Here on Earth - Blog Without Borders

Programs for the Week of 1/30

2012-01-27T16:58:00.001-06:00

I’ll be on vacation all next week and we put our heads together to come up with a line-up from the Here on Earth archives we think might be

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): An Open Door: Jewish Rescue in the Philippines: It’s not often that you come across a Holocaust story that has not yet been told. But, thanks to Here on Earth producer Marika Suval who discovered Filipino filmmaker Noel “Sonny” Izon, last Monday’s show broke the story of 1,200 Jews who were rescued by the people of the Philippines at a time when most other nations, including the United States, turned them down. What’s more, the story was corroborated by several listeners who called in to testify that they had first-hand knowledge of some of the very Jews who were rescued. It was inspiring and exciting.

Monday: Tree of Life (Encore): Terrence Malick's ambitious and controversial film is up for an Academy Award this year. It was both booed and cheered before it won the Palme d'Or at Cannes. The film raises deep existential questions about the meaning of life, death, and pain, and we managed to find the perfect guests to talk about it. My hunch is that a lot of the people who walked out on The Tree of Life might stick around to hear what Barbara Newman and David Sterritt had to say about it.

Tuesday: Healing the Heart of Democracy (Encore): Parker Palmer is always good for what ails us, but never more so than right now as we hit the shoals of this year’s presidential election. In his new book, designed to re-invigorate American democracy in its most localized settings, and to connect it to those larger global movements that both inspire and disappoint us, he spells out what we can do to form habits of the heart conducive to embracing democracy's endless conflicts.

Wednesday: The Runaway Little Free Libraries Project (Encore): Rick Brooks and Todd Bol caught a tiger by the tail when they decided to promote worldwide literacy and build communities one Little Free Library at a time. This was far and away one of our most popular programs of the season.

Thursday: American Born Chinese (Encore): I had great fun with Gene Luen Yang, the creator of this graphic novel which Publisher’s Weekly describes as "more than just the story of a Chinese-American childhood: it's a fable for every kid born into…a life they wish they could escape."

Friday: Twain's Feast (Encore): I loved this slightly far out Food Friday show about the attack of culinary homesickness Mark Twain suffered while traveling through Europe during the winter of 1879, eating bad hotel food. His fantasy menu, which included more than 80 mouth watering items, tells us so much about the astonishing variety of local specialties Americans regularly feasted on when the country was still wild.

I’ll be back on Monday, February 6, with a program about Swedish Nobel laureate Tomas Transtromer I’ve been longing to do for a long time. You come too!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 1/23

2012-01-20T18:09:00.000-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Bill Strickland: Bill Strickland is one hell of a guy. A man who grew up in one of the worst neighborhoods in Pittsburgh in the ruins of the steel industry, he built a world class jobs training and community arts center right in the middle of that same neighborhood where the lives of at-risk teenagers, welfare mothers, and ex-steel workers are radically transformed. He has somehow managed to combine the soul of an artist with the entrepreneurial instincts of a robber baron. No wonder Harvard Business School is studying him.

Monday: An Open Door: Jewish Rescue in the Philippines: Most of us have heard of Schindler’s List, but how many of us know about the shiploads of German and Austrian Jews who were rescued in the Philippines beginning in 1935, when most other nations turned them away. Filipino filmmaker Noel Izon, who owes his life to a German Jewish refugee, sets out to document the story of Jewish rescue in the Philipines in his new film, An Open Door.“It is my hope, & indeed my expectation, that the people of the Philippines will have in the future every reason to be glad that when the time of need came, their country was glad to extend to a persecuted people, a hand of welcome.” - Manuel Quezon, President of the Philippine Commonwealth, April 23, 1940

Tuesday: Abraham’s Family: Three principal members of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s LUBAR Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic Religions join me for a candid conversation about their own personal religious beliefs, how faith illuminates their lives, and what they have learned from one another.

Wednesday: The Muslim Brotherhood: In the wake of the pro-democracy protests in Tahrir Square, many Western observers are dismayed by the electoral success of the Muslim’s Brotherhood’s in Egypt. Dr. Tariq Ramadan, grandson of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, joins us to talk about what the Brotherhood’s leadership means for the future of Egyptian democracy.

Thursday: A Peace Maker in Syria: In her memoir, The Bread of Angels, Stephanie Saldana wrote about an Italian Jesuit who restored a tenth century monastery near Damascus, and then dedicated it to Muslim/Christian dialogue. Father Paulo was recently forced into exile by the Assad regime, but he’s back. Stephanie joins us with an update.

Friday: The French Slow Cooker: Who knew that cooking Provençal vegetable soup, red-wine braised beef with mushrooms, chicken with forty cloves of garlic, and even bouillabaisse could be as easy as setting a timer and walking away? Lori Skelton talks with Michele Scicolone about recipes from her new cookbook, The French Slow Cooker.

Batten down the hatches, here comes Ol' Man Winter! Stay safe and warm!

Jean

French Slow Cooking on Friday 1/27

2012-01-20T12:42:00.003-06:00

The French Slow Cooker – recipes for WPR's "Here On Earth," January 27

For all these recipes, you will need a slow cooker with at least a 5-quart capacity (“large slow cooker”). If you have a smaller slow cooker, you may need to cut the recipe in half and reduce cooking time.

Thanks to author Michele Scicolone, for giving us permission to post these recipes before her interview. I hope you enjoy cooking and sharing comfort food with a bit of French flair...be sure to call in with your comments next week!

The French Slow Cooker – recipes for January 27

Recipes by Michele Scicolone. You can find these and more in her new cookbook “The French Slow Cooker.”

Spinach and Egg Bouillabaisse (serves 6)

6 russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 large onion, chopped

3C. chicken broth, vegetable broth or water

3C. water

salt and fresh-ground pepper

1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed

6 large eggs

1 baguette, cut into ½ thick slices and toasted

grated Parmesan cheese, aioli or rouille (recipe follows)

In large slow cooker, combine potatoes, onion, broth and water. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on high for 6 hours, or until potatoes are very tender. Stir in spinach and cook for 15 minutes, or until spinach is hot.

When ready to serve, break 1 egg into a small cup. Remove cover from slow cooker and, holding cup close to surface, pour in the egg. Repeat with the remaining 5 eggs, placing them about an inch apart on the surface of the soup. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, or until eggs are done to taste.

Place a slice or two of toast in each bowl. Carefully spoon an egg and some soup over the toast. Sprinkle with cheese, and pass aioli or rouille. Serve hot.

Aioli (Garlic Mayonnaise)

2 large garlic cloves (or to taste), peeled

½ t. salt

2 large egg yolks

1t. Dijon mustard

1C. extra-virgin olive oil (for a milder flavor, use blend of olive and vegetable oil)

1-2t. fresh lemon juice

In a food processor, combine garlic and salt and process until finely chopped. With machine running, add egg yolks and mustard and process until smooth. Very slowly drizzle in the oil. It’s important to go slowly so that the sauce does not break. Once you have added ½ cup of the oil, you can add the remainder a little more rapidly. Add lemon juice to taste.

If aioli curdles, place a tablespoon of mustard in a bowl, then with a whisk gradually beat in the aioli a spoonful at a time. Serve immediately or store in a covered jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Rouille

½ C. roasted red bell peppers (jarred or homemade)

1 large garlic clove, peeled

1C. mayonnaise

2T. extra-virgin olive oil

1t. fresh lemon juice

pinch of piment d’Espelette or cayenne pepper

In a blender or food processor, finely chop peppers and garlic together. Add the mayonnaise, oil, lemon juice and piment d’Espelette (or cayenne) and process until smooth. Serve immediately or store in a covered jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic (serves 6)

2-3 garlic heads

12 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed

1T. chopped fresh rosemary

salt and freshly ground pepper

½ C. dry white wine

2T. fresh lemon juice

Separate garlic into cloves. There should be about 40. Discard any loose skin from the cloves, but do not peel them. Scatter the garlic in a large slow cooker.

Sprinkle the chicken with the rosemary and salt and pepper to taste. Place the chicken pieces in the slow cooker. Pour in wine and lemon juice. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through.

To serve, transfer chicken and most of garlic to a large platter. Cover and keep warm. Remove and smash the remaining garlic cloves and stir them back into the liquid. Discard the garlic skins.

Pour the liquid into a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Cook until reduced and slightly thickened. Taste for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve hot.

Bargemen’s Beef Stew (serves 8)

olive oil

4lbs. boneless beef chuck, well trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes

3T. all-purpose flour

salt and freshly ground pepper

3 large onions, thinly sliced

6 anchovy fillets

6 garlic cloves, peeled

¼ C. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2T. Dijon mustard

2T. red wine vinegar

Oil the insert of a large slow cooker. In a large bowl, toss meat with flour and salt and pepper to taste. Scatter half the onions in the slow cooker. Add half the meat. Add remaining onions and top with remaining meat. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until meat is very tender.

In a food processor or blender, chop anchovies, garlic and parsley very fine. Add mustard and vinegar and pulse until just blended.

Skim the fat off the stew. Stir in anchovy mixture. Taste for seasoning and serve.

Saffron Vegetable Stew (serves 6-8)

2T. olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2C. chopped canned tomatoes, with their juice

2t. salt

¼ t. saffron threads, crumbled

freshly ground pepper

4 medium boiling potatoes (such as Yukon Gold), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

1 medium cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets

1-2t. chopped fresh thyme or basil

In large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden but not browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add tomatoes and juices, salt, saffron, and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, until thickened.

Put potatoes in large slow cooker. Place cauliflower over potatoes. Pour tomato sauce over all.

Cover and cook on high for 3 hours, or until vegetables are tender when pierced with a knife. Sprinkle with thyme or basil. Can be served hot, warm or room temperature.

Lemon Pots de Crème (serves 4)

1/3 C. fresh lemon juice

½ t. grated lemon zest

½ C. sugar

4 large egg yolks

1C. heavy cream

Stir together lemon juice, zest and sugar until sugar is dissolved.

In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks and cream until blended. Stir in lemon juice mixture. Pour mixture into four ½ cup custard cups or ramekins.

Place a rack in the insert of a large slow cooker, or crush a sheet of aluminum foil into a ring shape and place that on the bottom of the insert. Carefully place cups on the rack (if using foil, you may need to make two rings, one slightly smaller inside the other). Pour about 1 inch of hot water into the cooker, being careful not to splash water into the cups. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or until the creams are softly set and slightly jiggly in the center. Uncover and let stand for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the cups from the cooker, wearing sturdy rubber gloves so as not to burn your fingers.

Cover and refrigerate until chilled, 2 hours, or up to 3 days, before serving.

Creamy Cherry Clafoutis (serves 6)

unsalted butter

1 12-ounce bag frozen pitted cherries (about 2 ½ cups), thawed, or substitute fresh or drained canned cherries (not cherry pie filling)

6 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 large eggs

½ C. sugar

¼ C. all-purpose flour

¼ C. whole milk

½ t. grated lemon zest

Generously butter the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of the insert of a large slow cooker. Scatter the cherries in the cooker.

In a food processor or blender, combine the cream cheese, eggs, sugar, flour, milk and lemon zest. Process or blend until smooth and creamy. Pour the mixture over the cherries.

Cover and cook on high for 1 ½ to 2 hours, or until the center is just set. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and serve warm, scooping clafoutis out of the insert.

Chocolate Pain Perdu (serves 8)

Unsalted butter

1 baguette, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 6 cups)

2 C. whole milk

10 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped

4 large eggs

½ C. sugar

1 C. heavy cream

1 t. vanilla extract

Ice cream, whipped cream or Crème Anglaise (recipe follows)

Butter the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of the insert of a large slow cooker. Scatter the bread cubes in the cooker.

Heat the milk in a small pan over medium heat until small bubbles form around the edges. Remove from heat. Set aside ¼ cup of chopped chocolate. Add the remaining chocolate to the hot milk and stir until smooth and melted.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until foamy. Beat in the chocolate milk, cream and vanilla.

Pour the milk mixture over the bread in the cooker. Scatter the reserved ¼ cup of chocolate pieces on top. Cover and cook on high for three hours, or until softly set in the center.

Let cool slightly. Scoop from the insert and serve with ice cream, whipped cream or Crème Anglais.

Crème Anglais

1 C. heavy cream

1 C. whole milk

1 vanilla bean or 1 ½ t. vanilla extract

3 large egg yolks

1/3 C. sugar

pinch of salt

Combine cream and milk in small saucepan. Split vanilla bean lengthwise with a small, sharp knife. Scrape the seeds out of the bean and into the cream mixture. Add vanilla pod. If using vanilla extract, add it while sauce is cooling.

Cook the cream mixture over medium heat until small bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Remove vanilla pod and discard.

In a heatproof bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and salt. Gradually whisk in the warm cream mixture. Transfer sauce to saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until small wisps of steam appear and the sauce coats the back of a spoon (test by dipping a spoon in the sauce and carefully – it is hot – run your finger down the back of the spoon…if it leaves a distinct track, the sauce is done). Do not allow the sauce to boil, or it may curdle.

Immediately pour the sauce into a clean bowl, set into a larger bowl of ice water. Let cool, stirring occasionally. Cover and refrigerate until serving time or for up to 2 days.

Programs for the Week of 1/16

2012-01-13T18:32:00.000-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Through the Door of Life: I never expected to identify so closely with a transgender woman, but Joy Ladin’s life story, told so beautifully in her memoir, Through the Door of Life: A Jewish Journey between Genders, is really about the search for the authentic self. It’s a deeply spiritual journey at is heart, and Ladin is completely candid about her life-long struggle with suicide and the angel’s voice who finally rescues her from it.

Monday: Bill Strickland: Meet a man who transformed his own life from inner-city desperation to successful social entrepreneur. Today, he rescues at-risk school kids by using the arts to teach them life skills. He also created a model for turning displaced adults into productive workers. His work has helped re-invent America’s approach to social entrepreneurship.

Tuesday: A Semester At Sea: Established in 1963, Semester at Sea is the only study-abroad program of its kind in the world. On a ship that becomes a traveling campus, a community of faculty and students live and learn together, exploring a different world region every semester.

Wednesday: The Museum of Underwater Art: Can a sculpture garden save the world's coral reefs?: Amazingly enough, we discovered a story reported in National Geographic about an underwater sculpture garden situated in the Caribbean somewhere between Cancun and Isla Mujeres that is attracting a new kind of coral reef. Here’s a description:They stand in a submerged world of watery silence: hundreds of life-size sculptures, depicting scenes from everyday life. A portly man watching TV, a woman staring into the deep-sea abyss; someone slumped over the hood of a VW Beetle. Yet, each statue is a constantly changing, highly coveted habitat for choral, fish and other marine life—just like the sculptor intended. The Museum of Underwater Modern Art shows what a sustainable, symbiotic relationship with nature may look like.

Thursday: Talking with the Taliban: The Taliban announced this week that ten years after 9/11, it is finally willing to talk with the United States. There’s only one catch: in return, the Obama Administration has to release at least five senior Taliban officials held at Guantánamo. President Emeritus of the Center for Constitutional Rights Michael Ratner joins us to talk about prospects for peace, and the future of Guantánamo.

Friday: Feeding the Dragon: In 2005, Mary Kate and Nate Tate set out on a 9,700 mile trip across China, collecting recipes from the country’s myriad culinary traditions. From the snow-capped mountains of Tibet to the scorching deserts of Xinjiang, the brother-sister duo create a mouth-watering blend of food, culture and travel.

Enjoy the snow!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 1/9

2012-01-07T10:24:00.000-06:00

Monday: The Jewish Annotated New Testament: What would a New Testament edited by Jewish scholars tell us about the Judeo-Christian heritage? Growing up as a secular Jew, Hebrew scholar Amy-Jill Levine remembers being accused of killing Christ even though she knew and loved many of the stories from the New Testament. In an attempt to reconcile the two traditions, she’s now the co-editor of The Jewish Annotated New Testament which places the Christian scriptures in their original Jewish context.

Tuesday: Mindfulness for Beginners: Is meditation at the top of your New Year’s resolutions? Jon Kabat-Zinn, who has done so much to secularize the practice of meditation and to integrate it into the mainstream medical establishment in the U.S., has come out with a new book which stresses its health benefits and is especially designed for the beginning meditator.

Wednesday: The Tiger’s Wife: Author Téa Obreht is only 26, but her debut novel has been hailed as “the runaway book of the year.” Set in the war-torn Balkans, The Tiger's Wife explores the relationship between a wise elder and his granddaughter who, much like Obreht herself, is undergoing a rite of passage. Straddling the line between myth and realism, the novel shines a light on the delicate work of putting a society fractured by conflict back together.

Thursday: Through the Door of Life: Professor Jay Ladin made headlines around the world when, after years of teaching literature at Yeshiva University, he returned to the Orthodox Jewish campus as a woman—Joy Ladin. In her book, Through the Door of Life, Joy allows us inside her transition as she changes genders and, in the process, creates a new self.

Friday: TBA:

Jean

Programs for the Week of 1/2

2012-01-01T13:20:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year to all our devoted Here on Earthians! Due to our reduced staff during the holidays, this week’s bulletin might be a little late, and a bit on the light side:

Monday: UPRISING: According to Time magazine, the word protest appeared in newspapers and online more this past year than at any other time in history. Political analyst John Nichols is working on a new book about the uprisings of 2011. He says that for once the United States is in solidarity with the rest of the world. He joins us with a look back at the global protest movements of 2011. Which ones are most likely to succeed?

Tuesday: The Exile of a Peace Maker in Syria: Father Paolo is an Italian Jesuit priest who has worked to foster and maintain a real interfaith dialogue between Muslims and Christians for the past 30 years in Syria. Recently, he was exiled by the regime for expressing his concerns about living under a totalitarian dictatorship, stating that "Fear has oppressed us too long." Stephanie Saldana wrote about him in her memoir, The Bread of Angels. She joins us with an update.

Wednesday: Mindfulness for Beginners: Is meditation at the top of your New Year’s resolutions? Jon Kabat-Zinn, who has done so much to secularize the practice of meditation and to integrate it into the mainstream medical establishment in the U.S. has come out with a new book which stresses its health benefits and is especially designed for the beginning meditator.

Thursday: The Ancient Navigators of Micronesia: Imagine being in a hand-made canoe in the middle of a vast ocean, guided only by the sun, stars and wind. For centuries, ancient navigators in the Pacific did just that: guided themselves by nature's clues and the knowledge handed down by their ancestors. Wisconsin-born James Campbell set out to find and sail with some of the last master navigators of Micronesia.

Friday: Dining on the Trans Siberian Railroad: At over 5,000 miles long, the Trans Siberian Railroad is the longest railway on Earth. To ride it from end to end would take over six days. Some say those could be the loneliest six days of your life. Unless of course, you participate in the most famous past time aboard: making friends and sharing food.

From all of us Here on Earth, have a happy and safe New Year’s Eve! We look forward to more enlightening radio hours in 2012.

With all best wishes,

Jean

Programs for the Week of 12/26

2011-12-23T18:08:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Muslim Jesus: Who knew? And why didn’t we know? The Jesus of the Qur’an and the Hadith is a fascinating figure who points to the Prophet Mohammed in much the same way that John the Baptist points to Jesus. His mother, Maryam, the only woman mentioned by name in the Qur’an, has a chapter all her own, but there is no mention of Joseph. Both traditions share a belief in the Annunciation, the Virgin Birth, the Ascension, the Second Coming and the Day of Judgment. Most Muslims do not believe that Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead, which is, of course, the heart of Christology, but our amazing Muslim scholar, Suleiman Mourad acknowledged that references to both the crucifixion and the resurrection can, in fact, be found in Islamic scriptures, and that their existence had probably been suppressed for polemical reasons. I do believe this was one of our most illuminating Inside Islam programs, however controversial.

Monday: Vikings in the Attic (Encore): What does it mean to grow up Scandianvian? In his new book, Eric Dregni tracks down and explores the significant, and quite often bizarre historic sites, tales, and traditions of Scandinavia’s peculiar colony in the Midwest.

Tuesday: The 99 (Encore): What power do superheroes really have? Naif al-Mutawa believes that they can change the world. That’s why he created The 99: superheroes inspired by the 99 attributes of Allah. Together with The 99, Naif is out to fight radical Islam and Western misconceptions about Islam. Ever since, The 99 have teamed up with Superman to fight for a better world, and President Obama has publicly recognized the importance of Naif’s work.

Wednesday: Time for Outrage! (Encore): Stéphane Hessel is many things: former French Resistance leader, concentration camp survivor, diplomat, ambassador, former UN speechwriter, and in 1948, he helped draft the U.N.'s Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In his new book, which has sold more than 4 million copies across the globe, he calls for a return to the ideals that fueled the French Resistance...and for discontented citizens to stand up, get outraged and fight back against injustice.

Thursday: Making an Exit (Encore): Sarah Murray never thought about what would happen to her body after she died until her own father passed away, sending her off on a survey of funeral rites from around the world.

Friday: The Golden-Bristled Boar (Encore): When Jeffrey Greene moved to Burgundy, France, he had no idea he was entering prime boar country. After a neighbor presented him with a gift of half a boar stuffed into a black garbage bag, he became fascinated and began studying the history and lore of "the last ferocious beast of the forest," compiling some interesting recipes along the way.

With a limited staff on hand for the holidays, we’ve chosen to repeat some of our favorite 2011 Here on Earth programs for the coming week.

Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 12/19

2011-12-16T18:32:00.000-06:00

Monday: The Barber Shop in the Tate Museum: When he is not making art, Faisal Abdu Allah runs a men's barbershop/salon. In fact, he even opened a barber's shop in the prestigious Tate museum in London, where he gave haircuts to visitors who ventured to sit in his barber's chair. This unusual performance artist is gutsy and fun, and has a lot to say!

Tuesday: Sea Change: Whales and the Future of our Oceans: Dr. Roger Payne, best known for discovering that Humpback whales sing songs, combines oceanography science with poetry to remind us that our survival hinges on the entire web of life.

Wednesday: The Muslim Jesus: Jesus has a unique role as a divine figure in Islam. He is highly revered and esteemed as a super prophet, on a par with Mohammed, and in certain respects, even above him. Two Islamic scholars join us to talk about how two of the world’s greatest faith traditions differ in their understanding of one of the most important religious figures of all time.

