 Monday February 1, 2010
12:30 pm: Living Planet
This week on Living Planet we delve into a scandal over the labeling of organic cotton wear in Europe, we chat with the Pakistani-born climate expert Adil Najam, and we hear about how Australia's environment ministry is considering banning people from climbing one of the country's most famous tourist attractions.
1:00 pm: Commonwealth Club of California
The speaker is Robert Reich, Professor, Goldman School of Public Policy, U.C. Berkeley; Former U.S. Secretary of Labor; and author of “The Work of Nations”
Reich shares his take the 2010 economic forecast. Is the U.S. economy showing signs of recovery, as some indicators suggest, or are these assertions dangerously premature?
Tuesday February 2, 2010
12:30 pm: Inside Europe
France takes aim at the burqa - The European burqa situation - Croatia's rocky road to Europe - German youths mark Holocaust Remembrance Day - Italian mummy's boys under pressure - Punitive psychiatry in Russia - Is Turkey reneging on its commitments to Kurds? - Pulling the plug on virtual friends - Saucy sheep cause a stink in Warsaw - Veggie Day takes off in Belgium.
1:00 pm: BBC’s Changing World
Defining the Decade
The 2000's have comprised a decade in which history has been on fast forward. An Internet search engine's name (Google) has become a verb. There's been a growing acknowledgment of the threat of global warming. And September 11 changed the backdrop of how Americans relate to the world. The BBC looks at the big picture, and charts the dramatic changes that many now take for granted in science, technology and politics.
Wednesday February 3, 2010
12:30 pm: Cambridge Forum
The Muse and the Mood: Creativity and Language
Princeton-based poet and songwriter Paul Muldoon joins poet and playwright Elizabeth Swados to explore the relationship between creativity and mood. For more than a century artistic genius has been linked in the popular imagination with suffering, mental illness, and untimely death--as though creativity somehow rendered artists unfit for ordinary human life. Swados, who has detailed her own battles with bipolar disorder in print, and Muldoon, who wrote some of the haunting lyrics on Warren Zevon's last CD, reflect on this Romantic idea of artistic creativity.
1:00pm: Cleveland City Club Forum
Robert Mazzuca, Chief Scout Executive, Boy Scouts of America, speaking on “100
Years of the Boy Scouts.”
Thursday February 4, 2010
12:30 pm: Soundprint
From Brooklyn to Banja Luka
An interesting cross cultural relationship that spans New York, Banja Luka and Amsterdam. Jonathan is a loud New Yorker, a Brooklyn Jew who has been living in Holland for 13 years. He has joint Dutch US nationality, speaks fluent Dutch, and yet remains essentially his boisterous loud American self. He is married to Dragana, a Serbian from Banja Luka, who came here in the midst of the Bosnian war and remains deeply affected by the war and its after effects in her country. They met at a party in Amsterdam ten years ago and have been together ever since. They now have a young trilingual son. The two have much in common - they're clever, loud, extravagant people from musical backgrounds. But she has a Slavic melancholia that contrasts with his wisecracking Jewish humour. In this program, they discuss their different cultures, how they feel being such big personalities living in a country that doesn't seem at first glance particularly suited to th eir ethnic backgrounds and character, and also the nature of their tempestuous relationship. This program was produced by Dheera Sujan of Radio Netherlands and airs as part of our special international collaboration, Global Perspectives: Romance Series.
1:00pm: Alternative Radio
Bridging the Media Gaps
The speaker is Amy Goodman, host of the Pacifica public radio program “Democracy Now”.
Friday February 5, 2010
12:30 pm: Maine Watch with Jennifer Rooks
Coming up on the next Maine Watch, we take a look at three noteworthy bills making their way through the legislature. One would extend sick leave benefits to thousands of Maine employees who don't currently have them... another, would throw Maine's electoral votes to the presidential candidate with the most popular votes in the nation... and another would make a crime to ignore a seriously injured person. We'll discuss all three.
1:00pm: Speaking in Maine
Speaking in Maine takes us next to Portland to the Joshua Chamberlain Lecture Series. The speaker is the President of Maine Today Media, Richard Connor. His talk is entitled “Rumors of our Death are Greatly Exaggerated”. As publisher of the Portland and central Maine newspapers he is in a unique position to speak about the future of print media here in Maine, and takes questions from the audience.
