Think Out Loud

According to the national database Shelter Animal Counts, the number of dogs and cats awaiting adoption at animal shelters grew by nearly 250,000 last year. Meanwhile, the rate of adoption for dogs has decreased, with nearly 60% of shelter operators reporting requests from owners to surrender their dogs. As reported in Columbia Gorge News, Hood River Adopt a Dog and Home At Last Humane Society in...

The projected costs for wildfire protection and response for the state this year stand at about $136 million. Two democratic lawmakers have different proposals on how to fund combat wildfires. Sen. Elizabeth Steiner, D-Portland, wants to charge property owners in the state an additional $10 dollars to help address costs. Sen. Jeff Golden, D-Ashland, wants a voter measure to go to Oregonians that,...

At least 315 people died in Multnomah County while experiencing homelessness in 2022, according to a recent report. In 2021, that number was 193. Nearly half of the deaths in the most recent report were found to be accidental - often relating to drug overdoses. The report also shows that people experiencing homelessness were killed in traffic accidents at a rate that is 45 times higher than the ov...

A hundred years ago, a million adult chum salmon would return each autumn to spawn in tributaries and creeks along the Columbia River. But, like other varieties of salmon, overfishing, dams and loss of habitat decimated their numbers in Oregon and Washington. Columbia River chum salmon were listed as threatened nearly 25 years ago under the Endangered Species Act.   A team of biologists at th...

After decades of discussion, a new skatepark is now in the works for Portland's Old Town. Advocates have eyed the project since the early 2000s, and Portland Parks and Recreation department recommended it in the 2008 Skatepark System Plan. Parks and Recreation is expected to begin work on the more than 30,000 square feet of skate space in spring 2024. Jessie Burke is the chair of the Old Town Comm...

In the last few years, Portland has tried a number of different tactics to make responding to 911 calls more efficient and faster. Not all of them have worked. In 2021, the Fire Bureau added the Community Health Division to shift its response, so that not every 911 call gets a full engine and ambulance. Though the Community Health Division and its Community Connect program have since been eliminat...

Teachers with ADHD or autism are able to understand and advocate for the specific needs of their students. But, they can also face challenges when seeking resources to teach those same students. And, it can be difficult to get accommodations that help neurodivergent teachers do their best work at school. Alex Newson is a doctoral candidate in special education at the University of Oregon. Kathy Pa...

The West continues to be shaped by water issues. In Oregon, some floodplains affected by human interference are being restored to manage climate issues. And restoration projects are happening in California too. Dos Rios Ranch Preserve is a restored floodplain in the state’s Central Valley. The region has been affected by drought and flooding, but the restoration is helping to mitigate the ef...

The Portland Thorns have a new owner. Meritt Paulson sold to RAJ Sports, the sister and brother company that owns other franchises, including a stake in the Sacramento Kings in the NBA. The sale was more than a year in the making and came after years of investigations and reports of sexual harassment and abuse in the National Women’s Soccer League and the Thorns specifically. Other changes f...

On December 28, 1973, President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act. The landmark law has prevented 99% of animals and plants listed as threatened or endangered under its protection from going extinct, including the bald eagle, humpback whale and Florida manatee. But despite its success as a conservation tool, the ESA is not without its limitations and no longer has the bipartisan leve...

Oregon and its child welfare system have been in and out of court since 2019, defending against a class action lawsuit on behalf of every child in foster care. The national advocacy group A Better Childhood and Disability Rights Oregon are pushing for adequate facilities and support and an end to the trauma they say kids suffer in state custody. Similar lawsuits have been brought in other states,...

The Portland Bureau of Transportation is managing a budget shortfall of about $32 million. Meanwhile, traffic deaths in Portland remain high with about 68 deaths recorded for last year, according to PBOT’s preliminary data. We hear more from Millicent Williams, the director of PBOT, on the agency’s future and managing traffic safety in the city. 