Thursday: The Jewish Annotated New Testament: What would a New Testament edited by Jewish scholars tell us about the Judeo-Christian heritage? Growing up as a secular Jew, Hebrew scholar Amy-Jill Levine remembers being accused of killing Christ even though she knew and loved many of the stories from the New Testament. In an attempt to reconcile the two traditions, she’s now the co-editor of The Jewish Annotated New Testament which places the Christian scriptures in their original Jewish context.

Friday: Christmas in Africa: The pressure of shopping for the "perfect" Christmas tree, finding the "right" presents and serving up a sumptuous feast can drive a person to distraction during the holiday season. Today we'll pause and explore the simple joys of celebrating Christmas the African way.

For a very special variation on The Poetry Circle of the Air, please tune in to our show about the poetry of whales on Tuesday, December 20, when I’ll be making an equally special once-in-a-lifetime announcement. I’d love you to be there.

Jean

Programs for the Week of 12/12

2011-12-09T17:00:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: World Peace and Other Fourth Grade Achievements: I was very happy with our choice of topic for Pearl Harbor Day: John Hunter, the creator of The World Peace Game, is not only a visionary teacher, he’s a great man. Those fourth grade students who get plunged into the complex matrix of The World Peace Game under his expert non-guidance, are lucky indeed. They emerge from his classroom as ready-made world citizens, and that’s a benefit to all of us.

Monday: The Feminine Divine: December 12 is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe and we’ve found the perfect guest to talk about the importance of the icon throughout Mexico and elsewhere. Nineteen years after the publishing sensation of Women Who Run With the Wolves, Jungian feminist Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés discusses the rise of the divine feminine and liberates the traditional image of the Blessed Mother in her new book, Untie the Strong Woman.

Tuesday: Christmas Music from The Rose Ensemble: If you’re planning on tuning out our one-day pledge drive, think again, because you’re in for a treat. The Rose Ensemble, one of the most renowned early music choirs in the country, sings Christmas music from three distinct traditions. It’s gorgeous stuff, guaranteed to bring you joy and lift your spirits.

Wednesday: Russia, America, and the Nutcracker: What do the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Mouse King, Gingerbread Soldiers and a Nutcracker-prince have in common with Tsarist Russia? How did a failed ballet come to represent all that is magical about the holiday season? And, how is the fate of kings, courts and states bound up with something as ethereal as ballet?

Thursday: Kingdom under Glass:

Friday: From the Jewish Heartland: Baklava studded with cranberries, turnovers made with sweet cherries from Michigan, rich Chicago cheesecakes, savory gefilte fish pounded out from Minnesota northern pike: immigrant Jews recreated the foods of their homelands working with what they found at hand.

As the winter solstice draws closer, we need each other more and more. Thank you for all your support throughout the year, but especially at this time.

Jean

Programs for the Week of 12/5

2011-12-02T18:40:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: The Pirates of Somalia: It’s true that it’s hard to break into journalism these days, so you have to admire a young man who’s been living in his parents’ basement in Chicago, writing boring market reports, who one day says, “What the hell,” and takes off for Puntland in a dilapidated Russian Avatar where he chews khat with Somali pirates and writes a book about them. Jay Bahadur’s hutzbah paid off big time.

Monday: Uncovering Hemingway's Cuba Archives: Ernest Hemingway was born in Oak Park, IL, but found his true home in Cuba, where he wrote some of his greatest works. Fifty years after his death, his publisher’s granddaughter embarked on a quest to find Hemingway’s lost papers, leading to an unprecedented collaboration between Cuba and the United States to preserve a trove of never-before-seen letters and documents.

Tuesday: Why the West Rules - For Now: Few historians have been so bold as to try and answer the big questions of why and how the West came to dominate the world. Stanford historian, Dr. Ian Morris does just that, and then goes one step further, predicting what the next century will bring.

Wednesday: World Peace and Other Fourth Grade Achievements: They face war, economic meltdowns, border disputes, ethnic strife, and the devastating effects of global warming, while trying to keep cool heads and guide their countries to peace, stability, and prosperity. And they are only in the fourth grade. John Hunter teaches children how to make peace, but can the lessons fourth-graders have to teach us really be learned?

Thursday: Is Burma Finally on a Path Toward Democracy?: Are Burma’s leaders serious about political reform? More than a decade after the military junta declared martial law, changed the country’s name to Myanmar, and killed thousands in pro-democracy crack-downs, is it finally loosening its strangle-hold?

It’s December, my favorite month, the season of both darkness and light. Come enjoy it with us!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 11/28

2011-11-25T16:06:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Who's in Charge: Free Will and the Science of the Brain: Although I misread Michael Gazzaniga – and had a heck of a time with his name – arguing about whether we humans have free will in the light of what we now know about the neuroscience of the brain was a real gray matter work-out. Professor Gazzaniga declared himself a bio-determinist in the course of the program – along with a number of callers, much to my surprise - but how does it alter our sense of who we are as human beings, I’d like to know, to believe there’s no such thing as free will? Are we all just a mess of neuro-connectictivity that can be tinkered with and altered at the whim of medical practitioners or, heaven forfend, the state? Even my atheist biochemist husband doesn’t believe that!

Monday: Arrivederci, Berlusconi!: Silvio Berlusconi dominated and divided Italian politics for over 17 years, more than anyone since Mussolini. But on November 12, his scandal-ridden reign finally came to an end, as the Italian people finally said basta to his rule.

Tuesday: 2011 Hours Against Hate: Launched by the State Department, the 2011 Hours Against Hate campaign wants to stop bigotry and promote respect by getting young people to pledge to spend time in a community different from their own. The campaign has gained worldwide attention and momentum, picking up volunteers from Turkey and Azerbaijan to Canada and the US.

Wednesday: The Pirates of Somalia: Somalia's pirates make world headlines as they disrupt international shipping with demands for multi-million dollar ransoms. But who are these modern-day buccaneers? Are they brazen criminals or displaced fishermen fighting for a livelihood? A close-up look at pirates in the Horn of Africa.

Thursday: The Folly of Fools: Leading evolutionary biologist Robert Trivers draws on forty years of research to examine the science of deceit. He claims that natural selection seems to favor self-deception, and that in order to deceive others we often have to deceive ourselves first.

Friday: Lidia's Italy in America: Lidia Bastianich, one of the most-loved chefs on television, offers a generous selection of stories and recipes collected from all parts of Italian America, showcasing the chef’s tradition of bringing Italian culture to American tables.

And now, to hurry home and start cooking!

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone! All of us Here on Earth are grateful for each and every one of you!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 11/21

2011-11-18T18:03:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Listen to This: Joe Hardtke says music has the power to transcend time and place, as we Listen to This.

Monday: Free Will and the Science of the Brain: The "father of cognitive neuroscience," Michael Gazzaniga, makes a powerful and provocative argument for free will in his newest book Who's in Charge?

Tuesday: Never the Hope Itself - Love and Ghosts in Latin America and Haiti: A journalist describes his life as an NPR correspondent in Latin America, rubbing shoulders with migrants and shamans, presidents and his own household ghosts.

Wednesday: People of the Big Voice: In the late nineteenth century, a Wisconsin studio photographer began taking portraits of local Ho-Chunk families. Over the next six decades his lens captured generations of tribe members in more than 300 breathtaking photographs, fleshing out a remarkable narrative of a resilient people.

Thursday: Bless This Food (Encore): Do you say grace? Giving thanks for food is the most common form of prayer found the world over. In anticipation of Thanksgiving, we celebrate this universal cultural tradition with Adrian Butash, author of Bless This Food: Ancient and Contemporary Graces from Around the World.

Friday: Updating Vintage Holiday Recipes (Encore): Food is like language: to be alive it must be constantly changing. New York Times food columnist Melissa Clark understands this. A whole section of her new cookbook is devoted to Holiday Food that features vintage recipes with updated variations.

Jean

Programs for the Week of 11/14

2011-11-11T19:04:00.002-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: It Calls You Back: I remember Luis Rodriguez from an interview I did with him many years ago when his first memoir, Always Running, came out. All these years later he seems to have acquired a leathery patina and near guru status. What he exemplifies, it seems to me, is what Socrates tried to teach us at his trial in 399 BC: “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Luis Rodriguiz reminds us that self-examination is a process that is never finished.

Monday: Listen to This!: Does music have the power to transcend time and place? Through his experience with music from Iceland to China, from France to Minneapolis, New Yorker music critic, Alex Ross, has learned that music has to power to transport us to places and times we might never visit otherwise.

Tuesday: Peace Corps Writers: 2001 Washington Post reported that the Peace Corps community is "churning out enough works - memoirs, novels, and books of poetry - to warrant a whole new genre: Peace Corps Literature." Two returned Peace Corps volunteers talk about the Peace Corps experiences that inspired their writing careers.

Wednesday: How Yoga Won the West: Journalist Ann Louise Bardach credits the Indian mystic Vivekananda with introducing yoga into the national conversation, back in 1893. The 31 year old mystic made a huge impact at the opening of the Parliament of Religions on Sept. 11, 1893, where he dazzled the audience with his show-stopping improvised talks on eastern philosophy - and yoga.

Thursday: Borderlands: Riding the Edge of America: A sixty-year-old biker rides the length of America’s borders, both south and north, to explore our conflicted relationship with our neighbors.

Friday: The Table Comes First: Never before has society cared so much about food, says New Yorker writer Adam Gotnip, with celebrity chefs and restaurants treated as places of pilgrimage. But have we come any closer to discovering the true meaning of food in our lives? The Table Comes First is one man’s quest to find the answer to that question.

I’ll be with family in New York later in the week, leaving Here on Earth in the very capable hands of my colleagues, Veronica Rueckert and Lori Skelton.

Jean

Programs for the Week of 11/7

2011-11-04T19:11:00.001-05:00

Monday: A Muslim-American Slave: The Life of Omar Ibn Said: In 1807, Omar Ibn Said, a wealthy Muslim scholar was captured and brought to the American south as a slave. Late in life, Omar was persuaded by abolitionists to write down his life story which has been newly edited and translated by a Yale professor.

Tuesday: TBA (Encore):

Wednesday: All-American Muslim: Are we ready for a Muslim Cosby Show? All-American Muslim, a new reality series that debuts on TLC on Sunday, November 13th, explores what it means to be Muslim in post-9/11 America as it follows the lives of five Muslim-American families in Dearborn, Michigan.

Thursday: It Calls You Back: One Man’s Break with Gang Life: Luis Rodriguez chronicled his early life in L.A. as a young Chicano gang member in Always Running, a book that became a classic. Now, in his second memoir, he shows just how difficult it can be to break with the past even as an activist and one of the most revered figures in Chicano literature.

Friday: A Family Recipe for Veterans’ Day:: The fighting officially ended in World War I at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918. Veterans Day in the United States, and Remembrance Day in Canada, has become a time to remember and honor all wartime service. Cookbook author Wini Moranville has a story to tell about touring World War II battlefields in Normandy and a chicken recipe she discovered while she was there that uses the famous apple brandy of the region.

As the leaves fall and the color is swept away, it’s time to cling more closely to one another...

Happy November!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 10/31

2011-10-28T18:04:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Vikings in the Attic: I’ve lived in Wisconsin almost thirty years; my son flourished at Eggplant Daycare, a parent co-op that operated in Madison back in the eighties; I’ve been a member of the UW Credit Union almost since the day I arrived; I shop regularly at the Willy Street Coop and buy dairy products from Organic Valley Family of Farms, but until last Tuesday when Eric Dregni enlightened us about how the Scandinavians shaped the culture of the Midwest, I never connected the dots. It’s wonderful to know the place where you live, it’s also wonderful to live there. Thank you, Eric. But you can keep the lutefisk.

Monday: Making an Exit: Sarah Murray never thought about what would happen to her body after she died until her own father passed away, sending her off on a survey of funeral rites from around the world.

Tuesday: Guantánamo: An American History: What’s the history of Guantánamo? How did the US come to occupy a part of Cuba? Harvard historian Jonathan Hansen got suspicious when the Bush administration defended its denial of due process to "detainees" at Guantánamo on the grounds that the prison is outside of US jurisdiction. What he reveals in his book, Guantánamo: An American History, illuminates how difficult it is to overcome our imperial past.

Wednesday: A Road from Lubumbashi: Most of us don’t realize that we are directly linked to the violence and poverty that persists in Congo through our choice of cell phones, play stations and other gadgets. Dan Banda’s film, A Road From Lubumbashi tells that story while also illuminating the ways in which we as consumers can help reduce the conflict.

Thursday: TBA (Encore):

Friday: Cooking Like Our Grandmothers: Michael Pollan suggests eating only foods our grandmothers would recognize as real food. Tamar Adler takes it to the next step – showing us how to cook like our grandmothers, with instinct, using all five senses and every part of an ingredient, and elevating simple food to the sublime. (Lori Skelton hosts)

Happy Halloween!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 10/24

2011-10-23T15:13:00.000-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Interfaith Youth Core: Eboo Patel is a solid original thinker who, in my opinion, is moving the culture forward with his Interfaith Youth Corps which is now over 100,000 strong. What a great way to get young people working together in service to others, breaking down faith barriers in the process. W.E.B. du Bois once said that the defining issue of the twentieth century was race; Eboo Patel thinks that the defining issue of our own century is religious discord. By focusing on youth, he’s doing a whole lot to change that.

Monday: Songs of Kabir: Almost 500 years after his death, Kabir remains one of the world's most beloved poets. His poems are full of passion and paradox, of mind-bending riddles and exultant riffs, and a new translation of his poems, by one of India’s most renowned poets, Arvind Krishna Mehrotra, brings Kabir’s poetry to life like never before.

Tuesday: Vikings in the Attic: What does it mean to grow up Scandianvian? In his new book, Eric Dregni tracks down and explores the significant, and quite often bizarre. historic sites, tales, and traditions of Scandinavia’s peculiar colony in the Midwest.

Wednesday: Powering the Future: Two centuries from now, when we run out of oil, gas and coal, will we still be able to generate electricity, run cars, and fly jet planes? Nobel Prize winning Physicist, Dr. Robert B. Laughlin believes we will—but only by using alternate sources of energy, like the sun, wind, animal waste, and even trash.

Thursday: India Calling: Anand Giridharadas grew up in America but returned to India, his parents’ country, to get a closer look at how the India they left had turned into the economic powerhouse that the whole world is watching.

Friday: Made in America: Lucy Lean traveled America, photographing and interviewing master chefs, and collecting their recipes that reinvent our classic and most beloved comfort foods.

That’s all, Folks! I’m headed for sunny Tampa. I’ll be back in time for a reading at the Wisconsin Book Festival on Sunday afternoon. It’s in the Wisconsin Studio of the Overture Center starting at 4:00pm. I hope to see you there!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 10/17

2011-10-14T21:06:00.001-05:00

UPCOMING EVENT: Jean Feraca will be reading from the new edition of her memoir, I Hear Voices, at the Wisconsin Book Festival on Sunday, October 23, from 4:00 to 5:30 in the Wisconsin Studio of the Overture Center. The reading will feature her new essay,

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Global Citizen Year: Earlier this year I attended the Summit of the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy at Wingspread in Racine, Wisconsin, where I met many visionary people including Abby Falik who is the founder and CEO of Global Citizen Year, “the Peace Corps for a new generation.” What’s thrilling about Abby’s story is that when she discovered she couldn’t join the Peace Corps after graduating from high school because she wasn’t old enough, she just wouldn’t take no for an answer. With her parents’ blessing, she took off on her own for Nicaragua and then Brazil, and with the hard lessons learned from those experiences plus a Harvard business degree , twelve years later she founded Global Citizen Year, a program that sends promising high school graduates into countries such as Guatemala and Senegal for a year of immersion in language, culture, and service. Kids come out transformed, young leaders ready for almost anything. I was so inspired by the spirit of the summit that I decided to launch a new series on citizen diplomacy this year on Here on Earth. Abby made for a grand start.

Monday: Upside: Good News About the World: Using the best available data, sociologist Bradley Wright shows us that things are not as bad as the media make them out to be. In his new book Upside: Surprising Good News About the State of Our World, Wright reveals surprisingly uplifting facts about global poverty, disease, the environment, and sexual morality.

Tuesday: Jerusalem, Jerusalem: In James Carroll's Jerusalem, the city embodies the world’s greatest philosophies, and its worst impulses. It is a city of faith, wracked by war, a city constantly engaged in "a contest of life and death." And yet, it is also a place of hope, resurrection, consolation, and holds the key to understanding world history and reimagining world peace.

Wednesday: Bridging the Faith Divide: Eboo Patel and the Interfaith Youth Core: In 1998, Eboo Patel noticed that increased religious diversity in America was causing increased conflict. If religious extremists were recruiting young people, he reasoned, then those who believe in religious tolerance should do likewise, a realization that inspired the Interfaith Youth Core, an organization dedicated to service to others as a way of overcoming conflict.

Thursday: TBA:

Friday: TBA:

This is a short week for me as I’ll be heading to Tampa for the American Italian Historical Association’s annual conference on Thursday, but will be back in time to read from the new edition of my book at the Wisconsin Book Festival on Sunday. I hope to see you there!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 10/10

2011-10-07T16:28:00.002-05:00

We’re heading into the fall pledge drive this week, and , as usual, we’ve put some extra thought into our programming. Expect lighter fare, and lots of uplift!

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Comics in the Classroom: If you’ve never yet had the pleasure of reading a really good graphic novel, I highly recommend American Born Chinese, by Gene Luen Yang, who must surely have been a wunderkind. (sorry, I don’t know the Chinese for that). I probably wouldn’t have taken the trouble to read it had I not been a whole hour early for a physical therapy appointment yesterday, but think about what I would have missed – the Monkey King, a lesson on the four disciplines of kung-fu, what it’s like to be the only Chinese kid in an American classroom, and what an unexpected joy it is to read a really grown up comic book about kids! I loved it all. And Gene himself is now a grown up whiz kid without the attitude. Great stuff.

Monday: Columbus: When I saw that Laurence Bergreen had written a biography of Columbus, I jumped. The last time I had him on the show he talked about his amazing biography of Al Capone, which prompted Capone’s nephew to call in from somewhere near Al’s old hideout in northern Wisconsin. Bergreen’s biography of Magellan - Over the Edge of the World - kept my husband up in the middle of the night it was so mesmerizing. So my expectations for this one are very high. I don’t care how much has been written about Columbus – Bergreen will make it fresh. Consider this excerpt from a review: While we judge the man for being a plunderer, a harbinger of genocide and a megalomaniac, we see in Bergreen portrayal a man ridden with self doubt, who eventually lost royal backing and died destitute.

Tuesday: On Creativity and Slowing Down: Christian McEwen believes we get our best creative ideas in the most unlikely places-in the bathroom, on vacation, when we're daydreaming or just twiddling our thumbs. Drawing on literary and spiritual thinkers from Henry David Thoreau to Pablo Neruda, she extols the virtues of slowing down, and making time for creativity.

Wednesday: Integrative Medicine Man: Can empathy cure colds? Can art relieve the pain of hospital patients? For the last decade, Dr. David Rakel has been using integrative medicine, combining conventional and alternative medical treatments to transform the lives of his patients, and promote their long-term well-being.

Thursday: Global Citizen Year: An Alternative Peace Corps: Abby Falik was dismayed when she discovered she couldn’t join the Peace Corps after graduating from high school only because she hadn’t yet turned eighteen. So she started a Peace Corps of her own. Because of her, each yea, a corps of graduating seniors defer college to become Global Citizen Year Fellows in Africa, Latin America and Asia. Abby won the attention of the Clinton Foundation for her work.

Friday: Trout Caviar: Recipes from a Northern Forager: You may have heard Brett Laidlaw on a recent episode of Wisconsin Life. This guy’s the real thing: he forages truly wild foods – chanterelles, nettles, berries, and trout fresh from the stream. He lays out the laws for mushroom hunting, curing bacon, laissez-faire gardening, and more. And best of all, he lives in a rural Wisconsin cabin.

I’ll be in Bayfield this Saturday with Jeffrey Potter, WPR Marketing Director. Come on by!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 10/3

2011-10-02T22:37:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Time for Outrage!: Stephane Hessel has been around: He was captured by the Germans during the French occupation, he escaped and made his way to London where he teamed up with General de Gaulle and became one of the leaders of the Resistance. He was captured again by the Gestapo, and again escaped, but not before being water boarded three times. At 94, the man is like tempered steel, and his message, captured in 4,000 words that are resounding throughout the world, is that It’s Time for Outrage! Stand up for what you believe in, take to the streets and fight against injustice wherever you find it.

Monday: The Hare With Amber Eyes: When ceramic artist Edmund de Waal inherits a collection of ornamental Japanese carvings known as "netsuke," he becomes drawn to the story behind them, which becomes the story of his family that stretches through the centuries and across several countries.

Tuesday: Is There a Pan-Hispanic Culture? What is la hispanidad?: Half a billion people worldwide, from the United States and Latin America, to Spain and the Philippines, supposedly share a common identity, called la hispanidad. But what is la hispanidad, and how unified is Hispanic culture really? In their new book, Ilan Stavans and Iván Jaksic come up with a flexible understanding of the elusive concept, one that transcends borders and cultures.

Wednesday: Comics in the Classroom: Since its inception in 1933, the modern comic book has drawn the ire of parents, preachers, and teachers. But graphic novelist and teacher, Gene Luen Yang, believes the tradition of pictorial story-telling has deep historical roots and particular relevance in today’s classroom.

Thursday: Pico Iyer on Chucking it All (encore): Have you ever felt the urge to chuck it all, slip out the back door, and start life anew? That's just what the main character does in Finland's best loved novel, "The Year of the Hare" by Arto Paasilinna. Renowned travel writer Pico Iyer, who wrote the forward to the book, did the same thing when he left for Japan many years ago. He joins us to talk about the new North American edition of the book and about the benefits of leaving it all behind. (rebroadcast from 3/15/2011)

Friday: Apple Love: When you're looking to make that killer apple pie, should you opt for Granny Smith or Esopus Spitzenburg, Thomas Jefferson's favorite? Food writer Amy Traverso has written the definitive guide for all things apple, from recipes and preparation tips to history and lore.

