” shows us how to embody a Frilufsliv life by getting outside and embracing the outdoors no matter the time of year or temperature. Our conversations explore the many ways being outside strengthens our mental and physical health, builds community, and nurtures a ne...
Winter Solstice: Let the Light In
December 21, 2022 22:09 - 33 minutes - 38.3 MBIn this episode, we celebrate the Winter Solstice through a midwinter walk in the woods while sharing several folk tales about the season, rituals old and new, and an interview with Jonathan Mearns of London Christmas Tree Rental, who offers an environmentally sustainable tree option to celebrate the lights of Yule. Throughout, we explore how we, during these darker months, can find ways to let light in and become a part of our lives. This week’s episode was written and recorded in Massach...
Family Trees with Neshama Carlebach
December 12, 2022 22:49 - 38 minutes - 35.8 MBIn today’s episode we will examine the origins of the concept of family trees and speak with the award-winning singer, songwriter and educator, Neshama Carlebach, about her artistry, inspirations, and the journey of understanding that she has taken as a direct result of her own family tree as the daughter of the renowned and musical Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. Neshama Carlebach is an award-winning singer, songwriter and educator who has performed and taught in cities around the world. She is a ...
A Conversation in a Clearing the Exhibition
November 25, 2022 17:48 - 26 minutes - 23.6 MBIn this episode, we discuss our first-ever immersive installation: A Conversation in a Clearing, which brings the Tree Speech podcast to life, allowing audiences to engage with trees and reflect on their relationship with nature and the environment. Combining audio narrative storytelling with a physical representation of a peaceful, winter clearing in the woods, the installation allows visitors to actively relax and settle into a peaceful place where their minds and hearts may feel at ease....
Revisiting the Liberty Tree
November 11, 2022 15:54 - 58 minutes - 52.6 MBOn this Veteran's Day we revisit Boston’s Liberty Tree, including its origin story and how that story evolved over time depending on who was telling it. We have wonderfully spirited conversations with distinguished actor, singer, dancer, and educator, Mark Linehan and historian Maddie Webster, a Boston University PhD student in the American & New England Studies Program. Then, we seek to uncover what liberty and liberation means in the present day with activist and Applied theatre practition...
The Return of Spooky Trees
October 28, 2022 14:13 - 27 minutes - 33.2 MBGather round the campfire for a very special, supernatural episode. We have spooky, mysterious tree tales from around the world to get you into the Halloween spirit! Listen now, if you dare! Special thanks to actor, educator, actor Peril - I mean, Cheryl Mullings, and dialect coach Charles Linshaw for joining our episode today. Learn more about Cheryl at https://cherylmullings.workbooklive.com/ and Charles at: https://www.charleslinshaw.com. Tree Speech’s host, Dori Robinson, is a director...
What Lies Beneath with Kesiah Bascom
October 14, 2022 13:51 - 28 minutes - 28.3 MBWhile we often speak of trees that tower over our heads, in this episode, we will examine what lies beneath to understand soil and how human interaction can affect the way we live on and with our land. We will also speak with Kesiah Bascom, who founded a mission-driven food scrap collection and composting program in the Merrimack Valley Region of Massachusetts. Kesiah was the founder/owner of OffBeet Compost and has spent the past 7 years working in the sustainable agriculture and food just...
Justice is an Ecosystem with Kristen P. Patterson & Christina D. Eskridge
September 30, 2022 15:28 - 40 minutes - 31.8 MBIn this episode, we will examine the intersections of reproductive rights with climate solutions, and will be speaking with Kristen P. Patterson, the inaugural Director of Drawdown Lift, launched in early 2021 as a part of the nonprofit Project Drawdown. We’ll also be speaking with Christina D. Eskridge, the Founder and Executive Director of Elevate Theatre Company, who worked to combine her expertise in performing arts with her public health background to facilitate and amplify healthcare ...
Embracing Autumn
September 21, 2022 12:48 - 35 minutes - 42.2 MBWe are so excited to be entering into our fourth season with an exploration of this magical time of year, the Autumnal Equinox! Much gratitude to our guest, Heather Porter of Animisma podcast for her moving thoughts and insights regarding this time of year, and the benefits of sacred rot. To find out more about her, please visit her website, thepathofintegrity.com. Heather is a writer, storyteller, and advisor. She's been called an empath, a sensitive compass of compassion, and a 'Rosetta...
