Join us on November 19 at 6 pm for the Commonwealth Club’s Virtual Gala. Raise your glass to Good Health, as we celebrate the leadership of women in science and medicine. Visit

Join us on November 19 at 6 pm for the Commonwealth Club’s Virtual Gala. Raise your glass to Good Health, as we celebrate the leadership of women in science and medicine. Visit commonwealthclub.org/2021gala to learn more or Text Club2021 to 41444 to register and donate today! Welcome to Hearts and Minds—A QTAPI Community Conversation Series, Session Two: Asians and Pacific Islanders: Our Future Determines Our Past. "Our future determines our past" is a play on words and ideas of how people are taught that the past can determine who we are. Though people can understand the past, will they necessarily learn from it to make decisions that make the future stronger and more just and equitable? When we are ashamed of some aspects of our history, do we not speak of it or acknowledge it? In the present, our relationship to the past—how we appreciate it, amplify it, and even shine light on the darkest aspects, can determine our relationship to that past and what we do with it and how we grow and evolve as a community. How can people, in the diversity of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities, honor and embrace all of these histories? This legacy can help people know their histories about resilience and strength as they stand on the shoulders of ancestors. The future may be undetermined, but we hope this conversation inspires folks to envision what sort of future they would like for their communities to be centered in and how they might participate in achieving that vision. Funded by the CA Humanities, whose mission is “to connect Californians to ideas and one another in order to understand our shared heritage and diverse cultures, inspire civic participation, and shape our future.” That is the shared vision for Hearts and Minds: A QTAPI Community Conversation Series,” and it is to that end that GAPA Theatre’s “Hearts and Minds” program continues its work in ensuring our QTAPI stories continue to be told. About the Speakers Peter Tuiolosega Silva is the executive director of Kumukahi Health + Wellness, located on the island of Hawai'i. Peter has been an HIV advocate in the Pacific Island community for more than two decades, serving as the HIV trainer for the Pacific Islands, coordinator for the Pacific Island Jurisdictions AIDS Action Group, founder of UTOPIA Hawai'i, and prevention director of Life Foundation. Silva was most recently a public servant in the Hawai'i Department of Health’s Harm Reduction Services Branch. He currently lives in Hilo with his partner of 25 years. Amy Sueyoshi is dean of the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University. Sueyoshi holds a Ph.D. in history from the University of California, Los Angeles and a B.A. from Barnard College and has published two books: Queer Compulsions: Race, Nation, and Sexuality in the Affairs of Yone Noguchi and Discriminating Sex: White Leisure and the Making of the American “Oriental.” Sueyoshi also authored “Breathing Fire,” a brief survey of queer APIDA history, for the National Parks Service’s historic LGBT Theme Study, which won the Paul E. Buchanan Award from the Vernacular Architecture Forum. Sueyoshi is also a founding co-curator of the GLBT History Museum, the first queer history museum in the United States, and seeded the intergenerational Dragon Fruit Oral History Project at API Equality Northern California. Helen Zia is the author of Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People, a finalist for the prestigious Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize and referred to by President Bill Clinton in two separate speeches in the Rose Garden. She coauthored, with Wen Ho Lee, My Country Versus Me, which reveals what happened to the Los Alamos scientist who was falsely accused of being a spy for China in the “worst case since the Rosenbergs.” She was executive editor of Ms. Magazine and is a founding board co-chair of the Women's Media Center. The daughter of immigrants from China, Helen has been outspoken on issues ranging from human rights and peace to women's rights and countering hate violence and homophobia. She is a Fulbright Scholar and a graduate of Princeton University’s first coeducational class. She attended medical school but quit after completing two years, then went to work as a construction laborer, an autoworker, and a community organizer, after which she discovered her life’s work as a writer. NOTES Zia photo by Bob Hsiang_BHP San Francisco RH. OCTOBER 27, 2021 Michelle Meow Producer and Host, "The Michelle Meow Show," KBCW TV and Podcast; Member, Commonwealth Club of California Board of Governors—Host 💯SUBSCRIBE for more VIDEOS: https://www.youtube.com/user/commonwealthclub The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum 📣, bringing together its 20,000 members for more than 400 annual events on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy.

