In the Loop (Segments)

The U.S. wastes an estimated 30 to 40% of its food supply. A new app hopes to reverse the trend by connecting restaurants with leftovers to hungry customers.

Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre on Thursday named ensemble members Glen Davis and Audrey Francis as artistic directors of the company. It’s the first time a pair is elected to co-lead the company. Reset speaks with Francis and Davis about their future plans.

Research shows mothers have especially borne the brunt of the pandemic’s economic toll, with many leaving their jobs or cutting back on work to take on child care and household duties. Reset talks to a sociologist and opens the phones to listeners to discuss how mothers are navigating parenting and work, and how the country can address its child care crisis as more parents return to the office.

The City Council takes steps towards police reform, approving a civilian oversight board for the police department, while three mass shootings occur in the city just hours before U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland arrives. Plus analysis of the not-so-surprising announcement that Governor Pritzker is seeking reelection. Reset goes behind the headlines of the week’s news.

Chicago had three mass shootings in eight hours Wednesday. What can be done to stop the violence? Reset checks in with UChicago’s Crime Lab for solutions.

In the summer of 1919, a Black teenager was stoned for drifting into an area of Lake Michigan tacitly reserved for whites only. He then drowned, leading to one of the worst incidents of racial violence in Chicago. Reset brings on the co-director of a project that holds an annual bike tour to mark the anniversary of the riot and to educate the public about how the events that summer shaped the city...

A 99-year old restaurant, which took patrons back to old Russia and Bohemia with it’s food and décor, is in danger of being torn down. Reset takes you inside Klas Restaurant in Cicero on the latest edition of our series “What’s That Building.”

Supporters of the restorative justice movement say it’s a better alternative to dealing with crime by focusing on healing instead of punishment. Last week, Gov. JB Pritzker gave the restorative justice movement a big boost, making it illegal to use statements or actions made during restorative justice sessions in court. Reset hears about the potentials and challenges of restorative justice.

Reset checks in with WBEZ’s education desk and a suburban superintendent to discuss how Chicago-area schools plan to reopen this fall.

A 34% dip in Black enrollment in Illinois colleges and universities suggests that higher education in the state is not equitable. Reset checks in with an educator and a leader at a women’s employment nonprofit who are working together to offer solutions.

The Chicago Department of Transportation on Thursday released its Strategic Plan for Transportation, self-billed as “the nation’s first urban transportation plan developed in the wake of the pandemic, economic and racial justice crises of 2020.” CDOT Commissioner Gia Biagi and Janette Sadik-Khan,a former New York City transportation commissioner, join Reset to discuss the bold plan.

Young Chicago Authors’ fans, staff and the kids they serve were all shocked to hear accusations that top executives ignored allegations of sexual assault. After suspending programming for 90 days, the non-profit is rebuilding. Reset hears from rapper and poet Demetrius Amparan, the newly named executive director of Young Chicago Authors.

Life expectancy in the U.S. fell by a year and half in 2020, the largest drop since World War II. Reset checks in with Dr. David Ansell, author of the book The Death Gap: How Inequality Kills for his thoughts.

An investigation by The Washington Post and 16 other media outlets analyzed a list of 50,000 phone numbers possibly breached in a spyware attack. Developed by a company in Israel, the spyware mostly targeted journalists, political activists and public officials, but it nonetheless raises questions about the security of everyone's devices.

As Amazon and Walmart battle for the e-commerce crown, one Chicago startup is looking to level the playing field for smaller businesses. For our weekly series Chicago Innovators, Reset learns more about ShipBob and its growing success in the industry.

Overdose deaths in the U.S. spiked to a record 93,000 last year, according to new federal data. Opioids are at the heart of these tragedies. Reset asks two experts to explain the factors driving these deaths and what can be done about it.

Chicago aldermen are expected to cast votes on two consequential proposals during Wednesday’s City Council meeting: A planned $4 billion redevelopment of the Michael Reese hospital site along Chicago’s lakefront and a compromise that would bring civilian oversight to the Chicago Police Department for the first time. Reset checks in with a reporter live from City Hall.

A new report from the Delta Institute offers 63 recommendations for reducing waste in Chicago and improving the city’s recycling rates. Reset takes a closer look at the study’s findings and how they might impact local taxpayers

Inflation is at its highest level in over a decade, and while the Federal Reserve says the pain is temporary, try telling that to someone who depleted their savings during the pandemic or someone living on a fixed income. Reset explains why prices are surging so high and explores what that means for U.S. workers, women and retirees.

As airlines face increased pressure from customers and shareholders to reduce carbon emissions, Chicago-based United Airlines recently purchased more than 100 electric-powered planes. Reset finds out what this purchase may foretell for the move towards renewable energy for United and other airlines.

Chicago singer Tammy McCann is helping program music for the city, even as she works to get her own career back on track. Reset talks to McCann about everything from the weekly events shining a positive light on the South Side to her new record project with famed guitarist Fareed Haque.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot campaigned on bringing civilian oversight to the Chicago Police Department in her first 100 days. On Monday, she announced a deal with a coalition of community groups seeking police reform. Reset hears from a grassroots activist, an alderman on the City Council’s Public Safety Committee and WBEZ city politics reporter Claudia Morell.

The Delta variant is now the dominant COVID-19 strain around the world. In the U.S., areas with low vaccination rates are battling outbreaks driven by the variant. Reset brings on Pulitzer Prize-winner Ed Yong for the latest on the COVID-19 surge in neighboring Missouri and why this year might be worse than last year for some communities.

A national coalition of teachers is pushing back against white backlash to Black school curriculum like Critical Race Theory (CRT). A Seattle-based teacher tells Reset how Black history in schools will help deconstruct systemic racism and break the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

Alderman have begun the complicated and contentious process of redrawing Chicago’s ward maps. Reset checks in with a reporter and a demographer to understand how the process works and what’s at stake.