A New Angle

It's the most wonderful time of year here in Montana. And to chat all about it, Justin is joined by Michael Legg, executive director of the Montana Repertory Theater, and Stephanie Nolan from Missoula's Poverello Center. These two great organizations have partnered in the production of Hearth: A Yuletide Tale, a story about homelessness and community.

In this episode, Stephanie gives a run down of all the services the Poverello Center in Missoula provides. Justin asks Michael why going to the theater makes you think about things in a way you may never have otherwise. Justin ponders how the housing affordability crisis in Montana has affected the people that come through the Poverello Center’s doors, and asks Stephanie why the terms regarding homelessness are changing.

Tickets to Hearth are available at a pay-what-you-can basis at montanarep.com. Showings Dec. 2-3 and 8-10 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 4 and 11 at 2 p.m at the Masquer Theater at the University of Montana.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qT40uUfS2hllzr1B4wWVdEfj-AbSq6fgU7c1Xtlc0x4/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s episode is the November edition of Incentives & Instincts, a recurring series in which I speak with economist and friend, Bryce Ward, about some of the broader issues facing our society. This episode is about the youth sports industrial complex and joining Justin and Bryce is University of Montana head men’s basketball coach, Travis DeCuire.


Justin starts the episode asking Travis and Bryce what the goals of youth sports should be, and what some of the failure points are. Travis talks about how kids don’t play on the playground as much anymore, and the loss of social skills that comes with that change. Travis reflects on how he has taught basketball players the value of not being the best on the court, and gives his advice to parents and young people trying to navigate the system.


Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fPd1Iq1iqcnx-T6YHlzaBTiD3wzielns7gjt1Rys7rc/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week is part two of Justin’s conversation with Jeff Shapiro, a professional adventure athlete whose many pursuits include climbing, hang gliding, paragliding, and wingsuit base jumping. Justin and Jeff discuss risk, uncertainty, the seasons of life and many other matters of consequence.


In this episode, Justin and Jeff go deep. Jeff talks about how what he’s learned from flying translates to his relationships with people he cares about, and how he balances expectations of success with uncertainty. Justin asks how Jeff’s approach to risky activities has changed since becoming a father, and how he decides to allocate his time. Jeff closes with some advice: Pursue things that are authentically interesting.


Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WkPDpN51gnB1L1VNdpAL8NxwRjAEZYlhb8FH5xKxLLw/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s guest is Jeff Shapiro, professional adventure athlete whose many pursuits include climbing, hang gliding, paragliding, and wingsuit base jumping. Jeff and his family lived in Montana for many years and recently relocated to the Oregon coast.

In this episode, Jeff talks about the difference between passion and obsession and gives listeners a run down on the various ways he flies. Justin asks about the mental state needed to engage in an activity that has a high level of consequence, and Jeff says it’s a mindset that anyone can relate to.

Tune into part two next week.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fNozB8SBSeHOkmGRTby9bfWKcsX9ZePdMHRgtVe0VOg/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s episode is the October edition of Incentives & Instincts, a recurring series in which Justin speaks with economist and friend, Bryce Ward, about some of the broader problems facing our society.

It is election season here in Montana and across the country. To navigate some big questions, Justin asks Bryce and guest Rob Saldin, University of Montana political science professor, if our democracy is really at risk. After Rob says yes, Justin goes on to ask how we can solve our problems, what the importance of civics education is and how to get more people to participate in democracy.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mqms1elZkIzzLQIgtq655ilTj4E_O1U9YfpUbQQG6YA/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s guest is Ami Vitale, an award-winning National Geographic Photographer and Nikon Ambassador. Ami has visited over 100 countries, documenting the horrors of war and the good work being done to protect endangered species.

In this conversation, Ami attributes her curiosity as a child to getting her out in the world as a photographer. She tells Justin about her early experience in journalism where she had to navigate a male dominated industry that couldn’t see her in the field. Overcoming that, she learned the importance of spending time in the communities she photographed, not just parachuting in and out. Ami talks about her work with the Nature Conservancy and her new nonprofit, Vital Impacts.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fI70sWqwdpUXHI0KqT1SIIzDu_pGBGc3XuGqBJH-Ezc/edit

Learn more about Vital Impacts here: https://vitalimpacts.org/

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

Justin and Montana Public Radio's Lauren Korn from The Write Question talk about MTPR’s pledge week and the importance of public radio.

Donate to MTPR during Pledge Week here: https://www.mtpr.org/tags/pledge-week

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Y9bg4FIfh1uv1rNISKO9prVGlovW5001oD8DKw682kw/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s guest is Nick Mott. Nick is an award winning journalist and podcast producer based in Livingston, and the editor of this podcast. Over the last several months he’s published a series of articles with High Country News documenting the catastrophic Yellowstone floods that occurred in June 2022.

In this episode Justin and Nick talk about the varying devastation of the floods, the politics of floodplains and the pressure the floods brought to bear on an already stressed housing system. Nick talks being evacuated and how he came to report on an event with such personal ties. Justin and Nick also explore the ecological benefits of flooding, and balancing the needs of safety and resilience.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gQStyaZ3HKrLrR4IZ5-OHAnT8UKASr4d72uLSwXn480/edit

Read Nick's HCN series here: https://www.hcn.org/author_search?getAuthor=Nick%20Mott%20&sort_on=PublicationDate&sort_order=descending

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week is the September edition of Incentives & Instincts, a recurring series in which Justin speaks with economist and friend, Bryce Ward, about some of the broader challenges facing our society.

In this episode, Justin and Bryce focus on our public school system. Bryce opens the conversation looking at the big picture and explains that public school is in a pretty good place. Justin and Bryce talk about the importance of success in improving both test scores and social-emotional well-being as indicators of healthy schools, and consider the effects of exposure to classmates with different backgrounds. Justin closes the interview asking Bryce what effect school closures during the pandemic will have on public school progress, and offers gratitude to the people in the school system working hard each day to make it work.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10N_LdrDgVUZKVZpPKH5b-DDFT5z9PHL79kq3uMgn-Zs/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe

This week’s guest is Jeff Immelt, former CEO of General Electric and current venture partner at New Enterprise Associates. Jeff will be speaking at the University of Montana on September 27th as part of the Baucus Center’s Stockman Bank Speaker Series. He was kind enough to join Justin for a conversation in advance of his visit.

Justin and Jeff speak about shocks and crises and a course at Stanford Jeff teaches called Systems Leadership. As a teacher, Jeff reflects on the importance of mental health in student populations and how he’s noticed students today are more place restrictive when they look at their careers. Justin asks Jeff his thoughts on the popular perception that people just don’t want to work anymore, and what he advises young people when they say they want to make a difference.

Tune into Jeff’s talk with Max Baucus at the University of Montana on Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at umt.edu/law.

Transcript here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PMmJSXW5nvGxUke66zLLC_EDe7sMGzUoYiwQyjWLD-4/edit

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.anewanglepodcast.com/subscribe