Saturday, March 27, 2010

Jean's Pick of the Week for March 26th

Joe Hardtke

Jean's Pick this week is a joint effort. I provide color commentary to Jean's play-by-play.



Download Jean's Pick right now from the Here on Earth archive. And I do mean it! You really do need to see this guy in concert.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Here on Earth - "Off The Mic" - Nete Schmidt

Joe Hardtke

The University of Wisconsin's Senior Lecturer on Scandinavian Studies, Nete Schmidt, joined us on Wednesday. We talked about the Nordic countries becoming a hotbed for great crime literature and we started off the show discussing Stieg Larsson's The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

In this bonus video, Nete offers a brief review of the film version, which just hit American movie screens last week.



Interested? Here's the original Swedish trailer for the film!



Don't stop there! You can get your Scandinavian crime fix when you download the full interview with Nete at the Here on Earth archive.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Here on Earth - "Off The Mic" - Kyle Ankenbauer

Joe Hardtke

On Tuesday, we were joined in-studio by Kyle Ankenbauer, a student at the University of Wisconsin and a volunteer with Engineers Without Borders. Kyle spent a fair amount of time in Haiti and after the program, he gave his assessment of the country after the quake and his plans for future work there.



You can download Kyle's full interview in the Here on Earth archive.

And to find out how you can help Kyle's chapter of Engineers Without Borders, visit their website.

Crime Literature, Scandinavian Style - 3/24

Dominique Haller

On today's show, we will dive into the dark world of Nordic Noir fiction. You might have heard of the wildly successful Millenium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson. The film based on the first book of the trilogy, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, has come out in the United States last weekend. It will come to theaters in Milwaukee on April 9th and in Madison on April 23rd. It will also be shown at the Wisconsin Film Festival on April 15th.

But there is more than Stieg Larsson's trilogy to discover when talking about Nordic Noir. Other well-known authors are Henning Mankell, Liza Marklund, Karin Fossum, and Arnaldur Indridason. If you want to learn more about these authors, you can click here to read an article on Nordic Noir by Laura Miller.

Have you read any of these books? Do you think there is anything particularly Scandinavian about them? Tell us why you love them by leaving a comment below!

Friday, March 19, 2010

Jean's Pick of the Week for March 19th

Joe Hardtke

Jean's pick this week may just mark the return of a popular series we once produced for the show. It's something we're seriously considering and you'll see why when you watch.



Of course, we'd love your feedback on this idea and to listen to Jean's Pick of the Week, visit the Here on Earth archive and download the free mp3.

Thanks, as always, for listening!

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Missionary work today 3/17

Dominique Haller

On today's show, we will be discussing the presence of American evangelist missionaries in Eastern Africa with UW-Madison Professor Amy Stambach. These missionaries represent an old phenomenon in a new global context. How do today's missionaries differentiate themselves from previous missionaries? What are the underlying assumptions on which their work is based? What is the result of their presence in East African countries? And what do people in countries like Tanzania and Uganda think about American missionaries?

How do you see missionary work today? Are you involved in missionary work, and why? What do you think about faith-based aid initiatives? Share your thoughts on the air or at our voicemail by calling 1877-GLOBE-07 or by leaving a comment below.

World Poetry Day! 3/18

Carly Yuenger

On Thursday's show Susan Harris of Words Without Borders introduces us to a world of poetry just opening to us English speakers. As always, Words Without Borders is blazing a trail for us by bringing world literature to us in translation.

International poetry is the theme of this month's online WWB publication and is the subject of their most recent print anthology, which also came out this month. It's no coincidence that Sunday, March 21st is World Poetry Day... And, since it's also the spring equinox, here's a seasonal taste of the collection:

Yen Chen
(China, Twentieth Century)

The Plum Hint

Plums have bloomed, comrades.
Plum blossoms beckon you to come.
The productive team- captain plucks a branch,
and smiles as he walks into the village.

The snow on thousands of hills melted in one night.
A spout of water turns greener than before.
Listen! The cuckoo in the tree
also changes his new tune.

Outside the village, ponds are full,
ditches dug, and millets green.
Inside the village the cows are fat,
horses strong, and carts adorned.
Who is trying the new whip?
The snapping is so strong!

The windows are open in every house.
In every mansion the doors are wide.
Oh, spring has come!
without signs or signals in advance.

Plums have bloomed, comrades.
The plum gardens crimson like clouds.
O you thousands of full- blooming plums
are like the ten thousand hearts of our commune members.

~Translated from the Chinese by Arthur Sze

Friday, March 12, 2010

Jean's Pick of the Week - March 12th

Joe

Jean's pick this week also seems to be a popular one with our listeners, judging by the e-mail, Facebook and Twitter messages we received after it aired.



Watch Jean reveal her pick and then download it from our Here on Earth archive. And have a great weekend!

Monday, March 8, 2010

International Adoption 3/8

Dominique Haller

On today's show, we will be talking about international adoption. It is a delicate topic where the most personal aspects of life meet a wider and more political reality of today's globalized world. What imagery is used by adoption agencies, sending countries and receiving countries to talk about adoption? And what can we learn from adult adoptees about what it means to adopt and be adopted across borders?

Do you have any experience with international adoption? Share your story on the air or at our voicemail by calling 1877-GLOBE-07 or by leaving a comment below.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Jean's Pick of the Week for March 5th

Joe

Regarding Jean's Pick this week, she said it best: "...I'm thinking about becoming a volunteer. What about you?"



You can download the show right now from the Here on Earth archive. And if you've pledged your support during our winter pledge drive, thanks!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Make Your Own Fesenjan

We had a great time talking with Louisa Shafia, author of Lucid Food on the last Food Friday (if you missed it, listen to it here). Fesenjan came up as a favorite so we asked Louisa if we could post the recipe so you could make fesenjan at home.



Fesenjan (Chicken in Pomegranate Walnut Sauce)

Fesenjan combines fruit and meat, a Persian cooking style that traveled to Europe in the Middle Ages. This version gets its deep ruby color from the addition of beets (shown opposite). Served with rice, this stew makes for a sumptuous feast. Instead of chicken, try using duck or tempeh. Look for pomegranate syrup at natural and Middle Eastern food stores. If you can’t find pomegranate syrup, substitute 21/2 cups of unsweetened pomegranate juice and leave out the stock.  Serves 6


4 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds skinless chicken legs or breasts, rinsed and patted dry
1 large or 2 small yellow onions, diced
2 beets, peeled, quartered, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
11/2 cups walnuts, pulsed in a food processor until coarsely ground
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 cup unsweetened pomegranate syrup
Salt
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 recipe Green Rice (page 190)
Seeds from 1/2 pomegranate
Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
2 recipes Cucumber Yogurt (page 184)

Heat a skillet over high heat and add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and brown lightly on both sides, working in batches to avoid crowding the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the onions and cook until lightly browned. Add the beets, walnuts, garlic, cinnamon, and cayenne and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the pomegranate syrup and stock and bring to a boil. Cook at a low boil, covered, for 10 minutes.

Add the chicken and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. The stew should be bubbling the whole time. Turn the chicken pieces over every 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and add salt, if necessary. The beets should be fork-tender.

To serve, transfer the chicken to a cutting board. For chicken legs, separate the thigh from the drumstick. For breasts, slice each one into 2 or 3 pieces. Put a small mound of rice on each plate with a few pieces of chicken on top. Spoon the stew over the chicken. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds and several cilantro leaves on top. Serve the cucumber yogurt on the side

Reprinted with permission from Lucid Food: Cooking for an Eco-Conscious Life by Louisa Shafia, copyright © 2009. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.