Monday February 8, 2010
12:30 pm: Living Planet
Mexico gives Davos a taste of what to expect of its stewardship of climate talks later this year; Morocco's plans to modernize its port facilities pay scant regard to its coastline; Romania considers reopening a controversial gold processing plant 10 years on from a devastating cyanide spill; and the UN asks us to consider what we wear when it comes to saving species.
1:00 pm: America Abroad (cdnow)
The Carbon Conundrum – Confronting Climate Change
Even with an atmosphere of agreement that capping carbon is good for the planet, world leaders are still generating a lot of hot air arguing how to do it. And, the inconvenient truth is that this isn’t just an international political problem – the actual process of greening cars, cows, and coal-fired power plants will be even more exhausting than getting 190 countries to sign a treaty. This edition of America Abroad explores the issue – from the Peruvian rainforest where economic development is slashing a weapon in the war on warming, to the U.S. where businesses are struggling to scrub their smokestacks, and the carbon credit debate is heating up on Capitol Hill.
Tuesday February 9, 2010
12:30 pm: Inside Europe
A whirlwind tour of Europe's capital cities. Our journey will take you around the continent from the Baltic sea in the far north-east, to the Atlantic coast in the south-west. And we visit a corner of Old Europe in its most literal sense: a place that's still holding out against globalization!
1:00 pm: Commonwealth Club of California
The speaker is David Walker, CEO of Peter G. Peterson Foundation; Former Comptroller General of the U.S.; and author of “Comeback America: Turning the Country Around and Restoring Fiscal Responsibility” Walker will discuss a range of compelling ideas, including how to control spending, save Social Security, dramatically alter our health-care system, reform our tax system and re-engineer the base of the federal government – all taking into account the Obama administration’s efforts to-date to do the same.
Wednesday February 10, 2010
12:30 pm: Conversations with Maine
Host Frank Ferrel sits down with oyster farmer, Jeff McKeen. He is a member of Old Grey Goose which has served as a musical ambassador for the U.S. State Department.
1:00pm: BBC’s Changing World
Can China Go Green?
A report from China on that nation's efforts to "go green." Despite negative publicity, the BBC finds strong evidence that China is effectively leap-frogging the older industrial societies of Europe and America, and instituting effective long-term environmental solutions, sustainable power and eco-design.
Thursday February 11, 2010
12:30 pm: Soundprint
On the night of April 14th 1865, in front of a thousand people at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC, John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. Shouting ‘Sic semper tyrannis’ – ‘thus always to tyrants’, Booth believed that he was striking down a tyrant as surely as Brutus struck down Julius Caesar. Twelve days later Booth himself was shot dead in a barn in Virginia. From the moment Booth shot Lincoln, conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination have flourished – and 140 years later, for both historians and ordinary people, they are still very much alive. Some believe Booth was the ring leader of a small group; others are convinced he was simply a pawn in a grand conspiracy plot. While still others believe it wasn’t really Booth who died in that Virginia barn. Jean Snedegar tries to unravel the truth – and a myriad of legends - about the assassination of a great American president.
1:00pm: It’s Your World
The Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the United States "Zhou Wenzhong speaks on “US-China Relations: Present and Future”
Friday February 12, 2010
12:30 pm: Maine Watch with Jennifer Rooks
It's been about a decade since the first Somali refugees began settling in Lewiston. Now, there are several thousand, and they've changed the face of Lewiston in many ways. On the next Maine Watch, we'll discuss what's been learned and what can Lewiston teach other places about integrating two cultures.
1:00pm: Speaking in Maine
Speaking in Maine takes us next to Camden and the Midcoast Forum on Foreign Relations for a talk on the prospects for peace in the Middle East. Internationally renowned political activist and scholar Saad Ibrahim is one of the Arab world’s most prominent spokesmen on behalf of democracy and human rights. His talk is entitled: "One State-Two State--Any Possibility for Peace in the Middle East?" Ibrahim serves as secretary general of the Egyptian Independent Commission for Electoral Review, and a trustee of the Arab Thought Forum.
Monday February 15, 2010
12:30 pm: Living Planet
Calls grow for IPCC chair Pachauri to resign, the ecological struggle over Russia's Lake Baikal returns, helicopter drones promise to slash farmers' pesticide use and the world vegetable centre lobbies for legumes.
