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News at 6 on WNUR News – 2-2-22 Environmental careers, Too Hot to Handle, Wordle WNUR News broadcasts live at 6 pm CST on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays on WNUR 89.3 FM
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Speaker 1 00:00:17 Live from WMUR news. I'm Nick song. You're listening to the six o'clock news on WMUR, 89.3, FM HD one Evanston Chicago it's Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022. Tonight a look into an environmental careers, the REIT return of reality sensation, too hot to handle and strategies to up your world game, those stories, and more coming up now and WMUR news at six. Thanks for tuning in on this Monday evening, the world has long told generation Z it's up to them to save the environment. Now there's that to enter the workplace and young environmentalist are wondering if it's feasible to pursue a career in climate action. Last spring, I spoke with some of these young environmentalist and current experts in the field to weigh in. Some people take a gap year and decide to backpack across Europe. Jenny's Ang opted to go a different route, spend a year away making cheese.
Speaker 3 00:01:32 I mean on a very small dairy farm, uh, in Western Massachusetts, and I'm working in the Creamery. They're learning how to make cheese. While I work, I have the opportunity to listen to a lot of like audio. So I've been getting into a lot of like climate podcasts, like environmental science podcasts. That's definitely what got me interested in.
Speaker 1 00:01:49 He is a student at UC Berkeley. She started her freshman year deciding to major in material science and engineering. But after a year on the farm, Jenny plans to switch her major to environmental science,
Speaker 3 00:02:00 The disclosure, I hated AP environmental science high school. So it's like really odd to me that I'm switching into that major
Speaker 1 00:02:08 Generation Z grew up with an inconvenient truth. The environment is in dire straits, and it is up to Jens ye to face and address climate change rather than fade away from the responsibility. Young environmentalist took up the cause long before they took the sat. They've sparked a national and international movements and push the conversation forward. I went to
Speaker 4 00:02:28 School on a nature center for the entirety of my year of
Speaker 1 00:02:31 Sixth grade. Margo Malinowski is a junior at Northwestern. She's a journalism major with a minor in environmental policy and culture.
Speaker 4 00:02:40 You do like normal sixth grade school stuff like reading, writing, and arithmetic. But then like we learned to identify like flora and fauna in that's native to Michigan. And like, I'm sure I've lost a lot of that knowledge over the years, but that was kind of
Speaker 1 00:02:53 While she never took AP environmental Margo fuels equally as passionate about climate action. As Jenny now, as Margot and Jenny prepared to enter the workforce, countless other young adults are likewise looking to turn their passion for climate action into a career. But the process of achieving this goal remains unclear. Many are left with a set of unanswered questions. What careers in environmentalism are available? What path do you need to take to get there and is a career in environmental ism financially viable to begin with after all Superman may save the world, but it's Clark Kent who pays the bills to find out more. I talked to the experts on becoming experts.
Speaker 5 00:03:31 It was always fascinated by the balances in the natural world. And, you know, I would look at a highway with all these cars on it and think, man, that's not natural.
Speaker 1 00:03:40 As a computational geochemist professor Archer followed his interest in the environment and obtained a doctorate in oceanography. He sends, made significant contributions in understanding the global carbon cycle and its relation to climate change.
Speaker 5 00:03:54 Then I got to the university of Chicago and started to teach this, uh, global warming class for non-science majors that required that I broadened my horizons a lot because the question is much broader than what I had studied.
Speaker 1 00:04:07 Environmentalism is a large field of focus and one that doesn't have a single job description. There are many occupations out there aiming to service and advanced climate action. For instance, take the field of environmental reporting.
Speaker 4 00:04:21 It seems like that's niche, but that's actually kind of broad. That includes so many things like conservation reporting, like, um, climate change, reporting sustainability. And then also there's a whole trove of just like nature reporting like backpacking, um, like more national geographic type stuff. So there's a lot there, but I would be happy. I think that
Speaker 6 00:04:38 There's the sort of activists, policymaking business and then education. I would break it down into like those four broad
Speaker 1 00:04:46 That's John Opperman. He's the executive director of earth day initiative, a nonprofit from New York promoting environmental.
