Farmworkers and the Virus / A Migrant Farmworker Shares COVID-19 Fears / Beyond the Headlines / Supreme Court Clean Water Win / Note on Emerging Science: The Days the Earth Stood Still / Zoos and Aquariums Online / Behind the Quarantine at the New England Aquarium / Sap-Iens: Yellow-Bellied Sapsuckers Farmworkers are considered essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and without them there will be food shortages. Migrant farmworkers face special risks as more than half of them are undocu...
May 01, 2020•51 min
Reflecting on 50 Years of Earth Day / Celebrating 30 Years of 'Living on Earth' / Beyond the Headlines / 50 Years of Environmental Law / Stories and Poetry for Earth Day This year, Earth Day turns 50. And from humble beginnings Earth Day has grown into the world's largest secular holiday, celebrated around the world each year by more than a billion people. Activists, scientists, poets and pastors alike share their reflections for this special Earth Day. 1970 also saw the birth of major environme...
Apr 24, 2020•51 min
Dangerous Heat in the Gulf of Mexico / Beyond the Headlines / Earth Day Turns Fifty / Springtime Birding with David Sibley April 22nd, 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the first Earth Day, when some 20 million Americans peacefully rallied for protecting the planet. Denis Hayes, coordinator of that very first Earth Day, discusses how this year's grand Earth Day plans have adapted to the coronavirus disruptions. Also, on Easter Sunday, dozens of tornados tore through the southeast United States,...
Apr 17, 2020•51 min
Air Pollution Worsens COVID-19 / Beyond the Headlines / Poetry Month: "One Log Per Visit, Never The Same Log Twice" / A Backyard BioBlitz / Erosion: Essays of Undoing COVID-19 appears to be deadlier to people with years of exposure to high air pollution, strengthening the case for cleaning up dirty air that already kills millions around the world every year. Climate mitigation could be a big benefit of the solutions, since much of the pollution comes from the burning of fossil fuels. Also, write...
Apr 10, 2020•52 min
Economic Recovery, the Virus and Climate / Beyond the Headlines / Science Denial and the Pandemic / BirdNote®: Trogons Nest with Wasps / Home Bound Gardening The world is now facing the coronavirus pandemic crisis as well as the climate crisis. And while COVID-19 has brought economic carnage, it also presents an opportunity to build back the U.S. economy cleaner than before, says Rep. Kathy Castor. The Chair of the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis talks about how Congress can respond...
Apr 03, 2020•52 min
Warming Oceans And Toxic Shellfish / Beyond the Headlines / Major Ocean Currents Drifting Poleward / Misfit Produce at Your Doorstep / BirdNote®: Canada's Boreal Forests / The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age The current moment is highlighting the perils of not planning ahead for challenges such as pandemics, or climate disruption. How we can tackle shortsightedness in our personal lives and in society, to plan better for the future. Also, many coastal native Alaskans rely ...
Mar 27, 2020•51 min
Wildlife Trafficking and the Novel Coronavirus / The Next California / Benefits of Free Transit / Beyond the Headlines / Nature in the Time of COVID-19 Wildlife trafficking is a highly lucrative form of organized crime, with deadly consequences. That's because in addition to threatening ecosystems, it plays a key role in spreading diseases including the novel coronavirus. Also, around the world, people are doing their part to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by staying at home. But that doesn't me...
Mar 20, 2020•52 min
Cheap Oil and the Climate / Beyond the Headlines / Court Blocks Drilling in the Amazon / Trump EPA Races to Finish Rollbacks / Removing Dams in the Ohio River Watershed / Finding a Rare Mouse-Deer Amid the novel corona virus pandemic, oil prices had the largest one-day plunge since 1991, with major implications for the shale industry, national security and clean energy. How a Green New Deal could help alleviate the economic stresses of the boom-bust oil price cycle. Also, the Trump administratio...
Mar 13, 2020•51 min
Joe Biden's Plan for a Clean Energy Revolution / Beyond the Headlines / Facing the Corona Virus Challenge / Harvard Students and Faculty Call for Divestment / The Wizard and the Prophet In this week's episode, former Vice President Joe Biden is running for President on a platform of bringing a divided nation together, on key issues including the environment. He's offering a Green New Deal for clean energy jobs and more. Also, why the US is behind in the race to contain the novel coronavirus that...
Mar 06, 2020•52 min
Food and Drug Admin. Disputes BPA Health Risks / Elizabeth Warren's Climate Plan / Investors Eye Climate Risk / 'Parasite' As Climate Fiction / Beyond the Headlines / The Book of Delights This week on Living on Earth, scientists charge the FDA with stacking the deck against findings that link the chemical BPA to harmful health effects, ranging from birth defects to cancer. And even "BPA-free" alternatives may pose a risk. Also, from healthcare to climate change, Elizabeth Warren has a plan for t...
