Tag: #fossil-fuels — 245 segments on Living on Earth

Tag occurrences over time

2026

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 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 15, 2026: China Making Green Aluminum
As China rapidly builds out renewable energy, it’s using some of that clean energy to power industrial activities like making aluminum, which is in high demand from data center and electrification projects. China produces 60% of the world’s aluminum, and smelting the metal uses massive amounts of electricity. Energy and climate journalist Alexander Kaufman joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain how Chinese aluminum is going green.
May 08, 2026: Willing to End Fossil Fuels
The first gathering of a new international “coalition of the willing” to transition away from fossil fuels recently took place in Colombia. It’s a separate event from the UN COP climate negotiations and was born in part out of frustration over fossil fuel friendly nations like the US, Russia, China, and Saudi Arabia stalling the COP process. Rodrigo Estrada, Senior Climate Advisor at Greenpeace International, was there and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to share the takeaways and next steps.
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.
April 24, 2026: Boundary Waters Mining Threat
On April 16 the US Senate voted to reverse a moratorium on mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, a million acres on the US-Canada border that’s teeming with wildlife and crystal-clear waters. For years a Chilean company has proposed to extract valuable copper, nickel, and cobalt there using copper sulfide mining. Democratic Senator from Minnesota Tina Smith speaks with Host Jenni Doering about why in her view mining in the same watershed as the Boundary Waters is not worth the risk.
April 24, 2026: Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism
While electrifying transportation is essential to addressing the climate crisis, the mining of nickel, copper, and lithium required to build out these green technologies brings its own environmental and social costs. To understand these impacts, author and political scientist Thea Riofrancos traveled to the Atacama Desert in Chile, home to one of the largest lithium reserves in the world. She joins Host Paloma Beltran to discuss her book, Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism.
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 10, 2026: $1 Billion to Abandon Offshore Wind
The US Department of the Interior recently announced an agreement to pay the multinational company TotalEnergies nearly $1 Billion to abandon its offshore wind leases and instead invest in oil, natural gas and LNG production in the U.S. Yet several major offshore wind projects are coming online, including Revolution Wind in New England and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind. Katharine Kollins, president of the advocacy group Southeastern Wind Coalition, speaks with Host Jenni Doering about the Trump administration deal with TotalEnergies and the state of offshore wind.
March 20, 2026: Iran War and the Price of Oil
The US and Israel’s war with Iran has stopped many ships from passing through the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf, a vital shipping corridor especially for fossil fuels, leading to global oil and gas price spikes. Lorne Stockman, the research co-director for Oil Change International, discusses with Host Jenni Doering why US consumers are paying through the roof price despite US dominance on oil and gas production, while oil companies cash in. Meanwhile, countries like Spain with significant renewable energy are enjoying price stability.
March 20, 2026: Running Free from Pricey Gas--EVs
Facing pain at the pump, US drivers looking to buy an electric vehicle now have more and cheaper choices than ever. But with the $7500 federal tax credit for new electric vehicles now gone, you may be wondering whether EVs are the smart buy in 2026. Jim Motavalli, who writes about green transportation for Autoweek, Barron’s and the New York Times shares some insights about EV options, cost and the charging network with Host Aynsley O’Neill.
March 20, 2026: A Vision of a Wind-Powered Venezuela
Since the US capture of President Nicolás Maduro in early January, there has been a lot of discussion about Venezuela’s massive oil reserves. But it also turns out that Venezuela is ideally positioned to harness abundant clean, renewable energy, particularly from wind. Dr. Paasha Mahdavi, associate professor of political science at UC Santa Barbara and consultant for the Natural Resources Governance Institute, joins Host Jenni Doering to map out this blue-sky vision for a green Venezuela.
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 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.
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 16, 2026: Trump Ices Climate Diplomacy
The Trump Administration recently announced plans to withdraw the United States from dozens of United Nations treaties and organizations including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, a treaty that was ratified by the US Senate in 1992 and is the key international forum for addressing the climate crisis. Marianne Lavelle, the Washington Bureau Chief for Inside Climate News, speaks with Host Jenni Doering about what this decision could mean for global climate progress.

2025

December 12, 2025: Bill McKibben on Abundant Solar and the Waning Power of Fossil Fuels
Climate activist Bill McKibben, who authored The End of Nature nearly 40 years ago, is back with Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization. He joins us for a wide-ranging discussion on the stunning growth of renewable energy from the sun and wind, led in part by China, even as the fossil fuel industry digs in.
December 05, 2025: AI Power Demand and the Climate
Artificial intelligence or AI’s huge appetite for power is reviving demand for older and dirtier fossil fuel energy. Dan Gearino, clean energy reporter with our media partner Inside Climate news, speaks with Host Steve Curwood about the massive data centers that power AI, community pushback, and how the AI trend could put vital climate targets out of reach.
November 21, 2025: Air Pollution Pioneers
We now know about the severe health impacts of tiny airborne particles or PM2.5, thanks in large part to the groundbreaking “Six Cities” study that started in the 1970s. The leaders of that team were Doug Dockery, who became chair of Environmental Health at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and Arden Pope, now a distinguished professor of agricultural economics at Brigham Young University. They are co-authors of the 2025 book, Particles of Truth: A Story of Discovery, Controversy, and the Fight for Healthy Air, and they share with Host Steve Curwood the story of how they undertook their vital research and the industry pushback they received.
November 14, 2025: Earth's Cryosphere On Thin Ice
Scientists attending the UN climate talks in Brazil are highlighting the alarming state of the cryosphere, or the frozen part of Earth covered in ice, snow, and permafrost. A recent report warns that the European Alps, Rockies of the Western U.S. and Canada, Iceland, and Scandinavia would lose nearly all ice at 2°Celsius of warming – a threshold we’re currently on track to exceed. Glaciologist and climate scientist Miriam Jackson is the Eurasia and Nordic director of the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative and joins Host Paloma Beltran to explain how the perilous state of glaciers endangers human civilization as the Earth warms.
November 14, 2025: UN Climate Ambition Gap
The 30th UN climate talks are underway in Belém, the “gateway to the Amazon” in Brazil, but national pledges are still way off track from what's needed to halt the quickening pace of global warming. Longtime climate talk observer and Senior Associate for E3G Alden Meyer is at COP30 and talks with Host Paloma Beltran about efforts to close that gap and the power of the talks to focus minds on the emerging reckoning.
November 14, 2025: Energy Powers Democratic Wins
November’s elections brought victories across the country for state and local Democratic candidates who pledged to address rising energy costs. Marianne Lavelle, Washington bureau chief for our media partner, Inside Climate News, joins Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Paloma Beltran to talk about the challenges of meeting those promises the new Governors-elect of Virginia and New Jersey, and the newly elected Mayor of New York, will likely face.
November 07, 2025: UN Climate Talks Kick Off in Brazil
The biggest climate negotiations of the year, COP30, are kicking off in Belem in the Brazilian Amazon. Longtime COP observer Jennifer Morgan is a former executive director of Greenpeace and former state secretary and special climate envoy for Germany who is now a senior fellow at Tufts University. She joins Host Steve Curwood to preview COP30 and discuss the focus on closing the gap between current greenhouse gas reduction policies and what’s needed to limit warming to a safer level.
October 31, 2025: Climate Monster in the Caribbean
Hurricane Melissa, the strongest storm to hit the Caribbean in modern times, left a wake of destruction in Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti that will take years to recover from. Jamaican climate physics professor Tannecia Stephenson describes the toll of this climate catastrophe, and meteorologist Ryan Truchelut of the consulting firm Weather Tiger joins Host Jenni Doering to explain how the storm grew so ferocious in the blink of a hurricane’s eye.
October 31, 2025: Gwich'in People Resist Arctic Drilling
The fossil fuel industry has sought drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for decades and a recent Trump administration order brings the renewed threat of oil extraction in ANWR. But Gwich’in Alaska Natives, which consider the land sacred and local Porcupine Caribou as relatives, are expressing alarm at how drilling in this fragile environment could upend their world. Kristen Moreland, Executive Director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss.
October 24, 2025: Overseas Chinese Mining and Spills
As part of the Belt and Road Initiative, China has invested over $1 trillion in overseas infrastructure for projects that include mining in developing countries for minerals to fuel the clean energy transition. In the “copper belt” of Zambia, a Chinese-owned tailings dam collapsed, sending toxic sludge into homes and crops. Inside Climate News reporter Katie Surma speaks with Host Jenni Doering about the aftermath and “green colonialism” that appears to no longer be only at the hands of the Global North.
October 24, 2025: Media and the Meat Habit
Meat is the biggest single source of carbon emissions from the food system, which is itself responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. Sociologist David McBey from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland joins Host Paloma Beltran to talk about the gap between reality and coverage of how meat contributes to global warming, as well as effective strategies for encouraging people to choose to eat less meat without trying to force them to do so.
October 17, 2025: Coalition Defends Solar for All
Facing lost jobs and higher energy prices after the Trump EPA canceled $7 billion in low-income solar grants, a coalition of labor, green and anti-poverty groups is teaming up to fight in court for clean energy jobs and save “Solar for All.” Patrick Crowley, President of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, and Kate Sinding Daly, Senior Vice President for Law and Policy at the Conservation Law Foundation, join Host Steve Curwood to explain the impact of the canceled grants and the legal basis for their lawsuit.
October 10, 2025: China's Climate Pledge
China has for the first time committed to an absolute target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, by 7 to 10 percent by 2035, though it is likely to achieve greater reductions. Climate activist Jennifer Morgan previously led Greenpeace International and worked with the German government as a Special Climate Envoy. She joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss China’s growing dominance in the global clean energy transition while the current US administration doubles down on fossil fuels.
October 03, 2025: Youth Climate Case
A preliminary hearing recently took place in federal court for the youth climate case Lighthiser v. Trump, in which plaintiffs are seeking immediate relief from three executive orders and subsequent actions of the Trump administration that boost fossil fuels. But the federal government maintains that the Lighthiser plaintiffs, like those in the prior case Juliana v. United States, lack standing. Environmental law veteran Pat Parenteau speaks with Host Aynsley O’Neill about the challenging legal basis for this lawsuit.
September 26, 2025: Trump Denies, China Leads on Climate
Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, President Trump railed against climate science and clean energy, drawing sharp rebukes from other nations, rival politicians and business leaders. Meanwhile, China for the first time ever announced a specific target for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, by 7 to 10 percent by 2035. Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Jenni Doering talk about the diverging rhetoric and action on climate.
September 26, 2025: The EPA Wants to Ignore GHG Emissions
The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed ending the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, which requires the biggest industrial facilities and power plants in the country to report their global warming emissions. David Cash, former EPA Administrator for Region One – New England, joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss the potential consequences of this Trump Administration decision.