1:00 pm: It’s Your World
Innovation in Education
Panel participants are Wendy Kopp, CEO and Founder of Teach For America; Geoffrey Canada, President and CEO of The Harlem Children's Zone Inc.; And Henrietta Fore, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Holsman International; Moderator is Warren Simmons, Executive Director of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform.
Tuesday February 16, 2010
12:30 pm: Inside Europe
The Orange Revolution in Ukraine turns sour - Protecting French women against verbal violence - Closing the digital divide in Britain - Berlin rolls out the red carpet for another special anniversary - The Vatican tries to restore faith following child sex abuse scandals - Will Polish gas turn up the heat on Russia? - The Czechs try a Bohemian approach to Carnival - Love Cafes in Paris.
1:00 pm: It’s Your World
The speaker is Brian Tucker, President of GeoHazards International. Since early January 12th, we've all seen pictures of horrific destruction and human suffering wrought by the earthquake in Haiti. Most of the devastation could have been prevented by modern building techniques. Brian Tucker discusses making better building practices and disaster risk management programs key components of international development efforts.
Wednesday February 17, 2010
12:30 pm: Conversations with Maine
Conversations with Maine host Frank Ferrel visits with the Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, the Honorable Graydon Nicholas. A member of the Maliseet nation, Nicholas named the Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick in September.
1:00pm: Commonwealth Club of California
Former Governor and Attorney General, New York Elliot Spitzer is the speaker. Spitzer prosecuted some of the most notorious white-collar crime and securities fraud on Wall Street. He now questions whether we have what it takes to regulate and reform the banking industry.
Thursday February 18, 2010
12:30 pm: Soundprint
Sam’s Story
Sam was brought to the United States by his parents as a young child, but his family overstayed their visas. Over the past fourteen years, Sam has grown from a small boy to a young man — taught in American schools and churches, he grew up like any other American kid. But when he was asked to fill in his social security number on a financial aid form, he began to realize the consequences of being undocumented. Long Haul Productions picks up Sam's story as he's graduating from high school in Elkhart, Indiana, and looking to start his first year of college.
1:00pm: Intelligence Squared
An oxford style debate on the following motion: Should the U.S. step back from its special relationship with Israel? Israel believes America’s special relationship is vital. It is, certainly, to Israel. But what about for the US? Israel has no oil, enemies in many places, and a tendency to defy Washington when it perceives its own interests to be threatened, which is not infrequently. In a zero sum Middle East, does America’s coziness with Israel cost us in good will with Muslim world, including those oil-rich Arab states whose dollar holdings come back to the US in the form of investments and loans, which the US economy needs – especially now?
Friday February 19, 2010
12:30 pm: Humankind
Even with its dazzling technical advances and sophisticated medicines, health care increasingly frustrates Americans. Patients must contend with a system that won't pay for some treatments, long waiting lists, rushed visits with doctors, copious paperwork and – of course – the ever-soaring cost of medical coverage and medications. Many doctors and nurses feel trapped in a structure they say sometimes prevents them from providing adequate care to their patients. One couple, both researchers at Harvard Medical School and both internists practicing at Cambridge Hospital in Massachusetts, are leaders in the movement among medical professionals to reform health care in America.
Dr. Steffi Woolhandler and Dr. David Himmelstein lead a campaign by doctors to reform health care which they see as needlessly expensive and corrupt. Together they founded Physicians for a National Health Program in 1987 which aims for a system where everyone is covered. They decry the soaring costs of health care – and how that hurts poor people who are uninsured -- and many in the middle class who are under-insured. The doctors pull no punches in describing what they see as enormous waste in health care expenditures.
1:00pm: On the Line – Making Sense New England financial call-in
Its tax time and we're ready to help you navigate through some of the changes in tax law that may affect you, your family, or your business. Join us for a special edition of MPBN"s live call-in program "On the Line" this Friday afternoon from 1-2, with advice from the New England office of the IRS, and from a Maine tax professional. That's Friday at 1, here on the stations of MPBN radio.
Monday February 22, 2010
12:30 pm: Living Planet
The environmental cost of a Baltic pipeline to pump gas from Russia to Europe, Mauritius tries to break bad habits when it comes to cleaning up its backyard, Brazil struggles to balance development with conservation of its natural riches and what can the rest of the world learn from Europe's experience of running an emissions trading scheme?
