Radio Curious

Click here to begin listening

On the eastern slope of the Continental Divide, about an hour’s drive east of San Jose, Costa Rica, is the Rain Forest Aerial Tram, a tramway that travels through, above and below the rain forest canopy. The rain forest canopy is home to more diverse forms of flora and fauna than anywhere else in the known universe. Rodolfo Gomez, trained as an architect, has found his calling as a tour guide in Central America and specifically Costa Rica. My daughter Molly and I met with Rodolfo in the rain forest, near the aerial tram and recorded this program in April of 1995.

Originally Broadcast: June 20, 1995

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

Life Above the Jungle Floor
In the middle of the Costa Rican rain forest, about an hour west of San Jose, Costa Rica, on the east side of the continental divide, you can find the Rain Forest Aerial Tram located on a private rain forest reserve. It’s a series of small, open-air cars that hold about five people each held together by a three kilometers long cable. The tramcars carry visitors through, above and below this portion of the Central American rainforest canopy. The Rain Forest Aerial Tram was the brainchild of Dr. Donald Perry, a biologist trained at the University of California at Los Angeles, who, beginning in 1970, has specialized in the study of the flora and fauna of the Central American Rainforest. In April of 1995, I visited the Rain Forest Aerial Tram with Dr. Perry.

Dr. Donald Perry recommends “Life Above the Jungle Floor,” by Dr. David Perry.

Originally Broadcast: April 1, 1995

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

Until the mid-1990s, the Redwood Industry dominated much of North Coast economy. In the mid-1990s, due to a number of circumstances particularly involving Pacific Lumber Company and Charles Hurwitz, industry advocates collided with environmentalists in a final hurrah. Few figures among the environmentalists carry as much name-recognition and power as did Judi Bari. In this program, recorded in March of 1995 at the height of the conflict, Judi Bari and I discussed the position of Earth First!

Judi Bari recommends “J. Edgar Hoover,” by Kurt Gentry.

Originally Broadcast: March 27, 1995

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

The late Professor Alberto Kattan, a Professor of Law at Buenos Aires University and one of the foremost litigators of environmental issues in Argentina, is my guest on this archive edition of Radio Curious. In our conversation originally broadcast in March 1993, we discussed the future of the penguins that he was and endeavoring to protect, dolphins, the use of 245T, and problems with the tobacco industry in Argentina.

Originally Broadcast: March 7, 1993

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

My guest in this program is Sam La Budde, a catalyst, if not the catalyst, in getting dolphins out of tuna nets. He has been an activist with the Earth Island Institute and a number of other organizations. In this conversation, we discussed the history of the dolphins, endangered species in Taiwan, and a potential economic boycott of redwood lumber. This program was originally broadcast in September of 1992, when Radio Curious was called Government, Politics and Ideas.

Originally Broadcast: September 14, 1992

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

Mushrooms-What they are, how to locate them and how to cook them is the topic of this edition of Radio Curious.

Our guest is Chef Chad Hyatt, who after leaving a ten year career as an engineer realized that cooking was this true passion, and became a classically trained chef.  As part of this transformation he focused on mushrooms and sought out new techniques and traditional ethnic recipes from all over the world to apply to mushrooms.

Chad Hyatt, is the author of “The Mushroom Hunter’s Kitchen.” This book provides over 100 easy to follow detailed mushroom recipes, some of which we discuss in this interview.  And for that reason you might want to be prepared to take notes of some of Hyatt’s comments.

The Mendocino Coast Mushroom Club will present a Mushroom Delight Dinner at the Caspar Community Center on Saturday, November 10, 2018.  Chef Chad Hyatt will be in charge.  For further information go to mendocinocoastmushroomclub.org.

When Chef Chad Hyatt and I visited by phone on October 28, 2018, from his home in Santa Clara County, California, we discussed mushrooms, what they are, how to cook them and how to safely forage wild mushrooms.  We began our conversation with a focus on general details of cooking, and started when I asked him to expound on the opening sentence in his book, “Great food is all about the details.”

The book Chad Hyatt recommends is “Homage to Catalonia,” by George Orwell, based on Orwell’s experience in Spain during the Spanish Civil War.

