Mothering Earth Podcast

What happens when a man who grew up on a factory farm learns about environmental sustainability? In this case, he was driven to make changes on the farm that would benefit the environment, and his search for alternatives was nurtured when he found an organization called Mercy for Animals. Their goal is to end factory farming, through a program they call Transfarmation. That's our story in this edition of Mothering Earth.

When you throw something away, it’s gone as far as you are concerned. But in fact, it’s still around and will most likely end up in a landfill. Landfills are where solid waste goes to build up into unpleasant mounds and where organic waste, like food that is thrown away, goes to fester and decompose, giving off huge amounts of methane gas. Methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases and a big contributor to climate change. Whether you call it trash, waste or garbage, it’s in our interest to reduce the amount we generate, so that less is sent to landfills. In this program, we are getting to zero waste with Richard McHale, Director of Austin Resource Recovery.

Bats are pretty amazing little creatures, yet for years they have been pictured as evil animals associated with witchcraft and the devil. In. this program, you’ll meet behavioral ecologist and bat biologist Alyson Brokaw who’s written a book called The Weird and Wonderful World of Bats, in which she demystifies bats and brings to light some of their remarkable characteristics and the ways in which they are vital to the ecology of our planet.

Most people use several different personal care products every day. For example, you may use a shampoo and conditioner, creams or lotions, shaving cream, fragrances, toothpaste and some makeup, including lipstick, eyeliner and eyeshadow. If you read the labels on these products you'll see a list of chemicals, and you may assume that these chemicals have been tested to make sure that they're safe. However, the Food and Drug Administration does not do any long-term testing on these chemicals. They may be tested to see whether they result in short-term problems, such as skin irritation, and the FDA may act, if they get complaints about harmful effects from a product. Several nonprofit groups are finding or conducting the necessary studies and distributing that vital information to us consumers. One organization is the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and in this program, we feature Kaley Beins a senior scientist of chemical safety and toxicology at the EWG.

What if farmers who feel trapped in an agricultural system where large corporations make all the decisions, even down to how many animals the farmer will raise, what he or she will feed them and when the animals will be slaughtered; what if those farmers had other options? An organization called Mercy For Animals has created an innovative model of alternative farming opportunities, and helps farmers make the transition from animal-based agriculture to growing fruits and vegetables, or mushrooms, or hemp. The model is a project aptly entitled Transfarmation. In this edition of Mothering Earth, we’ll hear from Katherine Jernigan, Farmer Outreach Manager for the Transfarmation project.