The National Science Foundation has announced it will begin removing most of the Ocean Observatories Initiative, a collection of roughly 900 instruments in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans that gathers fixed-point data on temperature, carbon dioxide levels, and more. The move is part of a broader trend within the current administration to shelve climate science research and reporting.

Also, today the Agora and Acropolis of Athens, Delphi on Mount Parnassus, and other Greek archaeological sites preserve not only cultural heritage, but also animal and plant species, including some that were around in ancient times and are described in historical accounts and Greek mythology.

And the indigenous residents of Bougainville island in Papua New Guinea say their home used to provide them with everything they needed—shelter, fertile land, and clean water. That is until a copper and gold mine run by British-Australian company Rio Tinto set up shop and operated in the 1970s and 80s. Today, heavy metals like copper sulfate and cadmium still pollute waterways, and Theonila Roka Matbob, the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize Winner for Islands and Island Nations, has been fighting for years to pressure Rio Tinto into taking full responsibility for remediating this damage.

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Save the date and sign up for the next virtual Living on Earth Book Club event on July 14 at 5 pm PDT / 8 pm EDT! We’ll talk with Yurok activist and attorney Amy Bowers Cordalis about how multiple generations of her family have advocated for the protection of Northern California’s Klamath River, a crucial habitat for salmon and the lifeblood of the Yurok tribe. Her book is The Water Remembers: My Indigenous Family’s Fight to Save a River and a Way of Life. You can sign up for this free event at loe.org/events.

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More than two-thirds of U.N. members recently voted in favor of a resolution affirming a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice that countries have a legal obligation to limit global warming. While this advisory opinion is not enforceable, it will likely be cited in lawsuits and appeals as a fact in the fight against climate disruption.

Also, the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup will mostly take place during the North American summer, and the prospect of extreme heat prompted a group of current and former players to write an open letter to FIFA calling for better protection of players.

And the Utah desert with its raw beauty has long been a muse for writer Terry Tempest Williams. In her 2026 book, The Glorians:Visitations from the Holy Ordinary, she explores miraculous moments of grace that call for our attention, even in spaces that may at first seem unremarkable. Terry joined us for an online Living on Earth Book Club event.

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Find photos, transcripts, links to more information about these stories, and much more at the Living on Earth website, loe dot org!

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Living near more large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs may raise cancer risk, according to a study from Yale researchers. With thousands of cows, pigs, or chickens packed in small spaces, CAFOs produce a lot of waste that pollutes air and water, which may explain the cancer association, though the study does not prove causation. 

Also, 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. 

And 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. 

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Find photos, transcripts, links to more information about these stories, and much more at the Living on Earth website, loe dot org!

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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.

Also, as China rapidly builds out renewable energy, it’s using some of that clean energy to power industrial activities like making aluminum, which is in high demand from data center and electrification projects. China produces 60% of the world’s aluminum, and smelting the metal uses massive amounts of electricity.

Plus, 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

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Find photos, transcripts, links to more information about these stories, and much more at the Living on Earth website, loe dot org!

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A new “coalition of the willing” to transition away from fossil fuels recently gathered in Colombia, born in part out of frustration over fossil fuel friendly nations like the US, Russia, China, and Saudi Arabia stalling the longtime UN climate process.

Also, the indie-pop band AJR is known for its high-energy anthems and along with growing their fan base of mostly young adults, they’re growing the climate movement. AJR bassist Adam Met joins us to talk about engaging fans to sign petitions, join local groups and, most importantly, vote.

And the recipient of the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for Asia is South Korean activist Borim Kim. She and her organization, Youth 4 Climate Action, sued the South Korean government on the grounds that it was putting future generations at risk. And in August of 2024, they won a historic decision at the South Korean Constitutional Court, making this case the first successful youth-driven climate litigation in Asia.

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Find photos, transcripts, links to more information about these stories, and much more at the Living on Earth website, loe dot org!

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The US Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments for Monsanto v. Durnell, a case about whether states can require warning labels on pesticides if the EPA does not. This stems from thousands of lawsuits against Roundup maker Monsanto, alleging that farmers and landscapers who developed cancer weren’t warned of the risks. Though the World Health organization has classified glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup, as “probably carcinogenic”, the EPA has not found glyphosate can cause cancer.

Also, the US-Israel joint war against Iran has shaken global energy markets, closed the Strait of Hormuz and restricted the flow of oil and natural gas worldwide. It's the latest of conflicts over Iranian oil, though for the first time the growing emergence of fossil free energy sources is prompting visions of ending our decades of dependence on oil, with its pollution and inevitable wars.

