This week is Earth Week – surrounding Earth Day 2026 which was Wed. April 22. With that in mind, the majority of this week’s show focuses on environmental issues.
Carper launches collaborative focused on climate and jobs
Former U.S. Senator and former Delaware Gov. Tom Carper retired from the U.S. Senate in Jan. 2025 after completing his 4th term in the Senate - but promised he would remain active working projects focused on “creating jobs that promote clean energy” – something he championed on Capitol Hill as both chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
This week – Carper and the Delaware Environmental Institute (DENIN) at the University of Delaware formally launched the Carper Collaborative on Climate and Jobs with an event at UD.
Host, Tom Carper had a chance to sit down with Carper to discuss this new initiative and what he hopes to accomplish with it.
How do mosquito control chemicals impact environemental and public health?
With the weather growing warmer, nature is awake again and new life is emerging. So are mosquitos. While they can be a nuisance, showering you with itchy bites, the most concerning aspect is the diseases they carry.
To get ahead of this, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control applies various methods of controlling mosquito populations, one of which involves chemicals.
Although this is done in the best interest of public health, those chemicals can also have an impact on environmental health. And while this method may curb the spread of those diseases, the implications of being exposed to those chemicals are a separate concern of its own to public health.
To understand this better, Delaware Public Media’s Jay Shah spoke with two experts. Anneclaire De Roos, PhD is a professor of environmental and occupational health at the Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University. She is an experienced environmental epidemiologist who has studied the effects of chemical, physical, and biological exposures and how they lead to acute and chronic health conditions.
And to address effects on environmental health, including soil, water, air and biodiversity, Mark Nardone Director of Advocacy at the Delaware Nature Society.
Arts Playlist: Opera Delaware, Andrea Chenier
OperaDelaware closes its season in May 2026 with a performance of Andrea Chenier, a gripping, passionate tale of love, art, and resistance set against the backdrop of the French Revolution. And, they'll be performing the opera in front of singers, directors, and other opera professionals from across the US, as they host the Opera America conference.
On this week's Arts Playlist, Delaware Public Media's Martin Matheny speaks with the opera's two leads, soprano Toni Marie Palmertree and tenor Dane Suarez.
