Think Out Loud

In 2017, 96-year-old Mary Armington took a trip from her home in Florida to Astoria to visit her son, Dr. William Armington. As a radiologist at the time at Columbia Memorial Hospital, Dr. Armington had diagnosed cancer in hundreds of patients, some of whom had delayed getting care because of financial hardships.    So Mary decided to help by donating $50,000 to start a fund for cancer patients in the North Coast region to pay for expenses like transportation, utility bills, lodging and rent. Nine years later, the Arm-in-Arm Fund has nearly tripled in size and has given grants to dozens of patients at the CMH-OHSU Knight Cancer Collaborative in Astoria.    This year, the Columbia Memorial Hospital Foundation increased to $2,000 the grant money a team of social workers can award to an individual to help them, for example, replace a broken refrigerator or repair a home furnace. Money from the fund has also been used to provide Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday meals for patients and their families. Joining us to discuss the fund and its impact are Mary Armington and William Armington, who is now retired and has also donated to the fund. Mark Kujala, foundation director of Columbia Memorial Hospital also joins us.  

 The Pacific Northwest chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture hosts an annual regional tree climbing competition in a Portland park, where arborists can compete for the chance to showcase their skills at a national and international level. This year, 35 climbers will compete in five events over two days.   Terry Flanagan is the chair of the Tree Climbing Competition Committee at the PNWISA. He competed in his first tree climbing competition in 1981 and has been working in arboriculture for 49 years. Kyle Thomas is the regional coordinator for the tree climbing competition, as well as the operations supervisor for the Urban Forestry Division of Portland Parks and Recreation. They both join us to share more ahead of the upcoming competition in Portland, which will take place June 6 and 7 at Farragut Park.  

 Last week, Portland City Councilors passed a new policy barring law enforcement of all kinds from wearing masks. The policy itself would also direct the Portland Police Bureau to investigate someone who engages in law-enforcement activity, such as detaining someone, and doesn’t show proper credentials.   The ordinance passed in an 8-4 vote, and was introduced by Councilor Sameer Kanal and co-sponsored by Councilor Elena Pirtle-Guiney and Angelita Morillo. Opponents of the law say the policy raises concerns around labor laws and workload for PPB officers. Joining us to share more on the policy and its impacts are PPB Chief Bob Day and Councilor Morillo.  

A decade ago, a building in Portland's Nob Hill neighborhood exploded in a gas leak and was consumed by a fire soon after. That building was home to Portland Bagelworks and the eyewear shop Fetch, as well as Art Work Rebels Tattoo Studio, which was located in the building for seven years. Artist Jeff P, who now co-owns Tattoo Smile, was an artist at the shop when this happened. After the dust settled and rubble was sorted, much of the shop was lost, including memories, personal belongings and much of the hand drawn art and flash that many artists like Jeff created.   But for Jeff, some of his work survived as digital scans and phone camera photos he captured as he documented his own work. Now, Jeff has released a book marking the anniversary of the explosion. "Everything That Burned” is a collection of scans and photos of his art and the shop after the fire. Jeff joins us to share more on his memories of the shop and his new book.  

Around 44,000 people died in a gun-related injury in the U.S. in 2024, according to a new report from Pew Research. Suicides make up a majority of those deaths at 62%. But in Oregon, that number is much higher, with 80% of all firearm deaths being a suicide. On top of that, previous reporting has also shown that some of the state’s most rural areas have the highest rates of gun-related suicides, especially for older men. Becca Valek is a research project coordinator at OHSU’s Gun Violence Prevention Center. Katie Lossi is an Associate Professor at OHSU’s department of medicine and a staff physician at VA Portland Health Care System. They both join us now to discuss these figures and what can be done to address them.   If you or someone you know is struggling, you can call or text 988 to reach the national suicide and crisis lifeline. Help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  

Eleven people died after a chemical tank holding hundreds of thousands of corrosive chemicals ruptured last Tuesday at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. in Longview. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board is leading the investigation as questions mount over workplace safety and the caustic stew of chemicals and equipment maintenance within the paper mill.    Washington state’s deadliest workplace incident in nearly a century has raised concerns about Oregon’s level of readiness and resources to respond to hazardous materials incidents.    That experience dates back to 1989, when Oregon became the first state in the nation to establish a state-level hazmat program. Today, there are 12 regional hazardous material emergency response teams, from Astoria to Ontario, who can quickly deploy to support local first responders in emergencies, as well as offer training to local agencies and industries. The  Community Right to Know program allows members of the public to see where hazardous substances are being stored in their communities, unless that information is determined to be sensitive or confidential.     Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple joins us to share her thoughts on the Longview disaster and Oregon’s efforts to mitigate the risks hazardous materials pose.  

