Home
Earthsayers Podcast

About This Collection

Earthsayers Podcasts are a series of interviews for publication on the Earthsayers Cinema on LinkedIn. The podcasts support the purpose of the Cinema, which is to amplify the voices of transformational leaders through documentary film screenings and podcasts paired with thought-provoking conversations, igniting action among those who care about life on Earth. Our intention is to bring to the LinkedIn audience examples of leaders who live life with purpose, while caring for one another at home and in the workplace, leaving no one behind. And, we do this in the context of the many challenges each of these leaders are addressing on our behalf. 

Curated by mokiethecat

July 06, 2026
Episode Description: What does it take to challenge a superpower, rock a patriarchal system, and still remain a "prisoner of hope"? In this episode, recorded live following a screening of the documentary Mrs. Robinson, Project Dandelion Co-Founder and Executive Director Ronda Carnegie sits down with Mary Robinson — former President of Ireland, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and lifelong climate justice advocate — for a candid conversation about the forces that shaped her remarkable life in public service. Robinson opens up about why she initially resisted having a film made about her life, and what convinced her that younger generations need to see not just a leader's victories, but the obstacles and missteps behind them. She recalls the women of Ireland who "rocked the system" during her historic presidential campaign — voting differently than their husbands for the first time in a deeply patriarchal society. The conversation moves through some of the most urgent questions of our moment: why the climate crisis can't be communicated through data alone, and why real change happens when people feel the human stakes — health, dignity, and the ecosystems that sustain us. Robinson draws unsettling parallels between the restrictive Ireland of her youth and today's rollbacks of women's rights, and revisits her decision to publicly challenge the United States over international law in the aftermath of 9/11 — a defining lesson in moral courage deepened by her work with the Elders, founded by Nelson Mandela. Woven throughout is Robinson's belief in intergenerational dialogue, captured in one of her favorite teachings from Kofi Annan: "You are never too young to lead, and you are never too old to learn." The episode closes with a meditation on hope in dark times — not as passive optimism, but as a discipline, in the spirit of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Listen for a moving portrait of courage, empathy, and the unfinished work of justice — and an invitation to speak boldly, listen across generations, and keep doing the impossible until it is done.

Video not loading? Watch directly on YouTube