President Trump is ending U.S. participation in the Paris climate Agreement, but more than 1,000 U.S. governors, mayors, businesses, and universities say “Not so fast”. Their “We Are Still In” declaration pledges that subnational jurisdictions and private enterprise will act to meet the US commitments to the Paris agreement. Former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s top climate aide Carl Pope tells host Steve Curwood why this coalition expects to succeed.

With President Trump walking back U.S. climate change mitigation efforts, including the Paris Climate agreement, a coalition of U.S. cities, states, and businesses representing more than half of the U.S. economy promises to continue reducing emissions. Host Steve Curwood describes the launch of America’s Pledge at the UN climate talks in Bonn, Germany, as we hear from key leaders in this commitment, including former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and California Governor Jerry Brown.

Peter Dykstra returns to discuss with host Steve Curwood news of the severe air pollution that blankets India’s capital Delhi, and the exit of a major coal mining company from the coal business. In this week’s edition of Beyond the Headlines, they also turn the pages of the history calendar back 75 years to find Enrico Fermi working beneath an old football grandstand to produce the first self-sustained atomic chain reaction.

Some birds are downright gorgeous, and as BirdNote’s Mary McCann explains, few are quite as beautiful and exotic as New Guinea’s Birds of Paradise.

As delegates thrashed out details on how to count emissions cuts accurately, and map the next steps forward, America’s Pledge made a big splash in Bonn at the 23rd Climate Conference of the Parties, COP 23. Host Steve Curwood catches up with Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists, who says that financing continues to cause friction between donor countries and developing nations.

Environmental lawyers are claiming in court that land, rivers, and other natural features should own themselves rather than being considered property, much like the law already treats corporations as ‘persons.’ The case for treating elements of nature as legal ‘persons’ is outlined in the book, Rights of Nature: A Legal Revolution That Could Change the World by environmental lawyer David Boyd. In a conversation with Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood he explained how this approach can go a long way to protecting critical ecosystems from human exploitation and destruction.

In a move promoted by President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Alaska has signed an agreement with China to build an 800-mile natural gas pipeline, but economic hurdles cloud its construction. Alaska Dispatch Reporter Alex Demarban tells Host Steve Curwood what the $43 billion project could mean for Alaska.