Freshman U.S. Representative Yassamin Ansari, a Democrat representing Arizona’s 3rd district, puts climate at the top of her priority list. She joins Host Steve Curwood to reflect on her work with the UN on the Paris Climate Accord, discuss how extreme heat is affecting her constituents, and preview her climate aims in Congress.

In a landmark 6 to 1 decision, the Montana State Supreme Court upheld a ruling that found young people, and by extension all people in Montana, have a constitutional right to a livable climate that state officials can’t ignore. Vermont Law and Graduate School Emeritus Professor Pat Parenteau explains to Host Steve Curwood how the plaintiffs presented their case and how the ruling could guide litigation in other states.

The African American residents of Shiloh, Alabama whose homes were flooded by a state highway expansion say they are still waiting for the full measure of environmental justice promised by the outgoing Biden Administration. EJ expert Dr. Robert Bullard of Texas Southern University joins Host Steve Curwood to tell the story.

In 2024 the world lost a giant of climate science and eco activism, George Woodwell. Host Steve Curwood remembers this man who advised President Jimmy Carter on climate, helped start major environmental organizations and helped inspire the Living on Earth broadcasts. We return to moments from a conversation Steve Curwood and George Woodwell recorded for the program in 2016 and hear reflections from colleagues who knew him well.

Earth is choked by too much carbon in the atmosphere and running a fever that is only bound to get worse if we fail to restore its balance. Biologist Dr. George Woodwell explains to Host Steve Curwood why soaking up some of that carbon with the help of trees and plants is vitally important to life on Earth as we know it.

Ecologist George Woodwell has decades of research and environmental action under his belt, from documenting the dangers of DDT and climate change to founding the Woods Hole Research Center helping start other key organizations including the Environmental Defense Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the World Resources Institute. His new book, “A World To Live In,” offers a reflection on the dangers of exceeding the planet’s biophysical limits. Speaking with Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood he shared some lessons he has learned about nature and environmental policy.