A Former Coal Miner Promotes Green Energy, Synchonizing Fireflies, Memories of Frog Hunting and More

One Virginia man spreads the gospel of green.

There are fireflies in Pennsylvania that blink together.

More women are taking on the role of farmer.

A Tennessee writer has fond memories of hunting frogs.

Focusing on Education. Educators from all over the country are currently in Denver Colorado at the 152^nd annual meeting of the National Education Association. West Virginia’s Education Association President Dale Lee is there for discussions on issues like the Common Core  Standards, and standardized testing. West Virginia Public Radio’s Glynis Board spoke with Lee before he left and has this report.

Future Conservation Leaders Meet. 110 high school students from around the world just took part in a week-long event in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, that encourages them to develop conservation leadership skills. The Student Climate and Conservation Conference, which is called SC 3 for short, asks the question: How are we as global citizens going to bring back and contribute to our schools and communities? West Virginia Public Radio’s Cecelia Mason has more.

Mining for Green Energy Workers. One former coal miner in Virginia is already taking action on conservation issues. Summer was, historically, a time for itinerant preachers to travel the country, saving souls at tent revivals. Today, a not-for-profit called Appalachian Voices is following that tradition, putting a fourth generation coal miner on the road to preach the gospel of green energy.  WVTF’s  Sandy Hausman has this look at Nick Mullins’ crusade.

Ms. Old McDonald had a farm. Women have helped on farms for generations, but now they’re beginning to take ownership of their duties, calling themselves farmers instead of just farmers’ wives. The USDA has found a steady increase of women farmers in the 2000s, which plateaued in the agency’s latest 5-year report. Whitney Jones of WKMS visits a Trigg County, Kentucky, farm where one daughter is showing that farm work isn’t just for men.

Synchronizing Lightening Bugs in Pennsylvania. The other night at dusk I sat on my patio eating ice cream watching the fireflies float up from the grass, a twinkling ornamentation to a perfect summer evening. The fireflies in my yard blink randomly, but there’s a place in Pennsylvania where the flash of the lightening bugs presents a well-orchestrated display. They blink in sync. Two summers ago the Allegheny Front’s Ann Murray went to the Allegheny National Forest to check it out.

It Must Be Frog Season! Frog Hunting is one of the topics covered in Fred Sauceman’s latest book about Appalachian food, Buttermilk and Bible Burgers. One chapter in the book features the story of a favorite warm weather pastime for Sauceman, hunting for frogs, something he did with his father each year.

New Appalachian Music Traditions. Teenagers Nevada and Riley Tribble and Walter King have been going to shows at the Augusta Heritage Center in Elkins for years. One of their mentors, Gerry Milnes, says the three are among the youngest musicians to ever take classes at Augusta. And although they mostly play traditional old time tunes, the Alleycats also cover a few contemporary songs. Traveling 219’s Roxy Todd sat down with the three musicians to talk about the band