Lori Skelton will be filling in my apple pie while I’m on my way to the glorious Bayfield Apple Festival this weekend. Go ahead. Eat it!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 9/26

2011-09-23T17:56:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): India's Anti-Corruption Movement: I’ve been reading about Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement in the New York Times, but it wasn’t until today’s show with New York Times correspondent Jim Yardley and political science professor Sumit Ganguly that its full import came home to me. I’ve been a little sad watching how the great figure of Ghandi has shrunk to a caricature in Bollywood movies and other expressions of Indian popular culture. It’s heartening now to witness the resurgence of his influence in what has become a special moment in Indian political history. Long live Ghandi, and hurrah for Hazare!

Monday: Healing the Heart of Democracy: In this year of the Arab spring, it's a good time to be reminded that democracy is a never-ending process. In his new book designed to re-invigorate American democracy in its most localized settings, and to connect it to those larger global movements that both inspire and disappoint us, Parker Palmer spells out what we can do to form habits of the heart conducive to embracing democracy's endless conflicts.

Tuesday: The Ride of Your Life (encore): Biking season isn't over quite yet! Whether you’re crazy about bikes or just appreciate a leisurely ride, you’ll fall in love with Robert Penn's story about circling the globe on a bike. In his book It's All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels, he explains how the bike continues to change our world. (rebroadcast from May 3rd, 2011)

Wednesday: Time for Outrage!: Stéphane Hessel is many things: former French Resistance leader, concentration camp survivor, diplomat, ambassador, former UN speechwriter, and in 1948, he helped draft the U.N.'s Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In his new book, which has sold more than 4 million copies across the globe, he calls for a return to the ideals that fueled the French Revolution...and for discontented citizens to stand up, get outraged and fight back against injustice.

Thursday: Bridging the Faith Divide: Eboo Patel and the Interfaith Youth Core: In 1998, Eboo Patel noticed that increased religious diversity in America was causing increased conflict. If religious extremists were recruiting young people, he reasoned, then those who believe in religious tolerance should do likewise, a realization that inspired the Interfaith Youth Core, an organization dedicated to service to others as a way of overcoming conflict.

Friday: Mission Street Food and the Pop-Up Restaurant: When Anthony Myint and Karen Leibowitz opened a food cart on Mission Street in San Francisco, they had no idea that it would catapult them into a "pop-up" restaurant. (If you're new to the term, a pop-up restaurant is one that typically operates clandestinely, sometimes in the middle of the night, inside a pre-existing restaurant.) With an ever changing menu of unique offerings concocted by guest chefs, Mission Street quickly gained a huge following and caused people to rethink the whole idea of a restaurant.

I can't believe it’s finally almost Friday!

Have a great weekend, everybody, and if you’re anywhere near Sundance Theater in Madison, I hear Werner Herzog’s 3D movie, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, with an extended run through the weekend, is not to be missed.

Jean

Programs for the Week of 9/19

2011-09-16T17:58:00.000-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Ayn Rand and American Politics: I've decided that the Ayn in Ayn Rand's name stands for irony. There are so many ironic inferences to be drawn from her life story, but chief among them, it seems to me, when you consider what a big footprint she’s left on the American political landscape is the fact that we are all suffering from a huge Cold War hangover. And that's supremely ironic given the fact that the Soviet Union doesn't even exist anymore! Why are we so upset about the auto industry and the banking bailout? Why are the Republicans so uncompromising? Why does the Tea Party hate Obama's plan for health care reform? It's all because we’re afraid of a Communist takeover! And what did Ayn Rand herself become? An inverse Marxist fundamentalist. Think about that for a moment. Our current political reality is based on fear of a bogeyman who's already imploded. And she was all about REASON. How rational is that?

Monday: Indigo - The Color that Seduced the World (encore): Indigo, "the bluest of blues," is not just a color, but, as Catherine McKinley puts it, "an attempt to capture beauty." Inspired by her own ancestral entanglement with Indigo, Catherine set out to learn from the last master dyers of West Africa and discovered amazing stories of wealth, power, and divine meaning (rebroadcast from June 1st, 2011).

Tuesday: Murder in Lascaux: The mysterious prehistoric caves in the south of France are the scene of a murder in a new novel by Betsy Draine and Michael Hinden, professors emeriti at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Typical of this dynamic husband and wife team who lived near Lascaux, it's mystery and murder with art, history, and, of course, a great dollop of French food thrown in for good measure.

Wednesday: The Poetry Circle of the Air: In a variation on an old and beloved theme, poet Molly Peacock joins us again this September 21, the day of the fall equinox, together with guest editor Priscila Uppal to give us a preview of the 2011 Best Canadian Poetry in English anthology due out next month.

Thursday: India's Anti-Corruption Movement: Sixty-four years after Gandhi's non-violent movement brought an end to British rule in India, the Indian masses are back in the streets. Led by Anna Hazare, a man whom many hail as a new Gandhi, the movement is going after their own leaders this time, protesting the government's failure to address wide-spread and rampant corruption.

Friday: Eating Smart in France: Don't know your escargot from your maquereau? Ronnie Hess is here to help. Whether you’re searching for an authentic restaurant in Paris, or cooking coq au vin in your own kitchen, here's what you need to know to experience the essence of French culture through its cuisine.

Bon Appetit!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 9/12

2011-09-09T17:51:00.005-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Little Free Libraries Project: What is it about the appeal of the miniature? Rick Brooks and Tod Bol really hit it big time with their Little Free Libraries, which are now popping up everywhere. Even my friend in Oxford has seen them. Still, it’s a bit mysterious to me exactly why they have caught on. Is it our hankering for community, both visible and invisible? For books themselves as cultural artifacts as they begin to disappear? For something that does an end run around the consumerism trap? I’m really curious. If you have some idea about why big birdhouses filled with books that are free for the taking would go viral and become a global phenomenon, please let me know.

Monday: Rediscovering the Lost City of Machu Picchu: In 1911, American explorer Hiram Bingham climbed into the Andes Mountains and "discovered" the ancient Incan city of Machu Picchu. One hundred years later, the site remains as fascinating, yet mysterious, as ever. In his new book, travel writer Mark Brooks journeys to Peru to retrace Bingham's steps to try and finally answer the question: Just exactly what was Machu Picchu?

Tuesday: Ayn Rand: Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand, author of Atlas Shrugged, has become one of the most polarizing figures in American culture, but how much do we really know about her life? History professor Jennifer Burns spent years poring over Rand's private papers and journals, offering a reassessment of the author's life, and her impact on the current conservative political movement.

Wednesday: The King's Speech (encore): While the American public sees the Oscar-nominated film "The King's Speech" as a story about the king heroically overcoming his personal limitations in the face of great adversity, the same film in the UK is perceived as being a story about class differences. What does the film teach us about class in the UK? How did you see "The King's Speech?" (rebroadcast from February 21st, 2011)

Thursday: The Wabi-Sabi Way (Encore): Do you love your rusty, dented old wheelbarrow? How Wabi-Sabi of you! A philosophy of seeing and homemaking, wabi-sabi has its roots in Japanese Zen Buddhism, but it's all about the imperfection of dried leaves, rather than the perfection of a fresh cherry blossom. (rebroadcast from June 2nd, 2011)

Friday: The Golden-Bristled Boar: When Jeffrey Greene moved to Burgundy, France, he had no idea he was entering prime boar country. After a neighbor presented him with a gift of half a boar stuffed into a black garbage bag, he became fascinated and began studying the history and lore of "the last ferocious beast of the forest," compiling some interesting recipes along the way.

While we’re hunting for wild boar, let me remind you that our two current openings for Here on Earth producers (go to www.hereonearth.org for info.) are still not filled. So, if you know of a likely candidate, please encourage him or her to apply.

Thanks!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 9/5

2011-09-02T17:57:00.002-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Slow Violence: Rob Nixon (Slow Violence...) opened my eyes to a whole different environmental ethos coming from the Global South. He piqued my appetite for wanting to know more about writers such as Nigeria’s Ken Saro-Wiwa, Africa’s first environmental martyr, and India’s Indra Sinha who wrote the novel Animal’s People about the afterlife of the Bhopal disaster. Unlike their North American elder cousins – Thoreau, Muir, and Leopold - these writers do not separate humans from nature, and they are passionate about bringing to light the fact that environmental degradation violates people every bit as much as it violates the earth itself.Our Guest producer Chris Malina picked his program Odd Bits as his favorite of the week; watch the video to hear why!

Monday: Remembering the Triangle Factory Fire (encore): 2011 marks the one hundred year anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City. We celebrate Labor Day by remembering its victims and the labor law successes of the early 20th century. (Rebroadcast from April 11, 2011)

Tuesday: Chasing Carnegie: The Little Free Libraries Project: Rick Brooks and Todd Bol, two Wisconsin men, are promoting worldwide literacy and building community, one Little Free Library at a time...and one could soon be coming to a neighborhood near you. Together, they’re on a quest to break Andrew Carnegie's record of creating over 2,500 free libraries.

Wednesday: Somalia through Nuruddin Farah's Eyes: Winner of the Neustadt Prize and frequent nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature, Somali novelist Nuruddin Farah has been writing about his homeland for over 40 years. His works are full of love and longing for the country he left behind, and concern for the direction in which Somalia is heading.

Thursday: Transforming a Nation's Trauma: Nationally recognized citizen diplomat Sahar Taman and Rev. Robert Chase, head of Intersections International in New York City, are collecting and planning affirmative commemorations for the decade anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Beyond Islam, beyond terror, they see the anniversary as a time to deepen community and seek transformation as individuals and as a nation.

Friday: The Cuban Kitchen: Raquel Rabade Roque's The Cuban Kitchen was such a hit in Spanish that she rewrote it to be published in English. She'll give us a tour of the Cuban coffee counters of Miami and the tastes of an ever evolving Cuban-American cuisine.

Wishing you a labor-free Labor Day weekend and juicy end-of-summer bash -

Jean

Programs for the Week of 8/29

2011-08-26T17:31:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Redeemers: Power Brokers Who Shaped Latin America: Just before going on the air on Tuesday, I got a call from Wisconsin’s former Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton who has an abiding interest in the politics of Latin America. She was effusive. “Oh, I just found out that you have Enrique Krauze on your show today. What a coup! He is so great!” And so he was, blazing a path through Latin America’s complicated political and intellectual history, bringing to life the great literary and revolutionary figures from the past whose legacy endures today. Best of all was the overall message: the image of the caudillo that began with Simon Bolivar who famously prophesied, “Out of my grave a thousand dictators will spring,” may very well end with the post-modern caudillo Hugo Chaves. Democracy has taken hold south of the border. Maybe we should pay closer attention. We might learn something.

Monday: The Inter-Species Language of Grief: Ever since her husband lost the ability to speak after suffering a stroke, Diane Ackerman has been grieving. She finds that, out of empathy, her acute sense of loss has connected her with the losses and grieving of others, including animals.

Tuesday: Environmental Degradation as Slow Violence: Nigerian activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, refused to let the oil industry's disastrous effect on his community go unnoticed. He's just one voice showcased in Rob Nixon's new book urging us to see environmental degradation as a kind of slow violence affecting the poorest in our communities.

Wednesday: Pearl Buck in China (encore): A blond blue-eyed daughter of a Presbyterian missionary, Pearl Buck grew up in rural China amid bandit raids, beheadings and battles, when infant girls were strangled and thrown to the dogs. Helen Spurling's biography looks at the years that shaped Buck as a writer and gave her magic power. (Rebroadcast from July 19, 2010)

Thursday: Rambunctious Nature: Environmentalist Emma Marris says it's time to abandon the idea of preserving nature in its pristine state, and move forward instead with creating the "rambunctious garden," which she describes as "a hybrid of wild nature and human management."

Friday: Odd Bits: When it comes to meat, the prime cuts seem to get all the attention. Australian Jennifer McLagan, author of the infamous "Fat," explores why we shy away from odd bits, from tongues and brains, to gizzards and trotters, their taste potential, and how we can approach them with more confidence in the kitchen.

It’s sad to see summer fade away, especially after such a glorious – and mosquito free – month in Wisconsin. No dog days this August. Happy grilling!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 8/22

2011-08-19T17:46:00.001-05:00

Nota Bene: Here on Earth is still looking for two new producers. For more information about the openings, please go to our website:

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Food We Brought

Monday: Sufism in the West: One of my most memorable interviews some years ago was with Pir Vilayat Inayat-Khan, then head of the Sufi Order of the West, a man who was hang-gliding in his eighties. His son, Pir Zia Inayat-Khan has succeeded him as the head of the Sufi Order International, an organization begun by his grandfather in the early 20th century to bring Sufism to the West. He joins us to talk about how he bends the mystic tradition and inter-faith work to remedy the world’s most pressing issues.

Tuesday: Redeemers: Power Brokers Who Shaped Latin America: Evita Perón, Che Guevera, Hugo Chavez. Latin America has had its share of strong leaders. Enrique Krauze, one of Latin America's leading intellectuals, brings to life the ideas and figures that shaped a continent.

Wednesday: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Ever Seen (encore): Journalist Christopher McDougall gathered information about the Tarahumara, a little known tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners who live in Mexico's Copper Canyon and can outlast any animal on earth. (Rebroadcast from 8/17/2010)

Thursday: Mindfulness and Medicine: For patients with life-threatening illnesses such as cancer, it can be hard to find comfort in the face of death. Susan Bauer-Wu and Elana Rosenbaum, who both encountered cancer in their personal lives, are medical professionals who teach the practice of mindfulness as a way for patients to rediscover strength and serenity.

Friday: We All Scream for Ice Cream: Be it soft-serve, gelato, Indian kulfi or Isreali glida, some form of ice cream treat can be found throughout the world in restaurants and home freezers. Ice cream’s story is a tale populated with Chinese emperors, English kings, Italian hokey-pokey street vendors and a gourmand American First Lady.

Nobody can say we're not eclectic!

Jean

Programs for the Week of 8/15

2011-08-12T17:32:00.002-05:00

Applications for our two openings for Here on Earth producers are beginning to trickle in. Please go to
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Robert Jay Lifton's Life of Listening: What I liked this week is the way Robert Jay Lifton's perspective on the psychology of war connected to Helen Benedict's expose of what it’s like to be an American woman in combat, and that program led, in turn to Pumla Gobodo-Madikezela's extraordinary exploration of the power of forgiveness in post-apartheid South Africa. Honest, folks, we didn't plan it that way!
Monday: Who Are We?: Gary Younge is a black British male of Caribbean descent who speaks Russian and French and lives the United States. So who is he? Better yet, who are we? We'll discuss the influence of identity in our lives and in our world, and we'll try to discern when its influence is a problem and when it's not.
Tuesday: Elvis Lives!: As of today, the 34th anniversary of the death of the King of Rock n Roll, there are 200,000 Elvis impersonators worldwide, from Mexico's El Vez to Japan’s Yasuma Mori who sings about his blue suede kimono.
Wednesday: Forbidden Lessons in a Kabul Guesthouse: To help the Afghan people, Suraya Sadeed made many harrowing attempts to traffic cash and supplies under the noses of Iranian border guards, drug runners, and suicide bombers. She concealed an estimated $100,000 in U.S. cash by strapping it to her stomach and feigning pregnancy while slipping past the Taliban.
Thursday: Global Word Play (encore): How many ways are there to say "believe me" in the world? In English, we say "I'm not pulling your leg." In Russian, the phrase is "I'm not hanging noodles from your ear." We’re reaching back to 2009 for this incredibly fun hour with author Jag Bhalla about the amusing ways different cultures describe their world. (Rebroadcast from June 24, 2009)
Friday: TBA:
Lori will be filling in for me this Friday while I am at the Christine Center's Interfaith Retreat about the 13th century encounter that took place between St. Francis of Assisi and the Sultan Malak-al Kamil. Rich stuff. I call it l. Rich stuff. I call it "champagne for the soul."

Jean

Programs for the Week of 8/8

2011-08-05T17:39:00.003-05:00

***Announcing two Here on Earth producer openings:******
We currently have two producer positions open on Here on Earth: one is three-quarter time with benefits and academic staff status; the other is a half-time position with no benefits but the possibility of a future upgrade. If any of you are interested in applying, or know someone who might be, please go to the above links for full descriptions of both positions, or email me directly: feraca@wpr.org. We are very sorry to be losing our excellent Here on Earth producers, Carly Yuenger and Dominique Haller, within a month of each other, and are anxious to find their replacements. Please help us spread the word. Here on Earth is committed to bringing good news of the earth and its people, to fostering cross-cultural understanding and to encouraging world citizenship. Plus, we have a lot of fun.
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Norway Responds to Terror: Kudos to ace producer Carly Yuenger who snagged former Norwegian Prime Minister Bondevik for today’s show. A better guest to suss out Norway’s extraordinary response to its recent homegrown terror attacks I cannot imagine. As the founder and president of Norway’s Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, he was able to give real perspective and depth to his country’s long record on human rights and commitment to openness and freedom. We’ll see what kind of compromises Norway may have to make in the future, but so far, they are inspiring.
Monday: Ramadan: The Feast and the Fast (encore): Since Ramadan began last Monday, which represents a particular hardship for American Muslims, we thought you might enjoy learning about how different the experience of Ramadan can be depending on where you happen to find yourself. Compare fasting here in America in the heat of long summer days to countries like Syria where everyone sleeps all day and feasts all night (unless they happen to be under siege, of course). (Rebroadcast from September 1, 2009)
Tuesday: Robert Jay Lifton's Life of Listening: In his new memoir, psycho-historian Robert Jay Lifton says that he's spent most of his life listening. From talking to victims of Chinese thought reform, to Japanese survivors of Hiroshima, to Nazi doctors, he bore witness to some of the 20th century’s darkest moments and responded with hope and activism.
Wednesday: Sand Queen: In the process of interviewing women veterans of the Iraq war for her book, The Lonely Soldier, Helen Benedict noticed that when questioned about their experiences with sexual harassment, many of these women remained silent. So Helen decided to write the novel SAND QUEEN to give voice to the unspeakable.
Thursday: The Power of Forgiveness: What is it about expressions of remorse and apology that open the door to forgiveness? Few people are better suited to exploring this question than Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela, a psychologist and commissioner for South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Friday: Rooster Sauce: "Rooster Sauce," as Sriracha (rhymes with Feraca but no relation) is commonly known, can be found in the home, at the corner diner, and behind the scenes in some of America's top restaurants. You'll enjoy exploring the endless possibilities of cooking with this favorite hot sauce with Lori Skelton sitting in for me while I set out for the Christine Center to facilitate this year's Interfaith Retreat with Sufi master Jamal Rahman and Wheaton Franciscan Gabrielle Uhlein. (see last Tuesday's show: Francis and the Sultan – also my favorite.)
For more information about Francis and The Sultan, go to www.christinecenter.org or just call 715-267-7507. I hope to see you there August 12-14. The Christine Center is a very special place of pilgrimage and hermitage set deep in the heart of Wisconsin’s Amish country and I am particularly excited about this year’s timely retreat with Jamal and Gabrielle, two people alive with joy. Come if you can. Dance and sing.
Jean

Programs for the Week of 8/1

2011-07-29T17:46:00.003-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Is Democracy Coming to China?: MIT Professor Edward Steinfeld cast new light on China as a country that, in his view, is inching its way toward democratic reform, following in the footsteps of Taiwan and South Korea. Particularly fascinating to me were the passing references to artists Han Han and Ai WeiWei who both remind me of Frank Zappa.
Monday: The Dacha Days of Summer: For centuries, Russian city dwellers have spent their summers relaxing and gardening at rural cottages called dachas. (like gotcha!) Mellissa Caldwell spoke to hundreds of "dachniki" about their beliefs in the healing power of land and the strange way time passes in the country, leading to her conclusion: To understand the dacha is to understand the Russian soul.
Tuesday: St. Francis and the Sultan: When St. Francis crossed enemy lines to meet the Sultan Malek el-Kamil during a Crusade, he fully expected to be martyred. Instead, he was embraced as a friend. Hear the full story when I talk with Muslim Sufi master Jamal Rahman and Gabrielle Uhlein, a Franciscan sister, who are teaming up for the Christine Center's third annual interfaith retreat (to be facilitated by yours truly).

To register for this Interfaith retreat, call 715-267-7507 or e-mail the Christine Center at christinecenter@tds.net
Wednesday: Norway's Response to Tragedy: In the wake of the recent massacre in Norway, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told the world, "The answer to violence is even more democracy, even more humanity." Will Norway be able to sustain its commitment to openness and tolerance?
Thursday: TBA:
Friday: Kings of Pastry: Sixteen of France's top pastry chefs compete for the ultimate accolade, the collar of the Meilleurs Ouvriers de France, best craftsmen of France, in the "Kings of Pastry" competition. The contest takes place every four years and involves 16 chefs over three exhausting days concocting 40 different recipes in a race against the clock.
On a personal note, our technical wizard, the man usually responsible for all the great sound and music in the program, Joe Hardtke has suffered an injury, having broken his collar bone last weekend, and undergone surgery on Wednesday of this week. Also soon to be among the missing is our beloved Swiss Miss, Dominique Haller, who will be leaving us next month to become a full-time graduate student in the art department. If you happen to know of any likely candidates for the position of Here on Earth producer, we’re anticipating at least one, and maybe two openings to be announced in the near future. Stay tuned and meanwhile, pray for us!