his year marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Specifically, it is when the Continental Congress, the provisional governing body of the 13 colonies, adopted the Declaration of Independence.   It goes without saying that much has changed since then. But what would our founding fathers think of our society today? How should history, both past events and current, be taught in classrooms? To answer these questions more we’re joined by two Oregon history teachers. Jacqueline Pope-Brothers teaches U.S. government, AP Government and constitutional law at Sprague High School in Salem. Maurice Cowley teaches English and AP African American Studies at McDaniel High School in Portland.  

The Portland Business Journal reported this week that hotels in downtown Portland are still struggling years later to recover from the pandemic. According to the commercial real estate analytics firm CoStar, the occupancy rate for downtown Portland hotels was roughly 62% last year – nearly 10% less than their pre-pandemic occupancy levels in 2019. In another ominous sign of the market’s recovery, the revenue the hotels generated per room was $13 less last year than what they earned in 2019. Recovery for other downtown businesses, including restaurants and commercial real estate, has also been slow. A recent report from Travel Oregon, meanwhile, showed that spending on hotels and motels by visitors to the Portland region increased by 2% last year from 2024. That might suggest that business travelers and tourists are returning to the area, but choosing to stay overnight and spend their money outside of downtown. Sara Edwards is a staff reporter at the Portland Business Journal who covers commercial real estate. She joins us to explain the grim outlook facing Portland’s downtown hotels.

The only coalition in Oregon that supports aging members of LGBTQ+ communities is expanding its reach.   Over the past decade, the Oregon LGBTQ+ Aging Coalition has conducted a survey on the needs of older LGBTQ+ adults and helped pass legislation that aims to protect queer seniors living in long-term care facilities. It’s currently a volunteer-run effort, but a new collaboration with the nonprofit AGE+ will allow the group to hire its first paid staff and eventually assume its own nonprofit status.   Brandy Penner is the executive director of the Coalition. She joins us to talk about the new partnership and the needs of this population.  

The train-related traffic delays in Portland — especially in the city’s inner east side — have gotten worse and more frequent in recent years. As rail transportation consultant Bill Burgel told Willamette Week, that’s in large part because the average length of a freight train has doubled. Trains used to be 7,500 feet, and now they’re commonly 15,000 feet or more.    As a former employee of Union Pacific with 50 years of experience in the rail industry, and as a member of the city’s Freight Committee, Burgel pays close attention to these delays. And he has some structural ideas to solve or alleviate the delays that regularly last an hour or more. We sit down with Burgel to understand all the factors behind these mind-blowing delays and more about possible solutions.  

Straddling Multnomah and Clackamas counties, the Willamette National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in Oregon for military veterans, their spouses and dependent children. Even though it won’t reach capacity for 15 years, The Department of Veterans Affairs is already planning for expansion by possibly acquiring roughly 300 acres of farmland southeast of Salem.   Per reporting by the Salem Reporter, the agency announced last September it was conducting an environmental assessment of the property, a functioning vineyard located in the unincorporated community of Macleay. Residents there have expressed concerns to VA officials about impacts on water usage, traffic and the rural character of their farming community.     Earlier this month, Marion County Commissioners sent a letter to the VA echoing those concerns and urging the agency to find an alternative site. Gov. Tina Kotek has also now gotten involved by writing directly to VA Secretary Doug Collins to work with the commissioners to find a different location.    The Salem Reporter’s Hailey Cook has been following these developments and joins us to share more details.  

 “Failure to protect” charges are criminal prosecutions where one parent is accused of allowing another parent, or spouse, to abuse a child. For many, such as Deborah Albin, they may also be survivors of abuse, but are unable to raise that within their defense. Albin’s significant other, Andrew Oaks, is facing second-degree murder charges for their daughter Opal’s death. Andrew had previously threatened to kill Deborah and was accused by Albin of physically assaulting her. Despite this, courts are not allowing Albin to bring these incidents in her defense. This is part of a larger pattern of prosecutions against women using “failure to protect” laws.   Kaylee Tornay is an investigative reporter with Investigate West and has been following Deborah Albin’s case. She joins us to share more.  