Speaker 6 00:04:54 We organize annual earth day events, which were really large scale engaging the broader public and sort of the climate conversation and calls for climate action and environmental justice. There's an environmental or climate activists work. So a lot of sort of government or government at Jason work that people could get into there's policymaking figuring out, okay, if we're talking about a green new deal, what does that actually look like? How do we craft policy around that? On the business side, the more and more businesses that are interested and either making their sole missions to sustainability as really part of their ethos, sort of like corporate sustainability or social responsibility side of things,
Speaker 1 00:05:32 The exact details remain hazy. A career in climate change starts in higher education. The area of focus needed to work in climate action. However, isn't as clear cut and varies on who you ask Archer and Oberman each took their own unique educational path, both obtained an advanced degree, but now they're concentrated in environmental science. Professor orchard earned a doctorate in oceanography and a bachelor's in biochemistry.
Speaker 5 00:05:56 Guess I got into science as opposed to going into something more directly adversarial like law, because I didn't think I'd be able to serve by on charisma. You know, I'm just not Brad Pitt. I'd rather have the objective world be the arbiter following the lead of the outside world. And that's what appealed to me.
Speaker 1 00:06:14 Opperman went a completely different route as an undergrad like Margo and Jenny Opperman knew he wanted to work in climate advocacy. And wasn't sure about his path upon graduation.
Speaker 6 00:06:25 My plan was to go into the foreign service. So I was at Georgetown school of foreign service. And over time I kind of was like, eh, I don't really know that I want to work for the government. And I kind of wanted to do something more on the private sector. Ultimately
Speaker 1 00:06:38 He decided to go to law school, attending Harvard law and earning his JD.
Speaker 6 00:06:42 I knew going in, I was not going to be a lawyer that I wanted to use the law degree for other things. I talked to a lot of alumni of my law school before I actually went about the environmental advocacy or policy work that they were doing. And I just basically asked them, I was like, do you think that going to law school helps get you where you are? And they all said, yeah. And supported the idea that you could use a law degree for very different things.
Speaker 1 00:07:06 The public service loan forgiveness program is a federal nationwide program that helps to forgive student loans for those who plan to work in the public sector or for nonprofit. Additionally, some graduate programs have their own repayment assistance programs
Speaker 6 00:07:21 That still doesn't really take into account. The vast more money that like you would still make. If you were at a corporate law firm, I have had a lot more money. If I had gone another path,
Speaker 1 00:07:32 I was worried about the finances. The reality is a career in environmental ism. Won't make you a billionaire, but financial stability is definitely achieved.
Speaker 6 00:07:41 Well, money can come in different ways if you pursue the thing that you're interested in, there are ways to make a livable wage, um, much more than a livable wage to actually make some money at doing something that you actually really love to
Speaker 1 00:07:56 As to how to get started on a career. Everyone agreed start reaching out
Speaker 6 00:08:01 So much of the world is just about networking. I was just blown away by all of the alumni that I spoke to that were perfectly happy to talk to me for 30 minutes or an hour or even longer about what I should do. If you're just asking for a conversation, you're looking for advice, don't reach out when it's like, oh, I need a job at this minute. Just have like informational conversations with people all the time. They're going to think of you first because they're going to have you top of mind. And then I find that people are really eager to help. They're going to want to help you
Speaker 1 00:08:34 Doing a career in climate action. Doesn't mean you need to study law at Harvard, like Opperman said, Derrick countless avenues available for those wanting to work in climate change full time. Identifying those routes can be difficult because many of them don't exist yet. According to professor Archer, the most critical occupations in the fight for the environment are waiting to be created
Speaker 5 00:08:55 In terms of, you know, what jobs need to be done. It seems to me like we're going to have to learn to clean out CO2 out of the atmosphere. You know, research into that, you know, seems like it'd be really useful. You can improve batteries. You know, the, the, the guy who invented blue LEDs and enabled us to have all this energy efficient lighting, you know, you made a huge contribution to the world,
Speaker 1 00:09:17 No matter what interests you landing a full-time career in any industry will never be a certainty. The job market fluctuates and changes from year to year. Yeah, for as much as the job industry controls one's career prospects, it's equally determined by that person's enthusiasm and passion for the job at hand.
Speaker 5 00:09:36 Well, it's got to kind of come from whatever weird fascinations, you know, a person has. When I was a little kid, I remember being on a boat in the middle of lake Michigan and thinking about all that water under my feet, obsessed with wanting to know what was down there for no good reason in terms of what an individual person, you know, does, it's got to come from they're in there. They're got
Speaker 6 00:09:57 The biggest factor for me is for whatever reason, I have a very low tolerance for doing things that I do not want to do. I get that this is a paycheck and it's a job and I want to do a good job. But if I do not care, I do not care my job now. And for many years it doesn't feel like a job I'm like excited to do it all the time. It never feels like, oh, I got to like drag myself to this place.
