Founded in the US over 20 years ago as a non-profit organisation, Bioneers believe that concepts seen at work in living systems – such as kinship, cooperation, diversity, symbiosis and creation without waste – can be used to create an equitable, compassionate and democratic society.

The award-winning, 13-part radio series, Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature, has spanned 11 seasons since its birth in 2001. The new series of programmes for 2011 features experts discussing the “big questions,” tackling a variety of contemporary issues including conservation, politics, ethics and the environment.

In the first programme, Bread and Roses: Time Poverty, Super Wealth and the Politics of Happiness, filmmakers and entrepreneurs Annie Leonard (The Story of Stuff) and John de Graaf (Seattle Area Happiness Initiative) question the purpose of the economy. They consider how we can look within the natural limits of the planet in order to obtain true happiness.

“Change is inevitable. You cannot keep using 1.4 planets worth of resources indefinitely. The question is are we going to change by design or by default?” Annie Leonard said during the programme.

Other programmes in the new series include Future Generations Are Screaming At Us: The Clean Energy Climate Challenge; The Organic Revolution: From Hippie to Hip to Scale; and Education for Action: Reinventing Everything.

One listener in New Mexico said: “Bioneers Radio lands softly on my brain’s overwrought thinking wires … with smart, forward-thinking and caring people who lay out workable plans for addressing the Earth’s most challenging problems.”

Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature is available free online and is also transmitted by over 370 stations across 11 nations. The series has claimed a number of awards, including Gold Radio Winner in New York Festivals’ International Radio Competition.