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Join host Jeff Corwin as he connects with a collection of amazing mammals that face difficult conservation challenges. First, Jeff travels into the remote forests of New England to help care for a

Join host Jeff Corwin as he connects with a collection of amazing mammals that face difficult conservation challenges. First, Jeff travels into the remote forests of New England to help care for a rowdy group of orphaned baby black bears. Jeff learns about bear conservation and discovers the unique and friendly behaviors bear cubs have towards each other. Later, Jeff travels to Florida to meet orphaned baby manatees. Jeff learns about the threats to manatee habitat and what biologists are doing to save them. Finally, Jeff assists veterinarians to help two adorable opossums heal from their wounds and return to the forest. Video Transcript: Jeff Corwin: Mammals come in splendid variety, from the massive blue whale to the tiny deer mouse. Nearly all mammal mothers have live birth and all produce milk for feeding their young. At least some part of their bodies are typically covered with hair or fur at some point in their lives, and all mammals are endotherms, which means they can generate heat to maintain their warm-blooded body temperatures. Jeff Corwin: But tragically, today, nearly one quarter of all mammals are threatened with extinction, including at least 65 species in the United States alone. Scientists have estimated the total mass of all mammals on earth. They discovered that human beings make up 34% of this biomass, domesticated mammals account for 62%, which means only the remaining 4% are wild species. In the forests of New England, wild American black bears live in close proximity to humans. These bears are constantly threatened by pollution, vehicles and habitat loss, and black bear cubs are increasingly becoming orphaned. Jeff Corwin: Today, I'm visiting the Kilham Bear Center, where some of these bear cubs are given a second chance of survival.   Jeff Corwin: So this very precocious, absolutely adorable black bear cub is Marlow. This is Ethan Kilham and essentially Ethan, you are Marlow's stepmom, aren't you? Ethan Kilham: Yes. I'm the primary caregiver for the cubs, so basically I'm trying to be the best facsimile to a mother bear that I can be, so I'm feeding them, I'm introducing them to wild foods, wild things from the environment, stuff that they can play with. Jeff Corwin: Hi Marlow, no nibble. No, that's not ... No, please. No, Marlow, no. So your instinct is to interact, but we don't want to interact. We want this bear to discover that human beings aren't a  part of his future success in life, right, Ethan? Ethan Kilham: Right. Jeff Corwin: We want him to be wild. Ethan Kilham: He'll be released at about 18 months of age and then he'll have all the tools to be a perfectly wild bear. Jeff Corwin: Marlow, what are you doing? Marlow, please get off the cameraman. Jeff Corwin: Marlow is still too young to be released, but today is a special day for two cubs named Flower and Dover. Today, they're going back in the wild and that's what we are about to do right now. For both our safety and the safety of these cubs, Flower and Dover will need to be sedated. To do this, Ryan will use a long pole fitted at the end with a small syringe of fast-acting sedative. Jeff Corwin: So what Ryan needs to do is get close to these bears, give them a quick poke, they'll go to sleep and all will be good. Jeff Corwin: No one likes getting a shot, especially a bear cub. Jeff Corwin: Success, Ryan? Ryan Smith: I think so. Jeff Corwin: Going to wait until he starts to get a little tipsy, which he is right now. We want to be there so when the bear goes to sleep, he doesn't fall and hurt itself.  Jeff Corwin: The sedative works very fast and makes Flower a little dizzy, but don't worry. We won't let him get hurt.  Jeff Corwin: There we go. There we go.  Jeff Corwin: We take Flower outside where the wildlife team will give him his final checkup. Jeff Corwin: So our first bear is nicely situated. Now let's go get the next bear. Jeff Corwin: All right. Okay. Now it's time for bear number two. Ryan's going to get in position. Thankfully, Dover's found a little corner to curl up in, so getting him outside will be much easier. Jeff Corwin: All right, if you just lower it down. Okay. I got him. All right. They are just such beautiful, beautiful creatures, so precious, such an important part of our wild legacy and to be a part of this program, it's amazing. Jeff Corwin: So what we have to remember is that these bears are no longer in control in the way their head is angled, their airway has opened or closed, and we have to constantly be vigilant to make sure these creatures aren't overheating, aren't stressed and are sleeping safe and sound. The team carefully records the cubs' temperatures, heart rate and size, what we call biometrics. Finally, it's time to give these cubs a small tag on each ear so they can be identified in the future... We've hit our character limit. Please leave us a comment for the rest of the transcript.

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Episode drops March 26, 2021: https://ccl.podbean.com/e/ccr-ep-58-how-to-keep-your-cool-on-a-warming-planet-with-dr-krista-hiser-and-sarah-jaquette-ray/ If you are feeling up, down, or somewhere in

