Viewpoints Radio
Award-winning reporting on current issues featuring America's leading experts.
Gold mining has been a lucrative business for many generations. Today, it’s still a booming industry with global mining companies expanding into new markets each year. This week – we highlight the incredible story of activists in northern El Salvador who stood up to mining company, OceanaGold and won.
It seems like lately almost everyone is heading to the airport. Whether you’re flying, driving or taking a train, vacations are a highly anticipated time to get away from everyday life. Everyone deserves relaxation, but is there a way to make sure that you’re traveling more consciously? Are you booking excursions with local, independent companies? Supporting …
Lake Mead, the reservoir created by the Hoover Dam, is at its lowest levels ever recorded. Drought is not a new problem in the West, but it is getting worse as the years go by. What’s being done to curb water consumption and increase supply so people’s taps don’t run dry?
The average clothing item today is worn anywhere from seven to ten times before it’s discarded on donated. Why is this number so low, and what happens once the garment leaves a person’s closet? Maxine Bedat, a prominent voice in sustainable fashion, joins us this week to shed some light on the clothing crisis and how its impacting workers and the …
In the U.S., most Americans commonly use vegetable or olive oil when cooking. While we don’t often here about palm oil, it’s in many of the products that we buy at the grocery store, including everything from food to personal care products. And abroad, palm oil is widely used in cooking and frying. Last year, global consumption reached 72 million tons. …
Many people are worried that non-native plants and animals are invading the U.S. and preventing native species from thriving. Each year, a lot of money and time is spent trying to rid the land of these aliens - often to no avail. But, are these species present because they’re the only ones that can exist in that environment?
How often do you buy an item from the store that’s packaged in a plastic container or wrapped in plastic? Daily decisions like these add up and are feeding into the global plastic crisis. Scientists estimate that there’s anywhere between nine to 16 million tons of plastic on the sea floor, polluting the environment, harming species and releasing harmful …
Despite the pandemic, carbon emissions are at an all-time high, topping records over the past 3.6 million years. For years, scientists have warned of humans approaching a critical tipping point of global warming – and it’s here. Sustainability scientist Dr. Kimberly Nicholas joins Viewpoints this week to break down the current climate landscape and explain …
Over the last two decades, Arctic melt has increased by about 60 percent. It’s estimated that if all of the glaciers and ice caps were to disappear into the ocean, sea level would rise by 230 feet, wiping out all of the coastal cities and town around the globe. Journalist and author, Andrea Pitzer shares the history of Arctic exploration and how the …
With billions across the world staying home right now due to coronavirus, air pollution in many major cities has cleared making way for blue skies and new views of nature. This week, Viewpoints speaks with journalist and author Thomas Kostigen about the role of geoengineering in tackling another approaching global crisis: climate change.
Cheetahs are the fastest of all land animals – they can reach speeds of up to 70 mph in short bursts. Despite their speed and hunting ability, cheetahs are endangered in Africa and Asia, and don’t breed especially well in captivity. In Africa, they can attack livestock herds for food, and that puts them in danger from the subsistence farmers who need to …
Are invasive species present because they’re the only ones that can thrive in an area? Are they multiplying because of something bad we’re injecting into their environment? Are these aliens actually helping nature create a diverse and robust environment? And are those so-called native species of plants and animals really native? Our guests have some …
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