
Supreme Court Limits EPA Power
In a major 6 to 3 decision with sobering implications for climate policy, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped its authority when it created guidelines for how utilities generate electricity. Vermont Law School Professor Pat Parenteau discusses how the decision goes against precedent and hampers efforts to tackle climate change.


Saving the Mekong River
The Mekong River is a vital lifeline for more than 65 million people in Southeast Asia, so when a Thai man named Niwat Roykaew heard about a “rapids-blasting” project on the Mekong that would have detrimental effects on the river's health, he began to mobilize to stop the project. In 2020 the Thai government canceled part of the project and Niwat Roykaew was awarded the 2022 Goldman Prize for Asia, and he joins us to talk about his work in safeguarding the Mekong River's biodiversity.


Climate and Punishment
America’s aging prison facilities are largely unprepared for climate impacts and often lack air conditioning, wildfire evacuation plans, and hurricane strategies and some inmates have died from extreme heat. Journalist Alleen Brown talks about how U.S. prisons reveal the intersection of mass incarceration, systemic racism, and climate change.

This Weeks Show
July 1, 2022
listen / download

Supreme Court Limits EPA Power
listen / download
In a major 6 to 3 decision with sobering implications for climate policy, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped its authority when it created guidelines for how utilities generate electricity. Vermont Law School Professor Pat Parenteau discusses how the decision goes against precedent and hampers efforts to tackle climate change.

Beyond the Headlines
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Environmental Health News Editor Peter Dykstra and Host Steve Curwood discuss the statistic that less than 50% of our world’s annual grain production is eaten by humans, the innovative microplastic-removing “fishbots” coming out of a research group at Sichuan University, and the anniversary for the Hoover Dam, a massive source of water and hydropower approved for development 93 years ago.

Saving the Mekong River
listen / download
The Mekong River is a vital lifeline for more than 65 million people in Southeast Asia, so when a Thai man named Niwat Roykaew heard about a “rapids-blasting” project on the Mekong that would have detrimental effects on the river's health, he began to mobilize to stop the project. In 2020 the Thai government canceled part of the project and Niwat Roykaew was awarded the 2022 Goldman Prize for Asia, and he joins us to talk about his work in safeguarding the Mekong River's biodiversity.

Saltier Soils in a Warming World
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Rising seas and temperatures are exacerbating the perennial problem of increasing salinity on both coastal and inland farmland. Journalist Fred Pearce explains how this is affecting farmers from Vietnam to Bangladesh and talks about potential solutions.

Climate and Punishment
listen / download
America’s aging prison facilities are largely unprepared for climate impacts and often lack air conditioning, wildfire evacuation plans, and hurricane strategies and some inmates have died from extreme heat. Journalist Alleen Brown talks about how U.S. prisons reveal the intersection of mass incarceration, systemic racism, and climate change.
Special Features
Field Note: Gotta Getta Fish!
Living on Earth's Explorer-in-Residence Mark Seth Lender elaborates on the singular moment when a young osprey first leaves the nest.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes
Field Note: "Trust" - Great Blue Heron
Living on Earth's Explorer-in-Residence muses on the importance of communication and trust between a great blue heron couple as they share equally the duties of raising their young.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes

...Ultimately, if we are going prevent large parts of this Earth from becoming not only inhospitable but uninhabitable in our lifetimes, we are going to have to keep some fossil fuels in the ground rather than burn them...
-- President Barack Obama, November 6, 2015 on why he declined to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline.
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