When Paula Whyman started trying to rehabilitate 200 acres she'd just bought, she knew very little about conservation. Among many other challenges, she faced off with mile-a-minute vine and rattlesnakes, but, with self-effacing humor and passion for this corner of the Blue Ridge Mountains, she persisted (and still persists!) in restoring the land to a healthy equilibrium.

Guest: Paula Whyman, author of "Bad Naturalist: One Woman’s Ecological Education on a Wild Virginia Mountaintop"

Find Paula Whyman online: https://paulawhyman.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paulawhymanauthor/?hl=en

Use the power of retreat and meditation to ease the stress of our frenetic lifestyle. From decades of friendship with the Dalai Lama, Pico Iyer has learned the value of sacred silence.

Guest: Pico Iyer, author of "Aflame: Learning from Silence"

Explore Pico Iyer's work: https://picoiyerjourneys.com/#about

If snorkeling seems like something you can only do on a tropical vacation, think again. In this podcast episode, we meet a river snorkeling guide who encourages us to stick our heads in the water, right in our local streams and rivers. Keith Williams thinks you'll be amazed at the aquatic life you'll see there. Tune in to Constant Wonder and get hooked with some amazing fish tales.

Guest: Keith Williams, author of "Snorkeling Rivers and Streams: An Aquatic Guide to Underwater Discovery and Adventure" and guide at Freshwater Journeys

Read more snorkeling stories by Keith at https://blog.nature.org/author/keith-williams/

Originally aired on January 25, 2023

After waking from a coma with devastating brain damage, Samina Ali relearns to walk and speak alongside her newborn son.

Guest: Samina Ali, author of "Pieces You'll Never Get Back: A Memoir of Unlikely Survival"

Find Samina Ali online: https://saminaali.net/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samina.ali.writer/?hl=en

When Chloe Dalton starts caring for a newborn hare, the line between "indoors" and "outdoors" blurs—inviting her to explore the natural world that she previously took for granted.

Guest: Chloe Dalton, author of "Raising Hare: A Memoir"

Visit Cloe Dalton online: https://www.chloedalton.uk/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chloedaltonuk/?hl=en

© The British Library; Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en; BYU Broadcasting does not claim ownership in the wildlife sounds provided by The British Library obtained at https://bit.ly/4ipDIU8; no changes made

From rural oddity to New York Times writer, Wilson Bentley's singular devotion to snow and desire to share it with others changed snow science forever.

Guests: Wayne Howe, former president of the Jericho Historical Society; Kenneth Libbrecht, professor of physics at the California Institute of Technology; Anna and Juniper of Jericho, VT; Seth of Provo, UT. Special thanks to Rod Gustafson for voicing Wilson Bentley.

Want to learn more? Check out the Jericho Historical Society! https://www.jerichohistoricalsociety.org/

Photo courtesy of snowflakebentley.com

Clint Edwards' hilarious honesty gives encouragement to those struggling with mental health challenges. Facing off his anxiety

with humor and hope, he learns to raise his a family of his own after growing up at odds with his parents.

Guest: Clint Edwards, blogger and author of "Anxiously Ever After: An Honest Memoir on Mental Illness, Strained Relationships, and Embracing the Struggle"

Visit Clint Edwards online to see more of his work:

Substack blog: https://clintedwards.substack.com/about

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noideadaddyblog/?hl=en

X/Twitter: https://x.com/byclintedwards?lang=en

Originally Aired on February 8, 2023

When Korean adoptee Sara Jones went looking for her birth family, she wondered if a strange tattoo given to her in childhood could unlock any secrets. Adopted into an American family at age three, Jones found much success here in America, becoming an attorney and CEO. It wasn't until her own kids started asking questions that she decided to search for her birth family. And she started her search with that mysterious tattoo.

Guest: Sara Jones, CEO of InclusionPro, Board Member of The (Utah) State Workforce Development Board, Board of Trustees for Intermountain Salt Lake Valley Hospitals, Co-Founder of Women Tech Council.

Visit Sara Jones on Instagram to learn more: https://www.instagram.com/saradansiejones/?hl=en

Originally aired on October 26, 2022

A norm-shattering young White female doctor joins Black paramedics in 1970s Pittsburgh. And, meet the graceful but determined Black paramedic who provided unheralded leadership in spite of racism from patients and superiors.

Guests:

Kevin Hazzard, author of "American Sirens: The Incredible Story of the Black Men Who Became America's First Paramedics"

John Moon, former paramedic at Freedom House and former Assistant Chief, City of Pittsburgh EMS

Visit Kevin Hazzard online to learn more about his writing and research:

Main website: https://www.kevinhazzard.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goes_by_hazzard/?hl=en

X/Twitter: https://x.com/goes_by_hazzard

Photo Credit: Harvard University, Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America

Originally aired on September 28, 2022.

Before 1966, if you needed transport to the hospital, authorities might send a police car, or even a hearse. That year, Pittsburgh's non-profit Freedom House set out to change that for the city's predominately Black Hill District. Staffed by trained Black men, their ambulance service served as a model for newly emerging paramedic services around the country.

Guests:

Kevin Hazzard, author of "American Sirens: The Incredible Story of the Black Men Who Became America's First Paramedics"

John Moon, paramedic at Freedom House and former Assistant Chief, City of Pittsburgh EMS

Visit Kevin Hazzard online to learn more about his writing and research:

Main website: https://www.kevinhazzard.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goes_by_hazzard/?hl=en

X/Twitter: https://x.com/goes_by_hazzard

Photo Credit: Heinz History Center

Originally aired on September 21, 2022.