And in 2001, a Canadian mining company proposed a massive gold and copper mine at the headwaters of pristine Bristol Bay, Alaska. Local Native Alaskans became concerned about how the mine could harm their plentiful sockeye salmon run, a cultural and economic lifeblood. Alannah Acaq Hurley, Executive Director of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay, helped lead the fight against the mine and was awarded the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for North America.

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The US Senate recently voted to reverse a moratorium on mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, a million acres on the US-Canada border that’s teeming with wildlife and crystal-clear waters. The region is also rich in valuable copper, nickel, and cobalt, but Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) says mining in the same watershed as the Boundary Waters poses unacceptable risks.

Also, while electrifying transportation is essential to addressing the climate crisis, the mining of nickel, copper, and lithium required to build out these green technologies brings its own environmental and social costs. To understand these impacts, author and political scientist Thea Riofrancos traveled to the Atacama Desert in Chile, home to one of the largest lithium reserves in the world. She discusses her book, Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism.

And Nigerian conservation ecologist Iroro Tanshi rediscovered the short-tailed roundleaf bat in 2016, after decades when it was believed extinct in the region. The species is still critically endangered, with habitat loss from wildfires as one of its top threats. So Iroro joined with local groups to start a community-led program to develop safer field burning practices and wildfire fighting strategies, and she is the recipient of the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize for Africa.

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Did you miss our online event with Dr. Hannah Ritchie and Host Steve Curwood discussing Clearing the Air? You can watch the full recording on our website at loe.org/events!

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The first Earth Day in 1970, when some 20 million people peacefully demonstrated, arrived amid Vietnam War protests and other social unrest. And it came not long after the Apollo 8 astronauts snapped the iconic “Earthrise” photo that showed all of us were on a single, fragile planet amid the blackness of space. In this moment when humans have finally returned to the Moon after decades, we reflect on the movement that led to that first Earth Day and how the world has changed.

Also, the four astronauts of the Artemis II mission that safely splashed down on April 10 made new scientific observations that are helping to expand our knowledge of the Moon, as well as the Earth itself. Artemis II Lunar Science Lead Kelsey Young joins us to talk about the scientific goals and accomplishments of the mission and the unforgettable moments the crew shared with people back on Earth.

And climate solutions like renewable energy tech that requires intensive mining can run into skepticism from people across the political spectrum. But according to data scientist Hannah Ritchie, many of the concerns are based on partial- and misinformation, and the outlook for addressing the climate emergency isn’t as grim as some people may think. Ritchie is the author of Clearing the Air: A Hopeful Guide to Solving Climate Change in 50 Questions and Answers.

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Did you miss our online event with Dr. Hannah Ritchie and Host Steve Curwood discussing Clearing the Air? You can watch the full recording on our website at loe.org/events!

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About two thirds of the US-Mexico border is along the Rio Grande, and the Trump Administration is working to install hundreds of miles of buoy barriers in the river. Now residents of border towns are raising the alarm over how these buoys could impact wildlife, restrict access to the river and sever cultural ties.

Also, news media outlets are retreating from covering climate change, according to the Media and Climate Change Observatory at the University of Colorado Boulder, which has been tracking this trend for decades. They report that since a peak in 2021, climate news stories across the globe have dropped nearly 40 percent.

And the poems in Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s new book Night Owl offer a window into the magic of nature at night and a light in the darkness. She shares selected poems from the collection and talks about how poetry can help us grapple with ecological loss and celebrate natural wonders alike.

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Interested in gaining hands-on experience with producing a radio show and podcast?

Apply to be a Living on Earth intern this summer! We’re now accepting applications and to learn more, go to loe.org/about.

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The astronauts of the Artemis II mission are prospecting for a planned base on the moon, the first lunar expedition since 1972. The crew includes the first woman, the first person of color, and first Canadian to travel to the Moon. Danny Olivas, an engineer and retired NASA astronaut, talks about the mission objectives and challenges, why it faced delays and what sets the Artemis program apart from the Apollo visits to the moon of more than 50 years ago.

Also, a panel known as the “God Squad”, consisting mostly of Trump cabinet members, recently voted to exempt the oil and gas industry operating in the Gulf of Mexico from the Endangered Species Act. If courts do not intervene, this decision would waive the standard ESA requirements to protect endangered species including the Rice’s whale, of which there are only a few dozen left.

And the City Nature Challenge is an international contest known as a bioblitz: a brief, intensive survey of biological diversity over a set area and time. A few years back we met up with the Boston BioBlitz Initiative for Girls during a trip to Thompson Island in Boston Harbor, where a group of teens practiced their observational skills for the competition. And you can participate in this year’s bioblitz.

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Interested in in gaining hands-on experience with producing a radio show and podcast? Apply to be a Living on Earth intern this summer! We’re now accepting applications and to learn more, go to loe.org/about.

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