Sustainability Now! on KSQD.org

Ronnie Lipschutz
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Are you concerned about the Earth's future? Are you interested in what is being done in Northern California and the world to address environmental issues? Do you want to act? Then tune in every other Sunday to "Sustainability Now!" on KSQD.org to hear interviews with scientists, scholars, activists and officials involved in the pursuit of sustainability. Sustainability Now! is underwritten by the Sustainable Systems Research Foundation in Santa Cruz, California

  1. The Enduring Fantasy of ‘Feeding the World’ with Professors Adam Calo and Maywa Montenego

    OCT 27

    The Enduring Fantasy of ‘Feeding the World’ with Professors Adam Calo and Maywa Montenego

    Even before the publication of Paul Ehrlich’s The Population Bomb in 1968, we heard warnings that humanity would be doomed to a future of famine, hunger and starvation unless industrial agriculture were unleashed to grow food as efficiently as possible in every nook and cranny of the world’s arable lands to feed the “ten billion.” Those warnings continue today. But is it correct? In “The Enduring Fantasy of ‘Feeding the World’,” a recent article in the journal Spectre, four members of the Agroecology Research-Action Collective challenge those who make this claim.  Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a conversation about feeding the world with Dr. Adam Calo, Assistant Professor in the Geography, Planning and Environment group at Radboud University in the Netherlands, and Dr. Maywa Montenegro, Associate Professor of Agroecology and Critical Technology Studies in the UCSC Environmental Studies Department.

    53 min
  2. An Hour Wasted with Tom Lehrer: A Tribute to the Man and His Music

    OCT 13

    An Hour Wasted with Tom Lehrer: A Tribute to the Man and His Music

    Tom Lehrer, the musical satirist par excellence of the 1950s and 1960s, died this past July at age 97.  Many listeners and their progeny grew up listening to and singing his compelling compositions: easy to remember, easy to sing and easy to finish.  Who could forget “The Vatican Rag” or “The Elements?” What some might not know is that, from 1972 to 2001, in flight from East Coast winters, Tom also taught math and theater at UC Santa Cruz, as a lecturer in American Studies.  Along the way, he made many friends and inspired countless students. This tribute includes music, interviews with friends and colleagues and biographical information. If you would like to know all about Tom and his music, you can find resources and links in this folder: https://tinyurl.com/tdh7n8d9 ( Photo by Anthony Pidgeon/Redferns )

    1h 8m
  3. Conserving California’s Lands and Coastal Waters: A Progress Report with Meghan Hertel, Deputy Secretary for Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency

    SEP 29

    Conserving California’s Lands and Coastal Waters: A Progress Report with Meghan Hertel, Deputy Secretary for Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency

    In October 2020, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-82-20 which establishes a state goal of conserving 30% of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030 – known as 30x30. The 30x30 goal is intended to help accelerate conservation of our lands and coastal waters through voluntary, collaborative action with partners across the state. Five years later, how well has 30X30 met its goals? Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a conversation about 30X30 with Meghan Hertel, Deputy Secretary for Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency, who recently drafted and published the 2025 annual progress report on 30x30, in coordination with the Governor’s Office.

    53 min
  4. What's Happening with Climate Law across the World, the United States and California? with Professor Alice Kaswan, University of San Francisco School of Law

    SEP 15

    What's Happening with Climate Law across the World, the United States and California? with Professor Alice Kaswan, University of San Francisco School of Law

    What’s up with climate change and climate law?  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it is going to cancel the “endangerment finding” of 2009 that provided the legal basis for regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. In July, the Department of Energy released “A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate,” which downplayed the research, the impacts and the importance of climate change.  The Trump Administration has pretty much declared that is it going to eliminate anything that suggests climate change is a threat.  And fossil fuel companies have been unleashed to produce anywhere the is even a hint of fossil carbon.  At the same time, three international courts—the International Court of Justice, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea—have issued opinions that international climate law requires countries to act now to reduce emissions.  What does the law say?  What is law’s impact? Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a conversation with Professor Alice Kaswan of the University of San Francisco School of Law. Professor Kaswan’s scholarly work focuses on climate change with a particular emphasis on federalism and on environmental justice. She has written extensively about the role of state and local governments in climate change adaptation and mitigation policy.  In addition, she has addressed the environmental justice dimensions of domestic climate change policy.  Feeling warm?  Tune in! Photo Copyright: Photographs©2015 Barbara Ries. All rights reserved.

