Humankind on Public Radio

We hear excerpts from Escape Fire a powerful documentary that aired on CNN, along with comments by its young director, Matthew Heineman, about the over-scheduled work day of doctors and how too many pharmaceuticals don’t make us better. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

This episode examines the level of stress experienced by many secondary school students in America. We probe the causes and effects. And we look at positive coping skills kids can learn and ideas on how to restructure. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

Learning how to focus on different life horizons—from daily responsibilities to broader personal goals—is covered in this enlightening dialogue about “Making It All Work,” the book by best-selling author David Allen. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

When prisoners are freed — as more than 9 in 10 eventually are, they often are harshly stigmatized. Nationwide, nearly half of those paroled end up back in jail. The pattern of recidivism inflicts enduring harm on the safety and wholeness of society and on these individuals. Our audio documentary examines ways to interrupt this destructive cycle. We focus on the truly visionary work of Robin Casarjian, a counselor and educator based in the Boston area. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

More than a million Americans are locked in jails and prisons. Helping them recover from earlier trauma can safeguard society. Hear the stories of ex-prisoners who’ve begun to heal, through the inspired work of Robin Casarjian. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

In this segment, we examine the importance of early literacy, starting with the simple act of reading aloud to a very young child. Librarians, pediatricians and others weigh in on how these bonding experiences demonstrate for children that reading can be a source of pleasure (just ask a toddler who requests to be read the same story over and over). But it also enhances crucial brain development in the first years. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

To the astonishment of publishers, Jalaluddin Rumi has become the best-selling poet in America. Rumi’s sensational popularity is notable not only because of its content—an intoxicated, rapturous love letter to the divine. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

The dialogues among women with opposing views on abortion gave new insight into how to handle difference, without dehumanizing those we disagree with. Hear how the participants struggled to find understanding, to abandon needlessly inflammatory language and to establish meaningful friendships, however unlikely. Although no one expected determined advocates to abandon their belief systems, their hearts clearly shifted, in a way that will surprise you — and offer some clues on how our polarized country might begin to heal. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

In the wake of shocking violence at abortion clinics, two apparent enemies — women representing pro-choice and pro-life factions in the Boston area, where shootings had occurred — were forced to communicate, for the sake of everyone’s safety. What unfolded over many months was one of the most mysterious and moving conversations among people of sharply differing ideologies. A remarkable encounter with continuing relevance. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.

In today’s pay-to-play political environment, and with almost no rules, is the pardon ripe for abuse? In effect, it’s a “get out of jail free” card, as in the Monopoly board game.  Donald Trump says, “It’s the most powerful thing a president has.”  We hear legal experts, an investigative reporter, as well as archival audio from some of these dramatic events in part two of our documentary. To see additional resources and our other programs, please visit humanmedia.org . Humankind specials are  heard on NPR and PRX member-stations, in association with GBH Boston.