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It's been more than half a century since the publication of Silent Spring by the scientist and creative writer Rachel Carson. The seminal volume caught the attention of U.S. presidents, artists and musicians, spurring the environmental movement and leading to the eventual ban of the toxic pesticide DDT. Joining the Mongabay Newscast is environmental writer and director of the creative writing program at Middlebury College, Megan Mayhew Bergman. She unpacks the impact of Carson's work, which came under public attack from chemical companies seeking to discredit her, and how, eventually, the truth broke through. "We don't change our minds usually based on data. We change our minds based on emotion, but historically, it's been pretty taboo for scientists to include emotion in the way that they write. And I feel like Carson risked that here in a way that was really powerful." Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Image: Megan Mayhew Bergman. Image by Cameron Russell. Environmental writing and authors mentioned in this conversation: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Florida by Lauren Groff The Home Place by J. Drew Lanham Hope Is the Thing With Feathers by Christopher Cokinos How Strange a Season by Megan Mayhew Bergman Silent Spring by Rachel Carson Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald The Wild Flag by E.B. White Zora Neale Hurston Other works and authors mentioned: Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray Men We Reaped by Jasmyn Ward A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid Speak Memory by Vladimir Nabokov —- Timestamps (00:00) Changing hearts and minds (02:46) Rachel Carson's journey to Silent Spring (08:22) Controversy and impact (14:40) Room for a new voice (20:55) Bioaccumulation and what it means (24:07) "We don't change our minds based on data" (26:43) Recommended reads (35:21) The American South and environmental writing (39:57) Lessons for writers

Across Mediterranean Europe, olive groves are in decline from a range of factors, from disease to depopulation. In Italy alone, there are roughly 440 million abandoned olive trees, and the ecological, cultural and socioeconomic impacts from the loss are devastating, explains the latest guest on the Mongabay Newscast. Still, solutions exist to help turn the tide of this under-discussed problem. Federica Romano is the program coordinator and UNESCO Chair on Agricultural Heritage Landscapes at the University of Florence. On this episode of the Mongabay Newscast she discusses the drivers of the degradation and abandonment of olive groves, how ecological factors and human-induced climate change exacerbate these, and the consequences for biodiversity and wildlife in Europe, where olive oil isn't just an economic institution, but also a significant cultural one. "Olive groves hold [a] deep cultural significance that goes far beyond agriculture [and] food production across Europe," she says. "Olive trees have symbolized peace, resilience and continuity through thousands of years, appearing in religious contexts, but also in arts and historical narratives." The Mongabay Newscast is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and previous episodes are also accessible at our website's podcast page. Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Mike DiGirolamo is the host & producer for the Mongabay Newscast based in Sydney. Find him on LinkedIn and Bluesky. ——- Timecodes (00:00) Intro (01:52) The degradation and abandonment of olive groves (03:27) Ecological and cultural importance (07:14) Rural depopulation (11:00) Environmental threats to olive groves (15:32) Solutions and adoption schemes (17:29) Agroforestry and agroecology solutions (24:03) Fake olive oil (25:40) How you can help

Professional drag artist and environmental activist Pattie Gonia has more than 2 million followers on Instagram and has raised $1.2 million for environmental nonprofits by hiking 100 miles, or 160 kilometers, in full drag into San Francisco. She has gained international recognition for using drag artistry to advocate for the environment, in acknowledgment and celebration of hundreds of researchers and scientists in the field who identify as queer. She joins Mongabay's podcast to explain why joy is a fundamental ingredient missing in the environmental advocacy space, how she prioritizes it in her work as a drag performer and activist, and why she feels the environmental movement must prioritize it to succeed. "If we want people to join this movement, we have to make it freaking fun," she says. The Mongabay Newscast is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and previous episodes are also accessible at our website's podcast page. Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Hear our top 10 most listened to podcasts from 2025, here. Image Credit: Pattie Gonia. Image courtesy of Pattie Gonia. —— Timecodes (00:00) Hiking 100 miles in drag for the climate (04:50) The origins of Pattie Gonia (12:53) Looking at science through a lens of humanity (16:38) On drag artistry and nature (21:10) Bridging the gap between culture and nature (26:19) What can we build instead of burn? (35:22) "We have to make it freaking fun"