 Eddie Bynum Jr., who raps professionally as Mikey Vegaz, is a very busy man. He just released a new track called Rose City Goats with Damion Lillard and Cool Nutz. And he’s just opened a new restaurant called “The EAST by Trap Kitchen in the central eastside. He’s also active in nonprofit work and community efforts, including Rose City Jam, a monthly basketball night for youth in partnership with the Blazers Boys and Girls Club.  The original Trap Kitchen was started in LA by Bynum’s brother, Malachi Jenkins. He and a former gang rival, Roberto Smith went into business together in 2013 and later launched Trap Kitchen food carts in LA and then in Portland. That food cart turned into The EAST by Trap Kitchen. We sit down with Bynum to talk about his restaurant, his music, and his contributions to the larger community, including Rose City Jam.

Conversations about mental health may include adolescents or children, but they rarely focus on babies or toddlers. A graduate program at Portland State University is teaching child care professionals to do just that.   The Infant/Toddler Mental Health graduate certificate is designed to help educators, social workers, counselors and other early childhood specialists foster strong connections between caregivers and their children during the earliest stages of life. Research shows that consistent, loving feedback from caregivers helps build neural connections that support communication and emotional resilience as a child grows up. We talk with Melissa Williams, an early intervention specialist with the Multnomah Early Childhood Program, and Sally Guyon, the co-coordinator of the Early Childhood: Inclusive Education master’s program and an assistant professor of early childhood care and education at PSU.

 Early Tuesday morning, a chemical tank ruptured at a paper mill in Southwest Washington, killing at least two people and injuring eight more.  At least nine more people are still unaccounted for as of Wednesday morning. Hundreds of community members held a vigil Tuesday evening to honor those affected by the tragedy.  Recovery efforts were suspended yesterday evening due to the ongoing threat of corrosive chemicals at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company. We’ll hear from state Sen. Jeff Wilson from Washington’s 19th Legislative District, which covers Longview. Wilson grew up in Longview and ran a private sector waste management firm before going into politics.  He’ll share his experience of working as an environmental cleanup contractor at the Longview paper mill over the years

  LONG SYNOPSIS: Playing in a park or on a street corner isn’t new for musician Johnny Franco. Franco and his brother Domenico are buskers, and during the pandemic they started taking requests from people who wanted to be serenaded from outside their windows with concerts. Now, with Curbside Serenade, the two have teamed up with other musicians to organize regular outdoor concerts around the city during the summer. The goal, they say, is for audiences to stumble across music wherever they happen to be. We talk to Johnny and Domenico Franco, along with Dave Pollack, one of the founders of Curbside Serenade.  

There is a lot that goes into a cup a coffee. From beans, to roast, to grind, to water and even temperature, it is incredibly difficult to make one cup of coffee the exact same as the next. But researchers at the University of Oregon may have found a way to make a cup of coffee more consistent. Chris Hendon is a chemist and associate professor at UO. His previous research illuminated how spraying water on coffee beans before grinding saves on waste and makes the espresso shots more consistent. Hendon joins us to share more about his work and the world of coffee.

A new map from the advocacy nonprofit Beyond Toxics aims to help people identify what kinds of pesticide have been sprayed in communities over the last decade. The nonprofit partnered with the University of Oregon Infographics Lab to compile notices of intent to apply pesticides on state, county and private forestland from 2014 to 2024. Users can filter by location, year, the type of chemical and whether it was applied aerially or on the ground.   Mason Leavitt is a GIS analyst and programs manager for Beyond Toxics. He joins us with more details on how individuals and community groups can use the map.  

Portland’s Lloyd Center is scheduled to close Aug. 8 after more than 65 years in business.   The current owner, Urban Renaissance Group, plans to demolish the mall to make way for housing, businesses and a new music venue. Groups such as Save Lloyd Center Mall and the Save Lloyd Ice Coalition are holding out hope that a city hearing in June could prevent the mall’s closure, but it seems likely that the Lloyd Center is in its final days.   After its last anchor stores shuttered in 2021, the mall’s low rents and large usable space attracted a wide array of community groups and independent retailers. In its last incarnation, the mall became a hub for the kind of quirky community that Portland prides itself on.   We’ll listen back to three conversations that capture that recent era: Jason Leivian is the owner of Floating World Comics. We spoke with him in 2022, shortly after he relocated his store from Old Town to the Lloyd Center.   In 2023, we talked about a production of Samuel Beckett’s “Happy Days” that was staged in a former Victoria’s Secret store in the Lloyd Center. It was put on by the Northwest Classical Theatre Collaborative, which aims to bring theater to nontraditional spaces. We were joined by director Patrick Walsh, the collaborative’s executive artistic director, and Portland actress Diane Kondrat, who starred as “Winnie” in the play.   Finally, Krista Catwood joined us last summer to talk about the Food Court 5000. That’s a 1980s-themed mall walk that Catwood leads every Sunday morning in the Lloyd Center.  