September 19, 2025: Heat Waves Linked to Company Emissions
New research finds that since 2010 killer heat waves have become 200 times more likely, thanks to greenhouse gas emissions, and the scientists say about half of the increase in heatwaves can be attributed to big coal, big oil, big gas and cement. Dartmouth College associate professor Justin Mankin joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the severe economic and health consequences of extreme heat and efforts to make major carbon emitters pay for these skyrocketing costs.
September 19, 2025: Massachusetts Ends Gas Subsidy
Many gas bills include a surcharge to help pay for gas connections to new homes. As Massachusetts seeks to phase out fossil fuels the state is now requiring developers to pay for new homes to be connected to natural gas, rather than having rate payers subsidize new hookups that would increase global warming emissions. Inside Climate News reporter Phil McKenna spoke with Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran about why utilities are on board and more.
September 05, 2025: Nickel Mining's Toll
Nickel is a key mineral for the clean energy transition but can come at a cost to local communities because of how polluting nickel mining operations can be. In Indonesia leaked company documents reveal that Harita Nickel, one of the world’s largest nickel mining companies, knowingly polluted fresh water sources. Alon Aviram, a reporter with the nonprofit journalism newsroom called The Gecko Project, joins Host Paloma Beltran to discuss their investigation.
September 05, 2025: Tylenol Upcycled From Plastic
Scientists in the UK were able to use genetically modified bacteria to turn plastic bottles into the common pain reliever acetaminophen, also known as paracetamol and Tylenol. Lead researcher Stephen Wallace, a Professor of Chemical Biotechnology at the University of Edinburgh, speaks with Host Jenni Doering about the potential applications of this biotech breakthrough.
August 29, 2025: The Outlaw Ocean
About seventy percent of our planet is covered by the oceans, but the high seas are among the least-explored frontiers on Earth. And lawlessness is rampant in this vast wilderness, with crimes ranging from illegal fishing to slavery at sea. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ian Urbina wrote The Outlaw Ocean: Journeys Across the Last Untamed Frontier to tell the harrowing stories of high crimes on the high seas, and he joined Host Steve Curwood at a recent live event in Boston.
August 22, 2025: Life As An Incarcerated Firefighter
Around a thousand of the firefighters who battled blazes around southern California in January 2025 were incarcerated. They do essentially the same work as other firefighters but are paid as little as around $5 a day. Eddie Herrera Jr. shares with Host Aynsley O’Neill what it was like to serve as an incarcerated firefighter, and how the experience helped him forge a new life after prison as a professional firefighter.
July 11, 2025: Congress Busts Carbon Budget
As the climate crisis brings ever more devastating floods, storms, heat waves and fires, the Republican-led Congress has slashed around half a trillion dollars in clean energy tax credits that would have reduced climate pollution and helped America to better adapt to climate change. Executive Editor Vernon Loeb and Washington Bureau Chief Marianne Lavelle of our media partner Inside Climate News join Hosts Steve Curwood and Aynsley O’Neill to survey the likely consequences for the climate, environment, and our democracy.
July 04, 2025: EPA Employees Speak Out
In a rare act of public criticism, hundreds of EPA employees published a declaration of dissent from the agency’s policies under the Trump administration, calling out its alleged ignoring of scientific consensus to benefit polluters, undermining of public trust and more. David Cash led EPA’s Region One covering New England under the Biden Administration and shares his thoughts and opinions about the letter and the Trump EPA with Host Aynsley O’Neill.
July 04, 2025: Montana Climate Win
In a landmark 6 to 1 decision, the Montana State Supreme Court upheld a ruling that found young people, and by extension all people in Montana, have a constitutional right to a livable climate that state officials can’t ignore. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau explains to Host Steve Curwood how the plaintiffs presented their case and how the ruling could guide litigation in other states.
July 04, 2025: Montana Youth Climate Suit
A case in Montana brought by sixteen youth plaintiffs has become the first constitutional climate suit in the U.S. to make it to trial. They allege that the state of Montana has violated their constitutional right to a “clean and healthful environment” by promoting fossil fuel extraction in the face of intensifying climate disruption. Inside Climate News reporter Richard Forbes was in the courtroom and fills in Host Jenni Doering on what happened and how the young plaintiffs’ powerful testimony contrasted with a bare-bones defense from the state.
July 04, 2025: Trump Faces Youth Climate Lawsuit
19-year-old Eva Lighthiser has experienced climate anxiety for most of her life, as her home state of Montana faces worsening floods, wildfires, and extreme heat. Now she and 20 other young people are suing the Trump administration over its efforts to boost fossil fuels while suppressing climate science and renewable energy. Eva Lighthiser, the lead plaintiff in Lighthiser v. Trump, joins Host Jenni Doering to share why she is pushing back against policies she believes are harming her future.
July 04, 2025: Youth Claim Climate Damage by Trump
The new youth climate lawsuit Lighthiser v. Trump is ambitious as it targets specific executive orders and agency actions of the Trump administration. Vermont Law and Graduate School emeritus professor Pat Parenteau offers his views of Lighthiser v. Trump to Host Jenni Doering and explains why he thinks it may have a better chance of making it to trial than the pioneering Juliana youth climate case filed in 2015 which was ultimately blocked by the US Supreme Court before any trial.
June 27, 2025: 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.
June 13, 2025: Saving a Sacred Mountain in Mongolia
Batmunkh Luvsandash, winner of the 2025 Goldman Environmental Prize for Asia, was raised as a Mongolian herder and later became an engineer who worked on mining projects in the mineral-rich country. But when he learned that the Mongolian government was planning to mine the sacred Hutag mountain, which is also home to the endangered Asiatic ass, he sprang into action. Batmunkh joined Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran (speaking through a translator) to share why protecting the area is so important to him.
June 13, 2025: Pumping the Earth Dry
A recent study finds the Colorado River Basin has lost a tremendous amount of water in the last two decades, in part from thirsty farms pumping water from deep aquifers much faster than it can be replenished. Lead author Jay Famiglietti, a Global Futures Professor at Arizona State University, spoke with Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran about the “Wild West” of unregulated groundwater, potential solutions and why the rapid depletion of ancient groundwater threatens the water supply for future generations.
May 30, 2025: Cuts to Clean Energy Tax Credits
The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" that passed through the House of Representatives on party lines guts multiple provisions from the Inflation Reduction Act, terminating or reducing tax credits for electric vehicles, clean hydrogen and advanced manufacturing. Dan Gearino, a clean energy reporter with Inside Climate News, talks with Host Paloma Beltran about why over a dozen House Republicans who had voiced support for clean energy tax credits ultimately voted to cut them, and what could happen as the legislation moves to the Senate.
May 23, 2025: Trump Ignores Social Cost of Carbon
A new White House memo instructs federal agencies to disregard the economic impacts of climate change in their regulations and permitting decisions. This metric is known as the “social cost of carbon” and it has been used for decades to guide policy so that it considers the economic realities of our changing climate. David Cash served under President Biden as the New England Administrator for the US Environmental Protection Agency and he joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss.
May 23, 2025: Public Lands Reprieve
Last-minute changes in the House budget reconciliation bill included scrapping one of the more controversial amendments that would have sold off public lands in the southwest to private developers. But the overall bill isn’t a complete win for the environment, with even deeper cuts to clean energy tax credits added at the last minute. Wyatt Myskow is the Mountain West Correspondent for Inside Climate News and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain.
May 09, 2025: Faith in a Better Climate Future
The children of today and tomorrow are not to blame for the climate crisis and yet are likely to suffer it the most. In hopes of remedying this injustice the World Council of Churches has published “Hope for Children Through Climate Justice,” a handbook for communities of faith looking to hold financial actors accountable for their fossil fuel investments. Frederique Seidel is their senior program lead on children and climate and she spoke with Host Jenni Doering.
May 09, 2025: NY Climate Superfund
To help cover the rising costs of climate impacts like extreme floods and sea level rise, New York State has enacted a law that asks major fossil fuel companies to pay up, based on their historic sales of coal, gas and oil. Anne Louise Rabe is the former Environmental Policy Director at NY-PIRG, The New York Public Interest Research Group, and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain how the revenues would fund climate adaptation and resilience.
May 09, 2025: Trump Sues States Over Climate Action
At the direction of President Donald Trump the U.S. Department of Justice has sued four states -- Vermont, New York, Hawaii, and Michigan -- that are trying to recover some climate costs from major fossil fuel companies through climate superfund laws and litigation. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain why he views the DOJ cases as frivolous extensions of the other actions the Trump administration has taken to aid the fossil fuel industry.
May 02, 2025: Tariffs and Green Energy Cuts
The Trump Administration’s on-again, off-again tariffs and cuts to renewable energy programs are bringing instability and uncertainty to the future of US energy. Collin Rees of Oil Change International talks with Host Paloma Beltran about how the trade turmoil and policy whiplash are impacting and sidelining the U.S. renewable energy industry.
April 25, 2025: Pope Francis and the Climate: Laudate Deum
In 2023 Pope Francis published an even bolder update to Laudato Si’, his climate change encyclical. Christiana Zenner of Fordham University joined Host Paloma Beltran to discuss how “Laudate Deum” takes on climate denial and urges the world to act swiftly to avert climate disaster.
April 25, 2025: Pope Francis and the Climate: Laudato Si'
As the world remembers the legacy of Pope Francis we return to his groundbreaking 2015 encyclical, “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.” It's a poetic, emotional call for a fundamental shift in our economic system, and a rethinking of our relationship with God's creation: the natural world. Assistant Professor of Theology, Science and Ethics at Fordham University, Christiana Zenner, discussed with Host Steve Curwood the Pope's powerful message.
April 25, 2025: Pope Calls for Harmony With Nature To Save Humanity
Pope Francis's highly-anticipated Encyclical, “Laudato Si,” subtitled “On Care for Our Common Home,”included a call for action on global warming, but the 184-page document offers much more than policy recommendations. It's a poetic, emotional call for a fundamental shift in our economic system, and a rethinking of our relationship with God's creation: the natural world. Assistant Professor of Theology, Science and Ethics at Fordham University, Christiana Peppard, discusses with host Steve Curwood the Pope's message to people to be moral stewards of the planet and rectify ecological and social injustices plaguing the world today.
April 18, 2025: The Health Toll of L.A. Oil Wells
There are about 700 active oil and gas wells in the city of Los Angeles, mostly located in minority communities like the one where young activist Nalleli Cobo grew up, just 30 feet from a well. She and her neighbors have suffered for years from headaches, asthma, and cancer -- illnesses linked to the proximity of oil well sites. For her work fighting the oil companies operating those wells Nalleli was awarded the 2022 Goldman Environmental prize. She spoke with Living on Earth's Paloma Beltran.
April 18, 2025: Fighting Climate Change with Geothermal Networks
Using the Earth’s heat as an anchor for heat pumps yields virtually carbon-free energy. In contrast with intense deep geothermal heat, surface geothermal projects tap into the relatively constant temperature of the close to-the-surface earth, which sits around 55 degrees. The process is more efficient than air-coupled heat pumps, providing new hope for combatting the climate crisis. Phil Mckenna is a reporter with Living on Earth’s media partner Inside Climate News, and he joined host Steve Curwood to discuss the prospect of geothermal networks.