1:00 pm: It’s Your World
President of the Republic of Kosovo Fatmir Sejdiu, the world's youngest country. The Republic of Kosovo declared its independence in February 2008. Currently sixty-four countries have recognized Kosovo as a sovereign state. Kosovo's independence has resulted in significant development for the country and a factor of stability for the region. Many of its international allies and partners, including the US, NATO, and EU remain committed to ensuring its stability. The Republic's first President will discuss the present and future for this new nation.
Tuesday February 23, 2010
12:30 pm: Inside Europe
A mercy killing in Britain reignites the debate over euthanasia - Is the single currency fundamentally flawed? -
Switzerland drags Europe into a visa dispute with Libya - A call to give up technological treats over Lent - Turkey's working class heroes take on the government - Greece's smoking ban goes up in a puff of smoke - Has a French soccer star shot an own goal by taking to the stage?
1:00 pm: Commonwealth Club of California
Margaret Hamburg, M.D., Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration is the speaker. FDA chief Hamburg has been tasked with an extremely difficult job: ensuring the safety of everything we consume, in an increasingly globalized world with increasingly obscured accountability trails. She’ll discuss what she has planned to help keep the nation and its food and medicine supply safe.
Wednesday February 24, 2010
12:30 pm: Cambridge Forum
The People’s Revolution
Historian and author, Ray Raphael, draws from letters, diaries, and memoirs of the American Revolution to show how ordinary people participated in the colonial rebellion as part of Howard Zinn‘s People’s History. Their individual and local actions fed a bloodless popular revolution that shaped the birth of the United States as much as the philosophical and military vision of the "Founding Fathers" did. What lessons can we take for our own era from this people's history?
1:00pm: The Really Big Question
How do we face our own mortality? Death is a fact of life, an absolute and unavoidable certainty. Yet we don’t want to believe it will happen to us or those we cherish. NPR's Lynn Neary wonders if we are psychologically and physiologically equipped to deal with constant reminders of death. This leads to a really big question: How do we face our own mortality?
Thursday February 25, 2010
12:30 pm: Soundprint
My World: Officer Candidate School
In 1965 and 1966, Producer Askia Muhammad was a star-struck and naive college student who had matriculated from Watts to San Jose State University, while getting college deferments to serve two years active duty in the U.S. Navy Reserve. As Askia began struggles with becoming a Reserve Office Candidate, the country began to struggle with itself with blacks' rights, the hippie movement, the constant protest against the war in Vietnam. In My World: Officer Candidate School, Askia takes us through his path from faithful Naval Officer to conscientious objector.
1:00pm: Malaga Island: A Story Best Left Untold
A documentary on the story of Maine’s Malaga Island. In 1912, the state of Maine evicted forty-five people from Malaga Island. an early 20th century mixed-race settlement just off the coast of Phippsburg. Maine. This hour -long radio documentary recounts the event and its impact several generations later.
Friday February 26, 2010
12:30 pm: Humankind (Second part of a two part series)
Even with its dazzling technical advances and sophisticated medicines, health care increasingly frustrates Americans. Patients must contend with a system that won't pay for some treatments, long waiting lists, rushed visits with doctors, copious paperwork and – of course – the ever-soaring cost of medical coverage and medications. Many doctors and nurses feel trapped in a structure they say sometimes prevents them from providing adequate care to their patients. One couple, both researchers at Harvard Medical School and both internists practicing at Cambridge Hospital in Massachusetts, are leaders in the movement among medical professionals to reform health care in America. Dr. Steffi Woolhandler and Dr. David Himmelstein lead a campaign by doctors to reform health care which they see as needlessly expensive and corrupt. Together they founded Physicians for a National Health Program in 1987 which aims for a system where everyone is covered. They decry the soaring costs of health care – and how that hurts poor people who are uninsured -- and many in the middle class who are under-insured. The doctors pull no punches in describing what they see as enormous waste in health care expenditures.
1:00 pm: Speaking in Maine
Speaking in Maine takes us next to a Policy Soundings address at the Muskie School of Public Service at USM. The speaker is Featuring David Flanagan, former chair of a task force that examined the functions and structure of Maine’s 45,000-student state university system. He talks about Maine’s K-12 educational system in a talk entitled “Public Education in Maine: A Financial Crisis is a Terrible Thing to Waste” |