New Mexico in Focus (A Production of NMPBS)

Host Lou DiVizio runs through the top headlines to start the week, including news New Mexico State Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto has been removed from his position as chairman of the New Mexico Finance Authority interim committee.  Then, Gene Grant and the Line Opinion Panel talk about the other recent developments in the sexual harassment accusations against Senator Ivey-Soto.  Gene and the...

On today's episode, Our Land Senior Producer Laura Paskus talks with author Erica Gies about the slow water movement.  In her new book, “Water Always Wins: Thriving in an Age of Drought and Deluge,” Gies writes about how development choices and centralized infrastructure have exacerbated the water extremes many regions of the world are experiencing as the planet warms. She also writes ab...

Host Lou DiVizio runs through the top state headlines, including news that lawmakers plan to take up alcohol taxes in the upcoming 2023 session. Then, Gene Grant talks through the U.S. Forest Service's decision to end a ban on prescribed burns. Gene and the Line Opinion Panel debate if this is the right time and if new precautions are enough to prevent another catastrophe like the Hermit's Peak Ca...

Last week, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D, joined Our Land Senior Producer Laura Paskus in the studio to talk about some of the state’s most pressing environmental issues.  In the conversation you'll hear, the two discuss New Mexico’s devastating fire season, a private company’s plans to store more nuclear waste in the state, the military’s contamination of groundwater with PFAS, o...

This week on the podcast, host Lou DiVizio runs down the top headlines impacting New Mexicans, including the announcement from the U.S. Forest Service on prescribed burns.  Then, Gene Grant and the Line Opinion Panel talk through the historic ruling that removes Couy Griffin from his position as Otero County Commissioner, and bars him from holding future public office.  Gene and the Pane...

Gene Grant speaks with two leaders at an Albuquerque nonprofit, dedicated to giving unhoused people life-saving resources. The representatives from the New Mexico Harm Reduction Collaborative share their perspective on the root causes of homelessness and the recent debate around homeless encampments. Host: Lou DiVizio Correspondent: Gene Grant Guests: Ash Charzuk, executive director, New Mexico Ha...

Host Lou DiVizio previews the week ahead at New Mexico in Focus, and runs through the top state headlines impacting New Mexicans.  Gene Grant hosts a discussion with our Line Opinion Panel about new polling in statewide races that shows Democrats with big leads.  Gene and the Panel also assess the dire situation in Las Vegas where ash and wildfire debris have contaminated the city’s drin...

Host Lou DiVizio runs through the top headlines in New Mexico, including news taxpayers could be on the hook for covering cleanup costs if PFAS contamination expands beyond the borders of Cannon Air Force Base.  Then, Gene Grant speaks with Albuquerque's District 4 City Councilor Brook Bassan about her recent reversal regarding homeless encampments.  And, Gene and the Line Opinion Panel...

Host Lou DiVizio rounds up key headlines in our state, including an update on a temporary water treatment facility in Las Vegas, where ash and wildfire debris are contaminating drinking water.  Then, in collaboration with New Mexico In Dept h , an exclusive roundtable discussion on alcohol in New Mexico. Journalist Ted Alcorn and a panel of experts discuss his extensive, 7-part series called...

Host Lou DiVizio runs through the top headlines in New Mexico, including the confirmed cause of the deadly McBride Fire.  Gene Grant moderates a timely conversation about priorities for parents as they send their kids back to the classroom. Our Line Opinion Panelists talk through new security changes at some NM districts, and touch on some troubling statistics that place New Mexico 50th in ed...

With Laura Paskus, NMPBS celebrates five years of “Our Land: New Mexico’s Environmental Past, Present and Future.”  In this look back on some of the show's segments, we explore the state’s rivers and landscapes with an eye toward understanding climate change, habitat restoration, community farming, traditional knowledge, and more. Want to see more environmental coverage from NMPBS? Visit the...

Today's topic, with Laura Paskus at NMPBS, is healthy masculinities. And maybe you're wondering, what does that have to do with the environment?  Looking around the world, it's clear that we can’t have healthy communities or healthy landscapes without healthy men. But it can be hard to have honest conversations about that. Earlier this year, the New Mexico Healthy Masculinities Collaborative,...

