On April 22nd, Earth Day is celebrated in support of environmental protection. For 54 years, Earth Day has aimed to encourage positive action for our planet through diversification and education. Celebrate Earth Day by listening and sharing stories that discuss nature, Earth science, and the diverse ways the environment impacts our lives.
Do you or a loved one have a story to share for Earth Day? To contribute to the archive of stories that involve nature, science, or the environment, record in person using the StoryCorps mobile app or remotely using StoryCorps Connect!
Learning to Fly
As a zoologist and ornithologist, Drew Lanham spends many of his days in the company of birds. It’s the way he’s always wanted it to be, ever since growing up on his family farm in South Carolina. At StoryCorps, he spoke with his friend John Lane about the childhood that helped his career take flight.
Read the full transcript here
Friends and Climate Change Scientists
Dr. Lora Koenig and Dr. Zoe Courville first met over a decade ago in the middle of the Greenland ice sheet. Their friendship formed while conducting research in some of the world’s most remote corners. As field researchers, they’re often away for weeks at a time, drilling ice cores and using ground-penetrating radar to study the impact of climate change. Through the years, they’ve helped each other navigate the challenges of balancing their work and personal lives. They came to StoryCorps to talk about it.
Read the full transcript here
“Tony Bees”
When bee season in New York City begins in early spring, retired police detective (and New York City Police Department’s unofficial beekeeper) Anthony “Tony Bees” Planakis gets busy tending to his hives and rescuing swarms. “Tony Bees” didn’t always love bees. In fact, it took a long time for his beekeeper father to convince him of their beauty. Ultimately, Tony became enamored with honeybees and even has a tattoo dedicated to his affection for them. He says it’s in his blood; he’s a fourth-generation beekeeper whose family hails from Crete. At StoryCorps, Anthony talked about what drew him to working with bees, and what he’s learned from them. Tony retired from the New York Police Department in 2014. He now works as a private consultant and contractor removing hives and swarms all over the New York City region.
Read the full transcript here
A Changed Tribe
Members of the Jean Charles Choctaw Nation are slowly leaving the land they’ve lived and farmed on for generations… as stronger and more frequent storms hit the Louisiana coastline. Chief Albert Naquin remembers growing up on Isle de Jean Charles, LA in the 1950s. He came to StoryCorps with his nephew, Démé Naquin Jr., who also grew up on the island.
Hurricanes are common across the region, but climate change has increased the frequency and destructiveness of these storms, leading to flooding and coastal erosion, and destroying homes and local infrastructure. Chief Naquin believes relocation is crucial for his community to keep them safe and preserve their history and culture. Since 2002 he’s made multiple attempts to acquire the funds and support needed to move the remaining families off of the island and reunite the tribe in a new community on higher ground. But his efforts have been stunted by numerous factors, including the inability to reach consensus within their tribal council, and a planned move that was halted when community members in neighboring Bourg, Louisiana protested the tribe’s relocation there.
Read the full transcript here
Cleaning Off the Crude
On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground off the coast of Alaska, spilling 11 million gallons of oil into Prince William Sound. The impact on wildlife was devastating—hundreds of thousands of marine animals died. Clean-up crews poured into the nearby port town, also called Valdez, where the first animal rescue center was established. LJ Evans (right), who lived in Valdez, volunteered at the rescue center, where she met Suzanne Bishop (left). They sat down for StoryCorps to remember the days following the spill.
Read the full transcript here
A Mother and Son Remember Life on the Fireline
Connie Mehmel was a young mother when she started fighting wildfires in Washington state, in the late 1970s. Her son, Ian, would eventually follow in her footsteps. After 42 years working for the Forest Service, Connie retired in September 2019. Connie and Ian sat down at StoryCorps to talk about working life side by side on the fire line.
Read the full transcript here
Metal Band to Marine Biology
As far back as he can recall Hans Walters loved sharks. As a child, in the 1970s, he would spend hours flipping through the encyclopedia memorizing details about the many different types of sharks. Hans’ love of sharks led him to attend college in Florida at the University of Miami where he earned his degree in Marine Biology, but that career was put on hold when, in 1982, he became the lead singer of the Miami-based metal band ZToyz.
A decade later, Hans decided it was time to do something new with his life. Putting his degree to use, he applied for a job at the Wildlife Conservation Society, and his love for sharks was rekindled. He went on to earn his Masters degree in Marine Biology and is now a shark researcher and supervisor at the New York Aquarium on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York. Hans hasn’t left rock and roll entirely behind, before he arrived at the aquarium, the sharks were given names like Sand Tiger Shark 1, Sand Tiger Shark 2, and Sand Tiger Shark 3. Hans started referring to them as “dirty stinkin’ rock and rollers,” and these days they’re named a bit differently. The New York Aquarium is also where Hans met animal behaviorist Martha Hiatt, now his wife. They came to StoryCorps to talk about his unusual career trajectory and how much of his life was actually motivated by his love of sharks.
Read the full transcript here
A Sri Lankan Sea Song
Pringa and Eranga Pieris live in New York City, but they are originally from Sri Lanka where more than 35,000 people died in a tsunami in 2004. At StoryCorps, Pringa and Eranga sing a song that she wrote in honor of the sea, their beloved homeland, and the lives lost in the catastrophe. Her song tells the story of a fisherman and the woman who loves him.
Read the full transcript here
“They said that we helped save their lives”
The drought of 2012 was the worst drought since the 1950s in the United States. Wildfires burned steadily across the center of the country, scorching acres upon acres of land. Across the western U.S., wildfires are fought in part by prison inmates. In the summer of 2012, inmates were dispatched more than 50 times to battle fires in all four corners of the state. Daniel Ross began working as an inmate firefighter in 2011. At StoryCorps, he remembered his first fire.
Read the full transcript here
What Lingers
New Orleans Pump Station workers Rufus Burkhalter (right) and Bobby Brown remember the night Hurricane Katrina hit and talk about the important role they play in serving New Orleans’ citizens.
Read the full transcript here
The Animal Kingdom Expert
Dr. Jim Fleming tells his daughter, Janetta Fleming Concepcion, about being trapped indoors by the Great Ice Storm of 1951 and his unique idea for entertainment.