Tag Archives: Environment

Scholars’ Circle – US provides policy incentives for mitigation and adaptation to changing climate and its effects – August 28, 2022

August 27, 2022 host

The United States just passed the Inflation Reduction Act. Much of it addresses climate change. Does it meet the challenge the planet faces on the changing climate? What renewable energy technologies will the US need to utilize to meet its climate goals? [ dur: 28mins. ]

Mark Jacobson is Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of Atmosphere/Energy Program at Stanford University. He is also the Co-Founder of The Solutions Project, 100.org, and the 100% Clean, Renewable Energy Movement. He is author of 100% Clean, Renewable Energy and Storage for Everything and the forthcoming No Miracles Needed : How Today’s Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air.

Scientists say we still have time to address climate change and we’ve made headway, but we still have a long way to go. We rebroadcast a conversation with renowned climate scientist Michael Mann recorded on September 25, 2016. [ dur: 30mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Michael E. Mann is Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science at Penn State, with joint appointments in the Department of Geosciences and the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute (EESI). He is the director of Earth System Science Center (ESSC) at Pennsylvania State University. He is the author of The Madhouse Effect: How Climate Change Denial Is Threatening Our Planet, Destroying Our Politics, and Driving Us Crazy and The New Climate War.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi, Melissa Chiprin, and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Factory Farming of Animals, an Unsustainable Method of Food Production – August 21, 2022

August 21, 2022 host

Farming around the world, and in particular in the US, has increasingly become centralized as large factory farming. What are the environmental, social, and philosophical implications of this mode of agricultural production? [ dur: 58mins. ]

Factory farming carry significant challenges on environmental protection, on pricing and the centralization of wealth, and on social issues such as animal welfare and animal rights. We discuss agricultural policies and the environmental impacts including carbon emission, climate change and pollution.

John Ikerd is author, speaker and leader in sustainability. He is Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Economics from the University of Missouri. He is the author of the books Sustainable Capitalism: A Matter of Common Sense, Small Farms are Real Farms: Sustaining People Through Agriculture, Crisis and Opportunity: Sustainability in American Agriculture, and The Essentials of Economic Sustainability. Other publications – Factory Farms–Things Everyone Should Know and Economic Realities of CAFOs.
Kendra Coulter is Professor of Management and Organizational Studies at Huron University College and Fellow at Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. She is the co-author of “Animal Protection: Organizational Constraints and Collaborative Opportunities,” author of Looking Forward to a Future Without Factory Farming, and Defending Animals: Inside the Front Lines of Animal Protection (forthcoming MIT Press, 2023)
Gary L. Francione is Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of Law at Rutgers University and Visiting Professor of Philosophy at the University of Lincoln (UK). He is the author of Why Veganism Matters: The Moral Value of Animals, The Animal Rights Debate: Abolition or Regulation? and Animals as Persons: Essays on the Abolition of Animal Exploitation.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi, Melissa Chiprin, and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Regulatory challenges for EPA after West Virginia v. EPA Decision of 2022 – July 17, 2022

July 16, 2022 host

The Supreme Court has weakened executive agencies and their ability to regulate and make policy. No agency has been more affected than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). What is next for environmental protection? [ dur: 58mins. ]

Traditionally, the US Supreme Court has given executive branch agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency quite a bit of latitude at enforcing Congressional legislation. This principle is called Chevron deference. But in this term, the Supreme Court weakened this principle significantly, in particular in the area of environmental protection. In West Virginia v EPA, the Court signaled that the EPA can only enforce on areas specifically outlined by Congress. Specifically, it weakened the agency’s ability to take regulatory steps to combat climate change. We will discuss what this means for the EPA, for public policy, and for the US’s ability to make international commitments on the environment.

