Start In Your Own Backyard

About Start In Your Own Backyard

Start In Your Own Backyard is a mini-series about how the choices we make, both big and small, can transform the world around us. For host Steve Nygren, this is personal. Two decades ago, while running through the woods on his beloved family farm, he spotted bulldozers toppling trees for what he feared was another soulless suburban development. That sobering moment sparked a question that changed the course of his life: Isn’t there a better way to build community? One that works with nature, not against it? The answer became Serenbe, a community built on biophilic principles, sustainable living, and the idea that well-being starts in the everyday spaces where we live, work, and connect with others. Through stories, guest experts, and personal reflections, Start In Your Own Backyard invites listeners to find their own sense of agency. Whether it’s rethinking your diet, running for school board, planting edible landscapes, or advocating for change in your city, the podcast explores what it means to take action right where you are. With a strong belief in the power of optimism, even when things feel tough, this series shows how each of us can create ripples of positive change. The question is simple: What gifts do you bring? And are you ready to use them? Want to dive deeper? Steve’s book, Start In Your Own Backyard: Transforming Where You Live with Radical Common Sense (https://stevenygren.com/), is out now. An instant USA Today Bestseller, this book is part memoir, part guidebook. It offers a blueprint for building sustainable, connected communities, places where wonder exists in the everyday and people of all ages can truly thrive.

Publisher

Serenbe Media Network

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

18 Aug 2025

Latest episode

28 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

8 of 16 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   28 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   BONUS | Steve Nygren & Jim Durrett in Conversation at the Atlanta History Center

   Steve Nygren and Jim Durrett discuss Nygren's journey creating Serenbe and the rise of nature-focused communities in this interview.

2. 

   21 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Matthew Raiford on Bringing Agriculture Into the Heart of Community

   Chef and farmer Matthew Raiford shares with host Steve Nygren how integrating agriculture into communities fosters connection and sustainability.

3. 

   14 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Grant McCargo on Responsible Development & Building for the Future

   Host [Host Name] interviews environmentalist and Urban Villages founder Grant McCargo about his vision for responsible development and building future-proof, nature-connected places.

4. 

   7 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Tim Beatley On Bringing Nature Into Cities

   Urban planner and author Tim Beatley discusses creating biophilic cities and integrating nature into urban environments with host Steve.

5. 

   31 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Mehmet Kalyoncu Is Rethinking How We Build Cities in Istanbul & Beyond

   Host Steve Nygren interviews developer Mehmet Kalyoncu about his visionary approach to integrating architecture, mobility, community, and nature in shaping the future of cities.

6. 

   24 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Ellen Dunham-Jones Wants To Retrofit Suburbia

   Host Steve Nygren interviews architect Ellen Dunham-Jones about evolving existing suburbs into more sustainable and vibrant communities.

7. 

   17 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Price Bell Is Bridging Growth and Stewardship

   Price Bell Jr., grew up at Mill Ridge Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, a working thoroughbred farm that his family has cared for for generations. But Price’s story isn’t just about preserving what his family inherited. He spent years working in real estate and urban development, particularly in Nashville, where he learned about the power of neighborhoods, adaptive reuse, and, perhaps most importantly, what can happen when people work together toward a shared vision. And then he came to Serenbe. W...

8. 

   14 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Introducing Season 2 of Start In Your Own Backyard

   Season 2 of Start In Your Own Backyard premieres Monday, August 17. What if the places we build could help solve the problems they’ve helped create? That question sits at the heart of Season 2 of Start In Your Own Backyard, as visionary placemaker Steve Nygren looks beyond Serenbe to meet people who are rethinking the way we live, work, connect, and care for the places we call home. The built environment, as it exists today, is at the root of many of our biggest challenges. But it can also be...

9. 

   7 Oct 2025

   The Spark of Possibility

   In this final episode of the Start In Your Own Backyard mini-series, Steve Nygren reflects on the journey of building Serenbe. What started out as an unlikely idea, sparked in a moment of fear and panic is now a living, breathing community where nature and people are woven back together. You’ll hear from neighbors like Gil Mathis, who traded a corporate finance career for a more authentic life rooted in connection, and Gigi Wilborne, an artist and entrepreneur who has poured her creativity i...

