Pennsylvania Legacies

An exit interview with program manager Marla Meyer Papernick as she departs from PEC and DCNR’s Laurel Highlands Conservation Landscape, where Marla has served as external lead since 2015. We look back on what the effort has accomplished since then, and what the Landscape’s new strategic plan says about its future.

Almost everything made of plastic starts out as "nurdles": lentil-sized bits that sometimes get loose and end up in rivers and streams, where aquatic creatures easily mistake them for food. On the heels of a train derailment that spilled carloads of plastic pellets and crude oil into the Allegheny River in May, western PA watershed groups are working with university researchers and citizen scienti...

In celebration of National Trails Day on June 4, a repeat of our 2020 conversation with planning architect and trails historian Chuck Flink about his book, The Greenway Imperative.

This Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of boating season in Pennsylvania, as well as National Safe Boating Week. Laurel Anders of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission joins us to explain how motorized and non-motorized boaters can stay safe on the water this summer. We also discuss newly available funding opportunities for water trail access projects in the Commonwealth.

Outcome-based financing is an innovative way to leverage markets to fund socially-impactful projects that might otherwise be difficult to finance using conventional models. Amie Fleming of Quantified Ventures, a D.C.-based capital firm specializing in the application of outcome-based financing to environmental, public health, and community-development initiatives, joins us to explain how it works.

We celebrate Earth Day in conversation with Pennsylvania-born Rosalie Haizlett, a nature illustrator who's had work commissioned by the Smithsonian and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. She tells PEC's Lily Jones why she believes the arts can be a gateway to stewardship.

The Wild and Scenic Film Festival On Tour returns to Pennsylvania this month with in-person and virtual screenings hosted by PEC and POWR. One of the featured films, "A River Reborn", is a new documentary about how the Little Conemaugh River in Cambria County is rebounding from decades of pollution. We discuss the film with its director, Ben Kalina, of Mangrove Media.

In Pennsylvania, fun is serious business. Amid growing recognition of outdoor recreation as a vital sector of the state’s economy — not to mention an indispensable public good — the state agency tasked with managing Pennsylvania’s natural resources is making a bold investment in the burgeoning outdoor industry, while reaffirming its commitment to ensuring equitable access for all Pennsylvanians. O...

Last summer, the Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia was all set to launch its first, much-anticipated, multimedia arts exhibition, which explored how water has shaped the city’s history, with a special focus on its role in the lives of Black Philadelphians. Just ahead of the scheduled opening, Hurricane Ida hit, forcing the event’s cancellation. POOL is now set to re-open on March 22 — World Wa...

Many organizations are working to improve Philadelphians' access to the outdoors and its associated benefits. Many others are focused on food equity, food sovereignty, and public health. One group -- the Philadelphia Orchard Project -- is doing all of the above. We speak with Executive Director Kim Jordan about their efforts to transform vacant lots into neighborhood green spaces that produce heal...

Most religions acknowledge the need for environmental stewardship in their teachings. Because of these shared values, religious organizations are natural partners in watershed work. Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake operates on this principle, working with faith communities in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. We discuss with Jo...

The newest member of PEC's Trails team is a veteran of the movement for safe and equitable access to active transportation in big cities. Program manager Emilia Crotty talks about her experience as director of LA Walks, Los Angeles's premier pedestrian advocacy organization, and how it informs the equity work she's now doing for PEC on behalf of the Circuit Trails Coalition.

People need plants to live. Plants need carbon and nitrogen to grow. But there’s too much carbon in the atmosphere and not enough in the ground, especially on farmland degraded by generations of unsustainable practices, while rivers and streams are full of nitrogen that should be nourishing crops. Can regenerative and holistic farming methods set things right? A conversation with Hannah Smith-Brub...

Interest in the outdoors skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic, opening the doors for big investments in recreation, conservation, and climate. Most recently, billions in new funding for outdoor recreation and alternative transportation are now available with last month’s passage of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. We discuss with Charles Cooper, Managing Director with Signal...

From the formation of fossil fuel deposits to the tectonic ballet that gave us the Appalachian Mountains, geologic events occurring hundreds of millions of years ago made the Keystone State what it is today. These events also created the distinctive regional topographies by which DCNR's Conservation Landscapes program is organized. We explore the links between outdoor recreation, climate change, a...

With the energy market changing, power-generation companies must reassess their business models. Rather than cut their losses and move on, Talen Energy of Allentown, PA, is looking at ways to keep facilities open by exploring other options for their plants, like battery storage and digital currency mining. We discuss with Julie LaBella, Talen’s Senior Director for Regulatory and External Affairs.

The problem of plastic polluting the ocean has been a popular topic for a while. But until about 10 years ago, no one was studying the prevalence of plastics in fresh water. Dr. Sherri Mason, Director of Sustainability at Penn State Erie, was one of the first to look into plastic pollution in the Great Lakes. We speak with her about her research on microplastics, and what it means for ecosystem an...

The mission of Penn State Extension is to bring the scientific and practical expertise of PSU researchers and faculty throughout the Commonwealth. But even with offices in every county, extension staff can’t be everywhere at once. That’s where master volunteers come in. PSU Extension's Master Gardener program is familiar to many, but did you know you can also train to become a Master Watershed Ste...

PEC's Senior VP for Legal & Government Affairs, John Walliser, joins us for an update on the climate and energy, outdoor recreation, and conservation legislation to watch in the coming months.

Philadelphia's trails took a beating from Hurricane Ida, and some will take months to recover. Two weeks after the floodwaters receded, we look at conditions along the Schuylkill River Trail with representatives from the City and the Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area.

We celebrate Pennsylvania Trails Month with a preview of this year's PEC Public Lands Ride and the 11th annual PEC Environment Ride.

An aerial map of tree canopy in any large U.S. city will also give you a relatively accurate picture of income and racial demographics. With little exception, the more tree cover a neighborhood has, the more likely it is to be wealthy and predominantly white. Tree Equity Score, a new tool by American Forests, helps quantify this disparity. Ian Leahy, VP of Urban Forestry at American Forests, walks...

There are 349 rare, threatened, or endangered native plant species in Pennsylvania. The habitats they call home are as diverse as the plants themselves. As the climate changes, new challenges will arise for the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the group in charge of managing these habitats and protecting Pennsylvania’s rare plants. On this episode, DCNR botanist Andre...

It's one thing for an environmental organization to tout its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. It's another thing to live out that commitment at the level of programming and daily activities. On this episode: how Philadelphia's Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Watershed Partnership is innovating upon its mission to protect the watershed and better serve all its residents.

Billions of dollars' worth of solar panels and other components are flowing into the U.S. from China, feeding a market increasingly hungry for renewable energy. Many are made with materials linked to alleged forced-labor practices in the Xinjiang region. As the market heats up and trans-Pacific trade relations become strained, a new supply chain traceability protocol created by the Solar Energy In...