Thanks,
Jean

Programs for the Week of 7/25

2011-07-22T17:38:00.001-05:00

We have an amazing line-up next week, beginning with Sarah Chayes unwrapping Afghanistan, followed by some very positive news about the future of China, and then John Nichols weighs in on media mogul Rupert Murdoch and the gathering storm over tabloid email hacking in Britain…
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Saved By Beauty in Iran: Tough, there have been so many great programs this week, - I dearly loved Tony Perrottet’s Sinner’s Tour of Europe, ditto with yesterday’s show about Terence Malick’s new film, The Tree of Life – as Joe said, “It was a chin scratcher” - but since I must choose, my hat goes off to Saved by Beauty, Roger Housden’s harrowing and yet loving account of his two months in Iran. Given the nature of live radio, we never got to the heart of the matter – the profound shift in essential identity that the experience of detention and interrogation brought about in Housden’s psyche. And then he comes home and goes through a parallel experience when he’s questioned by the FBI! Truly amazing stuff.
Monday: The Karzai Brothers and The Future of Afghanistan: Former NPR correspondent Sarah Chayes has been an insider in Afghanistan since she left NPR to help rebuild a country devastated by decades of war. She says there’s a clear connection between what’s going on there now and the Arab Spring.
Tuesday: Is Democracy Coming to China?: Everyone knows about the changes in the Chinese economy. But while much of our political coverage of China focuses on its human rights abuses, some voices are saying that China is experiencing real political change as well. MIT professor Edward Steinfeld joins us to discuss why he thinks that China is on its way to democracy.
Wednesday: Rupert Murdoch’s Empire in Crisis: With all the ink that’s been lavished on the tabloid crisis in Britain, there’s not much being said about Murdoch’s links to the US. What about Fox and the American media?
Thursday: Unnatural Selection: From Albania to Vietnam, fewer and fewer girls are being born. While we are quick to point to patriarchial traditions to explain the phenomenon, we tend to overlook one important aspect of the problem: recently introduced technology that makes what journalist Mara Hvistendahl dubs "Unnatural Selection."
Friday: Mexican Ice Pops: Cool down the heat, bring out the frozen treats! Paletas are the traditional Mexican version of the ice pop, and Fany Gerson, celebrated pastry chef and paletas enthusiast, knows all about how to make the magic of fruit and ice work to perfection.
Jean

Programs for the Week of July 18, 2011

2011-07-15T18:44:00.000-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: French Seduction: Apart from the chance to air a little of my high school French, my conversation with New York Times Paris correspondent Elaine Sciolino about, La Seduction: How the French Play the Game of Life, her new book, was easily my favorite this week. Elaine is a dream to talk to – very spontaneous, very American, and very down-to-earth – and her insights into seduction as the governing mode of French life are simply priceless.
Monday: Literature of the Arab Spring: Translation pioneers, Words Without Borders, has just published their first collection of literature dealing with the Arab Spring. Work old and new from Algeria to Egypt that illuminates the revolutionary spirit.
Tuesday: The Sinner's Grand Tour: In his Slate.com series, Tony Perrottet called his bathhouse and brothel hopping trip through Europe the "pervert's" tour. But, more than the perverse, he found that the hidden history of the erotic reveals more about life, art, and the history of a place than any regular European vacation ever could.
Wednesday: Saved By Beauty in Iran: What happens when, in 2009, a British-American poet fulfills his lifelong dream of exploring Persia's literary tradition firsthand? Iran's spectacular living culture and the depth of its soul is set into relief by his eventual detention and interrogation by Iranian security.
Thursday: Tree of Life: Terrence Malick's latest film garnered both boos and cheers at its premiere in Cannes before winning the festivals main prize, the Palme d'Or. The film's ambitious scope invites us to think about eternal questions: What is the nature of our existence? Why does pain exist if there is a just God? Film scholar and critic David Sterritt and Professor of English, Religion, and Classics Barbara Newman will join us to share their take on this exceptional film.
Friday: Cooking from the Garden: You have a garden, you're excited to cook with your own produce, you religiously stick to your favorite recipe, and: it doesn't taste good. How many times has that happened to you? Deborah Madison joins us to discuss how to slowly let go of that recipe book to better respect our garden's individual quirks.
I'm off to Bear Lake. Have a wonderful weekend!
Jean

Programs for the Week of July 11, 2011

2011-07-08T16:54:00.002-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Story of Charlotte's Web: My Pick of the Week: It took E.B. White sixteen takes before he could get through a recording of Charlotte’s Web without breaking into tears. I had exactly the same problem when I first discovered the book in reading it to my kids, and even our crusty tech Joe, who grew up on a dairy farm, teared up thinking about his own first encounter with it. I especially enjoyed hearing from our last caller who had grown up on a farm and preferred Marjorie Rawlings The Yearling because of its brutal honesty about the reality of farm life in the rural South. But to my mind that just pointed up the uniqueness of the way E.B. White wove whimsy with science, as skillfully as Charlotte herself. What a delightful hour. Thanks to all of you.
Monday: Hush, Baby, Hush: All around the world, for as long as babies have fretted, those who care for them have been making up lullabies on the spot, passing them on, and sometimes, written them down. What's your favorite lullaby?
Tuesday: French Seduction: In La Seduction: How the French Play the Game of Life, New York Times' Paris Correspondent, Elaine Sciolino navigates the Parisian maze of unspoken assumptions about the cultivation of pleasure, and the hidden truth about French life: it's all about seduction.
Wednesday: Rescuing Regina: The harrowing true story of a feisty nun, a ferocious lawyer, and a group of grassroots volunteers who set aside political differences in a race to save a Congolese torture survivor from deportation and almost certain death. Along the way, Sister Josephe holds America’s hidden asylum system up for long overdue scrutiny.
Thursday: Zen and the Art of Firefighting: In 2008 a wildfire nearly destroyed the Tassajara Zen Center in the Ventana wilderness of southern California, but five monks including one woman with no firefighting experience were able to fend off the flames. Colleen Morton Busch and Mako Voelkel join us to describe how Zen mind beats fire.
Friday: T.B.A.:
Jean

The Here on Earth Summer Reading Without Borders List, 2011! 7/7

2011-07-07T14:39:00.003-05:00

Poland: Stone Upon Stone by Wieslaw Mysliwski, (b. 1932 ) trans. from the Polish by Bill Johnston

Czech Republic: Dancing Lessons for the Advanced of Age by Bohumil Hrabal, (b. 1914 – d. 1997 ) trans. from the Czech by Michael Henry Heim

Portugal: The Land at the End of the World by Antonio Lobo Antunes (b. 1942) trans. from the Portuguese by Margaret Jull Costa

Spain: Never Any End to Paris by Enrique Vila-Matas (b. 1948), trans. from the Spanish by Anne McLean

France: Lightning by Jean Echenoz, (b. 1947) trans. from the French by Linda Coverdale

Swedish-Finnish novelist: Fair Play by Tove Jansson (b. 1914 – d.2001), translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal

Japan: The Lake by Banana Yoshimoto (b. 1964) , trans. from the Japanese by Michael Emmerich

Germany: Funeral for a Dog by Thomas Pletzinger, (b. 1975 ) trans. from the German by Benjamin Ross

Spain: Guadalajara by Quim Monzo, (b. 1952) trans. from the Catalan by Peter Bush
Russia: The Ice Trilogy by Vladimir Sorokin, (b. 1955 ) trans. from the Russian by Jamey Gambrill
Serbia Leeches by David Albahari, (b. 1948) trans. from the Serbian by Ellen Elias-Bursac

Programs for the Week of July 4

2011-07-01T16:52:00.001-05:00

Monday: An Artist’s Jaunt Through American History (encore): What figure in American history makes you feel warm and fuzzy about democracy? Illustrator and Israeli immigrant Maira Kalman set out, Alexis deToqueville style, to document democracy in America circa 2009. The result is an optimistic love letter to America that reminds us all of what we have to be proud of this Independence Day. (Rebroadcast from 11/1/10)
Tuesday: America and Pakistan: The First 60 Years: At the time of Pakistan's founding a scant 60 years ago, it was the first and only democracy in the Muslim world, a country whose citizens would elect those who govern them. A Pakistani-American at the US Center for Citizen Diplomacy's Summit drew fascinating comparisons between Pakistan and the first 60 years of U.S. history. Despite obvious differences between our two countries, there are striking parallels.
Wednesday: The Story of Charlotte's Web: About himself, E.B. White once wrote: "This boy felt for animals a kinship he never felt for people." He wasn't alone: talking animals abound in literature all over the globe. Who is your favorite literary talking animal?
Thursday: Summer Reading Without Borders: The 2011 Champion of literature in translation, publisher Chad Post, joins us once again to talk about all the best newly translated books for English readers. We hear about a rambunctious Polish farmer, the wild life of inventor Nikola Tesla, and what really happened inside the Trojan Horse.
Friday: For Cod and Country: With so many species in rapid decline, is eating fish really sustainable? Esquire chef of the year Barton Seaver says yes and shows us how, featuring seafood that hasn't been overfished or caught in an environmentally destructive way.
Doesn’t everybody love the Fourth of July? Have a safe and happy holiday.
Jean

Homebaking, Southern Style 7/1

2011-07-01T08:45:00.009-05:00
Dominique Haller / Carly Yuenger

On today's show, Nancie McDermott joins us to talk about Southern homebaking. It's not about being a pastry chef--a cake can make any gathering a party, even if it's a bit lopsided. It's about celebration, ritual, old fashioned hospitality, and then, once you've baked a few, maybe a little showing off.

Below is one recipe from her book Southern Cakes and one from her book Southern Pies. Both are great to start with if you've never given baking a try. And, with a few fresh strawberries, Nancie points out, the Blueberry cake is quite red, white, and blue! Perfect for this weekend's July 4th celebrations.

Key Lime Pie:

Look for Key limes in small net bags in the produce section seasonally, or order Key lime juice by mail. Regular lime juice makes a lovely pie as well. Allow a little time for this pie. While it’s one of the simplest to put together, the filling needs three hours to chill once it’s made.

One 9-inch graham cracker piecrust

Filling
4 egg yolks
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (1 1/4 cups)
1/2 cup Key lime juice, from 10 to 15 limes, bottled juice, or regular lime juice 1/4 teaspoon salt

Toppings
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks and the sweetened condensed milk Usee a whisk or fork to mix them together evenly and well. Add the key lime juice and salt, and stir well until you have a smooth, thick filling.

Spoon the filling into the graham cracker crust. Place the pie on the middle shelf of the 350 degree oven, and bake for 15 minutes, until filling is set. Place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Cover loosely and refrigerate for at least 3 hours and as long as overnight.

To complete the pie, whip the cream in a medium bowl. When it thickens and increases in volume, add the sugar and vanilla, and continue beating until the cream is billowing and thick, able to hold soft peaks beautifully and easily. Pile the whipped cream onto the pie filing. If possible, and refrigerate for 1 hour or more. Serve cold.

Shenandoah Valley Blueberry Cake:

Enjoy this simple, delicious cake for breakfast, a tea party, or a midnight snack. If you can’t pick your own blueberries in the Shenandoah Valley, don’t worry. The cake comes out just fine using fresh blueberries from wherever you are, or even frozen berries from the grocery store.

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)

Heat the oven to 375 F, and generously grease a 9-inch square or round pan.

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl, and stir with a fork to mix well. In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugar, and beat with a mixer at high speed until well combined. Add the egg and beat well for 1 to 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the bowl, until the mixture is smooth and light.

Stir in half the flour mixture, and then half the milk, mixing just enough to keep the batter fairly smooth and well combined. Add the remaining flour, and then the milk, mixing gently. Stir in the blueberries.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and bake at 375 F for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cake is golden, springs back when touched gently in the center, and is pulling away from the sides of the pan.

Serve the cake right from the pan, warm or at room temperature, cut into squares. Or if you made a round cake layer, cool it in the pan on a wire rack or folded kitchen towel for 10 - 20 minutes, loosen it around the edges, and then turn it out to finish cooling on a wire rack, top side up.

Programs for the Week of 6/27

2011-06-24T16:55:00.000-05:00

We start off this week with a few of our favorites from the vault and Jean returns on Thursday!
Monday: Mockingbird (encore): Why has Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird," which is so firmly rooted in the American South, become so popular the world over? And what makes it particularly relevant to Europe right now? (Rebroadcast from 6/30/10)
Tuesday: Peace, Love and Parazit: Iran's Daily Show (encore): Tired of their routine jobs, Saman Arbabi and Kambiz Hosseini, two irreverent young Iranians, started a comedy program called Parazit that's modeled after Jon Stewart's The Daily Show and broadcast over The Voice of America. The show is billed for those who "don't have the patience for news ... and all news is bad news." (Rebroadcast from 4/12/11)
Wednesday: To a Mountain in Tibet (encore): After the loss of his mother acclaimed travel writer Colin Thubron journeyed to the holiest mountain on earth: Mount Kailas, Tibet. It is sacred to one-fifth of humankind and has never been climbed. On an often grueling trek through an impoverished yet breathtaking landscape, Colin Thubron encountered a complex intermingling of religious beliefs while confronting his own experience with death. (Rebroadcast from 3/8/11)
Thursday: Legacy of American socialism: What do Thomas Paine, Walt Whitman, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King Jr. have in common? According to John Nichols, these legendary Americans were more than a little bit red. He joins us for a conversation about the S-Word, the legacy of American socialism.
Friday: Southern Sweetness: After years for writing cookbooks inspired by her time in Southeast Asia, North Carolinian Nancie McDermott returned to her roots, the American South, and the sweet pies and cakes she helped her grandmother bake as a kid. They are central to Southern hospitality, and a great way to celebrate America's birthday!
The Here on Earth team

Programs for the week of 6/20

2011-06-24T16:53:00.000-05:00

Monday: Hafez: Persia's Provocateur: Hafez, the famous 14th century Persian poet, used the most gorgeous language to expose duplicity, irreverence, and corruption in preachers, scholars of religious laws, memorizers and reciters of the Qur'an. Why is he still one of the best read poets of Persian literature?
Tuesday: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle (encore): Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes: behind that sensationalized title is a truly original account of Amazonia written by a man, Daniel Everett, who went there as a Christian missionary expecting to convert the Pirahas, a tribe in Brazil, and was instead converted by them. (Rebroadcast from 1/12/09)
Wednesday: A Life on the Border: Live from Menasha (encore): Here on Earth had a blast broadcasting live from the Fox Cities Book Festival in Menasha this April. We talked with the acclaimed Mexican-American writer Luis Alberto Urrea who says that the border between Mexico and the United States goes right through his heart. (Rebroadcast from 4/13/11)
Thursday: The Whale (encore): In The Whale, winner of the 2009 BBC prize for nonfiction, Philip Hoare investigates the dark, shadowy beasts who swim below the depths only to surface in a spray of spume to find out what it is about them that exerts such a powerful grip on our collective imagination? (Rebroadcast from 2/3/10)
Friday: Global Eats Around Your Corner: The restaurant insider behind the wildly popular website RestaurantGirl.com joins Food Friday to talk about how to get out of an eating rut with dishes from all over the world that you can find right here in this country.

Programs for the Week of 5/23

2011-06-20T16:00:00.000-05:00

Monday: Muslims, Mosques, and American Identity (encore): Tune in to our Gabriel Award-winning program from our Inside Islam: Dialogues and Debates series, "Muslims, Mosques, and American Identity": Can a Muslim be an American? Islamic Studies luminary Akbar Ahmed went all the way back to the Founding Fathers to answer that question. And who can argue with the Founding Fathers? (Rebroadcast from November 2, 2010)
Tuesday: Chosen Peoples: The idea of the chosen is everywhere in American and Israeli history, both trying to grasp the meaning of divine election and to bear its burden. We’ll examine the special relationship between the U.S. and Israel through the prism of their perceived special status as chosen peoples.
Wednesday: How to Make it Happen: Collective Visioning: Linda Stout proved through her award winning work in Appalachia that diversity is essential to meaningful social change. Now, she’s helping groups around the country begin their work by getting everybody a seat at the table.
Thursday: Elif Shafak: The most widely read woman writer in Turkey today, Elif Shafak was accused of insulting “Turkishness” for mentioning the Armenian genocide in one of her novels. Throughout her life and career, Elif has tried to unify the wildly different aspects of her identity: woman, Muslim, Turkish, international globetrotter, writer, mother. For her, what holds it all together in the end is the power of fiction to overcome the politics of identity.
Friday: How to Eat Well on Forty Dollars a Week: Newly divorced and laid off, food writer Robin Mather moved to the woods and slashed her food budget. Her pantry became her savings account and the farmers nearby her grocers and her friends.

Programs for the Week of 6/13

2011-06-13T16:55:00.000-05:00

Monday: A Future Without Nuclear Energy?: The recent nuclear disaster in Japan has many people re-thinking the risks and benefits of nuclear energy. Germany took a bold stance two weeks ago when it pledged to shut down its nuclear reactors by 2022. What are the consequences of living without nuclear energy?
Tuesday: Whitewashing Tales from The Arabian Nights: In the original telling, Scheherazade’s story was wild and wicked enough to keep the Sultan awake for a 1001 nights. Reza Aslan and Andrei Codrescu uncover the libidinous side of the Arabian Nights as we talk about the seductive power of storytelling.
Wednesday: Journey to the Moon: When was the last time you felt the enchantment of the full moon? James Attlee traveled the world to bask with those who still find significance in the moon and its province, the night.
Thursday: The Anarchist Bastard: Joanna Herman, who grew up on a pig farm in Connecticut and is fond of saying, "I was born in 1944 but raised in the twelfth century," gives a salute to Italian patriarchy in this twist on Fathers' Day.
Friday: Salt: It's the most universal of ingredients and the one most easily overlooked. From Sel Gris to flake salt, Mark Bitterman argues that the better you know your salt, the better every meal will turn out.

Programs for the week of 6/6

2011-06-03T16:57:00.000-05:00

Monday: Religion with Joy: Many practitioners approach religion without joy, relying on concepts that constrict us rather than free us. Using music and movement, Rabbi Sigal teaches methods and guides practices intended to free the spirit and release the dance of the soul.
Tuesday: India - Geek Nation?: Are Indians naturally geeky? In her new book, Angela Saini, who sees herself as the geek daughter of her Indian geek father, explores the past and future of India’s devotion to science.
Wednesday: Socrates in Sichuan: Peter Vernezze went to China as a Peace Corps Volunteer to get a break from teaching philosophy. But in order to understand his students, he went back to teaching the nature of truth and the ideal of the good life, discovering in the process a side of China we rarely get to see.
Thursday: Old Flames Burn Bright in the Eternal City: In Mary Gordon's latest novel, The Love of My Youth, former lovers rendezvous in Rome after a separation of nearly forty years. Adam says to Miranda, "I want to show you one beautiful thing every day." Can a novel be a guidebook?
Friday: Bach to the Future: A 20th Season Bacchanale: The Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society turns 20 this year with a bang and a cookbook!: C0-founders Jeffrey Sykes and Stephanie Jutt are celebrating by coming out with a cookbook and a CD, pairing their favorite recipes with their favorite musical selections. Coffee Cantata, anyone?

The cookbook is organized by menu,includes wine pairings and the CD of BDDS live recordings especially selected for each menu.

Cookbooks will be sold for $25 at all BDDS concerts this summer. For $50, they can be personalized by Stephanie and Jeffrey ($25 of this price is considered a tax-deductible donation). They will also be available at Fromagination and Orange Tree Imports in Madison. All proceeds support BDDS.

Programs for the Week of 5/30

2011-05-27T16:58:00.001-05:00

Monday: Theater of War (encore): Long before Memorial Day, Sophocles, the ancient Greek general and playwright, depicted the timeless psychological wounds inflicted upon warriors in his plays. In the Theater of War project, actors and actresses read Sophocles's plays to active service members and their families to show them that they are not alone in dealing with pain of battle. (Rebroadcast from August 9, 2010)
Tuesday: Inside Islam: Laughter: Another Path to Understanding: In keeping with the lighter spirit of our latest Inside Islam programs, we present Muslim Comedians: Tissa Hami and Dean Obeidallah, who use comedy to break down the stereotypes about Muslims and Arabs that have surged after 9/11.
Wednesday: Indigo – The Color that Seduced the World: Indigo, “the bluest of blues,” is not just a color, but, as Catherine McKinley puts it, “an attempt to capture beauty”. Inspired by her own ancestral entanglement with Indigo, Catherine set out to learn from the last master dyers of West Africa and discovered amazing stories of wealth, power, and divine meaning.
Thursday: The Wabi-Sabi Way: Do you love your rusty, dented old wheelbarrow? How Wabi-Sabi of you! A philosophy of seeing and homemaking, wabi-sabi has its roots in Japanese Zen Buddhism, but it’s all about the imperfection of dried leaves, not the perfection of a fresh cherry blossom.
Friday: You Can Make Injera!: If you've had the opportunity to dig into a traditional Ethiopian meal, the "plate" you probably ate it from and the "fork" you used to eat it were probably a spongy, sour bread called injera. Even for a native Ethiopian like Mulusew Yayehyirad, co-founder of Clinic At A Time, it took years of living in the United States to perfect her recipe using North American ingredients.

Programs for the Week of 5/30

2011-05-27T16:58:00.000-05:00

Monday: Theater of War (encore): Long before Memorial Day, Sophocles, the ancient Greek general and playwright, depicted the timeless psychological wounds inflicted upon warriors in his plays. In the Theater of War project, actors and actresses read Sophocles's plays to active service members and their families to show them that they are not alone in dealing with pain of battle. (Rebroadcast from August 9, 2010)
Tuesday: Inside Islam: Laughter: Another Path to Understanding: In keeping with the lighter spirit of our latest Inside Islam programs, we present Muslim Comedians: Tissa Hami and Dean Obeidallah, who use comedy to break down the stereotypes about Muslims and Arabs that have surged after 9/11.
Wednesday: Indigo – The Color that Seduced the World: Indigo, “the bluest of blues,” is not just a color, but, as Catherine McKinley puts it, “an attempt to capture beauty”. Inspired by her own ancestral entanglement with Indigo, Catherine set out to learn from the last master dyers of West Africa and discovered amazing stories of wealth, power, and divine meaning.
Thursday: The Wabi-Sabi Way: Do you love your rusty, dented old wheelbarrow? How Wabi-Sabi of you! A philosophy of seeing and homemaking, wabi-sabi has its roots in Japanese Zen Buddhism, but it’s all about the imperfection of dried leaves, not the perfection of a fresh cherry blossom.
Friday: You Can Make Injera!: If you've had the opportunity to dig into a traditional Ethiopian meal, the "plate" you probably ate it from and the "fork" you used to eat it were probably a spongy, sour bread called injera. Even for a native Ethiopian like Mulusew Yayehyirad, co-founder of Clinic At A Time, it took years of living in the United States to perfect her recipe using North American ingredients.

