Pri: Living On Earth

Two leading naturalists who pioneered the field of conservation biology passed away at the end of December 2021. A look back on E.O. Wilson’s big idea to save half of the Earth for nature, and Tom Lovejoy’s gift for bringing people together to protect the planet. Also, the wildfire that torched around a thousand homes in the suburbs of Boulder, Colorado in late December highlights the growing risk of wildfires to many neighborhoods year-round. As many as 60 million homes in America are within a mile of a wildfire zone, and we’ll discuss what residents can do to reduce their risk. And scientists find that polar bears use tools to hunt formidable walruses as access to other food sources for the bears declines in a warming Arctic. Thanks this week to our sponsor Climate Talks, a new podcast from Meta. Learn more: https://sustainability.fb.com/blog/2021/10/29/introducing-climate-talks/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From one woman’s dream of swimming with marine iguanas, to uncommon encounters with common rabbits, to a Native American tale of how the dog came to be our loyal companion, and much more, this Living on Earth holiday storytelling special features stories of how other species on this Earth touch human lives. “Wildly Magical: Stories of Animal Encounters”, a storytelling special from PRX. Thanks this week to our sponsor Climate Talks, a new podcast from Meta. Learn more: https://sustainability.fb.com/blog/2021/10/29/introducing-climate-talks/ Thanks also to sponsor TenTree. Learn more at https://www.tentree.com/ and use the code EARTH to get 15% off your first order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Native American myths and tales help us endure or even enjoy the short days and long nights of winter. Living on Earth’s annual celebration of stories helps connect people with the natural world, and includes an Iroquois explanation of why the constellation Pleiades twinkles overhead and an Abenaki custom that asks forgiveness for any wrongs of the previous year. Seasonal stories and more, in this holiday special from Living on Earth from PRX. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Underwater explorer Craig Foster dives nearly every day in the near-shore waters of South Africa and it’s here that he befriended an octopus, a relationship captured in the documentary “My Octopus Teacher.” He’s coauthor of the 2021 book “Underwater Wild” and joined us for a recent Living on Earth Book Club event to talk about his encounters with cuttlefish, sharks, and Cape clawless otters, and the power of connecting with wild nature. Also, as the autism rate continues to rise among children, scientists and clinicians are connecting the dots between autism, genetics, folic acid deficiency, and chemicals like the endocrine disrupting plastic additives called phthalates. And in their last trip beyond the headlines of the year, Peter Dykstra and Steve Curwood remember environmentally influential people who passed away during 2021. They also talk about an opportunity for Maysfield, Kentucky when the town rebuilds following horrific tornado damage. And the two wonder why the Biden Administration does not make

As Americans prepare to travel and gather in the end-of-year holiday season, many may be questioning how to do so safely in this era of the pandemic. We’ll talk about the best practices for keeping safe during this time of year. Also, breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide, and endocrine disrupting chemicals are partly to blame. One such chemical is DEHP, a phthalate chemical commonly used in plastic hospital intravenous bags and medical tubing, and a recent study finds that it’s interfering with breast cancer treatment and augmenting the odds of relapse. And the video game industry is taking its turn to help fight against climate change by cutting emissions and embedding environmental messages in games. A look at an eco-conscious video game.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Air pollution causes serious damage to our bodies, sometimes resulting in premature death, and it’s also messing with our minds. Depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder are among the mental health problems that researchers have linked to air pollution. Also, a groundbreaking meta-study correlates exposures to plastics containing phthalates with a wide variety of diseases including mental health problems as well as obesity and diabetes. And plastic is wreaking havoc on the health of the planet, too, especially in the oceans. Now a group of YouTube influencers calling themselves “Team Seas” are working together to raise $30 million to try to collect 30 million pounds of trash from the world’s oceans. Join the next Living on Earth Book Club event on December 9th at 6:30 p.m.! We'll be speaking with diver-filmmaker Craig Foster about his book Underwater Wild, which captures the underwater world of wonder seen in the Academy Award-winning documentary “My Octopus Teacher.” Register at loe.org/events Learn more