Host Lou DiVizio reports the latest breaking news in the case of four Muslim men murdered in the city of Albuquerque. Police say they've arrested a suspect in the case. More details to come.  Lou also runs through the top headlines impacting New Mexicans, including a look back at the incident in Gallup during the 100th Inter-Tribal Ceremonial Celebration. Navajo Nation President reacts to the...

At the end of July, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin finally stopped holding up a climate, energy and tax package. The Inflation Reduction Act is a huge bill that some say, if passed, could transform America’s policy on climate change and energy. As luck would have it, we already had New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich coming into the NMPBS studio to talk about climate change legislation. On this...

Laura Paskus, Executive Producer of "Our Land: New Mexico's Environmental Past, Present, and Future," on NMPBS talks with U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-NM, about her three water bills that passed the U.S. House of Representatives for inclusion in the Wildfire Response and Drought Resiliency Act. At the end of July, just as Stansbury's bills were moving through the House, people living in Albuquer...

Host Lou DiVizio recaps a weekend of events in Albuquerque, including the main event of TedxABQ. If you'd like to watch or listen to the facebook live interview between Gene Grant and Teresa Robinson, you can do so here: https://fb.watch/eE2uh1CNCL/ Our Land Executive Producer Laura Paskus talks with Clifford Dahm, professor emeritus at the University of New Mexico’s Department of Biology, about t...

Senior Producer Lou DiVizio updates you on the headlines impacting New Mexicans right now, including an announcement from the state's Children, Youth and Families Department on changes coming to the agency.  Then, Gene Grant and the Line Opinion Panel weighs in on a new boom in oil and gas revenues and the delicate process of trying to spend that money.  Our Land Executive Producer Laura...

Senior Producer Lou DiVizio digs through the controversy surrounding a new committee at the state’s Children Youth and Families Department. He asks Sec. Barbara Vigil why the first two meetings of the steering committee were been closed to the public, and how she plans to help the department regain community trust.  Plus, Lou catches up with the watchdog group New Mexico Foundation for Open G...

On this episode of New Mexico in Focus the podcast, host Lou DiVizio recaps the headlines impacting New Mexicans at the start of the week.  Gene Grant conducts a conversation on new drought research showing evidence that drought feeds heat, and vice versa. The panel explores the implications this may have for New Mexico and the southwest as a whole.  Our Land Executive Producer Laura Pas...

Host Lou DiVizio runs down some of the biggest headlines impacting people in New Mexico this week. Then, Gene Grant hosts a discussion about how the recent reversal of Roe V. Wade could impact the race for Governor here in New Mexico. One of the key questions is whether or not the issue will drive turnout for democratic voters.  This week, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission recommended approva...

Host Lou DiVizio runs through the top headlines in New Mexico, including changes coming to the state's Public Regulation Commission. Plus, an update on the deadline DWI crash that killed a mother and two children in Wagon Mound.  Later in the show, correspondent Gwyneth Doland talks with Ellie Rushforth, reproductive rights counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union in New Mexico. Rushfor...

On this episode of New Mexico in Focus the podcast, host Lou DiVizio shares new action from Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on abortion access. The Line Opinion Panel reacts to the recent developments in Otero County where commissioners have voted to certify its primary election results. That’s after a lawsuit from the Secretary of State, and an order from the State Supreme Court.  In an inte...

On this episode of New Mexico in Focus the Podcast, host Lou DiVizio explains the impact of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe V. Wade. He also speaks with Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver about the election certification saga in Otero County, and what it could mean heading into November. The Line Opinion Panel discusses a new poll showing a closer-than-expected race for Governo...

The Line Opinion Panel dives into the chaos in Otero County where commissioners have been sued and ordered to certify primary election results. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver has also referred those commissioners to the Attorney General for potential criminal and civil violations of the state’s election code. The panel also assesses a bipartisan plan to address gun violence that largely...

The Line Opinion Panel reacts to President Biden’s weekend visit to our state. The panel discusses the President’s pledge to cover all the costs associated with the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire, and who will be left behind with the current reimbursement strategy. Our Land Executive Producer Laura Paskus talks with two reporters about their experiences covering the largest wildfire in state histo...