    53 min
  5. Save the Valley Dragons! Restoring the Blunt-Notes Leopard Lizard to the San Joaquin Desert with Dr. Michael Telemeco and Dr. Michael Westphal

    SEP 1

    Save the Valley Dragons! Restoring the Blunt-Notes Leopard Lizard to the San Joaquin Desert with Dr. Michael Telemeco and Dr. Michael Westphal

    Who knew there was a desert in the San Joaquin Valley inhabited by the “valley dragon,” aka, the “blunt-nosed leopard lizard.”  The lizards have disappeared from 85% of their historical range as a result of  agriculture, rural and urban development and pesticides, and are now threatened in what remains of the San Joaquin Desert.  The Fresno Chaffee Zoo is raising leopard lizards and releasing them back into the wild, equipped with radio telemetry backpacks.  Join host Ronnie Lipschutz on Sunday, August 31st for a conversation about the desert and the lizards, with guests Dr. Rory Telemeco, Research Director at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo, and Dr. Michael Westphal, from the Bureau of Land Management.

    55 min
  6. "What's in Those Plastics, Anyway?" with Professor Susannah Scott of UC Santa Barbara

    AUG 18

    "What's in Those Plastics, Anyway?" with Professor Susannah Scott of UC Santa Barbara

    The world is awash in plastic. According to a study published in 2020, total production of plastics since 1950 is now over 10 billion tons, with more than half of that simply discarded.  And the production of plastics will only increase in the future.  There is a lot of oil and natural gas in the world and, if and when we wean ourselves from fossil fuels, oil and chemical companies will be looking for other places to use their stocks. So far, only about one billion tons of plastic have been recycled—that is, put into the recycling chain.  What exactly has happened to that material is less clear.  Different types of plastic require different post-consumer processing to turn them back into pellets of raw material.  Most factories are set up to use only particular types of plastic and it is still cheaper to buy virgin pellets than recycled ones.  Are compostable plastics the solution?  What is a compostable plastic?  What is it made from?  How is it broken down?  Are there plastics that will simply decompose into constituent molecules by weathering and micro-organisms?  Questions, questions.  Are there answers? Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a chemistry and economics lesson from Dr. Susannah Scott, Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering and occupant of the Duncan and Suzanne Mellichamp Chair in Sustainable Catalytic Processing at the University of California Santa Barbara. Here I quote from a UCSB website: "Her research interests include the design of heterogeneous catalysts with well-defined active sites for the efficient conversion of conventional and new feedstocks, as well as environmental catalysts to promote air and water quality."

    57 min
  7. After the Floods--The Search for Resilience in Ellicott City, with Professor Ken Conca, American University

    AUG 4

    After the Floods--The Search for Resilience in Ellicott City, with Professor Ken Conca, American University

    As the recent deadly floods in Central Texas remind us, Nature bats last.  There seem to be a growing number of severe weather-related disasters that kill many people and lay waste to towns and communities.  But what happens after the floods, as communities make plans to repair the damages?  Why does rebuilding often become the trigger of intense and extended political and social struggle, sometimes lasting many years?  Dr. Ken Conca, Emeritus Professor of Environment, Development and Health at American University in Washington, DC, decided to follow the planning process in a flood-prone town in which he lived. He has just published After the Floods--The Search for Resilience in Ellicott City (Oxford University Press) a study that offers a blow-by-blow account of these struggles and elucidates his explanation for why the arise and persist, long after the water has vanished. Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a conversation with Dr. Conca about his book and his broader conclusions about community planning for inclement weather and climate change, especially “after the floods.”

    1 hr
  8. The False Promise of Deep-Sea Mining, with Professors D.G. Webster and Susan Park

    JUL 21

    The False Promise of Deep-Sea Mining, with Professors D.G. Webster and Susan Park

    The United States has indicated that it will begin to explore commercial mining of mineral nodules on the international seabed, in violation of the UN Conference on the Law of the Sea and the International Seabed Authority. These nodules contain a variety of minerals used in cell phones, electric cars and other high-tech devices and could reduce U.S. reliance on questionable sources of rare earth and other metals. Opponents counter that the ecological damage imposed by such mining would far outweigh any benefits. But there is another argument for letting sleeping nodules lie: deep-sea mining is a multi-billion-dollar solution to problems that do not exist.  Join host Ronnie Lipschutz for a discussion with Professors D.G. Webster of Dartmouth College and Susan Park, from the University of Sydney.  They, along with several colleagues, recently published “The false promise of deep-sea mining,” a critique of the proposal focused on terrestrial mineral availability, limited social benefits and supply chain economics.

    53 min
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Are you concerned about the Earth's future? Are you interested in what is being done in Northern California and the world to address environmental issues? Do you want to act? Then tune in every other Sunday to "Sustainability Now!" on KSQD.org to hear interviews with scientists, scholars, activists and officials involved in the pursuit of sustainability. Sustainability Now! is underwritten by the Sustainable Systems Research Foundation in Santa Cruz, California

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