It was a tense, last minute negotiation but, at the bottom hour, diplomats from the 193 nations who attended the 2010 Convention on Biological Diversity in Nagoya, Japan finally came to an agreement. Jane Smart of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature tells host Bruce Gellerman that the parties agreed to 20 targets to hold off the loss of biodiversity and to pay countries for the use of their resources.

Histronicus histronicus, the North American waterfowl known as the Harlequin, is the only duck of its kind that breeds and eats along fast-flowing rivers and streams. Mary McCann has this BirdNote ® on the Harlequin's unusual behavior.

California will continue to prepare for living with carbon constraints after voters there trounced an oil-funded effort to put its climate change law on ice. The vote signals to businesses and investors that emitting carbon will carry a cost, at least in the state where 12 percent of the nation’s population resides. Host Steve Curwood speaks with longtime climate legislator State Senator Fran Pavley. Then, LOE's Ingrid Lobet gives us a roundup of the results of some of the western governors' races.

Midterm elections swept out a slew of Democratic candidates from the House of Representatives, many of whom had cast controversial votes in favor of last year’s cap-and-trade bill to cut greenhouse gas emissions. LOE’s Washington correspondent Mitra Taj reports on what this year’s election results tell us about popular support for legislating solutions to climate change.

The Caribbean island Aruba is growing at a fast pace. And now a new green movement has emerged to make sure that rapid development doesn't come at the expense of the environment. As producer Pippin Ross reports, the movement was spearheaded by a hotel owner who teamed up with the government to show that being a steward for the environment can be profitable.

Co-hosts Steve Curwood and Bruce Gellerman explore how the mid-term elections changed the playing field for climate change and energy policy. President Obama says he sees potential bipartisan common ground in energy issues. And Rep. Charlie Bass says he’s willing to listen. The New Hampshire Republican rode the electoral wave back into Congress. He tells Steve Curwood how Republicans and Democrats might make progress on clean energy. But a number of the newly elected deny the science supporting man-made climate change. LOE’s Jeff Young reports on the anti-science sentiment among the Republican freshman class, and the fight that’s brewing over the regulation of greenhouse gases.

The House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming was created in 2007 by Democrats who hoped it could stand up to challenges to climate change solutions. Now, with Republicans regaining control of the House, the committee is likely to fold. We'll hear two opinions - one from David Kreutzer of the conservative Heritage Foundation, the other from longtime environmentalist John Passacantando - on the legacy of the committee.