Access Utah

Renowned American political activist, scholar and author Ibram X. Kendi visited USU in 2017 for a keynote presentation on “How to be an Anti-Racist.” The presentation was sponsored by the USU Inclusion Center.

On August 26th, 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment was passed. Women were no longer barred from voting because of gender. Today on Access Utah, we’ll preview an event happening tomorrow celebrating this anniversary and honoring the people, past and present, who fight for voting rights.

The USU Center for Anticipatory Intelligence (CAI) looks across all disciplines to spot threats posed by emerging technologies and other threats. CAI is an interdisciplinary nexus fusing expertise in national security and geopolitics with cutting-edge instruction in cyber threats, data analytics, and emergent technology. CAI students predicted a novel zoonotic outbreak last year.

You swab your cheek or spit into a vial, then send it away to a lab somewhere. Weeks later you get a report that might tell you where your ancestors came from or if you carry certain genetic risks. Or the report could reveal a long-buried family secret and upend your entire sense of identity.

Today on Access Utah, writer Bill Shapiro joins us to talk about what draws him to other people's photos. He says other people's photographs are "like time-travel and a shortcut to empathy." We talk about how photography can pull us outside of ourselves, connecting us to something greater.

Today we remember a friend of Access Utah, the writer Jeff Metcalf, who died this summer. I had the privilege of interviewing him several times on the show. He was unfailingly warm, witty, open, funny and profound.

A while back on Access Utah, Michael Sowder, USU professor of English and affiliated professor of religious studies, helped us learn some of the history and current practice of yoga. On Tuesday’s Access Utah he’ll lead us in an exploration of mindfulness and meditation, which may be of special interest during these times of pandemic.

Students will be returning to schools in many districts across Utah soon. How are officials planning to keep students and teachers safe amid the pandemic? What will the mix of in-person and online teaching be? How does everyone feel about going back to school?

“Leave it as it is,” Theodore Roosevelt announced while viewing the Grand Canyon for the first time. “The ages have been at work on it and man can only mar it.” Roosevelt’s rallying cry signaled the beginning of an environmental fight that still wages today.

Matthew Crawford, author of the new book “Why We Drive:Toward a Philosophy of the Open Road,” says that once we were drivers, the open road alive with autonomy, adventure, danger, trust, and speed. Today we are as likely to be in the back seat of an Uber as behind the wheel ourselves. Tech giants are hurling us toward a shiny, happy “self-driving” future, selling utopia but equally keen to adverti...

“There are few subjects that interest us more generally than the adventures of robbers and bandits.” That’s Scottish writer Charles MacFarlane, quoted in Charles Leerhsen’s new book. One such outlaw was Robert LeRoy Parker, born in Beaver, Utah and raised in Circleville, who became, of course, Butch Cassidy. Charles Leerhsen brings the notorious Butch Cassidy to vivid life, revealing the fascinati...

A coalition of organizations is hosting a national virtual event today, August 6, and Sunday, August 9, on the 75th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to commemorate the survivors of nuclear weapons and production. Still Here: 75 Years of Shared Nuclear Legacy will include highlights from local events, stories from survivors, and a look toward a future free from nuclear threats...

Today on Access Utah we’re doing another non-profit spotlight. We’d love to shine a light on your favorite non-profit or individual doing good in your community. Amy Anderson, Director of Outreach for the Sunshine Terrace Foundation and Spiritual Counselor with Sunshine Hospice in Logan will join us for the hour and we’ll hear from representatives of other nonprofits throughout the hour

Today on Access Utah we’re going to check in with CAPSA, a domestic violence, sexual abuse, and rape recovery center serving Cache County and the Bear Lake area. CAPSA’s Misty Hewitt says that rates of domestic violence are up during the pandemic. We’ll talk about services, reporting abuse, and healing from trauma, among other topics. We’ll also check in with Hilary Renshaw from USU’s Office of Eq...

Poet Ben Gunsberg will join us for Access Utah on Monday. He’s been writing poems for the pandemic. We’ll hear some of those poems today. His latest collection is “Welcome, Dangerous Life.” He writes about the vulnerability of being a parent. He says (in an article in Utah State University Today) “The stakes are raised once you’ve got children. The title [of the collection] sort of hints at the wa...

Venezuelan double bassist Edicson Ruiz is one of the premier double bass soloists in the world. He is a previous winner of the International Society of Bassists solo competition and in 2003 became one of the youngest members of the Berlin Philharmonic at the age of 18. He’s described as a shining example of the ground-breaking El Sistema.

In a world where rational, scientific explanations are more available than ever, belief in the unprovable and irrational–in the fringe–is on the rise. There’s a new book out called “The Unidentified: Mythical Monsters, Alien Encounters, and Our Obsession with the Unexplained.” The author, Colin Dickey, will join me for the hour on Monday’s Access Utah. We’ll talk about everything from the great Ke...

Following the death of George Floyd in May, protests across the nation have demanded police reform and an end to systemic racism in policing. Today we’ll talk about how we’re doing with this in Utah. We'll speak with Rep. Sandra Hollins, D-Salt Lake City; and Darlene McDonald, Chairwoman of the Utah Black Roundtable and a member of the newly-created Salt Lake City Commission for Racial Equity in P...

Today we’ll take a look at the Coronavirus pandemic’s effects in Utah jails and prisons. Our guests will include Salt Lake Tribune reporter Jessica Miller; Mayra Cristobal, whose husband has contracted COVID-19 and is incarcerated at the Weber County Jail; and Angie Millgate, whose former husband is incarcerated in the Washington County Jail.

The work of photographer Craig Law is included in an exhibition at the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art at Utah State University. The exhibit is called Sky Above, Earth Below: A History of Western Landscape Photography. You can view the exhibit at artmuseum.usu.edu.

Patty Rayman was born with the ability to communicate with animals and has helped thousands of people resolve many types of behavior, health, attitude and relationship issues with their animal companions. In working with all types of animals, she has developed techniques to help people move from conflict to cooperation in their relationships.

Every year for Earth Day, we check in with writer and photographer Stephen Trimble, author of “Bargaining for Eden: The Fight for the Last Open Spaces in America,” and many other books. This time, Stephen Trimble suggested we also reach out to his friend, ecologist, ethnobotanist and writer, Gary Paul Nabhan.

While artist Chris Terry is known for his contemplative interior landscapes, an exhibition at the USU Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art (NEHMA) featured the experimental work he was able to create during four sabbaticals throughout his tenure at USU.

We’re compiling another UPR Community Booklist and we want to know what you’re reading. What’s on your nightstand or device right now? What is the best book you’ve read so far this year? Which books are you suggesting to friends and family? We’d love to hear about any book you’re reading, including in the young adult & children’s categories. One suggestion or many are welcome.

Today we talk with Heather Lende about her new book Of Bears and Ballots: An Alaskan Adventure in Small-Town Politics.