April 11, 2025: Trump Attacks State Climate Laws
President Trump has issued an executive order titled “Protecting American Energy from State Overreach”. The order directs the U.S. attorney general to identify and block state laws that deal with climate change, environmental justice, and carbon emissions, including the climate superfund laws passed in New York and Vermont that impose stiff fines on big fossil fuel companies. Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Paloma Beltran report.
April 11, 2025: Eco-Rollbacks From Trump
The Trump administration has paused funding from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, impacting multiple projects that were already approved and in progress. The Environmental Protection Agency also set up a new email address for companies to fast track requests for exemptions of pollution rules under the Clean Air Act. Former New England EPA administrator David Cash joined Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss.
March 28, 2025: Deb Haaland: ‘Fierce for our Planet’
Congresswoman Deb Haaland of New Mexico is President-elect Biden’s nominee for Secretary of the Interior. She’ll be the first Native American to lead the Department if confirmed, and would bring a strong conservation, climate action, and tribal rights perspective to the department. Living on Earth’s Jenni Doering reports on Deb Haaland’s experience and what’s shaped her into who she is today.
March 28, 2025: Madam Secretary Haaland
On March 15th the U.S. Senate voted 51-40 to confirm Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior. A member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, Secretary Haaland is the first Native American to serve as head of a cabinet agency. Her historic appointment places her in command of a department that manages US public lands and oversees the Bureaus of Indian Affairs and India Education. Host Bobby Bascomb discusses Ms. Haaland’s appointment and her priorities for the future of the department.
March 28, 2025: Meet Deb Haaland, Native American Congresswoman
New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District is sending to Capitol Hill one of the first two Native American women to ever go to Congress, both elected as Democrats in 2018. Deb Haaland campaigned on climate change and other environmental issues, and cites a lifelong care for the environment inspired by her father. Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood talks with Deb about her environmental priorities for the new Democratic-majority House of Representatives.
March 28, 2025: EV Charging Money Stalled
Electric vehicle chargers are still few and far between compared to gas stations, and a program funded by the 2021 bipartisan Infrastructure Law sought to install many more. But now the Trump administration has stalled this funding for EV chargers. Lee Hedgepeth of Inside Climate News speaks with Host Jenni Doering about the political nuance of the pause.
March 28, 2025: Dakota Pipeline High Stakes
The movement led by the Standing Rock Sioux to stop the final link of the Dakota Access Pipeline, construction of a tunnel under the Missouri River, is standing firm, but DAPL supporters are equally determined. Sandy Tolan has followed the evolving and increasingly contentious protests since April, and reports on what’s at stake.
March 28, 2025: Greenpeace SLAPPed for $600 Million?
A North Dakota jury found in favor of pipeline company Energy Transfer and ordered Greenpeace to pay more than $600 million in damages over its role in helping protest the Dakota Access Pipeline. Environmental law expert Pat Parenteau joins Host Steve Curwood to explain why he sees the case as a classic SLAPP or Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation suit and a threat to free speech.
March 21, 2025: Fracking Waste Crisis
The expansion of fracking or hydraulic fracturing for natural gas is generating large amounts of waste contaminated with heavy metals and radiation. Some of it gets sent to landfills like one in the small town of Yukon, Pennsylvania. Kiley Bense of Inside Climate News explains to Host Jenni Doering how EPA has documented unacceptable levels of pollution draining from the landfill into a local creek.
March 07, 2025: NY Climate Superfund
To help cover the rising costs of climate impacts like extreme floods and sea level rise, New York State has enacted a law that asks major fossil fuel companies to pay up, based on their historic sales of coal, gas and oil. Anne Louise Rabe is the former Environmental Policy Director at NY-PIRG, The New York Public Interest Research Group, and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain how the revenues would fund climate adaptation and resilience.
February 28, 2025: Trump Tries to Limit Environmental Reviews
Major fossil fuel projects like LNG terminals could become harder to oppose on environmental grounds because of a Trump executive order that tries to weaken agency compliance with NEPA, the National Environmental Policy Act. Dan Farber is Faculty Director of the Center for Law, Energy and the Environment at UC Berkeley and joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the role of NEPA and how environmental concerns may take a backseat under the new project review process.
February 14, 2025: No Help From America
The Trump administration’s attempt to freeze all foreign assistance and bid to lay off nearly all USAID staffers are bringing disastrous consequences for millions of acutely hungry people, including those in war-torn Sudan. Nisreen Elsaim is a Sudanese climate and environmental activist and joins Host Jenni Doering to describe the desperate situation and send a warning to the US about the perils of isolationism.
February 07, 2025: Zeldin New EPA Head
The new EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin says there needs to be urgency in addressing climate change but also hints that the Trump EPA will not pursue greenhouse gas reductions. Marianne Lavelle is Washington bureau chief at Inside Climate News and joins Hosts Paloma Beltran and Jenni Doering to discuss how the Trump EPA seems to be looking to pull back on climate and other regulations.
January 24, 2025: EVs in the Trump Era
One of President Trump’s Day One executive orders commands a reversal of the Biden Administration’s goal for half of vehicles sold in America by 2030 to be electric. Getting rid of the $7,500 EV tax credit and federal funding for charging stations may take acts of Congress, but auto journalist Jim Motavalli tells Living on Earth’s Aynsley O’Neill that already this effort to shift EVs into reverse is making for uncertainty in the US auto industry.
January 24, 2025: Trump Blocks Climate and Eco Action
Back in power, President Trump immediately took aim at climate and environmental protection with a flurry of executive orders such as blocking the Paris Climate Accord and boosting fossil fuel sales. Environmental law expert Pat Parenteau joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering to explain why the President may have over-reached but could still do lasting damage to the climate and environment.
January 17, 2025: Green Light for State Climate Cases
Facing huge costs for climate adaptation and disaster recovery, some states and localities are suing fossil fuel companies for damages. The U.S. Supreme Court recently declined an attempt to block these lawsuits, and Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain the significance of some of them proceeding to trial.
January 10, 2025: Jimmy Carter's Green Legacy
The Carter Presidency left a legacy of environmental action, ranging from major habitat protection to trying to address the then largely unrecognized threat of fossil fuels to climate stability. Gus Speth chaired the White House Council on Environmental Quality under Jimmy Carter and sat down with Host Steve Curwood to recall pivotal moments and ponder what might have been if the solar-panel-loving President had won a second term.
January 10, 2025: U.S. To Abdicate Climate Lead Again
President-elect Trump’s stated plans to again remove the U.S. from the Paris Accord would be just the latest whiplash in a decades-long trend of U.S. inconsistency on the climate. E3G senior consultant Alden Meyer and Host Jenni Doering talk about what’s ahead for global and domestic climate policy over the next four years.
January 10, 2025: States Fight Plastics Crisis in Court
With a global plastics treaty delayed and federal action to stem the plastics crisis unlikely in the near future, states and cities are turning to the courts for remedies. Bethany Davis Noll teaches at NYU law school and joined Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran to explain the potential impact of these lawsuits against fossil fuel companies and beverage makers.
January 03, 2025: A Call to Cool the Earth
Earth is choked by too much carbon in the atmosphere and running a fever that is only bound to get worse if we fail to restore its balance. Biologist Dr. George Woodwell explains to Host Steve Curwood why soaking up some of that carbon with the help of trees and plants is vitally important to life on Earth as we know it.
January 03, 2025: George Woodwell Tribute
In 2024 the world lost a giant of climate science and eco activism, George Woodwell. Host Steve Curwood remembers this man who advised President Jimmy Carter on climate, helped start major environmental organizations and helped inspire the Living on Earth broadcasts. We return to moments from a conversation Steve Curwood and George Woodwell recorded for the program in 2016 and hear reflections from colleagues who knew him well.
January 03, 2025: Woodwell - A World to Live In
Ecologist George Woodwell has decades of research and environmental action under his belt, from documenting the dangers of DDT and climate change to founding the Woods Hole Research Center helping start other key organizations including the Environmental Defense Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the World Resources Institute. His new book, “A World To Live In,” offers a reflection on the dangers of exceeding the planet’s biophysical limits. Speaking with Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood he shared some lessons he has learned about nature and environmental policy.
January 03, 2025: Montana Climate Win
In a landmark 6 to 1 decision, the Montana State Supreme Court upheld a ruling that found young people, and by extension all people in Montana, have a constitutional right to a livable climate that state officials can’t ignore. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau explains to Host Steve Curwood how the plaintiffs presented their case and how the ruling could guide litigation in other states.

2024

December 13, 2024: Clean, Green Swedish Steel
Steel production accounts for 10% of all carbon dioxide emissions worldwide, in part because it’s typically made with coal. But in Sweden, there are alternatives that can cut steel’s carbon impact down to almost nothing. Reid Frazier of the Allegheny Front reports.
December 13, 2024: LNG Carbon Bomb
The carbon footprint of U.S. liquefied natural gas, or LNG exports is 33% higher than for coal, according to research from Cornell University. Author Robert Howarth is a professor of ecology and environmental biology at Cornell and joins Host Paloma Beltran to explain why LNG is so carbon intensive and discuss the climate risks of a planned expansion of U.S. LNG exports.
December 06, 2024: Climate Action at the World Court
The world’s biggest climate case is underway at the International Court of Justice at the Hague in the Netherlands. Over 100 countries and intergovernmental organizations are arguing before a 15-judge panel, which could decide to issue an advisory opinion to clarify nations’ obligations to limit global warming emissions.
December 06, 2024: Why Exxon is Pro-Paris
Major fossil fuel corporations including ExxonMobil are clearly stating they would prefer the U.S. remain in the Paris Climate Agreement, despite President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to take the country back out. Samantha Gross directs the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institutions and explains to Host Jenni Doering how oil majors are making long-term plans for an energy transition.
December 06, 2024: Plastics Treaty Delayed
Crafting a UN plastic pollution treaty hasn’t been easy, with countries butting heads on key issues including curbs on plastic production, changes of the chemistry of plastics and the role of waste management. Maria Ivanova of Northeastern University has been a delegate or observer at the treaty negotiations since they began and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss why the recent session in Korea that was supposed to finalize the treaty resulted in only a very rough draft.
November 29, 2024: UN Climate Summit Falters
The UN climate treaty summit known as COP29 teetered on the edge of collapse as less developed nations implored the rich countries of the global north to provide financial relief to help them cope with rising climate costs. Alden Meyer, senior consultant with E3G, was at the COP and joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the frustrations with the process and the compromise delegates eventually reached.
November 22, 2024: Trump's Anti-Green Rollback Team
President-elect Trump has nominated three men to run federal departments critical for climate and environmental protection with a mandate to roll back green rules and regulations. Vermont Law Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau is among the critics of these choices and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the nominees, former US Rep. Lee Zeldin for EPA, Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright for Energy and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum for Interior.
