The Tools at Hand with Harrison Gardner

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself crying in my car after listening to a podcast about a change to how the Trump administration interprets harm under the Endangered Species Act. It got me thinking about responsibility, unintended consequences, and what it means to cause harm without meaning to. That question led me somewhere unexpected: to a conversation about the things that stop us from making the changes we know are necessary in our lives. I think a lot of it comes down to three things: capacity, capability, and confidence. Do we have the time and emotional space to care? Do we have the skills and knowledge to do something about it? And do we believe that our actions can make a difference? In this solo episode, I explore how those three things connect, why a history of small successes can help us build momentum, and how our attempts to solve problems can sometimes make them worse when we're too afraid to admit we've got something wrong. I also tell a story from my time working with a community in…

What if the way we build our homes and cities is part of the problem and the solution is already around us? Architect Robert Bourke joins me to explore how we can rethink the way we build, from the materials we use to the relationship between buildings, nature and the communities around them. With construction contributing significantly to global carbon emissions, Robert questions why concrete, steel and glass have become the default and why we should look at existing buildings before building new ones. But sustainable architecture isn't just about materials. It's about seeing buildings as part of a much bigger system: how water moves through our cities, how our streets affect rivers, and how we can design places that work with nature rather than against it. From a tiny three-square-metre extension that won two national awards to a community rain garden designed to help absorb rainfall and reduce flooding, Robert shows how small, thoughtful interventions can make a difference. What would our towns and cities…

In 1935, dancing became illegal in Ireland unless you had a licence. You couldn’t simply organise a dance in a barn. You couldn’t dance at a crossroads. And in rural Ireland, you couldn’t even hold a dance in your own home. The Public Dance Halls Act was part of a much wider attempt to control Irish social life — with the Church and authorities deeply involved in deciding where, how and even whether people could dance. But what happens when a community refuses to accept that control? Edwina Guckian is a dancer, choreographer and community organiser who has spent years exploring Ireland’s lost dance culture and the forces that shaped it. Her work on The Devil's in the Dance Hall brings this history back to life through music, dance and storytelling. The project explores a time when jazz, dancing and new forms of socialising were seen by some as a threat to Irish society — even being described as the work of the devil. We also get into the extraordinary story of Jimmy Gralton, who reopened a community hall in…

What does the future of farming in Ireland look like? Sophie Bell is a young farmer from County Cavan who took on the running of her family farm at just 17, while finishing her Leaving Cert. Today, she’s balancing farming with a career in social media, speaking about agriculture across Ireland and Europe, and rethinking what it means to build a sustainable life from the land. We talk about the pressure on farmers to have a second income, why farming can feel more like a culture than a career, and the barriers facing the next generation. Sophie also shares what she learned from researching the impact of bovine TB on farmers, what it's like being a young woman in a traditionally male-dominated industry, and how social media has opened doors she never expected. And then we get into what she's changing on the farm — moving away from commodity pricing and towards a model where she has more control over what the farm earns, how it operates, and where it goes next. A conversation about farming, money, gender,…

What can music do when the world feels divided? For Clare Sands, it can be a way of bringing people together. Clare is a sixth-generation fiddle player, singer and composer from Ireland. In this conversation, we talk about Irish culture, activism, Palestine, and the role music can play in starting difficult conversations. Clare shares the story of swimming across the Bosphorus from Asia to Europe and raising around €12,000 for two Palestinian organisations with her sister. We talk about the pushback she has experienced when sharing Palestinian folk songs, and why she continues to use music to connect people across cultures and traditions. We also explore the story behind the flag on Clare’s album artwork, her relationship with Irish history and folklore, and the importance of reclaiming symbols that can become divisive. Along the way, we get into a bigger question: how do you get people to engage with difficult ideas in a way that feels welcoming? Support the podcast on Patreon:…

What happens when you decide to travel to all seven continents without spending any money? That was the challenge Shantanu Starick set himself after stepping away from a career in architecture. Trading nothing but his photography skills for food, shelter and transport, he created The Pixel Trade — a three-and-a-half-year journey built entirely around exchange, trust and the people he met along the way. But living without money comes with its own challenges. What does it actually cost to rely on other people? And what happens when the journey ends and you have to reintegrate into a world that still runs on money, responsibility and bills? In this conversation, we explore the value of trade, the relationships that grow from it, and why the best exchanges are the ones where both people feel they’ve come away with the better end of the deal. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/HarrisonGardner CONNECT WITH ME Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_harrisongardnerWebsite:…

Sarah Schwimmer is a naturalist, ecologist and polar expedition leader who has spent the last decade guiding more than 125 expeditions around the world. In this conversation, Sarah talks about her upcoming expedition to Svalbard aboard a first-of-its-kind solar-powered polar expedition vessel, how she dropped out of university to sail across the Atlantic at 19, and how following her curiosity shaped the life she built. We also talk about Antarctica, the realities of working in the polar regions, the experience of coming out later in life, creating safer and more inclusive spaces in expedition travel, and what it means to become a polar bear guard. Sarah's approach to life comes back to a simple idea: you don't need to know exactly how to do something before you start. Sometimes you have to trust that you'll figure it out along the way. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/HarrisonGardner Connect with Harrison: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_harrisongardner Website:…

Paul Noonan and Brian Crosby have been making music together, in one form or another, for decades. From Juniper and Bell X1, through 16 years of separate creative journeys, they eventually found their way back into a room together. What started with Brian’s solo piano record Imbrium and a voice note from Paul during COVID became Pilgrims — a new project built from everything they had learned and experienced in the years apart. In this conversation, we talk about what it means to return to a creative partnership after so much time, the vulnerability of making something new with someone you have a long history with, and how Pilgrims grew from remote recordings into a live project. We also get into the very different paths they took along the way. Brian talks about leaving Bell X1, moving to Berlin, composing for film, building recording studios from scratch, and training in holotropic breathwork. Paul talks about his work as a music therapist, working with people with dementia, brain injuries and children, and…

