EP8 - Translocal Care Chains for Planetary Health (with Geordan Shannon)
The declining health of the planet is a decline of our health. This is Planetary health. In this episode we journey with Dr. Geordan Shannon to learn about a Planetary Health, Translocalism, and emerging efforts for System Change.
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The declining health of the planet is a decline of our health. I cannot be healthy unless you are healthy. This is Planetary health.
Dr. Geordan Shannon is a medical doctor, founder, and global health specialist. She brings a critical approach to understanding and acting on global challenges including social inequity, globalization, health systems, and environmental crises. Her current work sits at the intersection of Web3, planetary health, and public goods for health.
She is the co-founder and director at United Health Futures, co-founder of Unexia & Planet.health.
Geordan is a rare human being with feet grounded in the soil, working in remote rural areas of Indigenous Australia, post-Tsunami Sri Lanka, the Peruvian Amazon, and rural Kenya. She also walks the hallways of UN partners, national governments, and other key international bodies. We met at the Nature-Health node workshop as part of the Edge City Pop-up City in Chiang Mai last October.
Her expertise and lived experience are so diverse and deep at the same time—this might be one of our more concept-rich conversations yet.
In this conversation we explore:
- Planetary Health as a concept: How health is not just about individuals but about relationships—with communities, ecosystems, and the planet itself. (00:07:55)
- Geordan's journey into Planetary Health (14:00)
- Translocalism: A New Model for Global Action: Why decentralized, place-based action is more effective than top-down global solutions. (00:20:47)
- The Role of Care & Care Chains in Planetary Health: How care extends beyond human labor to include our relationships with each other, our bodies, and the environment. (00:31:30)
- Two Loops Model of System Change: How old systems collapse while new systems emerge—and the different roles we play in this transition. (00:47:23)
- Web3 & Decentralized Technologies for Health & Regeneration: How Web3 offers new governance and funding models for planetary health. (00:56:00)
- The Hunger for Change: Why institutions are ripe for transformation and how grassroots movements are leading the way. (01:044:20)
View Transcript
Projects Referenced
- United Health Futures – A policy consulting and research organization focused on global health and equity.
- Unexia – A Web3 financing platform exploring decentralized funding for health and public goods.
- Planet Health Network – A global translocal network bringing together planetary health practitioners and Indigenous knowledge holders.
- Stemmer – A project Geordan co-founded that creates decision-support tools for health systems.
- Global Health Disrupted – A previous initiative using arts and creativity to inspire new health narratives.
- Network Nations – A movement exploring decentralized governance models, aligned with translocalism and bioregionalism.
- Casa Río – A watershed-based social and arts organization in South America focused on river conservation.
- OASS (Eco-Village Network) – Exploring how to integrate Web3 tools with eco-village models.
- Authors & Thinkers:
- Arlie Hochschild – Sociologist who coined the term "care chains."
- Nora Bateson – Systems thinker on warm data and relational health.
- David Graeber – Anthropologist and author who examined class and care, linking working-class solidarity with systemic care work
- Ben Wilson – Discusses Caring as Country, a First Nations perspective on relational health
- Michel Bauwens – Researcher behind cosmo-localism, blending planetary and local action
Connect with Geordan Shannon
• Website: https://www.geordanshannon.com/
• Medium
Connect with Light Forest:
• Website: www.lightforest.world
• Twitter: Light Forest & @devlewis18
• Instagram: @lightforestworld & @daiyisi
🎶 The music for this episode was produced by me using Bandlab and original recording titled 'Equanimity with my handpan.
