Pri: Living On Earth

Oil Drilling Blocked for Climate / Climate Disasters and Softening Property Values / The Racial Gap of Pollution Responsibility / Beyond the Headlines / GOP Senator Lisa Murkowski on the 2019 Public Lands Act / Baboon, "The Observer" In this week's episode, a federal judge temporarily blocked drilling after he found the Bureau of Land Management failed to adequately consider climate impacts when it held lease sales for oil and gas extraction on hundreds of thousands of acres in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah. And Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has worked for years with Republican and Democratic colleagues to bring together the most sweeping land conservation bill in a decade, and joins us to discuss public lands and climate change. Also, climate change is stoking losses from the recent floods in Southern Africa to the flooding in the US Midwest, and in coastal communities, rising seas are eating away at local tax bases, compounding the devastation. All that and more, in this episode of Living on

Youth Strike for Climate / Carbon Pricing and the Green New Deal / Beyond The Headlines / BirdNote®: How a Bird Came to Look Like a Caterpillar / "Hockey Stick" Climatologist Wins Tyler Prize In this episode: A million or more students around the world join the Youth Climate Strike March 15th, inspired by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and her school strike in front of the Swedish Parliament beginning in August of 2018. Also, the Green New Deal resolution recently introduced in Congress is criticized for ignoring carbon pricing. And climatologist Michael Mann became known for developing the "hockey stick" graph showing global temperature rise, which won him the respect of the scientific community as well as the ire of the fossil fuel industry. He's sharing the 2019 Tyler Environmental Prize. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tornado Clusters and Climate Disruption / Beyond the Headlines / Oceans Losing Oxygen / Note on Emerging Science: Matchmaking for a Frog Named "Romeo" / Cloning Giant Sequoias / In Search of the Canary Tree In this episode, climate disruption -- and resiliency. Outbreaks of tornado clusters are being stoked by climate change, with 40 on the day that the strongest one devastated Lee County, Alabama. Meanwhile, warmer water holds less oxygen than cooler water does, so as climate change warms the oceans, they're losing oxygen. Pollutants like nitrogen and phosphorus, also contribute to oxygen-starved "dead zones." The warming planet is affecting forests, too, but they can be amazingly resilient. A nonprofit is working to give Coast Redwoods and Giant Sequoias a leg up on resiliency by cloning the hardiest trees. And the author of the new book, "In Search of the Canary Tree," shares how forests, and communities in Southeast Alaska, are transforming in the wake of mass die-offs of giant cypresses known as ye

Lake Erie Wins Legal Rights / Beyond the Headlines / Volkswagen Goes All-Electric / Science Note: Using Mushrooms to Save The Bees / A Great Egret's Mating Dance / Remembering Dick Wheeler and the Great Auk In this episode, the citizens of Toledo, Ohio have taken a major step to protect Lake Erie, the main source of their drinking water. They voted by a wide margin to grant the Lake Erie Watershed legal rights, so that people can bring lawsuits on behalf of the lake itself. Also, as Volkswagen continues to work on repairing its image in the wake of its diesel emissions scandal, the German car manufacturer is turning over a new leaf with its announcement of a major all-electric car factory, to come online in 2022. And Living on Earth pays a tribute to the late Dick Wheeler with a reprise of the story of his journey kayaking 1,500 miles along the migration route of the now-extinct Great Auk. We enlisted the help of master storyteller Jay O'Callahan and Dick Wheeler himself to tell this story, pulled from ou

Wall Street and the Green New Deal / Beyond the Headlines / Listening to Forests Can Aid Conservation / California Tree Deaths Could Hurt Forests on the East Coast / Confronting Climate Change Through Sound / Saltwater Beavers Bring Life Back to Estuaries / BirdNote®: Anna's Hummingbirds Winter in the North This week on Living on Earth, critics of the Green New Deal are quick to point out its significant costs. But the federal government may not need to finance it alone: investors might be enticed to claim a slice of the Green New Deal pie. Also, it turns out that beavers, a keystone species in some freshwater ecosystems, could hold the key to help restore degraded coastal habitats, too. Their intertidal dams could provide crucial habitat for salmon, waterfowl, and many other species. And listening to forests might help protect them. Scientists are gathering acoustic data from animals that make sounds, like birds, primates and insects, to illuminate the health of a forest and even catch illegal loggers an

Senate Passes Bipartisan Public Lands Bill / Understanding the Green New Deal / Beyond The Headlines / Monarch Butterflies Rebound / The Border Wall's Wildlife Impacts / Refugees Cultivate Healing Through Gardening In this episode, biologists warn that President Trump's plan to build a wall along the U.S.--Mexico border could have disastrous consequences for rare borderland species like jaguars and pygmy owls. In other news for cross-border species, biologists are celebrating a boost to eastern monarch butterflies, which overwinter in Mexico; their population grew 144 percent from last year. But it's a different story for the western monarch population, which is on the edge of extinction. Still, there's something else to celebrate this week: conservation remains a bipartisan priority, as the Senate just passed the most sweeping land conservation bill in a decade. It designates 1.3 million new acres of wilderness and five new national monuments, and permanently authorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fu