Joel A. Mintz is Professor Emeritus of Law and C. William Trout Senior Fellow in Public Interest Law at Nova Southeastern University Law Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He is the author of Enforcement at the EPA: High Stakes and Hard Choices and “Thinking Beyond Gridlock: Towards A Consistent Statutory Approach To Federal Environmental Enforcement“.
Richard N. L. (Pete) Andrews is a Faculty Fellow of the Institute for the Environment and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Public Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is the author of Managing the Environment, Managing Ourselves: A History of American Environmental Policy.
Pamela Chasek is Professor and Chair of the Political Science Department at Manhattan College. She is the author of Global Environmental Politics.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Mihika Chechi, Melissa Chiprin, and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – American Common Ground with Public Land Uses – History and Reform Opportunities – February 13, 2022

February 12, 2022 host

Over 600 million acres of land is collectively owned by the American people. What is the history of public lands and how is the contemporary discourses about public lands framed by this history? We interview the author of a new book on the history of public lands in the US. [ dur: 34mins. ]

John Leshy is emeritus professor at the University of California Hastings College of Law, San Francisco. He is the author of OUR COMMON GROUND: A History of America’s Public Lands.

Public lands are one of the collectively owned riches of Americans. How does this history influence our contemporary debates on public land use? How has President Joe Biden advanced the cause of public lands and how is this different from other presidents? [ dur: 24mins. ]

Mark Squillace is Raphael J. Moses Professor of Natural Resources Law at the University of Colorado Law School. He is the co-author of Natural Resources Law and Policy, The Judicial Assault on the Clean Water Act, and Embracing a Civic Republican Tradition in Natural Resources Decision-Making.

This program is produced by Maria Armoudian, Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – What happened at COP26 in Glasgow ? – November 28, 2021

November 28, 2021 host

After world leaders met in Glasgow to mitigate the climate crisis, what exactly did they discuss? What was in the agreement and what does that mean for the future of the planet? We break down some of the specific agreements and the language used to confront the climate crisis. How does a promise to “phase down” the use of coal fall short of the required action to confront the crisis? What role should indigenous peoples, largely unrepresented at the meetings, play at administering these carbon reductions? [ dur: 58mins. ]

Reynaldo A. Morales is Assistant Professor at Northwestern University with a joint faculty appointment at the Medill School of Journalism & Media and the Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. He is the author of Building Global Indigenous Media Networks: Envisioning Sustainable and Regenerative Futures Around Indigenous Peoples’ Meaningful Representation.
Klaus Weber is a Professor of Management & Organizations and the deputy director of the Northwestern Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. He is also affiliated with the Institute for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern. He is the author of Organizational Structure from Interaction: Evidence from Corporate Sustainability Efforts.
Shannon Gibson is Associate Professor of Political Science, International Relations, and Environmental Studies at the University of Southern California. She is the author of the forthcoming book Politics of Global Environment.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Will Carbon emission reduction goals be met with voluntary commitments by Corporations and the Nation State – November 21, 2021

November 20, 2021 host

Climate Change is an existential threat that demands bold action and a transformation of how humanity uses its resources. Concepts like “net zero” and “carbon offset” have done little toward decreasing the amount of greenhouse gases we emit into the atmosphere. Is the current legal and voluntary structure adequate to meet the challenge of climate change? Are we up to the challenge? [ dur: 58mins. ]

William Moomaw is Emeritus Professor of international environmental policy and founding director of the Center for International Environment and Resource Policy at The Fletcher School, Tufts University. He is the co-founder and current co-director of the Global Development and Environment Institute at Tufts. Professor Moomaw has been a lead author of five Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Reports. He is the author of Intact Forests in the United States: Proforestation Mitigates Climate Change and Serves the Greatest Good and Scientist Diplomats or Diplomat Scientists: Who Makes Science Diplomacy Effective?
LeRoy Westerling is Professor of Management of Complex Systems at Ernest and Julio Gallo Management Program at the University of California, Merced. He is the co-author of Greater Temperature and Precipitation Extremes Intensify Western U.S. Droughts, Wildfire Severity, and Sierra Nevada Tree Mortality.
Christopher Wright is Professor of Organisational Studies at the University of Sydney Business School. He is the co-author of Climate Change, Capitalism, and Corporations: Processes of Creative Self-Destruction.
Prue Taylor is the Deputy Director of the New Zealand Centre for Environmental Law. She is Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland. She is the author of Opportunity within Failure: Can the Global Pact for the Environment Learn from Responsibility to Protect? and a book chapter on Responsibility for the Ecological Integrity of the High Seas: The Role of Natural Law.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Consequence of Oil Spill on the Southern California Coast – October 31, 2021