Central Oregon recorded a nearly 20% drop in people experiencing homelessness compared to last year. That’s according to an annual Point in Time count that took place this year from Jan. 27 through Feb. 2 in Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson Counties and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.   Eliza Wilson is the chair of the Homeless Leadership Coalition in Central Oregon and the executive director of RootedHomes, an affordable housing developer based in Bend. Wilson says this has been the largest year-over-year decline she has seen in over 20 years of helping with the annual snapshot of people experiencing homelessness in the region. She attributes this unprecedented decline to opening new shelters and expanding shelter bed capacity in communities like Madras, Bend, Redmond and Prineville, while also providing rental assistance and case management to help people transition into stable housing.    Wilson joins us for more details on the progress that’s being made in Central Oregon to tackle homelessness and the work that still needs to be done.  

Oregonians overwhelmingly voted against Measure 120, a proposal meant to address funding shortfalls for the Oregon Department of Transportation.   Known as the gas tax, the measure would have increased the state’s gas tax by 6 cents per gallon, temporarily hike payroll tax, and double fees for registrations and titles. Without the tax, the agency only has funding to support core services until the end of 2027. Daniel Porter is ODOT's Finance and Budget Division Administrator. He joins us to share how he’s thinking about the future of the agency’s budget.  

The housing crisis is worse than ever, and it’s one that many elected representatives and nonprofits have been working on for some time. Last month Gov. Kotek signed a package of housing related bills into law. They allow cities to expand their urban growth boundaries, protect existing affordable housing and provide financing to encourage the construction of new housing. Estimates put the need for new homes at 29,500 a year to keep up with population growth and the demand for housing.   Constructing new housing for middle income families is at the heart of the Oregon Community Foundation’s announcement of its $100 million “Building Hope Fund.” OCF says it’s a kind of down payment to spur even more investment from other sources to create a fund that will make affordable loans to developers so they can build middle income housing. OCF’s goal is 10,000 new homes built all around Oregon in the next 10 years. Lisa Mensah is the President and CEO of the Foundation. She joins us to explain how she sees the loan program working and how it fits into their extensive and longstanding granting program for housing and other community needs throughout the state.

A recent study by Pew Research showed that half of U.S. adults under 50 get health and wellness information from influencers on social media and podcasts. One in five people surveyed said the information they get from influencers is different than the information from medical professionals. Ashley Hass is an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Portland, who focuses on digital marketing, social media influencers, and the digital wellness of consumers. Jonathan Garcia directs the public health graduate program at OSU. He studies medical mistrust and misinformation. They join us to share more on the impact of the wellness industry on social media and its implications for public health.   

 In February, a split ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the sweeping tariffs President Trump had imposed early last year under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. As a result, last month the Customs and Border Protection agency opened an online portal for importers and customs brokers seeking refunds for the estimated $166 billion in tariffs companies had paid to import goods.    Some businesses have started receiving their refunds while others, including Portland-based Steven Smith Teamaker, are still waiting. As the Portland Business Journal reported last month, 90% of its ingredients are imported, making the company subject to volatile tariff rates that rocketed as high as 50% at one point last year. CEO Darren Marshall says that the company spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in unanticipated tariffs, which its customs broker has filed on its behalf to recoup. Revant Optics, a Portland manufacturer of replacement lenses for sunglasses that launched its own line of sunglasses last June, is owed nearly $700,000 in duties it paid on imports from China and Taiwan, according to CEO and founder Jason Bolt.    Marshall and Bolt join us for more details, along with Chris McKinney, president of Brownstone International. The Portland-based customs broker has filed claims for tariff refunds on behalf of Steven Smith Teamaker and dozens of other clients.  

