Think Out Loud

 Centrally Oregon is a co-working space for artists, writers and other professionals which opened earlier this month in Sunriver. The Bulletin previously reported on its opening and owner Stephanie Gregory’s vision for it. Located inside a 1,400-square-foot warehouse, members have access to dedicated desks, an art studio space and workshops Gregory currently teaches on writing, printmaking, watercolor and more.    Gregory says she created the business because of her own experiences with working remotely and as a writer and artist in southern Deschutes County who often struggled to find local venues to teach her writing workshops. She joins us to share why she thinks her new space is needed in the region and her future plans for it. Kristine Thomas, the executive director of the Sunriver Area Chamber of Commerce and an aspiring mystery writer who has taken writing workshops taught by Gregory, also joins us for this discussion.  

As we approach the 250th anniversary of American independence, “Think Out Loud” has been hearing from guests whose life experiences and personal histories illuminate different aspects of what it means to be an American.   We’ll continue that conversation with Tony Johnson, the chairman of the Chinook Indian Nation. The nation represents five tribes whose ancestral homelands surround the mouth of the Columbia River in present-day Oregon and Southwest Washington.   The nation received federal recognition in 2001, only to have it rescinded 18 months later. Johnson joins us to talk about the ongoing fight for recognition and the nuances of being Indigenous in the U.S.  

Since 1971, the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) program at the University of Washington School of Medicine has been working to bolster the rural physician workforce, both by recruiting medical students from these communities and providing them financial support to return to their communities as family physicians. The program also provides specialized education that prepares graduates to practice medicine in non-metropolitan areas of the northwestern U.S.   A recent donation to the UW School of Medicine will help to bolster this program, and fund students who want to practice family medicine in rural and indigenous communities.   Dr. Tim Dellit is the CEO of UW medicine, and Kenya Morales is a second year medical student who is currently taking part in the WWAMI program at the UW School of Medicine. We’ll hear from them about this education model, the shortage of primary care physicians in rural areas, and about what this funding could mean for students who aspire to pursue family care in these areas.  

A Washington State University study found that rates of food insecurity in the U.S. vary among members of different racial and ethnic groups. It found, for example, that only 10% of Asian American adults who live in severe poverty are food insecure, compared to 40% of American Indian and Alaska Native adults living in severe poverty. It also found that low-income white adults had similar levels of food insecurity as low-income Hispanic adults while low-income Black adults faced more food insecurity than both those other groups.    A household whose income is below 50% of the federal poverty level is considered to be living in severe poverty, whereas a household whose income is 100% to 200% above the federal poverty level is considered to be living in near poverty.   Justin Denney, a professor of sociology at Washington State University, joins us to share more details about the study and how its findings could inform outreach efforts to communities with the greatest food assistance needs.  

Gina Jacobsen and Leslie Warren are both financial advisors based in Portland who specialize in helping women navigate financial confidence and life changes such as divorce or death of a partner. They say they notice patterns in the women they work with — oftentimes, they have their first interactions with money management later in life, and Jacobsen and Warren often take on the role of building up self-reliance in those who are managing these responsibilities for the first time.   They join us to talk about what it means to build financial confidence and competency out of uncertainty when navigating financial systems.  

Last week, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration to end protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian immigrants. The Temporary Protected Status program was signed into law by George H. W. Bush in 1990 and allows citizens of other countries to stay in the U.S. when it is deemed unsafe for them to return to their home countries.    The 6-3 vote only ends protections for people from Haiti and Syria, but will have broader implications for the nearly million other immigrants who also received TPS. Kelsey Provo is the associate legal director of the Innovation Law Lab in Portland. She joins us to share more on what this decision means and the impact it will have.  

For the first time in nearly 50 years, Portland is hosting the USA Fencing National Championships. The ten-day tournament kicks off this Sunday, with thousands of fencing athletes from around the world competing for national titles.   Michael McTigue served as the executive director of the non-profit Northwest Fencing for 5 years and now volunteers as a coach. He’s been fencing, competing and coaching for the last 48 years. Sandra Marchant is a national fencing champion who’s coming to town to compete. She frequently travels to Portland to host a women’s-only fencing summer camp called The Athena Project. We’ll hear from McTigue and Marchant ahead of the tournament  

The Portland Art Museum’s rental gallery has been operating on the same business model since its inception in 1959. In the 1950s, the Portland Art Museum was the city’s art school as well as a gallery. They opened the rental gallery to showcase local artists’ works, and they’ve been offering rentals and sales ever since. Mark Tindle has been the head of the rental sales gallery since 2021, and he joins us to share more about the gallery and its unique model.    The current showcase on display at the rental gallery is a collaboration with OPB’s Oregon Art Beat, featuring local artists that have been featured on the program. The exhibit is up in the rental gallery until July 11th.  

