Episode notes
Natural Causes is a podcast about the politics and practicalities of going outside in a world on fire, hosted by Dr James Stout. It approaches the outdoors, conservation, agriculture, food sovereignty, fire management and Indigenous land rights as interconnected issues. We want to combine unflinching journalism with unabashed advocacy for the land we all share, and welcome everyone into the outdoors and the fight for our public lands. Our shared wild spaces are under threat like never before, The Trump administration is stripping protections, extractive capitalism and data centers are…
Transcript
Read the transcript · about 420 words, follows along as you listen
Speaker 1:Hi.
Speaker 2:I'm doctor James Stout.
Speaker 1:You might know me as a host of yekadapp and here podcast, but now I'm also hosting Natural Causes, a podcast about going outside. I'm a historian, journalist, and outdoors person. You might know me for my working conflicts and migration, but i grew up with both parents working in agriculture, and since then I've hiked, climbed, ridden, and paddled all over the world. I've always found healing in nature, and I've always felt most of peace in the wilderness.
Speaker 2:That's why I'm madics hell.
Speaker 1:About the people trying to destroy our special places and the places that are sacred to some of us, just so they can make a quick buck.
Speaker 2:In twenty twenty six, going outside is political.
Speaker 1:We've got senators trying to sell off public land, wildfires burning on our big cities, and the Trump administration stripping protections on sacred land from the southern California desert to the Arctic Circle.
Speaker 2:And I'll be bringing you on the ground reporting from both places.
Speaker 1:I've written for outdoor publications for more than a decade, and I'm proud of the work we've done. But there are some things that you can't say there now that I can say here. Capitalism is this drawing up planet. Public land is stolen land, and I don't think giving one percent of profits to ngngos is going to fix it. I want to combine on flinching journalism with unabashed advocacy for our planet and the people and creatures we share it with, so the future generations can enjoy the same things we do.
Speaker 2:And I promise you no top ten gear lists.
Speaker 1:So join me as we talk about what cyclosporer might tell us about the rights of farm workers, where the DOJA is suing big egg producers, how your raincoat might be putting forever chemicals in fish, and how we can all benefit from indigenous leadership on fire management and living with fire. We'll have some fun too, like talking about our ungovernable friend the have Alina and their war on golf. I want you to love the outdoors as much as I do, and that means making more people feel safe, comfortable, and welcome in.
Speaker 2:The back country and the front country.
Speaker 1:So we'll be covering how, when and where to touch grass and answering the questions you didn't know to ask. Listen to natural causes. Starting on a seventeenth August on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. UH,
Transcript supplied by the publisher with the episode.
Podcast
Natural Causes
Cool Zone Media & iHeartPodcasts · Tech & Science · English
Natural Causes is a podcast about the politics and practicalities of going outside in a world on fire, hosted by Dr. James Stout. It approaches the outdoors, conservation, agriculture, food sovereignty, and Indigenous land rights as interconnected issues. We want to combine unflinching journalism wi
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James is joined by Molly to discuss how the Bureau of Land Management is quietly changing its approach to public land management and what it means for approximately 900 bison in Central Montana. (originally run on It Could Happen Here in May 2026) Sources: https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/cor/810541893_202412_990_2025073023621659.pdf https://gov.mt.gov/_docs/governor/AmericanPrairieProposedDecisionJanuary162026.pdf https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2025-17537.pdf https://www.mtpr.org/montana-news/2026-01-21/blm-cancels-bison-grazing-permits-for-montana-nature-reserve…
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31 Aug 2026 · 30 min
Losing Everything: How Communities Recover From Fire When Politicians Abandon Them
James follows up on last week's episode and talked to Miles Gray about what it is like to lose your home in a fire and how people can continue to help fire survivors. Sources: https://lacounty.gov/2026/08/04/county-of-los-angeles-fire-department-releases-the-investigative-reports-on-the-cause-of-the-eaton-fire/ https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-03-19/sce-decomissioned-power-line-eaton-fire-risk https://apnews.com/general-news-ffcad08a8ef14fa88df8bacdd9e73883 https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/08/newsom-wildfire-utility-liability-package/…
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24 Aug 2026 · 33 min
Go Now: How to Prepare for Fire Evacuation
Weeks after more than 600 houses in Spokane burned, James talks to community members about how people prepared, cared for each other, and worried about migration enforcement during the fire evacuations. Sources: Aldo Leopold- A Sand County Almanac https://www.instagram.com/p/DcBqjR6RdzJ/ Donation Links: Spokane Immigrants Rights Coalition: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/sirc-community-fund Spectrum running the Rainbow Relief Fund: https://spectrumcenterspokane.app.neoncrm.com/forms/donate Colville Fund:…
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17 Aug 2026 · 25 min
Who Is Behind America's Cyclospora Summer?
James looks into the recent Cyclospora outbreak and what it can tell us about solidarity, food safety, and where our food comes from. Sources: https://newsroom.haas.berkeley.edu/magazine/spring-2026/taylor-farms/ https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/nov/23/billion-dollar-california-salad-company-exploits-undocumented-migrants-say-workers-and-teamsters https://gizmodo.com/elon-musk-economist-interview-2000790016 https://www.thefp.com/p/cyclosporiasis-outbreak-lettuce-media?utm_source=publication-search https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fda-report-e-coli-outbreak-onions-taylor-farms/…
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James talks with Molly Conger about the javelina and their installable appetite for golf courses. Sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65x0RvhJNa8 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/nov/05/conservation.sciencenews https://zoologicalbulletin.de/BzB_Volumes/Volume_56_1_2/049_054_BzB56_1_2_Moraves_Jiri_and_B%C3%B6hme_Wolfgang.pdf https://www.azgfd.com/wildlife-conservation/living-with-wildlife/living-with-javelina/ https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/8e8abbf4-6775-4575-9a10-fedacb7cb2c1 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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