Series producer David Baron still marvels

that he ended up a journalist.  A physics major at

Yale, he avoided courses that required writing, but

his obsession with NPR and his passion for science

prompted him to become a public radio science

journalist. During his 20-year career he has worked

for NPR, WBUR, and the PRI/BBC program

The World, where he currently serves as health & science editor.

Baron’s radio work has received numerous honors, including a duPont-Columbia Award and, on three occasions, the annual journalism award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2009, Shifting Ground was honored with a first-place reporting award from the Society of Environmental Journalists.

Baron’s writing has appeared in the Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Outside, and Reader's Digest. His book, The Beast in the Garden, won a 2004 Colorado Book Award.

This series would not have been possible without the assistance and encouragement of many individuals.

Bill Shutkin, formerly of the Orton Family Foundation, helped conceive the series and became its chief cheerleader and fundraiser. Thanks to his colleagues and successors at Orton – John Fox, John Barstow, and Bill Roper – and at the Lincoln Institute – Armando Carbonell and Anthony Flint – for underwriting the series and sticking with it through the inevitable complications and unexpected turns.

At NPR, an expert team of editors and producers helped usher the stories from conception to broadcast. Senior science editor Anne Gudenkauf encouraged the project from the start and remained its greatest champion throughout. David Malakoff, principal editor for Shifting Ground, shaped the series’ style and vastly improved every story he touched. Alison Richards and Christopher Joyce, who also served as editors, brought their high standards and keen sense of narrative to the series. Vikki Valentine oversaw online aspects of the series at npr.org.

Many thanks to the staff of All Things Considered, particularly producer Susan Feeney, for embracing the series.  Shifting Ground could not have found a better home.

The American land-scape is shifting and, in the eyes of many, not for the better. Farms and fields yield to ever more suburban development. Commutes lengthen as traffic worsens.  A changing economy and warming climate threaten historic settlement patterns.  Meanwhile, America seems to be metamorphosing into a repeating scene of strip malls and chain stores while, in many communities, residents lament the lack of community.

The changing face of America’s cities and towns is a subject of much debate and hand-wringing, yet discussions of the subject often produce more heat than light. Shifting Ground is a public radio series that aims to elevate the dialogue on land use issues. The series reveals the complex forces reshaping America and shows how individuals and communities are regaining control.

These are stories at the intersection of people and the land. We hope you’ll find them compelling, thought-provoking, and relevant – no matter what part of this shifting landscape you call home.