For nearly 40 years, Store to Door has helped homebound seniors and adults with disabilities in the Portland metro area by taking orders for groceries and delivering them each week with a team of mostly volunteers. These “Kindness Couriers”, as the nonprofit calls them, will enter clients’ homes - if requested -  to unpack the groceries and stay for a brief chat. Those interactions can help ease feelings of social isolation for the clients, most of whom are low-income seniors living alone. In July, Store to Door will offer the grocery delivery service on a sliding scale, with no cost for clients facing the greatest financial need.   During the pandemic, Store to Door began offering clients free weekly phone calls made by volunteers through its Friendly Caller program. The calls are intended to foster regular social connections that may evolve into friendships between volunteers and the clients they serve.    Joining us for a discussion about Store to Door and the communities it serves are Program Director Cass Listro; Board President and Kindness Courier volunteer Jeri Janowsky; and Gloria Nussbaum, a Friendly Caller volunteer.  

Katherine Lee Bates' greatest hope in life was to write a poem that people would remember after she died. One hundred and thirty three years later millions of people across the United States will sing “America the Beautiful,” commemorating the nations’ 250th anniversary. However, some of the same problems America faced at the time Bates wrote her poem are still relevant today.   Filmmakers Laurence Cotton and John de Graaf join us to discuss their documentary “From Sea to Shining Sea,” which follows the life of Katherine Lee Bates, and the striking relevance of “America the Beautiful” today.  

 Next month, the Food and Drug Administration committee will consider easing restrictions on some peptides. Some influencers have claimed these injectables improve muscle growth, create better immune function and slow aging, among other things. However, there is very little evidence to support the benefits of many of these drugs in humans. At the same time, prescription peptides that are already on the market, such as GLP-1s like Ozempic, have seen increasing demand for off-label use. Daniel Hartung is a professor of pharmacy at Oregon State University. He joins us to share more on the FDA processes and off-label prescriptions.  

This week, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington sided with the Center for Food Safety and the Coalition to Protect Puget Sound Habitat in a suit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The ruling means that nine industrial shellfish operations that were approved by the Army Corps of Engineers off of Washington’s coast are unlawful. The plaintiffs argue that the USACE violated the law when relying on streamlined permitting procedures for the shellfish operations. Kristina Sinclair is the staff attorney for the Center for Food Safety. She joins us to share more.  

Four times a week, you’ll find Camas resident Martins Licis working out in his home garage. Like many people, he will lift repetitions of weights to build strength. But most people don’t do 600 to 900-pound deadlifts or 500 to 700-pound squats.     Licis is a professional strongman who is currently training to compete in the Giants Live Strongman Classic in London on July 4 and another international competition three weeks later. The Columbian recently profiled Licis before his return to the World’s Strongest Man, which he won in 2019 and finished in sixth place this year. The four-day competition features grueling feats of strength like pulling a truck along a 100-foot course or throwing 30-pound sandbags over a 16-foot-high bar.     But it’s more traditional feats of strength that Licis is particularly interested in these days. In 2022, he launched with his friend and manager the YouTube series “Strength Unknown.” As host and co-producer, Licis has traveled to more than 15 countries to document and participate in ancient strength traditions, from sumo wrestling in Japan to stone lifting in Pakistan, and to meet the people who are keeping them alive.    Licis joins us to discuss the series, which is currently on hiatus, and how it’s expanded his understanding of strength.  

The Menopunks movement started as a documentary. The goal was to debunk claims about hormone replacement therapy through interviews with doctors and hear the stories of Portland musicians who have benefited from HRT. But it’s now grown into a broader effort to advocate for more comprehensive and accessible menopause care.    A benefit concert series this weekend aims to raise money for the documentary and awareness around hormonal therapy through a resource fair and panel conversation with doctors and healthcare advocates.   Alicia J Rose is a musician, filmmaker and one of the founders of Menopunks. Gilly Ann Hanner is a participant in the documentary and a founding member of the band Calamity Jane, which will perform this weekend with both of its founding members for the first time in 35 years. They both join us with more details.  

High Country News recently reported on how residents within the city limits of White Salmon, Wash. have lacked free mail delivery from the U.S. Postal Service for years now. The agency also does not provide free Post Office Boxes for those residents. High Country News’ reporting also revealed that at least 10 other towns in Washington, Oregon and Idaho also lack both free home mail delivery and free P.O. Boxes provided by the USPS. Meanwhile, White Salmon Mayor Marla Keethler has been trying to no avail since 2020 to work with the agency to create a new mail delivery route or provide free P.O. boxes.    Susan Shain is a freelance journalist based in White Salmon. She joins us to share more details of her recent reporting.  

Art takes many forms, but at the 7th annual Skate Deck Show, the only form allowed is the shape of a skateboard. Put together by Art Design Xchange in Portland, the Skate Deck Show is an open call to artists of all mediums and ages to put their work on display, and potentially be sold to the public.   This year’s show brought together more than 230 artists submitting a combined total of 275 boards. Syd Spencer is the ADX community manager and head curator. She joins us to share more on this year’s show and how it got started  

The men’s soccer team from Jordan lost to Algeria  2-1 to on Monday, meaning they won’t go on to the next round of the World Cup. The team has been using the University of Portland’s Merlo Field as its home base for practice and training sessions between games.    UP men’s soccer head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt says the school boasts one of the best all-grass soccer fields in the Northwest, if not the country, and that it was a “no-brainer” when FIFA contacted him several years ago to see if the university would be interested in hosting a 2026 World Cup national team. It’s also given him the chance to attend Team USA’s matches, including its victory over Australia last Friday in Seattle, and relive his boyhood memories of cheering on the men’s team from the stands 32 years ago – the last time a men’s World Cup game was held on U.S. soil.     Carlin-Voigt joins us to share those memories and the new ones he’s making at the World Cup.  

According to the Oregon Department of Human Services, more than 60,000 Oregonians have lost their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits since the passage of the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" last July that cut spending on SNAP, Medicare and other programs to offset tax cuts championed by President Trump and Republicans in Congress.   The law made changes to SNAP, including eligibility restrictions and work requirements for able-bodied adults 64 and younger without children under the age of 14 in their SNAP household. SNAP recipients who don’t qualify for an exemption can meet the 80-hour monthly work rules in several ways, including paid work, volunteering or participating in a SNAP Training & Employment Program. The program helps SNAP recipients with job placement, career coaching, pre-apprenticeship training, tuition assistance and other support provided by WorkSource Oregon and community-based organizations.   This month, ODHS began requiring interviews to check eligibility for households applying for SNAP or renewing their benefits. Nate Singer, Oregon Eligibility Partnership Director at ODHS, shares how Oregonians are being impacted by federal changes to SNAP, along with Matt Newell-Ching, Senior Policy Manager at Oregon Food Bank, and Jesse Aronson, WorkSource Program Manager at Worksystems, the Portland metro workforce development board serving Portland, Multnomah and Washington counties.  

Last week the US Men’s National Team defeated Australia in Seattle as part of the opening round of the FIFA World Cup. The Pacific Northwest is hosting several of the many games being played across North America in this year’s championship. Pacific University political science professor and former footballer Jules Boykoff points out that while soccer is a beautiful game, the high ticket prices, FIFA corruption, high carbon footprint and scandals of this year’s competition bring a world of contradictions. Boykoff joins us to discuss his latest book, “Red Card: The 2026 World Cup, Sportswashing, and the FIFA Greed Machine.”

In 1951, a group of parents decided to start a school for their children with developmental disabilities rather than having them institutionalized. As those children grew into young adults, the school evolved into a workforce training organization. That organization — now known as Relay Resources — is still creating employment opportunities for people with disabilities more than 75 years later.   The nonprofit provides janitorial, landscaping, document imaging and other services to businesses throughout the Pacific Northwest. They also offer individual career counseling for people with disabilities and help pair those job seekers with employers who are interested in inclusive hiring.   Jennifer Camota Luebke is the president and CEO of Relay Resources. She joins us to talk more about the organization’s work.  