November 15, 2024: 29th UN Climate COP Kicks Off
Delegates from nearly 200 countries are meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change’s 29th Conference of the Parties. Alden Meyer of the climate think tank E3G is a longtime observer of these meetings, and he joins Host Paloma Beltran to share his first impressions as these talks kick off.
November 15, 2024: Earth’s Fever
Although the global average temperature has been steadily increasing for decades, in 2023 there was a sudden jump of 0.2 degrees Celsius. This has raised alarm among climate scientists about how fast the climate crisis is progressing. Dr. Jennifer Francis is Senior Scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, and she joined Living on Earth’s Jenni Doering to discuss the temperature spike and its implications.
November 08, 2024: Climate and Trump's Re-Election
The re-election of Donald Trump casts US climate action into doubt. President-elect Trump has vowed he will again pull the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement, cancel President Biden’s climate policies and unleash American fossil fuels. Inside Climate News Executive Editor Vernon Loeb and Reporter Marianne Lavelle join Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering for a roundtable discussion about what’s next for the climate, environmental policy and journalism.
November 01, 2024: Climate Goal in Trouble
The UN says the current plans of nations to reduce global warming emissions would result in a destructive three degrees Celsius of warming above pre-industrial levels, far higher than the 1.5 C goal set by the Paris Climate Agreement. Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss the widening gap between these plans and the ambition that’s needed to prevent catastrophic climate impacts.
October 25, 2024: 'Ecocide' of Ukrainian River
An explosion that spilled chemical waste into a river near the Russia-Ukraine border this August led to an ecological disaster with mass fish die-offs. Kyiv blames the Kremlin for a deliberate act of ‘ecocide’ amid the war that started with Russia’s 2022 invasion. Ukrainian journalist Artem Mazhulin reports for the Guardian and joins Host Jenni Doering to describe the impacts of the spill and the toll the war is taking on his country.
October 25, 2024: Huge Untapped Earth Energy
The heat within Earth’s crust could become a major source of always-on, carbon-free, renewable geothermal electricity thanks to the emergence of fracking technology that can drill now as much as six miles below the surface and reach hot zones. Jamie Beard is the founder of Project InnerSpace and joins Host Paloma Beltran to explain why a partnership between the oil and gas and geothermal industries could bring transformational change to the energy sector worldwide.
October 25, 2024: No Early Intervention of EPA Rule
The U.S. Supreme Court denied an emergency motion from industry to block an EPA rule that compels a 90% reduction in carbon emissions by 2032 for some coal and gas power plants. It will now be up to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit to decide first about the rule and its requirement for carbon capture and storage.
October 18, 2024: Climate and the PA Senate Race
As control of the US Senate hangs in the balance, the Pennsylvania race between Democratic incumbent Senator Bob Casey and his Republican challenger Dave McCormick is heating up. Inside Climate News reporter Kiley Bense joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the climate and environment dimensions of Pennsylvania’s Senate race.
October 11, 2024: Loading the Hurricane Dice
Unusually warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico helped fuel the rapid intensification of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Meteorologist Sean Sublette explains to Host Jenni Doering that as humans continue to pump climate-warming greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, we are loading the dice for stronger storms.
October 04, 2024: Jill Stein for the Greens
Physician Jill Stein, the 2024 Green Party nominee for US President, urges a much quicker phaseout of fossil fuels than either of her Republican or Democratic opponents appear willing to consider. Jill Stein joins Host Jenni Doering to lay out her vision for what she calls a “real” Green New Deal and to push back against claims by Democrats that voting for her in a swing state could hand victory to Donald Trump.
October 04, 2024: Jill Stein and the Planet
Dr. Jill Stein is the 2016 Green Party nominee for President of the United States. In a wide-ranging interview with host Steve Curwood they discuss her “Green New Deal” to avert a climate emergency, her plans to scale back military spending, and why she participated in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline that led to a warrant for her arrest.
October 04, 2024: Disastrous Climate Wake Up
Hurricane Helene brought devastating storm surge and winds to the Gulf Coast and deadly floods to the inland mountains of North Carolina. Journalist Abrahm Lustgarten is the author of On the Move: The Overheating Earth and the Uprooting of America and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the societal toll of repeated climate-fueled disasters and whether this latest super cyclone might prove a tipping point for greater climate awareness and action.
October 04, 2024: Sudan's Climate and War Misery
Millions of Sudanese people have fled armed conflict in recent months, only to face famine as well as floods and extreme heat worsened by climate change. Nisreen Elsaim is a young climate activist from Sudan who co-chaired the UN Secretary General’s first youth advisory group on climate change. She joins Host Steve Curwood to describe the harrowing conditions for Sudanese refugees and what gives her hope.
September 27, 2024: Three Mile Island to Power AI
To meet the energy needs of artificial intelligence Microsoft has inked a major power purchase deal with the owners of Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. A nuclear power reactor there underwent a partial meltdown in 1979. Its unaffected twin reactor operated until 2019 and would provide a carbon-free source of power. Evan Halper reports on the energy transition at the Washington Post and joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the hurdles of getting the shuttered nuclear power plant back online.
September 27, 2024: Exxon's Alleged Plastics 'Deception'
California is suing ExxonMobil over the oil giant’s alleged “campaign of deception” to convince the public that recycling is a viable solution for plastic waste, when less than 10% of plastics are recycled. Pat Parenteau, emeritus professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School, joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss the lawsuit and the plastic waste crisis.
September 20, 2024: Beyond the Headlines
Peter Dykstra, publisher of Environmental Health News and the Daily Climate, discusses some recent environmental stories that didn’t make US headlines with host Steve Curwood, including salt water fouling aquifers in Bangladesh and rare earth mining in Greenland.
September 13, 2024: Debate Sidesteps Climate Crisis
Climate change got just one token question at the first and perhaps only debate between presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. Marianne Lavelle of Inside Climate News joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Aynsley O’Neill to offer other climate questions that should be asked about the Inflation Reduction Act, holding oil companies accountable and more.
September 06, 2024: Tim Walz's Climate Record
Tim Walz, the running mate of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, has signed climate legislation as Minnesota Governor and supported regenerative agriculture bills as a Congressman. Inside Climate News reporter Kristoffer Tigue joins Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Jenni Doering to discuss the praise Walz has received for his climate work as well as some criticism over his history of supporting the ethanol industry and oil pipelines.
September 06, 2024: Can the Planet Afford Gas in New Homes?
Some new affordable homes built by Habitat for Humanity are being fitted with solar panels and labeled as “zero-net energy”, meaning they are supposed to produce as much or more energy than they use. But as reporter Dharna Noor of the Guardian explains to Host Jenni Doering, some of these homes include gas appliances, canceling out many of the climate benefits.
August 30, 2024: Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands
The Athabasca oil sands in Alberta; Canada ranks as one of the world’s most destructive crude oil operations. People laboring in the Athabasca oil sands often live in austere work camps, with long 12-hour shifts and female workers imperiled by sexual harassment and violence. Kate Beaton captured that painful reality in her 2022 graphic memoir Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands and joined Living on Earth’s Jenni Doering to talk about her experience.
August 30, 2024: Virtual Power Plants
The aging grid is struggling to accommodate the surge in renewables like wind and solar. And since they don’t produce electricity around the clock, there’s often a mismatch between when the power is being generated and when it’s being used. Ryan Hledik of the consulting firm The Brattle Group explains to Host Steve Curwood how “virtual power plants” can tap home and electric vehicle batteries and shift the timing of HVAC and appliance demand to help close this gap.
August 30, 2024: Hydrogen Fueled Future
If you combine hydrogen from carbon-free sources and oxygen in a fuel cell, you get water and electricity. Bruce Gellerman reports on how this chemical reaction is fueling visions of future, carbon free flights and changing voyages of fantasy into reality.
August 23, 2024: Kamala Harris on Climate and the Environment
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris she has a long environmental history from her time as a former California attorney general who took on oil companies, her work on the Inflation Reduction Act as Vice President, to her engagement in international climate diplomacy. Marianne Lavelle from Inside Climate News joins hosts O’Neill and Steve Curwood to walk through Kamala Harris’ environmental record and what it could mean for her campaign.
August 23, 2024: Sunrise Youth Want To Be Courted
The 2020 elections were determined in part by young voters. Polling suggests President Biden lost support from that demographic throughout his term, so Democratic nominee Kamala Harris will need to attract them in her bid to keep the White House blue. The Sunrise Movement is among the multiple climate groups representing youth climate advocates that have yet to endorse a presidential candidate. Ariela Lara, a first-time voter and youth organizer for the Sunrise Movement, joined hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Steve Curwood to cover the organization’s demands on environmental policy.
August 09, 2024: Methane Tracking From Space
A new satellite recently blasted off into Earth orbit with the important mission of tracking methane emissions from oil and gas infrastructure across the globe. Dr. Stephen Conley is an atmospheric scientist and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain why free public access to the data from MethaneSAT is a game-changer for holding oil and gas companies accountable for climate pollution.
July 26, 2024: Kamala on Earth
Vice President Kamala Harris has garnered more than enough delegates for the Democratic nomination for President. Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering review her record on the environment, which has included prosecuting cases against polluting oil companies, supporting a Green New Deal, and representing the US at UN climate meetings.
July 26, 2024: The Transformation of J. D. Vance
J. D.VANCE : Donald Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator J. D. Vance, once held moderate Republican stances on climate and clean energy. But he now echoes Trump on the “Green New Scam” and unleashing domestic fossil fuels. Ohio-based Inside Climate News Reporter Dan Gearino joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering to contrast the J. D. Vance of a few years ago with that of today.
July 26, 2024: Trump on Earth
The four years of the Trump Administration brought over a hundred regulatory rollbacks, the exit of the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, and a conservative dominated Supreme Court that is skeptical of environmental regulation. Inside Climate News Reporter Marianne Lavelle joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering to share insights from a former Trump EPA official, environmental policy experts and advocates about the environmental impacts of the Trump presidency and what a second one could bring.
July 19, 2024: GOP Rep. Bentz on Climate
Republican Cliff Bentz represents Oregon’s second district in Congress, where he chairs the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans and Wildlife and is part of the Conservative Climate Caucus. He sat down with Host Steve Curwood to share his views on conservative approaches to climate adaptation, carbon capture and storage, wildfire prevention, public lands stewardship and more.
July 19, 2024: The Transformation of J. D. Vance
J. D.VANCE : Donald Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator J. D. Vance, once held moderate Republican stances on climate and clean energy. But he now echoes Trump on the “Green New Scam” and unleashing domestic fossil fuels. Ohio-based Inside Climate News Reporter Dan Gearino joins Hosts Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering to contrast the J. D. Vance of a few years ago with that of today.