October 30, 2021 host

Earlier this month, an oil spill devastated parts of the ecosystems off the coast of Southern California. We explore how to limit the destruction arising from oil production and spills during the transition away from fossil fuels. [ dur: 58mins. ]

Deborah Gordon is Senior Principal in the Climate Intelligence Program at Rocky Mountain Institute where she leads RMI’s Oil and Gas Solutions Initiative. She is also a senior fellow at the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs at Brown University and the principal investigator for the Oil Climate Project. She is the author of No Standard Oil: Managing Abundant Petroleum in a Warming World.
Ron Tjeerdema is Distinguished Professor in the Department of Environmental Toxicology and the Donald G. Crosby Endowed Chair in Environmental Chemistry in the College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences at University of California, Davis. He is the co-author of A Tale of Two Spills: Novel Science and Policy Implications of an Emerging New Oil Spill Model, Environmental variations and toxicological responses and Effects of dispersed and un-dispersed oil on developing topsmelt embryos.
Jill Sohm is Associate Professor of Environmental Studies and Director of the Program at the University of Southern California. She is the co-author of Microbial mats of the Dry Valleys: oases of activity in the cold desert and The distribution and relative ecological roles of autotrophic and heterotrophic diazotrophs in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica.
David Ginsberg is Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Southern California. He is the co-author of Effects of depth-cycling on nutrient uptake and biomass production in the giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera and Methane Reduction Potential of Two Pacific Coast Macroalgae During in vitro Ruminant Fermentation.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – IPCC report analyzed, importance of Mitigation to assist Adaptation to new climate realities – August 22, 2021

August 21, 2021 host

The IPCC’s assessment on climate change warns us of the environmental risk if we don’t take dramatic action. We explore the report, the state of scientific research on climate change, and the need for political action. What actions do we need to take to mitigate and adapt to climate change?

Jennifer Allan is Lecturer in International Relations in the School of Law and Politics at Cardiff University. She is the author of The new climate activism: NGO authority and participation in global climate governance and A net-zero emissions economic recovery from COVID-19.
Gabriel Vicchi is Professor in the Department of Geosciences and High Meadows Environmental Institute and Director of the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI) at Princeton University. He is also Deputy Director of the Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System (CIMES). He is the author of Causes of large projected increases in hurricane precipitation rates with global warming, Increased frequency of extreme La Niña events under greenhouse warming and Weakening of the North American monsoon with global warming.
Stephen R. Palumbi is Jane and Marshall Steel Jr. Professor in Marine Sciences at Stanford University and the Harold A. Miller Director of the Hopkins Marine Station. He is the co-author of Using naturally occurring climate resilient corals to construct bleaching-resistant nurseries, Ocean acidification causes variable trait shifts in a coral species, and Impacts of biodiversity loss on ocean ecosystem services.
Pamels Chasek is Professor and Chair of the Political Science Department at Manhattan College. She is the author of Global Environmental Politics and co-editor of The Roads from Rio: Lessons Learned from Twenty Years of Multilateral Environmental Negotiations.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – Election Laws in America ; Underestimated Impact of Seabed Mining – August 15, 2021

August 14, 2021 host

Since the 2020 election, Republican state legislators have passed a series of laws intended to shrink the number of eligible voters in future elections. What are the legal implications and what does this mean for the future of American democracy? Hosted by Doug Becker. [ dur: 36mins. ]

Nicholas Stephanopoulos is Kirkland & Ellis Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. He is the author of The New Vote Dilution, Election Litigation in the Time of the Pandemic and Depoliticizing Redistricting.
Kimberly Wehle is Professor of Law at the University of Baltimore School of Law. She is the author of What You Need to Know about Voting—and Why and How to Read The Constitution—and Why.

