Tag Archives: Featured

Reporter Jeremy Hance On Wildlife Conservation and Nature’s (Potential) Comeback

Reporter Jeremy Hance On Wildlife Conservation and Nature’s (Potential) Comeback

 
 
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Reporter Jeremy Hance was one of the original staff writers of Mongabay, a non-profit conservation and environmental news site that “aims to raise awareness about social and environmental issues related to forests and other ecosystems.” Hance now writes a monthly column for Mongabay called “Saving Life on Earth: Words on the Wild” in addition to his freelance reporting. His feature “The great rhino U-turn,” the third installment in a four-part series on the Sumatran rhino, has been published in the 2019 Best American Science and Nature Writing anthology.  Continue reading Reporter Jeremy Hance On Wildlife Conservation and Nature’s (Potential) Comeback

Land Preservation in Washtenaw County

Land Preservation in Washtenaw County

 
 
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Cities and townships in Washtenaw County support a variety of progressive, publicly-funded efforts to protect local lands. They do that either by preserving those lands as they are or reserving them for agricultural use. Land protection consultant Barry Lonik, Washtenaw County Local Foods Coordinator Jae Gerhart of Michigan State University’s Extension Center, and farmer and educator Shannon Brines joined host Bella Isaacs to talk about how that process works, how land preservation relates to the local food movement, and why it’s important to consider the ecological and social impacts of urban density versus urban sprawl. Continue reading Land Preservation in Washtenaw County

The Environmental Music Show

The Environmental Music Show

 
 
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Editor’s note: We know the phone sounds get annoying at some points during this conversation, and we apologize. 

This week, it’s all about the music, man. Matthew Burtner is an Alaskan-born composer, sound artist, and eco-acoustician whose music is inspired by the sounds of glaciers and, in many ways, the reality of climate change. David Jude is research scientist emeritus at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability, a renowned fish biologist, and the discoverer of the invasive round and tubenose goby fish in the Great Lakes. Finally, Jerry Mack is the host of “Nothin’ But the Blues” and “Yazoo City Calling” on WCBN, and he leads the band “Jerry Mack and the Terraplanes.”

Continue reading The Environmental Music Show

We the People

We the People

 
 
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Each year, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, more than 13,000 Michigan residents return to their communities after being incarcerated.  But when they get home, those residents often face a series of challenges as they navigate re-entering society as well as finding work and housing with a criminal record.

Continue reading We the People

Walk the Line (5)

Walk the Line (5)

 
 
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The two hand-shaped maps of the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan cup the hydrological corridor that links Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. The whip-sawed waters of this passageway contain some of the mightiest currents in the Great Lakes, which intermittently thrash around a volume of water ten-times that which flows over Niagara Falls. The powerful Straits of Mackinac reach a 3.5-mile distance at their widest width and a 295-foot range at their deepest depth.

Continue reading Walk the Line (5)

Something’s in the Water

Something’s in the Water

 
 
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Editor’s note: We faced some technical difficulties with this recording, but the sound will level out after 1:07. Thanks in advance for your patience.

Ann Arbor and its 72 sister municipalities form the Huron River Watershed, meaning that every drop of water that falls in these locations makes its way back to the river one way or another. We share this water not only with our families, friends and neighbors, but also with our governments, businesses, and manufacturers. In sharing a common resource like water—the essence of life—it makes sense to have a rule book that outlines permissible and non-negotiable actions as well as provisions to guide the course of action in the event of foul play. Michigan water quality standards fill this niche. However, as regular hosts Aurora Aparicio, Bella Isaacs, and Heena Singh learned this week from guest expert Laura Rubin, our rule book does not always keep pace with the discoveries of contemporary science.

Continue reading Something’s in the Water

Justice, Economics, and the Environment Walk into a Bar… A Conversation with Dr. Sam Stolper

Justice, Economics, and the Environment Walk into a Bar… A Conversation with Dr. Sam Stolper

 
 
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Many Americans hear the word “economics” and quite literally start to talk business: bulls and bears, stocks and bonds, revenues and profits—you know the drill. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, though, economics is “a social science concerned chiefly with description and analysis of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.” For Dr. Sam Stolper, this meaning rings especially true when it comes to distribution. Sam is an assistant professor at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS), where he researches and lectures on the intersecting issues of economics and environmental justice, particularly as they apply to how the impacts of energy use and production are distributed.  Continue reading Justice, Economics, and the Environment Walk into a Bar… A Conversation with Dr. Sam Stolper

The People’s Own Organic Power (POOP!)

The People’s Own Organic Power (POOP!)

 
 
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We give this episode a #2 (out of 2).

Co-hosts Audrey and Heena sat down with artist, educator, activist, and “The POOP Project” creator Shawn Shafner and University of Michigan Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Dr. Nancy Love. The two are experts in recycling waste, specifically the “waste” produced by our bodies.

We caught Shawn in the middle of his Assume the Throne tour. He’s been on the road preaching body (and bathroom) positivity. Professor Love caught us up on her and Audrey’s urine-derived fertilizers project. If you’re on the UM campus, the project is accepting donations in the GG Brown building.

Bug Appétit!

Bug Appétit!

 
 
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Did you know that insects form part of the traditional diet of an estimated 2 billion people on the planet? And that even those of us who actively avoid all contact with bugs can’t avoid ingesting a pound or two of flies, maggots, and other bugs without knowing it every year? Insects aren’t the future of food–they’re very much part of our present reality!

Continue reading Bug Appétit!

Militarization of Conservation: Narratives of Poaching

Militarization of Conservation: Narratives of Poaching

 
 
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In this week’s broadcast, we dive into a complicated and contentious issue, discussing the increasing militarization of conservation and anti-poaching efforts on the African continent, especially as they relate to broader anti-terrorism agendas.

Host Katie Browne, accompanied by first time co-hosts Mike Burbidge and Claire Poelking, introduce this week’s topic with discussion of the new Global Anti-Poaching Act (H.R.2494), currently under debate in the US Senate, which calls for support of anti-poaching efforts, strengthening of partner country capacity to counter wildlife trafficking, and designation of major wildlife trafficking countries. Continue reading Militarization of Conservation: Narratives of Poaching