June 28, 2024: Presidential Debate and the Climate
At the first debate of the 2024 presidential election, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump gave vastly different responses to the single question on climate change. Inside Climate News Reporter Phil McKenna joins Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Jenni Doering to discuss the highlights, what was left out of the debate, and what the two presidents have done on climate and environment in their times in office.
June 28, 2024: From the History Books
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra and Host Aynsley O’Neill look back to the year 2000, when China finally banned the use of lead in gasoline. The same year, a historic rescue moved some 18,000 African or “jackass” penguins out of the path of an oil spill.
June 21, 2024: Robert Smalls' Legacy and Liberating Nature
Host Steve Curwood and guests Michael B. Moore and Admiral Cecil Haney continue their conversation about Robert Smalls and are joined by Joel Christian Gill, a cartoonist and historian who authored a graphic biography about Smalls. They discuss Robert Smalls’ legacy, the current enslavement of nature, and how his courage relates to the courageous action and leadership that is now urgently needed to deal with the climate emergency.
June 14, 2024: Beirut's Deadly Air
Clouds of diesel fumes clog the air in Beirut, Lebanon where the virtual collapse of the power grid has led residents to rely on diesel generators. The city’s air is now so badly polluted researchers at the American University of Beirut are linking it to a startling 30% spike in cancer cases. Chemistry professor Najat Saliba, who is also a member of Lebanon’s parliament, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the health toll of this pollution and its roots in Lebanon’s debt crisis.
June 07, 2024: Mexico's 'Presidenta' and Climate
Claudia Sheinbaum, the first woman to be elected President of Mexico, has a background in climate and energy, having co-authored two IPCC climate reports and later implemented clean transportation projects while mayor of Mexico City. Sheinbaum has pledged to boost renewable energy in Mexico but her political links with the current oil-friendly administration could present challenges to reaching green goals. Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran joins Host Jenni Doering to unpack Sheinbaum’s record and hear how Mexican scientists are responding to her election.
June 07, 2024: 'No Place to Hide' In Pakistan
Summer has barely begun in the Northern Hemisphere but extreme heat is already baking Pakistan, where climate disruption is also bringing frequent catastrophic floods. Rafay Alam, an environmental lawyer and member of Pakistan’s Climate Change Council, joins Host Steve Curwood to describe what it’s like to be in Lahore right now, how people are trying to cope and why these climate disasters are compounding Pakistan’s economic and security challenges.
May 31, 2024: First Nations Stop Australian Coal Mine
First Nations people in Australia saw plans to build an enormous new coal mine in Queensland as a threat to their culture, so they went to court and won. Murrawah Maroochy Johnson is a Wirdi woman from the Birri Gubba Nation who was awarded a 2024 Goldman Environmental Prize for her leadership in stopping the coal mine. She joins Host Jenni Doering to share the significance of land and water to her people.
May 31, 2024: Hot Battery Tech
Carbon-intensive industries like steel and chemical manufacturing require a lot of heat to operate, most of which comes from burning fossil fuels. Now engineers are working on turning electricity from renewable sources into heat with something called a thermal battery. Inside Climate News reporter Phil McKenna joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain how the technology works and plans for commercial-scale deployment.
May 31, 2024: Saving the Wild Coast of South Africa
In 2021 the “Wild Coast” of eastern South Africa was targeted by Shell for oil exploration, raising concerns for the local Mpondo people about impacts to wildlife and possible contamination of land and water. Environmental activists Nonhle Mbuthuma and Sinegugu Zukulu mounted a campaign and secured a victory from the High Court revoking Shell’s permit. They shared the 2024 Goldman Environmental Prize for Africa, and Sinegugu Zukulu joined Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood to discuss why he believes the Wild Coast needs protecting.
May 24, 2024: Vermont's "Climate Superfund" Bill
Facing costly climate impacts such as the billion-dollar flood disaster of July 2023, Vermont is seeking to make fossil fuel companies pay. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Paloma Beltran to discuss the state’s “Climate Superfund” bill and its potential influence.
May 17, 2024: From the History Books
Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Aynsley O’Neill for a trip back in time to the creation of the Adirondack Forest Preserve, as well to Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s signing of the Tennessee Valley Authority Act.
May 17, 2024: Phantom Carbon Credits
Shell’s flagship carbon capture and storage project in Canada generated millions of dollars in carbon credits based on greenhouse gas emission reductions that never took place. According to a study by Greenpeace Canada, the scheme was part of Shell’s billion-dollar Quest carbon capture project. While these phantom credits were legal from 2015 to 2021 under approved carbon tax rules, Shell’s actions raise questions about carbon capture practices in Canada’s lucrative fossil fuel industry. Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood spoke to Greenpeace Canada researcher Keith Stewart.
May 10, 2024: Plastic Pollution Treaty Talks
The fourth meeting of UN talks aimed to address plastic pollution took place this April in Ottawa, Canada. The goal is to have a legally binding international agreement on plastics pollution by the end of 2024. Professor Maria Ivanova, Director of the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Northeastern University joined Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran to give an update on what happened at these most recent talks.
May 10, 2024: New Power Plant Rules
To replace the Clean Power plan the Obama Administration failed to get past the courts the EPA published new rules for existing coal plants and new gas power plants that tighten standards for mercury emissions, wastewater, and coal ash and also curb coal plant CO2 emissions over time. Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran discusses with the rule with David Doniger, a former White House and EPA clean air official and attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Fund.
May 03, 2024: U.S. Funding Fossil Fuels Abroad
Despite an international agreement to phase out financing for fossil fuel projects abroad, the Biden administration recently approved a $500 million dollar loan guarantee for an oil and gas drilling project in Bahrain. Nina Pušić of Oil Change International spoke to Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran to explain why such actions also hold other nations back from ending this practice
May 03, 2024: Coal Transition Bank
The only coal-fired power plant in Washington state is in the process of shutting down, taking hundreds of jobs with it. But a $55 million fund set up by the coal plant is helping revitalize the small town with community development projects and more. Rachel McDevitt of WITF and StateImpact Pennsylvania reports.
April 26, 2024: Lithium from Deep Underground
Lithium is used in electric vehicle batteries and plays a key role in the global shift towards clean transportation, but current extraction methods come with environmental costs. Some companies are exploring an alternative that taps brine water deep in the Earth. Wyatt Myskow of Inside Climate News joins Host Jenni Doering to explain how it works and what questions about its impacts remain.
April 19, 2024: Greening the Economy
Our Earth Day special examines this decisive moment for the human species and our challenging relationship with our planet. Host Steve Curwood starts by meeting people who envision a future reshaped by an emerging energy system and new power structures, as we wean off of fossil fuels.
April 05, 2024: Ohio Senate Race and Climate
The razor-thin majority Democrats hold in the Senate could be crucial to passing more climate legislation under a second term for President Biden, and in the event former President Trump is re-elected, could prevent the total unraveling of President Biden’s climate agenda. One of the key Senate races to watch in 2024 is the Ohio contest between incumbent Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown and Trump-endorsed Republican Bernie Moreno. Inside Climate News reporter Dan Gearino talks with Host Steve Curwood about the candidates and how electric vehicles and agriculture factor into the politics of this race.
March 29, 2024: From the History Books
Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra shares a couple of notable items from this week in history with Host Aynsley O’Neill, including the 1971 startup of the first nuclear reactor at Fukushima Daiichi and the 1970 release of environmental classic “Big Yellow Taxi” by Joni Mitchell.
March 22, 2024: Investment Risks from Climate
Climate disasters, adaptation costs and market shifts threaten the value of public companies that are inadequately prepared for climate change. So the Democratic majority US Securities and Exchange Commission recently approved a rule that will require public companies to inform investors about their greenhouse gas emissions and climate risks. Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau of Vermont Law and Graduate School joins Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood to explain the rule and the pushback from industry and several Republican-led states.
March 15, 2024: Methane Tracking From Space
A new satellite recently blasted off into Earth orbit with the important mission of tracking methane emissions from oil and gas infrastructure across the globe. Dr. Stephen Conley is an atmospheric scientist and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain why free public access to the data from MethaneSAT is a game-changer for holding oil and gas companies accountable for climate pollution.
March 08, 2024: Fracking Under Ohio State Parks
In Ohio, drilling and fracking may soon begin underneath Salt Fork State Park, Ohio’s largest, as well as the Valley Run and Zepernick State Wildlife Areas, despite legal attempts to halt the extraction. Energy News Network reporter Kathiann Kowalski joins Host Steve Curwood to describe concerns about the potential risks of drilling under these lands.
March 01, 2024: Gina McCarthy on Particulates
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced new measures to reduce the allowable amount of fine particulate pollution in the air. Former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss these new standards, as well as the Inflation Reduction Act and the role of women in the environmental movement.
February 16, 2024: Remembering Bob Edwards and Ross Gelbspan
Host Steve Curwood shares some recordings and memories of the late Bob Edwards and Ross Gelbspan, two giants of journalism who helped support Living on Earth from its earliest days getting on the air.
February 16, 2024: Exxon Sues Climate Investors
ExxonMobil recently sued activist investors in federal court in Texas for a repeated effort to bring a climate resolution to a vote at the company’s annual shareholder meeting. The giant oil company has persisted even though the activists have withdrawn the petition. Pat Parenteau of Vermont Law and Graduate School joins Host Paloma Beltran to explain the backstory and chilling effect Exxon’s actions could have on investor engagement.
February 09, 2024: Green Cooling and Heating for Public Housing
To help address the climate crisis the city of Boston is piloting the replacement of natural gas with ground-source heat pumps in a public housing project. The technology brings fossil-free cooling and heating as well as cleaner air to historically disadvantaged tenants. Host Jenni Doering speaks with Kenzie Bok, the Administrator of the Boston Housing Authority.
February 09, 2024: Coming Cleaner on Fracking Chemicals
Pennsylvania has advanced rules that will warn the public about toxic chemicals gas and oil drillers plan to inject into the ground, but chemicals that are considered “trade secrets” will remain shrouded in mystery. Environmental Health News reporter Kristina Marusic joined Living on Earth’s Aynsley O’Neill to unpack what the new fracking rules mean for keeping drinking water safe.
February 02, 2024: Biden Pumps Brakes on Gas Exports
The Biden Administration has paused new export permits of liquefied natural gas over concerns that these enormous facilities would emit millions of tons of greenhouse gases every year. Reporter Halle Parker of WWNO in New Orleans joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss why LNG exports have been rising in recent years and the impact they are having on the Gulf Coast and the global climate.
February 02, 2024: Renewable Power Surge in China
China surged ahead of other countries in 2023 to add 66% more wind power than it had before and bring online as much solar energy as the entire world had developed in 2022. Isabel Hilton, founder of China Dialogue, joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to examine the geopolitical and economic implications of China’s dominance in the renewable energy sector.
