Where We Live

A national nursing shortage has deepened during the pandemic. A  recent survey  by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses found that 92% of nurses felt that the pandemic had "depleted nurses in their hospital, and that their career would be shorter than they had intended as a result." This hour, we hear about a  new plan  to address part of the pipeline problem. Yale...

It’s hard to conceptualize what living under a censorship state feels like, unless you’ve experienced it first hand. Today, we hear exactly how Russia controls the free press and social media;  Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have all been blocked by the Kremlin  since the start of the war in Ukraine. And we learn how Russians have been circumventing censorship. We talk to Ac...

This hour, we explore the  "mysterious Internet phenomenon"  known as ASMR, autonomous sensory meridian response. According to physiologist and  ASMR researcher  Dr. Craig Richard, it's a relaxing reaction to various "triggers," including whispers. Hear from Dr. Richard about how "brain tingles" became a scientific term, and what he's observed in his  ongoing ASMR study ....

Half of the world’s population is made up of women. And by 2025, the number of postmenopausal women is expected to rise to 1 billion, according to the  North American Menopause Society . Despite the  $600 billion global market , menopause is still a taboo topic. But  new scientific research  on menopause on the heels of previous studies show how and where we  must in...

Many pandemic babies, infants born shortly before or during the pandemic, haven’t had as much interaction with the outside world. Today, we talk about how  the last two years could impact these children long term , and what pediatricians are seeing. First, we hear from Sarah Laskow, a Senior Editor at the Atlantic, who gave  birth in the early days of the pandemic. And later, we ta...

Average rent in the state is up 15% on average, with more than half the state’s renters cost-burdened,  according to a recent report . Meanwhile, evictions are creeping back to pre-pandemic levels. Those numbers had dipped because of pandemic-related state and federal relief programs, but most of those resources have lapsed or dried up. This hour, we hear from Connecticut Public housing...

Spring is officially here and that means, the peepers have arrived. Today, we learn about Connecticut’s amphibians, many are waking up now and migrating to wetlands. Coming up, we also talk about the ways volunteers can help collect data on amphibians around our state with  FrogWatch , a national citizen science project. And we talk to a field scientist about the climate and biodiversit...

Through his art, Mohamad Hafez confronts preconceived notions of refugees and the "baggage" they may carry. He was recently the subject of an Oscars-shortlisted documentary , an intimate portrait of how Hafez's acclaimed UNPACKED series was informed by his own experience leaving Syria. This hour, we visit Hafez at his studio, just above the location of his latest venture, Pistachio Cafe. Hear abou...

Hartford Seminary has a new name. It’s now the Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. Today, we talk to its President Joel Lohr. And we hear from other faculty members about their efforts to create a more inclusive, interreligious university focusing on peace studies. There have been a lot of conversations about diversity and inclusion initiatives in the workplace - but of...

A new study by the National Institutes of Health and the Research Triangle Institute, found alcohol consumption by women with children younger than age 5, surged 323% during the pandemic. Researchers compared alcohol consumption rates in February 2020 to April of 2020, when stay-at-home guidelines were in effect, and further along into the pandemic year in November. More women than men exceeded re...

How has the steep drop-off in COVID policies like masking affected immunocompromised individuals and those with disabilities? The CDC's  list of those at risk of severe COVID-19 illness  is long and wide-ranging. This hour, we're joined by Kayle Hill, a Waterbury-based writer and an advocate with Disability Rights Connecticut. Plus, epidemiologist and activist Gregg Gonsalves and Atlanti...

Music schools in Philadelphia denied her admission because she was Black, and so did a segregated concert hall, leading to a  spectacular performance at the Lincoln Memorial  and a fight for Civil Rights. The opera legend  Marian Anderson  lived and sang in  Danbury , Connecticut, for five decades. This hour, we’ll learn about her  life , her studio in Danbury,...

After months of uncertainty, Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum has found a new home in Fairfield. Quinnipiac University’s decision to permanently close the 9-year-old museum in August met public outcry at home and abroad, and prompted a still-pending inquiry by the State Attorney General’s Office. Nevertheless, earlier this month the university  announced a plan  to move th...

