Floating Border Wall, Climate Coverage Dropoff, “Night Owl” – Poems, and more.

Floating Border Wall, Climate Coverage Dropoff, “Night Owl” – Poems, and more.

From Living on Earth by World Media Foundation

April 10, 2026 · 52 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of buoy barriers on the US-Mexico border, the decline in climate change coverage by media, and features poetry from Aimee Nezhukumatathil's book 'Night Owl'.

About two thirds of the US-Mexico border is along the Rio Grande, and the Trump Administration is working to install hundreds of miles of buoy barriers in the river. Now residents of border towns are raising the alarm over how these buoys could impact wildlife, restrict access to the river and sever cultural ties. Also, news media outlets are retreating from covering climate change, according to the Media and Climate Change Observatory at the University of Colorado Boulder, which has been tracking this trend for decades. They report that since a peak in 2021, climate news stories across the globe have dropped nearly 40 percent. And the poems in Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s new book Night Owl offer a window into the magic of nature at night and a light in the darkness. She shares selected poems from the collection and talks about how poetry can help us grapple with ecological loss and celebrate natural wonders alike. --- Interested in gaining hands-on experience with producing a radio show and podcast? Apply to be a Living on Earth intern this summer! We’re now accepting applications and to learn more, go to loe.org/about. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Guest: Aimee Nezhukumatathil

Topics covered

  • border issues
  • climate change
  • media coverage
  • poetry
  • wildlife impact
  • cultural ties

Keywords

  • buoy barriers
  • wildlife
  • climate news
  • media retreat
  • ecological loss
  • nature poetry

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Trump Administration, Media and Climate Change Observatory, University of Colorado Boulder

Books & works: Night Owl

Places: US-Mexico border, Rio Grande

More episodes of Living on Earth

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Living on Earth podcast page.