“The Reign of Wolf 21” is the true love story of an alpha pair who lead their Yellowstone pack with grace, courage, and an unbreakable bond. What these wolves can teach us about love, loyalty, and leadership. Also, our global food system feeds environmental crises like global warming and water pollution even as it fails to adequately feed billions of people worldwide. So in the 50th anniversary edition of “Diet for a Small Planet,” author Frances Moore Lappé renews her calls for a plant- and planet-centered food revolution for the sake of climate, health, and democracy. And in some Native cultures four more crops join the “Three Sisters” of corn, beans, and squash. The “Seven Sisters” and the importance of saving Native seeds.  Join the next Living on Earth Book Club event on December 9th at 6:30 p.m.! We'll be speaking with diver-filmmaker Craig Foster about his book Underwater Wild, which captures the underwater world of wonder seen in the Academy Award-winning documentary “My Octopus Teacher.” Register at

The bipartisan infrastructure bill sets aside $1.2 trillion dollars in funding for clean water, bridges, and roads, as well as higher-tech infrastructure like EV charging stations and electric school buses. Why the implementation of these projects needs to focus on creating equitable and sustainable systems that will last for generations. Also, the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland brought mixed results with an agreement to phase down coal, side agreements to cut methane emissions and a rulebook for international carbon trading markets. But there was little progress in efforts to help developing countries cope with the effects of climate change and the talks were widely criticized for their lack of inclusivity. Most importantly, COP26 failed to establish a fully credible path to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. And for many Native American communities, seeds are living and life-giving organisms which should be carefully kept and cherished. The 2021 novel “The Seed Keeper” relays the importa

At the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, the US and European nations agreed to provide $8.5 billion in financing to help South Africa phase out its use of coal power. South Africa, which is experiencing yet another wave of power outages, gets most of its electricity from burning coal and is the largest carbon emitter in Africa. What international aid means for South Africa's energy transition.  Also, tropical forests are a treasure trove of biodiversity and contain vast stores of carbon that threaten the stability of Earth’s climate system if released through deforestation. And at the recent COP26 in Glasgow more than 130 countries representing 90 percent of the world’s forest cover pledged to end net forest loss by 2030.  Join the next Living on Earth Book Club event on November 18th at 6:30 p.m.! We'll be speaking with Devi Lockwood about her book 1,001 Voices on Climate Change and her quest to bike around the world collecting real, personal stories about how flood, fire, drought, and rising seas are changing

As the UN climate talks called COP26 continue in Glasgow, Scotland, all eyes are on world leaders and negotiators as they face challenges to ramp up ambition and commit to substantial climate finance. Also, new EPA rules would strengthen requirements for the oil and gas industry to prevent, identify, and repair methane leaks. Why tackling methane emissions now is key to limiting global warming. And people who live near tropical forests sometimes resort to illegally logging the trees they treasure to pay for healthcare. A conversation with the founder of a nonprofit working to keep the forest healthy by keeping people healthy. Join the next Living on Earth Book Club event on November 18th at 6:30 p.m.! We'll be speaking with Devi Lockwood about her book 1,001 Voices on Climate Change and her quest to bike around the world collecting real, personal stories about how flood, fire, drought, and rising seas are changing communities. Register at loe.org/events    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/

Roughly 20 Chinese provinces are enduring rolling electricity blackouts amid a coal and natural gas shortage. How the current energy crunch intersects with China’s long-term climate commitments and the prospects for China’s influence at the UN climate talks. Also, fast food could be even more unhealthy than we knew – laden with phthalates, chemicals that are linked to serious health problems and even early death.  And greenhouse gas emissions from plastic production in the United States are on track to outpace domestic coal emissions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More than 170 major companies have pledged to become carbon neutral by 2050, with many counting on carbon offsets to help them reach that goal. But critics say these offsets are often hard to verify and can give these companies a license to continue to pollute.  Also, a conversation with Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate about how the climate crisis is impacting Africa and the discrimination she’s faced in speaking up.  And critically endangered North Atlantic right whales are struggling to grow to their full length because of entanglements in fishing gear and other threats.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The multi trillion dollar budget reconciliation bill working through Congress includes billions of dollars to mitigate climate change, improve drinking water safety, and improve resiliency for coastal communities.   Also, a new study finds an association between high levels of phthalate in blood and premature death. These “everywhere chemicals” are linked to elevated risk for cardiovascular deaths for middle-aged Americans.   And Pulitzer Prize winning author Richard Powers on his new book, Bewilderment, about a father and son struggling to survive as the damaged planet does the same. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Indigenous People’s Day we take a look at the “Land Back” movement that seeks to return land like the Black Hills in South Dakota to its original inhabitants and restore a meaningful connection to the land. Also, with the changing climate, polar bears are moving south in search of food, and grizzly bears are moving north in search of cooler climes. In some cases, the two have mated and created a hybrid animal known as a "pizzly" bear. And until recently landfills in America were often sited in coastal wetlands. Now rising seas are threatening to unleash their trash, toxics, and even nuclear waste into coastal areas.       Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If nations adopt new air quality guidelines from the World Health Organization millions of lives could be saved every year from deadly air pollution. Also, for gardeners in the northern hemisphere, now is the time to take stock of this year’s successes and failures. Find out what you can do now to build fertile soil for next spring.  And as the harvest season picks up, we share preservation tips and tricks for keeping the bounty and preventing fresh produce from ending up in landfills. Join us on October 5 for our next Living on Earth Book Club event! “Guardians of the Trees” author Dr. Kinari Webb will join Steve Curwood and Bobby Bascomb to talk about healing the world’s rainforests and the communities who depend on them. Register at https://loe.org/events/   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Industry and the US federal government have long worked in tandem to sideline climate concerns and continue to promote Earth-warming fossil fuels. Now the US House Oversight and Reform Committee has summoned top executives from Exxon, Shell, BP and Chevron and two affiliated lobbying groups to testify in front of a committee hearing in October, as part of an ongoing investigation into the fossil fuel industry's promotion of climate disinformation.   Also, for the past 50 years, the US government has known about the problem of climate change but has continued to promote fossil fuel development and done little to avert a crisis. Longtime environmental leader Gus Speth joins us to discuss his new book “They Knew.”   And a recent study found that three-quarters of young people surveyed believe the future is frightening because of climate change. What young people are expressing about their eco-anxiety and how parents can safely talk to their kids about climate.   Join us on October 5 for our next Living on Earth

