Vermont Edition

What does the timber rattlesnake have in common with the eastern meadowlark? Or how about the elm-leaved goldenrod and the Green Mountain quillwort? These plant and animal species are all classified as endangered or threatened in Vermont. And right now, local biologists are working to update the state’s Wildlife Action Plan. That plan is basically a wildlife-focused conservation blueprint for the...

Salt helps us travel safely when ice forms over roads and sidewalks, but those little grains of salt can have a big impact on the environment.  Today on Vermont Edition: road salt and how it affects our natural world.  The associate director of the Lake Champlain Sea Grant will share her research on sustainable alternatives to help navigate the slippery conditions of winter. A road foreman in Hyde...

Orange, Grand Isle, Lamoille, those are just a few of Vermont’s 14 geographically and culturally unique counties. Compared to many states across the United States, Vermont has one of the weakest forms of county government, and a lot of you out there are curious why.  Vermont Edition revisits a recent Brave Little State episode to find out why.  Broadcast live on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, at noon; reb...

In the latest installment of our Town by Town series, we learn about the northern Vermont community of Alburgh. It was founded in 1781 by Ira Allen (Allen, Alburgh...get it?) Three longtime Alburgh residents join us: Terry Tatro , who's held numerous positions in town government; Peg Theoret , the founder and a trustee of the Alburgh Historical Society; Sandy Rosa , a member of the Alburgh Public...

This cold winter has created excellent conditions for ice skating on local lakes and ponds. Some wild ice skaters in our region have found audiences for their adventures on social media. Today on Vermont Edition, experienced skaters explain how to know when wild ice is safe to skate on and what to do if conditions suddenly shift. You’ll hear from the Pawlet-based moderator of the Vermont Nordic Sk...

Representative Becca Balint. She’ll discuss her role at the hearing, including a face off with Bondi over antisemitism. We’ll also talk about the possibility of ICE increasing its presence in Vermont. Then: Green Mountain Transit faces serious budgetary issues. General Manager Clayton Clark says more service cuts could be on their way. He’s asking the state for more funding. We talk about the high...

In the latest installment of our At Home series, the Vermont Edition team visits the Brandon home of award-winning poet Bianca Stone.  Stone was named Vermont’s poet laureate in 2024. Her latest book of poetry, The Near and Distant World, came out this year. Stone is also the creative director of the Ruth Stone House in Goshen, where she hosts poetry events, retreats, and classes. We’ll hear about...

First, we speak with Vermont Public's housing and infrastructure reporter Carly Berlin , about a new state  initiative intended to spur housing construction in Vermont. It's a catalog of prefab homes that would help people fastrack their approval process and keep costs of new construction down. The specific challenges facing boys and young men often make headlines: For the last 50 years, for examp...

College athletes can cash in on their name and image. And as of last year, colleges can pay their athletes directly, too. This rule change impacts everyone in college sports. University of Vermont Athletic Director Jeff Schulman says pay-to-play has changed the game. Every year in Montpelier, residents wake up to find their city covered in red hearts. This is the work of the Valentine Phantom, a m...

School boards reckon with looming district consolidation

First up on the show:  Colchester resident and asylum seeker Steven Tendo was detained by ICE Wednesday after his shift at the University of Vermont Medical Center, where he works as a nursing assistant. Tendo fled Uganda in 2018. On Vermont Edition last year he said he was tortured by the Ugandan government for encouraging youth voter registration. For an update on Tendo's case and whereabouts, w...

New BlueCross BlueShield CEO says 'we have an affordability crisis' in Vermont

In the mid-1970s, avant-garde musician and Bennington College professor Bill Dixon created a department called the Black Music Division. Along with fellow musician and professor Milford Graves, they taught performance and theory while bringing Black music into the academic sphere.  Joining to walk us through this history is Michael Wimberly , a percussionist, composer and Bennington College profes...

During the current cold snap, many Vermonters are able to take comfort in their wood stoves or heating systems. Others aren’t so lucky. A growing number of people without permanent housing are living outside during the depths of winter. Vermont has had a high rate of homelessness ever since the pandemic — one of the highest rates in the country . The state used to pay a lot of money to house peopl...

Bernie Sanders is one of our country’s most famous senators. He’s run for president, has stood up to oligarchs, and even became a mitten-wearing meme. Before all that, he was Mayor Sanders, of Burlington, where he served from 1981 to 1989. A new book, Bernie for Burlington: The Rise of the People's Politician , covers that pivotal time of change in the Queen City. The author, poet and professor Da...

Last week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described the U.S.'s current posture towards its trade allies as a "rupture." U.S. President Donald Trump fired back, threatening new tariffs on its northern neighbor. Carney's speech at the World Economic Forum is viewed by many as a landmark moment in the rapidly shifting relationship between the U.S., Canada, and the international community writ la...

During the legislative session, Vermont’s Statehouse is usually full of heated debate, gaveling and other sounds of lawmaking. But on Wednesday nights, legislators cede the dais to musicians and artists for the Farmers Night series. David Schutz , Vermont’s longtime state curator, joins Vermont Edition to look back at the origins of the series. Rep. Mary-Katherine Stone (D-Burlington) shares a pre...

Vermont’s state legislators remain divided on the need for mandated district consolidation.

More than 12,000 Vermonters make their living as farmers. 41% percent of them are women. And while you can read lots of the articles about the agricultural industry, sometimes the best way to really capture a changing industry is through a photograph.  The work of our region’s female farmers has been memorialized in black-and-white by the Plymouth-based photographer JuanCarlos Gonzalez . His serie...

There are a few different types of people when it comes to winter. There are migrators — the snowbirds, the Florida folk. There's the active bunch — the ones who, when you complain about winter, they cry out, "But have you even tried cross country skiing?" And then there are the hibernators — the bookworms, stew cookers, knitters and tea drinkers. Animals' winter survival strategies fall along sim...

Mental health struggles and high suicide rates in the construction industry

Each month, Vermont Edition takes a deep dive into one Vermont town or city and learns what makes it special. At the end of the hour, a guest helps us randomly select our next location by spinning our big colorful county wheel .  For the latest in our Town by Town series, we head to Swanton , in Franklin County, for a live broadcast from the Swanton Public Library. Swanton is known for the Missisq...

Over the past year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made many changes in federal health guidelines. Some of his biggest shakeups relate to vaccinations. Last week the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – the CDC – scaled back its childhood vaccine guidelines for six different immunizations, including flu and RSV . This hour we’re joined by Vermont’s He...

Ski season is not immune to the impacts of climate change. This seasonal activity and other outdoor leisure activities will require adaptation to withstand warming Northeast winters.  Dr. Caitlin Hicks Pries , associate professor of biological sciences at Dartmouth College, discusses her research on the surprising ecosystem impacts of snow loss. The Appalachian Mountain Club has also been studying...

This legislative session, lawmakers are working on addressing the state’s housing shortage by continuing to reform the state's permitting and land use laws. This work began in 2024 with the passage of Act 181 , which made significant changes to Vermont's signature land use law, known as Act 250. Act 181 divides the state into three tiers, each with different requirements for development. The new l...