Judith Enck is a former regional administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, appointed by President Barack Obama, and the founder of Beyond Plastics, an organization dedicated to eradicating plastic pollution worldwide. She joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss how governments can implement policies to turn off the tap on plastic pollution, which harms human health and devastates our ecological systems — solutions she outlines in her new book with co-author Adam Mahoney, The Problem with Plastic: How We Can Save Ourselves and Our Planet Before It's Too Late. "We now have all of this evidence. We have no choice but to act. Because who's going to stand by and let us turn the ocean into a watery landfill? Who's going to stand by and read health study after health study about microplastics in our brains and breast milk and testicles? Not taking action is not an option," she says. Image credit: Judith Enck holding a copy of The Problem with Plastic. Image by Jerrick Mitra ——- Timecodes (00:00) The Problem with plastic (02:55) Unpacking the plastic recycling myth (08:31) Health impacts of plastic pollution (12:43) Government and policy solutions (31:43) Individual actions (37:22) Plastic pollution and wildlife impacts (45:52) Plastics and climate change

Gregg Treinish didn't start out as an outdoor enthusiast, but found solace and purpose in nature during his youth. After years of enjoying the outdoors, he was left feeling a need to give something back to the world. He found fulfillment by using his passion for outdoor adventures to gather critical data that researchers need for conservation and scientific research. That's how his nonprofit organization, Adventure Scientists, came to be. "We harness the collective power of the tens of thousands of people that are outside every day — who love the outdoors and have a passion for exploring the outdoors — and we give them real scientific missions that they can do while they're out there that benefit conservation," Treinish says. The Mongabay Newscast is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and previous episodes are also accessible at our website's podcast page. Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Image Credit: Gregg Treinish in the Oakavango. Photo courtesy of Adventure Scientists ——— Timecodes (00:00) From "at-risk-youth" to conservation professional (19:03) Current initiatives and future plans (26:25) Studying killer whales (29:15) Tracking white bark pine (32:12) Antibiotic resistance research (35:55) Empowering people to make an impact

Mongabay senior editor Philip Jacobson joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss a two-part investigation about how state governments in Brazil have been procuring shark meat — which is high in mercury and arsenic — and serving it to potentially millions of children and citizens via thousands of schools and public institutions. With Mongabay's Karla Mendes and Pulitzer's Kuang Keng Kuek Ser, Jacobson spent a year digging into public databases of government shark meat orders, called tenders.  "It's quite widespread," Jacobson says. "We found shark meat tenders in 10 states and shark meat being served or being procured for more than 500 municipalities." Government nutritionists were also found to be recommending shark meat for school lunches because it has no bones, and even when one school official raised concerns about heavy metal contamination in the meat, her concerns were not heeded. Critics' concerns extend beyond vulnerable populations like schoolkids, too, since shark is also on the menus of public institutions like homeless shelters, maternity wards and elder care centers. But since the investigation was released, one lawmaker has called for a parliamentary hearing to discuss the findings. The Mongabay Newscast is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and previous episodes are also accessible at our website's podcast page. Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Image Credit: A blue shark (Prionace glauca). Image courtesy of Ellen Cuylaerts/Ocean Image Bank. —- Timecodes (00:00) Millions of Brazilians fed shark meat (12:33) Impacts from Mongabay's investigation (24:29) Marine related issues flying under the radar (27:13) Why Phil chose investigative reporting (32:40) The GIJN conference

Bill Gates recently claimed that protecting nature or improving human health is an either-or choice, but former national leaders like Russ Feingold, a retired U.S. Senator, and Mary Robinson, former Ireland President, disagree. As chair of the Global Steering Committee of the Campaign for Nature, a nonprofit organization uniting prominent politicians in support of nature protection, Feingold emphasizes that supporting both nature and people is essential, and that these are not mutually exclusive goals. On this episode of Mongabay's podcast, Feingold discusses the campaign's mission and why he believes nonpartisan conservation efforts are essential. " We need to work as citizens — not as Democrats or Republicans — but as citizens, to say 'Whatever else you think, let's do this together,'" he says. The Mongabay Newscast is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and all previous episodes are accessible at our website's podcast page. Please take a minute to let us know what you think of our podcast, here. Mike DiGirolamo is a host & associate producer for Mongabay based in Sydney. He co-hosts and edits the Mongabay Newscast. Find him on LinkedIn and Bluesky. Image Credit: Former Senator Russ Feingold. Image courtesy of the Campaign for Nature.  —— Timecodes (00:00) Former Senator Russ Feingold (03:48) The Campaign for Nature (08:56) Feingold's connection to nature (14:55) Concerns regarding Indigenous rights in 30x30 (27:13) Thoughts on Bill Gates (29:15) Fighting authoritarianism and oligarchy (33:48) What people can do

Sarah Goodyear, Doug Gordon and Aaron Naparstek realized that no one was discussing the many cultural factors that have played a role in humanity's car dependency, or the negative impacts this reliance on motor vehicles has on human health and the planet. So they started their own show to do exactly that, The War on Cars. Gordon joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss just how human society got here — and how we might get ourselves out of it — which is also the subject of a new book he co-authored with Goodyear and Naparstek, Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves from the Tyranny of the Automobile. "We felt that nobody was really covering the car as this overwhelming determinative force in the life of you as an individual, the life of society and nature, politics, culture, everything," he says. Take a minute to let us know what you think of our audio reporting, which you can do here. The Mongabay Newscast is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, and all previous episodes are accessible at our website's podcast page. Mike DiGirolamo is a host & associate producer for Mongabay based in Sydney. He co-hosts and edits the Mongabay Newscast. Find him on LinkedIn and Bluesky. Image Credit: Cover art for the book 'Life After Cars'. Artwork by Alissa Rose Theodor. Courtesy of Penguin Random House. -------- Timecodes (00:00) The War on Cars (05:48) The unseen impacts of cars (25:30) Imagining 'Life After Cars' (33:42) How to decrease car dependency

Nonette Royo is a lawyer from the Philippines and executive director of The Tenure Facility, a group of "barefoot lawyers" working to secure land tenure for Indigenous, local and Afro-descendant communities across the world. To date, the organization has secured more than $150 million in funding and has made progress in securing land rights covering 34 million hectares (84 million acres) across 35 projects, an area larger than Greece. Royo joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss the organization's success, its recognition as a finalist for the 2025 Earthshot Prize, and why land rights are so crucial both for cultural survival and slowing the pace of global ecological degradation. "This work is really about land tenure, and about land and people. And it is very important because at this point in our world, where we are breaching planetary boundaries, we are still hesitating to invest in the people who protect our land, our forests and our diverse systems," she says. Take a minute to let us know what you think of our audio reporting, which you can do here. The Mongabay Newscast is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify. All previous episodes are accessible on the Mongabay website. Mike DiGirolamo is a host & associate producer for Mongabay based in Sydney. He co-hosts and edits the Mongabay Newscast. Find him on LinkedIn and Bluesky. Banner Image: Women of Masaka embark on cassava cultivation. The plantation areas are located in the heart of the community of Mabaka in the Kwango region. Image by Ley Uwera. Courtesy of The Tenure Facility. ---------- Timecodes (00:00) The 'barefoot lawyers' helping secure land rights (06:28) How the legal system can protect nature and rights (10:29) Challenges and successes (15:36) Better mapping tech is helping (27:16) Goals and progress of the Tenure Facility

