Media Contact:
Rebekah Staub, Permian-Gulf Communications Manager, rstaub@earthworks.org
TEXAS — In an era of rampant climate destruction and a growing demand for a just transition away from fossil fuels, Earthworks announces a captivating new 8-episode podcast series to confront the dire state of affairs in the Texas Permian Basin. Murdering Our Stars delves into the firsthand experiences of our dedicated Texas field team, unraveling the realities of the fossil fuel industry and igniting a call to action in the fight for our climate.
“The general public, the broader climate movement, and alarmingly even the U.S. government have yet to realize the full climate emergency that is brewing in the Permian Basin,” says Miguel Escoto, Texas Lead Organizer at Earthworks and host/producer of the series. “I created this podcast to radicalize hearts and minds. It is impossible to hear these testimonies and not transform fundamentally. My challenge to the listener is to explore the depths of the Permian, not just brush the surface.”
By engaging with activists, environmental experts, and policymakers, our podcast series sparks crucial discussions and fosters collaboration, inspiring meaningful change and mobilizing communities to demand accountability from the oil and gas industry.
Murdering Our Stars comprises eight riveting episodes, each dedicated to exploring different aspects of the climate crisis in the Texas Permian Basin.
- With Ep. 1 Welcome to Methane Land, the series begins with a crash course on thermography fieldwork in the Permian Basin climate bomb. Plus, it shows how the industry harms the respiratory health of frontline community members like Sue Franklin.
- In Ep. 2 Loophole Extravaganza, oilfield expert and thermographer Sharon Wilson and researcher Jack McDonald join Miguel to review Texas’s broken environmental regulatory system.
- Tim Doty and Sheila Serna, two former regulators at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, reveal in Ep. 3 and 4 Regulator Whistleblowing (pt. 1 & 2) the internal dysfunction and fossil fuel capture of the state agency supposedly designed to protect our air quality.
- The often-ignored radioactive waste crisis of the oil and gas industry is extensively explored with experts Justin Nobel and Melissa Troutman in Ep. 5 The Radioactive Crisis of Oil and Gas Waste and Ep. 6 The Lotus LLC Saga.
- We learn in Ep. 7 Plugging Wells to Save the Planet how abandoned and orphaned oil and gas wells threaten West Texas ranchers like Schuyler Wight. According to policy expert Megan Biven however, it’s an opportunity to turn this emergency into a much-needed, water-saving climate jobs program, which turns oil and gas workers into national environmental heroes.
- In Ep. 8 Oilfield Workers for a Just Transition guest John Beard Jr. elaborates on this just transition project as a current environmental justice organizer and former fossil fuel worker himself.
To ensure widespread access to this vital information, Murdering Our Stars is available on leading podcast platforms, including Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, and more.
To learn more about Murdering Our Stars, visit our website at www.earthworks.org/murdering-our-stars-podcast.