Idaho Matters

These Ferruginous Hawk nestlings are just some of the many raptors in the Birds of Prey NCA (Matt Stuber / Birds of Prey NCA Partnership) Last year, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted everything — including some really cool summer events. But the the Birds of Prey NCA Partnership took their annual Raptor Fest online, with presentations about raptors and raptor research. Next week, Raptor Fest 2021 wi...

Gov. Brad Little encourages Idahoans to get the COVID-19 vaccine ahead of the fall school year. He spoke at a press conference at Nampa High School on Thursday, Aug. 12 2021. (Sarah A. Miller / Idaho Statesman ) The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge as the more contagious delta variant spreads. Hospitalizations in the U.S. are now at the highest point in more than six months and pediatric C...

Taliban fighters stand guard at a checkpoint near the US embassy that was previously manned by American troops, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021. The Taliban declared an "amnesty" across Afghanistan and urged women to join their government Tuesday, seeking to convince a wary population that they have changed a day after deadly chaos gripped the main airport as desperate crowds tried t...

Premature and critically ill babies need the best care possible. In the Treasure Valley, patients have access to two neonatal intensive care units: Saint Alphonsus has two NICUs, one in Boise and the other in Nampa. The hospital is celebrating 20 years with these units. Idaho Matters talks with NICU Medical Director Dr. Stewart Lawrence, registered nurse Pam Johnson, and Melanie Gockner who's 6-ye...

Another summer is about to wrap up, but not before Ballet Sun Valley brings one more festival to town. Ballet-X will be performing at the Sun Valley Pavilion on August 22 and 23. Ballet-X is a contemporary ballet company based in Philadelphia. Idaho Matters talks with company co-founder Matthew Neenan and dancer Francesca Forcella.

More homes at Harris Ranch are climbing into the Boise Foothills where just five year prior the Table Rock Fire scorched the landscape. (Darin Oswald / Idaho Statesman) A COVID-19 surge spurred by the delta variant continues to get worse in Idaho. At the same time, some restaurants are bracing for more financial trouble due to the pandemic while others received big sums of federal aid. Plus: what...

( Wood River Fire and Rescue) The UN’s new climate change report out this week makes it clear that the climate crisis has arrived and it could get a lot worse. Among the dire scientific predictions, there is a glimmer of hope: humans still have time to decide how bad things will get. Here in Idaho, we’re experiencing historic heat waves, wildfire smoke that arrived earlier than normal this summer...

(Gustavo Sagrero / Boise State Public Radio) Lakefront property in McCall is highly coveted, because who doesn’t want to live on the shores of beautiful Payette Lake? A lot of that land is owned by the state specifically the Idaho Department of Lands. A privately held investment firm in Boise wanted that land and offered to swap some timberland in North Idaho in exchange for 26 square miles in and...

FILE - In this May 21, 2021 file photo, a person holds a mask while walking outside in Philadelphia. New evidence showing the delta variant is as contagious as chickenpox has prompted U.S. health officials to consider changing advice on how the nation fights the coronavirus. Recommending masks for everyone and requiring vaccines for doctors and other health care providers are among measures the Ce...

In this 20-second exposure, a meteor streaks across the night sky above trees near Moscow, Idaho in the early hours of Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 during the Perseid Meteor Shower. The annual event can produce dozens of meteors an hour. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) (Ted S. Warren/AP / AP) Wednesday night, the Idaho sky will light up with flashes and streaks from one of the best meteor showers of the year....

The Boise area could break the the all-time record for the most number of 100°F days in a year by the end of the weekend. It's just one more instance of excessive heat during a scorching summer. (via Twitter / National Weather Service in Boise) For the first time since June 18, the temperature at the Boise Airport was below 60 degrees Monday according to the National Weather Service. But beginning...

Students, some wearing protective masks, arrive for the first day of school at Sessums Elementary School Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2021, in Riverview, Fla. Students are required to wear the masks in class unless their parents opt out. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara) (Chris O'Meara/AP / AP) Idaho’s latest coronavirus surge is continuing and the spike in new cases corresponds with the emergence of the delta varian...

It’s hard to miss the unusual pink tree in Boise’s new Cherie Buckner-Webb Park at the corner of Bannock and 11th streets. People gravitate to the swinging benches that drop from “Gentle Breeze,” a public art piece by New York artist Matthew Mazzotta. (Darin Oswald / Idaho Statesman) From a water shortage in the face of climate change, a new park in Boise dedicated to a trailblazing Democratic pol...

Rep. Brent Crane, member of the House ethics committee, said Rep. Priscilla Giddings told a “bald-faced lie” about the committee chair working with the House speaker to bring forward ethics complaints. (Sarah A. Miller / Idaho Statesman) The Idaho House Ethics Committee recommended this week that a sitting state lawmaker be censured and removed from her seat on the House Commerce and Human Resourc...

This peaceful pond was created by beavers in the shadow of a large apartment complex. The beaver lodge is on the left. The dam in the middle is just one of a series of dams built by the beavers. (Lindsey Schmidt / Boise State Public Radio) I’m standing not far from Marianne Williams Park in Boise looking out over a small pond surrounded by reeds and rushes. In the middle is a rather drab pile of s...

Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., flanked by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, left, and Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., right, speaks to the press after it was announced that the Biden administration will enact a targeted nationwide eviction moratorium outside of Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021. For the past five days, lawmakers and activists primarily led by Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., have been sitting i...

Boise State University is offering vaccines for members of the campus community, and the wider community. Vaccines at all sites in the United States are free. (Frankie Barnhill / Boise State Public Radio ) The delta variant is on the rise in the Gem State. What does this mean for unvaccinated and vaccinated Idahoans? Idaho Matters answers some of your COVID-19 questions with Dr. David Pate, curren...

(Photo by Steven Cornfield on Unsplash) The Idaho Matters Reporter Roundtable gets you updated on the news that made headlines this week. Journalists featured today: Kevin Richert, senior editor of IdahoEdNews Clark Corbin, reporter with Idaho Capital Sun Melissa Davin, Host, Idaho Reports on Idaho Public Television

(Flickr Creative Commons, Mr. Leeds) Idaho Walk Bike Alliance is hosting its first Annual Run/Walk for Safe Streets. The event is a fundraiser for Idaho Walk Bike Alliance’s statewide programming efforts. It's a combination in-person and virtual event, August 7th at the Boise Pavilion in Julia Davis Park, and virtual August 1st - August 6th, with prizes for participants. The Walk/Bike Alliance's N...

My flower flat is Mix 3 and includes scabiosa, shasta daisy, dahlia, oregano, snapdragon, sage, salvia (pink sunday), and salvia (blue victory). (Michael Martin) On a very windy weekend in May more than 800 people, including myself, drove out to the Sunnyslope region in Canyon County to take part in the Treasure Valley Pollinator Project. Sign-ups for the project started in January. After five mon...

An education task force formed by Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin, left, and chaired by Rep. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird, convened for the second time Thursday in the Lincoln Auditorium at the Idaho Statehouse. (Darin Oswald / Idaho Statesman ) The 'Education Indoctrination Task Force' convened by Lt. Governor Janice McGeachin has meet three times, each as part of its mission to root out alle...

'I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump's Catestrophic Final Year,' a new book by Washington Post reporters Carol Leonning and Philip Rucker. Two months after leaving office, Former President Donald Trump sat down with two reporters from The Washington Post . That interview became the basis for a new book, I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump's Catestrophic Final Year , by Carol Leonnig and Philip Ruc...

(iStockphoto.com) The 'Week of the Young Child' is a national annual celebration focusing on the needs of our youngest children and their families. The event is meant to recognize early childhood programs and services aimed at the youngest among us. This year, Idahoans can celebrate along with the rest of the country, August 8 at the Idaho Botanical Garden. Sheralynn Bauder of the Idaho Associatio...

( jasmineguillory.com) New York Times best-selling author Jasmine Guillory joins Idaho Matters to discuss her latest novel, While We Were Dating .

A KN95 mask and a surgical mask. (Photo illustration by Max Posner/NPR) Dr. David Pate joins Idaho Matters for the weekly discussion on all things pandemic. This week, mask recommendations for vaccinated people are back. How did the CDC come to this decision? Plus, Dr. Pate answers your questions. Have a question for a future conversation? Email: idahomatters@boisestate.edu