Speaker 1 00:10:22 This summer Margo is working at an environmental nonprofit serving as an intern in the communications department. Likewise, Jenny will finish her year on the dairy farm. After that come September, she'll start taking classes for her environmental science degree.
Speaker 3 00:10:36 So what area I want to go into, maybe not specifically in the dairy industry, I'm open to the other areas.
Speaker 4 00:10:43 I think it'll always kind of be a part of what I'm doing. Hopefully I'll get to a point where even if I'm not specifically reporting on the environment, like I'll have some sort of job where I'll be able to look at whatever I'm doing.
Speaker 1 00:10:56 That's what links those pursuing careers in environments. Listen, they found their area of focus where any time spent working doesn't feel like work at all this underlying passion. It stretches beyond the office and to every facet of their everyday life. In this sense, Jenny and Margo have a leg up on their peers for Madell I'm Nick song. Wow. What a great package just by like a great reporter. Anyway, moving on. We're going to hear from arts and entertainment. Hey, reality TV show too hot to handle returns for its third season on Netflix. Here's reporter Izzy parade hall with a look into how any students feel about the show. So far,
Speaker 7 00:11:40 Netflix released a new season of it's hit reality TV show, too hot to handle on January 19th. Everyone's favorite robot Launa returns to ensure this new round of contestants will be able to form genuine relationships with each other without having to rely on physical affection with more prize money involved than ever before. The stakes for this season are higher than ever with its addictive quality and bizarre scenarios to aught to handle has been able to gain a loyal following. I was able to binge the new season with my roommate, Weinberg freshmen, Kira Ambler, who has been a viewer of the show since its debut. Uh, so I started watching too hot to handle was season one. Uh, cause I remember it came out, uh, like during the, during quarantine, I think it was in 2020. Um, and I didn't really have them to do so. I watched season one. Yeah. Weinberg freshmen, Austin shoe also found himself pulled in by all the excitement.
Speaker 8 00:12:41 Um, I certainly watch reality shows it just my friend recommended to me. And then I thought was pretty interesting. Cause like every episode ends on like kind of hanger. So you just want to like keep watching it and see what happens. So yeah, I finished the first two shooting pretty quick.
Speaker 7 00:12:59 Um, blur noted that the contestants are a major part of what keeps her coming back with each new season. I always think the people on the show are really funny. Um, I don't think they're trying to be, but they're always really funny to watch. And just there, they always find really entertaining people for a shoe. It's the entry created by Lana the show's resident robot surveillance system.
Speaker 8 00:13:23 I think she like makes the whole show. Interesting and yeah, I feel like, I don't know, just like her rules are kind of like where you look forward to.
Speaker 7 00:13:35 So what makes the show so addictive here are their responses. I honestly don't know. Like it's one of the only reality shows that I've actually sat down and watched an entire season. Usually when I watch dating shows, I always end up just Googling who ends up with who? But like I think it's just, it's short. It's shorter than a lot of shows. Um, certainly 10 episodes and it's also just has that fun, dramatic aspect. I think it's, it's like a little bit different than other dating shows.
Speaker 8 00:14:08 I just that the last, like every season, every episode ends on a cliffhanger. So you just want to see what happens next. And it seems like any rules are broken the next day or like, cause like every episode ends on like a big event. So someone see what happens next, right?
Speaker 7 00:14:26 Despite tuning into the show with each new season, Ambler noted some major problems with its themes. I mean, I think for some, in some ways, yes, to watch people just sort of throw away thousands of dollars, just sort of, you know, it's, it's a bit insensitive, not a bit it's very insensitive. Um, so I do think that's yeah. Finally I asked her opinions on the new season. Here's what she had to say, honestly. Um, I thought it was worse. It's not like a super high quality show, so it's a hard thing to judge, but um, I thought that I didn't really like a single man on the show to see like the, it was just not a good group of men. So I think it was worse. I mean, I like, I, I only really like watching it with other people. Like I don't, it's kind of one of those shows where you have to be sort of watching it and making fun of it with a lot of people. So I wouldn't say, you know, this is a show you have to sit down and watch while there has been talk about the release of a season four, it has not yet been confirmed for now. Seasons one through three are available to watch on Netflix for WMUR news. This is Izzy para
Speaker 1 00:15:47 Over to OD DS with Wartels rise in popularity, reporter Maria Kemano looks into the game's appeal and how to improve your chances of solving it faster.
