In this episode of The Hottest Generation, Marlowe explores biodiversity in an unexpected place: New York City. Through her work DNA-barcoding urban wasps, she unpacks how life adapts to heat, pollution, and density, and why biodiversity isn’t just about ecosystems, but public health and environmental justice.

From lab work to city streets, this episode challenges how we see nature and asks a simple question: what happens when we start paying attention to the life around us?

Inca Gunter from the Billion Oyster Project joins The Hottest Generation to explain how oysters help restore New York Harbor and why community involvement is just as important as the science. From volunteer training to long-term ecological change, this episode explores how urban restoration actually happens and how students can get involved.

In this episode of The Hottest Generation, Marlowe talks with Samm Kaiser from the Jewish Youth Climate Movement to discuss what youth-led climate organizing really looks like behind the scenes. Samm shares how JYCM turns climate concern into advocacy, how young people move from feeling overwhelmed to building real impact, and why youth leadership is essential. Samm also talks about burnout, hope, and what the next generation of climate leaders might look like.