Idaho Matters

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Your favorite Albertsons could be changing hands.

Ten Albertsons stores will be sold to C&S Wholesale Grocers if the merger with Kroger finally goes through. This includes six stores in Boise and one in Meridian.

Don Day, the founder and editor of BoiseDev.com, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about what this would mean for local shoppers.

Farmer Melissa Gilbert (left) and therapist Caitlyn Wallace lead climate cafes in Reno, Nev., where people can share their feelings about the effects of human-caused climate change.(Kaleb Roedel / Mountain West News Bureau )

It’s a Saturday morning on a small urban farm tucked into a residential neighborhood in Reno, Nev., and Melissa Gilbert, holding a dark gray meditation bowl, is standing in front of a small group of people.

She taps the bowl with a small rod, sending a soft ringing sound into the air.

“Let the bells bring your attention back to your breath, back to your body, and let's enjoy the vegetables that are planted in the ground,” Gilbert says with an encouraging smile.

She leads the small group on a meditation walk through a section of the Reno Food Systems farm. They crunch along a gravel path past rows of carrots, kale, garlic, and even chickens, who add to the ambience with incessant clucking.

“Bring your attention to your feet on the earth,” Gilbert says as she rings the bowl once more. “Your connection – the earth supporting you.”

This is the start of the third climate cafe Gilbert has helped host along with group leader Caitlyn Wallace, a certified therapist based in Reno. Wallace was trained by the Climate Psychology Alliance North America, a nonprofit that teaches therapists how to run climate cafes.

“The need in my practice came from working with new moms, who are feeling a lot of guilt around bringing kids into the world,” Wallace says. “This was specifically during wildfires, and smoke seasons.”

Her goal is to provide a safe space for all people – not just mothers – to share their feelings about the effects of human-caused climate change, such as extreme heat waves and intensifying wildfire seasons.

That’s what brought Jaline Castell to this free climate cafe.

“The Caldor Fire impacted me a lot,” Castell says, her voice catching and eyes welling up with tears.

Firefighters battle flames approaching a major highway during the 2021 Caldor Fire, which scorched over 200,000 acres south of Lake Tahoe in California. (Kara Capaldo / Adobe Stock)

That fire in 2021 scorched over 200,000 acres south of Reno and Lake Tahoe. The blaze forced thousands to evacuate, and blanketed the region in wildfire smoke for weeks.

“Being in it is so different,” Castell says. “To be in the smoke for that amount of time, and to look straight at the sun without having the glow of it.”

Castell was one of four participants in this climate cafe in Reno.

Another was Nikki Raffail, who says climate change has caused her to wrestle with big questions like “do I want to bring a child into this world?”

Raffail has put her energy into babysitting and connecting to nature by growing a garden on her patio.

“When everything else is spiraling out of control, and you feel like the world is on fire and you can’t do anything about it, it's really nice to just go outside and tend to your little sunflower,” Raffail says with a smile. “So, that’s been nice because I have been riddled with anger.”

Sherry Lugone, a retired school teacher, says that was her reaction to the climate crisis for many years. Now, she works on reducing her carbon footprint.

“I use cloth napkins and I try not to drive unless I need to,” Lugone says. “And I try to eat an environmentally conscious diet.”

Climate cafe participants are not required to translate their feelings into actions. But that naturally happens, says Barbara Easterlin, co-president of the Climate Psychology Alliance North America.

She says people may leave climate cafes feeling empowered, “and some sense of like, ‘Oh, I'm actually doing something here and I can actually be an example to other people.’ ”

Easterlin, who lives in western Wyoming, says the alliance is creating a program to research how often climate cafes lead to people taking action. In addition, the nonprofit plans to bring these support groups to marginalized communities, which often face the brunt of climate change.

“We’re seeing more of that feeling of feeling betrayed, by the government or the global system, the capitalist system,” Easterlin says.

Climate cafes are being held at the Reno Food Systems Farm, where participants take mindful walks and discuss their anxiety and fears about the climate crisis.(Kaleb Roedel / Mountain West News Bureau)

Back in Reno, the mood at this climate cafe has shifted from somber to hopeful. Attendees share warm smiles and laughter as they end their time together.

Therapist Caitlyn Wallace says that shows why support groups for people dealing with climate anxiety are more important than ever.

“It’s going to be us that saves ourselves, at the end of the day,” Wallace says. “We’re going to show up and feed each other and help each other and take care of each other when the larger systems around us are no longer able to because they're defending corporations.”

Wallace and Gilbert are leading their next climate cafe at 9 a.m. on Aug. 18 at the Reno Food Systems farm. Participation is free.

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

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If you're looking for something to do this weekend, you may not need to search beyond the small screen.

Idaho Matters sits down with resident movie critic George Prentice for a preview of a popular series that will soon be returning, as well as a look back at two television legends.

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As a new, more dangerous strain of the Mpox virus continues to spread, the disease has now been detected in individuals in both Sweden and Thailand.

Dr. David Pate, former CEO of St. Luke's Health System, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about what we need to know about this virus as well as answer your listener questions.

( City of Boise)

This Saturday, the Boise Comic Arts Festival is returning for a weekend full of cosplay, workshops and creativity. And with more than 30 guest creators joining the fun, it's sure to be one of the festival's best years yet!

Event organizer Josh Shapel and Muriel Fahrion, whom you may know as the original designer of the Strawberry Shortcake franchise and one of the featured guest creators, joined Idaho Matters to talk more.

( Safe Passage Press LLC)

In her newest book, "When Knowing Comes," author Kelly Green tackles a disturbing, but necessary topic, that of child sexual abuse.

Green joined Idaho Matters to talk more about this legal drama.

Vandal Healing Garden outside the Physical Education Building.(Garrett Britton / University of Idaho Visual Productions)

As students head back to school for the fall semester, the University of Idaho is preparing for a special ceremony.

After nearly two years of work, the Vandal Healing Garden and Memorial is finished. The project began shortly after the tragic loss of four of the school's students and is now being dedicated as a space to honor the memories of all who died while enrolled at the university.

Blain Eckles, U of I's Dean of Students, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about the upcoming ceremony.

St Michael's Episcopal Cathedral( St Michael's Episcopal Cathedral Facebook)

In 1864, Reverend Saint Michael Fackler arrived in Boise, performing the first episcopal service in the region.

Now, more than a century later, St. Michael's Episcopal Cathedral has become an important part of the community, helping to shape the city we know and love today.

Missy Swajkoski with St. Michael's Episcopal Cathedral and Beth Toal, Vice President of Marketing and Communications for St. Luke's Health System, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about the church's history.

(Darren Youden / Flickr)

In the late 19th century, Yellowstone became the first national park in America.

Visitation started out slow, but the railroad soon changed that, making travel and therefore the park more accessible. Years later, Yellowstone would become one of the most popular destinations in the country.

Thornton Waite, author and retired project manager with Idaho National Laboratory, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about this history.

( G.P. Putnam's Sons)

If you're looking for a smart emotional love story that packs a big punch, then grab a copy of "Four Weekends and a Funeral" by Ellie Palmer.

The author joined Idaho Matters to talk more about her latest release.