Midsummer Night's Dream
June 24, 2022 13:02 - 25 minutes - 28.7 MBGive us your hands, dear friends, as we lead you along the path of our own Midsummer Night’s Dream! We conclude this season with a celebration of Midsummer and the summer solstice. Listen as our host hikes her way through the day, all while sharing stories about summer rituals and traditions from around the world. We have a newly-launched Patreon! We at Tree Speech strive to bring you insightful stories and information about trees and those who engage with them, including interviews with a ...
Sacred Earth with John Philip Newell
June 11, 2022 13:26 - 38 minutes - 35 MBWe at Tree Speech and Alight Theater Guild are incredibly grateful to John Philip Newell for joining us today. Newell is a Celtic teacher and author of spirituality who calls the modern world to reawaken to the sacredness of Earth and every human being. Canadian by birth, and a citizen also of Scotland, he resides with his family in Edinburgh and works on both sides of the Atlantic. In 2016 he began the School of Earth and Soul (originally called the School of Celtic Consciousness) and tea...
Pagan Re-enchantment with Rhyd Wildermuth
May 20, 2022 13:51 - 34 minutes - 31.3 MBWe have a newly-launched Patreon! We at Tree Speech strive to bring you insightful stories and information about trees and those who engage with them. As we keep growing, we would appreciate your support! We now have a Patreon, and every dollar helps us continue to produce this podcast. Every contribution supports our production, and we’ll be giving gifts of gratitude including an invitation to Tree House, our new virtual community for patrons of all levels. We at Tree Speech and Alight The...
Tree of Life with Dr. Stephanie Kaza
May 06, 2022 13:35 - 38 minutes - 37.3 MBWe at Tree Speech and Alight Theater Guild are incredibly grateful to Stephanie Kaza for joining us today. Dr. Stephanie Kaza is Professor Emerita of Environmental Studies at the University of Vermont and former Director of the UVM Environmental Program. She co-founded the Environmental Council at UVM and served as faculty director for the Sustainability Faculty Fellows program. In 2011 Dr. Kaza received the UVM George V. Kidder Outstanding Faculty Award for excellence in teaching. Kaza rec...
Considering John Muir Part 2 with Aaron Mair
April 15, 2022 16:27 - 35 minutes - 31.1 MBWe at Tree Speech and Alight Theater Guild are incredibly grateful to Aaron Mair for joining us today. Aaron Mair is an environmental justice pioneer who has worked over the last 40 years in the spaces of health, environment, climate change disparities, and wilderness protection. He is an urban environmental activist and a regional and national environmental justice organizer and strategist who has advised two presidents and Congress, served on the national board of directors of the Sierra...
Considering John Muir with Lee Stetson
April 01, 2022 16:04 - 30 minutes - 29.1 MBWe at Tree Speech and Alight Theater Guild are incredibly grateful to Lee Stetson for joining us today. To learn more information about Lee’s performances or to have him perform for your company or event, find him at www.johnmuirlive.com. Lee's performances have brought the inspiration, humor, and conservation message of John Muir to many thousands of people. Since 1983, Lee has presented dramatic live enactments of John Muir in Yosemite National Park. He is often asked to provide Muir "voi...
A Vernal Equinox Return to the Woods
March 18, 2022 12:38 - 24 minutes - 26 MBTo mark the beginning of our third season, we start right where we left off, with a vernal equinox walk in the woods. As we make our way on the trail, we’ll discuss the meanings and histories of this threshold into spring, and feature a variety of ways that the equinox is celebrated around the world. Special thanks to David Brandon Ross for composing and performing the meditation featured at the end of the episode. David Brandon Ross (he/him) holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Berklee...
A Winter Solstice Walk in the Woods
December 21, 2021 21:14 - 26 minutes - 32.2 MBHappy Winter Solstice to all in the northern hemisphere! For this episode, we’ll be exploring all the many ways that trees and nature play a role in winter holidays - specifically, the solstice. This is the last episode of this season. We wish everyone a Merry Yuletide and holiday season filled with light, and look forward to connecting in the new year! Wassail Recipe: This traditional warming drink is perfect for sipping during a solstice celebration (and it makes the house smell incredi...
