A New Angle

This week’s guest is Alex Sobin, director of spectrUM. Since 2008, spectrUM has been dedicated to igniting an interest in science for kids throughout Montana. spectrUM is housed in the Missoula Public Library and supported by a wide variety of grants and other sources.

In this conversation, Alex explains the hands-on and various outreach programs the museum fosters. She discusses funding challenges spectrUM has faced and the importance of making science accessible and engaging for everyone.

This week’s guest is Donnie Wetzel Jr., tribal liaison for the Montana Department of Labor and Industry. Donnie is also the founder of Identity, Inc., which houses the Montana Indian Athletic Hall of Fame. Donnie and his colleagues are working to promote the virtues of warrior culture through sport.

In part two of this two-part episode, Donnie discusses his work on the forthcoming documentary film “The Undefeated,” which aims to shift the narrative around Indigenous people from one of trauma to one of resilience and generational strength. Donnie also touches on how he maintains hope and resiliency himself, and how he uses his past and his culture to stay grounded.

This week’s guest is Donnie Wetzel Jr., tribal liaison for the Montana Department of Labor and Industry. Donnie is also the founder of Identity, Inc., which houses the Montana Indian Athletic Hall of Fame. Donnie and his colleagues are working to promote the virtues of warrior culture through sport.

In this conversation, Donnie explains the qualities of warrior culture and emphasizes the importance of connecting Indigenous youth to their cultural roots and identity. And in a shared passion, Donnie and Justin discuss how basketball can be a vessel for that practice.

Tune in to part two of this conversation next week.

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.

The two talk role models this month, a topic that’s come up several times in their conversations. They consider how role models provide representation and i…

This week’s guest is Dean Pearson, research ecologist with the United States Forest Service. Dean and his colleagues recently developed the urban pollinator matrix, a model municipalities and citizens can use to help threatened pollinators recover.

In this episode, Dean and Justin discuss pollinator decline, some of the findings of the urban pollinator matrix - including the difference between letting lawns grow wild and planting native species - and what takeaways citizens can glean from the model.

Find the urban pollinator matrix here

This week we’re sharing a special live recording of our recent event - This Didn’t Happen By Accident: Stories of Intention on the Land - hosted by Five Valleys Land Trust at the Line Ranch outside of Missoula.

Justin moderated a panel discussion about conservation success stories in Montana with authors Donna Erickson, Bruce Bugbee, and Greg Tollefson, along with Whitney Schwab, Executive Director of Five Valleys Land Trust. Against a backdrop of Missoula’s north hills and nourished by local food prepared by Liz Kenyon, the group discussed Mount Jumbo, private and public collaboration, and the importance of a community that values open spaces.

Find Donna Erickson’s book Rooted At the Edge: Ranching Where the Old West and New West Collide here. Find Bruce Bugbee’s Saving the Big Sky: A Chronicle of Land Conservation in Montana here (co-authored with Robert Kiesling and John B. Wright) . And find Greg Tollefson’s A Gracious Civic Enterprise: The History of Five Valleys Land Trust and the Community That Made It Possible here (co-authored with Lena Viall).

This week’s guest is Lura Forcum, president of the Independent Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to giving politically independent Americans a stronger voice in elections. Lura and her colleagues conduct research and outreach to better understand the many Americans who don’t align with either major political party.

In this episode, Lura talks about the disfunction of the two party system and the way polling is conducted. She advocates for empowering independent voters, and explains how the Independent Center provides resources and community to those voters.

Learn more about the Independent Center here.

This week is our August 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.

It is back to school season and phones remain a hot topic in public schools. Some states have legislated bans and we're starting to have enough data to evaluate …

This week's guest is Theresa Williams, crisis intervention team program manager for Missoula. CIT programs bring together law enforcement, mental health professionals, advocates and other partners to improve community response to mental health crises. Theresa has a deep background in social work and has worked in the behavioral health space for over 20 years.

In this episode, Theresa talks about her background in social work and how her early experiences working at a homeless shelter made her realize the need for a more trauma-informed approach.

This week Justin speaks with Andrew Light, distinguished professor of philosophy, public policy and atmospheric science at George Mason University. Andrew has also served in the highest levels of U.S. Government, most recently as the Assistant Secretary of Energy for International Affairs at the U. S. Department of Energy. Andrew recently visited the University of Montana to deliver the 2025 Albert Borgmann Lecture.

In this conversation, Andrew explains how philosophical training set him up for success in navigating and negotiating public policy. He discusses his role in leading the U.S. through energy discussions and the importance of bringing together experts from different fields like science, economics and law to inform policy decisions.