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In our final episode of the year, Kyu Lee speaks with three of his colleagues: Phebe Pierson, Sarah Fecht and Charlotte Munson. They talk about Phebe's interview with Barnard professor Sandra Goldmark and her new book, "Fixation: How to Have Stuff without Breaking the Planet" (24:27). Sarah talks about some of the top stories coming out of the State of the Planet blog (13:10). And Charlotte, an undergraduate student at Columbia, gives us her all around perspective on what campus life has been like during the pandemic. Thanks again to all our supporters, we appreciate all the wonderful feedback we've gotten. Have a happy, healthy holiday and see you in the new year!

Our biggest, best event of the year is going virtual! Join us October 19-22 for Lamont Open House at Home. This year, we’ll be bringing all the science fun and discovery of this iconic hands-on event right to you. Lamont Open House at Home is four days filled with exciting and informative virtual earth science activities for children, families, educators, and science enthusiasts of all ages. openhouse.ldeo.columbia.edu

Marco Tedesco loves ice, so much so his body is covered with it. That is, with tattoos of snowflakes running up his arms. In this episode of Pod of the Planet, Kevin Krajick explores Tedesco's obsession with the cryosphere—the part of Earth that consists of frozen water (08:47). Krajick who is the Earth Institute's senior editor for science news, knows Tedesco well. He traveled with him to Greenland a few years back to see up close meltwater rushing into deep crevasses. He also recently talked to him about his new book, "The Hidden Life of Ice: Dispatches From a Disappearing World." The takeaway: Greenland is melting at a rate greater than ever before and if the entire ice sheet melts, that would mean a catastrophic rise in sea level of 24 ft. Check out this episode, listen to Tedesco talk about why he's devoted his life to this cold, dangerous and disappearing land. This year, Climate Week NYC takes place from September 21 to 27. Hundreds of digital events from all around the world will be covering the climate crisis and pressing for a future that does not depend on fossil fuels. Check out what’s going on at the Earth Institute. You can find Pod of the Planet wherever you listen to podcasts, on Apple iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, and Stitcher. Please send feedback or questions to podoftheplanet@gmail.com.

George Bernard Shaw who once quipped that "youth is wasted on the young," couldn't be more wrong when it comes to climate activism. The world they build today is the world they will inherit tomorrow.  In this episode we talk about climate and sustainability education for young activists and educators. Cassie Xu, the director of outreach and education at the Earth Institute, speaks with high school students Lily from Brooklyn (15:34) and Sophia from McLean, Virgina (28:00). They talk about their passion for climate change activism in their communities and their hopes for the future. We also hear from Cassie about the K-12 education program and the upcoming non-degree programs designed for high school students and educators who want to bring climate science into their classrooms. One of the instructors, Joan Lopez, a researcher at AC4 talks about the class he'll be teaching and his own experiences working with youth leaders all over the world (2:30). The one common thread he says? Young people are not too happy with the older folks. You can find Pod of the Planet wherever you listen to podcasts, on Apple iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, and Stitcher. Please send feedback or questions to podoftheplanet@gmail.com.

Marie Tharp's "aha" moment came in 1952. When arranging profiles she created of the North Atlantic ocean floor, she noticed a V-shaped indentation that ran along the center and matched those of other profiles she laid out. She thought it resembled some sort of rift valley, similar to the geological formation in East Africa, but this one deep on the seabed. Her findings which appeared to support the notion of continental drift were dismissed by her closest colleagues as scientific heresy and labeled as "girl talk". Making it her mission to find the truth, Tharp continued to collect more and more data from different sources and eventually was proved right. Her discoveries led to the acceptance of plate tectonics, a geological pillar of understanding Earth's systems. In this episode of Pod of the Planet, we celebrate the life of Marie Tharp and the inspiration she's been and continues to be to many scientists today. Vicky Ferrini, a marine geologist at Lamont, is one of those scientists and she speaks about her work in carrying on Tharp's legacy and her current project to map out the entire seafloor by 2030 (14:20). In the first part of this episode Kyu talks with Marie DeNoia Aronsohn, Lamont's director of communications, welcoming her to the Pod of the Planet family (2:20). This past week we’ve been celebrating Tharp's achievements with blog posts, webinars, giveaways, and more. Follow along here: marietharp.ldeo.columbia.edu