10. 

    30 Sept 2025

    A Place That Feels Like Home

    A lot of what we’ve been exploring on this podcast comes back to an idea known as placemaking: the art of designing spaces that feel meaningful, welcoming, and rooted in community. At its core, it’s about creating places where people truly want to gather and belong. At Serenbe, that spirit comes alive every day. Visitors might arrive for goat yoga or a stroll through the nature trails and end up moving. A coffee-and-ceramics studio, dreamed up and run by neighbors, has become a beloved local ...

11. 

    23 Sept 2025

    The Deepest Wells of the Human Spirit

    Food, shelter, walkable streets, even access to nature are all vital ingredients for a thriving community. But on their own, they aren’t quite enough. To truly flourish, people also need beauty, inspiration, and creativity woven into daily life. That’s where the arts come in. In this episode of Start In Your Own Backyard, Steve Nygren explores why music, theater, sculpture, literature, and public art are so vitally important. You’ll hear insights from Dr. Anjan Chatterjee, director of the Pen...

12. 

    16 Sept 2025

    Community Potluck

    Once upon a time, community wasn’t something you had to schedule, swipe for, or search out in a Facebook group. It was simply part of daily life. In this episode, Steve Nygren explores the loneliness epidemic, how our modern world has stripped away built-in community, and what it will take to bring it back. He dives into how thoughtful design choices like walkable streets, welcoming front porches, and all-important “third places” can help weave back some of the social fabric we’ve lost. And t...

13. 

    9 Sept 2025

    Where Wellness Grows

    Most of us know that a sedentary, stress-filled lifestyle can take a heavy toll on our wellbeing. Yet when communities are designed for cars instead of people, when fast food is easier to find than fresh produce, and when green space feels totally out of reach, it becomes increasingly apparent that healthy choices are about so much more than willpower. In this episode of Start In Your Own Backyard, Steve Nygren explores why true wellness has little to do with fitness trackers, supplements, or...

14. 

    2 Sept 2025

    Why Beauty Matters

    What makes a place feel magnetic? Why do some neighborhoods and buildings leave you feeling inspired, while others feel sterile and disconnected? In this episode of Start In Your Own Backyard, we explore how the built environment shapes our sense of joy, connection, and belonging. You’ll hear from neurologist Dr. Anjan Chatterjee, who explains how our brains respond to beauty and why elements like coherence, fascination, and hominess are essential to creating spaces that feel truly welcoming....

15. 

    26 Aug 2025

    A Village at the Forest’s Edge

    Access to nature isn’t just a luxury. It's essential for our health, our well-being, and the resilience of our communities. But what happens when the fields, forests, and streams we once knew are paved over by highways, strip malls, and suburban sprawl? In this episode of Start In Your Own Backyard, Steve Nygren explores our deep connection to (and disconnection from) the natural world. From the science of nature deficit disorder to the philosophy of biophilia, from America’s problematic obse...

16. 

    18 Aug 2025

    The Land That Changed Everything

    In the first episode of Start In Your Own Backyard, Steve shares his transformative path to founding Serenbe, a thriving community rooted in nature on the outskirts of Atlanta. He talks about why the built environment lies at the heart of so many modern challenges, the personal healing he discovered in nature, and how each of us can take steps toward positive change starting right where we are. Because, let’s be honest: life in America isn’t working the way it should. Not for most people. Acr...

Inside a recent episode

BONUS | Steve Nygren & Jim Durrett in Conversation at the Atlanta History Center

Published 28 Sept 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] And here we are. So for those that don't know what biophilia is, Biophilia is the innate need for people to be attached to nature. And the research that's being done these days is showing more and more that our mental health, our physical health are improved when we have that connection to nature. […]

Who has been a guest on Start In Your Own Backyard

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Jim Durrett
• Matthew Raiford
• Grant McCargo
• Tim Beatley
• Mehmet Kalyoncu

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

31 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Contact Start In Your Own Backyard

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Start In Your Own Backyard