This program was recorded on October 28, 2018.

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

Guy R. McPherson, Professor Emeritus of Natural Resources, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Arizona, is our guest in this second of a two part series about abrupt climate change. In part one, podcasted at radiocurious.org, we considered the existing circumstances likely to bring about abrupt climate change, in particular, the total melt of the polar ice caps. This would result in the polar sea water absorbing heat from the sun rather than reflecting it, raising ocean temperatures and shutting off our “planetary air-conditioner.”
These consequences could make Mother Earth grossly inhospitable to human habitation potentially shut down our ability to grow grain and other crops we depend on for food. Without food readily available, well, I’ll leave that to your imagination.
Here in part two of our conversation with Professor McPherson we further discuss this pending potential catastrophe and how we may each personally be able to relate to it.
Guy McPherson and I visited by phone on August 12, 2018, and began with his comments of what could occur after the global temperatures preclude the ability to grow grains, the other foods upon which we rely and the resulting reduction of industrial activity. Finally in this visit we discuss how, in the wake of grimness, joy may be created, along with other options.
Additional information about abrupt climate change may be found in the following four links
President of Finland talking to Trump; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDSrGfdjdxA,
President of Finland in north Russia https://finlandtoday.fi/president-niinisto-in-north-russia-if-we-lose-the-arctic-we-lose-the-world/,
Human extinction by 2026 http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/50050.htm
This program was recorded on August 12, 2018.

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

Drastic consequences to life as we know it, here on Mother Earth are the topics of this, the first of a two part series on abrupt climate change. Once again we visit with Guy McPherson, a Professor Emeritus of Natural Resources, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Arizona.

McPherson discusses how global warming is affecting climate change. He explains the physics of what will occur when the polar ice cap has melted ending its ability to reflect the heat of the sun. Instead the heat of the sun will be absorbed by the world’s oceans. McPherson predicts that could well occur by 2022 or sooner, causing the temperature of the oceans to increase.  McPherson argues that this temperature will result in the loss of the “planetary air-conditioner” and the loss of habitat for human species.

Professor Guy McPherson and I visited by phone while he was on a speaking tour, on August 12, 2018.  We began our conversation when I asked his to describe the current state of climate change, now in 2018.

Professor Guy McPherson’s website is: https://guymcpherson.com/

Information about abrupt climate change may be found here, as explained by the President of Finland to the President of the United States: https://finlandtoday.fi/president-niinisto-in-north-russia-if-we-lose-the-arctic-we-lose-the-world/
Additional information can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDSrGfdjdxA, and here from the National Academies: https://nas-sites.org/arctic-interactive/images/Arctic_Matters-booklet.pdf

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)

Click here to begin listening

In 1990 Earth First activists from Mendocino County were on a road trip to rally support for a summer effort to help protect old growth redwoods in northern California. For years prior logging practices took well over 90% of the original redwood growth in the area. Darryl Cherney and Judi Bari, the organizers were in their car in Oakland, California, May 1990 when a bomb exploded underneath the driver’s seat where Judi Bari sat.

She and Darryl Cherney were immediately arrested suspected of bombing themselves. Although charges were never filed against the two, authorities have yet to locate the bombers. Darryl Cherney and Judi Bari sued and won a jury award of four million dollars against the Oakland Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for violating their 1st and 4th amendment rights.

The film, “Who Bombed Judi Bari?” produced by Darryl Cherney, attempts to answer the question posed in the title and examines their struggle with law enforcement in finding the real bomber and chronicles the history of the local environmental movement here, in Northern California.

Christina Aanestad, the Radio Curious assistant producer spoke with Darryl Cherney about the film he produced and his experiences resulting from the bombing. They visited on March 29, 2011, at the studios of KMEC radio, inside the Mendocino Environmental Center, a hub for social and environmental movements, including Earth First! They began when Christina asked Darryl Cherney to describe the attempted assassination against him and Judi Bari.

The website for Darryl Cherney’s film is www.whobombedjudibari.com.

The book he recommends is, “The Alphabet Versus the Goddess” by Alan Shlain.

Podcast: Download

• » Comments (0)