Living on Earth

Latest Episodes:

Gaza Water Crisis, Saltwater Beavers Promote Estuary Health, Everglades National Park: a “River of Grass”, and more Aug 30, 2019

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Saltwater Beavers Bring Life Back to Estuaries / Everglades National Park, a "River of Grass" / Drilling in the Everglades / Fly-fishing Saved From Pollution / Gaza Water Crisis In the Gaza Strip, where every three out of four people are refugees, clean water is scarce and there's a worsening health crisis for Gaza's children. Also, it turns out that beavers, a keystone species in some freshwater ecosystems, could hold the key to help restore degraded coastal habitats, too. And Everglades National Park provides a place of sanctuary in nature for those looking for peace and quiet, as well as a front-row-seat view of wildlife like alligators. The "River of Grass" and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI.

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Farming While Black, Toxic Diapers and Sanitary Pads, A Steamy Date for 'Romeo and Juliet' Frogs, and more Aug 23, 2019

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Toxicants in Diapers and Sanitary Pads / 'Romeo and Juliet' Frogs' First Steamy Date / Exploring The Parks: North Cascades National Park / Refugees Cultivate Healing Through Gardening / Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm's Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land A recent 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, meet the farmers who are working to cultivate justice and root out racism, by reconnecting people of color to the earth. And Sehuencas water frogs, like other amphibians, have been devastated by the chytrid fungus, and a frog that scientists named "Romeo" was the last known frog of his kind and had stopped singing for a mate. But recently scientists discovered "Juliet" hiding in the Bolivian cloud forest, and now Romeo's song is back. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI.

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Re-wilding the English Countryside, Climate Migrant Caravans, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, and more Aug 16, 2019

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Climate Migrant Caravans / The Place Where You Live: Anchorage, Alaska / Exploring the Parks: Sequoia and Kings Canyon / Confronting Climate Change Through Sound / Rewilding The English Countryside The recent waves of migrant caravans coming from Central America have a link to climate change: 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, the constant onslaught of grim statistics about climate change may cause some people to shut down. Eco-acoustics could hold the key to drawing people back into a conversation about our changing climate. And an experiment in "re-wilding" a farm in England brings ecological and financial benefits from sustainable hunting and ecotourism. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI.

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No-Show Green Voters, Cactus and Snow in the Desert Sky Islands, Desegregating America's Shoreline, and more Aug 09, 2019

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No-Show Green Voters / Exploring the Parks: Cactus and Snow in the Desert Sky Islands / BirdNote®: Ponderosa Pine Savanna / Fighting Climate Change, Naturally / Free the Beaches: Desegregating America's Shoreline In the United States, approximately 20 million registered voters list the environment as one of their top two priorities. But these "super-environmentalists" tend to stay home on Election Day. Also, Arizona's Sky Islands are home to heat and cactus, but also many species that you're more likely to find far north of the desert Southwest - and even considerable snow. And the US civil rights movement to end racial segregation in the 1960's was fought in the North as well as the South. In Connecticut, just about all of the Long Island Sound beaches were off-limits to people of color, until creative organizing finally secured access for all children. That and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI.

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An Afternoon with Pete Seeger, Exploring the Parks: Aniakchak, Vegan Generation Gap, and more Aug 02, 2019

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Exploring the Parks: Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve / BirdNote: Exquisite Thrush Song / Vegan Generation Gap / An Afternoon with Pete Seeger Folk music legend Pete Seeger was renowned for his combination of music and social activism. A year before the first Earth Day, Mr. Seeger and friends built a sloop he christened the Clearwater, because that was his intention: to clear the waters of the Hudson River of pollution and garbage. Also, as part of Living on Earth's series exploring America's public lands, we travel to Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve, deep in the remote Alaskan wilderness. And traditional family recipes that go back through the generations can present challenges when members of the newest generation go vegan. Those stories and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI.

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Miners Pollute the Sea of Cortez, Raising Monarch Butterflies, Guinea Fowl and Tick Control, and more Jul 26, 2019

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Miners Pollute the Sea of Cortez / Beyond the Headlines / How to Raise Monarchs / Taggers at Work / Monarch Migration / The Value of Summer Camp / Guinea Fowl and Tick Control / BirdNote®: Do Birds Use Ants as Tools? Mining company Grupo Mexico has spilled millions of gallons of toxic mining chemicals and waste into the Sea of Cortez and rivers that feed into it, endangering people and the natural ecosystem. Now locals are demanding justice in the wake of the latest disaster. Also, some people have fond childhood memories of raising monarch caterpillars in classrooms and at home. We've got some tips for ensuring monarch butterflies raised in captivity aren't led astray in their migration. And deer ticks can carry Lyme disease, which is moving North, thanks to climate change. Now some homeowners in the thick of tick country are turning to an unusual tick control method: keeping a flock of guinea fowl. Tick-eating machines and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI.

