Science Matters Colorado

About Science Matters Colorado

Exploring the intersection of nature and humanity in the Centennial State. Join us on Science Matters Colorado as we delve into the latest environmental science topics, trends, and stories impacting Colorado's ecosystems, communities, and natural resources.

Publisher

Ahippenh

Category

science

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

24 Oct 2024

Latest episode

3 Nov 2025

Latest episodes

11 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   3 Nov 2025

   Ben Goldfarb on Beavers, Roads, and the Hidden Costs of Modernity

   For today’s episode, I am thrilled to share an interview with Colorado-based author Ben Goldfarb. Ben has written for pretty much every publication you can think of, including the Atlantic, Science, the New York Times, National Geographic, and Outside, to name a few. Today’s conversation focuses on Ben’s book Eager:The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, which received the PEN/E.O. Wilson award in 2019. If you aren’t familiar with Ben’s writing, I recommend picking up Eager for your next read as a great introduction to his work. For anyone living in North America, it will completely change how you think about the history of our continent and what it looked like 300 years ago. We also talk about Ben’s new book, Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet. In addition to being named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times; it also won the Sierra Club’s Rachel Carson Award for Excellence in Environmental Writing. Crossings, like Eager, paints a historical narrative of the ecology of our continent by focusing its lens on one particular topic: roads and their environmental impact. Road ecology is a term that most people probably aren’t familiar with, but once you dive in, it will likely ride shotgun on your morning commute. A few topics that we address in this conversation include: The Impacts of Beavers on River Ecosystems Grassroots Solutions to Environmental Challenges Wolves in Yellowstone The History of the Term “Road Ecology” The Importance of Culverts Fish Migrations And Much More Ben is a great speaker, with an incredible vocabulary, who distills complex science into compelling narratives. He also connects the dots between the history of our relationship with the environment and environmental movements taking place at various scales around the globe. One thing that I appreciate about Ben is that he does not sugarcoat these issues, but he also is a pragmatic optimist, always tuning into scalable, community-based solutions to tackle these environmental challenges. Whether or not you are familiar with Ben’s work, I think you will enjoy this conversation. — If you enjoyed today’s episode, the best thing you can do is like and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Also, recommending it to a friend goes a long way. You can purchase Eager (https://bookshop.org/p/books/eager-the-surprising-secret-life-of-beavers-and-why-they-matter-ben-goldfarb/5bbabe01bfc91318?ean=9781603589086&next=t) and Crossings (https://bookshop.org/p/books/crossings-how-road-ecology-is-shaping-the-future-of-our-planet-ben-goldfarb/5bea35d3460b7759?ean=9781324086314&next=t) from a locally-owned bookstore near you. The music for this podcast is Siesta by Ikson, part of the “Tell Your Story” project—a library of free music for content creators. Visit ikson.com (https://www.ikson.com) to explore the full catalog.

2. 

