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 A Four Part Series from TTBOOK! |
NATIONAL PARKS
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Program 09-09-27-A |
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Filmmaker Ken Burns calls the national parks "America's best idea." Next time on To the Best of Our Knowledge we'll take you to Yosemite, Denali and Carlsbad Caverns. We'll also explore some forgotten parts of our history: how the "buffalo soldiers" helped create America's first parks, and why the very idea of protecting nature has often pitted environmentalists against indigenous people.
SEGMENT 1:
William Cronon directs the University of Wisconsin's Center for Culture, History and the Environment. He tells Steve Paulson that national parks intended for the masses are a 19th century invention and a distinctly American one. Also, the early national parks were patrolled and protected by the American Cavalry. Ken Burns explains their role in a brief excerpt from his latest PBS series, then, independent producer James Mills follows up on Ken Burns' remarks about the Buffalo Soldiers and looks into the issue of why so few African-Americans visit the national Parks today.
Fredrik Penn taken at the Presidio. photo by James Mills
SEGMENT 2:
Journalist Mark Dowie is the author of "Conservation Refugees: The Hundred Year Conflict Between Global Conservation and Native Peoples." Dowie tells Steve Paulson about a recent confrontation between a Masai leader and several thousand environmentalists gathered for a conference. He also provides examples of conservation projects involving native peoples that actually work.
SEGMENT 3:
Anthropologist and naturalist Richard Nelson lives in Alaska and is the host of a public radio program called "Encounters." Nelson hikes through the Alaskan wilderness recording sounds you can't hear anywhere else, and he plays excerpt during this conversation with Anne Strainchamps. There's a link to his radio show at ttbook.org. Also, Nevada Barr has written 15 mystery novels featuring Park Ranger Anna Pigeon. She tells Jim Fleming that despite Anna's fictional adventures, the National Parks are safe places, and wildly different from each other. Barr's latest book is "13 1/2"
CD copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 09-09-27-A.
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Books & CDs:
| Nevada Barr, Borderline: a novel (Putnam) | |
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Nevada Barr, 13 ½ (Vanguard Press) |
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| Mark Dowie, Conservation Refugees (MIT Press) | |
| Richard Nelson, Barry Lopez and Terry Tempest Williams, Patriotism and the American Land (Orion Society) | |
Websites:
- Bill Cronon:
www.williamcronon.net
- Richard Nelson’s radio show Encounters: www.encountersnorth.org
- James Mills: www.joytripproject.com
Music:
- After Cronon:
Eliza Lynn w/ “Sing a New Song”
Putumayo Presents Americana - Mickey Hart w/ “Light Over Shadow”
Planet Drum
360 Degree Productions - After Dowie:
Mickey Hart w/ “Space Dust”
Planet Drum/SupraLingua - After Barr:
Mickey Hart w/ “Mysterious Island”
Planet Drum
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Distribution dates: week of 09/27/2009
- hour 1 |
Listen! |
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