Living on Earth

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 importance of seed keeping across 4 generations of Dakota women.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 about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 communities. Register at loe.org/events Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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/adchoices

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 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

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