The city of North Plains has a population that hovers around 3,500. Like so many small communities in Oregon it has a strong sense of identity and a closeness among residents that other bigger cities just don’t have.  As part of our effort to cover both urban and rural communities all over the state, we sent out a community survey to find out what people in this Washington county town value and what the biggest challenges they face. We heard predominately about the quality of life here and the challenges of reconciling different views of how to improve life here and plan for growth. We invited the community to participate in a conversation about North Plains at the Atfalati Ridge Elementary School in North Plains on June 11, 2-26. About 55 people showed up, and many shared what they think makes North Plains and why they think the urban growth boundary should be left alone or expanded.  Our guests included Robin Doughty, director of the North Plains Public Library; Rowan Maiorano, assistant planner for the city; Daniel Stinchfield, who sits on the UGB Public Advisory Committee; Patti Burns, director of the Senior Center and Vice President of the North Plains Events Association; Lora Dexheimer, founder of the North Plains Food Bank; Russ Sheldon, business owner and former city councilor; and Emily Waldron and Elizabeth Beaupain with Friends of Smart Growth North Plains.   

 ”Words Will Come,” a new work by Portland-based playwright Melody Erfani, focuses on a young Iranian-American girl’s experience with learning, language and identity while navigating dyslexia.  The production takes a multi-sensory approach, using movement, projections, stage setting and fractured language to immerse the audience in the mind of someone experiencing dyslexia.  We’ll hear from Erfani about her own experience with dyslexia, and how guiding her young niece through a dyslexia diagnosis helped inspire this theatrical work.  “Words Will Come” is showing at Shaking the Tree Theater in Southeast Portland through June 28th.  

Portland was well represented at this year’s James Beard Awards. Cocktail bar Scotch Lodge took home the award for Outstanding Bar, while Japanese restaurant Nodoguro’s Ryan Roadhouse won Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific.    Writer Erica Berry also won a Media Award for her personal essay published in Orion Magazine. In it, she explores the balance between risk and reward in both mushroom foraging and her personal relationships.    Berry joins us to share more about her work.  

The U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team will face off against Australia in Seattle tomorrow for its second match of the World Cup. Excitement and expectations abound for Team USA after its thrilling 4-1 victory over Paraguay in its opener last Friday.    While this isn’t the first time the U.S. has hosted the World Cup, it’s the first time our nation is co-hosting it with venues in the Pacific Northwest. Portland-based sports writer Tyson Alger is covering three of those games in our region, including Friday’s match at Lumen Field.   It’s the first time that Alger is covering the World Cup after more than a decade’s experience of writing about college football. Alger writes about the Portland Timbers in his Substack publication, “The I-5 Corridor,” while also reporting on University of Oregon athletics for Lookout Eugene-Springfield. He joins us to talk about making the leap from covering college football to World Cup soccer, and the storylines he’s pursuing on the sport’s biggest stage.  

 More than a decade ago, Willie Levenson had his heart set on swimming in the Willamette River. In his own words, he got carried away. He is the founder, executive director and ringleader of the Human Access Project, an advocacy group that dedicated its efforts to change Portlanders’ relationship with the Willamette. Over the years they have pushed for city beaches and swimming docks, held annual community events and more. And after being with the organization since its inception in 2010, Levenson is stepping down and retiring. He joins us to share more on his initial vision for the Human Access Project and its future as he steps away.

Sunshine Division, a Portland food relief organization, has opened a new food pantry that takes the form of a free grocery store. People in need can sign up for a time slot to come to the market and choose the groceries that best fit their household’s needs. It’s a model that Sunshine Division says was most requested by the people they serve. Kyle Camberg, Executive Director of Sunshine Division, joins us to explain why.

Lewis and Clark are often thought of as some of the earliest explorers of the western U.S. But more than a century before, Moncacht-Ape, a Yazoo explorer, reached the Pacific Ocean mainly by foot. The Indigenous explorer’s accounts were documented by French colonists, but were often dismissed as being untrue. But as featured in an article in Outside Magazine, historians and explorers may have been looking at the accounts all wrong.    Mike Bezemek, author of “Mysteries of the National Parks,” wrote about his experience following the Yazoo explorer’s trail in the documented accounts and argues that Moncacht-Ape’s accounts are true. Bezemek joins us to share more on his journey and who this Yazoo explorer was.      

