In this first of two Deep Roots Radio interviews, journalist Elspeth Hay introduces us to her fresh off the presses book, Feed Us With Trees: Nuts and the Future of Food.

She describes what describes what agriculture looked like before Columbus, how European settlers forced change, and what we’ve lost in a cloud of myth and misinformation. Ms. Hay moves us through a re-examination of permaculture, as well as economic and social opportunities possible in the future.

Elspeth Hay is a writer in print, radio and online, focused on food, the environment, and the people, places and ideas that feed us.

She is the creator and host of The Local Food Report, a weekly feature that has aired on Cape Cod’s NPR station since 2008.

Land Stewardship Project has been working for the health and growth of small family farms and practices that restore soil health, and extend the affordable access to land.

In this Deep Roots Radio interview Laura Scheiber, LSP's Government Relations Director, describes the links between public policies and how food is grown and processed. She also argues that policy makers - our elected officials - pay attention to calls, letter and visits from the people who live and work in their districts.

Laura joined LSP in 2018 and helped launch their Local Foods Campaign. Driven by how the farm and food system can be a vehicle for climate action and positive change in people's day to day lives, she was a policy organizer in 2020 leading campaigns on soil health and climate, land access, and regional food systems at the state legislature. In January 2025, Schreiber began to lead LSP's Government Relations work, driving forward LSP's legislative agenda and the state and federal level working with farmers, rural residents and supporters to bring their voices to the Capitol and pass legislation that invests in a more sustainable farm and food system.

Laura is a graduate of University of Minnesota-Twin Cities with degrees in Urban Studies and Public Relations and lives in Northeast Minneapolis with her Springer Spaniel, Sesame.

When we think of gauging the health of our soils and water, we usually imagine lab tests. When we say the word "farm," it's common for images of livestock and row crops to come to mind.

However, just as the "canary" came to signal toxic air conditions in a coal mine, there are animals that can flag dramatic shifts on farm land and ground water.

In this Deep Roots Radio interview, herpetologist Christopher Smith describes how reptiles, turtles and salamanders are indicators of shifts in how we're using land and water. The impacts can be surprising at times.

Chris is a Minnesota-based Certified Wildlife Biologist, specializing in endangered species conservation and ecology, and with an emphasis is on amphibians and reptiles (herpetolgy).

He administers the Amphibian and Reptile Survey of Minnesota, and is Director of Public Affairs for the global HerpMapper project (HerpMapper.org)

Co-host Dave Corbett and I hope you enjoy this interview.

#farming, #regenerativeagriculture, # herpetology