Living on Earth

Smeagull the Seagull: A True Story / Sammy Snail and the Graneers / Native American Winter Stories Winter is a time for gathering together and celebrating the rich human tradition of storytelling. Sharing Native stories handed down for thousands of years, as well as much younger stories that appeal to young and old alike, brings us together at the Northern Hemisphere's darkest time of the year. And this tradition can also bring us closer to the creatures we share our Earth with, from seagulls to paper wasps. A winter storytelling special, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRX. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democrats "Still In" at Madrid Climate Talks / Climate and Superfund Sites / Jane Fonda and Climate Civil Disobedience / Beyond the Headlines / BirdNote®: Rock Sandpipers Are Tough / A Preschool Christmas Bird Count Jane Fonda has been a Hollywood icon for a half-century and is currently starring in a hit Netflix show, but in 2019 she wants you talking about the climate. She's spearheading the "Fire Drill Fridays" protests at the US Capitol, even getting arrested at 81 years old, and this week's episode features a conversation with Jane about activism and civil disobedience as an antidote for despair, and more. Also, cleanup at 60 percent of the roughly 1,300 Superfund sites in the U.S. could be compromised by climate change disasters such as flooding, fires, and hurricanes. Yet the Environmental Protection Agency is not taking care to prevent these climate impacts on Superfund sites. And a new children's book follows a young citizen scientist as she participates in a Christmas Bird Count. Even preschoolers can get involved in the count, and we follow a flock of young birders on their practice run. Citizen science for kids and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRX. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Banning New Natural Gas Hookups / Beyond the Headlines / The Outlaw Ocean / Eat Like a Fish / Remembering EPA Head William Ruckelshaus Seventy percent of our planet is covered by the oceans, and in this vast wilderness lawlessness is rampant, with crimes ranging from illegal fishing to slavery at sea. These high crimes on the high seas are the focus of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ian Urbina's new book, The Outlaw Ocean. Also, overfishing and climate change are hitting fish stocks hard, and at the same time most of the food grown and raised on land is carbon-intensive and unsustainable. Restorative ocean farming could hold the key to a more sustainable ocean and food system. And as scientists warn that time is running out to curb greenhouse gas emissions and transition away from fossil fuels, some towns and cities are enacting bylaws to codify the use of alternatives to natural gas and oil for heating and cooking. The town of Brookline, Massachusetts is the latest to do so. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Silent Killer Called PM2.5 / Beyond the Headlines / Science Note: Toad Mimics Venomous Snake / Cosmic Crisp Apples / Brewing a Specialty Coffee Market / A Typical Carbon Footprint of Thanksgiving / Reflections on the Native American Tradition of Giving Thanks / Cranberries Take Center Stage The fine particulate air pollution known as PM2.5 has been shown to be deadly with correlation to heart attacks and strokes, and a new study links it with three more specific causes of death: dementia, kidney disease, and hypertension. Also, Thanksgiving is a time for American families and friends to gather and be thankful, but for Native Americans it can also be a reminder of the displacement, violence and disease brought by the white colonists. And coffee is no longer simply a drink to wake you up as there is now a sizable market for specialty coffees with unique flavors. To link up coffee growers with that market and ensure they get a fair price, a Portland, Oregon-based nonprofit started a coffee tasting "cupping" and auction. All that and more, this week on Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ExxonMobil Fraud Decision Due / UN Climate Ambition Gap / A Public Housing Green New Deal / Beyond The Headlines / Winter Wolf Song / Winter Wolves on the Move / A Tasty Vegan Thanksgiving With federal public housing in urgent need of upgrades, the new "Green New Deal for Public Housing Act" aims to create thousands of jobs while improving public health and reducing carbon emissions. Also, climate loss and damage is already upon us, even as UN negotiators look for fair ways to share responsibility. And a traditional Thanksgiving dinner might not seem all that vegan-friendly, but among the vegan options there are plenty of tasty selections that even have the mouthfeel of meat. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

EPA Seeks Confidential Health Records / The Bottle Deposit Debate / Senator Tom Udall Takes on Plastic Waste / Beyond the Headlines / The Pan-Borneo Highway / Good Housekeeping The EPA sset limits for pollutants in our air and water to protect public health. Now the agency is proposing a controversial rule to require any study used for its rulemaking to disclose raw data including confidential medical records. Also, Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) aims to curb the growing plastic waste crisis with a bill that would ban some single-use plastics, institute a 10-cent nationwide container deposit, and compel producers to take the lead on recycling. And the 2,000-km Pan-Borneo Highway will connect some of the remote regions of the three nations that make up the island, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. But conservationists worry that this highway will fragment crucial habitat for rare species like pygmy elephants, proboscis monkeys, and the banded langur. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Big Keystone Oil Spill / Beyond the Headlines / Wildfires Strike Baja California / BirdNote®: The Butcherbird / Let The Leaves Be And Feed The Birds / Rainforests 'Worth More Alive Than Dead' In late October, nearly 400,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from the existing Keystone pipeline into a North Dakota wetland, reviving concerns about the safety of the proposed Keystone XL extension. Also, the extreme heat and winds that fueled wildfires in the State of California this October also fed fires in Mexico's Baja California, where fire departments and residents have limited resources. And despite market forces that incentivize logging, mining, and conversion to farmland, Earth's rainforests are worth more alive than dead. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fighting Fire with Prescribed Fire / Beyond the Headlines / Note on Emerging Science: Deforestation and Malaria / Healthy People Equal Healthy Forests / BirdNote®: Green Birds and Brown Birds in the Tropical Rainforest / Pope Hosts Amazon Synod For many of those living in and near tropical forests, one of the only ways to get cash to pay for healthcare is by logging. Now the nonprofit Health in Harmony is providing healthcare that patients can pay for with seedlings or manure. Also, Pope Francis recently called the bishops of the Amazon to Rome for a synod bringing them together with lay members of the indigenous community to discuss human rights, climate change and deforestation. And a century of fire suppression has turned much of the West into a tinderbox. Prescribed fire could help bring nature back in balance, but it's currently far more common in the Southeast than in the West, where it's sorely needed. All that and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ethane Crackers Spark Pollution Concerns / BirdNote®: Red-Necked Phalaropes, Spinners On The Sea / Living Near The Coast Could Boost Mental Health / Oyster Shell Recycling / Nobel Prize in Chemistry Recognizes Lithium Battery Discoveries / Beyond the Headlines / 'Largest YouTube Collaboration Ever' Aims to Plant 20 Million Trees A glut of cheap natural gas has petrochemical companies turning to ethane, a component of natural gas, to make plastic. But the process comes with massive carbon emissions and health concerns for host communities. Also, the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry commemorates the work of three scientists who helped develop the lithium ion battery, which revolutionized electronics. We speak with one of those pioneering chemists. And influencers on YouTube and other platforms are asking their billion subscribers to help plant 20 million trees. "Team Trees" and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

10,000 Farmers Want a Green New Deal / BirdNote®: Who Likes Suet? / Beyond the Headlines / The Economic Value of the National Parks / Exploring the Parks: Great Smoky Mountains / Arctic Fox Hunting More than 10,000 farmers and ranchers from across the country have signed on to a letter that urges Congress to support a Green New Deal. They're asking for a massive overhaul of food and farming policy in order to address the climate crisis while providing economic security for independent family farms. Also, the National Parks have been famously called "America's Best Idea," but they may also be "America's Best Investment", thanks to the valuable services they provide such as recreation, carbon storage, and educational programs. And the latest in Living on Earth's series on public lands takes us to the most remote spot in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a biodiversity hotspot. Exploring the parks and more, in this episode of Living on Earth from PRI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices