Steve Curwood

3588 appearances on Living on Earth, from 1992 to 2026.

May 29, 2026: U.N. Affirms Climate Duty
More than two-thirds of U.N. members recently voted in favor of a resolution affirming a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice that countries have a legal obligation to limit global warming. While this advisory opinion is not enforceable, it will likely be cited in lawsuits and appeals as a fact in the fight against climate disruption. Inside Climate News reporter Bob Berwyn speaks with Host Jenni Doering about the significance of the ruling and its U.N. adoption.
May 29, 2026: Terry Tempest Williams on 'The Glorians'
The Utah desert with its raw beauty has long been a muse for writer Terry Tempest Williams. In her 2026 book, The Glorians: Visitations from the Holy Ordinary, she explores miraculous moments of grace that call for our attention, even in spaces that may at first seem unremarkable. Terry Tempest Williams joined Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering for an online Living on Earth Book Club event.
May 29, 2026: World Cup in a Warming World
The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup will mostly take place during the North American summer, and the prospect of extreme heat prompted a group of current and former players to write an open letter to FIFA calling for better protection of players. Stuart Parkinson, a co-author of the 2025 report “FIFA’s Climate Blind Spot: The Men’s World Cup in a Warming World”, talks with Host Steve Curwood about the risks for players and fans as well as the climate costs of the 2026 games.
May 22, 2026: Indigenous Wisdom in Science
In accounts of scientific expeditions into the remotest parts of our world, indigenous people can often be depicted as mere backdrop—part of a quote “exotic” landscape, or at best, helpful sidekicks. But for Dr. Rosa Espinoza, a Peruvian chemical biologist and conservationist, the traditional knowledge and worldviews of indigenous people could be the key to unlocking some of nature’s greatest mysteries, if scientists are willing to listen—and collaborate. Host Aynsley O’Neill and Dr. Espinoza talk about her 2025 book, The Spirit of the Rainforest: How Indigenous Wisdom and Scientific Curiosity Reconnects Us to the Natural World.
May 22, 2026: Baby Right Whales Bring Hope
North Atlantic Right Whales were once so thoroughly hunted they nearly went extinct. When hunting these mammals was outlawed, they slowly started to bounce back, but today these Right whales are dealing with newer deadly threats, such as fishing gear entanglement and warming in the Gulf of Maine. So, it’s a relief to advocates to have a successful calving season like this year with 23 new calves, the most since 2009. Amy Warren, the Scientific Program Officer at the New England Aquarium, spoke with Host Aynsley O’Neill.
May 22, 2026: Cancer and CAFOS
Living near many large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs appears to raise cancer risk, according to a study from Yale researchers. CAFOs pack thousands of pigs, cows, and chickens together to produce meat, dairy, and eggs. All those crowded animals can produce a lot of waste that pollutes air and water, which may explain an association between CAFOs and cancer, though the study does not prove causation. Brian Bienkowski, managing editor of The New Lede, joins Host Steve Curwood to talk about the research and how concerns transcend politics.
May 15, 2026: White House Accuses NCAR of "Climate Alarmism
The federally funded National Center for Atmospheric Research, or NCAR, in Boulder, Colorado has been a leading agency for decades assessing the risks and possible responses to the changing climate. But in November, the Trump administration declared it was dismantling NCAR, citing its contribution to what the administration calls “climate alarmism.” University of Colorado - Boulder Professor Waleed Abdalati talks with Host Steve Curwood about the role of NCAR and why its parent organization has filed a lawsuit alleging a “campaign of retaliation against the State of Colorado.”
May 15, 2026: Blocking New UK Oil and Gas
Great Britain is Europe’s third largest oil and gas producer, even with a commitment to a net-zero economy by 2050. A small group of climate activists is helping the UK meet that target by winning a Supreme Court decision that’s blocking any new UK oil and gas projects that don’t assess climate impacts. Sarah Finch of Surrey, near London led the fight against proposed oil and gas drilling in the region known as the Weald, and she’s been recognized with the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for Europe. She joins Host Steve Curwood.
May 15, 2026: The Quest for Green Steel
Just outside of Chicago, the country’s largest complex of steel mills faces an uncertain future. Air pollution, climate change and the preservation of union jobs are affecting the industry, as are the Trump administration’s stances on coal, steel, and tariffs. The Allegheny Front’s Reid Frazier reports on efforts to get big steelmakers in the region to switch from coal to natural gas or hydrogen, but overhauling existing infrastructure isn’t easy or cheap.
May 01, 2026: How Oil Fuels Conflict
The US-Israel joint war against Iran has shaken global energy markets, closed the Strait of Hormuz and restricted the flow of oil and natural gas worldwide. It's the latest of conflicts over Iranian oil, though for the first time the growing emergence of fossil free energy sources is prompting visions of ending our decades of dependence on oil, with its pollution and inevitable wars. Michael Klare, emeritus professor of Peace and Security studies at Hampshire College and the defense correspondent for The Nation magazine, speaks with Host Steve Curwood.
May 01, 2026: The Indigenous Fight to Save Bristol Bay
In 2001, a Canadian mining company proposed a massive gold and copper mine at the headwaters of pristine Bristol Bay, Alaska. Local Native Alaskans became concerned about how the mine could harm their plentiful sockeye salmon run, a cultural and economic lifeblood. Alannah Acaq Hurley, Executive Director of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay, helped lead the fight against the mine and was awarded the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for North America. Alannah Hurley joins Host Steve Curwood.
May 01, 2026: Glyphosate at the Supreme Court
The US Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments for Monsanto v. Durnell, a case about whether states can require warning labels on pesticides if the EPA does not. This stems from thousands of lawsuits against Roundup maker Monsanto, alleging that farmers and landscapers who developed cancer weren’t warned of the risks. Though the World Health organization has classified glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup, as “probably carcinogenic”, the EPA has not found glyphosate can cause cancer. Pat Parenteau is an emeritus professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School, discusses with Host Steve Curwood.
April 17, 2026: Artemis II Science and Awe
The four astronauts of the Artemis II mission that safely splashed down on April 10 were able to test out Orion spacecraft systems during their journey, a crucial step towards NASA’s ultimate goal of establishing a continuous human presence on the moon and embarking on future missions to Mars and beyond. They also made new scientific observations that are helping to expand our knowledge of the Moon, as well as the Earth itself. Artemis II Lunar Science Lead Kelsey Young talks with Host Aynsley O’Neill about the scientific goals and accomplishments of the mission and the unforgettable moments the crew shared with people back on Earth.
April 17, 2026: Earth Day - 1970 vs Now
The first Earth Day in 1970, when some 20 million people peacefully demonstrated, arrived amid Vietnam War protests and other social unrest. And it came not long after the Apollo 8 astronauts snapped the iconic “Earthrise” photo that showed all of us were on a single, fragile planet amid the blackness of space. In this moment when humans have finally returned to the Moon after decades, Adam Rome, University at Buffalo environmental historian and author of The Genius of Earth Day, joins Host Steve Curwood to reflect on the movement that led to that first Earth Day and how the world has changed.
April 17, 2026: 'Clearing the Air' and Climate Solutions Hope
Climate solutions like renewable energy tech that requires intensive mining can run into skepticism from people across the political spectrum. But according to data scientist Hannah Ritchie, many of the concerns are based on partial and misinformation, and the outlook for addressing the climate emergency isn’t as grim as some people may think. Ritchie is the author of Clearing the Air: A Hopeful Guide to Solving Climate Change in 50 Questions and Answers and spoke with Host Steve Curwood.
April 10, 2026: Climate Coverage Dropoff
News media outlets are retreating from covering climate change, according to the Media and Climate Change Observatory at the University of Colorado Boulder, which has been tracking this trend for decades. They report that since a peak in 2021, climate news stories across the globe have dropped nearly 40 percent. Professor Max Boykoff is director of the Media and Climate Change Observatory and spoke with Living on Earth Host and Executive Producer, Steve Curwood.
April 03, 2026: Artemis II Launch Party
As the Artemis II launch counted down, folks of all ages gathered excitedly to watch the livestream at the McAuliffe–Shepard Discovery Center in New Hampshire, named for two prominent astronauts from the state. Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood was there and caught up with members of the University of New Hampshire Astronomy Club and others to get their reactions and hear their hopes for the mission and the future of space exploration.
March 27, 2026: Climate Resilience Grants Resume
A federal judge recently issued an enforcement order mandating the release of funds from FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities or BRIC program, which the Trump administration had stalled. Alice Hill, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the former senior Resiliency Director on the National Security Council for President Obama, discusses with Host Steve Curwood why money spent to protect critical infrastructure from disasters like storms, floods and wildfires pays for itself many times over.
March 27, 2026: The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything
Over billions of years of its history, the planet has frozen over almost completely and then lost all its ice as crocodiles basked in a balmy Arctic. Carbon-based life arose and adapted to all this change. And at the center of it all is the notorious greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, the focus of journalist Peter Brannen’s book The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything: How Carbon Dioxide Made Our World. He joins Host Jenni Doering to describe the extreme climate whiplash of Earth’s past.
March 27, 2026: BirdNote®: Meet the Tiniest Owl in the World
At just six inches tall, the desert-dwelling Elf Owl is the smallest known species of owl in the world. As BirdNote®’s Michael Stein reports, despite its tiny stature the Elf Owl is a fierce predator of crickets, scorpions, and mice.
March 20, 2026: Vanguard Retreats from ESG
The investment giant Vanguard is retreating from its climate initiatives as part of a $30 million settlement deal for an anti-trust lawsuit brought by Republican state attorneys general. The lawsuit alleged that Vanguard and fellow asset managers BlackRock and State Street, which are still fighting the suit, conspired to kill the coal industry. Vanguard did not admit to wrongdoing but is now barred from participating in climate investment watchdog groups such as Ceres. General Counsel for Ceres, Michael Boudett joined Living on Earth Executive Producer Steve Curwood to explain.
March 13, 2026: Pioneering Women in Science
Women have historically been underrepresented in science and engineering, but that didn’t stop Marie Curie, Jane Goodall, and Rachel Carson, and there are many more women in these fields who are not as famous. Artist and author Rachel Ignotofsky joins Host Steve Curwood to share the contributions of some of the remarkable female scientists she profiles in her book, Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World.
March 13, 2026: Fires and Logging Justice
A decades-old US Forest Service rule that’s been used to supposedly reduce wildfire risk through large-scale logging while bypassing environmental review has been deemed unlawful by a federal court in Oregon. Timothy Ingalsbee, co-founder and Executive Director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology, talks with Host Steve Curwood about why clearcutting can instead increase wildfire risk, and shares his view that USFS needs to rethink its entire approach to managing forests and wildfire risk.
March 13, 2026: PFAS Still at Pittsburgh Airport
Foams containing PFAS or “forever chemicals” are excellent at suppressing fires involving jet fuel and other oil products, but they leave behind a toxic legacy. And they have long been used for firefighting drills, including at a training facility based at Pittsburgh International Airport. Although the facility now uses PFAS-free firefighting foam, the Allegheny Front’s Reid Frazier reports that sampling is still showing high levels of PFAS being discharged into nearby streams.
March 06, 2026: Justice Advances in Cancer Alley
Descendants of enslaved people fighting pollution in Louisiana’s ‘Cancer Alley’ have been greenlit for a trial. Their lawsuit alleges the St. James Parish government discriminated against Black residents by repeatedly permitting industrial plants in predominantly Black districts while shielding mostly white districts from industry. Monique Harden, a longtime environmental justice attorney and advocate, joins Host Jenni Doering to explain how the 13th amendment outlawing slavery plays into the case.
March 06, 2026: Stinky Seaweed Menace
Though the floating seaweed known as Sargassum provides critical habitat for many species in the Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic, it is now finding a fertile home in southern waters, where it’s wreaking havoc on coastal communities and ecosystems. Teresa Tomassoni, oceans correspondent with our media partner Inside Climate News, spoke with Living on Earth’s Aynsley O’Neill about impacts to respiratory health, tourism and sea turtles.
March 06, 2026: Trump, Glyphosate and Cancer
President Trump has deemed glyphosate as essential for national security even though some 200,000 people have complained they have gotten cancer or other adverse health effects, while using it as directed. Meanwhile a Missouri state court has given preliminary approval to a class action settlement plan for people sickened by Roundup, which contains the herbicide glyphosate. Carey Gillam of The New Lede speaks with Host Steve Curwood about the latest developments in glyphosate lawsuits and why some in the Make America Healthy Again movement feel betrayed by the Trump Administration’s support for glyphosate.
February 27, 2026: Bonaire Residents Fight for Climate Justice
The Dutch special municipality of Bonaire in the Caribbean is already experiencing dangerous heat and could see a fifth of its land disappear under rising seas by 2100. But the Netherlands is discriminating against these overseas citizens by failing to adequately reduce global warming emissions and develop adaptation plans to help them cope, according to a January 2026 Dutch court decision. Greenpeace Netherlands campaigner Eefje de Kroon worked with eight Bonaire residents to bring their case and joins Host Paloma Beltran.
February 27, 2026: The Possibility of Tenderness
Poet and author Jason Allen-Paisant left his native Jamaica to gain a graduate school education and prize-winning poetry career in England and France. He now looks back with wonder at the green of Jamaica where generations of his ancestors fed and healed his family. He shares this history in his book The Possibility of Tenderness: A Jamaican Memoir of Plants and Dreams. Jason Allen-Paisant spoke with Living on Earth’s Andrew Skerritt.
February 27, 2026: Wastewater to Wealth
Urine is packed with nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen, which can be pollutants when they enter the environment unchecked. But these can also be turned into vital fertilizer to nourish our crops, and 2025 MacArthur Fellow William Tarpeh, an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University, is developing methods for “refining” wastewater. He discusses with Host Steve Curwood how we can turn wastewater into wealth.
February 20, 2026: Bluetooth Butterfly Tracking
Monarch butterflies can travel thousands of miles each year between Mexico and North America in an epic relay race of multiple generations. And thanks to new technology, our phones and other Bluetooth devices can now tell us what paths these brave little insects take on this journey. Dan Fagin, who teaches environmental journalism at NYU and is writing a book about monarchs, talks with Host Steve Curwood about the tiny trackers and what it’s like to be among millions of monarchs where they overwinter in Mexico.
February 20, 2026: Stormy Weather for Climate Science
The Trump administration has declared scientists at places like the National Center for Atmospheric Research are promoting ‘climate hysteria’ by overstating the risks to public health and safety, so it’s moving to cut off funds for NCAR. Former TV weatherman Alan Sealls, president of the American Meteorological Society, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the important climate and weather modeling NCAR does and how the loss of funding could impact this research.
February 20, 2026: Trump Canceling Climate Regs
After a landmark Supreme Court case that directed EPA to determine whether carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases endanger public health, the agency found in 2009 that indeed they do. Now, the Trump EPA is attempting to revoke that endangerment finding to unravel all subsequent regulations on tailpipes, smokestacks and more. Vermont Law and Graduate School emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau explains to Host Jenni Doering why this step is just the beginning of what looks to be a long legal fight.
February 13, 2026: Remembering Mike McElroy
Harvard atmospheric science Professor Michael B. McElroy, a long-time board member of the World Media Foundation (which produces Living on Earth), passed away in January 2026. Host Steve Curwood offers a brief tribute to Mike’s groundbreaking contributions to research and education.
February 13, 2026: US Losing Economic and Energy Edge to China
The ongoing efforts of the Trump Administration to walk back climate policy and clean energy development may be handing over the health of the US economy to our chief economic rival, China. Veteran BBC journalist Isabel Hilton, the founder of Dialogue Earth, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss how China is outpacing US economic growth by supplying the world with clean technologies.
February 06, 2026: The Law and Environmental Justice
The National Academy of Sciences has found black people are exposed to 66 percent more pollution than they produce, while white people are exposed to 17 percent less pollution than they create. In honor of Black History Month Special we highlight some of the voices that stood up against environmental injustice including Civil rights activist the Rev. Dr. Ben Chavis, and Dr. Robert Bullard who’s been deemed the “Father of Environmental Justice,” And in a conversation with Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran we also look back and look forward at prospects for breaking the chains of environmental racism with long time environmental lawyer and activist Monique Harden. a trail blazer in addressing problems of people and pollution in Louisiana’s “Cancer Alley”.
February 06, 2026: The Power of Black History
The burial of a nine-year-old enslaved girl on a plantation in Louisiana may halt construction of a new petrochemical plant on that land in the state’s “Cancer Alley.” Many descendants of enslaved people in the region already live with health problems from exposure to industry and are looking to their ancestors to stop further expansion. Lenora Gobert, a genealogist for the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, joined Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood.
February 06, 2026: The Quest for Env. Justice in Shiloh Alabama
For black history month we bring you a cautionary tale brought to us by the Center for Climate and Environmental Justice Media or CEJM. CEJM helps people of color learn how to tell their own stories in the face of environmental injustice and the climate emergency. Melissa Williams is a storyteller for CEJM and she shares her community’s efforts and concerns as they seek justice from the State of Alabama after highway construction flooded their homes in Shiloh Alabama.
January 30, 2026: Global Health Under Trump
The current Trump administration has in its first year cut off the World Health Organization, dismantled the United States Agency for International Development or USAID, and overhauled vaccination recommendations, just to name a few decisions impacting health. Physician and Harvard public health professor Vanessa Kerry is also WHO Special Envoy for Climate Change and Health. She talks with Host Steve Curwood about the lives that could be lost as the US retreats from global health.
January 30, 2026: Do Aliens Speak Physics?
Classic science fiction tends to assume that if aliens visit Earth, they will have done so thanks to using math and science that’s like our own. But physicist Daniel Whiteson and cartoonist Andy Warner aren’t so sure. They speak with Host Steve Curwood about their book Do Aliens Speak Physics? And Other Questions About Science and the Nature of Reality.
January 30, 2026: Hot Prospects for Geothermal Energy
As geothermal heating and cooling slowly spreads in the U.S., some communities and utilities are looking to grow small pilot projects into much larger networks of pipes and heat pumps that extract and store heat in the earth to warm and cool homes and businesses as needed. Inside Climate News journalist Phil McKenna joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss the bipartisan interest in geothermal and describe a large geothermal HVAC system that demonstrates the possibilities and benefits of scaling up.
January 23, 2026: US Leaves Top Climate Science Body
The Trump Administration is withdrawing the US from the scientific Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change or IPCC, which reports agreement about the basic scientific facts of global warming and the impact of core technologies to address it. Physicist and climate scientist Bill Hare, a lead author of the IPCC fourth assessment report in 2007, tells Host Steve Curwood about how the fossil fuel industry has long pushed for such an action.
January 23, 2026: Health and Economic Costs of Fossil Fuels
The burning of fossil fuels is linked to some 300,000 deaths in America every year, not to mention the related carbon emissions that promote global warming. Dr. Vanessa Kerry directs Global Health and Climate Policy and teaches at the Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health. She is also the World Health Organization Special Envoy for Climate Change and Health and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the major health costs and lost opportunities linked to pollution.
January 23, 2026: Gardening for Special Needs
For people with developmental or physical disabilities, growing plants in a garden may offer personal growth opportunities that unlock new possibilities outside of the garden too. This kind of transformation is something avid gardener Jill Mays has seen again and again in her work with disabled children and adults, and she speaks with Host Paloma Beltran about her book Nurturing Nature: A Guide to Gardening for Special Needs.
January 09, 2026: Tropical Forests, Forever?
As the host of this year’s UN climate treaty negotiations and home to most of the Amazon tropical rainforest, Brazil led a major advance for forests and their indigenous inhabitants called the Tropical Forest Forever Facility. The new $125 billion fund, with guarantees for investors, will send its profits to countries with documented forest preservation, including some cash going directly to indigenous and local populations. Michael Coe, a senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center who was at COP30, joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering to explain why forest protection is a vital piece of stabilizing the climate.
January 09, 2026: EPA Ignores Climate Dangers
This June the US Environmental Protection Agency proposed eliminating regulations that limit climate changing gases from power plants, about a quarter of US emissions. Harvard Law Professor Richard Lazarus, an environmental and constitutional law scholar and author of The Rule of Five: Making Climate History at the Supreme Court, speaks with Host Steve Curwood about the perils of the broader Trump administration effort to weaken federal environmental protections.
January 09, 2026: Innovation to Fund Tropical Forest Protection
The new Tropical Forest Forever Facility launched by Brazil at the 2025 UN climate talks is different from other efforts to protect nature in that it doesn’t rely on charity. Instead, it’s an investment fund that will pay dividends to both private investors and governments that keep their tropical and subtropical forest intact. Host Paloma Beltran walks Host Aynsley O’Neill through how it would work.
December 26, 2025: A Mainer's Family Traditions
Denny Breau, a singer/songwriter from Maine, joins host Steve Curwood during these cold winter months to discuss some of the moments that warm his heart. He shares stories about one of his favorite holiday meals, ice-fishing, his Acadian family origins, and traditions of song that span the generations.
December 26, 2025: Christmas Candles and Other Stories from Jay O'Callahan
Master storyteller Jay O’Callahan joins Host Steve Curwood to share some tales about his family during the holiday season. O’Callahan recalls his community’s tradition of Christmas caroling and how it brought hope to his mother in a time of darkness and for Christmases to come, and he shares stories of an imaginative young girl named Mary.
December 19, 2025: Ceyx and Alcyone, The Coming of the Days of Peace
Storyteller Diane Edgecomb performs the Greek myth “Ceyx and Alcyone” about the origin of Halcyon birds, also known as kingfishers. The ancients noticed these birds would appear during the “Halcyon Days” when the seas became calm, around the time of the winter Solstice. She also discusses with Host Steve Curwood how stories can help illuminate why we take part in old traditions at this time of year such as putting up lights, decorating evergreens, and hanging mistletoe.

Showing the 50 most recent appearances out of 3588.

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