   25 Sept 2025

   Here Comes the Sun - Bill McKibben on Renewable Energy Adoption

   For today’s episode, I’m excited to share a talk from renowned environmentalist and author Bill McKibben. On Tuesday this week, McKibben visited Boulder, CO to discuss current trends in renewable energy adoption as well as his new book, Here Comes the Sun, about the rise of solar and wind energy. Personally, I was not familiar with McKibben’s work before the presentation, which is probably why I was so moved by his erudition on the topic. As someone who has been writing about these issues since the 80’s, McKibben has a remarkable ability to contextualize geopolitics and energy trends to paint a picture of where the country - and the rest of the globe, is headed. For me, the talk both affirmed some of my biggest fears regarding the Trump administration’s aggressive attack on renewable energy projects and research, while also providing a great deal of hope in terms of global renewable energy adoption, innovations, and the potential impact of grassroots campaigns. In this talk, Bill covers The acceleration of global solar energy development and installations, China’s recent, exponential scaling of solar deployment and its impacts, Comparisons between the environmental impact of fossil fuels vs. renewables, How oil execs and the Trump administration are irredeemably setting the U.S. back on energy policy and climate change, The Vatican becoming the first country in the world to go 100% renewable, And why every tenth of degree in global warming attenuation is critical. In this incredibly strange and frightening moment, where the president of the United States has stood in front of the rest of world at the UN assembly, calling climate change a “hoax” when the past ten years are the hottest on record (https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature), when natural disasters are happening with increased frequency and intensity across the globe (https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-what-the-new-ipcc-report-says-about-extreme-weather-and-climate-change/?utm_source=chatgpt.com), and when the scientific consensus overwhelmingly supports anthropogenic climate change (https://www.ipcc.ch/2021/08/09/ar6-wg1-20210809-pr/), it has never been more important to educate ourselves and resolutely move in the direction of the future that we want to create. McKibben is a beacon of hope in these dark times, inspiring us to move towards the light through resilience and collective action in the face of a government abandoning our right to a future. ----- If you liked today’s episode, please share it with someone else you know will enjoy it. Also, like and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Purchase Here Comes the Sun (https://bookshop.org/p/books/here-comes-the-sun-a-last-chance-for-the-climate-and-a-fresh-chance-for-civilization-bill-mckibben/0e161349b252f687?ean=9781324106234&next=t) from a locally-owned bookstore near you. Thank you to Martin Voelker, Chair of the Jefferson County chapter of the Colorado Renewable Energy Society (https://www.cres-energy.org/), for allowing me to share his recording of the event, to Boulder Bookstore (https://boulderbookstore.net/) for organizing the talk, and Unity Center Boulder (https://unityofboulder.com/) for hosting the event. The music for this podcast is Siesta by Ikson, part of the “Tell Your Story” project—a library of free music for content creators. Visit ikson.com (https://www.ikson.com) to explore the full catalog.

3. 

   30 Jun 2025

   Sacred Water Mountain Society: Dustin Freyta on Water Planting

   Dustin Freyta of Sacred Water Mountain Society discusses the revitalization of water planting, an ancient Indigenous practice of land and water stewardship, and shares his personal journey of reclamation with host Alex Hippenhammer in this interview.

4. 

   27 May 2025

   Beavers - Ruth Massera on Habitat Restoration

   Fire mitigation specialist Ruth Massera discusses beaver reintroduction and watershed restoration as wildfire mitigation strategies, highlighting the importance of keystone species and indigenous land management practices in an interview.

5. 

   29 Apr 2025

   Solar Future - Dr. Jennifer Bousselot on Rooftop Agrivoltaics

   It’s projected that by 2050, 7 out of 10 people in the world will live in urban areas, totaling 6 and half billion people. The ecological footprint of these cities will be vast, and the more we can do to make these areas self-sufficient, the more habitable the entire planet will be. Today’s guest offers a novel solution to this challenge. Inspired by the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the stratification of an old-growth forest, Dr. Jennifer Bousselot studies the benefits of combining solar panels with green roofs. This method - called agrivoltaics -  brings agriculture and photovoltaics together in a shared space. Growing food under the shade of solar panels has some surprising benefits, which are being revealed through research institutions like Colorado State University, where Dr. Bousselot serves as a professor of horticulture and landscape architecture. In her 2020 TED Talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pobj34HuHO8), Dr. Bousselot coined the term “rooftop agrivoltaics”, referring to an innovative approach that integrates solar panels with green roofs. I recently toured the rooftop agrivoltaics site at CSU Spur, one of several agrivoltaics projects that Dr. Bousselot oversees. Touring this site gave me a new perspective on how rooftops can be utilized to produce energy, grow food, manage stormwater, and cool our cities. This conversation is for anyone curious about renewable energy, urban agriculture, green roofs, or sustainable design. Whether you are just discovering agrivoltaics or are already invested in the intersection of energy and ecology, I think you will find this conversation illuminating. Please enjoy! ______ Episode Links: CSU Spur Agrivoltaics (https://agsci.colostate.edu/agriculture-csu/agrivoltaics-innovation/) NREL (https://www2.nrel.gov/solar/market-research-analysis/agrivoltaics) Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (https://www.greenroofs.org/) Journal of Living Architecture (https://greeninfrastructurefoundation.org/jliv) ______ If you enjoyed today’s episode, please like the show and follow wherever you get your podcasts. For additional features like video, you can find transcribed versions of this and future episodes at my personal Substack, Echoing Earth (https://substack.com/@ahippenhammer?r=1qt4mk&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page). The music for this podcast is Siesta by Ikson, part of the “Tell Your Story” project—a library of free music for content creators. Visit ikson.com (https://www.ikson.com) to explore the full catalog.

