PODCAST

Think Out Loud

Oregon Public Broadcasting

OPB"s daily conversation covering news, politics, culture and the arts. Hosted By Dave Miller.

news

All Episodes

21:16

The Patricia Reser Center for the Arts is making...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/18

For many arts organizations in Portland and across the nation, recovery from the pandemic has been painfully slow or downright elusive. Lagging box office sales are forcing companies like the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and Artists Repertory Theatre to layoff staff and cancel or scale back entire seasons. So it’s all the more surprising to see an arts venue in the region that has drawn more than 70,000 people since it opened last year for musical performances, art

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53:33

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek on drug addiction, housing...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/17

Since our last conversation with Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, Republicans lawmakers staged a historically long walkout, a state task force convened to address serious problems in Portland’s central city, and a coalition of prominent leaders have begun calling for an overhaul of Measure 110, Oregon's drug decriminalization law. We spent an hour in Salem with the governor to talk about all those things and more.

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17:53

Oregon cowboy poet shares his love of western...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/16

When Tom Swearingen wrote his first poem to remember a friend who had died, he didn’t consider himself a poet. But the small group of friends and family he read it to told him to keep writing. He did, and he says because he long enjoyed Western music, art and literature, including the cowboy poetry of Baxter Black, that was the style that fit. Within 10 years, Swearingen had published a collection of poetry which was named the 2020 Cowboy Poetry Book of the year by the

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20:01

Checking in on the health of some of Oregon's downtowns

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/16

Late this summer, Gov. Tina Kotek announced a new task force aimed at addressing the challenges of Portland’s downtown. City mayor Ted Wheeler told OPB last month that if Portland’s downtown fails, it could have consequences for the rest of the state. But what are downtowns facing in other parts of Oregon? Natascha Adams is the co-chair of the Independence Downtown Association. Jen Bell is the former co-president of Downtown Eugene Merchants. They both join us to

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15:17

How a low-income housing complex failed to support...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/16

A north Portland low-income apartment complex that opened in the summer of 2020 was meant to be a way to help some people out of homelessness. Now, three years later tenants are citing filthy conditions, assault and thefts. While some have stayed, others have fled and returned to shelters. Courtney Vaughn is the News Editor for the Portland Mercury. She joins us to share more on the habitability issues of the complex.

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22:58

Astoria instructor finds links between diverse...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/13

Julie Brown is an English and humanities instructor at Clatsop Community College in Astoria. One of the most popular courses she teaches is on maritime culture, which takes students out of the classroom and onto the decks of ships to see firsthand what life is like working as a bar pilot on the Columbia River or as a deckhand on the Lady Washington, an exact replica of an 18th-century, 90-foot-tall ship that was the first recorded vessel to sail to the Oregon coast. Eight years

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16:01

Washington County Animal Services wins national award

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/13

Washington County Animal Services recently won the 2023 Animal Control Agency of the Year award from the National Animal Care & Control Association. Randy Covey manages the Hillsboro organization and the Bonnie Hays Animal Shelter. He also won a Lifetime Contribution Award from the Oregon Animal Control Council earlier this year. We hear more from Covey about the county’s work and how the animal control industry has changed over the years.

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13:41

How volcanic rocks may help farmers grow crops

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/13

Enhanced rock weathering is a method that uses crushed volcanic rock to improve soil health. Ann Leslie Davis is a freelance science writer and recently covered the issue for Modern Farmer. We hear more from Davis about her reporting, how volcanic rock dust can help overworked soil and how farmers feel about using the method.

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11:06

Oregon Parks and Recreation plans to update exclusion...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/12

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department is updating its rules around how and when visitors may be excluded from state parks. A committee of lawyers, mental health professionals and park staff has been developing the update over the last few months. The updated rules specify that any behavior that endangers the safety of visitors, staff or park resources qualifies for an exclusion. They also lay out how long a visitor may be excluded based on those behaviors and the appeals

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13:33

Wildland fire dispatchers under increasing stress

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/12

When a new wildfire starts in the forest, wildland fire dispatchers are the people in charge of getting resources where they need to go. Their early decisions can help to keep a small fire from getting huge. But a 2022 survey of wildland fire dispatchers in Oregon and Washington by the U.S. Forest Service found that “dispatch is experiencing problems that compromise their own health and safety” as well as “the health and safety of other firefighters,”

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28:54

International treaties on climate change may never...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/12

Thirty years of international treaties like the Paris Climate Accords have not reduced global carbon emissions. Oregon State University economist William Jaeger says that’s because the majority of those involved in policy making will not support climate policies whose benefits arrive mainly after they die. Jaeger argues that we may need to rely on the courts to set legal standards that will help create solutions to climate change. Jaeger joins us to discuss his findings.