Episode drops March 26, 2021: https://ccl.podbean.com/e/ccr-ep-58-how-to-keep-your-cool-on-a-warming-planet-with-dr-krista-hiser-and-sarah-jaquette-ray/ If you are feeling up, down, or somewhere in between, by the time you finish this episode, you will feel encouraged in the great work you are doing. Dr. Krista Hiser is teaches at Kapiʻolani Community College and is currently serving as the Director of the Center for Sustainability Across the Curriculum for the University of Hawaii. Her research uses focus groups, interviews, and reflective writing to learn more about student and faculty perspectives on climate change and sustainability. To share their research findings, she and her colleague Matthew K. Lynch co-wrote the paper, Worry and Hope: What College Students Know, Think, Feel, and Do about Climate Change. It appears in the Journal for Community Engagement and Scholarship. This study is being replicated at universities in the USA and reveals how students are feeling about climate change and where they are learning about it. With this data, Kr. Hiser leads workshops to help faculty expand their teaching strategies in order to help students manage complex emotions related to our climate predicament. Dr. Hiser has published on community engagement, service-learning, organizational change, post-apocalyptic and cli-fi literature. She is also the author of Field Notes: Teaching Climate Change in Higher Education, a blog available through medium.com The Art House Sarah Jaquette Ray is a professor of environmental studies, a writer, and a mom. She doesn’t necessarily see herself as an artist. In taking on climate change though, she recognizes the essential role of the arts. On Earth Day 2020, in the midst of an urgent Coronavirus pandemic, she published a book that is helping people navigate their strong feelings about climate change. A Field Guide to Climate Anxiety: How to Keep Your Cool on a Warming Planet, provides practical insights and proven techniques for keeping focused on pursuing solutions for a complicated and challenging topic. With warmth, humor, and expertise, Sarah Jaquette Ray will help you better know how to stay engaged without becoming overwhelmed. Host Peterson Toscano says, “Reading Sarah’s book, I saw how the concepts she covers are not just helpful for students in high school and college. They also are questions and issues artists who are engaged in climate work consider all time. For storytellers, Sarah suggests we adjust the lens of how we look at climate stories. Telling the stories that will have the most impact takes real work.” Good News Report Dr. Anthony Leiserowitz from Yale Climate Connections shares some good news in addressing a long history of injustice. He chats with Cate Mingoya of Groundwork USA, a network of environmental justice organizations. In order to fight inequality in their neighborhoods, some city residents are using maps to reveal what they have known for a long time. They show how racist housing policies of the past have left residents more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change today. Mingoya says the maps show how the impacts of redlining persist, and provide an important tool for local residents, “to sit down with their local government, with elected officials, with leaders in their community and say, ‘You need to explain why this is still the case and you need to explain what you’re going to do to make things look a little bit different.’” If you have good news to share, leave a voice mail at 518.595.9414. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.) Dig Deeper • Kent University Anthropology and Conversation Blog Post: “We must be kind to ourselves and respond rather than react to climate change” – Responding mindfully to eco-anxiety • CCR Episode 23 Mental Health and Climate Change with Dr. Natasha DeJarnett and Dr. Lise Van Susteren • Resilience Hub found at CCL Community provides opportunities for building personal and chapter resilience that supports purposeful action on climate. We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a voice mail at 518.595.9414. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.) You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.

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In this talk Kashamala talks about how Climate Change will pick the winners and losers of tomorrow Kashmala Kakakhel has over 14 years of experience of working with governments and development

In this talk Kashamala talks about how Climate Change will pick the winners and losers of tomorrow Kashmala Kakakhel has over 14 years of experience of working with governments and development partners in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Malawi, Kenya, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan. Her core competence lies in international policy on climate finance – ensuring it is in line with the needs and requirements of the developing countries, and works with developing countries to design projects for which funding can be secured from international climate funds. Since 2016, Kashmala is the official Advisor to Pakistan’s representative to the Board of the Green Climate Fund. For 2020, she served as the Lead Co-Chair Advisor as Pakistan was elected Co-Chair to the Board to represent over 130 countries of developing countries. She supported the successful conclusion of the term by approving 37 projects in over 40 countries, worth US$ 2.1billion. Kashmala also led the negotiations to update the Fund’s Strategic Plan, approved in November 2020. This plan will aid the Fund in programming US$ 8 billion over the next 3 years. During her role as the Country Programme Manager of Climate Development and Knowledge Network (CDKN), a programme of DFID UK from 2010 - 2015, she led the development of the South Asian component of the £60 million CDKN Strategy and Business Plan 2011-15, focusing on the procurement, policy measures and plans of action required to build local capacity for tackling climate change. Also led the development of the proposal for the successful £40 million extension of the CDKN programme for 2015-17 for Pakistan and Bangladesh. Kashmala directly procured and managed 13 different technical assistance and research projects under CDKN’s Asia strategy worth £10.5 million including 2 in Nepal, 6 in Bangladesh, 4 in Pakistan and 1 in India. These included: supporting the Government of Bangladesh in to access international climate finance; supporting the Governments of Pakistan and Bangladesh to undertake sectoral research to feed into the Nationally Determined Contributions as submissions for the Paris Agreement in 2015; coordinating the development of a Risk Insurance Fund in Pakistan to target more than 20 million individuals at risk from climate change impacts; managing a consortium of four organisations that technically assisted the group of 48 Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to successfully articulate a negotiation position on Loss and Damage from climate change which lead to the UN Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage As an independent consultant, Kashmala has developed a disaster risk insurance product for agriculture and livestock for the microfinance industry in Pakistan, prepared a Disaster Risk Financing strategy to support the operations of the USD 300 million ADB funded National Disaster Risk Management Fund in Pakistan. As external Advisor to McKinsey she was responsible for developing a country level approach to disaster resilience in Pakistan. She also undertook the first critical assessment of the procurement policies of the Green Climate Fund, identifying corruption risks at the national level in Kenya and Mexico. Kashmala also designed National Climate Change Adaptation plans in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Malawi, and Nepal Kashmala has authored a comprehensive research paper on how to quantify economic and non-economic loss and damage from climate change and its potential policy implications on climate finance. Findings have been included in a UNEP report ‘Loss and Damage: The Role of Ecosystem Services’ published May 2016. The paper is also included as a key resource by a UN Technology Mechanism, citing it as the first study of its kind on the global debate around the issue, supplemented with field data and analysis from Pakistan. She has served as Board member of the Climate Action Network from 2015 – 2017, the strongest policy advocacy network of over 1300 organisations. Kashmala writes opinion pieces for national and international news agencies, and is also a TEDx speaker. Kashmala supported the development of key policies on green growth and poverty reduction for PTI’s Party Manifesto, in conjunction with senior party leadership. She now supports the government in delivering on its reform agenda. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

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Episode drops end of May: https://soundcloud.com/citizensclimateradio/ep-60-sovereignty-land-rights-and-climate-change-with-mary-kathryn-nagle-and-jacques-kenjio/ As impacts of climate change affect

Episode drops end of May: https://soundcloud.com/citizensclimateradio/ep-60-sovereignty-land-rights-and-climate-change-with-mary-kathryn-nagle-and-jacques-kenjio/ As impacts of climate change affect the places where we live, conflicts and questions arise. This is what happened to Jacques Kenjio and his family in the costal city of Douala, Cameroon. Although a tribal chief provided them with legal documentation to occupy the land, the government forced them and hundreds of others to leave without providing any compensation. This motivated Jacques to learn about social justice and to pursue higher education in the United States. Jacques Kenjio is a Ph.D. Candidate in environmental studies at Antioch University New England (AUNE) with a focus on two key areas: Government-Driven land dispossession and land policy reform in Sub-Saharan Africa at large, and specifically in his country of birth, Cameroon. His other research interests include: environmental justice and policy (especially climate change policy), multi-stakeholder participatory processes, social justice and community building. In looking for ways to get involved in the climate movement, he stumbled upon Citizens Climate Lobby. At first he could not believe citizens were able to approach lawmakers and their staffs directly. This type of access just does not happen in Cameroon. In addition to taking part in CCL activities in the USA, Jacques is now active in Citizens Climate International in supporting CCL volunteers in French speaking African countries. Jacques reveals the challenges CCLers in many African countries face in part because of the daily challenges that come from poverty, underemployment, and political instability. He also tells us the moving story of Bunyui John Njabi, a CCL volunteer who was killed because of political unrest in Cameroon. In addition to his work wtih CCL Bunyui John Njabi sang original songs about climate change and environmental justice. His song and music video Water Time Bomb and highlights the urgent need to address water shortages and pollution. You will hear the song in this episode. The Art House Mary Kathryn Nagle is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation. She is also a partner at Pipestem and Nagle Law, P.C., where she works to protect tribal sovereignty and the inherent right of Indian Nations to protect their women and children from domestic violence and sexual assault. She is also a successful playwright who has been using the stage to raise awareness about land sovereignty issues and the epidemic violence against women. From 2015 to 2019, she served as the first Executive Director of the Yale Indigenous Performing Arts Program. Nagle is an alum of the 2013 Public Theater Emerging Writers Program. Productions include Miss Lead (Amerinda, 59E59), Fairly Traceable (Native Voices at the Autry), Sovereignty (Arena Stage), Manahatta (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Return to Niobrara (Rose Theater), and Crossing Mnisose (Portland Center Stage), Sovereignty (Marin Theatre Company), and Manahatta (Yale Repertory Theatre). She has received commissions from Arena Stage, the Rose Theater (Omaha, Nebraska), Portland Center Stage, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Yale Repertory Theatre, Round House Theater, and Oregon Shakespeare Theater. Many thanks to CCL volunteer Melissa Giusti for introducing me to Mary Kathryn Nagle. We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a voice mail at 518.595.9414. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.) You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.

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Episode drops end of May: https://soundcloud.com/citizensclimateradio/ep-60-sovereignty-land-rights-and-climate-change-with-mary-kathryn-nagle-and-jacques-kenjio/ As impacts of climate change affect

Episode drops end of May: https://soundcloud.com/citizensclimateradio/ep-60-sovereignty-land-rights-and-climate-change-with-mary-kathryn-nagle-and-jacques-kenjio/ As impacts of climate change affect the places where we live, conflicts and questions arise. This is what happened to Jacques Kenjio and his family in the costal city of Douala, Cameroon. Although a tribal chief provided them with legal documentation to occupy the land, the government forced them and hundreds of others to leave without providing any compensation. This motivated Jacques to learn about social justice and to pursue higher education in the United States. Jacques Kenjio is a Ph.D. Candidate in environmental studies at Antioch University New England (AUNE) with a focus on two key areas: Government-Driven land dispossession and land policy reform in Sub-Saharan Africa at large, and specifically in his country of birth, Cameroon. His other research interests include: environmental justice and policy (especially climate change policy), multi-stakeholder participatory processes, social justice and community building. In looking for ways to get involved in the climate movement, he stumbled upon Citizens Climate Lobby. At first he could not believe citizens were able to approach lawmakers and their staffs directly. This type of access just does not happen in Cameroon. In addition to taking part in CCL activities in the USA, Jacques is now active in Citizens Climate International in supporting CCL volunteers in French speaking African countries. Jacques reveals the challenges CCLers in many African countries face in part because of the daily challenges that come from poverty, underemployment, and political instability. He also tells us the moving story of Bunyui John Njabi, a CCL volunteer who was killed because of political unrest in Cameroon. In addition to his work wtih CCL Bunyui John Njabi sang original songs about climate change and environmental justice. His song and music video Water Time Bomb and highlights the urgent need to address water shortages and pollution. You will hear the song in this episode. The Art House Mary Kathryn Nagle is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation. She is also a partner at Pipestem and Nagle Law, P.C., where she works to protect tribal sovereignty and the inherent right of Indian Nations to protect their women and children from domestic violence and sexual assault. She is also a successful playwright who has been using the stage to raise awareness about land sovereignty issues and the epidemic violence against women. From 2015 to 2019, she served as the first Executive Director of the Yale Indigenous Performing Arts Program. Nagle is an alum of the 2013 Public Theater Emerging Writers Program. Productions include Miss Lead (Amerinda, 59E59), Fairly Traceable (Native Voices at the Autry), Sovereignty (Arena Stage), Manahatta (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Return to Niobrara (Rose Theater), and Crossing Mnisose (Portland Center Stage), Sovereignty (Marin Theatre Company), and Manahatta (Yale Repertory Theatre). She has received commissions from Arena Stage, the Rose Theater (Omaha, Nebraska), Portland Center Stage, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Yale Repertory Theatre, Round House Theater, and Oregon Shakespeare Theater. Many thanks to CCL volunteer Melissa Giusti for introducing me to Mary Kathryn Nagle. We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a voice mail at 518.595.9414. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.) You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.

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Geothermal energy production releases less carbon emissions than a coal power plant, but it is far from benign. In this video I report from the site of the proposed "Baltazor" geothermal energy

Geothermal energy production releases less carbon emissions than a coal power plant, but it is far from benign. In this video I report from the site of the proposed "Baltazor" geothermal energy project in northeastern Nevada, west of Denio. In my book "Bright Green Lies," myself and my co-authors explain some of the issues. Here's an excerpt: ---- "In Kenya, geothermal energy development is destroying a national park, where more than 90 new geothermal wells were drilled between 2014 and 2017, meaning more roads were punched across the park and more habitat was destroyed or fragmented. Maasai people have been violently evicted en masse. [Geothermal] drilling releases mercury, arsenic, and boron into groundwater. And water for drilling wells—about 8 million gallons per month, a number expected to rise sharply—is taken from a local lake which is part of a wetland of international importance. ... Geothermal drilling in Nevada is threatening a newly discovered toad species, the Dixie Valley toad. Its habitat, which measures only about four square miles, would be obliterated by a proposed geothermal power expansion. Another example: Iceland is volcanically active, and the country has become a center of geothermal-energy-harvesting facility construction. This industrialization is pushed relentlessly by bright greens, corporate green organizations and foundations, mining interests, climate activists, and pretty much everyone else who cares more about industry than life on the planet. This construction has been opposed by local environmentalists, who call it “geothermal ecocide.” The group Saving Iceland writes that “the exploitation of the Reykjanes peninsula’s geothermal areas spells the end of this magnificent nature of the peninsula as we know it. Test drilling and boreholes, endless roads and power lines, power plants and other infrastructure; all this would turn the Reykjanes peninsula—this unique land of natural volcanic wonders ... into a large industrial zone. But these are only the very visible impacts of the planned large-scale exploitation. Other environmental catastrophes are in fact inevitable with large-scale geothermal industry, becoming increasingly visible to the public as the green reputation of geothermal energy slowly decreases.” ... Geothermal facilities are also directly linked to pollution in Iceland. Between 1999 and 2012, levels of sulfur dioxide rose 71 percent in the Reykjavik area due mainly to geothermal plants. This is causing acid rain and respiratory conditions, and worsening heart problems. Elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide from geothermal-energy-harvesting facilities have also been linked to higher death rates. Geothermal waste fluid, which contains “high concentrations of heavy metals and other toxic elements including radon, arsenic, mercury, ammonia, and boron,” has been released into groundwater. Iceland is currently planning or building at least 21 major geothermal-energy-harvesting facilities, some of them in the highlands, the largest wilderness in Europe. The technology for drilling geothermal wells was developed primarily by the oil and gas industry. Geothermal brine injection shares many techniques and problems with fracking. In fact, a relatively new technology called “enhanced geothermal systems” (EGS) borrows fracking technology directly, using the same method of injecting high-pressure slurries to fracture subterranean rock formations. The only difference is that fracking releases gas, while EGS releases superheated water and steam. Like fracking for gas, geothermal fracking poisons groundwater and causes earthquakes. And like fracking for gas, geothermal fracking typically uses a wide range of toxic chemicals. At one site in Oregon, these include naphthalene, safranin, rhodamine, lithium, cesium, rubidium, fluorescein, plastics, and any number of trade-secret compounds. This technology is already used in Nevada, Oregon, Australia, Europe, and elsewhere." ---- #Greenwashing #BrightGreenLies #Geothermal #Ecocide #Waste #Overconsumption More about the Baltazor project: https://www.blm.gov/press-release/humboldt-river-field-office-publish-final-environmental-assessment-baltazor More about the book Bright Green Lies: https://www.maxwilbert.org/books/

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Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic Alaskan adventure to help save some of North America’s most impressive feathered flyers. Jeff begins exploring the old-growth Tongass National Forest and learns how

Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic Alaskan adventure to help save some of North America’s most impressive feathered flyers. Jeff begins exploring the old-growth Tongass National Forest and learns how this ancient ecosystem has shaped the many birds that call it home. Later, Jeff visits the Alaska Raptor Center where he meets iconic bald eagles, beautiful great blue herons, lightning-quick goshawks, and helps rehabilitated birds return to the wild. Video Transcript: Jeff Corwin: Hey there, friends. I'm Jeff Corwin and welcome to what is going to be an awesome adventure today on Wildlife Nation. We are exploring one of the great wild frontiers in North America. Of course, I'm talking about Alaska, and to help launch our incredible journey, I'm  with Flash. Flash is a goshawk. And this is Pat. Pat works with Defenders of Wildlife. And Pat, I thought it'd be kind of fun to introduce this adventure with Flash, because this bird has a connection to this ecosystem. Patrick Lavin: Indeed, this bird thrives in this ecosystem, Jeff, and only in this ecosystem, in old-growth  forest, just as we have surrounding us here. Jeff Corwin: What's incredible about the goshawk is they are just superb predators. Their ability to negotiate and navigate through a bramble and tangle of branches is unmatched in the world of raptors. And Pat, this forest where we're standing is unmatched when it comes to national forests, isn't it? Patrick Lavin: That's the Tongass National Forest. It's by far our nation's largest forest and largest intact temperate rain forest in North America. Jeff Corwin: There are many classic celebrated Alaskan species that survive because of this forest. Patrick Lavin: For species like goshawks, wolves, bears, Sitka black-tailed deer. Jeff Corwin: Salmon. Patrick Lavin: Yes, all of these species depend on our keeping the old-growth forest intact. Jeff Corwin: It's lush. It's verdant, it's filled with life. But when it comes to issues like climate change, it's also critically important, isn't it? Patrick Lavin: Forests sequesters carbon, pulls carbon from the atmosphere, stores it in the trees and soil that you see here and does that better than almost any other landscape. So if you can keep the forest intact, allow it to continue serving that function, that's actually a natural carbon mitigation, a  natural solution. We've done a lot of logging in the past in the Tongass and it's removed a lot of habitat for species like the goshawk. Jeff Corwin: But the great news is that there are still millions of acres of Tongass National Forest. So I can't think of a better way for us to launch our incredible Alaskan adventure with Flash, the goshawk at my side. It's a little clue of the great adventure to come. Jeff Corwin: Goshawks belong to an incredibly powerful predatory group of birds known as raptors. These amazing airborne animals come in many shapes and sizes, but for today's adventure, we're connecting with one of the most iconic of them all, the bald eagle. Bald eagles are sea eagles that feed on fish, but also a variety of other forms of prey. They're one of North America's largest birds of prey. They build massive nests and they can live for decades. Jeff Corwin: This morning, we're visiting the world-renowned Alaska Raptor Center to help return a young bald eagle named Diesel back to the wild. Dr. V: This could be a challenge. Jeff Corwin: Why? Dr. V: The bird's up there. Jeff Corwin: Diesel was rescued and brought to the Raptor Center a few months ago after being hit by a car. But today, Diesel has recovered and this bald eagle is ready to fly. Dr. V: The goal is to get the eagle in a corner. We're going to have to move fast. Jeff Corwin: In order to get Diesel back into the wild, first we'll need to capture him. Jeff Corwin: All right. Dr. V: I'm going to have you... Actually don't throw your blanket, but let's just flick it and see. Jeff Corwin: See if we can get him to go down. Dr. V: That's all we needed. Jeff Corwin: Yeah. Dr. V: All right. It's good. You've got your... All right. We're going to move in slowly. Block its exit over there. There you go. Good. Jeff Corwin: There we go. Dr. V: Okay. What have you got? Okay. Are you going to let go? Nope. I am going to give this bird to you, but I want you to keep it really low because her head isn't covered. Jeff Corwin: Okay. Dr. V: So I'm going to keep a hold of things. Jeff Corwin: Yeah, I got them. Jeff Corwin: It will take a few more years for Diesel's feathers to develop the iconic white crown of adult bald eagles. Jeff Corwin: So what do you want to do to kind of keep the stress level down? Dr. V: Once we take away the visual stimulus on this bird, it's going to calm down. Jeff Corwin: So Diesel came to the Raptor Center in early summer. Diesel had a run in with an automobile. Dr. V: Yes. We've hit our character count. Leave us a comment for the rest of the transcript.

