Environmental Policy

What promises do we have to keep? : A Call for Bipartisan Action on Climate Change

by Bedrosian Center

by Casey Fischl

Across the globe, countries acknowledge climate change as a scientific fact and have been implementing mitigation and adaptation strategies as per their commitment in the Paris Agreement. This, however, is not the case for the United States where political leaders are still debating and questioning what 97 percent of climate scientists agree on: climate-warming trends over the past century are extremely likely due to human activities.

drinking, still I thirst: the impact of bottled water

by Bedrosian Center

by Casey Fischl

Bottled water consumption has steadily increased over the last few decades, reaching an all-time high in 2017 with 13.7 billion gallons of bottled water purchased in the United States. The consumption of bottled water has surpassed all other products in the beverage industry, including soda and beer.

Corn-Fed: Taking stalk of the government’s role in industrialized corn

by Bedrosian Center

by Olivia Olson

Not on a cob. Not served with peas. But in your soft drinks, condiments, fast food, and salad dressing. The term ‘corn-fed’ once harkened back to Midwestern children with rosy cheeks, but has taken on a whole new meaning with the pervasiveness of industrialized corn.

Who Has the Ear of Your Legislators and Why They Can’t Seem to Get Anything Done

by Bedrosian Center

We’re six months away from one of the most consequential midterm elections in modern history, and Americans are fed up with Congress. Politicians have gotten a bad rap throughout history, but today’s legislators are setting record lows in approval ratings and public trust. What gives? Why do they disappoint us so often? Are they really ignoring our needs and demands, or are we misunderstanding the challenges they face?

In this episode, Sarah Anderson shows that it’s a little of both: politicians don’t listen to all constituents equally, but they also can’t just snap their fingers and fulfill our wishes.

To listen to this episode of Our American Discourse, click the arrow in the player here. Or  download it and subscribe through ApplePodcasts, Soundcloud, Google Play,  Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app – click the links or search “usc bedrosian.”

Agriculture and Water in California (Part II: Problems of groundwater depletion)

by Bedrosian Center

by Patricia Quintero Estades In a previous post, I discussed some of the issues of agriculture and water use in California. Though constantly stricken with water scarcity issues, California is a large agricultural supplier, with most of its operations concentrated in the Central Valley. In talking about agriculture and water use in California, it is impossible…

Agriculture and Water in California (Part I: Issues of water use and conservation)

by Bedrosian Center

As the recent spate of wildfires around the state should remind us, California is still in the midst of its worst drought in recorded history. Water in California often becomes too scarce to support all of the state’s population and its economic activity—and this is made more dire by the existence of a rather large agricultural sector concentrated in the Central Valley. California is a massive agricultural supplier (⅔ of the country’s fruits and nuts) and a large portion of the state’s available water is allocated to agricultural uses.

The Water Knife

by Bedrosian Center

This podcast features *spoilers – so, please listen after you’ve read the book unless you are okay with hearing about major plot details and the ending of this amazing novel.

Paolo Bacigalupi’s The Water Knife looks at our use and manipulation of water and water rights in the US and brings us to an ultimate conclusion. In a Southwest decimated by climate change, with the Colorado River a trickle, local and state governments in the Southwest are employing any means necessary to secure water rights. Following several main characters in a desperate search for recently discovered senior water rights for the city of Phoenix. Is #PhoenixRising or is #PhoenixDownTheTubes? NPR, All Things Considered called the novel, “A noir-ish, cinematic thriller set in the midst of a water war between Las Vegas and Phoenix. . . . Think Chinatown meets Mad Max.” Join us as we discuss the plausibility of this near-future Phoenix and the dire straits it’s characters find themselves in.