Stop saving the planet!

Historian, author, and urban park ranger Jenny Price makes her case for throwing out the well-tread “save the planet” mantra in favor of a new environmental approach stemming from social justice, a re-contextualization of nature, and even satire.  In particular, she explains the beauty she finds in recognizing the nature of the concrete Los Angeles river.  As she wraps up, Jenny discusses how her satirical approach to environmentalism has gotten her into trouble involving a hit man.

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Filed under environmental history, environmental narratives, social justice

Extremophiles of the Anthropocene

If we’re looking for how life will respond to rapid environmental changes, we should probably look to bacteria adapted to live in extreme environments – what scientists call extremophiles.  Astrobiologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch examines the Anthropocene with thought experiments of bacteria throughout the solar system, using scientific principles documented on Earth.  He discusses known extremophiles, certain problems posed by asteroid impacts, and the importance of keeping an open mind when analyzing evolutionary trajectories on Earth.

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Filed under apocalypse, biology, evolution, extinction, planetary science

Chasing Ice

Director Jeff Orlowski takes us behind the scenes of his widely praised documentary Chasing Ice, which captured stunning time lapse images of retreating and melting glaciers.  He discusses the public reaction to his film, what it’s like working in harsh Arctic conditions, and his emotions witnessing firsthand glaciers the size of Manhattan fracturing and falling into the oceans.

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Filed under climate change, film, sea level rise

Ecocriticism & the collision of environment and faith

Literary ecocritic George Handley discusses how literature ranging from sacred texts like the Bible to Charles Dickens to Twilight shape our perceptions of environmental morality.  He also discusses the influences of the Mormon faith on his environmental ethics, and why he feels “a Christian obligation to listen very carefully to science,” including climate change, evolution, and geologic time.

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Filed under climate change, environmental narratives, religion