At 17 years old, Mary Cain became one of few females to ever run 800 meters faster than two minutes. Later that year she became the youngest American runner ever to compete in the World Championships. And all the while she says she was facing bullying from coaches and teammates and emotional abuse from Nike Oregon Project coach Alberto Salazar. Cain has written a new memoir, “This is Not About Running,” and joins us to talk about her experiences.

 Oregon voters resoundingly rejected a statewide ballot measure that would have raised the state gas tax from 40 to 46 cents and  doubled car title and registration fees to help fund road maintenance and other transportation projects. Measure 120 was widely expected to fail, especially as gas prices continue to soar in Oregon and across the nation.   Last year, Gov. Tina Kotek and Democrats in the Legislature approved a bill that included the gas tax and fee hikes, but Republican lawmakers succeeded in raising enough signatures to put the issue before voters. Democrats, however, countered by ensuring the measure appeared on the May ballot instead of in November, when Gov. Kotek is up for reelection.    Gov. Kotek will now face Republican state Sen. Christine Drazan in a rematch of the 2022 gubernatorial race. On Tuesday, Republican voters selected Drazan to be their gubernatorial nominee over former Portland Trail Blazer Chris Dudley, state Rep. Ed Diehl and other candidates.    OPB political reporter Lauren Dake joins us for more details about Drazan’s victory and the failed gas tax measure.

The Woodburn School District and Woodburn Education Association are currently amid a contract dispute that has lasted over a year. One issue that has been highly contested in the community is codifying rights and protections around Immigration and Customs enforcement activity on school campuses in the district, where 87% of the student population is Latino.    The Woodburn School Board has had heavy turnover the past year, since the prior board sparked community backlash after their management of the “Safe and Welcoming Schools resolution,” — causing many to lose their seats. District policies were already in place to protect students against ICE enforcement, but supporters of the resolution maintained it was an important step by school leaders to reaffirm and publicly support these protections in the largely-immigrant led community.   We’ll hear from Jason Levin, a union representative with the Woodburn Education Association and a Career and Technical Education teacher at Woodburn High School, as well as Woodburn School District Superintendent Juan Larios, and Debbie Ballweber, chair of the Woodburn School Board.  

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, there are nearly 170 Million employed civilians in the American workforce. However, that number may be an undercount because it does not include kids working at BizTown.   Junior Achievement’s BizTown gives kids in fourth, fifth and sixth grade the chance to experience working in a simulated city in various fields, including healthcare, construction, food service, journalism, banking and more. Kids are given jobs based on interviews they’ve done and BizTown money to purchase various goods and services in their make believe city.   Host Dave Miller and producer Rolie Hernandez spent a day at Biztown recently, talking to students at Boring's Hood View Adventist School and Vancouver's Columbia Valley Elementary to find out what a day of adulthood was like for students. They also spoke to the actual adult responsible for the exercise: Barbara Smith, CEO of Junior Achievement's BizTown.

Portland filmmaker Brian Lindstrom died last Friday, May 15, 2026 at age 65.  He was diagnosed with the rare brain disease Progressive Supranuclear Palsy only last month.  “He was a stellar husband. He was the most magnificent dad,” wrote his wife author Cheryl Strayed on Instagram Friday. “He was a man whose every word and deed was driven by kindness, compassion, and generosity. He saw the goodness in everyone. He believed that we are all sacred and redeemable.” Lindstrom was a guest on “Think Out Loud" in 2015 to talk about his film “Mothering Inside,” a program that aimed to keep families intact after mothers are sent to prison.  He said the film was the third in a trilogy, after “Finding Normal” and “Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse," all centered around one thing:  “Really trying to shine a light on people that we, as society, usually put an X through, and try to reveal their humanity and strength. And I feel so privileged to have been let into the program and to really see these women, not only nurture and develop bonds with their children, but really work on themselves and change. Their kind of life story in a sense, to change the way they thought of themselves and to put their experiences in a different context: one based on strength … I found that wonderful spiritual humility that comes about when someone takes a hard look at their life, admits that it's not working, and will do anything to change it.”  It was Lindstrom’s wish that any donations made in his memory go to the  Family Preservation Project, the organization that runs the “Mothering Inside” program. To hear a longer excerpt that includes a participant in the program who was in conversation with Lindstrom and “Think Out Loud” host Dave Miller, click the arrow below.  

