The Most Important Question

How Saving Salamanders Could Save Us All

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In every flood scarred bend of an Appalachian river sits a chance to rebuild something stronger, cleaner water for people, and room for a 160 million-year salamander to thrive again.

Hurricane-shaped chaos is unveiling a surprising truth when we restore stream banks, fund green storm water projects, and protect keystone species like the Eastern Hellbender, we don't just rescue wildlife, we buffer towns and farms and drinking water intakes against the next big storm. The same fixes that help a snot otter bounce back can future-proof entire communities like yours and mine.

So what can I do to turn the washed-out creeks and budget cuts into a cleaner, more resilient future?

my guest today is Jackie Flynn Mogensen, senior reporter at Mother Jones.

Jackie embedded with conservation biologists after Hurricane Helene and uncovered how saving an ancient salamander could safeguard our waterways and our towns for decades to come.

Stick around and you'll discover practical ways to turn today's river wreckage into tomorrow's resilience.

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INI Book Club:

  • Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet by Ben Goldfarb

  • Find all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-club

    • Links:

    • Read Jackie's Mother Jones Eastern Hellbenders article https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2025/04/endangered-species-salamander-hurricane-helene-eastern-hellbender-bog-turtle/

    • Learn how to build a rain garden https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2023/01/rain-garden-resources-water-flooding/

    • Follow Jackie and keep up with her reporting https://x.com/jackiefmogensen?lang=en

    • Rain Garden app https://coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tools/rain-garden.html

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      • Produced by Willow Beck

      • Intro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.com

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