Toxicants in Diapers and Sanitary Pads / A Green New Deal For All / Bangladesh's Climate Migration Crisis / Beyond The Headlines / Neighborhood Burn Squads Fight Fire With Fire A new study finds that single-use diapers and sanitary pads contain phthalates and volatile organic compounds, chemicals that are known to cause a variety of health complications including birth defects and endocrine disruption. Also, climate impacts like sea level rise, extreme storms, and droughts are creating a migration crisis. Ground zero for climate migration is Bangladesh, where hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave coastal homes. And some California communities at high risk for catastrophic wildfire are taking steps to prepare for disaster and reduce their risk by conducting controlled burns on their own. Neighborhood burn squads and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inslee's Climate-focused White House Bid / Heat Wave Scorches Nature Down Under / BirdNote®: Palm Cockatoo Gets The Girl / Beyond the Headlines / Eminent Domain and the Landowners Who Wouldn't Back Down Washington Governor Jay Inslee hasn't yet officially announced his candidacy in the 2020 presidential campaign, but he's working to position himself as the climate candidate if he does run. Gov. Inslee joins Living on Earth to discuss pairing economic prosperity with environmental policy. Also, Australia's plants and animals evolved to withstand a hot climate, but the recent extreme heat is far from normal. In recent weeks about a third of the bat population has died and water sources are becoming oxygen-depleted. And pipelines, highways, railroads and high-voltage transmission lines tend to require long paths across the landscape. When the government exerts its eminent domain powers, farms and even suburban neighborhoods can be caught in the middle. The residents who fight back and more, in this episode

Climate Migrant Caravans / Climate and the Majestic Gyrfalcon / Climate Disruption and the Poor / Beyond the Headlines / Healing Our Land and Communities Through the Power of Food / BirdNote®: Where Are They Now? This week, we delve into the link between climate change and the recent wave of migrant caravans coming from Central America. Many of the migrants are fleeing their homes in the wake of crop failures, the result of a massive drought that has lasted for five years. Also, without the financial means to adapt or recover from climate impacts, disadvantaged groups here in the U.S. are vulnerable, too. In New Bern, North Carolina, many African-American residents of a public housing complex flooded out by Hurricane Florence are now homeless. And local food movement pioneer Gary Paul Nabhan joins us to discuss how restoring the health of our lands can improve the health of our communities. He's the author of the new book, Food from the Radical Center: Healing Our Land and Communities. Displacement and r