Patricia Wright, a pioneering primatologist who established the Centre ValBio research station in Madagascar, began her work there in 1986. As the person who first described the golden bamboo lemur (Hapalemur aureus) to Western science, her contributions led to the creation of Ranomafana National Park, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. She joins the Mongabay Newscast to discuss her conservation breakthroughs and the challenges the island faces during political instability and widespread poverty. Wright has participated in the making of numerous documentaries over the years, including Island of Lemurs: Madagascar, narrated by Morgan Freeman, and recently Ivohiboro: The Lost Forest and Surviving Alone: The Tale of Simone. In this conversation, she describes key findings from the latter two films, including how Ivohiboro, a montane tropical forest surrounded by desert, was unknown to Western science until Wright set foot there in 2016. Films like these are a crucial part of marketing conservation, wildlife and places such as Madagascar, Wright says. "It plays a pivotal role in the public understanding what the real issues are. I think the films [are] very important to get across the idea that there is a biodiversity crisis." Take a minute to let us know what you think of our audio reporting, which you can do here. The Mongabay Newscast is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify. All previous episodes are accessible on the Mongabay website. Image Credit: Diademed Sifaka (Propithecus diadema). Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay. ------- Timecodes (00:00) Madagascar's biodiversity crisis (03:49) Establishing Ranomafana National Park (08:23) Surviving Alone: The Tale of Simone (17:22) Exploring the Ivohiboro rainforest (30:41) Challenges and solutions in Madagascar conservation (45:52) The importance of research stations

Hello listeners. This week on the Mongabay Newscast, we ask that you take a few minutes to fill out a brief survey to let us know what you think of our audio reporting, which you can do here. Mongabay founder and CEO Rhett Butler was recently awarded the Henry Shaw Medal by the Missouri Botanical Garden and named to the 2025 Forbes Sustainability Leaders list alongside conservation greats such as David Attenborough. The credit for this success belongs to Mongabay, Butler says on this week's podcast. "While my name is on the award, it's for Mongabay. All that Mongabay achieves is not necessarily me. I'm the figurehead," Butler says of receiving the Henry Shaw Medal. Butler also shares his thoughts and reflections on the passing of his longtime friend, and conservation icon, Jane Goodall, through whom he learned to see the value in hope and optimism. "The biggest thing I took away from my relationship with Jane … is the importance of hope," he says. "She was truly a messenger for hope." You can read Butler's obituary for Jane Goodall here. Find the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify. All past episodes are also listed here at the Mongabay website. Image Credit: The last photo taken between Rhett Butler and Jane Goodall, who shared a friendship for nearly 15 years, at the Forbes Sustainability Leadership Summit in New York. Image courtesy of Sofia Negron. ----- Timecodes (00:00) The importance of hope (08:01) Rhett's awards and Mongabay's impact (12:39) The role of independent journalism (24:18) Expanding Mongabay's global reach (31:44) State of the world's forests

News of Australia's "humpback comeback" is making waves globally. Numbers of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) on the nation's east coast have rebounded to an estimated 50,000 from a historic low of just a few hundred before commercial whaling was outlawed in the 1970s. And wildlife scientist and whale expert Vanessa Pirotta joins the podcast to discuss this inspiring conservation achievement. Pirotta emphasizes this is a good news story that deserves to be celebrated, and that it could also bolster action for other whale species that are struggling, including the southern right whale (Eubalaena australis) and blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). However, she stresses that vigilant protection for all whale species remains necessary. This good news is tempered by the fact that the key food source for humpbacks in this part of the world is Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba), which is now being heavily harvested by industrial fishing fleets after protections for the species recently lapsed. Pirotta notes that krill are a keystone species for both humpbacks and a much broader array of marine life, including penguins and seals. Pirotta also discusses her cetacean health research based on the collection of "whale snot" (see Mongabay's explainer video about this method, which involves the use of drones, here) and whale monitoring work conducted with Indigenous conservation group Gamay Bay Rangers. Listeners can learn more about her work at vanessapirotta.com and find her book, Humpback Highway, here. Find the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify. All past episodes are also listed here at the Mongabay website. Image credit: A humpback whale. Image by ArtTower via Pixabay (Public domain). ----- Timecodes (00:00) The 'humpback comeback' (14:50) Why krill need protection (19:29) The Gamay Rangers sharing Indigenous knowledge (28:05) Antarctica and whale snot (32:12) Migaloo the white whale (36:16) How whale populations impact all of us