Sapling Stories
December 13, 2021 02:50 - 24 minutes - 24.4 MBIn our next episode we feature a collection of Sapling Stories, short tree-related tales that are sent in or collected from our listeners. Special thank you to Diana Zipeto @dzipeto, Slava Tchoul, Virginia Montalvo, Mountaine Jonas, Lisa Schmidt, Sophy Tuttle @sophytuttle, Tess George, Michelle Dyment @tribeofgoats and Jess @Je_ss_dy, Rick Hall @rickhallcreative, Karl Frey, @westernavearts, and Courtney Bottomley @canarycourt. For more information: THE MUSEUM OF JEWISH HERITAGE – A LIVING...
The Liberty Tree with Mark Linehan, Maddie Webster, and Catherine Hanna Schrock
November 27, 2021 20:57 - 52 minutes - 49.2 MBIn our next episode we examine the history of Boston’s Liberty Tree, including its origin story and how that story evolved over time depending on who was telling it. We have wonderfully spirited conversations with distinguished actor, singer, dancer, and educator, Mark Linehan and historian Maddie Webster, a Boston University PhD student in the American & New England Studies Program. Then, we seek to uncover what liberty and liberation means in the present day with activist and Applied theat...
Speak For The Trees with David Meshoulam
November 12, 2021 15:53 - 37 minutes - 33 MBOur next episode features a conversation with David Meshoulam, PhD, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Boston nonprofit, SPEAK FOR THE TREES, an organization whose mission is to improve the size and health of the urban tree canopy in Boston, with a focus on under-resourced and under-canopied neighborhoods. David (pronounced Dah-veed) co-founded Speak for the Trees in 2018. Trained as a science educator, his work has focused on ways to increase understanding of the connections between ...
Spooky Trees
October 29, 2021 14:40 - 22 minutes - 28 MBGather round the campfire for a very special, supernatural episode. We have spooky, mysterious tree tales from around the world to get you into the Halloween spirit! Listen now, if you dare! Special thanks to actor, educator, and dialect coach Charles Linshaw for joining our episode today. Learn more about Charles at: https://www.charleslinshaw.com. Tree Speech’s host, Dori Robinson, is a director, playwright, dramaturg, and educator who seeks and develops projects that explore social cons...
Witches & Witchcraft with Serefina Mesa and Joshua Gray
October 22, 2021 16:01 - 43 minutes - 38.8 MBThis third episode of our second season features our look into Witches & Witchcraft. Our guests include Serefina Mesa, owner of Rue and Vervain, an etsy shop that sells "hand-made spell crafting supplies for the persnickety witch." Serefina is a self-described Bodhisattva, Green Witch, and empath who believes that there's primordial energy and magic in nature, and through her gifts that power can be harnessed and shared. We also spoke with Joshua Gray, a self-described practitioner of the wi...
Witches & Witchcraft
October 22, 2021 16:01 - 43 minutes - 38.8 MBThis third episode of our second season features our look into Witches & Witchcraft. Our guests include Serefina Mesa, owner of Rue and Vervain, an etsy shop that sells "hand-made spell crafting supplies for the persnickety witch." Serefina is a self-described Bodhisattva, Green Witch, and empath who believes that there's primordial energy and magic in nature, and through her gifts that power can be harnessed and shared. We also spoke with Joshua Gray, a self-described practitioner of the wi...
The 9/11 Survivor Tree, Part 2
October 08, 2021 16:44 - 26 minutes - 26 MBThis second episode of our second season features the second part of our focus on the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear tree found during the excavation of Ground Zero in New York City. Our guests include Cheryl Somers Aubin, a writer, instructor and speaker who was inspired to write the book, The Survivor Tree: Inspired by a True Story in 2011. Also, we hear from George Middleton, a visual artist and retired Call Firefighter and EMT. Additional resources and for more information: Cheryl ...
The 9/11 Survivor Tree, Part 2 with Cheryl Somers Aubin & George Middleton
October 08, 2021 16:44 - 26 minutes - 26 MBThis second episode of our second season features the second part of our focus on the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear tree found during the excavation of Ground Zero in New York City. Our guests include Cheryl Somers Aubin, a writer, instructor and speaker who was inspired to write the book, The Survivor Tree: Inspired by a True Story in 2011. Also, we hear from George Middleton, a visual artist and retired Call Firefighter and EMT. Additional resources and for more information: Cheryl ...
The 9/11 Survivor Tree, Part 1 with Ronaldo Vega
September 24, 2021 18:34 - 37 minutes - 36 MBThis first episode of our second season features the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear tree found during the excavation of Ground Zero in New York City. Our guest, Ronaldo Vega, shares his insightful and touching story of how he championed and helped nurture the tree from a wounded, burned stump to the powerful sign of hope and survival that it represents today. Additional resources: 9/11 Memorial Survivor Tree: https://www.911memorial.org/visit/memorial/survivor-tree Oklahoma City Nation...
