What Sustainability Means to Me: My Conversation with Amy Fagan from “Grounded in Maine”

When Amy Fagan invited me to be a guest on the Grounded in Maine podcast, I knew we’d have a great conversation about my journey with Planet Bonehead. But one question Amy asked really made me pause and reflect: “What does sustainability mean to you?”

For many, sustainability might bring to mind recycling bins or reducing waste, and sure, those things are important. But for me, sustainability runs deeper. It’s about sustaining our humanity. It’s about that spark of creativity and imagination that makes us human—the drive to dream, innovate, and build something better.

I believe kids are the key to sustainability because they’re born with that spark in droves. They haven’t been weighed down by the baggage of “this can’t work” or “that’s impossible.” They look at the world and ask, “What if?”

And that’s where the magic happens.

On the podcast, I shared how Planet Bonehead was designed to nurture that magic. We teach kids about climate change and environmental challenges, yes, but we do it with optimism and empowerment. Half of our lessons are about the problems, but the other half are all about solutions—real, cutting-edge green technologies that are already making a difference.

And then we take it one step further:

We ask kids to imagine their own solutions. What could they design to solve the problems we face? Whether it’s a prototype built from craft supplies, a drawing of a new invention, or even a song that inspires change, we encourage every child to use their unique talents.

To me, sustainability is also about not passing on the problems we’ve created. I don’t think we need kids to solve every issue we face. I think we need to stop teaching them the limitations and false narratives that we’ve built around those problems.

They’re born with open minds—we just need to nurture that.

Amy and I also talked about the critical role of art in education. Without art, there’s no imagination. Without imagination, there’s no progress. Art isn’t just an extracurricular—it’s a vessel for critical thinking and innovation. It’s how kids learn to think beyond what’s already known and imagine what’s possible.

So, when I think about sustainability, I think about sustaining our humanity—the creativity, imagination, and drive to dream bigger. Sure, it’s about taking care of the planet, but it’s also about taking care of what makes us human. That’s what I want to instill in kids through Planet Bonehead.