Keynotes: Stories of Collective Impact

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In this special episode, we share Keystone Policy Center's recent appearance on White House Chronicle, the public affairs program airing on PBS, SiriusXM Radio, and Voice of America Television and Radio.

Keystone Policy Center President and CEO Christine Scanlan and Senior Policy Director Ernest House Jr. join the program to discuss Keystone's work bringing people together to solve tough policy challenges — from energy and water to education and agriculture.

Christine shares the story behind Keystone's founding more than 50 years ago and how the organization steps in at just the right moment to help stakeholders find workable solutions. Ernest speaks about his work advancing Tribal and Indigenous engagement, including the Growing Ute Futures initiative, and plans for the nation's first tribal embassy in Denver.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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At our 33rd Annual Keystone Leadership Awards, we honored Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY), co-chairs of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, for their commitment to bridging divides and finding common ground in Congress. This special episode brings you that conversation, which included Keystone President and CEO Christine Scanlan, and simultaneously released on the co-chairs' own podcast, The Pod Couple.

Reps. Fitzpatrick and Suozzi dig into some of the toughest challenges facing American democracy today: gerrymandering, closed primaries, the outrage economy fueled by social media and cable news, and how foreign adversaries exploit our political divisions online. But the conversation isn't all doom and gloom — it's also a hopeful reminder that people across the aisle are still finding ways to work together, and a call to get back to the basics of collaborative governing.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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When we talk about wildfire resilience in the American West, the conversation usually turns to forests, fuel loads, prescribed burns, and forest thinning. But there's another piece of the puzzle that's been hiding in plain sight: our rivers.

Healthy watersheds, with their sprawling floodplains, wet meadows, and tangled riparian corridors, don't burn the way degraded ones do. They store water on the landscape, create refuge for wildlife, and trap the ash and sediment that can devastate communities downstream after a fire passes. And yet, the practitioners doing river restoration work and the practitioners managing for wildfire risk have largely been operating in separate worlds.

In this episode, we explore the growing movement to change that. We sit down with Warren Colyer, National Restoration Director for Trout Unlimited, and Julie Shapiro, Director of the Center for Natural Resources at the Keystone Policy Center, to talk about the new community of practice they're building together — a dedicated network designed to connect on-the-ground restoration practitioners with the latest science, case studies, and each other.

It's a story about what healthy rivers can do, what we lose when we take them apart, and what becomes possible when the right people finally find each other.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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Beavers are often called ecosystem engineers for their ability to transform streams and wetlands, creating habitat for wildlife and improving watershed health. But their work on the landscape can also create real challenges for landowners, water managers, and communities.

In this episode, we explore the development of the Colorado Beaver Conservation and Management Strategy, a statewide effort led by Colorado Parks and Wildlife to support beaver conservation while addressing conflicts where they occur.

Keystone Policy Center facilitated the the collaborative process that allowed scientists, landowners, conservation organizations, Tribal Nations, and community stakeholders to come together to share perspectives and help shape the strategy.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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In this final episode of Keystone’s 50th anniversary series, we explore The Invisible Hand of Keystone—the lasting, often unseen impact of collaborative work that continues long after a dialogue ends. From the Keystone Science School to the Forum for Collaborative HIV Research, Field to Market, the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council, and the Kwiyagat Community Academy, we trace how initiatives that began under Keystone’s guidance have grown into independent organizations shaping policy, practice, and communities across the country. This episode reflects on Keystone’s enduring legacy and the power of collaboration to create change that lasts. 

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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In the final episode of Keystone’s three-part agriculture series — part of the organization’s 50th Anniversary celebration — we explore how Keystone brought its collaborative approach to one of the most transformative scientific frontiers: gene editing. When CRISPR technology emerged, Keystone helped lead the creation of CRISPRcon, a global forum for open dialogue about the promise and responsibility of gene editing. This episode reveals how CRISPRcon, and Keystone’s subsequent NGO Gene Editing Roundtable, helped define what responsible innovation looks like: transparent, inclusive, and grounded in open discussion.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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This second episode in Keystone’s agriculture series tells the story of how a simple idea became one of the most influential sustainability collaborations in modern farming. In the mid-2000s, Keystone convened a groundbreaking dialogue among farmers, agribusinesses, conservationists, and scientists to define what sustainability really means in agriculture — and how to measure it. That process gave rise to Field to Market, now a global leader in advancing continuous improvement across the food and agriculture value chain. Featuring reflections from the leaders who were in the room at the beginning, this episode traces how Keystone’s facilitation and commitment to trust transformed a conversation into a movement that continues to shape agriculture today.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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From honey bees to monarch butterflies, pollinators are vital to our food system and to the collaboration that sustains it. This first episode in Keystone’s three-part agriculture series highlights the organization’s foundational work to strengthen pollinator health and agricultural sustainability. Featuring the Honey Bee Health Coalition and Farmers for Monarchs, the episode explores how Keystone has united beekeepers, growers, researchers, and conservationists to find shared solutions. It also spotlights the Agriculture Climate Markets Collaborative, which advances trust and transparency in agricultural carbon markets, and a 2018 workshop with the Aspen Global Change Institute examining how to increase fruit and vegetable production to meet the world’s dietary needs. Together, these stories capture a snapshot of Keystone’s legacy of collaboration and its impact across the agricultural landscape.

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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One of Keystone’s most inspiring education partnerships is Growing Ute Futures, a collaboration with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe that led to the creation of Colorado’s first tribal charter school: the Kwiyagat Community Academy. In this episode, we revisit the history of Indigenous education, the vision behind the Academy, and the powerful impact it’s already having on students, families, and the revitalization of Ute language and culture. 

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.

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 Keystone’s education work isn’t just about facilitation, it’s also about providing trusted data that helps communities act. This episode takes a closer look at the research and reports Keystone has produced on a range of issues, with a special focus on the crisis of unaffordable housing for teachers. Through data, interactive maps, and community insights, we explore how this challenge impacts schools across Colorado and what solutions might make a difference. 

Please help us continue this podcast by making a financial donation to Keystone Policy Center.

Listen to previous episodes of this podcast at Keystone's website or by subscribing to it through any podcast provider.