  In just a few weeks, our nation will commemorate the 250th anniversary of its independence. As we approach this historic milestone, “Think Out Loud” hears from guests whose life experiences and personal histories illuminate different aspects of what it means to be an American.   For the second installment of this series, we’ll hear from Ebony Frison, a Portlander, artist, and U.S. Air Force Veteran. After her time in the military, her art has largely included archiving photographic work by Newton Carroll. Carroll was a Black American military photographer whose work depicted  military members from segregated U.S. Army units during World War II.   What she found in those nearly 90-year-old images, was faces and expressions and experiences of those service members that mirrored her own time in the military. Her ongoing series, “Black Valor,” uses archival photos and documents to log her family’s connection to the U.S. Military and chronicles stories and images of Black life that are missing from official historical narratives.  

Recent reporting from InvestigateWest found that overcrowding in the neonatal intensive care unit at Oregon Health & Science University is raising concerns among staff and patients. Plans to expand capacity by building a new wing of OHSU’s Doernbecher Children’s Hospital have largely stalled despite rising demand for neonatal intensive care nationwide.   Dana Braner is the physician in chief at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. He joins us to talk about the challenges hospitals are facing in providing neonatal and pregnancy care.  

On Monday, Oregon Democratic U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski led a group of Democratic Senators to urge the National Science Foundation to stop its plans to dismantle a nearly $400 million ocean monitoring network. The Associated Press reported on the letter Sens. Merkley and Murkowski wrote to the NSF, which was signed by nine other U.S. Senators, including Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon and Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell of Washington. More than two dozen Democratic U.S. Representatives signed onto a separate letter, per the AP’s reporting, to warn against the “illegal decommissioning” of the Ocean Observatories Initiative.    The OOI is a network of 900 sensors anchored off Oregon, Washington, Alaska, North Carolina and in the North Atlantic. For more than a decade, the instruments have transmitted real-time data that has helped detect coastal flooding events, manage sustainable fisheries, track marine heat waves and more.  A memo from the NSF posted last month said the “major descoping” is already underway for the array of instruments managed by Oregon State University, with the removal of most of the rest of the network expected to be completed next summer.   Sen. Merkley joins us to discuss his and other Democratic lawmakers’ efforts to protect the OOI, along with other federal issues affecting his Oregon constituents.    

During the pandemic, Lara Blair found herself with a lot of time on her hands. With her Camas photography studio sitting idle, Blair reminisced about her childhood and two things that brought her joy as a 10-year-old: donuts and dollhouses. Thanks to how-to videos she saw on YouTube, she soon began making sculptures of donuts from clay, adorned with sprinkles and surreal, whimsical elements such as tiny people with ropes climbing up their frosted, candy-colored sides.    Today, Blair works full time as a small-scale artist creating intricate dioramas, shadow boxes, commissioned pieces and other tiny, sculpted works she sells online or at Gallery 408 in Camas. The Columbian recently profiled Blair and a miniature version of the art gallery she designed and helped create with the gallery’s co-owners featuring tiny, painted canvases and sculptures Blair and other local artists, including Portland painter Bianca Youngers, contributed.     The mini gallery was inspired by a conversation Blair had with Rachael Harms Mahlandt, a Portlander who co-created the PDX Sidewalk Joy Map that has since expanded worldwide. Harms Mahlandt was one of the featured guests on Blair’s new podcast, “Tiny Worlds, Big Stories.” Blair and Youngers talk with us about making small-scale art that can spark delight and childlike wonder for its creators and audiences alike.   

