Episode 34 – Haunted by the K-Cup

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On this week’s episode, Elise tells the story of the regretful inventor of Keurig and the single-use pod coffee phenomenon.

Other topics include the overwhelming news of the last few weeks, drinking 30 to 40 cups of coffee a day, and plans for future mini-series.

It’s been a week! We hope you’re hanging in there.

If you have episode ideas, especially for our upcoming how-to series, let us know!

If you want to learn more about the Marsha P. Johnson park in New York City and the community activism that helped push the city to scrap the short-sighted thermoplastic/foam decorations in favor of more sustainable, community-oriented design, check out these links:

Story: Keurig and its Regretful Inventor (Elise)
KAFFEEKLATSCH Keurig’s first functioning unit. (Peter Dragone) via Boston.com

Sources
K-Cup creator John Sylvan regrets inventing Keurig coffee pod system, CBC, March 2015
Kill the K-Cup video aims to show environmental impact of coffee pods, CBC, Jan 2015
The Keurig K-Cup’s inventor says he feels bad that he made it — here’s why, Business Insider, March 2015
Inventor of K-Cups regrets the idea, CNN Money, March 2015
A Brewing Problem, The Atlantic, March 2015
Life cycle assessment of spray dried soluble coffee and comparison with alternatives (drip filter and capsule espresso), ScienceDirect, Oct 2009
A Coffee Conundrum, New York Times, Aug 2010
The Buzz Machine, Boston.com, Aug 2011
Single-serve coffee revolution brews industry change, Seattle Times, Feb 2014
Single-serve coffee market – statistics & facts, Statista, Dec 2020
Recycling Is A Big Deal At Keurig, Keurig.com
Kill the K-Cup video

Kill the K-Cup video
The Dump

Olivia had a good experience traveling with Flixbus as an affordable, clean, punctual bus option.

Listen
Jane Goodall Hopecast – S1E15: Dr Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Criminal – Episode 167: 48 Hours & Episode 168: 48 Hours Part 2

The World Is Burning bookshop is live! Help us come up with book list titles and bulk up our reading list.

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Thanks for listening!

Ep. 82 – Cheese Caves and Banana Republics – World Is Burning

We’re digging into America’s deepest darkest secrets — when it comes to food, that is. Elise tells us how one president’s cheese became the next president’s problem, which might lead you to Google “American government 1.4 billion pounds of cheese in caves.” We explore how the cheese caves of yesteryear became the weird milk ads of our present. Then Olivia gives us a brief history of bananas, which involves quite a lot of railroad tycoons, bare minimum union demands, and good old American capitalism. Plus, our theory as to why slipping on banana peels was more common a century ago, and our next book club pick. Subscribe/follow/press the button to keep up with new episodes every Wednesday! You can also follow us @worldisburnin on Instagram and Twitter, and check out our website worldisburning.com for extended show notes including sources and photos. World Is Burning is hosted by Olivia Hamilton and Elise Nye. Our theme music is by Kaycie Satterfield, and our logo was made by Sonja Katanic. — Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/worldisburning/message
  1. Ep. 82 – Cheese Caves and Banana Republics
  2. Ep. 81 – Navigating Anger & Disinformation in Times of Conflict
  3. Ep. 80 – Something in the Water – Hurricane Sandy & Flint Michigan
  4. Ep. 79 – Disability & Climate: Greyhound fights the ADA and Lyme Disease
  5. Ep. 78 – Labor & Leisure – The First Strike & A Depression-Era Prediction