FRESH AIR
A MacArthur Fellow and co-founder of the Pacific Institute, Peter Gleick runs one of the nation’s leading water-conservation assessment centers. The institute’s biennial report, The World’s Water, surveys global water trends and issues, including the links between water and terrorism and the growing risk of flood and drought. PLUS, n Tamara Jenkins’ new film The Savages, two 40-something siblings have to put their lives on hold while they learn how to deal with their elderly father, who’s slipping slowly into dementia. The film — it’s a comedy — stars Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, plus Broadway veteran Philip Bosco as their ailling dad. (Watch a clip.) Jenkins’ previous film work includes The Slums of Beverly Hills.
RADIO TIMES
Hour 1
The Middle East Peace Talks: What’s the best we can hope for? We’ll talk to DANIEL KURTZER, the former U.S. Ambassador to both Egypt and Israel, and now Professor of Middle East Policy Studies at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Also, DANIEL LEVY, a former negotiator for Israel in previous peace talks, and GHAITH AL-OMARI a former negotiator for the Palestinians. Listen to this show via Real Audio | mp3
Hour 2
(Rebroadcast tonight at 11)
What happened to the year of reform for the Pennsylvania legislature? After a wave of voter outrage over a midnight legislative pay raise 2007 was supposed to be time Harrisburg shed its secretive ways. But many of the major ideas championed by government reformers have been sidestepped. We’ll talk with JOHN BAER the government and politics columnist for The Philadelphia Daily News, and call out to JOSH SHAPIRO who co-chaired the Speakers Commission on Legislative Reform and TIM POTTS, co-founder of DemocracyRisingPA. Listen to this show via Real Audio | mp3
THE WORLD CAFE
Devendra Banhart -– his first name means “king of gods” in an Indian myth –- was named by an Indian spiritual leader his parents followed. He 
was born in Houston but spent his childhood in Caracas, Venezuela. After moving to Los Angeles with his family, he began writing songs in his teens, and was granted a scholarship to the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute in ’98, where he studied visual art. While in school, he began to perform music at smaller pubs and restaurants. In 2000, Banhart became disillusioned with his academic art studies and moved to Paris, where he took up more of a nomadic lifestyle, performing at small clubs and opening for indie bands. During his musical career, Banhart has constantly added new instruments and nuances to his songs, playing with their sound and texture. Yet, if anything has remained unchanged, it’s Banhart’s distinct style and his unique voice, both of which are still present in his most recent album, Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon.
DEVENDRA BANHART: Don’t Look Back In Anger