 In just a few weeks, millions of Americans will celebrate the Fourth of July with their families and friends at barbecues, parades and outdoor concerts under fireworks. This year’s celebrations will take on added significance as our nation commemorates the 250th anniversary of its independence.    As we approach this historic milestone, “Think Out Loud” hears from guests whose life experiences and personal histories illuminate different aspects of what it means to be an American.   We start by hearing from Bryan and Michelle Stewart, a married couple in Battle Ground, Wash. Bryan and Michelle retired as colonels in the U.S. Army after nearly 60 years of combined service at military bases in the U.S and abroad. They both served in Afghanistan and Iraq. Bryan was also deployed to the NATO headquarters in Belgium. Michelle worked in Bosnia, where she helped identify mass grave sites and assisted with the U.S.-led effort to end the war. She also served as the Chief of Staff at Arlington National Cemetery.    Michelle and Bryan Stewart join us to talk about how their military service has shaped their views on patriotism, sacrifice and our country's founding ideals.    

Conditions are becoming increasingly crowded in Oregon Health & Science University’s neonatal intensive care unit, raising concerns among patients and staff. That’s according to new reporting from InvestigateWest. Plans to expand capacity by building a new wing of OHSU's Doernbecher Children’s Hospital have largely stalled despite rising demand for neonatal intensive care nationwide.   Danielle Dawson is a collaborative investigative reporter and Report for America corps member at InvestigateWest. She joins us with more details.  

Sophocles wrote "Antigone" almost 2,500 years ago, but the themes in the story are timeless. Nez Perce scholar and author Beth Piatote was inspired to write an Indigenous version of "Antigone," featuring a young woman torn between a moral duty to her family and ancestors and the will of the state. Playwright Beth Piatote joins us, along with Nathan Woodworth, one of the actors in a new production from the Native Performing Arts Network and Bag and Baggage Productions in Beaverton. We are also joined by Jeanette Harrison, Creative Director of the Native Performing Arts Network.

For 40 years, sculptor M.J. Anderson has been making annual trips from her home on the Oregon coast to Carrara, Italy. She spends up to three months there, traveling along a winding road to quarries with towering walls of marble, the same kind of stone that was used to create Michelangelo’s sculpture of David and other timeless works of Renaissance art.    But Anderson isn’t interested in recreating classical, idealized representations of masculine or feminine beauty. Instead, a unifying theme of Anderson’s work is “the distillation of what it feels like to be woman.” Starting at her studio in Carrara, she uses grinders and air hammers to carve torsos evoking the female form out of massive blocks of marble, onyx and travertine. The pieces are then shipped, unfinished, to Anderson’s studio in Nehalem where she polishes them while retaining drill marks and other raw reminders of the stone’s past and its “power.” We talked with Anderson on Sep. 13, 2025 about her artistic process and the themes she explores in her work.  

In September 2025, Oregon became the first state in the nation to be verified for its accessibility for travelers with disabilities by the travel website Wheel the World. The company worked with Travel Oregon to assess hundreds of hotels, restaurants, tourism providers and state parks in seven regions across the state for their accessibility. That includes features like step-free entrances at museums or specialized wheelchairs available to venture onto a beach on the Oregon Coast.    But the state’s efforts to promote its accessibility doesn’t mean that barriers don’t still exist for travelers with physical or neurocognitive disabilities. Small hotel owners and tourism operators may also lack awareness about best practices to engage with these travelers or struggle with how to become more accessible online and in person.    To address these gaps, researchers at Southern Oregon University received a grant from Travel Oregon to develop and roll out training workshops at 12 locations across the state for travel industry professionals and other stakeholders. The training includes guidance on best practices and role-playing exercises where participants can experience, for example, what it’s like to navigate a carpeted hotel lobby in a wheelchair or to receive information during an emergency as a person who is hard of hearing.    Pavlina McGrady, an associate professor in the school of business at Southern Oregon University and Rebecca Williams, an assistant professor in the school of business at SOU, joined us on Oct. 2, 2025, to discuss the project. We also heard from Ulysses McCready, a junior at SOU who is blind and assisted with this effort.  

Hacky sack, otherwise known as “footbag,” is a collaborative game of dexterity, where players kick a small, round, pellet-filled bag back and forth between players.  The sport is typically affiliated with images of college quads in the ‘80s and ‘90s, but it’s experiencing a resurgence — so much so that there’s even a current hacky sack shortage.  The U.S. Open Footbag tournament is taking place in West Linn, Oregon, this weekend, just across the river from Hacky Sack’s birthplace of Oregon City.  The game is characterized by its laid-back nature, but this weekend, hacky sackers will compete in several different events, including “freestyle battles” and “Net,” a volleyball-style event where competitors have to kick the bag over a 5-foot-tall net. They can even show off their tricks and compete with planned hacky sack routines. Oregon is not only the birthplace of modern hacky sacking, but as it turns out, the birthplace of several professional hacky sack athletes.  One of those athletes is Tricia George, who’s considered one of the best players of all time, according to her entry in the Footbag Hall of Fame.  She holds several Guinness World Records in hacky-sacking and has been playing since 1980. She’ll join us on the show, along with a newer player, Brennan Reim, a soon-to-be 9th grader who’s competing in this weekend’s competition.  He’s been hacky sacking since 2024.  

