Dec 28 - Jan 1 Programs

This is a short week for Here on Earth staff, with holidays on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Jean's Pick of the (Short) Week: How Shamans Heal: I’ve always been fascinated by this stuff ever since my trip to the Amazon (I wrote about it in my memoir, I Hear Voices) and had a good chance to sink into Hope Edelman’s harrowing tale of how she rid her daughter of a nasty ‘imaginary friend’ by allowing her to be treated by local healers in Belize. Sure beats Prozac. The story gained credibility through Edelman’s skepticism, but the program was really enhyanced by the participation of the very shaman who worked the magic – Rosita Arvigo, a Chicago-born healer whom I happened to meet at that gathering of healers I attended in the rainforest.

Monday: Global economic recession, climate change, the war in Afghanistan—it’s easy to name the stories that defined 2009. But what about the people behind the news? We sit down with the Managing Editor of Foreign Policy to talk about their special end of the year issue: The 100 Top Global Thinkers of 2009.

Tuesday: Inside Islam Open Line: Inside Islam, our interactive series on Muslim issues and ideas recently received a Brass Crescent Award. But we want to know what you think about it. Are we hitting the mark? Are your questions and concerns about Islam being addressed in this series? Join us for a mid-year open line with Inside Islam producer, Reem Hilal and series advisor, Uli Schamologlu.

Wednesday: John Nichols Looks Back at the Big International Stories of 2009: 2009 brought the first African-American to the White House, gave us a world-wide financial crisis, scaled down the war in Iraq, scaled up the war in Afghanistan, finally passed a health care bill and got serious about climate change.

Thursday: Global Word Play: How many ways are there to say "believe me" in the world? In English, we say "I'm not pulling your leg." In Russian, the phrase is "I'm not hanging noodles from your ear." Author Jag Bhalla collects this and other amusing, often hilarious phrases that provide a unique perspective on how different cultures perceive and describe the world.

Friday: The Woman Who Ruled a Champagne Empire: In the wake of the French Revolution, Madame Clicquot became a widow and single mother at age 27. But widowhood also gave her social permission to run her own business. And she started building a champagne empire and a legacy.

Jean