January 26, 2024: Climate Deception
When scientists began to warn in the later half of the twentieth century that burning oil, gas, and coal could bring severe consequences for our planet, they touched a nerve in the powerful fossil fuel industry. In this second installment of our series on climate change disinformation, historian of science Naomi Oreskes and Host Steve Curwood dive into how the fossil fuel industry infiltrated the political sphere and scientific community to block climate action.
January 26, 2024: Fossil Fuel Deception
The fossil fuel industry has known its products would cause dangerous warming for decades but chose to deceive the public to stall climate progress around the globe, says Naomi Oreskes, Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. She joined Host Steve Curwood to describe the fossil fuel industry’s decades-long disinformation campaign and what can be done to turn the climate conversation back towards the truth.
January 26, 2024: The New Climate Denial
A recent report finds that social media platforms like YouTube are amplifying and sometimes profiting from new forms of climate denial that falsely claim it’s too late to act on the climate crisis. Imran Ahmed is the CEO and founder of the Center for Countering Digital Hate and joins Host Steve Curwood to talk about how climate disinformation has evolved from attacking science to attacking solutions.
January 19, 2024: Climate Deception
When scientists began to warn in the later half of the twentieth century that burning oil, gas, and coal could bring severe consequences for our planet, they touched a nerve in the powerful fossil fuel industry. In this second installment of our series on climate change disinformation, historian of science Naomi Oreskes and Host Steve Curwood dive into how the fossil fuel industry infiltrated the political sphere and scientific community to block climate action.
January 19, 2024: Fossil Fuel Deception
The fossil fuel industry has known its products would cause dangerous warming for decades but chose to deceive the public to stall climate progress around the globe, says Naomi Oreskes, Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. She joined Host Steve Curwood to describe the fossil fuel industry’s decades-long disinformation campaign and what can be done to turn the climate conversation back towards the truth.
January 19, 2024: Joe Manchin, 3rd Party Candidate?
A potential third-party presidential run by West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin could influence the outcome of the 2024 election. Inside Climate News reporter Phil McKenna is back on the campaign trail in New Hampshire with this report about Senator Manchin’s support of fossil fuels and the climate concerns of New Hampshire voters.
January 19, 2024: Nikki Haley on Climate
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley sends mixed signals on climate change, acknowledging that it’s real and human-caused while also touting her role in pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement. Inside Climate News reporter Phil McKenna caught up with the Haley campaign in New Hampshire and joins Hosts Paloma Beltran and Jenni Doering to examine Nikki Haley’s climate record and rhetoric as well as share feedback from voters.
January 12, 2024: Nikki Haley on Climate
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley sends mixed signals on climate change, acknowledging that it’s real and human-caused while also touting her role in pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement. Inside Climate News reporter Phil McKenna caught up with the Haley campaign in New Hampshire and joins Hosts Paloma Beltran and Jenni Doering to examine Nikki Haley’s climate record and rhetoric as well as share feedback from voters.
January 12, 2024: Fossil Fuel Deception
The fossil fuel industry has known its products would cause dangerous warming for decades but chose to deceive the public to stall climate progress around the globe, says Naomi Oreskes, Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. She joined Host Steve Curwood to describe the fossil fuel industry’s decades-long disinformation campaign and what can be done to turn the climate conversation back towards the truth.
January 12, 2024: Electric Car Growing Pains
The electric vehicle industry is undergoing a transformation as sales surge and automakers ramp up production in the U.S. Domestic manufacturing and sourcing requirements mean that only 19 models currently qualify for the $7500 federal EV tax credit, down from 43 in 2023. Dan Gearino of Inside Climate News joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the EV industry’s growing pains and why its future looks bright.
January 05, 2024: Our Fragile Moment
2023 is likely to go down in history as the hottest year ever seen by humans. But we still have a chance to rein in global warming before it runs too hot for our civilization, says UPenn Professor Michael Mann. He joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss his recent book Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth’s Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis.
January 05, 2024: Youth Plaintiffs Win Montana Climate Case
In a first of its kind ruling in the U.S., sixteen young plaintiffs have won their suit against the state of Montana over its refusal to protect them from climate change. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the unprecedented ruling and where the case could head next.
January 05, 2024: Climate is a Public Health Emergency
The climate emergency is creating a public health emergency by increasing risks for heat stress, vector-borne diseases, traumatic injuries and more. Dr. Vanessa Kerry is the World Health Organization Special Envoy for Climate Change and Health and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss these risks and the importance of fortifying health systems against climate impacts.
January 05, 2024: Key Court Cases of 2023
2023 saw some notable environmental decisions in U.S. federal and state courts, from the Supreme Court’s removal of some wetlands protections to the landmark win for youth plaintiffs in a Montana climate case. Law professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Steve Curwood to explain what these decisions could mean for environmental law and policy going forward.

2023

December 15, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Aynsley O’Neill bringing news of a step towards phasing out natural gas in Massachusetts, and a lost-then-found tomato in space. In history, they mark an anniversary for the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act that’s helped conserve seals, whales, and more.
December 15, 2023: Ending the Fossil Fuel Era
Nearly 200 nations attending the COP28 UN climate summit in Dubai came to a consensus to declare fossil fuels are on their way out, marking a breakthrough after three decades of climate summits. Alden Meyer, a senior consultant at E3G, joined Host Steve Curwood from Dubai to explain the outcome and what’s needed to turn the words into action.
December 08, 2023: UN Climate Summit COP 28 Update
As the UN Climate Summit in Dubai heads towards its scheduled final day on Tuesday, December 12, delegates have yet to achieve consensus for the Global Stock take. That’s a report on progress meeting the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which aspires to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. A majority of delegates and climate advocates say there is insufficient progress to meet those goals and want COP28 to find consensus to adopt additional measures. Many nations and NGOs are also decrying the failure to fully fund climate adaptation for poor nations.
December 08, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Jenni Doering with an “underground” success story about the rediscovery of a rare species of golden mole with some help from a border collie. Also, a jetliner recently flew across the Atlantic powered by waste fats and sugars. And in history, they look back to the creation of Superfund in 1980 to clean up toxic waste.
December 01, 2023: Corporate Coopting of COP28?
Leaked documents from the team leading the COP28 climate talks now underway in Dubai point to corporate coopting of the UN climate negotiations. COP President Sultan Al Jaber is also CEO of the UAE national oil company Adnoc, which according to the internal documents has used the COP process to try to cut oil and gas deals with companies and countries. Ben Stockton of the Centre for Climate Reporting, which partnered with the BBC to verify and review these leaked documents, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss.
November 24, 2023: China and US Restart Climate Diplomacy
The world is way off track from the Paris Agreement goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. A new joint statement on fighting the climate crisis from the world’s two biggest emitters, China and the United States, offers a glimmer of hope for global action on the eve of COP28. Alden Meyer of the climate think tank E3G joins Host Steve Curwood to explain.
November 24, 2023: Debunking Solar Energy Fears
As solar energy costs fall and installations of solar panels rise, some are raising concerns about the materials they’re made from and are promoting disinformation about the safety of recycling these modules. A team at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory clarified this waste from solar panels and recently published an essay in the journal Nature Physics. Lead author Dr. Heather Mirletz joins Host Jenni Doering to put solar panel waste in perspective.
November 24, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra and Host Jenni Doering discuss the clean energy infrastructure popping up in former fossil fuel strongholds. Also, waste pickers who comb through trash to glean recyclable metals and plastics are asking for a seat at the table in the negotiations for a global plastic waste treaty. And in history, they look back to when scientists debunked the “Piltdown Man” hoax fossil.
November 24, 2023: Unmasking Secret Fracking Chemicals
Many of the chemicals used in fracking for natural gas are hazardous to human health, but loopholes in disclosure laws mean that companies can keep them secret. So Pennsylvania’s Governor is moving to compel companies to disclose the chemicals they use in fracking operations. Environmental Health News reporter Kristina Marusic joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the health risks and disclosure challenges.
November 10, 2023: Greenwashing an Oil CEO
The man leading the upcoming COP28 UN climate talks in Dubai heads the United Arab Emirates’ state oil company. Sultan Al Jaber is the climate envoy for the UAE and has led the state renewable energy company, but some critics question the substance of his green credentials. Journalist Ben Stockton of the Centre for Climate Reporting wrote about this for The Intercept and joins Host Jenni Doering to describe the long-term public relations campaign to green Al Jaber’s image and install an oil CEO at the heart of the UN climate process.
November 03, 2023: A Climate Skeptic House Speaker
The new House Speaker, Republican Mike Johnson of Louisiana, has voted for legislation on the environment and some key social issues just 2% of the time, from the perspective of the League of Conservation Voters. Senior VP of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld joins Host Jenni Doering to voice LCV’s concerns about Speaker Johnson’s climate skepticism, oil and gas industry campaign contributions and bids to repeal President Biden’s signature climate law.
November 03, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra and Host Steve Curwood discuss the nutritional value and relative ease of growing pumpkins. Also, the construction industry offers a huge opportunity to incorporate recycled materials. And in history, they look back to when Congress passed an act to protect the popular striped bass also called rockfish.
November 03, 2023: Virtual Power Plants
The aging grid is struggling to accommodate the surge in renewables like wind and solar . And since they don’t produce electricity around the clock, there’s often a mismatch between when the power is being generated and when it’s being used. Ryan Hledik of the consulting firm The Brattle Group explains to Host Steve Curwood how “virtual power plants” can tap home and electric vehicle batteries and shift the timing of HVAC and appliance demand to help close this gap.
November 03, 2023: Auto Workers in the EV Fast Lane
Striking auto workers won higher wages, better benefits, and more ability to unionize electric vehicle battery plants that supply the “Big Three” US automakers. Inside Climate News Reporter Dan Gearino joins Host Jenni Doering to unpack what the strike’s outcome could mean for the growing electric vehicle industry, its workers, and the public.
October 27, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Steve Curwood to divulge how decommissioned offshore oil rigs can become homes for sea life in what are dubbed “rigs to reefs.” Also, churches are putting solar panels on their roofs to engage in “creation care.” And in history they look back to the opening of the first New York City subway line, all the way back in 1904.
October 27, 2023: Advancing Hydrogen with Government Funded Hubs
The Biden Administration recently announced the recipients of up to $7 billion in grants for seven hydrogen technology “hubs” across the country to help move away from fossil fuels. Inside Climate News reporter Nicholas Kusnetz explains to Host Jenni Doering why any climate benefits depend on the sources of hydrogen.
October 27, 2023: Rift Over Loss and Damage
Wealthy nations have agreed to pay low-income countries for some of the loss and damage caused by the climate crisis. But rich and poor nations are still divided on key elements of the fund with just a few weeks to go before COP 28. Bob Berwyn, a journalist with Inside Climate News, joins Host Jenni Doering to explain.
October 27, 2023: Hydrogen Fueled Future
If you combine hydrogen from carbon-free sources and oxygen in a fuel cell, you get water and electricity. Bruce Gellerman reports on how this chemical reaction is fueling visions of future, carbon free flights and changing voyages of fantasy into reality.
