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Beyond Pronatalism
Finding fulfillment, with or without kids
To have or not have kids is one of the biggest decisions we make in our lives, and yet how many of us know that we even have a choice about how we define and create our families? Beyond Pronatalism host Nandita Bajaj interviews women and men from diverse backgrounds who are courageously and creatively navigating pronatalism - the powerful pressures to have children - whether from family, friends, or the culture at large. Through intimate conversations, they discuss how they are forging unconventional pathways to fulfillment, including redefining what family means to them - whether that means being childfree or childless, having biological children, adopting or fostering children or animals, or creating close-knit communities of friends and loved ones.
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Episodes
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Diana | Motherhood Beyond Patriarchy
Raised in the Soviet Union, Diana’s professional ambition was constantly undermined by her parents' unrelenting pressures for grandchildren. Feeling angry and betrayed, she created a multi-media project about regretful mothers. An accidental pregnancy followed by a miscarriage made her realize that it wasn't motherhood that she resisted, but rather the coercive pronatalist pressures. Today, she and her husband are joyfully raising their son with egalitarian values and shared care work, beyond patriarchy.
Sonia and Aamer | A Conscious “One & Done” Choice
Originally from Pakistan and now based in Canada, Sonia and Aamer met as adults. They decided together that they wanted to become parents, but were also deeply concerned about the environment. After spending a few years carefully weighing their emotional and financial readiness, environmental values, and desire for parenthood, they chose to have one child. Right after the birth of their son, they knew that their family of five, including two rescue dogs, was complete.
Elizabet | Confessions of a Regretful Mother
Elizabet, the daughter of Bulgarian immigrants in the Czech Republic, shares her experience of coming out as gay in her teens and raising a child alone. She now speaks openly about her parental regret, rooted in her worry for both her child's future and her deep love for the natural world and concern for its destruction.
Bob | An Adoptee’s Journey of Self-Discovery
Born to a barmaid and adopted into a Southern Baptist home at the age of 6, Bob struggled with forming attachments. At 74, Bob reflects on the unconventional pathway his life took and what it took to find himself.
Jane | An OB-GYN on the Lack of True Choice
Jane went into obstetrics and gynecology after her own terrifying pregnancy experience. Now a fulfilled single mother of two, she shares her observations on the pressures women experience to have children, on the ethics of having children amid global ecological crisis, and on her own fight against the pronatalism of her profession.
Melissa | The Joys of the “Empty Nest”
Following in the footsteps of her grandparents, Melissa gave birth to four kids in rapid succession. She found raising children to be incredibly rewarding, yet wishes she had first taken the time to discover herself. As an empty nester, she is finally finding that time.
Milly & Mik | The Joys & Challenges of Adoption
Raised in disparate cultures across the world, Milly and Mik had different ideas about what kind of family they wanted. But there was one thing they agreed on: adoption (of three dogs and a child!) was the way to go!
Mary Pat | Shaking Loose from Catholic Roots
Raised in a large Irish-Catholic family at the height of the 60s liberation movements in the United States, Mary Pat unpacks her many life transformations, from rejecting her pro-life roots and choosing a small biological and adoptive family to becoming a staunch advocate for the rights of people, animals, and the planet.
Episodes will be released every two weeks, beginning Tuesday, July 30 2024, and will be available on Apple podcasts, Spotify, and all podcast platforms.
Producer and Host: Nandita Bajaj
Production Team: Josh Wild, Alan Ware
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