Environment

Writer and naturalist David Rains Wallace. His new book, Bulow Hammock: Mind in a Forest, chronicles his lifelong intrigue with the wild beauty of Bulow Hammock, a subtropical woodland near Daytona, Florida. Wallace is also the author of The Klamath Knot, The Turquoise Dragon, The Wilder Shore, and Idle Weeds. (Interview by Sedge Thomson)

Outdoorswoman and veteran river guide Kathleen Meyer. Her new book How to Shit in the Woods, examines in a non-Victorian way the hows and wheres of personal hygiene in the great outdoors. Behind the book's humorous tone and anecdotes is a serious issue - human waste, if not properly disposed, pollutes rivers and streams. (Interview by Sedge Thomson)

Marine botanist Sylvia Earle. She's been described as one of the most intrepid divers in the history of underwater exploration. She's swum with humpback whales, explored the kelp forests off the coast of California, and dove into the trenches off the coasts of Hawaii where she once went to depths of 1,250 feet, which at the time was the deepest any human had dove without a connection to the surface.

Writer John McPhee. He's a classic example of a "writer's writer," one whose style is endlessly studied and mimicked, and whose effortlessness in moving between subjects as diverse as Alaskan geology, oranges, and birch-bark canoes is the envy of every freelancer. He's worked at The New Yorker magazine since the late 60s and is one of its most popular contributors.

Writer and ecological historian STEPHEN PYNE. His latest book, Fire on the Rim, A Firefighter's Season at the Grand Canyon, explores the intricacies of fire management, man's relation to the rural western environment, and the summer ritual that changes the canyon and the people who try to protect it. Pyne worked as a firefighter for 15 season's on the northern rim of the Grand Canyon. Pyne describes a life where the firefighter lives in isolation for four months, defined by the fires and the capriciousness of lightning.

That's the claim of oceanographer Dr. Robert Ballard, who says we've explored less than 1% of the deep sea. Ballard has made dozens of dives in manned submersibles, and has been instrumental in the development of research based on robotic, tele-presence. He joins Fresh Air to share some of the discoveries he's made throughout his career.

Lester Brown is the president of the Worldwatch Institute. The organization's latest State of the World report looks into the greenhouse effect, deforestation, and rising sea levels, among other troubling trends. Brown joins Fresh Air to discuss the causes of these phenomena, whether they'll cause permanent changes, and how we can mitigate their effects.

Lopez has a new collection of essays called Crossing Open Ground, which offers what he hopes is a non-judgemental view of environmental change and different interactions with animals and the natural world.

Photographer Robert Adams documents the changing landscapes of the West. He says development in the region is slowly but surely overtaking the natural environment.

Urban planner and designer Lawrence Halprin designs public spaces which take into consideration how people move through a city -- a process he likens to dance choreography.