Builder, broadcaster and author Harrison Gardner joins the show to talk about what it means to build your own security – the kind that comes from knowing you can meet your own basic needs. Harrison shares how he left Australia at seventeen with no plan beyond learning how the world works, the years he spent building preschools in an Indian slum, and how buying a derelict 200-year-old stone cottage in the west of Ireland led him to found Build School. We talk about learned helplessness, why he stopped building other people's houses to teach them to build their own, and how impact shapes his life. This is an inspiring conversation about building your own capabilities and committing more fully to your life.
Harrison Gardner is an author, broadcaster and builder based on the west coast of Ireland. He presents Build Your Own Home on RTÉ, has written three books on self-building and the housing crisis, and hosts The Tools at Hand, a podcast about people who use whatever they have to hand to build exactly what they need. It all traces back to one belief: people don't need permission or expertise to fix what's broken around them. He's also Chairperson and co-founder of Common Knowledge, a social enterprise sharing practical skills with everyone.
What is What is a Good Life??
What is a Good Life? is a podcast about the questions that shape our lives: how we live, who we become, and what truly matters. For the past five years, I've asked more than 300 people one simple question: What is a good life?
There isn't a single answer. Instead, each conversation offers a different way of seeing the world—through stories, ideas, struggles, joys, and moments of hard-earned wisdom. Together, they form a richer picture of what it means to be human.
Whether you're searching for clarity, purpose, or simply a thoughtful conversation, this podcast is an invitation to reflect on your own answer.
New episodes every Tuesday.