What if we're preparing young people for a future that will never exist? After more than 15 years working across education systems and helping schools improve outcomes for students, Owen Losse has reached a surprising conclusion: we spend too much time trying to predict the future, and not enough time understanding how people actually learn. In this conversation, Owen draws on his experience as an education leader to explore one of the biggest questions facing education today: How do we prepare people for a future we can't predict? From AI and the surprising history of the chalkboard to confidence, practical skills, and why learning has to be hard, this conversation challenges many of our assumptions about education, technology, and what it really means to prepare people for an unknowable future. Whether you're an educator, parent, leader, builder, or lifelong learner, you'll walk away with a different perspective on learning—and why the most important skills may be the ones that never go out of date.…

What if your home could produce its own water, energy, food, and comfort? For more than 50 years, Michael Reynolds has challenged conventional architecture by building off-grid, self-sustaining homes from materials most people consider trash. As the creator of the Earthship movement, he believes our homes should take care of us, not the other way around. But this conversation isn't really about architecture. It's about independence. It's about questioning the systems we've come to depend on and asking a simple question: What if the resources we need are already all around us? In this episode, Mike shares why he built homes from tires, beer cans, and bottles and why he believes autonomous off-grid housing is the future. We explore Earthships, off-grid living, self-reliance, and sustainable architecture, while asking whether waste could become one of our most valuable resources. Whether you're interested in alternative building or simply learning to think differently, this conversation will challenge the way…

When I was 19, I went to Kenya because I wanted to make myself useful in the world. Instead, I found myself caught in the middle of the 2007–08 post-election violence and came home with a feeling of helplessness and a question that has stayed with me for almost 20 years: why do some people keep believing their actions matter while others eventually stop trying? Years later, I went back to the journal I kept during that time and started looking at the experience differently. In this episode, I explore Martin Seligman’s famous dog experiment and the psychology of learned helplessness, and how our sense of agency is shaped by repeated experience. I also look at where I see the same pattern today, from Irish farmers dealing with wool that has almost no economic value to a generation growing up with every global crisis in their pockets. And I ask what it might take to unlearn helplessness and start finding the levers that still work. Pre-order my new book HEAT-SHELTER-WATER-FOOD…

Ireland wastes over a million euro of renewable energy every day while over half a million households can't afford to heat their homes. Alan Wyley is the CEO of Energycloud and has a €500 device that connects those two factors. He and Harrison talk about elegant solutions, stubborn optimism, and what it takes to bring an end to energy poverty. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Clare Noone has sat in the rooms where the world tries to agree on its future. As a climate scientist who attended the most recent COP summit in Brazil, she has seen up close the gap between what the science says and what actually gets decided. She and Harrison talk about turning research into action, what it costs to keep communicating clearly when the stakes are this high, and what the rest of us can actually do with that information. Contains strong language. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ankur Delight is a conflict mediator, farmer, mathematician, and one of Harrison's oldest friends. They met at the Gandhi Ashram and in this conversation they explore why conflict might actually be a gift, what really happens in a mediation room, and what it means to build community and connection in a world that keeps pulling itself apart. Contains strong language. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ainle Ó Cairealláin has just returned from Cuba, where he travelled as part of the Nuestra América Convoy's humanitarian mission. He's also one of the most compelling voices in Ireland on the relationship between language, community, and identity. He and Harrison talk about language as a form of infrastructure, what it means to hold a culture together from the inside out, and why the communities with the least are often the ones who know most about resilience. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

IFTA award winning actor and writer Clare Dunne joins Harrison in the studio. Clare's performance as Amanda Kinsella in Kin has made her a household name, but what Harrison really wanted to talk about was Herself, Clare's film about a woman who builds her own home when the system fails her. She and Harrison talk about craft, identity, and the courage it takes to make the thing you need when nobody else will make it for you. Contains strong language. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After years on the ocean, and then years growing vegetables, Matt Smith co-founded the charity Hometree to restore native woodland across Ireland. He and Harrison talk about ecological restoration, long-term thinking, and what it takes to build something with results you may never see. Contains strong language. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aoife Dunne is repeatedly selling out her hit comedy show GOOD GRIEF across Ireland and lucky for us, she found a moment in the middle of it all, to join us in the studio. In this episode, she and Harrison talk about what it actually takes to build a creative life, trust your own voice, and use comedy to process the harder parts of being alive with some honesty. Contains strong language. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most climate action starts with a government or a corporation. Seán McCabe started with a community football club. As the Head of Climate Justice & Sustainability at the Bohemian Climate Cooperative, he and his community are using cooperative ownership to fund renewable energy and retrofit homes from the ground up. He and Harrison talk about what it really means to give people a stake in something, and why that changes everything. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every day in Ireland, good food is thrown away while families go without. Iseult Ward co-founded FoodCloud to close that gap and has built one of Europe's most effective food redistribution systems. She and Harrison talk about what it takes to turn a good idea into real infrastructure, and why food is rarely just about food. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Before the guests arrive, Harrison sets out the idea at the heart of this podcast. From a slum in Ahmedabad to Gandhi's salt march, a piece of American legislation that affected everyone… but that nobody read, and a damp stone cottage on the west coast of Ireland, this is the episode that explains why the show exists and what it is for. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ten conversations. Ten people who stopped waiting and started building. The Tools at Hand podcast. First episode drops this Thursday, and then every Thursday after that. Brought to you by Bord Gáis Energy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.