Think Out Loud

FILE - Youth climate activists make signs for a rally in downtown Portland, May 20, 2022.
New law to bring climate education to classrooms across Oregon
Oregon has passed a new law requiring climate change to be taught across core K-12 subjects.
Today's show
Problem of overtourism comes into focus for Portland travel book shop owner
Workers complain of bad management, poor conditions at Washington Midsummer Renaissance Faire
Featured stories

Cannabis testing in Oregon shows inflated THC numbers
An investigation from Undark found that some labs were providing fudged results to cannabis growers. We'll hear from a reporter to learn more.
Mass Intel layoffs will hit Oregon economy hard
OPB business reporter Kyra Buckley has been following this story, and she joins us to bring us the latest.

Gov. Tina Kotek calls for special session, delays ODOT layoffs
Gov. Kotek has called for a special session in late August to address transportation funding. We'll hear from OPB politics reporter Dirk Vanderhart to learn more.

What a housing accountability office means for Oregon
We learn more about the agency and what it means for Oregon's housing crisis.
Clatsop County considers program to convert vacant second homes into long-term rentals
The program would offer cash incentives for property owners to lease out their vacation homes for a year or more.
Oregon wildfire season prompts state emergency declaration
We hear from the Oregon State Fire Marshal and the deputy director of fire operations at the Oregon Department of Forestry about the resources being mobilized to fight the wildfires burning across the state.

OSU researchers are working to make wood stoves burn more cleanly
We'll hear about efforts to make residential wood stoves burn more cleanly and efficiently.
How Oregon’s forests are tied to the Roadless Rule
The Roadless Rule is a U.S. Forest Service regulation that protects inventoried roadless areas.

Budget airline to end service at Salem airport next month
Avelo, the only commercial airline operating out of the Salem airport, announced it would end service in August. Salem Statesman Journal city reporter Whitney Woodworth joins us to share her reporting on this story.
Washington County revises DEI policies for new federal requirements
Washington County is revising its approach to diversity, equity and inclusion to comply with new federal grant requirements.
Bend Bulletin newspaper union fights Carpenter Media Group layoffs
Morgan Owen is a crime and public safety reporter for the Bend Bulletin. She joins us to share the latest in the story that’s unfolding at her paper.
Oregon crime victims services organizations face deep cuts after losing federal funding
Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth joins us, along with two victims services advocates, to tell us more about the consequences of the funding shortfall.

REBROADCAST: Former Washington poet laureate from Hanford area on how the ‘Atomic City’ shaped her life
Seattle poet Kathleen Flenniken grew up in Richland and worked as a civil engineer at Hanford in the 1980s. She served as Washington State Poet Laureate from 2012 to 2014. In her first year as poet laureate, she published a collection called Plume, which deals directly with how her Hanford area upbringing influenced her. The book explores the history of the site, the death of her best friend’s father from a radiation illness, and her childhood in “Atomic City.” Flenniken sits down with us from the campus of Washington State University Tri-Cities.
REBROADCAST: Portland painter Arvie Smith on his Guggenheim Fellowship work
Smith joins us to talk about his decades-long career.

MXPDX festival brings together Oregon and Mexico cultural exchange through food, beer and music
MXPDX brings breweries from Mexico and Oregon to work together on collaborative brews. We'll hear from an organizer and two breweries to hear more about the festival.
Food Court 5000 brings 1980s aerobic craze to mall walkers in Portland
The Food Court 5000 has participants power walk throughout the Lloyd Center mall as '80s hits blare behind them. We'll hear from the leader of the group to learn why she started this.

Oregon’s Planned Parenthood clinics anticipate 70% budget loss
We talk with Sara Kennedy, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette, which runs nine clinics in the region, about the impact of the expected Medicaid cuts and what alternatives might be available.
Advocate shares concerns about potential small-scale nuclear reactors in the Pacific Northwest
Yesterday we heard from Oregon’s NuScale Power. Today we hear from Kelly Campbell, policy director for Columbia Riverkeeper, about her organization’s concerns about using small-scale nuclear reactors in the Pacific Northwest.
Athletes share experience at Special Olympics Oregon
Over the weekend athletes competed in Corvallis for the 53rd Special Olympics Oregon summer season. We'll hear from two athletes who competed.

Portland wildfire expert wants to overhaul Oregon’s wildfire approach
Matt Donegan is a wildfire and land management consultant based in Portland. Now, he says Oregon is behind on wildfire management and federal, state and private organizations need to come together to figure out the future of Oregon’s forests.