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Fracking and Your Health, Offsetting Your Carbon Footprint, "Hadestown" Sings of Climate Disruption, and more Jul 19, 2019

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Fracking and Your Health / Beyond the Headlines / Exploring the Parks: Petrified Forest National Park / Offsetting Your Carbon Footprint / "Hadestown" Brings Climate Change To Broadway / Camels at the Henbury Craters / BirdNote®: House Sparrows' Dance In this episode, fracking is a highly efficient method for extracting oil and gas locked up in shale rock, but it comes with environmental and health risks including birth defects, cancer, and asthma. A meta study lays out the evidence from more than 1700 studies, articles and reports. Also, carbon-intensive activities like global air travel have been growing for decades. For those interested in reducing their carbon footprints, carbon offsets promise to mitigate the damage caused by flying and other emissions sources. And Tony Award-winning musical "Hadestown" infuses themes like isolationism, exploitation of workers, and even climate change with New Orleans jazz, folk, and pop music. All that and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI.

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"#MeToo” At Nature Conservancy, The Secret and Endangered Lives of Freshwater Mussels, Exploring the Parks: Sequoia and Kings Canyon, and more Jul 12, 2019

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"#MeToo" at the Nature Conservancy / Beyond the Headlines / How To Be A Good Creature / The Secret & Endangered Lives of Freshwater Mussels / Exploring the Parks: Sequoia and Kings Canyon In this episode of Living on Earth, with $6 billion in assets The Nature Conservancy is among the world's richest environmental nonprofits and since 1950 it has protected 120 million acres worldwide. But a recent sexual harassment, gender discrimination and workplace misconduct scandal has shaken trust in the organization. Also, with names like "spectaclecase", "snuffbox", and "orangefoot pimpleback pearly", freshwater mussels are among Earth's most fascinating and underappreciated species. They're also among the most endangered organisms in the United States. Recently, critical habitat was finally designated for four species of freshwater mussels, but much more must be done to save hundreds more from extinction. And in the latest from our occasional series on America's public lands, we travel to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in California, which boast some of the biggest trees in the world and the tallest peak in the contiguous United States along with hundreds of miles of hiking trails. Exploring the parks and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI.

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Science at Risk at the US-Mexico Border, HBO's "Ice on Fire" Offers Climate Solutions, US Blocks UN and G20 Climate Action, and more Jul 05, 2019

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US Blocks UN and G20 Climate Action / Not Much Presidential Debate About Climate / USDA Kills Thousands of Beavers / Science at Risk at the Border / HBO's "Ice on Fire" Offers Climate Solutions In this episode, scientists working on the US-Mexico border face unique challenges when trying to study borderlands ecosystems, thanks to everything from outright harassment and profiling, to tight restrictions on what can cross the border. Living on Earth's Bobby Bascomb is producing a series of dispatches from the US-Mexico border and discusses the challenges of doing science on the border. Also, the climate crisis took center stage at two major world meetings in June 2019, but major polluters have yet to step forward with promises to increase their Paris Agreement pledges. The United States remains on the sidelines as President Trump prepares to pull the US out of the Paris climate agreement entirely. Meanwhile, the Earth is warming and changing faster than many climate scientists had predicted, and at times the future looks impossibly grim. But a new HBO documentary called "Ice on Fire" focuses on some solutions already at hand. "Game on" for solving the climate crisis and much more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI.

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Turning Backyards into Pollinator Havens, Resilient Corals Get a Helping Hand, The Trump EPA's Clean Power Plan Replacement, and more Jun 28, 2019

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Trump Clean Power Plan / Beyond the Headlines / Resilient Corals Get a Helping Hand / Repairing Puerto Rico's Corals / BirdNote®: The Auklet's Whiskers -- Not Just for Show / Freshwater Under the Sea /  Turning Backyards Into Pollinator Havens / The Mighty Condor Minnesota lawmakers have heeded dire warnings about pollinator declines. They've just approved a new program that pays homeowners to convert their lawns to pollinator-friendly habitat, like that favored by the rusty patched bumblebee, which just became Minnesota's state bee. And despite the double-whammy of ocean warming and acidification, some coral populations are actually thriving. So scientists are working to speed up natural selection by propagating these resilient corals in Costa Rica and elsewhere. Also in this episode, we take stock of the Trump EPA's new Affordable Clean Energy rule, which replaces the Clean Power Plan created during the Obama Administration. The ACE rule is expected to be challenged in the courts, as it does little to actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and could even result in up to 1,400 additional deaths from air pollution each year. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI.

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