Do you want to help butterflies, birds, and bees thrive, and help mitigate some of the damage we've done to Mother Earth? Master Arborist, Basil Camu, wrote "From Wasteland to Wonder: Easy Ways We Can Help Heal Earth in the Sub/Urban Landscape" to provide practical ways everyone can do their part to help the planet. He is so committed to this work, he is offering the book to everyone for free.
After Camu began working in his family's tree service business, Leaf and Limb, in Raleigh, North Carolina, he realized cutting down trees was doing massive harm to the environment. He and his father, Colin, made the radical decision to stop cutting down trees, and concentrate on structural pruning, instead.
In this interview, Camu explains the difference between dirt and soil, and offers tips on improving soil health, reducing the size of lawns, creating meadows and pocket forests, and substituting compost for harmful chemicals.
Project Pando, a nonprofit Camu founded, engages people in collecting native seeds, which are then grown into saplings, and given away for planting.
Camu calls himself a "treecologist" and a "Wizard of Things"; through extensive reading and taking action, he's working to do his part to preserve nature for his children and generations to come.
Project Pando https://www.leaflimb.com/project-pando/
"From Wasteland to Wonder" https://www.leaflimb.com/wonder/
Sandra Levine Productions https://sandralevine.com

Watch "Still Time for Joy" as a video podcast on YouTube @SandraLevineProd

Working in law enforcement can be among the most stressful jobs: police respond to traumatic situations including fatal motor vehicle accidents, suicides, shootings, fires, domestic violence, and much more. For more than 25 years, a peer support program called Cop2Cop has provided expert help to New Jersey police officers and their families. The phones are staffed by men and women who have retired from careers in law enforcement, so they truly understand callers' concerns.
In this episode, we talk to Retired Correctional Police Captain David Weiss, who has worked for Cop2Cop for 11 years. He has found his calling as both a peer support specialist and peer recovery specialist, helping officers deal with the trauma of the job, as well as addiction issues.
Help can also be received via chat and email. Visit https://njcop2cop.com/
The 24/7 hotline is 1-866-COP2COP, or 1-866-267-2267.
Cop2Cop is housed at the Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care National Call Center, along with several other hotlines.
Sandra Levine Productions https://sandralevine.com/

Watch "Still Time for Joy" as a video podcast on YouTube @SandraLevineProd

Working towards protecting the environment, feeding the hungry, and taking care of our loved ones, not only does good in the world, so often it makes the person helping feel good, too.
As the new year begins, take a look at this episode of "Still Time for Joy", full of wisdom from some of our favorite guests of the podcast during 2025. They talk about finding purpose and meaning in pitching in to work towards addressing a variety of issues. Guests represent HorseSense Therapeutic Center, Best Friends Animal Society, Move for Hunger, dementia caregiving, American Littoral Society, Cattus Island County Park, A Walk On Water, Atlantic Audubon Society, Rutgers Master Gardeners of Ocean County, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Morris County, and CAREing for Children.
Sandra Levine Productions https://sandralevine.com/

Watch "Still Time for Joy" as a video podcast on YouTube @SandraLevineProd