Speaker 9 00:15:58 It was a New York times crossword puzzle. Now Wordle has taken the crown as end-user new trending game and low key addiction. If you haven't heard of Wordle, here's the breakdown where it all is an online daily word game. The goal is to guess a five letter word in six tries with every try calling you in on what letters you're getting. Correct. There are three different colors, gray for when the letter is not a part of the word yellow when the letter is in the word, but in the wrong spot and green, when the letter is in the right place, the game has skyrocketed in popularity with over 300,000 people playing it daily, according to the New York times, even Google has switched its icon so that when you Google Wordle, the classic tiles of the game animate to spell it, the browser's name, which is why it came as no surprise. When people found out that earlier this week on Monday, the New York times company bought the game for around seven figures. Have you done the word old
Speaker 10 00:16:59 Today? I actually did do it in my last class,
Speaker 9 00:17:02 But where did Wordle come from? Created by Brooklyn Salvador engineered Josh Wardle. The game was released back in October, but became a sensation in mid January. I decided to ask Northwestern students what got them interested in playing the game. Madell junior Trent brown told me he saw a Wordle on Twitter for the first time.
Speaker 10 00:17:21 Um, I definitely saw it on Twitter and saw people posting those weird emoji squares. And I was like, what is going on? And then I saw in like a random Twitter reply, someone explained what it was and linked it. And I was like, oh, this seems fun. And then I kind of got hooked because it's so simple and easy.
Speaker 9 00:17:36 I also ask students what their go-to Wordle start
Speaker 10 00:17:38 Word was. Okay. So I used to start with a GEA, like the French word. Um, but then me and my friend would share our responses and he clued on that. I always started with a Jew. So he got like a free guest cause he could suss out which of those letters were in it. So now I just kind of go with whatever is the viral
Speaker 9 00:17:56 Dalia and your news owned Sarah Kadara our executive producer said she actually doesn't have one.
Speaker 11 00:18:02 I just feel like it's more fair if I, I mean, nobody made that rule, but me to do a different one every day, but I usually try to make sure that it has at least like two hours and like some common continents. So I do like I rate, um, audio is a good one. Yeah.
Speaker 9 00:18:21 Dalia and you are reporter Alison rock also likes to use the word a do
Speaker 13 00:18:27 I do because I feel like that's a D I E you like French for by right? Because you get most of the vows. So I think it's
Speaker 12 00:18:34 A good eliminator
Speaker 9 00:18:36 Programmer and game developer. Tyler Glendale wrote an article for medium on the most mathematically, correct. Wordle start word glial says that the word rote R O T E is the best start word while res R a I S E maybe the best word. If you want to go the extra mile and impressively landed on your first guest, which there is a one in 2,315 chance of getting, I decided to try this out myself and this was the result.
Speaker 12 00:19:06 Hi everyone. So this is me doing the Wordle. Um, as I said, I'm going to actually try using the word wrote for the word all today. So let's see how that goes. So I went with rope and I got one green letter and one yellow letter still. No, still nothing. I don't like those. I feel like RO kinda messed me up. I'm not gonna lie. No, the R is not there. Hmm. I have two chances left, so I better get this. Right. And there we go. I think that this was a great experiment because I definitely think rote messed me up. I don't like it as a start word. So maybe, maybe Glendale was wrong. I don't know. Um, but yes, that's my advice. Don't start with roots. Stick with the words that you like, because I also feel like it just made me like more confused, but yes.
Speaker 9 00:20:26 Now go forth and take on your word all of the day. If you haven't already for a w and your news, this was
Speaker 1 00:20:36 Taking a look at weather. Winter storm. Landon brought more snow to Evanson today with accumulation around three to four inches. Right now, the temperature is 23 tonight and into tomorrow afternoon, you can expect more snow and temperatures in the mid twenties Friday will be cloudy with a high of 23 and a low of 12. The weekend we'll bring sunny and partly cloudy, partly sunny skies with a high of 19 on Saturday and a high of 32 on Sunday. The low on Saturday, we'll reach a chilling seven degrees. That's all for WMUR news at 6:00 PM. For more news updates and reports. Follow us on Twitter at WMUR news and Instagram at WMUR 89.3 or 89 3. I'm sorry. You can listen to these and other stories of the day on our Spotify, Google podcasts and SoundCloud. You can also find us on our website, w N U r.news. Our producer today is Katherine Odom. Our reporters are Izzy Perrey hall and Rio Kemano I'm Nick song from all of us here at WMUR news. Thanks for listening. Catch our next show. This Friday, February 4th, at 6:00 PM. Now back to scheduled programming.