Portland musician Jimmie Herrod has sung in many different kinds of venues for a variety of performances. He’s been a guest vocalist with Portland-based Pink Martini since 2017. He was a finalist on "America's Got Talent" in 2021, and his past shows include performances with numerous symphonies, including the Oregon Symphony and the National Symphony Orchestra. But his upcoming show with the...

Ben Hoffman is the first Oregon doctor to serve as president of the American Academy of Pediatrics in 84 years. A professor of pediatrics at Oregon Health & Science University, Hoffman has worked to promote injury prevention policies and advocacy training for pediatric residents. He joins us in studio to talk about his new role and what he sees as the biggest issues in children’s health...

A fire ripped through the Portland Mercado food court early Wednesday morning. Vendors there are currently closed so that the damage can be fully assessed. The location has been a hub for Latino communities and featured food from countries including Mexico and Columbia. Hacienda Community Development Corporation owns the space. Ernesto Fonseca is the CEO of the organization. He joins us with detai...

Efforts to remove former president Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot are under way in multiple states, including in Oregon. The challenges rest on an obscure clause of the 14th Amendment that prohibits anyone who has “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding federal office. It’s unclear whether the clause applies to the presidency, but groups in Colorado and Maine succe...

Over $3.6 million in federal funding will be given to the City of Salem and Umatilla and Clackamas Counties to improve street safety. The money will be used to develop and update road safety plans. Joseph Marek is the traffic safety program manager for Clackamas County. Treven Upkes is the deputy chief of the field operations division for the Salem Police Department. They join us to discuss what t...

The local alt weekly in Eugene has been publishing community and regional news since 1982. It’s no purple prose to say that many readers consider Eugene Weekly to be an institution. So when editor Camilla Mortensen put out a letter explaining that the paper had suffered a huge blow from alleged theft and mismanagement by a longtime employee, the community responded with offers of help and do...

Where the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean meet the shallower waters of the Columbia River, the waves, the wind and the current combine to make what is often a very hazardous situation. More than 2,000 vessels and 700 lives have been lost at the Columbia Bar, and many more in the surrounding area, known as ‘The Graveyard of the Pacific.’ Christopher D’Amelio is one of a select fe...

Last month, the Biden administration announced an agreement with four Northwest tribes, the states of Oregon and Washington, and environmental groups around the waterways of the Columbia River Basin. As a part of the agreement, the Federal Government commits to fund salmon restoration projects, build clean energy generation for the tribes and clear the pathway for the possible eventual removal of...

Soccer is a sport enjoyed around the world, but a new accessible version is growing. Amputee soccer follows many of the same rules as the original, but with a few differences. The field is smaller, teams have fewer players and, most notably, players use forearm crutches to balance, run and kick. The sport was created in Seattle in the 1980s as a way for amputee athletes to get out on the pitch. It...

Above-normal temperatures have caused a slow start to the ski season in the Pacific Northwest. Many ski resorts at lower elevations in Oregon still haven’t opened, and resorts at higher elevations are starting the season with lower snowfall totals. Greg Pack is the president and general manager of Mt. Hood Meadows. Andrew Gast is the general manager of Mt. Ashland Ski Area and Lauren Burke i...

From the housing crisis to public safety, Oregon has a whole set of new state laws taking effect in January. The laws range from targeting “paramilitary activity” to tax breaks for families with children. We learn more on what Oregonians can expect in the new year from OPB political reporter Dirk VanderHart.

Jonathan Lethem, the bestselling author of twelve novels, including “The Fortress of Solitude” and “Motherless Brooklyn,” has often focused his books on the Brooklyn neighborhood he grew up in. His newest, “Brooklyn Crime Novel,” makes the neighborhood a main character. The book examines gentrification, nostalgia and race, among other topics. Lethem spoke to Dav...

The lack of affordable childcare in Oregon and the nation has been described as a crisis. In 2020, Multnomah County voters passed a tax on high income earners to fund the Preschool for All measure. The idea is to give access to quality early childhood education for every family in the county regardless of their ability to pay. The program is rolling out in phases and is now providing free preschoo...