October 20, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to describe a car-free community in Arizona that could serve as a model for more sustainable development. Also, a new Right to Repair law in California is projected to cut down on e-waste. And in history, they look back to the first Nobel Prize in Literature awarded to an African, Wole Soyinka, who wrote about the environmental degradation in a postcolonial Niger Delta.
October 13, 2023: New Climate Writings from Pope Francis
Pope Francis is back with an even bolder update to Laudato Si’, his climate change encyclical. Christiana Zenner is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theology at Fordham University and joins Host Paloma Beltran to discuss how “Laudate Deum” takes on climate denial and urges the world to act swiftly to avert climate disaster.
October 13, 2023: Pope Calls for Harmony With Nature To Save Humanity
Pope Francis's highly-anticipated Encyclical, “Laudato Si,” subtitled “On Care for Our Common Home,”included a call for action on global warming, but the 184-page document offers much more than policy recommendations. It's a poetic, emotional call for a fundamental shift in our economic system, and a rethinking of our relationship with God's creation: the natural world. Assistant Professor of Theology, Science and Ethics at Fordham University, Christiana Peppard, discusses with host Steve Curwood the Pope's message to people to be moral stewards of the planet and rectify ecological and social injustices plaguing the world today.
October 06, 2023: Young Conservatives Tired of Climate Denial
As the 2024 campaign season heats up, some young Republicans want their party to move on from climate denial and offer solutions. Karly Matthews is Vice President of the American Conservation Coalition and joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss policies that align with the environmental roots of the party.
September 29, 2023: A Civilian Climate Corps
President Biden has directed the federal government to plan a Civilian Climate Corps loosely styled on the New Deal CCC that put millions to work building trails and park facilities during the Great Depression. Washington Governor Jay Inslee joins Host Steve Curwood to share a vision for how a climate corps could aid conservation, combat climate disaster, and help save energy while harnessing the energy of youth volunteers in America.
September 29, 2023: Fossil Fuels Richly Subsidized
Governments are increasingly touting clean and renewable energy as the way of the future. But if you follow the money, you would find that fossil fuels are receiving massive subsidies, worth around $7 trillion dollars each year, according to a recent report from the International Monetary Fund. Antung Liu is a coauthor of the report and joined Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood to explain how the fossil fuel industry is receiving such generous subsidies every year.
September 22, 2023: Big Emitters Silent at UN
At the UN Climate Ambition Summit in New York, developed nations promised more money to help vulnerable countries adapt, but big emitting countries including the US and China had no new plans to put on the table. Living on Earth’s Paloma Beltran joins Host Jenni Doering to share highlights from the summit.
September 15, 2023: Protecting Mediterranean Sea Life
Overfishing, warming oceans, invasive species, and unsustainable tourism threaten the rich marine life in the Mediterranean. So Turkish civil engineer and diver Zafer Kizilkaya got together with local fishermen to pilot a community-run Marine Protected Area that led to expanded marine conservation in Turkey. Mr. Kizilkaya was awarded the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize for Asia for his work, and he joined Living on Earth’s Bobby Bascomb.
September 15, 2023: Turning Up the Heat on Climate Finance
Africa has emitted a tiny fraction of the greenhouse gas emissions from the more developed parts of the world but is experiencing catastrophic impacts with little ability to adapt. Alden Meyer of E3G joins Host Jenni Doering to explain how climate finance was a focus of the recent Africa Climate Summit, which took place in advance of the Climate Ambition Summit that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is convening in New York on September 20th.
September 08, 2023: Hydrogen Fueled Future
If you combine hydrogen from carbon-free sources and oxygen in a fuel cell, you get water and electricity. Bruce Gellerman reports on how this chemical reaction is fueling visions of future, carbon free flights and changing voyages of fantasy into reality.
August 25, 2023: Power to the People
New York state has adopted a law aimed at using federal funds to boost public power from renewables and shut down six polluting “peaker” gas power plants. Lee Ziesche, a spokesperson for Public Power New York, joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss how it will lower electricity rates and boost public health, environmental justice, and energy access.
August 25, 2023: Methane Supercharges Climate Change
Scientists are sounding the alarm about a recent uptick in methane emissions. Methane is roughly 85 times more potent than CO2 as a greenhouse gas when it’s first emitted and reducing methane releases now may be one of the fastest ways to slow down climate change. Kristofer Covey, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies and Sciences at Skidmore College, talks with Host Steve Curwood about the sources of this surge and how they can be addressed.
August 18, 2023: Montana Youth Climate Suit
A case in Montana brought by sixteen youth plaintiffs has become the first constitutional climate suit in the U.S. to make it to trial. They allege that the state of Montana has violated their constitutional right to a “clean and healthful environment” by promoting fossil fuel extraction in the face of intensifying climate disruption. Inside Climate News reporter Richard Forbes was in the courtroom and fills in Host Jenni Doering on what happened and how the young plaintiffs’ powerful testimony contrasted with a bare-bones defense from the state.
August 18, 2023: Youth Plaintiffs Win Montana Climate Case
In a first of its kind ruling in the U.S., sixteen young plaintiffs have won their suit against the state of Montana over its refusal to protect them from climate change. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau joins Host Jenni Doering to explain the unprecedented ruling and where the case could head next.
August 04, 2023: “Don’t Look Up” and the Absurdity of Climate Inaction
Don’t Look Up, Adam McKay’s 2021 film, uses humor and the metaphor of an impending, Earth-obliterating comet to satirize the ideological denial of climate change that pervades much of our current public discourse. Michael Mann, at that time Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science at Penn State University, joined Host Steve Curwood to discuss how the film holds up a mirror to the political obstacles to climate action and false promises of future technological fixes.
July 28, 2023: Mining Riches on the Ocean Floor
In the depths of the sea, parts of the ocean floor are covered with manganese nodules. These contain valuable minerals that could be extremely useful for renewable energy resources, like electric car batteries. But mining these nodules could prove hazardous for deep ocean biodiversity, Professor Eugene Gallagher from the University of Massachusetts Boston explains to host Steve Curwood.
July 28, 2023: The UAE Boosts Climate Pledge
The UAE has increased its climate ambition targets under the Paris Agreement following criticism around their choice of a top oil executive to lead this year’s UN climate talks. But researchers claim the UAE is unlikely to meet its climate targets given its plans to boost oil and gas production. David Tong, the Global Industry Campaign Manager for Oil Change International, joins host Aynsley O’Neill to explain what the UAE policy means for COP28.
July 28, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
In this week’s trip beyond the headlines, Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins host Steve Curwood to discuss the ways in which Iceland is repurposing the waste from fish catch, from skin grafts to pharmaceuticals. Then, the two take a look at the string of homes being built in North Carolina’s floodplains seemingly incentivized by the state’s flood buyout program. Finally, for history the pair discuss the life of Kenneth Bainbridge, who directed the first successful test of the atom bomb.
July 21, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss the threatened UPS driver strike and how extreme heat is making conditions inside UPS trucks unbearable. They also cover the “greenhushing” some companies are engaging in. And in history, they look back to when a patent was granted for center-pivot agriculture, making the desert bloom with huge green circles of crops.
July 21, 2023: California Targets Bogus Climate Offsets
The California legislature is considering measures that would require large businesses to publicly disclose carbon emissions and verify claimed offsets. Aaron Cantu is a reporter for Capital and Main and joined Living on Earth’s Jenni Doering to give an overview of the bills and how advocates say they could help California meet its ambitious climate goals.
July 21, 2023: Finance and Climate Denial
The financial sector isn’t taking likely climate impacts like moderate sea level rise into account when it calculates risks to assets, according to a report. That leaves retirement accounts and pensions vulnerable in a warming world. Inside Climate News reporter Dan Gearino joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain the findings.
July 14, 2023: The Risks of 'Chemical Recycling'
So-called ‘chemical recycling’ of plastics is a highly inefficient process that releases large amounts of carbon emissions and hazardous pollutants. James Bruggers reports for Inside Climate News and joined Host Steve Curwood to discuss the health and safety problems he’s been covering at the Brightmark chemical recycling plant in Indiana.
July 07, 2023: Montana Youth Climate Suit
A case in Montana brought by sixteen youth plaintiffs has become the first constitutional climate suit in the U.S. to make it to trial. They allege that the state of Montana has violated their constitutional right to a “clean and healthful environment” by promoting fossil fuel extraction in the face of intensifying climate disruption. Inside Climate News reporter Richard Forbes was in the courtroom and fills in Host Jenni Doering on what happened and how the young plaintiffs’ powerful testimony contrasted with a bare-bones defense from the state.
June 30, 2023: Shell Plastics Plant Pollutes
Shell’s massive new ethane cracker plant in western Pennsylvania is sending polluted air and strange smells into the surrounding community. But a $10 million fine pales in comparison to the roughly $100 million a day that the company made in profits in the first quarter of 2023. Reid Frazier of the Allegheny Front discusses with Host Paloma Beltran the concerns of residents and a promised economic boom that hasn’t materialized.
June 09, 2023: A World Without Plastic Pollution
2,000 people from across the globe recently gathered in Paris to work towards a UN treaty to eliminate plastic pollution. Maria Ivanova, the Director of the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Northeastern University, took part in the Paris talks and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to paint a picture of a world with far less plastic and how we can get there.
June 09, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the $1.19 billion settlement by Dupont and two spinoffs over PFAS “forever chemical” contamination of drinking water supplies. Also, while replacing lead pipes that carry drinking water into homes is essential for public health, the PVC pipes they’re often replaced with can leach toxins into the water. And in history, they look back to an 1804 declaration in Pittsburgh on the nuisance of coal smoke, a problem that would only intensify as the city became the steelmaking heart of America.
June 02, 2023: Taking Stock of Climate Progress
Delegates gather starting June 5 in Bonn, Germany to discuss loss and damage for vulnerable countries and progress under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, key issues leading up to COP28 in Dubai later this fall. David Waskow of the World Resources Institute joins Host Jenni Doering to give a preview of the agenda at Bonn and the controversy over the incoming COP28 President, an oil executive.
May 26, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Steve Curwood to talk about Montana’s new law that blocks climate concerns from permitting decisions. Also, Bisphenol A or BPA is linked to cancer, obesity, and diabetes. Now private researchers say significant levels of BPA can be found in some sports bras and other athletic clothing. And in history, they look back to the creation of the Nobel Prizes.
May 19, 2023: Environmental Justice for All of Government
The new White House Office of Environmental Justice will oversee EJ efforts in every federal agency. The Biden administration also wants new power plant rules that call for carbon capture and storage technology, which has yet to be proven at scale and could have environmental justice impacts. Monique Harden, Director of Law, and Policy at the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss these developments.
May 19, 2023: Power to the People
New York state has adopted a new law aimed at using federal funds to boost public power from renewables and shut down six polluting “peaker” gas power plants. Lee Ziesche, a spokesperson for Public Power New York, joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss how it will lower electricity rates and boost public health, environmental justice, and energy access.
