Rewilding Earth Podcast

Hosted by The Rewilding Institute

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Episodes

181

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

The Rewilding Earth podcast, hosted by Jack Humphrey, highlights the work of the people involved in saving nature’s building blocks, whether they be intact wilderness or key corridors and buffers surrounding wilderness, as well as people invested in protecting and reintroducing extirpated species to these areas. You’ll hear from conservation biologists, activists, naturalists, organizers, artists, and authors as we interview key players in the fight to Rewild Planet Earth.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

September 25, 202642 min

Episode 184: A Look Inside the Wild Heart of Texas with Ben Masters

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-184-a-look-inside-the-wild-heart-of-texas-with-ben-masters/" title="Episode 184: A Look Inside the Wild Heart of Texas with Ben Masters" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/4x5-post-copy-2.jpg 735w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Episode Summary Independent filmmaker and wildlife biologist Ben Masters, founder of Fin & Fur Films, joins the Rewilding Earth Podcast to discuss his journey from riding wild mustangs across the Continental Divide for “Unbranded” to capturing cinematic, Planet Earth-style natural history right here in North America. We dig into his latest feature, “Deep in the […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-184-a-look-inside-the-wild-heart-of-texas-with-ben-masters/">Episode 184: A Look Inside the Wild Heart of Texas with Ben Masters</a>

September 11, 202647 min

Episode 183: The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing – Beth Pratt on Reaching the Finish Line

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-183-the-wallis-annenberg-wildlife-crossing-beth-pratt/" title="Episode 183: The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing – Beth Pratt on Reaching the Finish Line" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt-300x300.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt-300x300.png 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt-150x150.png 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt-38x38.png 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt-250x250.png 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Beth-Pratt.png 748w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Summary Fourteen years in the making, the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over Southern California’s ten-lane Highway 101 is finally nearing completion. In this episode of the Rewilding Earth Podcast, Beth Pratt, California regional executive director with the National Wildlife Federation and founder of The Wildlife Crossing Fund, sits down with host Jack Humphrey to talk […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-183-the-wallis-annenberg-wildlife-crossing-beth-pratt/">Episode 183: The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing – Beth Pratt on Reaching the Finish Line</a>

August 28, 202640 min

Episode 182: Millions Upon Millions of Acres on the Chopping Block – How to Save the Roadless Rule

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-182-millions-upon-millions-of-acres-on-the-chopping-block-how-to-save-the-roadless-rule/" title="Episode 182: Millions Upon Millions of Acres on the Chopping Block – How to Save the Roadless Rule" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-1080x1080.jpg 1080w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-768x768.jpg 768w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-2048x2048.jpg 2048w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Brook_trout_swims_in_native_stream_underwater_fish_image-copy-250x250.jpg 250w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Summary Chris Wood, president and CEO of Trout Unlimited and an original architect of the 2001 Roadless Rule, speaks with Rewilding Earth Podcast host Jack Humphrey about the origins of the Roadless Rule and why rescinding it is a problem for trout and salmon. With the imminent threat of deregulation for nearly 45 million acres […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-182-millions-upon-millions-of-acres-on-the-chopping-block-how-to-save-the-roadless-rule/">Episode 182: Millions Upon Millions of Acres on the Chopping Block – How to Save the Roadless Rule</a>

August 21, 202640 min

Episode 181: Doug Peacock on the Survival of Grizzlies and Unbroken Wildlands

<a href="https://rewilding.org/doug-peacock-on-grizzly-survival-vanishing-habitats-and-the-fight-for-wild-country/" title="Episode 181: Doug Peacock on the Survival of Grizzlies and Unbroken Wildlands" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-768x768.jpg 768w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/doug-peacock-collies-copy.jpg 976w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Legendary naturalist, author, and veteran grizzly bear defender Doug Peacock joins the podcast from his home in Montana’s Paradise Valley. In this frank, wide-ranging conversation with host Jack Humphrey, Doug cuts through modern anthropocentric environmentalism to refocus on what apex predators and wild country truly require: vast, unbroken, self-willed wilderness. We dig into the persistent […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/doug-peacock-on-grizzly-survival-vanishing-habitats-and-the-fight-for-wild-country/">Episode 181: Doug Peacock on the Survival of Grizzlies and Unbroken Wildlands</a>

August 7, 202651 min

Episode 180: Activists Take to the Canopy to Defend Centuries-old Cottonwood, Cats, and Connectivity

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-180-activists-take-to-the-canopy-to-defend-centuries-old-cottonwood-cats-and-connectivity/" title="Episode 180: Activists Take to the Canopy to Defend Centuries-old Cottonwood, Cats, and Connectivity" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-300x300.jpeg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Photo by Russ McSpadden" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-300x300.jpeg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-1080x1080.jpeg 1080w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-150x150.jpeg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-768x768.jpeg 768w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-1536x1536.jpeg 1536w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-2048x2048.jpeg 2048w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-38x38.jpeg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-07-at-15.04.51-250x250.jpeg 250w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Summary To make way for double 30-foot, steel border walls in Lochiel, Arizona, federal contractors have clearcut a grove of three 200-year-old Fremont cottonwood trees that reached their boughs across the U.S.-Mexico border in a sign of connectivity, friendship, and anchoring the headwaters of the Santa Cruz River. On the heels of this destruction, grassroots […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-180-activists-take-to-the-canopy-to-defend-centuries-old-cottonwood-cats-and-connectivity/">Episode 180: Activists Take to the Canopy to Defend Centuries-old Cottonwood, Cats, and Connectivity</a>

July 24, 202639 min

Episode 179. The ESA Harm Rescission: Ecologically Disastrous and a Trap for Companies Attempting to Destroy the Wild — with Earthjustice’s Ben Levitan