Psychologist and true crime presenter Julia Shaw joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss her latest read, examining some of the highest-profile environmental crimes and why they occur, in Green Crime: Inside the Minds of the People Destroying the Planet and How to Stop Them. She details the commonalities behind six major cases, and what can be learned from them, as described by six motivating factors: ease, impunity, greed, rationalization, conformity, and desperation. "As a psychologist, I was like, 'What if we create a psychological profile of the various people involved with these various big crimes?' And so that's how I came to the Six Pillars because I was using a model from criminology, which is called Situational Crime Prevention Theory, and of looking at the factors that contribute to a crime being committed," she says. Find the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify. All past episodes are also listed here at the Mongabay website. Related Listening & Viewing: Watch Mongabay's webinar on How to Cover Wildlife Trafficking featuring expertise from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). Hear activist Paul Rosolie detail his operation which employs former loggers to be conservationists. Listen to Cambridge researcher Luke Kemp describe how society can tackle inequality and save nature. Image Credit: Photo of the author, Julia Shaw. Photo by Boris Breuer. --- Timecodes (00:00) From eco-depression to action (05:29) Why people commit environmental crimes (12:08) The 'unsung heroes' defending the environment (18:21) It's not just greed (24:43) Whistleblowers and regulators are key (36:53) Towards consistent enforcement (42:02) Our biospheric values play a role

Policies enacted by seven nations and one international agreement have been recognized by the World Future Council for "top policy solutions for [humans], nature and generations to come." On this edition of Mongabay's podcast, the council's CEO, Neshan Gunasekera, shares key highlights of the eight World Future Policy Award laureates. Under the theme of "Living in Harmony with Nature and Future Generations," the winners for 2025 "bring to light the future orientation of the way we take decisions at [a] time that there are multiple crises facing ourselves as a species, but also the planet," he says. The winning legal and legislative initiatives span seven nations, from South Africa to Uganda, Panama, Spain, Aotearoa New Zealand, Bhutan and Austria. The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement (BBNJ), which establishes a binding U.N. treaty on the use of ocean resources beyond national borders, was among the initiatives awarded. The movement that granted legal personhood to the Whanganui River in Aotearoa New Zealand was also recognized. Both of these cases were previously the focus of Mongabay Newscast episodes hosted by Rachel Donald. "Nature doesn't need us, we need nature," Gunasekera says. "And I think that's the realization we are coming to quite slowly, because any act that we have has a positive impact on the planet. But also, if you're not careful, every act could have a negative impact. Impact on nature has no national boundaries or borders. It has a global impact." Find the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify. All past episodes are also listed here at the Mongabay website. Image Credit: The wide, steep-cliffed Whanganui River ferries spring water and snowmelt from Mount Tongariro to the west coast of Aotearoa New Zealand's North Island. Image by Jason Pratt via Flickr (CC BY 2.0) ------- Timecodes (00:00) The World Future Policy Awards (10:48) The global impact of 'Rights of Nature' laws (14:15) Addressing the criticisms of 'Rights of Nature' (27:17) Human rights and global enforcement (36:16) The global impact award

Wildlife biologist and ornithologist Corina Newsome of the U.S. NGO National Wildlife Federation joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss how bird-watching plays a role in environmental justice for underserved communities in urban areas, and provides an accessible way for people to connect with nature and drives impactful change. "Birding is an opportunity [for] people to fill in data gaps where they live [to] help direct investments that come from the world of conservation … from federal to state to local levels that have usually been funneled away from their communities," she says on this episode. Newsome says that birding changed her own life, and she's hopeful it can also change the world, because bird health has direct implications for biodiversity health at large. " What birds require of us will benefit us in ways that are far beyond bird conservation. We can work together to solve problems and think about the ecological emergency and environmental harms are taking place across landscapes, across boundaries," she says. Find the Mongabay Newscast wherever you listen to podcasts, from Apple to Spotify. All past episodes are also listed here at the Mongabay website. Thumbnail image: American Avocet. Image by Michael Barry via Pixabay (Pixabay Content License). ------ Timecodes (00:00) Corina Newsome: Wildlife biologist and ornithologist (04:08) Birding changes your life (14:21) Birding, environmental and social justice (26:48) Birds as symbols of hope and resilience