One of the most popular jazz albums of all time is still “Kind of Blue”, from trumpeter Miles Davis. Over the course of his career, Davis was pioneering in almost every major form of jazz, from be-bop to fusion. Early in his career, he recorded the compilation “Birth of the Cool” with nine other musicians, which is considered seminal to the era of cool jazz. KMHD and Portland trumpeter Noah Simpson will celebrate Miles Davis’ 100th birthday later this month with a performance of the classic 1957 album in its entirety.

Children in the foster care system are among the most vulnerable in Oregon. Their mistreatment was one of the key reasons a class action lawsuit was brought against the state. The 2024 settlement included a number of required actions to decrease the rate of abuse and improve the lives of children in the state’s custody. The state recently submitted its first settlement-mandated report of its progress, including increasing the number of kids placed with a member of their family. But the increase in abuse cases is noteworthy, says OPB reporter Lauren Dake, given the policy priorities of the child welfare system after the class action settlement. Dake joins us to share more about the latest numbers and what state officials say they’re going to do about it.  

As wildfires grow larger and more destructive across the West, state governments are having a hard time paying for response and prevention. Oregon lawmakers were called into an emergency session in December 2024 after the state’s most expensive fire season left the Oregon Department of Forestry with nearly $100 million in unpaid bills. They also created a new tax in the 2025 session on nicotine pouches, such as Zyn, to fund wildfire prevention.   Kyle Williams is the deputy director of fire operations for ODF. He joins us with more details about the state’s wildfire funding ahead of what could be a historic fire season.  

The Oregon Supreme Court unanimously ruled last week that Washington County can ban the sale of flavored tobacco products, including vapes and hookah. County commissioners passed the ban in 2021, but it’s been tied up in court since retailers sued to stop it in 2022. The decision came just days after the federal Food and Drug Administration, for the first time, authorized the sale of some fruit-flavored vape pods.   Gwyn Ashcom is a senior program coordinator at Washington County Public Health. She joins us to share more about the county’s plans now that the ban can go forward.

Last December, Kareem Alson-Rosales launched the nonprofit “Film 4 Good Fund.” Alson-Rosales noticed gaps in access to funding for independent filmmakers after years of work in philanthropy. The nonprofit, which aims to make it easier for independent filmmakers to receive direct grant funding for projects that are nearing the finish line, just gave out its first grant last week to Portland-based filmmaker Ime N. Etuk.  Alson-Rosales and Etuk join us to discuss the Film 4 Good Fund’s work, and what these pathways to grant funding can mean for independent filmmakers.

Medication abortions now comprise up to an estimated two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S., and about a quarter of the mifepristone-misoprostol combination are prescribed via telehealth. Medication abortions are safe and effective when used within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Forty percent of all abortions occur at 6 weeks or less, another 38% between 7 - 9 weeks, and 14% between 10 - 13 weeks, according to the Guttmacher Institute.    Not having to visit a doctor in person to get the medication can make all the difference for access, particularly for those who are low-income or live in rural areas. Telehealth access to mifepristone was briefly paused after the state of Louisiana sued the FDA, saying its rules violated its total abortion ban.  On May 1, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals granted Louisiana's request for a stay, which meant doctors could not prescribe the drugs via telehealth. But the U.S. Supreme Court blocked that stay, restoring the FDA’s rules while the Louisiana lawsuit continues.    Sara Kennedy the CEO of Planned Parenthood Columbia Willadrmette and an OBGYN, and Amy Handler is the CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon. They join us to discuss the implications of this case—and the impact of the law signed this week by Gov. Tina Kotek to restore Planned Parenthood’s medicaid funding.

This Saturday, the inaugural Schnitzer Prize of the West will be awarded to Brad Parry, vice chairman of the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, at a ceremony at the Portland Art Museum. Parry was one of nearly 100 people from 12 states nominated for the new award, which includes $50,000 and will be given annually by the High Desert Museum in Bend in partnership with the Jordan D. Schnitzer and the Harold & Arlene Schnitzer CARE Foundation.    Parry is receiving the award because of his leadership of the Wuda Ogwa Cultural and Land Restoration Project, located on the site of the worst massacre of Native Americans by the U.S. military. In 1863, a U.S. Army colonel led an attack on a campsite near the Bear River on the Idaho and Utah border where the ancestors of the Northwestern Shoshone would gather in the winter. An estimated 400 people were murdered, including dozens of women, children and infants.    In 2018, the Northwestern Shoshone purchased the 350-acre property from private owners and began the painstaking process of restoring the site to what it looked like before the massacre. That includes replacing roughly 400,000 invasive Russian olive trees with willows and native plants; creating 15 acres of wetlands; bringing back beavers, trout and other native wildlife; and restoring a tributary of the Bear River to send an expected 10,000 acre-feet of water annually to the Great Salt Lake.     Parry joins us to share the significance of winning this award and the lessons he’s learned that could apply to other conservation efforts in the West.   