As COVID-19 spread continues and vaccine access remains limited in some of the countries most vulnerable to climate impacts, civil society is warning of a “vaccine apartheid” and calling for a delay of the upcoming UN climate talks. Also, how solar power can produce up to 40% of the nation's electricity by 2035 to meet President Biden’s goal of decarbonizing the grid by then.  And Harvard University announced that it will no longer invest in fossil fuel companies, following years of refusal amid a prominent and vocal divestment campaign. Join us on September 23 for our first Living on Earth Book Club event of the season! Richard Powers, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Overstory, will join Host Steve Curwood to talk about his new book Bewilderment. Register at https://loe.org/events/   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hurricane Ida left people in the Louisiana region known as ‘Cancer Alley’ with destroyed homes, no electricity, and polluted water. That’s on top of the toxic air they breathe every day because of some 150 petrochemical plants in the area. We hear from grassroots activist Sharon Lavigne, a 2021 Goldman Prize recipient, about what it’s like living through these disasters and what drives her to keep fighting yet another plastics plant.  Also, hummingbirds are truly superlative creatures -- relative to their size, they are both the world's fastest avians and have some of the longest migratory journeys of any animal. Sy Montgomery focuses on these incredible birds in her latest book, The Hummingbirds' Gift, where she looks back on her harrowing but rewarding time raising two orphaned baby hummingbirds alongside an artist and hummingbird rehabilitator. And join us on September 23 for our first Living on Earth Book Club event of the season! Richard Powers, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Overstory, will jo

As Living on Earth celebrates 30 years on the air, we examine this decisive moment for the human species and our challenging relationship with our planet.  We meet people who envision a future reshaped by an emerging energy system and new power structures, as we wean off of fossil fuels. Next we take a big-picture view of Earth as a complex and sustaining organism known as Gaia. Over billions of years life has interacted with the elements of this planet in cycles of constant change and adaptation. With the help of deep ecologists, children, an astronaut and more, we survey our place on this ever-evolving living planet. And while science and policy are vital in building a more sustainable world, they can’t convey the values we need as we strive for ecological harmony. Indigenous stories, holy scriptures, East Asian cosmologies, papal encyclicals and divine revelation all shed light on our duties and relationship to each other and to our common home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice

A major Alaska drilling project to tap 600 million barrels of oil has been blocked. A federal judge ruled in favor of Indigenous and environmental groups, finding that the permitting process has yet to fully consider impacts on the climate and polar bears.   Also, higher levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone lead to a greater risk of breast cancer. Researchers at the Silent Spring Institute have shed new light on how chemical exposure can raise those hormone levels in women, and found that nearly 300 chemicals increased one or both hormones.   And an intricate web of roots and fungi connects life in an old growth forest, allowing ancient “mother trees” to nourish and protect their kin. A forest ecologist shares her research findings and reflects on how mother trees helped her through the challenges of motherhood and a cancer diagnosis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices