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What’s the best way to improve the health of the planet, the economy, and ourselves? Today’s podcast guest — entrepreneur, restauranteur and social activist Ryland Engelhart — has been making waves and breaking barriers in all three of these areas. And for him, the most important place to start is always with gratitude.

Ryland Engelhart is the ‘Mission Fulfillment Officer’ and co-owner of Café Gratitude and Gracias Madre, a group of family-owned plant-based restaurants that are legendary in California. As pioneers and leaders in the vegan food scene, these restaurants are not only places to eat delicious plant-based food, but also important community platforms to spread the message of wellness, gratitude, love, consciousness and sustainability to a global audience.

In addition, Ryland is also a co-founder of Kiss The Ground (a non-profit that educates about the connection between soil, human, and planetary health), co-creator of the award-winning documentary film, “May I Be Frank”, and a passionate advocate for sacred commerce, community building and regenerative farming principles.

Ryland is a world-class performer in so many areas, so we cover a lot of ‘ground’ in this wide-ranging conversation. (And I mean that literally: his insights on how soil health impacts virtually every ecosystem on the planet — including our own guts — will blow your mind!) But more than anything, it’s the way he embodies love and gratitude that shines through, and that will have you feeling crazy inspired to reexamine your own approach to life.

So if you want to hear about how regenerative farming can heal the earth, how finding fulfillment can make your life juicier, and how YOU can be of service (even during difficult times), then pop in those earbuds… this one’s for you.

In this episode we chat about: 

• How to reframe the COVID pandemic (and the epic soul lessons we can learn from difficult situations) (07:39)
• The real message Mother Earth is trying to tell humanity — and what’s going to happen if we don’t listen up (15:31)
• The secret to finding fulfillment and living your divine purpose (25:22)
• How to squeeze the most juice out of life — even if you’re prone to overwhelm and procrastination (29:48) 
• The truth about how to restore the planet to full health (34:34)
• The hugely influential factor on our gut health… that most people never think about (37:04)
• Genius strategies to heal the planet and make a positive impact on the environment (40:21)
• Sneaky ways to get the most nutrition out of your food (47:24rr)
• The #1 thing you can do today to save our earth (and it’s not what you’d expect!) (49:36)
• Plus so much more!

Episode resources: 

• Follow Ryland on Instagram (Instagram)
• May I Be Frank Documentary. (Amazon)
• The Biggest Little Farm Documentary (Amazon)
• An Inconvenient Truth Documentary (Amazon)
• The World Our Hearts Know is Possible with Charles Eseinstein (website)
• Kiss the Ground Food Guide (website)
• Patagonia (website)
• The Climate Reality Project (website)
• Cafe Gratitude (website)
• Gracias Madre  (website)
• The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz (Amazon)
• The Soil Will Save Us by Kristin Ohlson (Amazon)

Thank you so much for listening to this episode. I’m so honored that you’re here and would be so grateful if you could take 2 minutes to leave me a 5-star review in iTunes or on your podcast app, that way we can inspire even more people together.

P.S. Please seek advice from a qualified holistic practitioner before starting any new health practice.

P.P.S. If you’re looking for a high-impact marketing opportunity for your business and are interested in becoming a sponsor for The Melissa Ambrosini Show podcast, please email pr@melissaambrosini.com for more information.