6. 

   20 Mar 2025

   Colorado Water Trust - Blake Mamich on Streamflow Restoration

   If you want to understand Colorado and the American Southwest, you have to understand our most limited and valuable resource - WATER. That’s why I am excited to share this conversation with Blake Mamich, a water conservation expert and Program Director for the Colorado Water Trust. The Colorado Water Trust is a homegrown nonprofit that focuses on instream water flow restoration, a topic that Blake expounds on throughout this interview. Blake has been working for the Trust since 2022, focusing on streamflow restoration and reservoir release projects. This interview is an overview of not just the work of the Colorado Water Trust, but of broader water policy and conservation in Colorado. I put Blake on the spot throughout this conversation, with a broad range of questions about water in Colorado. Some of the ground we cover includes the history of water rights, beneficial uses of water, key projects the Trust is currently working on, and a notable water rights acquisition currently going down on the Western slope with a price tag just under $100 million. While this conversation is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to the topic of water in Colorado, I am heartened to know that there is an organization out there doing deep water conservation work at a time when there is so much upheaval, specifically in terms of environmental regulation and investment in ecological health. _____ Colorado Water Trust (https://coloradowatertrust.org/) Donate to the Trust (http://www.coloradowatertrust.org/donate) - Anyone who signs up for a monthly recurring donation gets a free Water Trust hat! Colorado Rapids (https://coloradowatertrust.org/event/colorado-rapids-game-featuring-colorado-water-trust/) - Colorado Water Trust is the Colorado Rapids official community partner this season and will be featured in their April 12th game. Come cheer on the Raptors and learn more about CWT! ⁠RiverBank⁠ (https://coloradowatertrust.org/riverbank/) - The main event this year is held September 30th at the Denver Botanic Gardens. Join the fun and check out the Fall displays! _____ If you enjoyed today’s episode, please like the show and follow wherever you get your podcasts. For additional features like video, you can find transcribed versions of this and future episodes at my personal Substack, Echoing Earth (https://alexhippenhammer.substack.com/). The music for this podcast is Siesta by Ikson, part of the “Tell Your Story” project—a library of free music for content creators. Visit ikson.com (https://www.ikson.com) to explore the full catalog. Photo Credit - Yampa River / Eliza Nolte

7. 

