Idaho Matters

Susan Madacsi  uses her blacksmithing skills to create stunning sculptures from glass and metal. Her work can be found in homes and businesses from Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong to Canyon County, Idaho. Madacsi joins  Idaho Matters  to describe her creative process.

(credit: Metro Community services) Earlier this year we learned about a unique raffle to benefit older and disabled Idahoans;  Metro Community Services  is selling tickets to raffle off a tiny home built by students from  COSSA  Regional Technology and Education Center in Wilder. We get an update on the drawing with Metro's Matt Jones.

(stock/flickr) We review the week's headlines with a team of regional journalists. This week we speak with Melissa Davlin, host of  Idaho Reports  on  Idaho Public Television , Kimberlee Kruesi with the  Associated Press-Idaho   and Kevin Richert of  Idaho Education News .

(BSPR) Idaho has seen a substantial increase in sexually transmitted disease rates in the past year.  Gonorrhea rates in the Magic Valley  have gone up more than 200%. We look at this trend and efforts to stop the spread of STDs with representatives from the  Idaho Department of Health and Welfare  and the  Central District Health Department .

(NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute) Planetary scientist Jani Radebaugh was looking at pictures of Pluto's surface a few years ago and realized the images were remarkably similar to the features found in California's Death Valley. Radebaugh determined  Pluto has sandy dunes , much like those found in the deserts on Earth. She joins us to talk abou...

(Ethan Webber/BSPR) Several states have seen their  election networks hacked  from foreign countries and several more have seen hacking into infrastructural computer systems. We speak with Idaho  Secretary of State Lawerence Denney  about election security.

(idahocom.org) The opening of the  Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine brings the first medical school to Idaho. Classes began this week and we speak with Dan Burrell, a founder and trustee of ICOM and the CEO of the Burrell Group, the investment group behind ICOM's funding.

(thestar.com) Madam Mao  is a stage production that tells the story of Jiang Qing, the wife of Mao Zedong. The play has recieved  rave reviews  in Toronto, where it originated and the original cast is coming to perform  Madam Mao  at the Boise Contemporary Theater . We'll meet with the play's creator, Janet Lo. 

(Treasure Valley Hospice) A group of Eagle High School filmmakers produced a documentary that places people from all walks of life, from all generations in a single, teal chair to answer one question: If you knew you had limited time, what would you do? We speak with  Kimberly Ouwehand , the director of  The Teal Chair  about what motivated high school auteurs to ask this question of people aged 8...

(City of McCall) The City of McCall is in desperate need of a new  library . In the past 13 years, circulation has increased more than 80% and participation in programs has seen a nearly six-fold increase. The McCall Public Library is reaching out to the community for input and we   look at the role of libraries in the growing Treasure Valley communities.

(saaltco.com) When talking to families in to Venezuela, Cherie Hoeger found that women there did not have access to reliable menstrual hygiene products. This inspired her to custom build a menstrual cup that can be cleaned and re-used for distribution to economically disadvantaged women around the world. Cherie joins us with her partner, Amber Sawson, to describe the role of  their Idaho-based com...

(Tom Michael/BSPR) The  208 Comedy Fest  returns to Boise this week with a massive number of performers scheduled to yuk it up at multiple venues from Thursday through Sunday. We'll meet with festival organizers who will tell us what's so funny about Boise.

(Willis Hall/Facebook) You hear our theme music on Boise State Public Radio several times a day. It's been stuck in our heads since April. On Wednesday's program, we meet Will Hall, the man who composed the  Idaho Matters  theme.

(CREDIT BRUCE REICHERT / IDAHO PUBLIC TELEVISION) The  Land and Water Conservation Fund  was established in 1965 by Congress to provide funds and grants to governments at all levels to purchase lands for preservation and conservation. The program is funded by off-shore drilling leases and separation fees. In 2015,  Congress chose not to renew the LWCF , and it will run itself out sometime this fal...

(iStockphoto.com/NPR) The benefits of breastfeeding is well known;  UNICEF  estimates that better education regarding lactation could save 820,000 lives worldwide. We'll look at efforts to bring awareness to the importance breastfeeding plays in childhood development.

(campfiretheatrefestival.com) The  Campfire Theatre Festival  is a three-day event "created by theatre makers, for theatre makers." Scheduled events include readings, actor, writer and stagecraft workshops and multiple performances. Festival organizers join  Idaho Matters  in studio to talk about the events.    

(stock) This interview was originally broadcast Thursday, May 24, 2018. Idaho lags behind the nation when it comes to colon cancer screening rates. Idaho Matters discusses the importance of early screenings with Dr. Dan Zuckerman, medical director of the  Mountain States Tumor Institute  and we hear first-hand about battling colon cancer with a survivor.

(Image Source/Getty Images) This interview was originally broadcast Wednesday, June 27, 2018. Social media may no longer be a new frontier for the experienced, but educating children about safe and responsible use is a changing dynamic. We look at ways for kids to stay (occasionally) plugged in while staying safe.

(AMYPENCEBROWN.COM/CONSPIRE PHOTOGRAPHY ) This interview was originally broadcast Tuesday, May 22, 2018. The documentary  Fattitude  debuts in Boise on May 30; the picture celebrates body positivity and points out the societal inequities and stereotypes faced by overweight people. The  webpage  shares facts like "fat people are paid $1.25 less an hour than their thin counterparts" and "one in thre...

(iStockphoto.com) This interview was originally broadcast Monday, June 11, 2018. As we try to squeeze the last bit of summer out of the season,  City Center Wines  sommelier Joseph DiGrigoli joins us to talk about the best wines to pair with BBQ or that freshly-caught trout and which Idaho wines make the best party cocktails.

(stock) Idaho Matters reviews the week's headlines with a team of regional journalists. This week we speak with Don Day of  BoiseDev , Scott McIntosh of the  Idaho Press  and Kevin Richert of  Idaho Education News .

(facebook) Meridian Art Week  begins this Tuesday and it will draw the community together for a celebration of art, film and theater.  Idaho Matters  speaks with Meridian Mayor Tammy de Weerd and City Commissions & Committees Specialist Hillary Blackstone about the week's events.

(Facebook/Boise Philharmonic) The Boise Philharmonic  announced the program for the upcoming season, and it is bold. The standards are on deck - Brahms, DeBussy, Handel - and some aggressive selections:  John William's  Star Wars , James Bond and  Rocky  scores are on the program as well as a celebration of Leonard Bernstein's 100th birthday and even a  pub crawl  (with friends from Boise State Pu...

(Laurel MacDonald) The Idaho Commission on the Arts awarded a grant to  Jack's Urban Meeting Place  and  WingTip Press  to produce a Dia de Muertos event that combines printing with construction equipment. The  Día de Muertos Steamroller Print Project  is exactly what it sounds like - artists are encouraged to bring handmade print plates, ink and a sheet and a steamroller will press the plates and...

(Summit Environmental/ProTech, provided via DEQ/Idaho Statesman) Last year, Mountain Home Air Force Base  sent a shipment of hazardous  waste to a municipal landfill outside of Boise. The material is the leftovers of a chemical-resistant coating used on buildings that contains a substance linked to cancer.  Idaho Matters  finds out what was dumped, the threat from the substance and remediation eff...