Programs for the Week of 5/16

2011-05-13T17:09:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Inside Islam: Wham, Bam, Islam! The Power of Comics: There were so many refreshing dimensions to our show with Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, the creator of The 99, the first comic book series to come out of the Middle East, featuring 99 Muslim superheroes based on the 99 attributes of Allah. This was truly an Inside Islam show in that Naif was candid about his complex intention: to erase western misconceptions about Islam, but also to “try to fix Islam from the inside.” He’s concerned about the black and white world view that so many of his fellow Muslims seem to be stuck in. His own work has been banned. He’s also very concerned with issues of intolerance, and came to writing comics out of his experiences as a clinical psychologist working with torture victims – former prisoners of war in Kuwait and the Survivors of Political Torture unit of Bellevue Hospital in New York. He’s fast, he’s funny, and he’s just what the world needs right now.
Monday: Fortunate Sons (encore): What happened when the Qing dynasty sent 120 boys to go to school in the US in 1872? The boys got good at baseball and picked up nicknames like By-Jinks Johnnie and Fighting Chinee. But they also confronted a struggle between traditionalism and modernity that ended up influencing both China and the U.S. (Rebroadcast from 2/3/11)
Tuesday: Beyond the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (encore): In the last 20 years Noir has gone global, with Swedish fiction writer Stieg Larsson copping the number two place as best selling author in the US, and crime fiction showing up in countries like Algeria, Turkey, and India. Join us with Detectives Beyond Borders blogger Peter Rozovsky and Delhi Noir editor Hirsh Sawhney. (Rebroadcast of "Tracking the Global Gumshoe" from 8/5/09)
Wednesday: Tuesdays with Morrie, Russian-Style: In the 1980’s, Wisconsinite Lisa Paul was a college student in Moscow studying Russian under the wing of an outspoken Jewish Soviet dissident. In her new book, Swimming in the Daylight, she tells the harrowing story of how she put her own life on the line in her campaign to win freedom for her beloved teacher.
Thursday: On a Wing and a Prayer: Could anything be crazier than a Muslim-American learning to fly a plane in post 9/11 USA? I met Monem Salam a few months ago at a conference in Bloomington, Indiana, where he told his hilarious and touching story of how he fulfilled his lifelong dream to become a pilot in spite of his bad timing, and lived to make a PBS award-winning documentary film about it.
Friday: Beyond the Pasta: Mark Leslie didn’t just want to eat Italian food; he wanted to learn how to cook from a real Italian family. From the family in Viterbo that took him in, he not only learned how to cook, but how to live in a whole new way.
I’ll be attending a summit on US Citizen Diplomacy with Wisconsin’s former Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton on Monday and Tuesday of next week – back on Wednesday.
Stay tuned!
Jean

Food Friday Recipe 5/13

2011-05-13T12:42:00.008-05:00

Carly Yuenger

On today's show we discuss the beauty, texture, and flavor that whole grains, like millet, kamut, farro, wheat berries, and "oat berries," bring to the table--breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Maria Speck is a cooking instructor, so she knows how most people react to the idea of whole grains. She says that the best cure for the belief that whole grains are bland is a good recipe.
Check this one out: "Leek Salad with Haloumi Cheese and Rye Berries". It's featured on the cover of her book, Ancient Grains for Modern Meals, and represents her dual ancestry--Greek and German--through the inclusion of rye berries (very German!) in a traditional Mediterranean salad.
We hope you'll give it a go and let us know what you think by leaving a comment below, at our Facebook page, or by leaving a voice message at our hotline: 1-877-GLOBE-07

Maria Speck's Leek Salad with Grilled Haloumi Cheese and Rye Berries:
Haloumi, a textured goat and sheep’s milk cheese, popular across the Middle East, is irresistibly chewy and will not melt when grilled or roasted. Take this salad to a barbecue and char the cheese right there for a smoky touch, or use a broiler anytime. Pecorino Romano can stand in for the haloumi but it lacks the same lip-smacking chewiness. Both cheeses can be quite salty, so you may want to go easy when adding the salt. Serves 4 to 6
Rye:
11/2 cups water
3/4 cup rye berries, soaked overnight and drained

Salad:
2 medium leeks, cleaned and cut into 3/4-inch segments (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 (2- by 1-inch) strip orange zest, white pith removed (optional)
1/4 cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained, 2 teaspoons oil reserved
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint, plus 2 tablespoons for garnish
2 tablespoons nonpareil capers
3/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

To Finish:
1/4 pound haloumi cheese
11/2 teaspoons dried crumbled oregano or thyme
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes (optional)

1. To prepare the rye, bring the water and the rye berries to a boil in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan. Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook until the berries are tender but still slightly chewy, 50 to 60 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and steam for 10 to 15 minutes if you have time. Drain any remaining liquid and transfer to a large serving bowl to cool.

2. While the rye cools, prepare the salad. Bring the leeks, chicken broth, and orange zest to a boil in a large saucepan. Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook until the leeks are soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain the leeks, and add them to the serving bowl with the rye berries. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, 1/4 cup of the mint, and the capers, fennel seeds, salt, and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning, keeping in mind that capers and haloumi are quite salty.
3. To finish, position a rack about 6 inches below the heat source and preheat the broiler. Cut the haloumi cheese into thin slices, about 1/4 inch thick, and put them on a plate. Sprinkle with the oregano, pepper, pepper flakes, and reserved 2 teaspoons of tomato oil; rub the oil and spices all over to coat the slices on both sides (work gently, as haloumi breaks easily). Transfer the cheese to a medium cast-iron skillet or a broiler pan.
4. Broil the haloumi until the slices just start to brown at the edges, about 5 minutes, turning once with a spatula. (Watch closely as you don’t want the cheese to dry out.)
5. Top the salad with the haloumi. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons mint, and serve right away.
To get a head start: Make the rye berries, as in step 1, ahead. The salad (without the haloumi) can be prepared 4 to 6 hours ahead. Chill, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.
To vary it: A great stand-in for the rye in this dish would be about 2 cups cooked whole oat berries

Programs for the Week of May 9

2011-05-06T14:32:00.000-05:00

Monday: A Kidnapping in Milan (Encore): The CIA snatched off the terrorist suspect Abu Omar from a street in Milan on February 17, 2003, and spirited him away to Egypt for extraordinary rendition. The Italian court responded by convicting 23 CIA agents, marking the first time the CIA has ever been brought to trial. Freelance journalist Steve Hendricks investigated the case and wrote about it in his book A Kidnapping in Milan: The CIA on Trial. Rebroadcast from December 28, 2010.
Tuesday: Benazir Bhutto: The premier of Bhutto, an Independent Lens film that airs on Tuesday night, gives us a reason to talk about the woman who broke the glass ceiling to become the first woman head-of-state to rule a Muslim nation.
Wednesday: The 99: What power do superheroes really have? Naif al-Mutawa believes that they can change the world. That’s why he created The 99: superheroes inspired by the 99 attributes of Allah. Together with The 99, Naif is out to fight radical Islam and Western misconceptions about Islam. Ever since, The 99 have teamed up with Superman to fight for a better world, and President Obama has publicly recognized the importance of Naif’s work.
Thursday: After the Dalai Lama: In March of this year, the Dalai Lama announced that he was looking for a successor who could take over his political duties as head of Tibet’s government in exile. In May, Tibetan representatives will meet to discuss the Dalai Lama’s proposal of political retirement. We’ll discuss the future of the Dalai Lama and of Tibet with Tim Johnson, author of Tragedy in Crimson: How the Dalai Lama Conquered the World but Lost the Battle with China
Friday: Ancient Grains: Think whole grains are just for health nuts? Maria Speck’s love affair with barley, farro, and millet will change your mind. She grew up in Greece and Germany and will help us rediscover old world treatments of mankind’s oldest staples.
Happy Mothers’ Day to all, and special thanks to everybody who made One Day Wednesday a huge success!
Jean

Spring and Bicycles Go Together - 5/3

2011-05-03T15:13:00.002-05:00
Dominique Haller

Today, we're celebrating spring by talking about bicycles with Robert Penn, whose enthusiasm for bicycles, broad knowledge of its history, and extraordinary bicycling experiences make the perfect guest to make you get your own bike out of your basement!

We thought that Leona's piece about spring awakening in Brussels would be a good fit for this show! You can check it out here.

Programs for the Week of 4/4

2011-04-29T16:55:00.000-05:00

This Wednesday is a special day for WPR: We’re calling it One Day Wednesday, a heroic attempt to raise all the cash that usually consumes a whole week in a single day. It’s a win/win – you get less on-air fundraising and we get to do what God intended us to do – make radio worthy of your ears – and dollars. To donate now, click here.
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: I got a little lost in the middle of reading Cynthia Bourgeault’s book, The Meaning of Mary Magdalene, but she was clear as a bell on the radio. It was very surprising to me, and to her as well, I’m sure, that so many callers were completely comfortable with the idea that Jesus and Mary Magdalene might have had an intimate relationship. Fully human? Fully divine? Are Christians finally freeing themselves from the mind shackles of the Church Fathers in their rejection of the body, their marginalization of women, and their obsession with celibacy? And if so, what balm for the wound.
Monday: After the Dalai Lama: In March of this year, the Dalai Lama announced that he was looking for a successor who could take over his political duties as head of Tibet’s government in exile. In May, Tibetan representatives will meet to discuss the Dalai Lama’s proposal of political retirement. We’ll discuss the future of the Dalai Lama and of Tibet with Tim Johnson, author of Tragedy in Crimson: How the Dalai Lama Conquered the World but Lost the Battle with China
Tuesday: The Ride of Your Life: It’s time to get your bicycles out of the basement! Whether you’re crazy about bikes or just appreciate a leisurely ride, you’ll fall in love with Robert Penn’s story, who once circled the globe on a bike, then traveled to different countries to find the perfect parts for the bike to grow old with. In his book It’s All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels, he explains how the bike has changed our world in the past and how it just might change our future.
Wednesday: Join The Club: Pulitzer Prize winner, Tina Rosenberg, joins us on One Day Wednesday to talk about her new book on the positive power of peer pressure. That’s right, she says that the influence you were told to ignore as a teenager is the same force that, when harnessed, can overthrow dictators and make teens demand safe sex!
Thursday: Inside Islam: I Speak for Myself: The media have plenty to say about Muslim women, but the day's headlines rarely reflect the lives of the majority of Muslim women. And even less commonly do we hear the voices of Muslim women themselves. This week, Madison welcomes women writers behind a new collection of essays seeking to fill this void, I Speak For Myself: American Women on Being Muslim.
As always, you can comment before, during or after the show at the Inside Islam blog.
Friday: Tender: Revered British food writer Nigel Slater’s encyclopedic take on his vegetable garden arrives on the American side of the Atlantic just in time to inspire your plans for this year’s vegetable patch! Lori Skelton sits in as we nibble everything green, from Asparagus to Fava Beans to Zucchini.
No beans about it!
Jean

Programs for the Week of 4/25

2011-04-22T13:45:00.001-05:00

Here on Earth wins a Gabriel Award for "Inside Islam: Muslims, Mosques, and American Identity"
Jean’s Pick of the Week: The Paper Garden: Molly Peacock’s perennial effervescence was well-placed in her enthusiasm for the extraordinary achievement of Mary Delaney, the 18th century British aristocrat who began her life’s work as an artist at the age of 72 when she invented mixed -media collage. As a poet turned biographer, Molly seized on Delaney’s gorgeous, botanically correct, cut-paper flowers as a metaphor, stitching and layering Mary’s story with the same patient craftsmanship for which Delaney is famous. A really fun program, and an inspiring one.
Monday: The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Why so much interest in MM lately? Is it an attempt to subvert the patriarchy? Among the several new studies of Mary Magdalene that started with the fanciful romance of The Da Vinci Code, Cynthia Bourgeault's book stands out. "To reclaim Mary Magdalene is to reclaim Christianity," she asserts.
Tuesday: Gandhi, Great Soul: Amidst political revolution—non-violent and violent—a new biography of Mahatma Gandhi hits the shelves. Has India idolized the man without fully embracing his teachings? What can we learn from this non-violent leader"s successes and disappointments? Pulitzer Prize winner Joseph Lelyveld joins us to talk about his new book.
Wednesday: TBA:
Thursday: Rilke's Poetry: Together with Rumi, Rainer Maria Rilke is among America's most prized poets. His connection to nature permeates his work, and his idea of the relationship between the human and the divine as being one of mutual need still inspires spiritual seekers of all walks of life. We'll be joined by Rilke translators Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy, both luminary poets and spiritual teachers in their own right.
Friday: Aromas of Aleppo: I've just returned from a trip to Aleppo where my husband's grandparents once lived as part of a vibrant Syrian Jewish community. Having eaten sumptuously while there, I naturally wanted to bring to our listeners an awareness of the wonders of Syrian cuisine. I remembered a wonderful cookbook that my sister-in-law once gave me – Aromas of Aleppo by Poopa Dweck, a beautiful blonde first generation Syrian–Jewish American, who has devoted much of her life to preserving and celebrating her community's centuries–old legacy.
I will be celebrating Passover and Easter with family in New York this weekend, and wishing you the blessings of this glorious season,
Jean

Programs for the Week of April 18

2011-04-15T14:02:00.000-05:00

In spite of the fact that I’ve been under the influence of jet lag since returning from the Middle East last Friday, I think we’ve had a strong run of programs since Monday when we began with the Triangle Shirt Factory Fire. Parazit, Iran’s Daily Show was another star, but in terms of sheer vitality, wit, literary genius and Here on Earth values, nothing beats Wednesday's remote broadcast from the Fox Cities Book Festival with the inimitable Luis Alberto Urrea, regaling us with stories, both hair raising and hilarious, of life on the Tijuana border.
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): A Life on the Border: Live from Menasha: Here on Earth will be broadcasting live from the Fox Cities Book Festival! We will talk with the acclaimed Mexican-American writer Luis Alberto Urrea who says that the border between Mexico and the United States goes right through his heart. You can join us live at the UW Fox Valley Student Union in Menasha. Both Jean and Luis will stay on for a book signing after the event. We look forward to seeing you there!
Monday: The Paper Garden: Mary Delany was seventy-two years old when she noticed a petal drop from a geranium. In a flash, she picked up her scissors and cut out a paper replica of the petal, inventing the art of collage. Now nearly a thousand of her cut-paper collages, known as Flora Delanica, are housed in the British Museum. Molly Peacock has written a biography of Mary Delaney as only a poet could.
Tuesday: Syria: The Other Side of the Mirror: The protests in Syria are making our daily news, and the entire world is watching as Bashar al-Assad is trying to mollify the protesters. But does the image we get in the news correspond with the real Syria? What aspects of this country do we never hear about in the news? And what does that say about us?
Wednesday: Arrival City: Look around: the largest migration in human history is under way. For the first time ever, more people are living in cities than in rural areas. Many of these migrants first live in slums at the outskirts of cities. But these "arrival cities" are not just places of misery. They are also the location of amazing innovation, successful community-owned businesses, and upward mobility.
Thursday: The Optimist’s Tour of our Ecological Future: The Optimist is back! Healthcare tailored to genetic profiles, machines that pull carbon dioxide out of the air, what's next? Writer Mark Stevenson set out to answer that question by talking with scientists and philosophers around the world who are thinking deep into the future. As we invite Mark back to our program on Earth Day, we’ll focus on questions about the future of Planet Earth.
Friday: The Chocolate Chasers (Encore): Dan Pearson was working in Peru with his stepson Brian Horsley when they stumbled on a species of cocoa long thought extinct. Even better, the trees had mutated to produce highly prized white beans! Following their discovery, Dan and Brian partnered with local farmers and the world’s top chocolate experts to produce the next big thing in chocolate — Fortunato No.4 — debuting at food expos this month. Rebroadcast from January 21, 2011
Happy Passover, Happy Spring, Happy Holy Week!
Jean

Programs for the week of April 11

2011-04-10T13:44:00.001-05:00

Jean returns this week for a great line up. We're especially excited for our live broadcast in Menasha at the Fox Cities Book Festival! We hope you'll join us.
Monday: Remembering the Triangle Factory Fire: 2011 marks the one hundred year anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City. Hardly anyone knows what a shirtwaist is anymore, but we’re all familiar with the panic bars and lit signs above exit doors, two regulations fought for by the New York community and labor unions after the fire.
Wednesday: A Life on the Border: Live from Menasha: Here on Earth will be broadcasting live from the Fox Cities Book Festival! We will talk with the acclaimed Mexican-American writer Luis Alberto Urrea who says that the border between Mexico and the United States goes right through his heart. You can join us live at the UW Fox Valley Student Union in Menasha. Both Jean and Luis will stay on for a book signing after the event. We look forward to seeing you there!
Thursday: Nepal’s Road to Democracy: Twenty years after their revolution and five years after the end of a decade long civil war, Nepalese are still struggling to bring democracy to Nepal. Recent college graduate Subhash Ghimire isn’t giving up. Through education and community projects, he’s leading his generation and Nepal into a brighter future. He joins us with writer Jeff Greenwald who covered the 1990 revolution.
Friday: Chasing Chiles: The chili pepper has transformed cuisines around the world since it was first brought from the “New World.” As farmers began growing chiles in more and more places, the plants changed and adapted, creating new varieties. Our guests celebrate and fight to preserve the world’s diverse peppers.
Carly, Producer

Programs for the Week of 4/4

2011-04-01T13:31:00.000-05:00

We're looking ahead to a week of great shows as Veronica and Lori step in while Jean continues her travels in the Middle East and North Africa (at least, we think that's where she ended up!).
Monday: The Dressmaker of Khair Khana: When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 1996, womens' lives changed overnight as they were forced into their homes. Yet Afghan women didn’t give up. Journalist Gayle Tzemach Lemmon tells us the story of a young woman who became an entrepreneur and whose business created jobs and hope for many women in her neighborhood during the Taliban years.
Tuesday: Teachers Around The World: American teachers are called everything from lazy to hardworking. Either way, we all depend on the quality of their work. While Wisconsin teachers made themselves heard protesting Gov. Walker's budget repair bill, other countries have their own conversations about the worth of teachers’ work. What lessons can we learn by looking at teachers abroad?
Wednesday: Unhitched: Love and Family Around the World: What makes a "family"? People answer this question in diverse ways around the world. Family researcher Judith Stacey joins us to discuss unique family forms from America, South Africa, and China, including polygamous households and a community that has no marriage at all.
Thursday: An Army of Phantoms: How did Hollywood impact your experience of the Cold War? We take a trek back to the early days of the Cold War with film historian and critic Jim Hoberman to examine how anxieties about communism made it onto the big screen and, then, straight into our heads.
Friday: The D.I.Y. Kitchen: In her recent feature in the New York Times, Julia Moskin details easy projects for an afternoon in the kitchen. It's a do-it-yourself starter kit for everyone. Join us as we learn to make North African preserved lemons, Chinese Chili Oil, and Crème Fraîche!
Here on Earth Producer, Carly

Programs for the week of Mar 28

2011-03-27T22:39:00.001-05:00

I am about to take off for Syria and Lebanon, a vacation with family and friends that’s been in the works for a number of weeks and obviously pre-dates the protest movements in the Middle East which have now spread to the south of Syria. We’re monitoring websites closely and keeping our fingers crossed that we will not have to change our itinerary. Inshallah. For the first week, we’ll be airing some of my favorite programs which made the pick of the week, and Lori will be hosting Food Friday. For week two, Veronica Rueckert will be sitting in for me. Thanks to both of them, to the wonderful Here on Earth staff, and to you, our dedicated listeners.
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Green Path: A slam dunk, since I’ve been at a conference on Islam until today! (I’m not in the habit of using sports metaphors, but I spent an intolerable amount of time stuck in a sports bar waiting for a connecting flight in the Indianapolis airport yesterday). But I really liked today’s interaction with Black Muslim environmental leader Ibrahim Abdul-Matin, the author of GreenDeen: What Islam Teaches About Protecting the Planet, and so did listeners, based on the number and variety of calls we received. Being the environmental policy advisor for the City of New York, Mr. Abdul-Matin has a refreshingly practical approach to the environmental crisis we’ll all struggling with, and the involvement of Muslims obviously enhances our chances of success.
Monday: The Future of Recycling (Encore): Tom Szaky, the 28-year-old founder of TerraCycle, one of the fastest growing green companies in the world, is making a business out of recycling and a name for himself as "#1 CEO in America Under 30." Rebroadcast from January 20, 2011.
Tuesday: Freelance Diplomacy (Encore): After 15 years in the British diplomatic corps, Carne Ross found himself disagreeing with UK policies that led to the Iraq War. Disenchanted with conventional diplomacy, he re-invented himself as a "freelance diplomat," and founded Independent Diplomats, a bold nonprofit organization advising populations that would otherwise not have a voice in international relations. How far would you go for what you believe in? Rebroadcast from November 4, 2010.
Wednesday: The Lion's Eye: Seeing in the Wild (Encore): All her life, Joanna Greenfield dreamed of traveling to Africa to study wild animals. She got a once in a lifetime chance to follow wild chimpanzees in East Africa while she was still in college, an adventure strangely enhanced by her impaired vision. Rebroadcast from November 18, 2009.
Thursday: Talking to the Enemy (Encore): Anthropologist Scott Atran spent years talking to terrorists. In his new book he argues that terrorists don't die for a cause, but for each other. We'll explore the social lives of terrorists, and how things are changing in Afghanistan with a new generation of fighters. Rebroadcast from November 22, 2010.
Friday: The Wild Table: Spring is here, and delicacies such as morels, ramps, and elderflowers will soon make their way into the forager’s kitchen. Connie Green has spent the last three decades not only championing wild food, but also inspiring the finest chefs across the country to add foraged foods to their menus. She’ll join us to talk about her gorgeous new cookbook, The Wild Table.
Jean

Happy Nowruz! 3/18

2011-03-18T13:58:00.007-05:00
On today's show we explore the Persian new year holiday, Nowruz, like we always do on Fridays, through the food! During the show we learn about some fantastic Nowruz dishes from the high priestess of Persian cuisine, Najmieh Batmanglij (pronounced NAJ-meeah baht-MAHN-glijsh), but there's more to this spring equinox celebration than the food!

