Listen in on the Natural World

According to its creators, Earth.fm is "a non-profit, free repository of pure, immersive natural soundscapes as a fundraising platform for local, grassroots charities that support the restoration of our natural world…As well as showcasing the work of outstanding soundscape ecologists all over the Earth, we’re also highlighting charities from the places you’re listening to, who are doing the hard work of preserving and taking care of our natural world."

Listening is free. Pan and zoom around the world map and click on any heart to reveal a soundscape recording from that location. Listen in on Divorchansky National Park in Ukraine, or a storm in the Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Sri Lanka. Or for an intriguing but less soothing sound, try a groaning iceberg in Tere Adélie, Antarctica. For each stop on your sound journey, you’ll find a text link to a related conservation charity. The site also includes a podcast of longer recordings and informative posts on topics such as acoustic ecology and bioremediation.

In the article at the heart of the Exchange Reflections "The Soundscape of Early Childhood," Carol Garboden Murray notes, "As early childhood teachers we prepare the environment, but mostly we focus on what children see and touch. The auditory environment is invisible, but it is just as important." She reflects on the relationship between listening and silence: "Cultivating the art of listening offers us the opportunity to ask ourselves how comfortable we are with silence and how we can allow quiet pauses in the soundscape. Current research suggests that a daily dose of silence is imperative to developing original thought and creative ideas."

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