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-179-the-esa-harm-rescission-ecologically-disastrous-and-a-trap-for-companies-attempting-to-destroy-the-wild-with-earthjustices-ben-levitan/" title="Episode 179. The ESA Harm Rescission: Ecologically Disastrous and a Trap for Companies Attempting to Destroy the Wild — with Earthjustice’s Ben Levitan" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Marbled_murrelet-copy.jpg 563w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>About Ben Levitan is a senior attorney at Earthjustice, the nation’s largest and most active public interest environmental law organization — know for its motto “Because the Earth needs a good lawyer.” As part of Earthjustice’s Biodiversity Defense Program, Ben advocates for the protection of imperiled species and ecosystems and opposes attempts to weaken environmental laws. […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-179-the-esa-harm-rescission-ecologically-disastrous-and-a-trap-for-companies-attempting-to-destroy-the-wild-with-earthjustices-ben-levitan/">Episode 179. The ESA Harm Rescission: Ecologically Disastrous and a Trap for Companies Attempting to Destroy the Wild — with Earthjustice’s Ben Levitan</a>

July 10, 202643 min

Episode 178: The High Stakes of State Wildlife Governance and the Fight for Direct Democracy with Michelle Lute

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-178-the-high-stakes-of-state-wildlife-governance-and-the-fight-for-direct-democracy-with-michelle-lute/" title="Episode 178: The High Stakes of State Wildlife Governance and the Fight for Direct Democracy with Michelle Lute" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MichelleLute_Gila-SQ.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>About Michelle Lute is a wildlife scientist and conservation leader with two decades of experience in wildlife conservation, nonprofit leadership, and public policy. As executive director of Wildlife for All, she’s leading the charge to transform state wildlife governance and center justice, compassion, and democracy in conservation. Michelle holds a PhD in wildlife management and […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-178-the-high-stakes-of-state-wildlife-governance-and-the-fight-for-direct-democracy-with-michelle-lute/">Episode 178: The High Stakes of State Wildlife Governance and the Fight for Direct Democracy with Michelle Lute</a>

June 26, 202647 min

Episode 177: Jack Loeffler’s Lifelong Quest to Rewild the Colorado River Watershed and Human Consciousness

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-177-jack-loefflers-lifelong-quest-to-rewild-the-colorado-river-watershed-and-human-consciousness/" title="Episode 177: Jack Loeffler’s Lifelong Quest to Rewild the Colorado River Watershed and Human Consciousness" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Jack recording wildlife at Chaco Canyon, 1981 (Photo by Philip Shulz)" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/16-JL-Chacoloeffler_fig.16-copy-2.jpg 718w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Episode Summary In this poignant and historic episode of the Rewilding Earth podcast, legendary Southwest author, activist, and audio naturalist Jack Loeffler connects with host Jack Humphrey, just ahead of Loeffler’s 90th birthday. A living thread to the bedrock of the modern conservation movement, Loeffler shares deeply personal stories of running wild rivers and backpacking […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-177-jack-loefflers-lifelong-quest-to-rewild-the-colorado-river-watershed-and-human-consciousness/">Episode 177: Jack Loeffler’s Lifelong Quest to Rewild the Colorado River Watershed and Human Consciousness</a>

June 12, 202643 min

Episode 176: Protecting and Restoring the Wild Heart of the Sky Islands with Louise Misztal

<a href="https://rewilding.org/protecting-and-restoring-the-wild-heart-of-the-sky-islands-with-louise-misztal/" title="Episode 176: Protecting and Restoring the Wild Heart of the Sky Islands with Louise Misztal" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="300" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-300x300.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-300x300.jpg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-150x150.jpg 150w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-768x768.jpg 768w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-38x38.jpg 38w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square-250x250.jpg 250w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Louise-Misztal-staff-photo-square.jpg 981w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Episode Summary Louise Misztal, executive director of Sky Island Alliance (SIA), sits down with Rewilding Earth podcast host Jack Humphrey to explore the unique, biodiverse, and threatened Sky Island Region of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. They discuss how these isolated mountain ranges rise out of the surrounding valleys to create a biological […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/protecting-and-restoring-the-wild-heart-of-the-sky-islands-with-louise-misztal/">Episode 176: Protecting and Restoring the Wild Heart of the Sky Islands with Louise Misztal</a>

May 29, 202644 min

Episode 175: How Bedrock Environmental Laws Are Holding the Line in Alaska (For Now) with Cooper Freeman

<a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-175-cooper-freeman-on-how-bedrock-environmental-laws-are-holding-the-line-in-alaska-for-now/" title="Episode 175: How Bedrock Environmental Laws Are Holding the Line in Alaska (For Now) with Cooper Freeman" rel="nofollow"><img width="300" height="200" src="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/LACL-Bears-Cubs-Rebecca-Noblin-Center-for-Biological-Diversity-Small-300x200.jpeg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="1" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/LACL-Bears-Cubs-Rebecca-Noblin-Center-for-Biological-Diversity-Small-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://rewilding.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/LACL-Bears-Cubs-Rebecca-Noblin-Center-for-Biological-Diversity-Small.jpeg 720w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Episode Summary Cooper Freeman, Alaska director for the Center for Biological Diversity, returns to the Rewilding Earth podcast and joins host Jack Humphrey for a transparent, gritty, and surprisingly hopeful update from the frontlines of Alaskan conservation. Navigating a relentless onslaught of fast-tracked industrial projects and regulatory procedures gutted under the current administration, Cooper outlines […] Read full article: <a href="https://rewilding.org/episode-175-cooper-freeman-on-how-bedrock-environmental-laws-are-holding-the-line-in-alaska-for-now/">Episode 175: How Bedrock Environmental Laws Are Holding the Line in Alaska (For Now) with Cooper Freeman</a>