Dancers at the Pow Wow during the First People's Festival in Estes Park on January 18, 2026. The dancers are participating in a special Red Dress event, in honor of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives.(Maeve Conran/Rocky Mountain Community Radio)

This week on the Regional Roundup, we'll pay a visit to the First People's Festival that took place in Estes Park, Colorado, January 16-18, 2026. The three-day event brought together Indigenous artists, educators, and community members for fashion, art, dance, and storytelling. We learn about a program that teaches high school students trade skills, and puts those skills to work building affordable housing. We’ll also take a closer look at the Colorado River Basin, where the U.S. Department of the Interior has released a draft environmental impact statement outlining potential paths forward for managing the river and its two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead. We’ll round out the show with a conversation with the filmmaker behind a new documentary examining the crisis in local journalism.

• A feature on the recent First People's Festival that took place in Estes Park January 16-18. (RMCR)
• A feature on a program that teaches high school students trade skills, and puts those skills to work building affordable housing. (KGNU)
• A two way on the draft environmental impact statement for the Colorado River Basin, and its two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead that was recently released by the Department of the Interior. (RMCR)
• A conversation with a film maker behind a new documentary that looks at the crisis in local news. (KSUT)