Defending Public Lands / Beyond the Headlines / Ocean Warming Speeding Up / Youth Activists Call for a Minnesota Green New Deal / Brazil's President Targets Amazon / An Amazon Tribe Turns to Modern Technology to Save Their Trees In this episode we hear how protections for the Amazon Rainforest and its indigenous peoples are being weakened by Brazil's new president, Jair Bolsonaro. And new data shows the Earth's oceans are warming much more rapidly than previously reported. That means rising sea levels, stronger storms, and more intense droughts. Also, youth activists in Minnesota aren't waiting for a national Green New Deal. They're working with the state government on moving the state away from fossil fuels, while creating clean energy jobs and other sustainable economic growth. The push for a Green New Deal in Minnesota and more, next time on Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Capitol Hill Panel on Climate Crisis / Beyond The Headlines / Lead in Newark's Water / 'Forest Bathing' for Health / The Conservation Costs of Shutdowns Florida Democrat Kathy Castor tells Living on Earth that the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis she's chairing will press for climate change to be taken into account for all House legislation. Concerns abound about the impacts of government shutdowns on national parks and forests. Examples range from the National Mall to Joshua Tree, where the lack of services can mean trash cans overflow and visitors off-road in sensitive areas. Also, a Japanese practice known as "forest bathing" encourages spending time in nature for health benefits - and studies show spending time amongst the trees may in fact be good for human health. Join us for a walk in the woods and more, in this week's Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Greener U.S. Congress / Kerala's Ambitious Organic Pledge / Pesticide Peril in Paradise Democrats now hold a majority in the House of Representatives for the first time in nearly a decade. Under Speaker Nancy Pelosi the House leadership now recognizes the science of climate change and has created a new Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. Also, locals call the lush tropical Indian state of Kerala "God's own country". But food there is laden with chemicals and cancer rates are rising. So the government has called for all organic food by 2020, and residents are pitching in with their own organic gardens on roof tops and terraces. That's in this week's installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rebuilding Puerto Rico's Battered Farms / "Pa'lante": Puerto Rican Resilience After Maria / Volunteers Test Drinking Water in Puerto Rico / Repairing Puerto Rico's Corals Puerto Ricans continue to rebuild their lives in the wake of Hurricane Maria, which killed thousands and wiped out basic services. Now a new and more resilient Puerto Rico is emerging: from a nascent local food movement, to citizen scientists testing water for safety, to Puerto Ricans restoring their island's coral reefs. How Puerto Ricans are forging ahead with a spirit of resilience and preparing for future hurricanes, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christmas Candles / Mary's New Year's Eve / Superbowl Sundae / A Green Message for the Next Generation / A Mainer's Family Traditions At this coldest, darkest time of year, draw near the fire and the radio, join with family and friends, and savor the warmth and joy of good company, good food, and good stories. It's Living on Earth's story telling special - with some joyous tales, environmental insights and musical surprises. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rules To Save The Climate / Beyond The Headlines / Climate Action Off Track / Most Republicans Believe In Climate Change / Creating The Earth And Moon UPDATE: Rules for reporting climate protection progress were adopted at the 24th Conference of the Parties (COP24) in Katowice, Poland, as almost all 190-plus countries in the climate treaty called for stronger international commitments on climate action. But the United States joined a faction promoting global warming coal. Also, while nearly 80% of Americans believe that the planet's climate is changing, only a third believe immediate action is necessary. And a novel theory for how the moon was formed sheds light on earth's origin. From Paris to Katowice to the Moon and back, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meet Deb Haaland, Native American Congresswoman / Beyond The Headlines / The Environmental Voting Gap / The Right To Repair / Is Shopping In A Store Greener Than Buying Online? / Green Gifts For The Holiday Season / Smeagull The Seagull: A True Story New Mexico's 1st Congressional District is sending Deb Haaland to Capitol Hill in January. A Democrat, she's one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress and campaigned on climate change and other environmental issues. Also, some 20 million registered voters in the U.S. list the environment as one of their top two priorities. The largest fraction of these "super-environmentalists" are young people, African Americans and Hispanics, but they tend to vote at lower rates than the rest of the population. And the tradition of exchanging gifts at the holidays often ends up creating a lot of needless consumption and environmental harm. But greener ways to show loved ones that you care abound, and the Living on Earth team is here to share their "gr

Trump Climate Change Report / Saving The Sumatran Rhino / Climate Dangers of Palm Oil / BirdNote®: Long-Lived Wisdom, The Albatross / Beyond The Headlines / New England's Stone Walls The latest National Climate Assessment brings the most serious warning yet about present and future climate impacts in the U.S. But the Trump Administration is downplaying the findings of its own agencies as it continues to pursue rollbacks of climate protection regulations. Also, with fewer than 80 Sumatran Rhinos left in the wild, a new captive breeding program is hoping to learn from the mistakes of past attempts to bolster the species' numbers. They've plummeted in large part because of habitat loss, as a booming palm oil industry in Indonesia rapidly converts tropical forest into vast monocultures. And the destruction of these tropical peatlands is also causing a sharp uptick in carbon emissions. The climate consequences of palm oil and more, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choi

Keystone XL Blocked Again / Beyond The Headlines / Emerging Science Note: Coral Reefs Wrecked By Rising Seas / Fighting Climate Change, Naturally / Let The Leaves Be And Feed The Birds / BirdNote®: How Much Do Birds Eat? / Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm's Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land In a major setback for the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, a federal judge has halted the project, citing poor environmental reviews. Also, it turns out that a lazy fall yard-work ethic can help feed hungry native birds, which feed on the insects that thrive in leaf litter. And meet the farmers who are working to cultivate justice and root out racism, by reconnecting people of color to the earth. Liberation on the land and more, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Climate For Wildfires / Beyond The Headlines / Beyond Gas For Cooking / A Tasty Vegan Thanksgiving / Rewilding The English Countryside Fueled in part by climate change, California's 2018 wildfire season is the most deadly on record. And mega-fires are becoming increasingly common in California and elsewhere. Also, a vegan Thanksgiving feast may not have turkey or gravy, but meat and dairy substitutes and some creativity in the kitchen can make for a delicious meal all the same. And a gas pipeline disaster becomes an opportunity to highlight induction cooking technology as a more efficient alternative to cooking with gas. All that and more, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democratic Wins And The Environment / A Blue-Green Wave / Trump Boosts Offshore Wind Power / The Place Where You Live: Glacier National Park / How To Be A Good Creature / BirdNote®: How Free Is A Free-Range Chicken? The Democratic Party has regained control of the House of Representatives, and environmental advocates see the chamber as a crucible for oversight of President Trump's environmental rollbacks, as well as forging bipartisan environmental legislation. Also, new offshore wind projects could soon generate energy off the coasts of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and California. And Sy Montgomery joins us to discuss her latest book, a memoir celebrating the valuable life lessons she's gained from friendships with creatures of all kinds. How to Be a Good Creature and more, in this installment of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices