Grounding:

To begin the episode, producer Peterson Toscano leads a grounding exercise by sharing a short, speculative story. Modeled on the type of climate fiction discussed in the episode, the story features a message from “Timothy Meadows from the Future” giving a broadcast from the year 2115. Timothy explores the history of how human relationships with pets and animals shifted and adapted in the face of climate change. This strange and wonderful story sets the stage for the episode by letting imagination lead and inviting listeners to envision a workable, adaptable future.

Next Steps: Where Imagination Meets Practice

The change we need won’t happen alone—it grows in community. Here are two invitations from today’s conversation to carry these ideas into your shared lives:

• Creating Your Story of Tomorrow: This is a beautifully crafted facilitator guide and video developed by renowned environmental artist Eve Mosher. Designed for adult education facilitators and congregation leaders, this resource will guide you and your community through a collaborative workshop to envision the future together.
• Write Your Own Flash Fiction: Sit down—alone, with a friend, or with a group—and write a piece of “flash fiction” (a very short story of less than a page with a beginning, middle, and end) about a future you would love to inhabit. Read your stories aloud to one another, post them on social media, or combine your group’s stories into a printed zine!
• Share Your Visions With Us: We want to see your flash fiction and hear what you are creating or discovering! Email us at podcast@thebtscenter.org or leave a voice message at 207-200-6986. Your insights might ripple out through future episodes.

Resources & Concepts Mentioned:

• Thrutopia: Coined by philosopher Rupert Read and popularized by author Manda Scott through the Thrutopia Masterclass, a Thrutopian narrative threads the needle between utopia and dystopia. It focuses on writing grounded, plausible, and inspiring route maps that show exactly how we navigate through our current struggles to reach a future we’d be proud to leave behind.
• Bloodchild by Octavia E. Butler: Autumn quotes the legendary science fiction author—who was the first African American woman to reach mainstream success in the genre—and her collection Bloodchild and Other Stories, reflecting on how sci-fi stimulates necessary imagination and creativity.
• North Woods by Daniel Mason: A novel mentioned by Nicole Diroff from The BTS Center’s Summer Fiction Book Club, highlighting how fiction can make the natural landscape the main character.
• Humans of New York: The iconic photoblog that Tory credits with changing his perspective early in his career, teaching him the unparalleled power of human-centric storytelling over dry statistics.
• Visionary Fiction: A framework of world-building and storytelling that Autumn Brown and her sister use in their writing retreats, which actively wrestles with the sacred and reclaims spiritual practices.
• Dream Seeds: A term favored by Grist and Imagine 2200 to describe stories that plant concrete, hopeful visions of how society could be organized completely differently.
• Eve Mosher & Creating Your Story of Tomorrow: An adult education facilitator guide and video created by renowned environmental artist Eve Mosher, available on the BTS Center’s Leadership Commons.
• “Seven Sisters” by Susan Kaye Quinn; 3rd place winner of the 2022 Imagine 2200 contest.
• The Case of the Missing Lake by Colby Devitt; published in November 2025 by Imagine 2200.

Connect with Tory & Explore His Work:

• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/torystephens
• Bluesky: @torystephens.bsky.social
• Imagine 2200 (Grist): About Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction
• More from Tory: Shaping the Future Through Climate Fiction (Podcast Interview)
• Read the Collections: 
  • Afterglow (The New Press)
  • Metamorphosis (Milkweed Editions)

Thank Yous: We want to extend our deepest gratitude to everyone who made this episode possible:

• Tory Stephens, for sharing his incredible vision, imagination, and wisdom with us.
• Peterson Toscano, producer of Climate Changed, for producing this episode and for providing the wonderful grounding for this episode.
• The BTS Center team, for your ongoing support and for providing the resources and platform that make this podcast possible.

Meet Our Guest

Tory Stephens (he/him) is a storyteller, cultural worker, and climate justice advocate. At Grist, he co-founded Imagine 2200, a climate-fiction powerhouse, and has produced two anthologies of climate fiction: Afterglow and Metamorphosis. He now focuses on publishing climate fiction year-round and building partnerships that connect culture, justice, and climate solutions. In addition to his work at Grist Magazine, Tory is also involved with the Hollywood Climate Summit.

Meet Our Host

Autumn Brown (she/her) is an artist, facilitator, mother, and theologian. The front woman of the eponymously named soul-pop band, AUTUMN, she is a queer, mixed-race Black woman, a gifted facilitator and orator, and a freedom worker who grounds her approach to building movements for liberation in her belief in the innate capacity for healing that emanates from the human heart.

Meet Our Co-Host

Rev. Nicole Diroff (she/her) is ordained in the United Church of Christ. She holds expertise in facilitation, data management, and strategic planning. Nicole is a certified Maine Master Naturalist, serves as Chair of the Spiritual Formation Committee at Williston-Immanuel United Church and is Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Committee for the Scarborough Public School District.

Meet Our Producer

After spending 17 years and over $30,000 on three continents attempting to “de-gay” himself through conversion therapy, Peterson Toscano came out a quirky queer Quaker concerned with human rights. He also produces other podcasts including Citizens Climate Radio, Bubble & Squeak, and the Bible Bash Podcast. Peterson has been featured in People Magazine, The Times of London, the Trya Banks Show, and NPR Morning Edition. He lives in Pretoria, South Africa with his husband, Glen Retief.