Midday

If you turn on your local public radio this week, you are likely to hear stories about Americans working on solutions to the myriad of problems presented by human-induced climate change. The theme of this NPR's Climate Solutions Week this year is, "the future of food."

Today on Midday, we talk to Marylanders working to forge a sustainable paths through the climate crisis, with an eye to how, and what, we eat.

Dr. Keryn Gedan, an associate professor of Biology at George Washington University, researches the changing environment of the Chesapeake Bay, where rising sea levels and increased salinity is posing significant challenges to marine ecosystems and the region's farmlands. How can alternative crops, like native grasses, help farms stay afloat?

Christopher Dipnarine is Executive Director and Founder of 4MyCity, a Baltimore-based organization focused on food waste. The nonprofit seeks to redistribute unused food to residents in need, while turning other food waste into compost.

Dr. Jose-Luis Izursa is Senior Lecturer and Academic Advisor at the University of Maryland Department of Environmental Science and Technology. He is researching sustainable alternatives for growing food, combining aquaculture and hydroponics.

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David Rubenstein joins Midday to discuss his latest book The Highest Calling: Conversations on the American Presidency. Rubenstein is the majority owner of The Baltimore Orioles and Co-Founder of The Carlyle Group.

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Summer is wrapping up, were box offices able to make up for low returns earlier in the season? Plus, we dig into a pair of comedies, the return of Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and Between the Temples. Program guests are Jed Dietz, the founding director of the Maryland Film Festival, and Max Weiss, film critic and Editor-in-Chief of Baltimore Magazine.

(Photo Courtesy Warner Bros.) 

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Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins Midday to look ahead to the next year of exciting local productions.

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CJay Philip, the founder and artistic director of Dance & Bmore, won the 2024 Tony Award for excellence in theater education. This weekend she spearheads the Waterfront Partnership's Baltimore by Baltimore festival.

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The signs summer is ending; school is back in session, the birds return from migration and WTMD presents the final First Thursday Festival of the year.

Tyler LaPorte, afternoon host and Interim Program Director at WTMD and one of the organizers behind First Thursdays. We ask him what festival-goers can expect later today.

The First Thursday Festival begins at 6:00 tonight at the Canton Waterfront Park, just off of Boston Street in Baltimore City.

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Host Tom Hall speaks with Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott about the latest in City Hall, including a safety review of the Department of Public Works and governance of opioid settlements.

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Presidential power is on the ballot this year, according to University of Baltimore law professor Kim Wehle.

In her new book, Pardon Power: How The Pardon System Works And Why, the legal scholar writes about the history of the president's pardon and the potential future abuse of the executive power. The pardon could be exponentially more grave in light of the Supreme Court’s July 1, 2024, ruling granting presidents immunity from criminal prosecution in the exercise of their official duties.

Wehle is a member of the faculty of the University of Baltimore School of Law, and a legal commentator for ABC News. She is also the creator behind the Simple Politics Substack.

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Tom's guest is Mary Jo Salter, a Professor Emerita in the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University. She has published nine volumes of poetry and has written essays, lyrics, and children’s books. This year, she’s been chosen as the guest editor of an anthology of verse called The Best American Poetry 2024. 

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On this September edition of Healthwatch, Tom and Dr. Leana Wen discuss leadership of the Baltimore City Health Department, governance of the city's opioid settlements, the reoccurrence of West Nile virus and challenges for asthmatics.

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