Feb 28, 2020•51 min
Bernie Sanders on Climate / Beyond the Headlines / BirdNote®: Left Foot or Right? Handedness in Birds / The Place Where You Live: Tianmushan, China / China's Single-Use Plastics Ban / Armistice for Hippos and Crocs / Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America This week on Living on Earth, much of the anti-climate policy efforts in the U.S. can be traced back to one powerful man, Charles Koch, who sits at the helm of a fossil fuel-based corporate empire. The ne...
Feb 21, 2020•53 min
Trump Admin Leaves Clean Energy Funding Unspent / Beyond the Headlines / Bill Weld's Climate Plan / The Place Where You Live: Petaluma, CA / UN and Protections for Climate Refugees / PFAS Chemicals Likely in All Major Water Supplies / Dueling Dinosaurs Ignite Battle Over Fossil Ownership The Trump Administration is under review by a House oversight panel for withholding funds that Congress designated for clean energy projects. Also, PFAS chemicals, common in nonstick consumer products, are also ...
Feb 14, 2020•51 min
Democrats Unveil CLEAN Future Act / Beyond the Headlines / How Wildfires Affect Water Quality / Regrowing Australian Forests / Sounds of Winter / Wine Regions Struggle with Climate Change / Feed Your Ex to a Bear for Valentine's Day Years of repeated bushfires linked to climate change have left some of Australia's iconic eucalyptus forests unable to come back on their own. Now humans are giving them a helping hand by carefully collecting and distributing their seeds. And as the climate changes, ...
Feb 07, 2020•52 min
Decoding the Coronavirus / Beyond the Headlines / Trump Water Rule 'Ignores Science' / Freshwater Mussels: Hunted for Buttons, Stranded by Dams / BirdNote®: Canada Jays Save Food For Later / Our Wild Calling As a novel coronavirus began spreading from Wuhan, China in December 2019, scientists were able to isolate, sequence, and publish the complete genetic code of the virus in less than a month. Also, critics of the Trump Administration's new water rule, including EPA's own Science Advisory Boar...
Jan 31, 2020•52 min
Appeals Court Reluctantly Dismisses Youth Climate Case / Beyond the Headlines / A Plan to Avoid Extinctions / Mangroves Thriving in a Warming World / BirdNote®: Laysan Albatrosses Nest at Midway Atoll / Norway's Disappearing Winter / Redlining Linked with Extreme Urban Heat As many as 1 million species are at risk of going extinct in the coming decades. Now the UN has a bold plan to set aside half of the earth by 2050 to save biodiversity. Also, the discriminatory practice known as redlining is ...
Jan 24, 2020•52 min
Democratic Debaters United on Need For Climate Action / Beyond the Headlines / Senator Lisa Murkowski Talks Up Public Lands / Trump Moves to Weaken NEPA / Note on Emerging Science: Plastic-Eating Mushrooms / After Coal: Stories of Survival in Appalachia and Wales At the final Democratic primary debate before the 2020 Iowa caucuses, the six candidates onstage all discussed their concerns about climate impacts and their plans to meet this existential challenge. Also, communities in Appalachia have...
Jan 17, 2020•51 min
Australia's Wildfires Point to the Future / Climate Disasters Drive Refugee Crisis / McSweeney's '2040 AD' Climate Fiction Issue / Note on Emerging Science: Deep-Sea Serpents / Beyond the Headlines: The Year in Review / Climate and the 2019 Lexicon / BirdNote®: Encounter with a Cassowary Australia is in the throes of its worst fire season in modern history. As thousands of homes are incinerated and an estimated billion animals perish, the rest of the world is getting a glimpse of some of the tro...
Jan 10, 2020•51 min
The Rollbacks of 2019 / The Best Science and Nature Writing / Endangered Species Success Stories / Barren-Ground Caribou As we open a new year, Living on Earth looks back on key environmental developments of 2019. Last year saw the rollbacks of more than 80 environmental rules under the Trump Administration. Critics say these changes will harm more than the climate: they'll hurt business, the environment, and human health. Law professor Pat Parenteau joins us for an overview of some of the key r...
Jan 03, 2020•51 min
How the Border Wall Could Harm Wildlife / Bison and Sustainable Land Management / Science in Danger at the US-Mexican Border / Water Ranching in Mexico / BirdNote®: Lily-Trotters, Jesus Birds This week on the pod, a special series of stories Living on Earth's Bobby Bascomb reported from the US-Mexico border. In that increasingly fractured landscape, some species struggle to stay connected to populations north and south of the border. The walling off of Mexico from the US also presents a challeng...
Dec 27, 2019•51 min
Smeagull the Seagull: A True Story / Sammy Snail and the Graneers / Native American Winter Stories Winter is a time for gathering together and celebrating the rich human tradition of storytelling. Sharing Native stories handed down for thousands of years, as well as much younger stories that appeal to young and old alike, brings us together at the Northern Hemisphere's darkest time of the year. And this tradition can also bring us closer to the creatures we share our Earth with, from seagulls to...