May 19, 2023: Restoring Finland's Peatlands
Peat that’s burned for energy is a major greenhouse gas emissions source in Finland, which aims to become net zero by 2035. Peat mining is also a leading cause of habitat loss in the country. Tero Mustonen is the 2023 winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize for Europe for his efforts to stop peat mining and joins Host Steve Curwood to share how life is flourishing in the peatlands he’s helped restore.
May 12, 2023: UK Courts Force A Zambian Copper Mine Cleanup
The 2023 Africa recipient of the Goldman Environmental Prize brought a UK based mining company to justice for polluting a river in Zambia with waste from an open pit copper mine that sickened locals and killed fish. Prize winner Chilekwa Mumba joins Host Paloma Beltran to share how he organized the community and persuaded a UK based law firm to take on the case.
April 28, 2023: UK Courts Force A Zambian Copper Mine Cleanup
The 2023 Africa recipient of the Goldman Environmental Prize brought a UK based mining company to justice for polluting a river in Zambia with waste from an open pit copper mine that sickened locals and killed fish. Prize winner Chilekwa Mumba joins Host Paloma Beltran to share how he organized the community and persuaded a UK based law firm to take on the case.
April 28, 2023: A New Clean Power Plan
Under President Obama the Environmental Protection Agency tried to fight climate change by curbing overall emissions from the electric power sector, but those rules were blocked in court and then repealed by President Trump. Now the agency is trying again and it’s now backed up by provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act. Its new power plant emissions rules are crafted on a plant-by-plant basis designed to survive legal challenges, according to environmental law expert Pat Parenteau, who joins Host Steve Curwood to explain.
April 14, 2023: Hidden Plastic Waste
There are many sources of hidden plastic in the waste that wealthy countries send to the developing world, in clothing, tires, and electronics. Grist Reporter Joseph Winters joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss how all that extra plastic waste is affecting the environment and health of people in the Global South.
April 14, 2023: Revving Up U.S. EV Manufacturing
The government offers a $7,500 tax credit to new car buyers to help meet a goal that 50% of all new vehicles sold in the U.S. should be electric by 2030. But to qualify, cars must now meet a new set of requirements. Auto reporter Jim Motavalli joins Host Jenni Doering to talk about how EV manufacturers are responding.
April 14, 2023: Used Clothes Pollute Global South
In wealthy countries, cheap “fast fashion” clothing is often thrown away after being worn just seven or eight times. And while donating those clothes may feel like a good deed, they often end up as waste that pollutes developing countries. Veena Holkar, director of Wildlight Global, spoke with Living on Earth’s Bobby Bascomb.
April 07, 2023: Righting the Wrongs of Environmental Racism
The Black residents of the heavily industrialized corridor along the Mississippi known as “Cancer Alley” have filed a civil rights and religious liberty lawsuit against the parish council that has given a green light to these polluting facilities for decades. Monique Harden of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the history of environmental racism and resistance in “Cancer Alley.”
April 07, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Jenni Doering to share news of the uptick in green burials and a new study that finds a link between climate change and the powerful supercell storms that can give rise to destructive tornadoes. And in the history calendar, they look back 75 years to the indictment of nine corporations for allegedly conspiring to shut down streetcar lines in Los Angeles and elsewhere and replace them with buses made or fueled with their own products.
March 31, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Bobby Bascomb to talk about Scotch whiskey going green. Also, armadillos are marching north into the Midwest thanks to climate change. And in history, they look back to likely the only time mafia boss Charles “Lucky” Luciano was held accountable for a killing, with the victim a pheasant.
March 31, 2023: Dire Climate Warning From IPCC
The world has no more than a year or two to start bending the curve of carbon emissions downward to avoid more drastic impacts of climate change, according to the latest scientific consensus the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. UPenn climate scientist Michael Mann joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss what’s at stake for the planet and what’s necessary to keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
March 24, 2023: Greenwashing Energy from Plastic
So-called “chemical recycling” is a greenwashing term used for incinerating plastic, according to critics including Veena Singla with the Natural Resources Defense Council. She tells Host Jenni Doering that “chemical recycling” is contributing to climate change and poor air quality for many marginalized communities.
March 24, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
LOE contributor Peter Dykstra shares with host Jenni Doering new research that found plastic bags scouring the deepest parts of the ocean floor. Also, a huge Sargassum seaweed mass is making its way toward the Florida coast just in time for Spring Break. And in the history books, the 52nd anniversary of Tokyo Electric Power Company opening the ill-fated Fukushima nuclear reactors which later were the source of one of the world’s worst nuclear disasters.
March 17, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
PFAS “forever” chemicals are everywhere, including in toilet paper, Peter Dykstra reveals in this week’s chat with Living on Earth’s Bobby Bascomb. Also, everything’s big in Texas, including renewable energy, and the state is by far the biggest producer of wind and solar in the U.S. And 55 years ago, prospectors struck black gold on Alaska’s north slope, forever changing the state’s economy and environment.
March 17, 2023: Broken Promise for the Arctic
A massive new oil drilling project in the Arctic just got the green light from President Biden despite his promises for no new drilling on federal lands. Environmental law expert Pat Parenteau joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the climate contradictions within the White House and what could happen next.
March 10, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
Host Steve Curwood and Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra look beyond the headlines to a United Nations ocean biodiversity protection treaty, along with the newly designated Chilean Tictoc marine park for whales. Then, the pair discuss Antarctica's diminishing sea ice, before looking back to the historic resignation of EPA Administrator Anne Gorsuch-Burford.
March 10, 2023: Heat Pump Challenges
One of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the US comes from heating buildings. The Biden administration is trying to change that by promoting efficient electric heat pumps. But as the Allegheny Front’s Reid Frazier reports, getting Americans to switch to heat pumps won’t be easy.
March 03, 2023: CO2 Pipeline Safety Risks
Proponents of carbon capture and storage hope to expand a network of pipelines that transport carbon dioxide from source to sink so that it can’t get into the atmosphere to warm the planet. But these pipelines carry high-pressure CO2 that can be dangerous, even lethal. Bill Caram, the executive director of the Pipeline Safety Trust, explains these safety concerns.
February 24, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
Journalist Peter Dykstra joins Host Bobby Bascomb this week to discuss the billions of dollars in damage to Ukraine’s environment since the Russian invasion. They also discuss the ongoing bird flu outbreak in which some 60 million chickens and turkeys have been slaughtered on hundreds of commercial farms in the U.S. For a history lesson, they dive into the 1799 Federal Timber Forestry Purchases Act, which was likely the first forest conservation measure in the U.S.
February 24, 2023: 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 17, 2023: Big Oil Bid in Alaska
A major plan by oil giant ConocoPhillips to drill in Alaska’s North Slope is poised to move ahead after preliminary approval by a federal agency, though it still needs President Biden’s final consent. The potentially lucrative Willow drilling project on federal land could dump millions of tons of climate disrupting carbon into the atmosphere over its lifetime and pose risks to the health of nearby Alaska Native communities and biological diversity. Andy Moderow is Alaska State Director for the Alaska Wilderness League and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss.
February 10, 2023: Environment & President Biden's State of the Union
Though it was not the central theme of his 2023 State of the Union speech, President Biden devoted more time to the environment than previous presidents have in this annual ritual. Commentator Peter Dykstra and Host Steve Curwood discuss President Biden's mentions of climate investments across the United States and an initiative to replace lead pipes that drew bipartisan applause. For history they talk about Lyndon B. Johnson, the first US President to mention climate change in a written addendum to a State of the Union speech.
February 03, 2023: Ice Fishing on a Tidal River
Winter can be cold and dark, but the bright light reflected from frozen lakes, ponds, and streams can be cheery and warm. And that's the secret of ice fishing. Mark William Damsel explains the joys of ice fishing on a frozen river in this audio postcard from Living on Earth's Bobby Bascomb.
February 03, 2023: The Nutmeg's Curse
Native to the Banda Islands in Indonesia, nutmeg and other spices like cloves were coveted for their trade value by colonial powers, who set about exterminating the local people to dominate the nutmeg trade. In his 2021 book The Nutmeg's Curse: Parables for a Planet in Crisis, author Amitav Ghosh reveals the origins of our current climate crisis in the violent extractive economies pioneered by colonial powers centuries ago. Amitav Ghosh joined Host Steve Curwood for a Living on Earth Book Club event to discuss this dark history of the so-called 'enlightenment'.
January 27, 2023: Big Oil Under Fire in Puerto Rico
Sixteen municipalities in Puerto Rico sue big fossil fuel companies for damages from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The communities allege the fossil fuel companies learned their products would change the climate and intensify storms and then colluded to lie about it to the public. A win for the plaintiffs would be historic. LOE's Steve Curwood spoke with Melissa Sims, Senior Counsel with the Plaintiff's law firm Milberg.
January 27, 2023: Beyond the Headlines With Peter Dykstra
Journalist Peter Dykstra joins host Steve Curwood to discuss why fewer iguanas are falling in Florida during cold snaps. They also consider if England's recent ban on some single-use plastics set to take effect in October will stem the accumulation of disposable plastic. For a history lesson, they dive into Karl Benz's 1886 patent for a three-wheeled, chain-driven, gasoline-powered horseless carriage he obtained with financial and design help from his wife Bertha.
January 20, 2023: Controversial Oil CEO to Lead UN Climate Treaty
Activists are expressing outrage in the wake of the decision by the United Arab Emirates to appoint oil executive Sultan al-Jaber as President of this year’s UN climate treaty negotiations at COP28 in Dubai. Mithika Mwenda, executive director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance and May Boeve, executive director of 350.org, join Host Steve Curwood to explain the concerns and discuss how fossil fuel interests are deflecting progress in the treaty process.
January 20, 2023: Beyond The Headlines
Journalist Peter Dykstra joins Host Steve Curwood this week to discuss a proposal to phase out gas cooking stoves linked to health risks. and They also consider the climate rhetoric of the new Republican Chair of the US House Science, Space and Technology Committee. And in history they look back to President Nixon’s 1970 State of the Union address with its soaring language about protecting the environment.
January 13, 2023: Beyond the Headlines
In this week’s look Beyond the Headlines, environmental journalist Peter Dykstra and Host Steve Curwood admire the greenery in New York City, which a new study has reported absorbs as much carbon as all the traffic in the city emits on many summer days. They then discuss the climate implications of the Republican House Speaker battle before looking back at Republican President Theodore Roosevelt, who created the Grand Canyon national monument on January 11th, 1908.
January 06, 2023: Auld Lang Syne
This week, journalist Peter Dykstra and Host Steve Curwood take some time to reflect on some lives we lost in 2022. From Living on Earth's former producer Lucia Small to the infamous climate change skeptic Pat Michaels, the two discuss the passing of individuals who made their mark on the environmental sector, for better or for worse.

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