Biomimicry, ecosystem restoration, grassroots movement building and climate change are the types of issues the Bioneers Conference addresses each year, bringing together scientists, innovators, business leaders and activists. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the conference. We talk with co-founder and CEO Kenny Ausubel about what the organization has achieved and what projects are on the horizon.
Fifty years ago, following near-unanimous Congressional support, President Johnson signed the Wilderness Act into law. The landmark bill designated more than 9 million acres as wilderness areas, defined as lands "untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain." Today's wilderness system encompasses nearly 106 million acres throughout the country's national parks, forests and wildlife refuges. We discuss the legacy of the Wilderness Act, and the future of the American wilderness.
The Bay Area loses about 23 billion gallons of water a year because of old, leaky water pipes. That's enough to supply more than 70,000 families for a year. It's an enormous waste in a time of drought, and the aging infrastructure is vulnerable to natural disaster. After this week's earthquake, water main breaks left hundreds without water for days. What would happen in a bigger quake? We check in with water experts about the Bay Area's aging infrastructure and what's being done to fix it.