What triggered my climate denial bubble to burst? I feel compelled to share this personal experience, in the hope that it might help others who are also struggling with the current sustainability crisis and searching for a path forward…In this first episode of the conscient podcast I narrate my 'terrified' essay, about his climate change anxiety and the role of arts and culture in raising environmental awareness.This episode is an audio version of my May 2019 blog, terrified (see original blog in the transcript of this episode).terrified is the touchstone of conscient, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues and to move from awareness to action.  terrified centers around our 17-year-old daughter’s choice of university and her generation’s struggle with the consequences of the climate emergency. I quote 7 writers in this blog and I want to acknowledge them: Mayer Hillman, Paola Antonelli, Greta Thunberg, Emily Johnston, George Marshall, Joan Sullivan and Richard Wagamese. Future episodes of conscient will feature audio essays, such as this one, or interviews with arts, culture and environmental leaders from around the world. Une version française de cette émission est également disponible, voir l’épisode 2 du balado conscient.I would like to thank podcast consultant Ayesha Barmania, artist and climate change writer Joan Sullivan, my wife Sabrina Mathews, my daughter Clara and my son Riel for their support.Thanks also to Danielle Boutet, who did the French translation of terrified.Thank you for listening. Claude SchryerThanks to all the authors who have been quoted in this blog and to Sabrina Mathews and Joan Sullivan for their invaluable support in editing.
*END NOTES FOR ALL EPISODESHey conscient listeners, I’ve been producing the conscient podcast as a learning and unlearning journey since May 2020 on un-ceded Anishinaabe Algonquin territory (Ottawa). It’s my way to give back.In parallel with the production of the conscient podcast and its francophone counterpart, balado conscient, I I publish a free ‘a calm presence' monthly Substack see https://acalmpresence.substack.com.Your feedback is always welcome at [email protected] and/or on social media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Threads, BlueSky, Mastodon, Tik Tok, YouTube and Substack.Share what you like, etcI am grateful and accountable to the earth and the human labour that provided me with the privilege of producing this podcast, including the toxic materials and extractive processes behind the computers, recorders, transportation systems and infrastructure that made this production possible. Claude SchryerLatest update on December 5, 2025

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