Idaho Matters

(ten80education.com) MakerMinded  schools focus on STEM education from the perspective of cultivating the next generation of manufacturers and infrastructural developers. On Thursday's  Idaho Matters , we talk about the presence of these schools in Idaho with Jamie Pilkerton and ReBekha Lulu with Basin Elementary School and Dr. Angela Hemingway, executive director of the Idaho STEM Action Center .

(IDOC) Yoga therapist  Kaelyn Rogers  spent a year-and-a-half traveleing the world, studying yoga and contemplating how she could bring that experience back to Boise to the benefit of the community. Rogers' solution was to bring  yoga into IDOC facilities  and train inmates. The program has been successful and on Thursday, she joins  Idaho Matters  with Deputy Warden Randy Valley from the Idaho St...

(i48/facebook) The i48 Film Festival  is a competition that has filmmakers use only 48 hours to write, pre-produce, cast, shoot and edit an original short film three to six minutes long. The festival, now in its 16th year, will take place at  The Flicks  this Saturday and we speak with festival co-founders Andrew Ellis and Josie Pusl about what makes a great (quickly shot) short film.

(peaceaction.org) Peace Action  is a nonprofit committed to implementing programs that encourage peace in hostile regions from  North Korea  to  Iran  to  global nuclear disarmement . Peace Action president Kevin Martin was in Boise Tuesday discussing the promotion of peaceful foreign policy and he joins  Idaho Matters  talk about creating a better world.

(Steven Gerner/Wikimedia) The Hindu festival of Holi celebrates the defeat of the evil demon Holika. It is a celebration of love, togetherness, food and music, culminating in an explosion of color. Idaho Matters talks with Kavita Patil, Neetu Talreja and Tina Kohli about celebrations in the Treasure Valley.

(St. Luke's FitOne) Wednesday, June 5, is National Running Day. Eric Stride and Alissa McKinley of St. Luke's FitOne Boise stop in to talk about registering for the 5K, 10K and half-marathon events.

(BSPR) The  Idaho Songwriters Association  helps nurture and cultivate songwriting and performance skills for Idaho musicians as well as providing a forum for performance and feedback.  Idaho Matters  talks with Crazy Love, singer/songwriters  Heather Platts  and  Bruce Michael Miller .

(TOM DAVENPORT / ASSOCIATED PRESS) A recent  FBI report  found that anti-Semitic crimes have increased dramatically in recent years. The  Echoes & Reflections  program has designed curriculum and training for educators to teach Holocaust history and hate crime recognition and on Tuesday's  Idaho Matters , we speak with Echoes & reflections deputy project director Melissa Mott and  Wassmuth...

(Miguel Vieira/Wikimedia) The  Idaho Conservation League  finds itself in a unique position as they have two separate hearings scheduled regarding the Sawtooth National Forest. One has the League  siding with  the U.S. Forest service and one  against .  Idaho Matters  talks with John Robison and Marie Callaway Kellner from the Idaho Conservation League about this odd confluence of cases.

(Idaho Conservation League) A March ruling by a BLM judge  prohibited the mining of 35 small claims along the South Fork Payette River. This marks a growing trend favoring preservation of public lands for recreational use over mining operations.  Adam Sowards  is a professor of environmental sciences at the University of Idaho and he authors a column for  High Country News  called  Reckoning With...

NASA will be launching a Mars-bound probe in July of 2020 and Martian rover powered by some good, old-fashioned, Idaho-made radioactive decay. Scientists at INL's  Space Nuclear Power and Isotope Technologies Division  will assemble a  plutonium-238  fueled energy unit to power the next rover to traverse the Red Planet.  Idaho Matters  speaks with the division's director, Dr. Stephen Johnson, abou...

(UC Davis) Twenty farmworkers in Caldwell  were taken to the hospital with flu-like symptoms; the workers were clearly exposed to a chemical of some kind and the EPA is currently investigating the contaminations. Many of Idaho's farm workers are migrant seasonal employees — undocumented and frequently exploited. We look at efforts to provide legal aid, healthcare and educational opportunities for...

(amazon) Ten years ago, Facebook was a godsend that helped connect families and friends and mitigate some of the loneliness and disconnect that has been plaguing post-war America. Today, critics claim Facebook is being used as a political and ideological weapon as well as a tool for hate speech, misogyny and harassment. Many critique Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg as being oblivious or uncaring...