Below is a particularly beautiful Haft-Seen table, put together by Ms. Afzal Abrisham, a Madison resident and annual Chaharshanbe Suri hostess, the feast held prior to Nowruz in the last week of the old year. The traditional Haft-Seen table displays seven items all beginning with the Persian "S". Each item carries its own symbolism with regard to the New Year.
Sabzeh : Wheat, barley, mung bean or lentil sprouts growing in a dish, symbolizing rebirth
Samanu: Sweet pudding made from wheat germ, symbolizing prosperity
Senjed: Dried oleaster fruit, symbolizing love
Sir : Garlic, symbolizing medicine
Sib: Apples, symbolizing beauty and health
Somāq: Sumac berries, symbolizing sunrise
Serkeh: Vinegar, symbolizing old-age or patience

Programs for the Week of Mar 21

2011-03-17T17:33:00.000-05:00

We’re digging into the Here on Earth archives for some of our best shows to repeat Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week while I’m at a conference on Islam in Bloomington, Indiana.
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Year of the Hare: Pico Iyer was downright subversive in the way he laid out his formula for “enlightened truancy” based on his reading of Arto Pasaalinna’s bestseller. He’s been living what sounds to me like the perfect unmediated life with his wife in a two bedroom apartment in a quiet little out of the way town near Kyoto, sans automobile, laptop, cell phone, radio or TV. Almost unimaginable, but he claims his days stretch out like eternity. Imagine having that much time and freedom! One wonders if Japan’s multiple catastrophe are likely to intrude on his idyll.
Monday: Madre: Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun (Encore): What's in a word? Linguistic anthropologist Liza Bakewell spent decades chasing after the many meanings of the Spanish word "madre" as its used in Mexico. In her memoir she chronicles the relationship between religion, nationhood and language and celebrates the role of the creative female in a sexist culture. Rebroadcast from December 1, 2010.
Tuesday: The Art of Listening (Encore): British Sociologist Les Back has been thinking a lot about famous listeners like Studs Terkel, about the importance Holocaust survivor Primo Levi placed on the connectivity offered by listening, and about why, despite the central role listening plays in a healthy political sphere, it just seems to be getting harder and harder to be good at it. Rebroadcast from September 8, 2010.
Wednesday: Finding Utopia (Encore): Will utopia ever exist? JC Hallman travelled the world’s intentional communities to study our quest for a better perfect. He came back thinking that even when perfect fails, there’s something human about reaching for it. Rebroadcast from December 13, 2010.
Thursday: The Green Path: Muhammed declared "The Earth is a Mosque." Environmental Policy Advisor to the City of New York, Ibrahim Abdul-Matin makes a spiritual case for environmentalism in which humanity is compelled to care for the earth not just in response to scientific data, but because of a sacred duty.
Friday: Blood, Bones, and Butter: All eyes in the food world have turned to Gabrielle Hamilton and her new memoir, Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef. She’s never been quite at home in the food world and still has little patience for credos or picky eaters at her table. At Prune, her East Village NYCity restaurant, it’s all about real, good food that says "hospitality," like the food she encountered on backpacking trips in Greece and Turkey.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day: Think Green!
Jean

Programs for the Week of Mar 14

2011-03-13T23:54:00.001-05:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Fighting for Libya: As a third-generation Italian-American whose family emigrated from the most neglected and despised regions of southern Italy, I grew up hearing Mussolini lauded as a fascist dictator who, after all, made the trains run on time and wiped out malaria by draining the swamps. I never bought it. But, as an adult, I did attach myself to what Professor Ali Ahmida calls “the myth of Italy’s benign fascism.” Professor Ali Ahmida disabused me of that myth, and, painful as it was to learn about the horrors that Libyans suffered under Italian colonization, I am grateful to him.
Monday: Mooz-lum: A coming of age story based on the director’s real-life experience, "Mooz-lum" is a film that explores the trials of a young Muslim man brought up strictly who struggles through an identity crisis when he finds himself facing new freedoms in college amid the tensions of the 9/11 attacks. The film was shown in select theaters Feb. 11th with more theaters around the country.
Tuesday: The Year of the Hare: Have you ever felt the urge to chuck it all, slip out the back door, and start life anew? That’s just what the main character does in Finland’s best loved novel, "The Year of the Hare" by Arto Paasilinna. Renowned travel writer Pico Iyer, who wrote the forward to the book, did the same thing when he left for Japan many years ago. He joins us to talk about the new North American edition of the book and about the benefits of leaving it all behind.
Wednesday: House Committee Meets on Muslim Radicalization: Assemblyman Peter King’s hearings began Thursday, March 10 for the purpose of exploring the extent of radicalization in the American Muslim community. The hearings are being compared to those instigated by Wisconsin Senator Joe McCarthy on un-American activities during the so-called Red Scare in the fifties. But, surprisingly enough, some prominent Muslims are in favor of them. What do you think?
Thursday: Ireland Unhinged: Among the countries hit hardest by the economic downturn is Ireland, which had been riding high on a boom of prosperity that garnered it the highest quality of life index in the world. This St. Patrick’s Day American ex-pat David Monagan shares stories from Cork about the new troubles in Ireland and the country’s resilient spirit.
Friday: Nowruz: Persian New Year: Saideh Jamshidi, our Iranian-American producer, has found the perfect guest, Najmieh Batmanglij, to talk about the Iranian New Year celebration this month, which is an ancient and complex ritual connected to Zoroastrianism. Najmieh is the author of several highly esteemed cook books including "Happy Nowruz." Now, if I can only learn to pronounce her name.
In Solidarity!
Jean

Living with Soul - 3/9

2011-03-10T13:07:00.003-06:00
Dominique Haller

On yesterday's show, Jean and her guest Chuck Pfeifer had a spirited conversation on our potential as human beings. Historic figures such as Jesus, Muhammad, Ghandi, and Dr. King have fully lived up to this potential. Jean and Chuck kept their conversation going after the show. You can check it out here:

Programs for the Week of Mar 7

2011-03-04T23:57:00.001-06:00

Highlights of the Coming Week: Don’t miss a special broadcast of Here on Earth this week when Jean Feraca is joined by three of Africa's greatest guitarists for a live in-studio performance.

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Al Jazeera's Revolution: When Al Jazeera made its debut fifteen years ago its arrival was greeted with disdain, suspicion, and rejection in the U.S. Donald Rumsfeld demonized it; George W. Bush allegedly wanted to bomb its headquarters in Baghdad, and probably did. Now, as a result of its coverage of the popular uprising in Cairo its web traffic has risen 200%. What I most enjoyed learned about the network from Lawrence Pintak was that it subscribes to mission-driven journalism and has no remorse whatsoever about fostering democracy.

Monday: Fighting for Libya: Ali Ahmida grew up in Libya. Now, as a political scientist in the United States he's calling attention to the Libyan people's rich history of resistance including poetry produced by Libyans forced into concentration camps under Italy's colonial rule. He'll offer a people-centered view of Libya's ongoing struggle for democracy.

Tuesday: To a Mountain in Tibet: After the loss of his mother acclaimed travel writer Colin Thubron journeyed to the holiest mountain on earth: Mount Kailas, Tibet. It is sacred to one-fifth of humankind and has never been climbed. On an often grueling trek through an impoverished yet breathtaking landscape, Colin Thubron encountered a complex intermingling of religious beliefs while confronting his own experience with death.

Wednesday: Living with Soul: Walter Wink in his book The Human Being argues that we humans are more than we think we are. Using dialogue and the insights of Jungian depth psychology, he encourages us to consider our human capacity as exemplified in fully realized human beings like Jesus and other spiritual leaders.

Thursday: Africa's Greatest Guitarists: We're hoping to have Habib Koite, Oliver Mtukudzi and Afel Bocoum, three of Africa's best known guitarists representing three very different traditions, join us for a live in-studio performance as their American tour comes to Madison. Stay tuned!

Friday: Food-Tripping Though Vietnam: In her culinary journey through Vietnam Kim Fay frequently tasted Com Hen, clam rice with thin silver star fruit. She was fascinated by the tartness that sparked against the dry crunch of the wonton stick. We talk with Kim Fay about Vietnamese food and culture.

Old Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times!
Jean

Programs for the Week of Feb 28

2011-02-27T23:02:00.001-06:00

Our Winter Membership Drive continues this week on WPR. Thanks to everybody who gave us such a great showing on the first day of the drive when Here on Earth racked up over $8000 in pledges! We'll be taking your pledges all week but, for Here on Earth, our big day comes this Friday, March 4th when we'll be joined by Barry Levenson, Curator of the Mustard Museum when our thank you gift will be a jar of Jean Feraca's Mustard on Earth! Click here to pledge now!

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Tunisia, Cairo, Wisconsin: It is difficult not to get caught up in the heady swell of people power as we witness the demise of dictators all over the Arab world while here at home, protestors against the perceived injustices of the governor's Budget Repair Bill continue to draw their energy from "A Force More Powerful."

Monday: Al Jazeera's Revolution: When it came into existence fifteen years ago, Al Jazeera was the first Arab broadcaster not completely controlled by a government. Now it's been playing a crucial role in the current uprisings sweeping the Arab world. How did Al Jazeera become the enemy of dictatorship and a friend to democracy?

Tuesday: An Optimist's Tour of the Future: Healthcare tailored to genetic profiles, machines that pull carbon dioxide out of the air, what's next? Writer Mark Stevenson set out to answer that question by talking with scientists and philosophers around the world who are thinking deep into the future.

Wednesday: A Force More Powerful: The uprising that started in Tunis was carried into Egypt and is now throughout much of the Middle East and North Africa is being spread through the power of non-violent resistance. What is the history of nonviolent resistance, and what we can learn from those brave enough to use its power as a strategy to topple atrocious regimes?

Thursday: Big in China: When suburban dad Alan Paul's wife was offered a job as the Wall Street Journal's China Bureau Chief in Beijing, he agreed to move the whole family, including three kids, to China. But instead of just being the tag-along, he ended up with an adventure of his own, founding and fronting a Chinese blues band that made it big in China.

Friday: Food Whiz Quiz and Mustard on Earth: Barry Levenson, curator of the Mustard Museum, joins us for another round of the Food Whiz Quiz. We'll also be offering a very special pledge premium: "Jean Feraca's Mustard on Earth"! You can choose this thank you gift during our show or anytime during the drive when you pledge to the Ideas Network.

It's an exciting week, it's an exciting world, it's an exciting time to be Here on Earth!
Jean

The King's Speech - 2/21

2011-02-21T14:19:00.003-06:00
Dominique Haller

In today's show, we'll be discussing the aspects of class that are part of the Oscar-nominated film The King's Speech. We won't be focusing on stuttering, which is obviously a big aspect of the film but isn't tied to our focus today. If you want to inform yourself on stuttering or are looking for support, click here to go to the National Stuttering Association.

Below, you can see an video of the real King George VI giving a speech in 1938. While his stutter is almost not audible, you can see him literally struggle with some of the words. It's impressive to see.

What did you think of The King's Speech? Did you see it as a film about a stutterer, a film about class, or a film about a hero? Leave your comments below!

Programs for the Week of Feb 21

2011-02-17T14:28:00.002-06:00

Action Alert: Threats to Public Broadcasting: This week Congress is set to take a vote that is virtually certain to include ELIMINATION of all federal funding for public radio and television. This includes Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Public Television. Click here to learn more and to make a difference.

Our Winter Membership Drive begins this week on WPR. Volunteers will be taking your pledges all week but for Here on Earth, the two big days of the drive are this Thursday, the kick-off day, and the last day, Friday, March 4th when Barry Levenson, Curator of the Mustard Museum joins us for another round of the Food Whiz Quiz. We'll also be offering a very special pledge premium, "Jean Feraca's Mustard on Earth"! You can choose this thank you gift during our show with Barry on the 4th or anytime during the drive when you pledge to the Ideas Network.

Jean’s Pick of the Week: A Love Divine: Well, it goes without saying that I loved the Rumi Valentine's Day show. Coleman Barks knows Rumi's poetry so well that it just rolls off his tongue in that southern drawl of his. I was quite riveted by his description of the waking dream he had that prepared him for the arrival of Bawa, his Sufi guru. And it was quite thrilling to hear from an Afghan caller who introduced Rumi to us as Mowlana, the name by which he is known in Afghanistan, and shared his story of a deep friendship with a man he called his Shams. Beautiful.

Monday: The King’s Speech: While the American public sees the Oscar-nominated film "The King’s Speech" as a story about the king heroically overcoming his personal limitations in the face of great adversity, the same film in the UK is perceived as being a story about class differences. What does the film teach us about class in the UK? How did you see "The King’s Speech?"

Tuesday: Peace, Love and Parazit: Iran's Daily Show: Tired of their routine jobs, Saman Arbabi and Kambiz Hosseini, two irreverent young Iranians, started a comedy program called Parazit that's modeled after Jon Stewart's The Daily Show and broadcast over The Voice of America. The show is billed for those who "don’t have the patience for news ... and all news is bad news."

Wednesday: Inside Islam: What kind of a book is the Qur’an?: What kind of a book is the Qur’an? Does it incite Muslims to violence? What are its core messages? What kind of God is Allah? We'll talk with UW-Madison professor Anna Gade about the Qur'an and why it is so misunderstood.
We want to hear from you as well! Send your questions about the Qur'an to our Facebook page or to hereonearth@wpr.org and tune in to the show.

Thursday: The Peace Corps Turns Fifty, Part II: We'll kick off our Winter Pledge Drive with a preview of the UW's Peace Corps and Africa Conference featuring stories of impact from returnees.

Friday: Day of Honey: While living in Baghdad and Beirut for six years during the time of the Iraq invasion and the Lebanese war Annia Ciezadlo broke bread with Shiites and Sunnis, warlords, and refugees, matriarchs and mullahs. From the oldest recipes in the world to her Lebanese mother-in-law’s rare family recipes, she shows us a Middle East full of humor and delicious flavors that outlive even the most tumultuous of times.

Images of Tahrir 2/16

2011-02-16T13:39:00.010-06:00
Carly Yuenger

A lot has changed since our program on the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia earlier this month. We're already thinking about follow up programs as new systems of governance are organized in these countries and protesters in others take to the streets.

One amazing piece of the story in Egypt was how quickly protesters organized the space of Tahrir Square. The BBC has put together a great interactive photo map so you can get a better picture of the scene. Click on the image below to be taken to their website where you can browse photos of different sites around the square.

You can tell us what you've been thinking as events have unfolded and what you'd like to hear us cover in our upcoming programs by leaving a comment below, emailing us at hereonearth@wpr.org, contacting us at Facebook or Twitter or by leaving a message at 1-877-GLOBE-07.

A Love Divine - 2/14

2011-02-14T12:42:00.003-06:00
Dominique Haller

On today's Valentine's Day show, we will be speaking about the most popular poet in the United States today - Rumi! Coleman Barks, translator of Rumi, will join us to discuss how Rumi's friendship with his teacher Shams inspired him for the rest of his life.

Have you ever met a teacher and friend that inspired your entire life? What is your favorite Rumi poem? Tell us if you celebrate this Valentine's Day with Rumi's poetry!

Programs for the Week of Feb 14

2011-02-13T22:05:00.000-06:00

We have a lovely line-up for the week ahead: Rumi for Valentine’s Day; a live interview with Shirin Neshat, Iranian video artist extraordinaire; two programs in honor of African-American history month: one about Harlem, and the other with the author of the soulful cookbook, High on the Hog, and finally, the prospects for South Sudan, Africa’s newest country.
NB: Coming up on INSDE ISLAM: February 23: What are your questions about the Qur’an? Does the Qur’an incite Muslims to violence? What are its core messages? What kind of God is Allah? Send your questions to us via Facebook or Twitter under hereonearthshow, or by email at hereonearth@wpr.org. We’ll use as many as possible when we talk with UW-Madison Professor Anna Gade.

Jean’s Pick of the Week: India Calling: I have to admit my image of India was stuck in the sixties, maybe a hangover from the Beetles, but not anymore! After an hour with Anand Giridharadas, who grew up loathing the land of his parents, and ended up loving it, I now think of India as an awakening giant, and I will never romanticize poverty again.

Monday: A Love Divine: When Rumi, the 13th century poet and founder of Sufism, met his teacher, Shams of Tabriz, he was introduced to a deeper kind of love that would inspire him for the rest of his life. On this Valentine’s Day you’ll see Rumi’s poetry books in every bookstore. But what sort of love was Rumi really talking about?

Tuesday: Women Without Men: Venice Film Festival prizewinner Shirin Neshat depicts the life of four Iranian women in “Women Without Men” during the politically tumultuous summer of 1953. The movie catalogs political change through the personal stories of a prostitute, a rebel, a traditionalist, and an unhappy wife. We talk with Iranian-born visual artist Neshat about her movie and “Rapture” the video installation currently at MMoCA, Madison’s Museum of Contemporary Art.

Wednesday: Harlem is Nowhere: Known worldwide as a center of cultural and political achievement, Harlem could be described as the capital of Black America. Now threatened by gentrification, we’ll talk with Harlem’s most recent chronicler Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts about old-fashioned rootedness and what it takes for a community to fight for the value of place.

Thursday: A New Sudan: After the Southern Sudanese overwhelmingly voted in favor of secession from Khartoum, Southern Sudan is slated to become the youngest country on the African continent as of July 9th. While the vote has been viewed as a success by the international community, the new country will face considerable challenges as it makes its transition to full independence. Have you ever witnessed the birth of a country?

Friday: High on the Hog: From Gorée Island in Senegal to Ibo Landing in the Low Country of the American South, from ham hocks to chitlins to fried chicken and vegan soul, we’ll invite Jessica B. Harris, Grande Dame of African American cookbooks, to tell us about the people and the recipes that gained the peoples of Africa their hard-won place at the American table.

Exciting news coming out of Egypt right now. Stay tuned to NPR. My husband and I are planning a trip to Syria later this spring. I hope we get to go!
Jean

Programs for the Week of Feb 7

2011-02-04T15:57:00.002-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Fortunate Sons: Liel Leibovitz tells a great story about the fortunes of 120 Chinese boys who were sent to the U.S. by the Qing Dynasty in 1872 to be educated at New England's elite schools and bring back the best ideas from their "barbarian" cousins across the sea, but by the time they returned their country was unrecognizable. The program in its wider context is really about the ever shifting relations between China and the U.S. and the profound ways in which we continue to influence one another. Fun and illuminating.

Monday: Adulthood II: What would you do with a second adulthood? Humans are living longer and cultural anthropologist Mary Catherine Bateson says it's time we embrace what she calls the "age of active wisdom." We'll discuss the value of longevity in our own lives and to a world in need of a longer perspective.

Tuesday: Mrs. Goundo's Daughter: A new documentary airing on PBS this week describes one Malian woman's determination to protect her daughter from female genital mutilation by seeking asylum in the United States. We'll speak with the co-director and an advocate who says FGM is an issue in need of attention right here in America.

Wednesday: India Calling: Anand Giridharadas grew up in America but returned to India, his parents’ country, to get a closer look at how the India they left had turned into the economic powerhouse that the whole world is watching.

Thursday: An Optimist's Tour of the Future: Healthcare tailored to genetic profiles, machines that pull carbon dioxide out of the air, what's next? Writer Mark Stevenson set out to answer that question by talking with scientists and philosophers around the world who are thinking deep into the future.

Friday: At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Lori Skelton steps in to talk with the high priestess of Indian cooking. But don't worry, her latest book is written for those of you who find South Asian cooking a little intimidating.

Thanks to Carly Younger for putting together this week's bulletin. I've been struggling all week with injuries I suffered from a fall last Sunday while ice skating. Anybody want a pair of size seven and a half figure skates?
Jean

Programs for the Week of Jan 31

2011-01-30T21:02:00.001-06:00

Monday: People Power in the Middle East: Tunisia’s protests came as a surprise to much of the world, and are spreading across North Africa and into the Middle East. Why now, and are they likely to bring lasting change?

Tuesday: How Bulgaria Survived the Twentieth Century: In SOLO, a novel that won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Book of 2010, Ulrich, a 100 year old blind musician who was born in 1901 in the final days of the Ottoman Empire, looks back at his life under a century of communism and fascism.

Wednesday: Woven Lives: In Oaxaca, world-renowned Zapotec textiles are helping to sustain local communities while in Panama, indigenous arts are flourishing as a response on the part of people caught in a war zone.

Thursday: Fortunate Sons: What happened when the Qing dynasty sent 120 boys to go to school in the US in 1872? The boys got good at baseball and picked up nicknames like By-Jinks Johnnie and Fighting Chinee. But they also confronted a struggle between traditionalism and modernity that ended up influencing both China and the U.S.

Friday: Tiger in the Kitchen: Growing up in Singapore, Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan never spent much time in the kitchen. It was only after moving to the U.S. that she realized she had to return to her homeland to learn from the women in her family how to make the New Year’s dishes she simply couldn’t live without.

Programs for the Week of Jan 24

2011-01-21T16:35:00.003-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Upcycling, Recycling, and “There’s gold in them there landfills!”: I had a ball today connecting with garbage wizard Tom Szaky, CEO of Terracycle, one of the most innovative green businesses in the world. Tom delivered one of our best Here on Earth programs ever – future positive, energizing, full of hope, practical wisdom, and inspiration. He says there’s no garbage he can’t make something out of, and he proves it.
Monday: Wisdom of the Eco-Mystics: Mystics are often seen as detached from the world, but Paula Hirschboeck tells us the opposite is true. Paula Hirschboeck, an ordained Buddhist priest and former Dominican nun, joins us to talk about the urgent ecological lessons both early and modern mystics have to teach us about our conflicted relationship with the earth.
Tuesday: The Global University: Will your son or daughter be earning a college degree in Singapore or Qatar in the near future? Higher education journalist and researcher Ben Wildavsky contends that the rising mobility of college students, faculty, and even campuses across national borders is to be embraced, not feared. This often ignored effect of globalization, he says, will bring improved education, economic growth, and new opportunities for people around the world.

Wednesday: Paul Ehrlich Redefines the Family: What does family mean to you? Paul Ehrlich made his mark as a world famous environmentalist with the publication of The Population Bomb in 1968. Ehrlich now believes that our very survival may depend on expanding our capacity for empathy and our understanding of the human family.
Thursday: I Killed Scheherazade: How are Arab women portrayed in the West? Lebanese spitfire Joumana Haddad electrified the Arab world by starting the first erotic magazine in Arabic. Ever since her appearance on Here on Earth in the summer of 2009 – one of our best programs of that year - I’ve been eagerly anticipating her next move. It’s just arrived in the form of a highly provocative book some are calling a manifesto: I Killed Schererazade: Confessions of an Angry Arab Woman.
Friday: Wild Within: Outdoorsman Steve Rinella gets his food by foraging from what he calls the world’s “first supermarket.” On his new Travel Channel television series, The Wild Within, he travels the world hunting for the food he feeds his family.
Let’s help one another get through this long cold month by making some great radio!
Jean

In Honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. - 1/17

2011-01-17T15:07:00.005-06:00
Dominique Haller

In today's show, we pay homage to the courageous citizenship that emerged among followers of the Civil Rights Movement. We talk to Professor Danielle Allen and Cathy Cohen. Professor Allen is widely known for her work on citizenship in both ancient Athens and modern America. Cathy Cohen's research focuses on the political participation of young people, particularly black youth.

