In the Weeds

In the second of my “socially distanced” episodes, I talk to geologist Marcia Bjornerud at her home in Wisconsin, who says that the coronavirus pandemic is a reminder that, throughout all of geologic time, microbes have been in charge. We talk about viruses, what odd entities they are, the curious role they have played in evolution, and we muse over the possible long-term effects of the dramatic changes to our lives and culture this virus has wrought.

In a series of short episodes, I check in with previous guests to see what they are up to under stay-at-home orders and to find out what they have to say about the pandemic. 

In the first of these "socially distanced" chats, I talk to entomologist Doug Tallamy who tells us that the biologists saw this coming due to the problems of overpopulation and crowding in cities. Look at what happens when you have too many caterpillars in a container, he tells me.

We also talk about the possible benefits of more time at home, including, in Tallamy's case, catching up on gardening and tuning into the natural world. He also recommends the use of apps such as iNaturalist and Bug Guide which can help you identify creatures you find on walks or in your own garden.

The word “apocalyptic” pops up in conversation a lot these days, at a time when fiction and reality seem to be blurring. In the first episode of a series on the apocalyptic and what it reveals about how we feel about what’s happening to the natural world, I talk to the world-renowned theologian Bernard McGinn about the origins of the “apocalyptic imagination” and how fundamental it is both to Christianity and to narrative in Western culture.

Gardening and observing the natural world may offer us solace during this time of worry and confinement. So I bring you my latest interview with entomologist Doug Tallamy, who has been teaching many of us about the need to garden with native plants in order to feed insects, especially pollinators, and preserve all of the "ecosystem services" that we humans, along with other animals, need to survive.

Tallamy's latest book, Nature's Best Hope, introduces the idea of a Homegrown National Park comprised of all of our gardens and private spaces stitched together to form corridors of wilderness all across the United States. It's a bold vision and a call to action in which all of us can take a part. 

He also offers new tips and insights about how to make parks and gardens wilderness-friendly that may give you ideas of projects to take on while we keep a safe distance from other humans but are free to tune in to the lives of other creatures.

Nick Kaplinsky, Chair of Biology at Swarthmore College, and I discuss Nina Fedoroff's book Mendel in the Kitchen, on the genetic modification of food, going back the earliest domestication of crops such as wheat and corn, to foods currently labeled as “GMOs.” Kaplinsky surprises me with the statement that opposition to GMOs on the left ressembles climate change denial on the right. What is at the heart of this claim? To better understand genetically-modified foods, you have to delve into the science, which, Kaplinsky points out, very few of us have the education to properly understand, and you have to look at the complex picture of agriculture today and what is at stake both in the U.S. and in countries such as India and Bangladesh, where a genetically-modified form of rice known as “golden rice” could alleviate the devastating effects of vitamin A deficiency for those who subsist primarily on rice.

How do baby birds learn their songs? Why does a female bird want a mate who knows his neighborhood songs? What impact does bird migration have on the 9/11 memorial “Tribute in Light”? These are some of the many fascinating issues that come up in my discussion with Alan Clark of Fordham University, a biologist and expert in bird vocalizations, whose career was inspired by the experience of falling in love at-first-sight with penguins he met during a research fellowship in New Zealand.

We go down the rabbit hole of how clothes are made and contemplate the hidden social and environmental costs of fashion with Amy Hall, VP of Social Consciousness for the fashion brand Eileen Fisher, as our guide. When you return to the surface, you're likely to look at your clothes in a whole new way!

More more info go to in-the-weeds.net

Listen to some giggly girls tell about the camp where they took old clothes, cut, patched and sewed them into new ones, flippy, sparkly....OMG. 

A little morsel of podcast to tide you over while I'm busy tending to our new puppy Coco and juggling kids and the general slobber of family life. 

Coming up... my interview with Amy Hall, VP of Social Consciousness for Eileen Fisher on fashion and the social and environmental cost of our clothes.

More more info go to in-the-weeds.net

In “Laudato si,” known as the Encyclical on the Environment, Pope Francis presents an “urgent challenge” to protect our “common home,” the Earth. I discuss this letter addressed not just to Catholics but to all people, with Christiana Zenner, Associate Professor of Theology, Science and Ethics in the Department of Theology at Fordham University. We talk about Pope Francis’ folding together of his concern for the environment and for the lives of the poor; his framing of the issues in a language of ethics and spirituality and much more. For a link to the full text of the Encyclical and other episode notes, go to in-the-weeds.net.

Using heat-sensitive cameras and radio collars, Gotham Coyote Project tracks coyotes, as they make a life for themselves in the Bronx, in parks and a golf course and, occasionally, show up in Central Park or trotting along the West Side Highway. This amazingly resilient animal challenges our understanding where “nature” resides and gives us a blueprint for how we might welcome wilderness into our suburbs and our cities.