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12:27

Eugene Emeralds face budget shortfall for new stadium

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/11

Since 2010, Eugene's minor league baseball team have been playing at University of Oregon’s PK Park. But with a MLB decision to upgrade to a more expanded season, conflicting schedules and facility requirements mean the Emerald's can no longer play at the field they’ve known for the past decade. The team has proposed a multi-use facility, but they only have two-thirds of the funds to pay the $90.4 million bill they would need. Allan Benavides, the general manager of

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19:20

Oregon Historical Society hosts ‘Deafula’ screening,...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/11

The film “Deafula” tells the story of a man who comes to realize he’s a vampire. But what makes the 1975 movie unique is that it was the first feature-length 35 mm film to be shot entirely in American Sign Language. The film’s star and director was deaf, and the film created a singular experience for deaf and hard-of- hearing audiences at the time. It was shot in Portland and produced by Oregonian Gary Holstrom. For hearing audience members, a soundtrack

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20:34

The high-altitude impacts of climate change on Mount...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/11

Mount Rainier in Washington state is covered with nearly 30 square miles of glaciers and icy patches - more than Mount Hood, Crater Lake and all other volcanic mountains combined, from British Columbia to Northern California. But climate change is taking a toll on Mount Rainier’s glaciers, according to a study published in June. It found a 42% reduction in glacier area from 1896 to 2021, and officially removed Stevens glacier from the park’s inventory. The situation

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14:37

Commercial air service returns to Salem for the first...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/10

For the first time in 15 years, passenger flights are once again taking off from the Salem Municipal Airport. Avelo Airlines recently began providing flights to Las Vegas and Hollywood Burbank Airport in Southern California. The ultra low-cost carrier is the first to provide commercial flights in Salem since Delta stopped its service to the city during the 2008 financial crisis. Salem Mayor Chris Hoy recently returned from the inaugural flight to Las Vegas, along with Travel

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9:39

Central Oregon Community College enrollment is up

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/10

Community colleges, which usually see an increase in enrollment during a recession, were hit particularly hard by the pandemic. Nationally, enrollment at community colleges fell more than 10% in the last three years. This fall, that trend seems to be improving. For Central Oregon Community College, enrollment is up over 20%. We talk to Alicia Moore, Vice President of Student Affairs at COCC, about what those numbers mean, and what the future of community college looks like.

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28:21

Portland Youth Philharmonic celebrates 100th season

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/10

At 100 years old, the Portland Youth Philharmonic is the country’s oldest youth orchestra, with a rich and storied history. In the early 1920s a young classically trained violinist and teacher, Mary V. Dodge, conceived of what would become the Portland Junior Symphony. It formed in earnest after she convinced a renowned Russian conductor to take on the orchestra composed of students that she was teaching in her attic. The Oregon Historical Society is opening an exhibit on

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55:10

Everyone Village in Eugene partners with community to...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/09

A few years ago, when Gabe Piechowicz decided to change careers from logging to religious ministry, he didn’t imagine that his work would be almost exclusively focused on helping people get off the streets in Eugene. But shortly into his new career, he was calling local shelters to help find a place for some of his church’s neighbors and Dan Bryant answered his phone.Bryant is the founder and director of Opportunity Village, one of Oregon’s first village-model

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32:20

Crafting spirits in Portland

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/06

We’re taking a deep dive into people’s work lives. We want to learn what it takes to do different jobs and how these professions change us.On the latest installment of our series, we visit Freeland Spirits in Portland, which is owned and run by women. Master Distiller Molly Troupe creates spirits, like gin and whiskey. She takes us behind the scenes and shares more about her craft and the rye whiskey—grown and distilled in Oregon—that Freeland recently

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12:54

3 years later, Labor Day Fire investigations haven't...

Think Out Loud ·

2023/10/06

It’s been three years since the Labor Day fires burned more than 4,000 homes and about a million acres of land across Oregon. Since then, fire investigators have only publicly released the cause ofone of the nine major fires. Zach Urness is the outdoor editor for the Statesman Journal and the host of the “Explore Oregon” podcast. He joins us to share why we still don’t have official answers and what this means for survivors of the catastrophic event.

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