The Yale School of Medicine has a new  digital tool  for adults 60 and over to self-identify and report abuse. Tested at the Emergency Department of Yale New Haven Hospital, St. Raphael Campus, the study found 11 cases of abuse – that’s 1.1% of a total of 1002 study participants. Also, 5.6% of the participants – 56 individuals – were identified as requiring social...

What better way to get to know a country and its people than through literature? Today, we talk about Ukraine writers and what we can learn about this country through its poetry and prose. University of Massachusetts professor, novelist and poet  Askold Melnyczuk  joins us. His parents were Ukrainian refugees. He also works as a Ukrainian translator and he’ll talk to us about makin...

"What would Connecticut do without child care?" Providers and parents are organizing an event across several Connecticut cities on Tuesday to pose an answer to that question. The  Child Care for Connecticut's Future coalition  coordinated A Morning Without Child Care to call for $700 million in state funding, and "to bring attention to the impending collapse of the child care industry."...

The nonprofit sector is in trouble. They serve some of the most vulnerable populations in Connecticut but many organizations are struggling to retain workers and find new ones.  According to a survey by the Connecticut Community Nonprofit Alliance, 9 out of 10 nonprofits say it’s difficult to recruit new employees. Today, we talk with Brunilda Ferraj from the Alliance about what nonprof...

There is broad support in the U.S. for Ukraine and global outcry over Putin's increasingly hostile attacks on civilians. This hour, hear more about the geopolitical backdrop and Ukraine's fight for independence from Yale history professor and author of  The Ukrainian Night  Marci Shore. Local leaders in Connecticut are organizing, fundraising and speaking out to keep the focus on the cri...

What does it mean to be American? In Dishwasher Dreams, now playing on Hartford Stage, writer, actor, and comedian  Alaudin Ullah  explores the “otherization” of brown Muslim Americans in America, and by extension, Hollywood. Ullah grew up in New York City, playing video games, eating hamburgers, listening to hip hop, and cheering for the Knicks. So when the only roles offere...

There’s no question that academia has been hit hard during the pandemic, from declining enrollment numbers at some institutions, to unprecedented challenges related to COVID 19. Today, we talk about the future of tenure. We hear from Colleen Flaherty, Senior Faculty Reporter at Inside Higher Ed. And later student journalist Madison Hahamy joins us. She explains the complex tenure requirement...

A  new settlement in the Sheff V. O'Neill school desegregation case  could end court oversight and litigation 33 years after the original lawsuit. The Connecticut legislature has just over two weeks to reject the measure that would continue to expand magnet schools and the Open Choice program in Hartford and around the state. Connecticut Public investigative reporter Jacqueline Rabe Thom...

The average American woman wears between a size 16 and 18, according to the International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education. Yet plus size clothing is still hard to come by. Today, we talk about size inclusivity in the fashion industry. Alex Waldman joins us, co-founder of fashion brand Universal Standard, that offers sizes 00-40. And later, we hear how fashion colleges are inclu...

A  new report  from Connecticut Voices for Children examines the hurdles facing young adults transitioning out of the child welfare system in our state, including "obstacles in employment, education, and housing." This hour, we hear from the report's co-author and Connecticut Voices Research & Policy Director Dr. Lauren Ruth, as well as Dr. Linda Dixon, Administrator for Transitional...

This hour on Where We Live, we hear from an economist on the what and why of inflation, including policy implications, and from a chartered financial analyst on how we can protect ourselves financially. We also talk to Foodshare on how individuals can support food insecure members of their community, and learn about an expanding community program called Fridgeport. Support the show: http://wnpr.or...

There’s no doubt that the pandemic hit the performing arts hard but local artists have been working to make a difference and connect with the community. Today, we get an update from Judy Dworin from the Judy Dworin Performance Project about how the organization has shifted in the last two years and she also talks about its future. And later, we will hear about a young woman who started a non...