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Up To Date

The Man Who Planted Trees

Once upon a time, among the iconic scenes of the West were mountains covered with green, fragrant pine trees.  Nowadays, you’re more likely to see entire forests of  brown.   That’s because since 1997 more than 41.7 million acres have suffered partial or total death of conifer trees.

Tuesday on Up to Date, Steve Kraske talks with journalist and author Jim Robbins about what is causing this massive destruction of our forests.  We’ll also meet David Milarch, the man whose near-death experience set him on the path to save the Champion Trees and reforest lands in America and around the world.

Jim Robbins is a frequent contributor to the science section of The New York Times. He has written for Smithsonian, Audubon, Vanity Fair, The Sunday Times, Scientific American, The New York Times Magazine, Discover, Psychology Today, Gourmet, and Condé Nast Traveler. He lives in Helena, Montana. Co-founder of the Champion Tree Project, David Milarch works to propagate and preserve the genetic heritage of the world's last old growth forest giants and save our arboricultural legacy. His work has been covered by The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, Forbes, National Geographic, Smithsonian, The Today Show, Good Morning America, All Things Considered, and numerous other major media. Learn more about David here.

Stephen Steigman is director of Classical KC. You can email him at <a href="mailto:Stephen.Steigman@classicalkc.org">Stephen.Steigman@classicalkc.org</a>.
When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
As senior producer of Up To Date, I want our listeners to hear familiar and new voices that shine light on the issues and challenges facing the myriad communities KCUR serves, and to expose our audiences to the wonderful and the creative in the Kansas City area. Just as important to me is an obligation to mentor the next generation of producers to ensure that the important conversations continue. Reach me at alexanderdk@kcur.org.