Enduring wild winters in the Midwest

Global warming is continuing to make big changes to our weather, and the ways we experience the seasons. This winter, we've been seeing wild swings in the temperature already. We'll talk about what this means, what's going on, and how Midwesterners are reckoning with change.

Taylor Kay Phillips, Jena Brooker, and Trent Ford's work collectively underscores the nuanced impacts of climate change in Illinois and the broader Midwest. Phillips discusses how Midwestern identity and conversations reflect responses to changing seasons. Brooker's environmental reporting vividly captures the diminishing winters, altering traditional winter activities and cultural practices. Ford's climatological insights offer a scientific foundation to these observations, highlighting the warming trends and their direct consequences on Illinois' climate, agriculture, and daily life.

GUESTS:

Taylor Kay Phillips

Writer, comedian; author of book "A Guide To Midwestern Conversation"; author of Atlantic article, "The Secret to Loving Winter"

Jena Brooker

Environmental Reporter, BridgeDetroit; Author, "The Midwest defined itself by its winters. What happens when they disappear?", Grist

Trent Ford

Illinois State Climatologist