Dec 20, 2019•51 min
Democrats "Still In" at Madrid Climate Talks / Climate and Superfund Sites / Jane Fonda and Climate Civil Disobedience / Beyond the Headlines / BirdNote®: Rock Sandpipers Are Tough / A Preschool Christmas Bird Count Jane Fonda has been a Hollywood icon for a half-century and is currently starring in a hit Netflix show, but in 2019 she wants you talking about the climate. She's spearheading the "Fire Drill Fridays" protests at the US Capitol, even getting arrested at 81 years old, and this week's...
Dec 13, 2019•52 min
Banning New Natural Gas Hookups / Beyond the Headlines / The Outlaw Ocean / Eat Like a Fish / Remembering EPA Head William Ruckelshaus Seventy percent of our planet is covered by the oceans, and in this vast wilderness lawlessness is rampant, with crimes ranging from illegal fishing to slavery at sea. These high crimes on the high seas are the focus of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ian Urbina's new book, The Outlaw Ocean. Also, overfishing and climate change are hitting fish stocks hard, and at ...
Dec 06, 2019•52 min
The Silent Killer Called PM2.5 / Beyond the Headlines / Science Note: Toad Mimics Venomous Snake / Cosmic Crisp Apples / Brewing a Specialty Coffee Market / A Typical Carbon Footprint of Thanksgiving / Reflections on the Native American Tradition of Giving Thanks / Cranberries Take Center Stage The fine particulate air pollution known as PM2.5 has been shown to be deadly with correlation to heart attacks and strokes, and a new study links it with three more specific causes of death: dementia, ki...
Nov 29, 2019•52 min
ExxonMobil Fraud Decision Due / UN Climate Ambition Gap / A Public Housing Green New Deal / Beyond The Headlines / Winter Wolf Song / Winter Wolves on the Move / A Tasty Vegan Thanksgiving With federal public housing in urgent need of upgrades, the new "Green New Deal for Public Housing Act" aims to create thousands of jobs while improving public health and reducing carbon emissions. Also, climate loss and damage is already upon us, even as UN negotiators look for fair ways to share responsibili...
Nov 22, 2019•52 min
EPA Seeks Confidential Health Records / The Bottle Deposit Debate / Senator Tom Udall Takes on Plastic Waste / Beyond the Headlines / The Pan-Borneo Highway / Good Housekeeping The EPA sset limits for pollutants in our air and water to protect public health. Now the agency is proposing a controversial rule to require any study used for its rulemaking to disclose raw data including confidential medical records. Also, Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) aims to curb the growing plastic waste crisis with a bi...
Nov 15, 2019•52 min
Big Keystone Oil Spill / Beyond the Headlines / Wildfires Strike Baja California / BirdNote®: The Butcherbird / Let The Leaves Be And Feed The Birds / Rainforests 'Worth More Alive Than Dead' In late October, nearly 400,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from the existing Keystone pipeline into a North Dakota wetland, reviving concerns about the safety of the proposed Keystone XL extension. Also, the extreme heat and winds that fueled wildfires in the State of California this October also fed fire...
Nov 08, 2019•51 min
Fighting Fire with Prescribed Fire / Beyond the Headlines / Note on Emerging Science: Deforestation and Malaria / Healthy People Equal Healthy Forests / BirdNote®: Green Birds and Brown Birds in the Tropical Rainforest / Pope Hosts Amazon Synod For many of those living in and near tropical forests, one of the only ways to get cash to pay for healthcare is by logging. Now the nonprofit Health in Harmony is providing healthcare that patients can pay for with seedlings or manure. Also, Pope Francis...
Nov 01, 2019•52 min
Ethane Crackers Spark Pollution Concerns / BirdNote®: Red-Necked Phalaropes, Spinners On The Sea / Living Near The Coast Could Boost Mental Health / Oyster Shell Recycling / Nobel Prize in Chemistry Recognizes Lithium Battery Discoveries / Beyond the Headlines / 'Largest YouTube Collaboration Ever' Aims to Plant 20 Million Trees A glut of cheap natural gas has petrochemical companies turning to ethane, a component of natural gas, to make plastic. But the process comes with massive carbon emissio...
Oct 25, 2019•51 min
10,000 Farmers Want a Green New Deal / BirdNote®: Who Likes Suet? / Beyond the Headlines / The Economic Value of the National Parks / Exploring the Parks: Great Smoky Mountains / Arctic Fox Hunting More than 10,000 farmers and ranchers from across the country have signed on to a letter that urges Congress to support a Green New Deal. They're asking for a massive overhaul of food and farming policy in order to address the climate crisis while providing economic security for independent family far...
Oct 18, 2019•51 min
Youth Mental Health Problems From Pollution / Beyond the Headlines / Whistleblowers on Trump Science / The 2019 Fat Bear Week Champion / Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast This week on the podcast, the type of air pollution known as PM 2.5 is all around us from the burning of fossil fuels, and it's linked to strokes and heart attacks. Now there is mounting evidence that it may also be harming the mental health of children by worsening depression, anxiety, suicidality and more. Also, Jonathan ...
Oct 11, 2019•52 min