Educators and faculty at the University of Portland held a three-day conference last week to explore the use of Artificial Intelligence in Catholic higher education and the ethics of AI in educational settings.  Speakers and facilitators presented a host of topics, including the ability of AI tools to streamline people’s workflow, but also to stifle critical thinking.  We hear from Natalie Nelson-Marsh, an associate professor of Communication & Media at the University of Portland, and Naveen Gudigantala, a professor at the University of Portland’s School of Business, for more on the conference and their view of AI’s role in higher education.  

If you're not well-versed in the natural fiber economy, Kristen Buchanan wants to help with that. Buchanan manages a small family farm in Southwest Washington, and she’s the co-founder of PNW Fiber Connect, an organization that wants to create a support network of different players in the regional fiber industry.   The organization aims to educate consumers and share resources from shepherds to mill owners to yarn stores. Buchanan wants consumers to make intentional choices about where their wool and textiles come from and hopes that the Pacific Northwest can one day sustain a more robust fiber economy.   Kirsten Holbo is a shepherd at Iron Water Ranch in Albany, Oregon. She’s been in the fiber industry since 1984 when her family took over Iron Water Ranch. She and Buchanan join us to share more about the current state of the wool industry in Oregon  

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has dredged the lower Columbia River since the 1860s to create a deeper shipping channel between Portland and the Pacific Ocean.    The agency says the practice is necessary to support international commerce, but very few studies have been conducted on its ecological impact. Tribal leaders say dredging has contributed to the decline of lamprey, steelhead and other culturally significant species that rely on the Columbia estuary. Meanwhile, hydropower dams have caused a pileup of sediment in the mid-Columbia, slowing the river’s flow and raising water temperatures to dangerous levels.  

Juan Carlos González was elected president of Metro in May, and then appointed to serve out the remainder of the previous president’s term. He made history in 2018 becoming the youngest member and first Latino to serve on the Metro council. His priorities for the council are creating more affordable housing and jobs in the region. Metro has begun what it calls Future 50, a planning process designed to shape the metro area through 2077. We sit down with González to hear more about his priorities and vision for the next 50 years.

 In late May, Portland City Councilors voted 7-5 to increase the city’s arts tax to $50. The tax, which previously was a $35 fee on individuals making more than $1,000 a year goes toward funding art programs for public schools and nonprofits. The proposal also now exempts individuals making less than $20,000 a year, meaning roughly 214,000 Portlanders are now exempt from paying.   City Council President Jamie Dunphy introduced the proposal and voted in favor of it. Councilor Steve Novick voted against it. We’ll hear from both councilors to get their thoughts on the tax and the new proposal.  

 It’s been nearly five years since a deadly heat dome gripped the Pacific Northwest. Many hundreds of people died — including 69 in Multnomah County alone — from the extreme heat event that sent the temperature soaring to 116 degrees in Portland and broke other temperature records in the region.    As climate change makes extreme heat events more frequent and longer-lasting, a new Portland State University study predicts that heat-related illnesses could double by 2040 across more than 50 of the largest metro areas in the U.S., including Seattle and Portland. The cost of treating heat-related illnesses is also expected to double, according to the study, likely further straining healthcare systems and vulnerable populations.    The study’s authors developed a model integrating multiple variables, including demographic information about age, race and health; climate data; visits to hospitals and emergency rooms for heat-related illnesses; and access to air-conditioning or other cooling infrastructure. The study reveals that cities in the Pacific Northwest could bear an especially high public health burden with their aging populations and lack of cooling infrastructure.   Vivek Shandas is a professor of earth, environment and society at PSU and co-author of the study. He joins us to share more details.  

