Natasha Trethewey is the new U.S. Poet Laureate. Trethewey, a professor of English at Emory University, first read her poem “Monument” on Living on Earth in 2010. We present her poem and also hear about what inspires her to write verse.

The average bird regales us with song more than a thousand times a day. Michael Stein reports on the frequency of bird song.

When environmental advocate Laura Turner Seydel found out that her family’s blood was full of toxic chemicals, she decided to take action. Turner Seydel tells Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood about her participation in the first intergenerational toxic body burden test and the changes she made to lessen her family’s exposure to chemicals.

Within a generation climate change will increase the frequency of wild fires across most of the globe. Katharine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist at Texas Tech University, used satellite images and climate models to forecast the spread of wildfire. She tells host Bruce Gellerman that hotter temperatures, drought and changing rain patterns will increase wildfire on 80 percent of the planet.

Business is booming for mass transit but for some cities it could be the end of the line. Host Bruce Gellerman finds Boston public transportation facing fare hikes and service cuts.

Dams are coming down across the United States, giving new life to river ecosystems. John Catena supervises National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Northeast restoration team. He tells host Bruce Gellerman that dam removal not only clears the way for migrating fish, but also helps improve local communities.

An unusual collaboration has led to a deal that will remove two dams on the largest river in Maine. As Living on Earth’s Bobby Bascomb reports, the Penobscot River dam removals will not only benefit native fish, but also the hydroelectric utility.

The race is on for oil and minerals under the melting Arctic ice. But the U.S. is still not on board with the Law of the Sea, the UN treaty on who gets access to ocean resources. Living on Earth’s Jeff Young talks with Sen. John Kerry about his effort to get the U.S. to ratify the Law of the Sea.