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Broadcast on WPKN/WPKM
On The Fourth Thursday Each Month
12:30 PM – 1 PM

The Forest and the Trees is a global and local report on the environment. Host Melinda Tuhus interviews newsmakers including environmental leaders, policy makers and grassroots activists from around the world and around the corner in Connecticut. Issues like deforestation, water privitization, relaxation of federal air pollution regulations, and much more – and the implications for public health.

2006 Editions

Listen to The Forest And The Trees (mp3 audio – stream or download)

December 2006
My guest is Colin Bennett, who just completed a training program in Nashville, Tenn., run by Al Gore and his associates, the goal of which is to create Global Warming messengers in every state. They will widen and deepen the impact of Gore’s PowerPoint presentation-turned movie, “An Inconvenient Truth.”

October 2006
My show this month is about the environment of occupation and terrorism in Palestine and Israel. It's an edited version of presentations by two former fighters – one a Palestinian, the other an Israeli – who are members of Combatants for Peace. Its members now believe that a non-violent solution is the only viable option in the Middle East. They call for an end to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories and a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

September 2006
My guest is Jack Cole, co-founder and executive director of LEAP – Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. LEAP says the drug problem has two components: drug abuse, and the crime and violence associated with the marketplace. By legalizing drugs, LEAP is convinced the crime and violence would be greatly reduced, and that addiction could then be dealt with as a public health problem.

August 2006
My guest is Derek Murrow, director of policy analysis for Environment Northeast. We’re talking about energy in Connecticut – where it comes from, what it costs, and how to reduce both the economic and environmental costs to you and the planet.

July 2006
Welcome to the Forest and the Trees: Global and Local Perspectives on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At least that’s the title for today’s show. My guest is Army Reserve Sgt. 1st Class Rick Scavetta, a Connecticut veteran who served in both civilian and military capacities in Iraq and Afghanistan. In this interview he talks about the impact of his service on his own life and that of his family. He's a great storyteller with an important story to tell.

June 2006
A conversation with Ariane Alzahara Kirtley, who grew up in Niger and returned last year as a Fulbright scholar to collect health data. Once there, she decided to take on a project she calls Water is Life, to raise money for wells for the people of the region, who have no access to clean water.

May 2006 [not available]
[not available]

April 2006
A conversation with Rochelle St. Marie from Louisiana bayou country about the after-effects of the hurricanes and fears about the upcoming hurricane season; then an interview with Mathis Wackernagel, the co-creator of the Ecological Footprint about how to enjoy life while walking softly on the earth.

March 2006
An interview with energy consultant Joel Gordes, who explains how the insurance industry, which is losing billions of dollars in payouts due to catastrophic weather events, makes a strong case that global warming is already here. Then, a chat with Nathan Bixby, president of the Network for a Sustainable New Haven, who talks about building local connections to promote the good life while reducing resource use. Finally, an interview with Merran Smith, director of the British Columbia Coastal Program for Forest Ethics, which helped protect 5 million acres of the Great Bear Rain Forest.

February 2006
An interview with Connecticut Audubon Society's Betty McLaughlin about legislative efforts to expand the bottle bill to include the 200-plus million plastic bottles of water tossed in the garbage each year in Connecticut. Then a conversation with Henry Lowendorf and Mazin Qumsiyeh about the anti-war demonstrations coming up in Hartford and New Haven on March 18 and 19. Music by David Rovics ("Operation Iraqi Liberation – OIL").

January 2006
My third program about New Orleans features interviews with a tree removal crew, an elderly woman who was reunited with her dog after both were evacuated separately, a Louisianan who received a McArthur ("genius") grant who works on toxic pollution, and a grassroots housing advocate. Music by Fats Domino and Louis Armstrong.

2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003