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Cancer and CAFOS
Living near many large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs appears to raise cancer risk, according to a study from Yale researchers. CAFOs pack thousands of pigs, cows, and chickens together to produce meat, dairy, and eggs. All those crowded animals can produce a lot of waste that pollutes air and water, which may explain an association between CAFOs and cancer, though the study does not prove causation.
Baby Right Whales Bring Hope
North Atlantic Right whales were once so thoroughly hunted they nearly went extinct. When hunting these mammals was outlawed, they slowly started to bounce back, but today Right whales are dealing with newer deadly threats, such as fishing gear entanglement and warming in the Gulf of Maine. So, it’s a relief to advocates to have a successful calving season like this year with 23 new calves, the most since 2009.
Indigenous Wisdom in Science
In accounts of scientific expeditions into the remotest parts of our world, indigenous people can often be depicted as mere backdrop—part of a quote “exotic” landscape, or at best, helpful sidekicks. But for Dr. Rosa Espinoza, a Peruvian chemical biologist and conservationist, the traditional knowledge and worldviews of indigenous people could be the key to unlocking some of nature’s greatest mysteries, if scientists are willing to listen—and collaborate. Her 2025 book is called The Spirit of the Rainforest: How Indigenous Wisdom and Scientific Curiosity Reconnects Us to the Natural World.
Blocking New UK Oil and Gas
Great Britain is Europe’s third largest oil and gas producer, even with a commitment to a net-zero economy by 2050. A small group of climate activists is helping the UK meet that target by winning a Supreme Court decision that’s blocking any new UK oil and gas projects that don’t assess climate impacts. Sarah Finch of Surrey, near London led the fight against proposed oil and gas drilling in the region known as the Weald, and she’s been recognized with the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for Europe.
White House Accuses NCAR of "Climate Alarmism"
The federally funded National Center for Atmospheric Research, or NCAR, in Boulder, Colorado has been a leading agency for decades assessing the risks and possible responses to the changing climate. But in November, the Trump administration declared it was dismantling NCAR, citing its contribution to what the administration calls “climate alarmism.” We talk about the role of NCAR and why its parent organization has filed a lawsuit alleging a “campaign of retaliation against the State of Colorado.”
The Quest for Green Steel
Just outside of Chicago, the country’s largest complex of steel mills faces an uncertain future. Air pollution, climate change and the preservation of union jobs are affecting the industry, as are the Trump administration’s stances on coal, steel, and tariffs. The Allegheny Front’s Reid Frazier reports on efforts to get big steelmakers in the region to switch from coal to natural gas or hydrogen, but overhauling existing infrastructure isn’t easy or cheap.
Elephant Elder Wisdom
Elephants are social animals like us and pass down to their young knowledge and skills crucial to living a successful life. Researchers have found that elephant youths conduct themselves differently if they were raised without elders. Orphaned elephants have been seen struggling to integrate into broader social groups and inaccurately assessing threats from predators.
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Celebrating 30 years of Living on Earth!
Host Steve Curwood in the Living on Earth studio
Cancer and CAFOS
Living near many large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs appears to raise cancer risk, according to a study from Yale researchers. CAFOs pack thousands of pigs, cows, and chickens together to produce meat, dairy, and eggs. All those crowded animals can produce a lot of waste that pollutes air and water, which may explain an association between CAFOs and cancer, though the study does not prove causation.
Baby Right Whales Bring Hope
North Atlantic Right whales were once so thoroughly hunted they nearly went extinct. When hunting these mammals was outlawed, they slowly started to bounce back, but today Right whales are dealing with newer deadly threats, such as fishing gear entanglement and warming in the Gulf of Maine. So, it’s a relief to advocates to have a successful calving season like this year with 23 new calves, the most since 2009.
Indigenous Wisdom in Science
In accounts of scientific expeditions into the remotest parts of our world, indigenous people can often be depicted as mere backdrop—part of a quote “exotic” landscape, or at best, helpful sidekicks. But for Dr. Rosa Espinoza, a Peruvian chemical biologist and conservationist, the traditional knowledge and worldviews of indigenous people could be the key to unlocking some of nature’s greatest mysteries, if scientists are willing to listen—and collaborate. Her 2025 book is called The Spirit of the Rainforest: How Indigenous Wisdom and Scientific Curiosity Reconnects Us to the Natural World.
This Week’s Show
May 22, 2026
listen / download
Cancer and CAFOS
listen / download
Living near many large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs appears to raise cancer risk, according to a study from Yale researchers. CAFOs pack thousands of pigs, cows, and chickens together to produce meat, dairy, and eggs. All those crowded animals can produce a lot of waste that pollutes air and water, which may explain an association between CAFOs and cancer, though the study does not prove causation.
Baby Right Whales Bring Hope
listen / download
North Atlantic Right whales were once so thoroughly hunted they nearly went extinct. When hunting these mammals was outlawed, they slowly started to bounce back, but today Right whales are dealing with newer deadly threats, such as fishing gear entanglement and warming in the Gulf of Maine. So, it’s a relief to advocates to have a successful calving season like this year with 23 new calves, the most since 2009.
Spring "Bursts" Forth
listen / download
Springtime in the northern hemisphere brings many migrating birds returning from their winter havens, in a series of slowly breaking waves that sweep up from the south to the north. BirdNote’s Mary McCann reports.
Indigenous Wisdom in Science
listen / download
In accounts of scientific expeditions into the remotest parts of our world, indigenous people can often be depicted as mere backdrop—part of a quote “exotic” landscape, or at best, helpful sidekicks. But for Dr. Rosa Espinoza, a Peruvian chemical biologist and conservationist, the traditional knowledge and worldviews of indigenous people could be the key to unlocking some of nature’s greatest mysteries, if scientists are willing to listen—and collaborate. Her 2025 book is called The Spirit of the Rainforest: How Indigenous Wisdom and Scientific Curiosity Reconnects Us to the Natural World.
Special Features
Field Note: "After the Storm"
Living on Earth's Explorer-in-Residence, Mark Seth Lender, ruminates on the storm as it meets the shore.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes
Field Note: "Countermeasures"
Living on Earth's Explorer-in-Residence, Mark Seth Lender, shares observations about shorebirds in flight.
Blog Series: Mark Seth Lender Field Notes
...Ultimately, if we are going prevent large parts of this Earth from becoming not only inhospitable but uninhabitable in our lifetimes, we are going to have to keep some fossil fuels in the ground rather than burn them...
-- President Barack Obama, November 6, 2015 on why he declined to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline.
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