Connections Podcast

How is climate change impacting the wine industry? There's a growing view among casual observers that climate change is good for the Finger Lakes, bad for California. In reality, climate change is a problem for all wine growing regions. Yes, some wine regions might become too warm to produce high-quality wine grapes. But climate change is not simply about shifting temperature upward, and the complex changes could threaten livelihoods here in our region. Our guests discuss the reality on the

A number of prominent historical figures have contributed to Rochester’s civil rights and suffrage movements. While those activists are no longer with us, their stories and voices have found new life through the work of reenactors. We talk with four local reenactors about their craft, the stories they tell, and the value of the spoken word in preserving history. Our guests: Maggie Moore-Holley , Harriet Tubman reenactor Djed Snead , Rev. Jermain Wesley Loguen reenactor Barbara Blaisdell, Susan B

We continue our series of conversations with candidates for Rochester City Council’s at-large seats. There are 12 candidates, and we’re talking to all of them in groups of three. It's our chance to meet the candidates and ask how they would seek to improve the city -- poverty, economy, and much more. Our guests: Malik Evans Matt Juda Ronald Hall

The early chaotic days of AIDS in America are the backdrop to a new memoir from Dr. Bill Valenti of Trillium Health in Rochester. Dr. Valenti is our guest, discussing AIDS: A Matter of Urgency, a Doctor's Memoir . He recounts how people went into hiding after being diagnosed with AIDS. Some people disappeared entirely. But Dr. Valenti's work has helped bring massive change and progress, and the book looks at how things have changed.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren announced last week that the city's prime Parcel 5 will become a performing arts center, owned and operated by the Rochester Broadway Theater League. This has been a dream more than two decades in the making for RBTL's Arnie Rothschild, who joins us for the hour. But does this project have the funding? Where will the money come from? Can RBTL guarantee that taxpayers won't be on the hook to subsidize it? What happens to the Auditorium Theater? We examine all of that

Rochester is home to the nation's largest deaf population per capita, and throughout the years, the city has been praised for its efforts to promote accessibility and inclusivity among the deaf community. Kodak and Xerox provided jobs for deaf people, local hospitals led the way in staffing interpreters, and this year, NTID is teaming up with the University of Rochester to offer training and resources for deaf scientists. In 2006, the New York Times said, “It is here that the world of the deaf

"When I was in Prison…Restoring Dignity and Justice." That's the theme of the upcoming Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School lecture series. It includes the highly acclaimed film "13th," exploring the history of racial inequality, both in the country at large and in the U.S. prison system. Our guests will include the speakers who will address how to build social movements in a time of polarization, and on the state of LGBT laws (anti-gay laws, as they're often known) in other countries. Our

Twenty years ago this week, Tiger Woods won the Masters -- at a place that has decades of racism. The co-founder of August National, Clifford Roberts, once said, "As long as I'm alive, golfers will be white, and caddies will be black." So Woods' win was met with predictions about how Tiger would change the world -- off the course, as much as on. His own father predicted that Tiger would be bigger than Gandhi. Turns out, Tiger is more interested in passing his hours playing video games. Our panel

How does poverty impact a child's chances of being a successful student? What are our assumptions about poverty? Those are just some of the questions at the heart of a new conference called The Many Faces of Poverty . It's being led by, among others, the College at Brockport’s Institute for Poverty Studies and Economic Development. Our guests: Celia Watt, director of the Institute for Poverty Studies and Economic Development LaShunda Leslie-Smith, executive director of Connected Communities, Inc

Weekend Connections is a collection of some of the most noteworthy moments from the week on Connections with Evan Dawson. This episode includes conversations about: When New York State could operate with totally clean energy; Trigger warnings and free speech on college campuses; Reviving the traditional trades; Living with Parkinson's disease.