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We need sustainable space tech. One solution - bees? Watch the newest video from Big Think: https://bigth.ink/NewVideo Learn skills from the world's top minds at Big Think Edge:

We need sustainable space tech. One solution - bees? Watch the newest video from Big Think: https://bigth.ink/NewVideo Learn skills from the world's top minds at Big Think Edge: https://bigth.ink/Edge ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The objects humans send to space teach us a lot about the universe, but they are also cluttering it up. While some objects are close enough to be retrieved, others become dangerous, fast-moving bullets that can cause serious damage. In addition to cleaning up what's already there, MIT Assistant Professor Danielle Wood says that we need to think more sustainably about the technology used in future missions. "We have to ask the question, will we respect the rights of people and the environment as we go forward in space," Wood says. One possible solution is a wax-based fuel source (made of beeswax and candle wax) for satellites that would be less toxic and more affordable than currently used inorganic compounds, and that would help bring the objects closer to Earth for deorbiting and destruction. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DANIELLE WOOD: Professor Danielle Wood serves as an Assistant Professor in the Program in Media Arts & Sciences and holds a joint appointment in the Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Within the Media Lab, Prof. Wood leads the Space Enabled Research Group which seeks to advance justice in Earth's complex systems using designs enabled by space. Prof. Wood is a scholar of societal development with a background that includes satellite design, earth science applications, systems engineering, and technology policy. In her research, Prof. Wood applies these skills to design innovative systems that harness space technology to address development challenges around the world. Prior to serving as faculty at MIT, Professor Wood held positions at NASA Headquarters, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Aerospace Corporation, Johns Hopkins University, and the United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs. Prof. Wood studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she earned a PhD in engineering systems, SM in aeronautics and astronautics, SM in technology policy, and SB in aerospace engineering. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRANSCRIPT: DANIELLE WOOD: If you think about the view we have of the Earth from satellites, we're able to observe the oceans, the atmosphere, changes in the land. We have amazing views of the global changes. Traditionally, the goal has been to build satellites to last as long as possible, and to make sure they have all the technology to operate in the dangerous environment of space. Everything in space is going very fast. Astronauts who travel on the Space Station, they're traveling about 17,500 miles per hour. Because everything in space is traveling so fast, even when small objects hit each other, it means that they're likely to have a very dangerous collision. Very small objects have hit parts of the Space Station. And even a very small fleck of paint, or a lens cap that was dropped off a satellite can cause major damage, because everything's moving so quickly. Now the challenge is, in just about 50 or 60 years, we've produced industrial waste in space. Just a few countries have played a key role in both putting up these major satellites, but also testing to see if they can destroy their own satellite in orbit. This created space debris. Sustainability is about whether or not we create and manage waste. One of the ideas we have to consider is what do we do with the satellite when it finishes its life, its mission? The reality is, we have sustainability challenges on Earth and in space today, we need to look at them as a set of common related problems. We have to ask the question, will we respect the rights of people and the environment as we go forward in space? When we launch satellites and rockets to space, we're often carrying really expensive goods and systems, basically robots, that operate in space for maybe a decade or so. And the goal has been, because launch has been so expensive, to try to not launch a new thing until the old one is just replaced. Now, the challenge we have is to say what do you do with the old one? Sometimes the satellites are low enough to the Earth that they can actually be brought back down safely, and they actually enter the atmosphere. They're going so fast, they burn up, and generally that's a safer way to destroy them. But some satellites are operating pretty far away from the Earth. There's an area called the geostationary belt. It's about 36,000 kilometers away from the surface of the Earth. We have a whole ring of old trash satellites that are operating just a little beyond this very useful... To read the full transcript, please visit https://bigthink.com/videos/sustainable-space-tech