   6 Feb 2025

   Beyond Green - Natural Building with Tim White

   Welcome to Science Matters Colorado, the podcast that explores the environmental issues shaping our beautiful state. I am your host, Alex Hippenhammer. Each episode, I talk with experts to help you understand the challenges we face and celebrate the natural wonders we strive to protect. Today I am talking with Natural Builder, Tim White. I met Tim at the Crestone Energy Fair in Crestone, Colorado, an eclectic town where I was introduced to natural building materials and techniques. Tim has been in the natural building industry for almost 30 years. During the Fair, Tim gave a talk on Clay Plasters (https://simpleconstruct.net/about-natural-plasters/clay-plaster/), and I was hit with more truth bombs about the built environment in that one talk than I had ever been. All of it made intuitive sense, and Tim clearly had a plethora of knowledge to offer on the topic. Backed by hard science through his studies in anthropology and archaeology, Tim distilled many health and environmental issues down to a simple dichotomy: conventional building materials versus monolithic organic (natural) materials. Our conventional wisdom tells us that modern materials are durable, reliable, and safe. In fact, conventional building materials are toxic, highly combustible, and create over 30% of the world’s waste. The archaeological record shows that humans have used natural building materials for millenia. Their use is circular, sustainable, better for our health, and aesthetically pleasing. In fact, the techniques that Tim describes in this episode create temperature and humidity controlled environments that are livable without use of a thermostat. I invite you stoke your curiosity at the hearthside of Tim’s abundant wisdom on the benefits that natural building brings to humankind. Please enjoy. __________ Texas Healthy Homes (https://www.texashealthyhomes.com/home) Tim@TexasHealthyHomes.com⁠ (mailto:Tim@TexasHealthyHomes.com) Bruce King New Carbon Architecture (https://www.amazon.com/New-Carbon-Architecture-Building-Planet/dp/0865718687) American Clay (https://www.americanclay.com/) Northern Colorado Hemp Expo (https://www.nocohempexpo.com/) Chris Magwood - Beam Estimator (https://www.buildersforclimateaction.org/beam-estimator.html) - Calculating your Home’s Carbon Footprint Hemp and Block (https://hempandblock.com/) Living Spaces (https://www.amazon.com/Living-Spaces-Sustainable-Building-Design/dp/3895089257?gQT=2) Rocky Mountain Joinery (https://rmjoinery.com/) 1:45 - What is Natural Building? 16:15 - Applications for a Conventional Builder 18:21 - Materials 23:45 - Hondo Project 30:59 - Toxins in the Built Environment 35:51 - Optimizing Your Health 38:56 - Problems in Conventional Building 39:52 - Building Codes 49:39 - Scaling Natural Building 57:53 - Ayahuasca Temple (Spring Construction) 1:02:45 - Unconditioning 1:06:05 - Final Thoughts & Recs __________ If you enjoyed today’s episode and found it insightful, please like the show and follow wherever you get your podcasts. A special thank-you to the ⁠Crestone Energy Fair⁠ (https://www.crestoneenergyfair.org/) for providing hands-on workshops, tours, and panel discussions on natural building. The music for this podcast is Siesta by Ikson, part of the “Tell Your Story” project—a library of free music for content creators. Visit⁠ ikson.com⁠ (https://www.ikson.com) to explore the full catalog.

8. 

   7 Jan 2025

   The Ghosts of Rocky Flats: Director Jeff Gipe on the Half-Life of Memory

   Director Jeff Gipe shares the untold story of Rocky Flats, exposing the lasting environmental and health consequences of nuclear manufacturing, a legacy that continues to haunt the present.

9. 

   19 Nov 2024

   Mountain Lions of Colorado: Conservation, Curiosity, and Coexistence with David Neils

   Conservationist and mountain lion enthusiast David Neils shares his 30,000 hours of field research and pioneering methods for capturing wild footage of these elusive predators in Colorado.

10. 

    12 Nov 2024

    Algal Blooms in Colorado - An Interview with CDPHE Water Quality Specialist Sarah Erickson

    Water quality specialist Sarah Erickson from CDPHE explains the causes and impacts of toxic algal blooms in Colorado and shares resources to protect public health and reduce their spread.

11. 

    24 Oct 2024

    Paul Hawken - "You Are Brilliant, and the Earth is Hiring"

    Paul Hawken, a renowned author and environmental leader, delivers a hopeful vision for healing the Earth by empowering a collective identity rooted in our shared humanity through gratitude and curiosity.

Who has been a guest on Science Matters Colorado

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Dustin Freyta
• Ruth Massera
• Jeff Gipe
• David Neils
• Sarah Erickson

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Spotify

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 23 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

33

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

32

Contact Science Matters Colorado

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Science Matters Colorado