The 9/11 Survivor Tree, Part 1
September 24, 2021 18:34 - 37 minutes - 36 MBThis first episode of our second season features the 9/11 Survivor Tree, a Callery Pear tree found during the excavation of Ground Zero in New York City. Our guest, Ronaldo Vega, shares his insightful and touching story of how he championed and helped nurture the tree from a wounded, burned stump to the powerful sign of hope and survival that it represents today. Additional resources: 9/11 Memorial Survivor Tree: https://www.911memorial.org/visit/memorial/survivor-tree Oklahoma City Nation...
White Pine with Dori Robinson
May 14, 2021 21:33 - 19 minutes - 18.2 MBWe are grateful to have spoken with Rabbi Harold Robinson during today’s episode, as well as to hear the sapling stories of Seiki Imagica, Janelle Mills, and Johnny Nichols, Jr. Feel free to leave a voice message with your own Sapling Stories at: https://anchor.fm/treespeech or contact us at www.treespeechpodcast.com. Tree Speech’s host, Dori Robinson, is a director, playwright, dramaturg, and educator who seeks and develops projects that explore social consciousness, personal heritage, and ...
Cherry Blossom with Michelle Browder
May 08, 2021 01:46 - 26 minutes - 23.5 MBWe are grateful to have spoken with Michelle Browder during today’s episode. Michelle is a nationally recognized artist and activist. Her work has been exhibited in four galleries, including the Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery, Alabama. She uses her artistic talents to create restorative justice programs in juvenile detention centers, failing schools systems and after school programs for under-served youth. Michelle has mentored thousands of disadvantaged kids and created safe places for c...
Banyan with Guleraana Mir
April 30, 2021 17:21 - 30 minutes - 26.5 MBWe are grateful to have spoken with Guleraana Mir during today’s episode. Guleraana is a British award-winning writer, applied-theatre practitioner, and one half of The Thelmas, a female-led theatre company devoted to empowering women to redress the equality imbalance in the arts. She is passionate about telling authentic stories that celebrate, not stereotype. Guleraana regularly facilitates playwriting masterclasses in schools, community groups, and for emerging writers. She is leader of...
Oak with Navee Cohen
April 23, 2021 14:57 - 31 minutes - 29.5 MBWe are grateful to have spoken with Navee Cohen during today’s episode. Here is a link to RIKMAH ENOSHIT ACHAT (A SINGLE HUMAN TISSUE): https://jewishmom.com/2016/05/10/the-song-i-will-be-singing-this-israeli-memorial-day/ Navee Cohen was born and raised on Kibbutz Ramat Yohanan in northern Israel. His early adulthood was spent as an elite Triathlete representing Israel in championship races around the world, including Croatia, Singapore, Turkey, France, and the United States. He retired f...
Cedar with Nancy Smithner
April 16, 2021 16:11 - 28 minutes - 22.4 MBWe are grateful to have spoken with Nancy Smithner during today’s episode. Nancy Smithner, PhD, is a director, performer, devisor and Clinical Associate Professor in the Program in Educational Theatre at New York University, where she teaches Physical Theatre, Acting, Directing, Devising, Theatre History, Play Theory, Pedagogy and Community Engaged Theatre. A theatre director, she specializes in the devising of original performance works and plays, and has worked with populations of all age...
Black Walnut with Karen Hampton
April 08, 2021 23:49 - 32 minutes - 28.8 MBLearn more about the podcast at: www.treespeechpodcast.com, and IG: treespeechpodcast We are grateful to have spoken with Karen Hampton during our premiere episode. Hampton is an internationally recognized conceptual fiber artist, addressing issues of colorism and kinship. Hampton’s art practice is the synthesis of memory, history, time and cloth. A student of cultural relationships, seeks to break through stereotypes and address issues related to being a Black woman. Using her training in...
Tree Speech with Dori Robinson trailer
March 27, 2021 22:41 - 56 seconds - 1.05 MBAlight Theater Guild presents Tree Speech with Dori Robinson, a new podcast that gets curious about trees while building connections, raising awareness, and promoting understanding through hearing the unique stories and ideas of people whose lives have been impacted by them. Join us as we get to know one another and our world, one tree at a time. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/treespeech/message