To check out Cathy Cohen's Black Youth Project, click here.

To check out her Mobilization and Change Project, click here.

What motivates you to get involved into politics? How do you communicate with people of different political convictions or different racial backgrounds about politics? Leave us our comment below.

Programs for the Week of Jan 17

2011-01-14T17:37:00.000-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week: Wisdom in the Workplace: Pretty easy, since I just came back from ten days away – but even if I had a whole week’s worth of programs to choose from, I’m pretty sure I’d still cozy up to today’s show with Swarthmore sociologist Barry Schwartz, the author of Practical Wisdom, who called President Obama’s speech in Tucson "pitch perfect."
Monday: Talking to Strangers: In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day we take this moment to reflect on the state of our democracy. How do we interact as citizens? How often do we have positive interactions with political adversaries? And how are young people getting involved in politics today?
Tuesday: 9 Parts of Desire: In this award-winning one-woman show Iraqi-American actress Heather Raffo portrays the lives of nine different Iraqi women including a doctor, a Bedouin and a young girl, all of whom celebrate life despite its hardships. She will be joined by her accompanist Iraqi musician Amir Elsaffar.
Please see our previous post to find out more about their Stevens Point performance on January 29.
Wednesday: Capital Punishment on Trial: Why does the U.S. hold on to the death penalty while other countries in the West have abolished it? Justice Stevens caused quite a stir in explaining why he turned against the death penalty in his review of David Garland’s new book Peculiar Institution: America’s Death Penalty in an Age of Abolition. Find out why when we talk with David on the show.
Thursday: The Future of Recycling: Tom Szaky, the 28-year-old founder of TerraCycle, one of the fastest growing green companies in the world, is making a business out of recycling and a name for himself as "#1 CEO in America Under 30."
Friday: The Chocolate Chasers: Dan Pearson was working in Peru with his stepson Brian Horsley when they stumbled on a species of cocoa long thought extinct. Even better, the trees had mutated to produce highly prized white beans! Following their discovery, Dan and Brian partnered with local farmers and the world’s top chocolate experts to produce the next big thing in chocolate — Fortunato No.4 — debuting at food expos this month.
It’s good to be back in Wisconsin!
Jean

9 Parts of Desire

2011-01-14T17:20:00.010-06:00
Saideh Jamshidi
“God created sexual desire in 10 parts; then he gave nine parts to women and one to men.”
Ali ibn Abu Taleb, founder of Shiite sect and fourth leader of the Islamic world after Muhammad.

In the award-winning one-woman show she created, 9 Parts of Desire, Heather Raffo plays the part of an Iraqi Bedouin, an artist, a left-wing political exile, a doctor, and a young girl among others. She details both the ordinary and extraordinary lives of women in Iraq and in the United States.
Each woman in this play has been traumatized, dramatized and scrutinized under Saddam Hussain’s regime and U.S. led occupation. Their voices are vivid, sophisticated, seductive and subdued, collectively portraying suffering and endurance. Yet each one of them searches for her own personal sense of liberation.
The images Heather paints in her one-woman show were inspired by a haunting painting she first encountered at Saddam Art Center in Baghdad. There, in a back room of the museum, Heather saw a painting of a nude woman clinging to a barren tree, her body stilled in the air, her head bowed; but yet, there was a light coming out from behind her, like a sun, she writes.
In her visits to Baghdad, where her father’s family still lives, Heather talked with many women about the complexity of their lives in their crippled city. After the second Iraq war, Heather started writing about the many passionate Iraqi women she had come to know. “Their stories of resilience, determination and love became my one-woman show,” she writes.
I saw video clips of 9 Parts of Desire on Heather’s website and was amazed by the force of energy she puts forward to bring these nine Iraqi women to life. In my interview with her, she speaks with the same sense of liveliness. “I have loved all of the women characters, or they wouldn’t have made it into the play,” she said. “I love the spirit of each character equally in a different way.”
Heather Raffo offers 9 Parts of Desire in 2 formats: concert and full-play. In the concert format, Heather teams up with Amir Elsafar, accomplished jazz trumpeter and Iraqi santoor player. In the full-play, she travels with six other musicians in an elaborate production with lighting, costumes, and a stage set that depicts a river. To mount such a production takes six or more weeks.
Heather and Amir will perform 9 Parts of Desire in concert at the Sentry Theater in Stevens Point, WI, 1800 Northpoint Drive on January 29 at 7:30pm. Click here to purchase tickets.
For a preview, join Here on Earth: Radio Without Borders with Jean Feraca on Tuesday, January 18.

All About Olive Oil! - 1/14

2011-01-14T15:50:00.003-06:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, it's all about Olive Oil as we talk with Rene Lavallee about his love and knowledge of this versatile oil. Here are the recipes that Jean and Rene discussed on the air. Try them out and let us know how they taste!

Olive oil and Balsamic Swirl Ice Cream

Ingredients:
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4oz raw sugar
- 1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar
- 1/3 cup Terra Creta Estate olive oil

Pour the milk into a saucepan and slowly bring to boiling point but DO NOT LET IT BOIL. Beat together the egg yolks and the sugar until they form a thick paste. Pour milk onto paste while stirring. Pour mixture back into pan and heat without bringing to a boil to form a custard. When a film forms on the back of a wooden spoon while mixing, mixture is ready. Let cool. Stir in cream and transfer into air tight freezable metal container. Before freezing poor drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a gently mix to create a swirl design in mixture. Freeze for at least four hours. Serve with fresh berries.

Butternut Squash and Pecan Soup

Ingredients:
- 2 leeks hearts, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 45ml Chateau d’Estoublon Salonenque olive oil
- 1kg butternut squash, diced
- 7-8 cups vegetable broth
- 2/3 cup pecans, chopped
- 1/2 cup kefir
- 1/2 goat’s milk
- black pepper
- ground sage

Boil the leeks and butternut squash until tender. Blend all other ingredients in blender with cooked leeks and squash. Withhold 15ml of olive oil and 1/4 cup of pecans to garnish. Should make a thick creamy soup that is delicious with thinly sliced grilled baguette.

White Tuna Salad

Ingredients:
- 300g white tuna filet
- 50g capers in wine
- 50ml Planeta olive oil
- Fleur de Sel
- 200g sliced fennel

Slice the tuna filet into thin slices. Garnish lightly with Fleur de Sel.
Cut fennel into julienne slices and place over tuna with a few capers. Drizzle with Planeta olive oil.

Enjoy!

Jan 10 - 14 Programs

2011-01-07T13:58:00.003-06:00

Jean returns from vacation on Monday. Here’s the lineup for our first new shows of 2011:

Monday: The Art Instinct:
Rebroadcast from 06/09/2009. Can you imagine what our cave people ancestors were thinking as they relaxed by the side of a fire and enjoyed a beautiful sunset? If you think that we've only learned to appreciate beauty more recently, think again. We are celebrating Darwin's bicentennial year with author Denis Dutton and his book The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution which explores the evolutionary role of aesthetic appreciation.

Tuesday: Twelve Steps To a Compassionate Life: Comparative religion scholar Karen Armstrong's "Charter for Compassion" has been signed by thousands and is inspiring compassionate deeds around the world. Her latest book brings it all home.

Wednesday: The Future of Recycling: Tom Szaky, the 28-year-old founder of TerraCycle, one of the fastest growing green companies in the world, is making a business out of recycling and a name for himself as "#1 CEO in America Under 30."

Thursday: Wisdom in the Workplace: Swarthmore sociologist Barry Schwartz brings together Aristotle and modern-day psychology to help us re-imagine how each of us can do our job better and feel more satisfied at the same time.

Friday: All You Need to Know About Olive Oil: Last year about this time, I spent a few days in Montreal where I met a charming Frenchman named Renee Lavallee whose shop in a downtown market is famous for its olive oil, with one entire wall lined from floor to ceiling with bottles from all over the world. He's so devoted to liquid gold, he claims it's even great with ice cream.

We hope you will join us!
~The Here on Earth Team

Jan 3 - 7 Programs

2010-12-31T11:17:00.000-06:00

Monday: Painting With Animals: Olly & Suzi are London-based artist-explorers who have portrayed wild dogs and lions in Tanzania, killer whales in Norway, polar bears and Arctic foxes in Siberia, and many others. The artists collaborate with one another and induce wild creatures to interact with their canvases. Bites, footprints, rips, and slithers are "proof of where they are now," they say, "but might not be for much longer." Rebroadcast from 12/17/2009.
Tuesday: The Interfaith Amigos: Three clergymen from the three Abrahamic faiths used friendship to create a dialogue. Rabbi Ted Falcon, Sheikh Jamal Rahman, and Pastor Don Mackenzie met every week for nine years after 9/11 in search of common ground. They sum up their collective discoveries in the book, Getting to the Heart of Interfaith: The Eye-Opening Hope-Filled Friendship of a Pastor, a Rabbi and a Sheikh. Rebroadcast from 07/08/2010.
Wednesday: The Adventures of Tintin: Tintin is the most well-known comic character worldwide, comparable in popularity only to Mickey Mouse. Tintin’s adventures lead him and his readers to such places as China, the Congo, America, and even the moon! But through time and history, Tintin and his Belgian creator Hergé have not been spared by controversy. Accused of such a serious charge as racism, Hergé was forced by history to review some of the depictions of the places Tintin visits. So how has Tintin changed over time? And what explains the enduring popularity of Tintin? Rebroadcast from 08/19/2010.
Thursday: Inside Islam: Muslims, Mosques and the American Identity: What goes on in mosques in America? Are mosques a part of the tradition of religious pluralism in America? Can a Muslim be an American? Islamic Studies luminary Akbar Ahmed traveled for a year around the country, visiting over a hundred mosques to find out how Muslims are living every day in America. Rebroadcast from 11/02/2010.
Friday:Eating Animals: Vegetarianism is nothing new, but for some reason Jonathan Safran Foer's 2009 book, Eating Animals, sparked a nationwide conversation about how we eat. The paperback edition of this bestseller comes out this week and Jonathan Safran Foer joins us to continue the conversation he started, this Food Friday. Rebroadcast from 09/24/2010.

Happy New Year! We’ll talk again in 2011.
Jean

Dec 27 - 31 Programs

2010-12-24T10:46:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Whitman and Lincoln: Parallel Lives on the World Stage: Who knew that San Marino made Lincoln an honorary citizen? Or that Karl Marx was a fan and followed the progress of the Civil War with great interest, thinking it might be a model of resistance? And given the political tensions that seem threatening to tear us apart in our own time, how hopeful to look back and remember why it was so important to the whole world that this nation, "so conceived, and so dedicated," did not perish from the earth.
Monday: Kung Fu for Life: Think Kung Fu is just for Jackie Chan? How about the Kung Fu of cooking? Philosophy professor Peimin Ni is bridging the divide between East and West to show that the true Kung Fu is not a style of fighting but a philosophy of life we can all learn from.
Tuesday: A Kidnapping in Milan: The CIA snatched off the terrorist suspect Abu Omar from a street in Milan on February 17, 2003, and spirited him away to Egypt for extraordinary rendition. The Italian court responded by convicting 23 CIA agents, marking the first time the CIA has ever been brought to trial. Freelance journalist Steve Hendricks investigated the case and wrote about it in his book, "A Kidnapping in Milan: The CIA on Trial."
Wednesday: Capital Punishment on Trial: Why does the U.S. hold on to the death penalty while other countries in the West have abolished it? Justice Stevens caused quite a stir in explaining why he turned against the death penalty in his review of David Garland’s new book "Peculiar Institution: America’s Death Penalty in an Age of Abolition." Find out why when we talk with David on the show next Wednesday.
Thursday: Love and Other Letters: Anthropologist and Milwaukee native Nancy Lurie discovered a treasure trove of over 500 letters that her father wrote to her mother in the years leading up to their marriage, from the gaslight era to the Jazz Age, yielding fascinating insights into the First World War, the Russian Revolution, Prohibition and many other signs of the time. What’s waiting to be discovered in your attic?
Friday:Eating Animals: I’m still not a convert, but after talking with Jonathan Safran Foer about vegetarianism, I’m weakening. His 2009 book "Eating Animals" sparked both a nationwide conversation about how we eat and a movement which is gaining momentum.
Merry Christmas and to all a Good Night!
Jean

Letters from Brussels: A Snowflake through Time - 12/23

2010-12-23T13:59:00.003-06:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, we'll feature another one of Leona Francombe's wonderful Letters from Brussels. It's called A Snowflake through Time. You can read it here.

To check out all of Leona's Letters from Brussels, please click here.

International Children's Literature - 12/22

2010-12-21T14:32:00.008-06:00
Dominique Haller

What books did you grow up with? On today's show, we'll talk with two experts on children's literature about its history and its diversity in the world today. Authors such as Edith Nesbit from the UK and Astrid Lindgren from Sweden have provided our youngsters with great classics of children's literature. Here's a list with links to some of the authors we'll talk about in today's show:

Astrid Lindgren, Sweden: go to her website and find out about her books here.

Tove Jansson, Finland: learn about the Moomin Series here.

Kitty Crowther, Belgium: her books are currently only available in French and Dutch. To see some of her amazing illustrations, click here.

Ryoki Arai, Japan: his website is in Japanese, but his books have been translated to English. To see his quirky picture books, click here.

What are the best memories you have of children's books? Which were your favorites when growing up, and why? Which ones are you now reading to your kids? Leave your comments below.

Celebrating Our Intangible Culture 12/21

2010-12-21T13:44:00.006-06:00
Carly Yuenger

On today's show we talk with Chief of the Intangible Heritage Section of UNESCO, Cécile Duvelle, about the most recent additions to the list of the world's intangible cultural heritage. It sounds a little high concept, but the reality is earthly and delightful. Just check out their website...

UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has an amazing multimedia catalog of the over 200 examples already voted to represent the world's intangible cultural heritage (basically, anything cultural that is not a "thing").

Here are just a couple of the gems you'll find there. Enjoy!

Tsuur Music of Mongolia:

Traditional Li textile techniques of Hainan Province, China

Favorite Foreign Films 12/20

2010-12-20T14:26:00.003-06:00
Carly Yuenger

On today's show we talk with film critic Jim Hoberman about the past and present of foreign films in America. Here are the trailers from a few films talked about in the show.

Take a look, and then leave a comment telling us about your favorite foreign film!

Dec 20 - 24 Programs

2010-12-17T13:48:00.004-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): The Butterfly Mosque: Well, it’s been a banner week, and we haven’t even got to the Italian Grandmothers yet. I’m hard pressed to come up with a favorite – I liked them all – but since I have to choose, it doesn’t get much better than Wednesday’s show with G. Willow Wilson, who writes for Superman and is a devotee of Nine Inch Nails, explaining, with calm, open-eyed clarity, why she converted to Islam. And what a lovely title for a memoir: The Butterfly Mosque. I just wish she had a put a little more Superman into it.
Monday: Best Foreign Films: Is it really true that Americans don’t have the patience to read the sub-titles? Veronica Rueckert sits in for me talking with Village Voice film critic Jim Hoberman about America’s on again/but mostly off again love affair with foreign films. And we’ll want to hear about your first, favorite, and most recent excursions into the wider world of cinema.
Tuesday: Our Intangible Heritage: What do Falconry and Turkish oil wrestling have in common? They are two masterpieces of human culture recently added to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity. We’ll speak with Cécile Duvelle, Chief of the Intangible Heritage Section, about the challenges and rewards of protecting living traditions.
Wednesday: International Children’s Literature: What are the books you grew up with? If you are still looking for the right book to give to the kids in your family, join us to explore the rich tradition of children’s literature from around the world.
Thursday: Lincoln and Whitman: In 1856, Walt Whitman wished that 'some… middle-aged, beard-faced American blacksmith or boatman come down from the West across the Alleghenies, and walk into the Presidency.' Five years later, Abraham Lincoln did just that. Less known is the shared admiration between the two. Lincoln inspired Whitman's poetry and for years he held imaginary conversations with Lincoln in his journal. We look back at the Civil War, 150 years later, through the shared regard of two of the times' most distinct voices.
Friday:Christmas Eve in Sicily: We combed the Here on Earth archives and came up with the perfect food program for Christmas Eve: On Dec. 24, la vigilia di Natale, Guissepe Scarlata's family will sit down in their home in Trapani to a seven course fish feast: marinated octopus and squid salad, smoked swordfish and thin slices of cured tuna. And that's just for starters. Join us for Christmas Eve in Sicily.
Buon Natale! Buon Natale, tutti quanti!
Jean

Dec 13 - 17 Programs

2010-12-10T18:00:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): War Stories and Recipes: I’m in prophecy mode right now, but if Food Friday with Anna Badhken this afternoon comes close to what I’m anticipating, she’s got my vote. I’ve always been deeply connected to food – after all, I come from an Italian family – but it took the memoir of a war correspondent to get me to truly understand why. When everything else fails food, and especially the sharing of food, is what reminds us what it really means to be a human being.

Monday: Finding Utopia: Will utopia ever exist? JC Hallman travelled the world’s intentional communities to study our quest for a better perfect. He came back thinking that even when perfect fails, there’s something human about reaching for it.

Tuesday: Operation Peter Pan and Beyond Robert Wright in a recent NY Times op-ed discusses whether the significant rise of tolerance for gays in the US over the last generation is a road map for Muslims.

Wednesday: Inside Islam: The Butterfly Mosque: WWhy do so many women convert to Islam? You might think it’s because they fall in love with Muslim men, but in Willow Wilson’s case, conversion came first followed by romance.

Thursday: The Storyteller of Marrakesh: Earlier this fall, travel writer Raphael Kadushin whetted our appetite for the exotic in describing his trip to the Djamaa, the fabled medina of Marrakesh. Now, Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya, an Indian novelist, takes us deeper in his novel based on the ancient art of storytelling as it’s still practiced by Hassan, the storyteller, as he gathers his listeners in the Djamaa.

Friday:Cooking with Italian Grandmothers: Just as I was about to concede that grandmothers – especially the Italian variety – are an endangered species along comes this glorious cookbook which, I admit, made me cry. The book is the result of a year chef Jessica Theroux spent cooking, foraging, and eating with Italian grandmothers from Milan to Sicily, learning their secrets and listening to their stories. Bless you, Jessica.

Happy Shopping/Happy Baking!

Jean

Jean's Pick of the Week for December 3rd

2010-12-03T19:08:00.002-06:00
Joe Hardtke

Jean's pick this week had all the elements of a great show: Provocative content, a terrific guest and even a twist at the end of the program.

Check out Jean's pick for this week then download the show from the Here on Earth archive.

Here on Earth - "Off the Mic" - Bob Klein on Ghana

2010-12-02T18:00:00.002-06:00
Joe Hardtke

After today's show on the early days of the Peace Corps, Bob Klein, a member of the first cohort of Peace Corps Volunteers, shared this funny (or maybe not so funny?) story from his time in Ghana.

You can download Bob's interview with us now. You'll find it in the Here on Earth archive.

Nov 29 - Dec 3 Programs

2010-11-28T21:14:00.001-06:00

Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Talking to the Enemy: If you didn’t get a chance to listen to last Monday’s program with Scott Atran, author of Talking to the Enemy, I really recommend that you download the podcast. Atran is an anthropologist who has spent years getting to know the perpetrators of the terrorist attacks since 9/11. As a result, he has some remarkable insights to share concerning the social context of terrorism and the motivations of the perpetrators. What drives young men to give up their lives for a cause? More than anything, he says it is bonding. He also claims that we have greatly exaggerated the threat; a perspective worth heeding and sharing.

Monday: The Future of Iraq: Months after the withdrawal of combat troops and national elections, Iraqis feel stuck amidst growing violence and ineffectual government. What is our responsibility? Should we cut and run? Have we been told the truth about the war? New York Times correspondent Anthony Shadid, who won two Pulitzers for his coverage of Iraq, joins us.

Tuesday: Homophobia and Islamophobia: Is there a Connection? Robert Wright in a recent NY Times op-ed discusses whether the significant rise of tolerance for gays in the US over the last generation is a road map for Muslims.

Wednesday: Madre: Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun: What's in a word? Linguistic anthropologist Liza Bakewell spent decades chasing after the many meanings of the Spanish word "madre" as it’s used in Mexico. In her memoir she chronicles the relationship between religion, nationhood and language and celebrates the role of the creative female in a sexist culture.

Thursday: The Peace Corps, Then and Now: In October 1960, Senator John F. Kennedy challenged a group of college students to serve the cause of peace by living and working abroad. Just five months later, President Kennedy signed the Peace Corps into existence. Madison resident Bob Klein was one of the first to sign up. He joins us to talk about the history of the Peace Corps, his experiences in Ghana, and next year’s 50th anniversary.

Friday:Updating Vintage Holiday Recipes: Food is like language: to be alive it must be constantly changing. New York Times food columnist Melissa Clark understands this. A whole section of her new cookbook is devoted to Holiday Food that features vintage recipes with updated variations.

Here’s hoping you had a safe and scrumptious Thanksgiving!

Jean

Nov. 22-26 Programs

2010-11-19T16:00:00.001-06:00
My last public appearance for a while is coming up this Sunday when I'll be giving a presentation at the Madison Women's Expo and signing copies of my memoir, I Hear Voices. Come join me on the main stage at noon the Alliant Energy Center. Check out this month's Brava Magazine for details.

Jean's Pick of the Week: (watch video): Burning Bright: The Mind of the Tiger. John Vaillant tells a tale both harrowing and cautionary in his riveting book, The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival, about a mysterious tiger attack directed against a poacher in the forbidden arctic hinterland of Siberia. John never saw a tiger while he was in Siberia, but I bet you will after listening to this show.

Monday: Talking to the Enemy: Anthropologist Scott Atran spent years talking to terrorists. In his new book he argues that terrorists don't die for a cause, but for each other. We'll explore the social lives of terrorists, and how things are changing in Afghanistan with a new generation of fighters.