The search for minerals is leading some corporations to begin mining the ocean floor but scientists warn that this could devastate fragile ecosystems that will have repercussions that we still don’t understand. What is going on in the deep sea? What precautions should be taken to prevent devastating fragile ecosystems? hosted by Maria Armooudian. [ dur: 22mins. ]

Craig Smith is Professor of Oceanography at the University of Hawai’i.
Verena Tunnicliffe is a marine biologist at the University of Victoria in Canada where she holds a Canada Research Chair in Deep Ocean Research.

They are co-authors of the study Deep Sea Misconceptions Cause Underestimation of Seabed-Mining Impacts.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker, Melissa Chiprin and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars’ Circle – How are Environmental policies formed? and How is climate change reshaping oceans and marine life? – July 18, 2021

July 20, 2021 host

A look at changes in environmental policies on local, state, national and international levels. How are they formed? How do they converge? [ dur: 12mins. ]

Astrid Carrapatoso is assistant professor of political science at University of Feiberg, Germany. She has published many studies on climate change policy implemented by local, state, national and international governments. She is the author of The Greening of Free Trade: Domestic Politics and Environmental Issues in New Zealand’s Free Trade Agreement Negotiations and co-editor of Climate-Resilient Development: Participatory solutions from developing countries. List of her publications can be found here .

How is climate change affecting the oceans and marine life? What are the interactions between the earth, the atmosphere, and the ocean, and how does that affect human life? What measures can people take to prevent massive environmental damage? [ dur: 46mins. ]

Karina Nielsen is Professor of Biology and Executive Director of Estuary and Ocean Science Center at San Francisco State University. She is the co-author of California’s 4th Climate Assessment: Coast and Ocean Summary Report and Emerging understanding of seagrass and kelp as an ocean acidification management tool in California, and Are meta-ecosystems organized hierarchically? A model and test in rocky inter-tidal habitats.
Stephen R. Palumbi is Jane and Marshall Steel Jr. Professor in Marine Sciences at Stanford University and the Harold A. Miller Director of the Hopkins Marine Station. He is the co-author of numerous publications including Using naturally occurring climate resilient corals to construct bleaching-resistant nurseries, Cobble community DNA as a tool to monitor patterns of biodiversity within kelp forest ecosystems, and Impacts of biodiversity loss on ocean ecosystem services.
Scott Doney is Joe D. and Helen J. Kington Professor in Environmental Change in the Department of Environmental Sciences at University of Virginia. He is the co-author of numerous publications including A comprehensive global oceanic dataset of helium isotope and tritium measurements , Strengthened scientific support for the Endangerment Finding for atmospheric greenhouse gases , and Anthropogenic ocean acidification over the twenty-first century and its impact on calcifying organisms.

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ.

This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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The Scholars' Circle Interviews

Tag Archives: Environment

Scholars’ Circle – US provides policy incentives for mitigation and adaptation to changing climate and its effects – August 28, 2022

Scholars’ Circle – Factory Farming of Animals, an Unsustainable Method of Food Production – August 21, 2022

Scholars’ Circle – Regulatory challenges for EPA after West Virginia v. EPA Decision of 2022 – July 17, 2022

Scholars’ Circle – American Common Ground with Public Land Uses – History and Reform Opportunities – February 13, 2022

Scholars’ Circle – What happened at COP26 in Glasgow ? – November 28, 2021

Scholars’ Circle – Will Carbon emission reduction goals be met with voluntary commitments by Corporations and the Nation State – November 21, 2021

Scholars’ Circle – Consequence of Oil Spill on the Southern California Coast – October 31, 2021

Scholars’ Circle – IPCC report analyzed, importance of Mitigation to assist Adaptation to new climate realities – August 22, 2021

Scholars’ Circle – Election Laws in America ; Underestimated Impact of Seabed Mining – August 15, 2021

Scholars’ Circle – How are Environmental policies formed? and How is climate change reshaping oceans and marine life? – July 18, 2021

By Maria Armoudian