Tegan Wendland

In coming days, President Donald Trump is set to make an executive order to reverse much of President Obama’s climate change policy. The details are still unclear. But here in Louisiana, state officials and environmentalists are already grappling with the new administration’s actions on the environment – like proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.

WWNO’s Tegan Wendland talked with Steve Cochran, of the Environmental Defense Fund, about the implications for the state.

As extreme weather brings more natural disasters, like flooding and wildfires, more Americans are experiencing them in their own backyard or seeing them play out on TV. As a result, preparing for disasters might be more mainstream than in the past. National Geographic’s Doomsday Preppers show is hugely popular. Families used to build bomb shelters; now people are packing emergency bags for the next big weather event. It’s become big business.

Mardi Gras means a lot of different things for a lot of different people. Some devote hours to costume making, while neighbors get together at house parties along the parade route.

But for many families it’s grueling. High school band members and dancers spend all year practicing, and then spend hours on the streets as they march in the parades. WWNO All Things Considered Host, Janae Pierre, is part of such a family. She sent this report, produced by WWNO’s Tegan Wendland, from the Krewe of Nyx parade.

For many in south Louisiana flooding is a part of daily life. You buy flood insurance, plan ahead and have a place to stay if there’s a big hurricane. But the floods this summer in and around Baton Rouge took a lot of people by surprise. Many of them had moved away from the coast after previous storms, and never thought it would happen there.

As Louisiana’s coast continues to wash away, small towns close to the water are more and more at risk. Lots of people have moved further inland. Yet the towns themselves not only remain, they often defiantly insist that they’re sticking around. WWNO’s Coastal Desk is exploring the idea of “retreat” - who’s thinking about it, and who’s not.

The state is working hard to protect its’ disappearing coast - officials have come up with all sorts of solutions, from planting marshes to building levees. Some of these techniques are tried and tested - we know what happens when we build a levee. But in the state’s haste to do everything it can to save the coast, some of its approaches are a little more experimental.

Louisiana is investing millions of dollars to protect what wetlands are left along the coast. Also building diversions and barrier islands to protect people’s homes and livelihoods. But the truth is, ever since Katrina, many coastal towns have been shrinking faster, on their own.

This week on All Things New Orleans, the mayor’s proposed city budget leaves some out – like the public defender’s office. Also, a deep dive into how an amendment into the state’s marriage law might make it harder for immigrants to get married; and a look at how teachers are talking to their students about the presidential elections.