Category: Climate

Dogs Get Dementia Too – And There May be a Remedy

Angela Ardolino has advocated for and developed safe, natural, ethically grown hemp and medical cannabis for human and animal use. We talked last month about her current work with aging dogs, particularly her use of medicinal mushrooms and other adaptogens – which you will also hear about – for the treatment of canine dementia.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Engineer: Abby O’Brien

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Forest as Superorganism: What it means to Clearcut.

On this week’s How on Earth, Beth speaks with Suzanne Simard, professor and researcher at the University of British Columbia, about her book, WHEN THE FOREST BREATHES, both a call to action, and a journey into the heart of British Columbia’s old growth forests and the indigenous communities that live there, and her efforts to unite them to ensure the health of these vital ecosystems.Also: an allergist’s take on why this year’s seasonal allergies are worse than normal.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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Winter Recreation in a Warmer World

On this week’s How on Earth, we hear from a climate scientist about the implications of our changing weather patterns for winter recreation. It’s a warm, dry winter, throughout the Rocky Mountain West and elsewhere in the country, the weather has been a mixed bag. Dr. Elizabeth Burakowski, a Research Faculty member in the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space and Affiliate faculty in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of New Hampshire, gives us her take. Her research focuses on winter climate change in the northeastern United States, including what changes we’ve seen in the past, what we can expect for the future, and the impacts on ecosystems and society. She is also familiar with local snowfall changes, having served on the Boulder-based non-profit Protect Our Winters since 2016.

Executive Producer:Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Joel Parker, Shelley Schlender

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What do Grasslands Have to do with Climate Change?

From Science MOAB

We hear an interview aired by our sister community radio station’s, Science MOAB. Ecologist Brooke Osborne talks about how dryland ecosystems – such as the grasslands east of Boulder – influence the whole planet. Dryands cover 40% of the earth; they support a third of the planet’s humans, and while their roots store lots of carbon, they’re vulnerable to climate change, overgrazing and aggressive land management.

In this episode, you’ll also hear about this weekend’s Colorado Environmental Film Festival in Golden.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producers: Beth Bennett and Shelley Schlender
Additional Contributions: Gracyn Custin

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Coral: Past, Present, Future

In this week’s show Beth speaks with science writer, educator, and scientist Dr. Lisa Gardiner about her recent book Reefs of Time: What Fossils Reveal about Coral Survival. Lisa studied the fossil remains of ancient coral reefs, which also suffered from environmental challenges. In our conversation, you’ll hear about how the past shapes the present, and future, of these amazing invertebrates that are keystones in ocean ecosystems. Her book describes the risks the current environment pose to these amazing organisms and the ecosystems they create, but also much much more of the significance and elegance of the corals and the reefs.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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Climate Change, Astronomy, Canine Astronauts

Climate change. Astronomy.  A canine astronaut. They intersect in our guest, astronomer and author Dr. Jeff Bennett. Among other things, we focus on climate change and policy – present and future.

Dr. Bennett got his Ph.D. in Astrophysics from the University of Colorado, and he served two years as a Visiting Senior Scientist at NASA Headquarters, where he was the first scientist hired within a science division specifically to leverage science missions for education. As an author, Dr. Bennett has written college textbooks in astronomy, mathematics, statistics, and astrobiology, and a freely available, interactive digital textbook about Earth and Space Science for middle- and high-school students.  He also has written popular books that include a series for children about an intrepid astronaut dog named Max, who goes to the Moon, Mars and elsewhere.

A particular topic we plan to delve into today with Dr. Bennett is regarding his book titled: “A Global Warming Primer: Pathway to a Post-Global Warming Future”.  A current issue is the EPA’s proposal to rescind the 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding. The comment period for the proposed rule change has been extended to September 22. Other issues include the Department of Energy’s recent report critical of climate change research (see rebuttals of the report by Dr. Bennett and others), and whether NASA will continue doing climate and other Earth-based science.

Host: Joel Parker
Show Producer/Engineer: Joel Parker
Executive Producer: Susan Moran

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Wildfires in a Changing Climate

On this week’s show we replay an interview from two years ago with author John Valliant on his then-newly released book, Fire Weather, the story – and much more- of the groundbreaking wildfire that devastated the oil sands capital city of Fort McMurray in Alberta. Given the current outbreaks of Colorado wildfires, getting bigger and harder to contain each year, Valiant’s message of the changing nature of these horrifying disasters is ever more pertinent. Also, headlines on the evolving nature of science in another changing climate of federal oversight.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer:Beth Bennett
Additional Contribution: Joel Parker

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Animal Pandemics?

On this week’s How on Earth, Beth talks with author and science journalist Liz Kalaugher, about her new book, The Elephant in the room:How to Stop Making Ourselves and Other Animals Sick. Think about it this way: When new diseases spread, news reports often focus on wildlife culprits–rodents, monkeys and mpox; bats and COVID-19; waterfowl and avian flu; or mosquitoes and Zika. But, as Liz points out, we see it often works the other way around–humans have caused diseases in other animals countless times, through travel and transport, the changes we impose on our environment, and global warming. In her deeply researched and often entertaining book, Liz introduces the wildlife we have harmed and the experts now studying the crosscurrents between humans, other animals, and health.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Joel Parker and Shelley Schlender
Engineer:Jackie Sedley

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IF Federal Environmental Protections Go Away . . . EDF Speaks Out.

World Climate Talks (Starts 1:00)  CU Boulder Director of Environmental Journalism Tom Yulsman gives an update on COP29 United Nations 29th Conference on Climate Change, in this hottest year on record, and threats to shut down NOAA.

Methane Leaks, Trump and the EDF (starts 4:10) EDF — Environmental Defense Fund’s Rosalie Winn, explains why reducing methane leaks is crucial, and what to do if many federal environmental protections against methane leaks or air pollution go away.

Executive Producer/Show Producer: Shelley Schlender
Additional Contributions: Tom Yulsman, Joel Parker
Engineer: Jackie Sedley

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Wildfire Mushrooms for Wildfire Mitigation

WIldfire Mushroom c Coldfire Project

Wild, local mushrooms can break down deadwood into healthy soil, and they can do this surprisingly fast.  Used correctly, fungi are an emerging way to reduce the forest tinder that makes mega-wildfires more likely.   But there’s a wrong way and a right way to use mushrooms for mitigation  Our experts today will talk about the ways that are safe for the environment, and the results.

Our experts today are Jeff Ravage of the Coldfire Project and Zach Hedstrom of Boulder Mushroom .  They describe efforts underway to use mushrooms to break down deadwood into soil — to reduce forest tinder and also for sequestering carbon in soil.

Host/Show Producer: Shelley Schlender

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:11 — 30.0MB)

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