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Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic adventure to the stunning coast of California to connect with the giants of the sea: elephant seals. Jeff works alongside conservationists fighting to protect

Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic adventure to the stunning coast of California to connect with the giants of the sea: elephant seals. Jeff works alongside conservationists fighting to protect elephant seal habitats, collects important data on elephant seal migration, and helps ensure the next generation of pups are thriving. Jeff learns about the powerful connection between elephant seal mothers and babies and discovers new information about their time in the open ocean. Later, Jeff works to bring three rescued sea lions back to their homes in the wild. Video Transcript: Jeff Corwin: Today, we're on the coast of the Pacific ocean, near Los Angeles, California, helping conservationists save pinnipeds. Pinnipeds are the group of thin footed aquatic mammals that include seals, sea lions, fur seals, and walruses. Unfortunately, climate change, over fishing, and habitat laws have led to their decline. And other threats like fishing gear entanglements and ingesting plastic are on the rise. Thankfully, places like the Marine Mammal Care Center and organizations like Defenders of Wildlife are fighting to protect and rescue pinnipeds in trouble. This devoted team has given over 8,000 animals, a second chance at survival by providing critical medical treatment. I'm meeting up with hospital director, Dr. Lauren Palmer and Andy Johnson from Defenders of Wildlife. Jeff Corwin: So we have these four characters right here. These are California sea lion pups. Why are they here? What happened? Dr. Lauren Palmer: Well, these animals came in as malnourished pups a couple of months ago. One of these animals consumed this plastic bag. Fortunately, it didn't cause an obstruction. Jeff Corwin: Andy, plastics are a big obstacle to the survival of many animals, including sea lions. Andrew Johnson: They are. I mean, there's so much plastic in the ocean. And when these animals come across it, some of these animals might be starving. They'll ingest it. When these plastics are out there, they degrade in the ocean. The microplastics get into the food of the animal. So even if they don't ingest a bag, they're ingesting fish that has plastic in it. Jeff Corwin: This is a completely solvable problem, isn't it? Andrew Johnson: It's solvable, but we have to reduce our use of plastics, but it's a huge problem that it'll take a long time to fix. Jeff Corwin: But Andy, plastic trash is just one part of the challenge, isn't it? Andrew Johnson: Probably the biggest problem is climate change, so the warming of the oceans changes where the food that these animals need to survive goes. They have to travel farther to find it. And sometimes they starve. And that's why a lot of these animals are here. Jeff Corwin: But the good news, these four rambunctious, little pups were rescued. They're looking like they're ready to go. It's promising that freedom awaits, but we've got to do a little bit of an assessment. Dr. Lauren Palmer: We need to tag them and weigh them, get them out the door. Jeff Corwin: Andy I assist Dr. Palmer hurting these California sea line pumps into a squeeze box. This enclosure keeps the sea line stable and safe without having to anesthetize them. These pups get a quick weight before they're each given a flipper tag. Andrew Johnson: So with sea otters, we use a lot of different types of tags to identify the animal. What's the purpose of these tags with the sea lines? Dr. Lauren Palmer: Well, these tags provide a visual identification. And if the animal is sighted again at another location, then we can keep track of that. We know how far the animal has gone and went. Gives us an idea how well they do Jeff Corwin: These pups are looking healthy. Now it's time for the ultimate payoff. These four pups are going home. Jeff Corwin: Dr. Palmer, this moment right now, what we're about to do, this is what it's all about, isn't it? Dr. Lauren Palmer: It really is. It's a culmination of all the work we do. It's a culmination of the rescue, the rehabilitation, getting the animal better and returning them to their natural home. Jeff Corwin: So Andy, for you, your whole career has been about the conservation of marine mammals. What's this moment mean for you? Andrew Johnson: It's really important to provide actual care for these guys and get them back in the wild. They're extremely important to their ecosystem in the wild. They tell us a lot about that system and how healthy it is. We spend a lot of time doing science, doing all sorts of things, but these opportunities don't come along too often where we can help animals out, get them back in the wild. That's a really good story. Jeff Corwin: It never gets old to see creatures that were on the brink of survival, get a second chance. There ain't no going back there, buddy. Go on. Dr. Lauren Palmer: We're going to go... There you go. There you go. We've hit our character limit. Leave a comment for the rest of the transcript.

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