JOHNSTON, IOWA (April 6, 2021) — Explore Earth's natural wonders and follow the stories of those trying to protect them this month on Iowa PBS. The statewide network will provide special programming on-air and online in the days leading up to Earth Day 2021, with programs ranging from saving coral reefs to fighting world hunger.
Iowa PBS's featured programming will culminate in the premiere of Greta Thunberg: A Year to Change the Planet on Earth Day, Thursday, April 22, 7PM. Viewers will travel with the world's best-known climate activist as she takes her fight to a global stage. With unique access, Greta Thunberg: A Year to Change the Planet follows the then-16-year-old over an extraordinary year as she embarks on a mission to ensure world leaders work to limit global warming.
Following its Earth Day premiere, Greta Thunberg: A Year to Change the Planet will be available to stream on-demand for free on the PBS Video App. The program will also be broadcast as a three-part series in the following weeks on April 28 and May 5 and 12 at 7PM.
The week of April 18, viewers can grow their excitement for Earth Day and the natural beauty of our planet by tuning into or streaming the following programs:
- The Man Who Tried to Feed the World: American Experience, Sunday, April 18, 3PM — Explore the life of 1970 Nobel Peace Prize winner Norman Borlaug, who tried to solve world hunger. He rescued India from a severe famine and led the "Green Revolution," estimated to have saved one billion lives. But his work later faced criticism.
- The Mississippi: Rivers of Life, Sunday, April 18, 4PM — See the many faces of the massive, muddy Mississippi. Its fingers stretch into nearly half of the United States, from the frozen north to the nation's agricultural heart to mysterious southern swamps where alligators still rule.
- Eagles of Decorah, Sunday, April 18, 5PM — Take a captivating look into the private lives of bald eagles through this documentary featuring the world-famous Decorah Eagles. This family of eagles became an Internet sensation after the installation of a live webcam that provided revealing looks into their everyday lives — from hatching eggs, to nurturing eaglets, to learning to fly.
- Nature: Sharks of Hawaii, Wednesday, April 21, 7PM — Learn surprising facts about the sharks that call the warm waters near Hawaii's islands their home. Meet the whitetip reef shark, whale shark, tiger shark, and more.
- NOVA: Reef Rescue, Wednesday, April 21, 8PM — As the climate changes and oceanic heat waves become commonplace, corals are bleaching and reefs are dying off. Follow scientists as they attempt to crossbreed heat-resistant corals, and even transplant corals' algae, in a race to save the coral reefs.
- Great White Shark: New Perspectives on an Ancient Predator, Wednesday, April 21, 9PM — Witness, along with top divers, biologists, and shark scientists, a pivotal moment in our understanding of the great white. Feared, finned, driven to the brink of endangerment, Carcharodon carcharias reveals long-held secrets.
- Iowa PBS will also offer special content for younger viewers throughout April with nature-focused PBS KIDS programs on Iowa PBS .1, Iowa PBS KIDS .2, iowapbs.org/kids-tv and the PBS KIDS Video App. Families can also join PBS KIDS and Explore the Outdoors all month long. Parents, caretakers, and teachers can find additional resources on iowapbs.org/education, pbs.org/parents and PBS LearningMedia.
In addition to its statewide broadcast, Iowa PBS .1 is available to livestream on iowapbs.org/watch, pbs.org/livestream, the PBS Video App, and YouTube TV. Iowa PBS programs, behind-the-scenes extras, and more can be enjoyed on iowapbs.org, Facebook, and YouTube. Viewers can also stream their favorite shows on demand using the PBS Video App, available on iOS, Android, and many streaming devices.
Learn more at iowapbs.org.
As Iowa's only statewide television network, Iowa PBS's mission to educate, inform, enrich, and inspire Iowans guides its quality, non-commercial programming that tells Iowa's stories like no one else can. Four statewide, public channels offer programs of lasting value to Iowans, regardless of where they live or what they can afford: Iowa PBS .1, Iowa PBS KIDS .2, Iowa PBS WORLD .3 and Iowa PBS Create .4 on Channel 11, Des Moines; Channel 12, Iowa City; Channel 21, Fort Dodge; Channel 24, Mason City; Channel 27, Sioux City; Channel 32, Waterloo; Channel 32, Council Bluffs; Channel 36, Davenport; and Channel 36, Red Oak. More information can be found at iowapbs.org.