A mining operation that will create close to 100 jobs and cost upwards of $60 million to build could be coming to Baker County. As first reporter in the Baker City Herald, Sumpter Development LLC is planning to reopen four historic mines near Bourne. The company is currently meeting with the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries to see if it can get permission and permits from the state agency to use the mines. Jayson Jacoby is the editor of the publication and reported on this story. He joins us to share more.

Wildfire managers and policy makers in Oregon and Washington often evaluate a community’s wildfire risk based on environmental factors such as the probability of wildfire exposure or the number of threatened homes and buildings. They can also take into account a community’s social vulnerability, or a set of demographic characteristics that includes household income, educational attainment and racial and ethnic minority status.   For the first time, researchers at Oregon State University have created a tool that integrates both social vulnerability and wildfire hazard measurements to help inform the distribution of resources needed to reduce wildfire risk. The study found, for example, that more than 450 communities in Oregon and Washington face increased wildfire risk when their social vulnerability was included in risk assessments. Communities such as Warm Springs in Central Oregon and Mosier in the Columbia Gorge with high levels of social vulnerability, for example, could be prioritized for educational outreach, home hardening or fuels reduction programs.    Joining us for more details are Andy McEvoy, a faculty research assistant in the College of Forestry at OSU.  

 Election day in Oregon is next week. Oregonians must submit their ballots by Tuesday, May 19th. There are a number of measures and candidates running in local and statewide elections, but as reported in Bolts, not a single district attorney race is being contested. Oregonians will only have one option in determining who will play a critical role in how criminal justice is handled in the state.   Daniel Nichanian is the founder and editor-in-chief of Bolts. He joins us to share more on why many incumbents around the state aren’t being challenged and what we lose as voters when races go uncontested.

A series of cascading problems, including financial mismanagement, industry failures and questionable city contracts have pushed Lakeview, Oregon into millions of dollars of debt it can’t pay off. Like many former timber towns, Lakeview has struggled to rebound from the collapse of the logging mills that once powered its economy and helped the community survive in an isolated corner of Southern Oregon. OPB reporter Bryce Dole joins us to explain how Lakeview got into this predicament, and what residents are trying to do to get out of it.

As Jefferson Public Radio reported, the  Southern Oregon University Board of Trustees voted unanimously last Friday to create its own plan for long-term financial stability rather than adopt entirely the steep cuts and revenue-raising measures the consulting firm Deloitte has recommended. SOU is facing a deficit of more than $12 million which is expected to grow to nearly $17 million by 2030.    SOU has until next month to adopt a financial stability plan in order to receive $15 million in emergency funding approved by Oregon lawmakers in March. Deloitte’s plan calls for cutting four academic programs, including music and creative writing, and reconfiguring or consolidating nine other programs in subjects like Native American studies and philosophy.   This is the latest financial emergency the university has faced in recent years it’s attempted to address through workforce and academic cuts. Last September, for example, the SOU Board of Trustees approved a plan to slash more than $10 million over four years by eliminating more than 20 academic majors and minors. SOU President Rick Bailey joins us for a perspective, along with Sage TeBeest, a creative arts program assistant at SOU and the president of SEIU 503 Sublocal 84, which represents classified staff at the university.

 It’s estimated that 1 in 10 adults experience tinnitus, often described as a phantom ringing noise in the ears. The condition can develop due to head trauma, hearing loss, exposure to loud noise or as a side effect of certain medications.   There’s no cure for tinnitus and its origins have long been a mystery. But new research from Oregon Health & Science University has linked tinnitus with elevated serotonin levels in certain regions of the brain. While far from a cure, the discovery could one day help scientists understand how to reverse the condition through brain chemistry.   Larry Trussell is a professor of otolaryngology at OHSU and interim director of the Oregon Hearing Research Center. Angie Garinis is an associate professor of otolaryngology at OHSU and a member of the Oregon Hearing Research Center. She’s also a principal investigator at the National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research at the Portland VA.   They both join us to talk about what this new information could mean for patients who suffer from tinnitus.