Tuesday: Aung Sun Suu Kyi Goes Free: Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung Sun Suu Kyi was released from house arrest last week after 15 years in isolation. The 65-year-old Noble Peace Prize laureate's sudden release brings many speculations surrounding the government's decision. What's behind it, and will her fragile freedom put her on a crash course with the generals?

Wednesday: Bless This Food: Do you say grace? Giving thanks for food is the most common form of prayer found the world over. In anticipation of Thanksgiving, we celebrate this universal cultural tradition with Adrian Butash, author of Bless This Food: Ancient and Contemporary Graces from Around the World.

For Thursday and Friday, we've chosen two programs from our archives that we think you'll enjoy hearing again: one is about giving, and the other is about fat!

Thursday: With This Ring Project: Christina Ammon inherited a diamond ring worth $22,000 from her grandmother. She did some quick calculations: $22,000 could restore sight to 660 people in Bangladesh, send 133 Nepalese children to school, protect 220 acres of rainforest, or provide 220 micro-loans to women in the Congo. Her question: do I want a diamond ring, or a better world?

Friday: In Praise of Fat: You have heard of good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. What about good fat and bad fat? After thirty years as the most maligned food, fat is making a comeback. Dishes made with lard, bacon, marrow and butter are appearing on chefs' menus and Jennifer McLagan has written a cookbook in praise of it.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend celebrating great food with friends and family!

Jean

Nov. 15-19 Programs

2010-11-12T16:06:00.001-06:00

It’s a short week for me as I prepare to take off for my native New York to attend the annual AIHA (American Italian Historical Association) being held this year in midtown Manhattan. While I’m in town I’ll be giving a poetry reading at Smalls Jazz Club in the West Village at 5:00pm on Saturday afternoon. All their readings are streamed live on video so you don’t have to be there to pick up the vibe! The site is www.smallsjazzclub.com.
Closer to home, I’ll be giving the keynote and signing copies of my memoir I Hear Voices on the main stage at the Madison Women’s Expo next Sunday, Nov. 21, at noon. That’s at the Alliant Energy Center. Should be fun.
Jean's Pick of the Week (watch video): Listen to the Banned:A terrific compilation of some of the greatest banned musicians, most of them from Muslim countries, whose voices can now be heard thanks to the humanitarian efforts of Deeyah, who was herself persecuted by her own Pakistani community in both Norway and the UK, and Danish activist Ole Reitov, co-founder of Freemuse.

Monday: Inter-faith, Inter-nation: What happens when you mix immersion travel and interfaith dialog? It was a life changing experience for participants of The National Peace Foundation’s Religion and Society Program, which brought delegations of community leaders from the Middle East to America, and vice versa. For her work directing the trips, Wisconsinite Sahar Taman has been recognized with a 2010 Citizen Diplomat award.

Tuesday: As China Goes, So Goes the World: China has become the world’s largest consumer of everything from automobiles to beer. The effects of the growing Chinese consumer power don’t only change Chinese society from within, it will also change the global economic engine. How does what you buy change the world?

Wednesday: Reza Aslan on 100 Years of Literature from the Middle East: Regular Here on Earth guest and internationally acclaimed writer and scholar of religions, Reza Aslan takes us on a literary journey through the Middle East. He’s the editor of the new Words Without Borders anthology, Tablet & Pen: Literary Landscapes from the Modern Middle East.

Thursday: The Tiger: The astonishing story of a Siberian tiger who takes revenge on the poachers who have hurt him. It’s an arresting portrait of the beauty of Siberia, and the tenuous relationship between man and predator.

Friday: Cooking Game: As the hunting season opens once again, we’ll find out how the Brits do it when we talk with British chef Trish Hilferty, author of a gorgeous new book about how to prepare game.

Have a great week!
Jean

Cookies! - 11/12

2010-11-12T12:07:00.016-06:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, we'll dive deep into the cookie kingdom! Sara Moulton, former executive editor at Gourmet Magazine and spokesperson for the new Gourmet Cookie Book, will let us in on all the secrets of cookiebaking collected by Gourmet Magazine over 68 years! If you want to try some of the recipes, here's a selection of our favorites:

Mocha Cookies - makes about 3 dozen cookies

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 stick (1⁄2 cup) unsalted butter, cut into bits
1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour
1⁄2 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1⁄2 cups sugar
1 1⁄2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 teaspoons vanilla

In a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the unsweetened chocolate, 1 1⁄2 cups of the chocolate chips, and the butter, stirring until the mixture is smooth, and remove the bowl from the heat. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, the baking powder, and the salt. In a bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar until the mixture is thick and pale, and beat in the espresso powder and the vanilla. Fold the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, fold in the flour mixture, and stir in the remaining 11⁄2 cups chocolate chips. Let the batter stand for 15 minutes. Drop the batter by heaping tablespoons onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper and bake the cookies in the middle of a preheated 350°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are puffed and shiny and cracked on top. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets, transfer them to racks, and let them cool completely.

Recipe Notes
1. Err on the side of underbaking these cookies. They are meant to be soft and rich.
2. Cool for 1 minute on the baking sheet before transferring the cookies to racks.

Aunt Sis’s Strawberry Tart Cookies - makes about 8 dozen cookies

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
3 sticks (11⁄2 cups) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
2 large egg yolks, beaten lightly
1 cup strained strawberry jam

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, the sugar, and the salt, add the butter, and blend the mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in the egg yolks, blend the mixture until it forms a dough, and chill the dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Let the dough soften slightly, roll level teaspoons of it into balls, and arrange the balls about 2 inches apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Using your thumb, make an indentation in the center of each ball, being careful not to crack the dough around the edges. (If the dough cracks, reroll it and try again.) Fill each indentation with about 1⁄4 teaspoon of the jam and bake the cookies in batches in the middle of the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are pale golden. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 2 minutes, transfer them to racks, and let them cool completely. The cookies may be made 1 month in advance and kept frozen in airtight containers.

Cottage Cheese Cookies - makes about 8 dozen cookies

Cream together 1⁄2 cup softened butter and 1⁄4 cup cottage cheese. Blend in thoroughly 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 egg. Stir in 2 cups sifted flour sifted with 1⁄2 teaspoon each of baking soda and salt. Drop the dough from a teaspoon onto a buttered baking sheet, and bake the cookies in a moderately hot oven (375°F) for about 10 minutes, until they are golden brown.

Recipe Note
Use either large- or small-curd cottage cheese (do not drain it).

Nov. 8-12 Programs

2010-11-05T16:24:00.011-05:00
Jean’s Pick of the Week (watch video): Muslims, Mosques, and American Identity: We really lived up to our series title, and went Inside Islam, with this program, probing with the erudite Akbar Ahmed, author of Journey into America: The Challenge of Islam, exactly what goes on in American mosques – all kinds of things, as it turns out – everything from hostility toward Christians and Jews to committed interfaith dialog. And why shouldn’t it, after all? Why should we expect Muslims to be one of a kind when the rest of us are so determinedly different?

Jean’s Upcoming Presentations: It’s a busy month! I’m in La Crosse this weekend, in New York next weekend, and keynoting an event at the Women’s Expo in Madison on Sunday, Nov. 21. Whew! After Thanksgiving, I’m going into hibernation.

Smalls Jazz Club in Greenwich Village – I’ll be reading poetry and excerpts from my memoir, I Hear Voices, at Smalls Jazz Club in Greenwich Village at 5:00pm on Saturday, Nov. 13 and you don’t even have to be in New York to listen! Smalls broadcasts every show live over their video stream, so people can watch anywhere in the world for free. So come down or watch at www.smallsjazzclub.com. Smalls is located at 183 West 10th Street, basement, between 7th Ave South and West 4th Street.

Madison Women’s Expo – “Bound and Determined” Jean Feraca talks about her dizzying route to becoming a public radio talk show host at the Madison Women’s Expo, Noon on Sunday, Nov. 21 at the Alliant Energy Center. Book signing to follow.
Here’s the line-up of shows for the coming week:

Monday: Chasing the Sun: No, he’s not a surfer. From the man who wrote a worldwide history of swordplay, comes an around-the-world odyssey in search of an elusive moving target – the sun. Scholar-adventurer Richard Cohen traveled to twenty countries, from Mount Fuji to Antarctica to interpret what the sun has meant throughout the ages.

Tuesday: The Power of Beliefs: In pegging terrorists as fundamentalist believers, have we forgotten that we, too, hold very strong beliefs? Professor and public intellectual Jacqueline Rose reminds us that we in the West are also motivated by stubborn belief, religious, political, or otherwise.

Wednesday: Francophilia Revisited: What images come to your mind when you think of France? While France has always had symbolic meaning for Americans, some of those meanings have changed over time. We’ll find out how Francophilia has evolved and how learning French will give you access not just to the real France, but to an entire francophone world outside of France.

Thursday: TBA: The Here on Earth team has a number of prospects in the works for this Thursday. Tune in and be surprised or check back later on our website for an update!

Friday: Gourmet Cookies for Thanksgiving: Are you scrambling to find unbeatable cookie recipes for the holidays? Join us to discover a selection of the best cookie recipes from all over the world, collected over 68 years of Gourmet Magazine’s existence.

Hope to see you in La Crosse this Friday – I’ll be giving the keynote at the Women’s Fund Luncheon.

Jean

Conquering Fear - 10/18

2010-10-22T12:05:00.004-05:00
Dominique Haller

In response to our show with Rabbi Kushner last Monday, we received an email from listener Karen Ebert who has twice been diagnosed with cancer. In a piece called "Freddie Lives Here", which she published on the blog Caring Bridge, she describes how she came to understand what "living with cancer" really means. If you would like to read more by Karen, visit her personal blog at Caring Bride here.

Freddie Lives Here
Living with cancer, especially the second time around, is a surprisingly mundane affair. It consists largely of dealing with little things. Can we reschedule that lab so that I can make it to my staff meeting? What work clothes in this closet don’t hang on me like a sack? How are we going to get Julia home from yet another after school activity on a chemo day? Did you pick up the prescription? Are bananas on the “to-eat” list for constipation or diarrhea (in general, more attention paid to poop than you’ve seen since potty training)? Who’s locking up if I can’t make that meeting? Do I have time for a nap? Whoah, I have 69 emails to respond to after being out for a week!

I almost forget, till I talk with someone newly diagnosed with cancer, how utterly terrifying it was at first. When the word “cancer” first comes out of a doctor’s mouth, aimed at you, it is as if you have spotted Freddie Krueger, scarred face and knife-blade fingers and all, peering in your patio door. Every test feels like listening to him rattle the door knobs and scratch at your windows. And when the positive results come in, he has broken the glass pane on the front door and is reaching that awful hand in to turn the dead bolt from the inside – and you are not sure whether to run upstairs and hide under the bed, or grab the nearest weapon (a didgeridoo?) and beat at the intruder with all your might. I remember that fear.

But Freddie’s moved in now. We’ve built on an extra bedroom so he has a place to sleep and won’t roam the house keeping us up at night. We step aside for him in the hall on the way to the bathroom. I’ve tried to recruit him to help me write sermons. I haven’t exactly managed to get him in a frilly apron chopping my vegetables, but I’ve domesticated him to some extent. The fear of cancer is just such an everyday occurrence that he doesn’t have the power he once had. If he jumps out when I open the closet door, I’m most likely to say, “Oh hi, can you hand me my black wool coat? Thanks.”

I used to wonder how my mom did it. As her cancer progressed, and life became harder, and the future became grimmer, she never seemed jarred by it. She went about life as normally as she could. Since I was in “write-your-own-obituary” mode and carried that didgeridoo as a side-arm at the time, I couldn’t fathom what she was doing. It was as if she had talked Freddie into coming shopping with her, to carry her packages as she shopped for new clothes for her ever-shrinking body. “Hold this. What do you think? The blue one or the yellow one?” The day before she died was spent getting out Christmas decorations, not wringing her hands. She never seemed afraid.

I get it now. This is what is meant by “living with cancer.” Spending every moment in constant vigilance is not only exhausting, it turns over power to Freddie in a way that handing him a set of house keys never can. If you are forever hunched in a defensive posture, keeping fear at bay, you never get anything else done. But if you invite the fear in, look it in the eye, and tell it, “This is my house. You can come in, but it will be by my rules,” somehow, it disarms Freddie. It is the Jiu-jitsu of cancer. Keep it as Enemy Number One and it rules the roost. Make it a member of the household, and it has to fight for attention alongside the very mundane things that make up most of our days.

By the way, who is going to get groceries this week, and can you make sure to get some more Jell-O and ginger ale?

Hispanic Heritage Month 10/14

2010-10-14T13:22:00.002-05:00
Carly Yuenger

We've had a lot of fun celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with a set of programs that culminated in today's long view on Latin American history with Ruben Martinez, writer and host of a recent PBS documentary about the birth of mestizo culture in the aftermath of the Columbus's arrival in the "New World."

Here are links to all four programs we've featured during the month which runs from September 15th (marking Mexican Independence) to October 15th. Let us know what you think!

September 16th: Mexico at the Crossroads
September 29th: The New Bilingual Literature
October 8th: Heritage Foods From the Americas
October 14th: After Columbus

The Syringa Tree - 9/20

2010-09-20T17:08:00.001-05:00
Dominique Haller

In today's show, we invited actress Colleen Madden and director C. Michael Wright to talk about the play The Syringa Tree. It's a play by South African actress and playwright Pamela Gien which describes the Apartheid system through the eyes of a 6 year old white girl. All 24 roles - black, white, male, female, old, young - are played by one actress.

In this clip, Colleen and Michael react to listeners' contributions to the show. Check it out below!

Jean's Pick of the Week for September 3rd

2010-09-03T18:06:00.001-05:00
Dominique Haller

Jean's favorite show of the week was Thursday's show Smaller Living Designs from Japan. It's always nice when Here on Earth introduces a new idea drawn from another culture that listeners grab and run with!

The Poupon You Fight Song! - 9/3

2010-09-03T18:03:00.001-05:00
Dominique Haller

Today's show was a lot of fun, as it is usually the case when we have Barry Levenson from the Mustard Museum as a guest. In this after show special, he presents the Poupon You Fight Song, promoting mustard over other condiments.

Check out the video below!

Jean's Pick of the Week for August 16th

2010-08-20T16:57:00.002-05:00
Carly Yuenger

Jean's pick this week was all about fleetfootedness and having fun: Christopher McDougall joined us to talk about his book, Born to Run. Watch Jean explain why it's her pick, then listen to the show for free at the Here on Earth archive.

Tintin around the World - 8/19

2010-08-19T13:29:00.001-05:00
Dominique Haller

Having grown up in the midst of Tintin albums that had been handed down to me by my father, who in turn was an avid Tintin fan as a child, I am especially looking forward to today's show. In the francophone world, comic albums are part of every family's library, and the Tintin albums have definitely become the center part of that tradition.

However, Tintin has also come under fire for some of the quite obviously racist contents in the earlier albums, especially Tintin in the Congo. So how does reading a comic as a child and as an adult differ? How can we hold on to a childhood friend if we know that he wasn't always up to the challenges of his time?

We'll also broadcast another one of Leona's Francombe's vignettes today, where she tells us about the relationship between Tintin's famous creator Hergé and his hometown of Brussels, where she lives. To check out other pieces in her series on Here On Earth, click here.

Roman Catholic Women Priests, An Oxymoron? 8/16

2010-08-16T14:21:00.008-05:00
Carly Yuenger

The Vatican recently released a statement making the ordination of women priests one of the highest crimes against the church. Still, the ordination of Roman Catholic women priests continues.

On today's show we speak with Alice Iaquinta, one of many women who have gone through ordination as a Catholic priest--although some within the church refuse to recognize her ordination--and Father Roy Bourgeois, a priest who has been excommunicated for presiding over the ordination of women.

Do you think the Vatican will ever change its stance on the ordination of women? Do you think it should? Let us know what you think at our ongoing poll.

On today's program we'll also hear from our European Correspondent, Leona Francombe, about the Belgian perspective on secularism and the Catholic Church. For your reading pleasure, here's the transcript of her essay, "God in Translation," along with her other pieces in our ongoing series, European Vignettes.

Jean's Pick of the Week for July 23rd

2010-07-23T17:28:00.002-05:00
Joe Hardtke

Jean's pick this week displayed the more serious side of what we do best: Talking about the critical international issues on a very human level.

Watch Jean reveal her pick then download the show for free from the Here on Earth archive.

See you next week with encore presentations from our award-winning Inside Islam series.

Stir Fry to the Sky's Edge! - 7/16

2010-07-16T16:17:00.005-05:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, we've talked with Grace Young about her stunning cookbook Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge. Find a recipe for the Stir-Fried Ginger Beef that Grace mentioned during the show:

Stir-Fried Ginger Beef
(serves 2 as a main dish with rice or 4 as a part of a multicourse meal)

12 ounces lean flank steak
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1½ teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon Shao Hsing rice wine or dry sherry
1 teaspoon corn starch
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon peanut or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
¼ cup sliced pickled ginger (about 1 ounce)
4 scallions halved lengthwise and cut into 2-inch sections

1. Cut the beef with the grain into 2-inch-wide strips. Cut each strip across the grain into ¼-inch-thick slices. In a medium bowl combine the beef, ginger, soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of the rice wine, cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Stir in 1 teaspoon of the oil. In a small bowl combine the oyster sauce and the remaining 1 tablespoon rice wine.

2. Heat a 14-inch-flat-bottomed work or 12-inch skillet over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes whitin 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Swirl in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, carefully add the beef, and spread it evenly in one layer in the wok. Cook undisturbed 1 minute, letting the beef begin to sear. Then, using a metal spatula, stir-fry 30 seconds until the beef is lightly browned but not cooked through. Swirl the oyster sauce mixture into the wok, add the pickled ginger and scallions, and stir-fry 30 seconds to 1 minute or until the beef is just cooked through and the pickled ginger is well distributed.

And enjoy!

Letters from Brussels by Leona Francombe

2010-07-12T14:58:00.025-05:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, we start our series featuring vignettes by Leona Francombe. Leona is a pianist and author who was born in England and grew up in the States. She obtained a BA magna cum laude in Russan and music from Bryn Mawr College, and a Master's from Yale School of Music. She was invited to Brussels in 1987 by the European Cultural Foundation to create an East/West chamber music ensemble. Irresistibly drawn to Europe, she has lived in Brussels, Belgium, ever since. Most of her essays and short stories, as well as her two novels, are inspired by European themes and moods.

Leona's work has appeared in Writer's Forum, Symphony Magazine, The Brussels Bulletin, Humanities Magazine, amongst others. Her first novel, music of the Mists, was a semi-finalist in the 2008 Amazon Novel Competition. (To check out a CD by Leona Francombe, click here.)

Check out Leona's pieces below!

Old Stones at Twilight: July 12th show, Dracula's Guest

God in Translation: August 16th 2010 show, Roman Catholic Woman Priest

A Walk Through Herge's Brussels: August 19th 2010 show, The Adventures of Tintin

On Homesickness and Sausages: September 10th2010 show, Breaking Bread with Immigrants

Mother Tongue: October 4th show 2010, Andrei Codrescu

A Taste of Autumn: November 19th show 2010, Cooking Game
A Snowflake through Time: December 23rd show 2010, Lincoln and Whitman
A Joyful Noise: May 3rd show 2011, The Ride of Your Life
Coffee, molto adagio: June 9th show 2011, Old Flames Burn Bright in the Eternal City

Jean's Pick of the Week for July 9th

2010-07-12T10:25:00.006-05:00
Joe Hardtke

Diego in Rome said it best on our Facebook page, "I never believed that NPR would dedicate an entire program to football." Actually, last Wednesday's program was the second time we've talked about the 2010 World Cup. Find out why Jean loved the show in her Pick of the Week video.

You can download the show right now from the Here on Earth archive. We tip our hat to you, Spain.

World Cup Donations: Get Involved! - 7/7

2010-07-07T16:18:00.003-05:00
Dominique Haller

On today's show, we had the great pleasure to talk about the World Cup in South Africa with South African native and Madison resident Raymond Kessel, Professor Emeritus at UW-Madison and co-owner of the Calabash Gift Store in Madison.

With his wife Leah, who runs the Calabash gift store, he initiated the Soccer Gear for Africa Campaign in collaboration with the University Wellness Foundation. The campaign collects soccer gear which will then be sent to South Africa for players of all ages. Fontana Sports already donated 60 cleats, and other people have followed their example by donating 90 soccer balls!

If you too would like to donate soccer gear, you can drop off the items at the following locations:

- Calabash Gift Store, 2608 Monroe Street, Madison
- Keva Sports Center, 8312 Forsythia Street, Middleton
- Stefan's Soccer Store, 6620 Odana Road, Madison

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact Raymond Kessel at rkessel@wisc.edu or by calling the Calabash Gift Store at 608 233 2640.

Jean's Pick of the Week for July 2nd

2010-07-02T17:54:00.002-05:00
Joe Hardtke

Jean's pick this week seemed to bring out vivid memories, deep thought and strong emotions in our listeners (and in our host as well, it seems. Well, OK, me too.)

You can download Jean's Pick of the Week from the Here on Earth show archive. Check it out...

...and thanks for listening!

Muslim Women Leaders in Madison - 6/23

2010-06-23T17:08:00.001-05:00
Saideh Jamshidi

Twenty women from eleven countries in the Middle East gathered this month in Madison to share their experiences and challenges they face to bring broader political and social rights for women in their home countries. They are a selected group of women to participate in the Women Leaders Academy Retreat created by the National Democratic Institute in Washington DC.

In our show yesterday, we talked with two of these powerful women and asked about the next steps they may take to apply what they learned at this retreat within their home countries.

Chantal Souaid is from Lebanon. She is in charge of the transparency and accountability Grants Projects at American-Middle East Educational and Training Services known as AMIDEAST. She is eager to go back to Lebanon and create a similar organization to AMIDEAST. See my interview with Chantal below:

Batool Al Khalaf is from Saudi Arabia. Batool has created women-only public speaking groups in Saudi Arabia in order to boost women’s confidence to take a stand in public speaking arena. Batool is currently working with the Toastmaster International group to expand its program in Saudi Arabia by starting Arabic-language public speaking clubs for women-only groups. See my interview with Batool below:

What are your experiences with standing for women's rights? Do they compare to the experience described by Middle Eastern women? Leave your comments below!