Last month, Governor Tina Kotek announced the creation of a new state resource to help Oregon businesses reach international markets. The Global Trade Desk advises businesses large and small on how to export their products and find business overseas. Tatum Albertine, the Global Trade Manager at Business Oregon, the state’s economic development agency, joins us to share more details.  

Vu Pham, an independent filmmaker based in Portland, is working on a documentary film about his mother’s murder, which took place when he was a young child.   Pham and his mother fled Vietnam by boat in 1981. The film, Sea Rose Ashes, explores Pham’s journey learning more about his mother’s past and making efforts to take restorative justice pathways with her murderer. Pham joins us to discuss his journey and his current film.  

The U.S. healthcare system is notoriously complex — something as simple as a doctor’s visit has the potential to generate mysterious bills and endless calls to insurance companies. An Oregon couple is attempting to give voice to those frustrations through comedy sketches on social media.   Dr. and Lady Glaucomflecken — otherwise known as Will and Kristin Flanary —  began making TikTok videos during the COVID-19 pandemic. Will is an ophthalmologist and two-time cancer survivor. Kristin supported Will through those diagnoses and, more recently, provided 10 minutes of CPR after he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest in his sleep.   The couple has used their personal and professional experience to tackle topics such as private equity in healthcare, unrealistic expectations placed on medical students, and providers’ struggles to balance the needs of their patients with the requirements of insurance companies.   In addition to social media, the two host a podcast and create educational resources for clinicians and “co-survivors,” or people who support a loved one through a traumatic illness or medical crisis.   Will and Kristin Flanary join us to talk about healthcare advocacy and the role that humor can play in it.  

The Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers in Vancouver, Wash. is the union that represents the nearly 400 workers who were working at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. when a chemical tank ruptured at the paper mill last month. Eleven employees died, all of whom were union members.    AWPPW has been coordinating relief efforts, including donations, to support and assess the needs of victims and their families. Last week, the union announced it had reached an agreement with Nippon Dynawave to secure full pay until at least Aug. 8 for workers who are unable to or were instructed not to work. Those who are scheduled to work will receive an additional three hours of pay for each shift they work.    A federal investigation into the cause of the rupture is currently underway and being led by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board. Josh Estes, a spokesperson and former local union president at AWPPW, says the union supports the demands for answers and accountability from victims and their families to ensure that a tragedy like this doesn’t happen again. Estes joins us to share the union’s focus on supporting workers and their families and the importance of this industry on the local economy.  

As artificial intelligence becomes ubiquitous, artists and writers are creating their own guiding principles for where and how they use the technology in their creative practices and their work. Tracy Hoagland is the chair of the Portland chapter of Willamette Writers, and by day, she works in the tech industry with AI. She says she doesn’t use AI in her writing practice, but has to consciously separate the two areas of her life. Jessie Kwak is an author and ghost writer based in Portland, who uses AI to supplement her writing work. They both join us to discuss their own ethos around AI in the world of creative writing.

In 1991, James Hall joined the Umatilla Tribal Fire Department as a volunteer firefighter on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Eastern Oregon. Today, Hall is the fire chief of the agency, leading its response to structural fires, wildland fires and calls for ambulance transportation services in a coverage area spanning hundreds of square miles.    In February, Hall was appointed by Governor Tina Kotek’s Office to serve a three-year term on the Governor’s Fire Service Policy Council, making him the first tribal representative to serve on the council in its history. A bill passed by the Oregon Legislature last year made changes to the council’s membership, including a requirement that one of its members be a fire agency representative from one of Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes.    Hall shares his recent work on the council and efforts to advocate for all tribal fire agencies in the state.  

With music so readily available on streaming platforms these days, it’s easy to put a playlist on in the background and go about the day. The Eugene Difficult Music Ensemble is asking audiences to put a little more thought into their listening.   The group aims to “expand the definition of what music can be and what music is capable of achieving, as well as who is capable of achieving it.” They commission and perform experimental works from underrepresented artists in showcases such as the New Music Festival and Ambient Ecology, which is taking place over the next two weekends. Recent performances have included vocal meditations that ask for audience participation and an instrument petting zoo for children.   JP Lempke is the executive director of EDME, and Adrian Cervantes Mendez is the group’s secretary. They both join us to talk about difficult music in the age of easy listening.