197: Jake Marquez & Maren Morgan - Death In the Garden

Jake Marquez and Maren Morgan are filmmakers, writers, and podcasters. We chat about their crazy journey making their documentary and podcast: Death In the Garden.

Society creates more problems that reinforce the ‘truths’ we want to see in the world. As long as we're stuck in that cultural narrative of ‘how the world works,’ we’ll never conceptualize something different. Share on X

For the last four years, Jake and Maren have been trying to untangle the complex, tangled web of how we address climate change, fix the food system, and, hopefully, save the world.

Their project discusses these and other problems in our society through the lenses of ecology, philosophy, myth, storytelling, and, ultimately, our fear of death.

That’s how you perpetuate this ultimately destructive system we’re in; you give everyone no other option but to participate. You make it so nobody can opt-out. Share on X

Jake and Maren have experienced their fair share of anxiety, despair, and existential dread on their quest for ecological and cultural regeneration.

But as you’ll hear in the episode, they’ve learned how to find meaning and purpose. They also helped Jake’s mom start a grass-fed tallow balm company called The Beekeeper’s Granddaughter!

Tune into the episode to discover

What inspired Jake and Maren to start the Death In The Garden project
Why prioritizing “left-brain consciousness” is harming our society/planet
What it looks like to live ethically in an unethical world
The four reasons people go vegan (and why Jake stopped)
The potential collapse and finding good in the next “Dark Ages”
Finding meaning and purpose in life
The value of conscious, intentional consumption
The most important things we can do to change the food system
How being conscious about our mortality empowers us to embrace the natural cycles of life, death, and regeneration (and not make the same mistakes)
Their hopes for this generation and what’s next for them