(Idaho Department of Transportation) Summertime means roads projects and we check in with Jake Melder from the  Idaho Department of Transportation  to find out what projects are underway and how these improvements are impacting Treasure Valley commuters.

(Erik Tomasson / Courtesy of San Francisco Ballet ) Ballet Sun Valley  is welcoming the  San Francisco Ballet  to the Sun Valley Pavilion July 5 and 7. The Sun Valley company is also developing an  adaptive dance program  for aspiring dancers with Down syndrome, autism, Parkinson's and cerebral palsy.  Idaho Matters  talks with Ballet Sun Valley founder, Bob Smelick.

(Boise Police Department) Guest host George Prentice leads a round table discussion of the week's headlines with the region's top journalists. This week we speak with Kevin Richert of  Idaho Education News  about the governor's education task force . Betsy Russell from the  Idaho Press  discusses former gubernatorial candidate  Paulette Jordan's intention to re-enter Idaho politics and Melissa Dav...

(idaho shakespeare festival) The  Idaho Shakespeare Festival  kicked off its 2019 season last week with the opening of  The Taming of the Shrew .  This season's program is chock-a-block  with drama ( Witness for the Prosecution, Julius Caesar ) and music ( The Music Man, Million Dollar Quartet ) and on Friday's  Idaho Matters , the festival's marketing director, Hannah Read Newbill, joins us to pr...

(Image Source/Getty Images) Earlier this month, Idaho Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Bush  refused a search warrant  request from an unnamed law enforcement agency that would require a person under investigation to provide a fingerprint to unlock a smartphone. On Thursday's  Idaho Matters , we talk with  attorney Lisa McGrath  about your right to privacy when it comes to your smartphones, tabl...

(Snake River Valley BCA/Facebook) Regional development organizations are working together to cultivate affordable housing in a rapidly inflating market.  Idaho Matters  discusses housing affordability with Tyson Garten of the  Snake River Valley Building Contractors Association .

(Copper & Heat) The  Copper & Heat  podcast looks at the restaurant industry from the perspective of the culinary worker and the gender and race issues that take place in restaurant kitchens across America. The podcast is hosted and produced by the husband-and-wife team of Katy and Ricardo Osuna. The Coeur d'Alene natives earned the 2019 James Beard Broadcast Media Award for Best Podcast a...

(Best Small Town Throwdown Rodeo/Facebook) For 17 years, the  City of Eagle hosted the rodeo  named for the Treasure Valley town. When the lease ran out, city officials and rodeo organizers scrambled to find a new location. They got the job done just in time to kick off the 2018 Eagle Rodeo and their efforts are captured in the film " The Best Small Town Throwdown Rodeo ." The documentary is showi...

Summertime means rodeo in the Treasure Valley and on Wednesday's  Idaho Matters , we look at events in  Caldwell ,  Meridian , Nampa , Nyssa  and elsewhere in the region with Matt Askew, president of the  Idaho Cowboys Association . The History of the Caldwell Night Rodeo  by Boise State Public Radio's Laramie Lavala

(Indulge Boise/Facebook) Indulge Boise  leads diners on a culinary tour of Boise, Eagle, Meridian, Sun Valley and McCall. From charcuterie to desserts, wines, beer and cocktails, we look at all the vittles the Treasure and Wood River Valleys have to offer with Indulge Boise owner Angela Taylor.

(North End Neighborhood Association/Facebook) The  North End Garden Tour  is a self-guided stroll through the hidden nooks of Boise's North End neighborhood. The tour takes place this Sunday and proceeds will benefit a traffic median beautification project. Stephanie Allen and Anne Hausrath of the North End Neighborhood Association join Idaho Matters to talk about the event and the community.

(riders in the sky/facebook) Ranger Doug, Too Slim, Woody Paul and Joey are  Riders in the Sky , a quartet of cowboys who channel the traditions of cowpokes like Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. The group is performing at the Egyptian Theatre on May 30 and on Wednesday's edition,  Idaho Matters  meets Ranger Doug. Yodeling Lessions: Tales from the Trail Starring Riders In the Sky (youtube)