As part of our new series, ‘Winter Play,’ we're turning the winter doldrums on its head in a celebration of all things snow and cold.

We sent our reporters out around the state to revel in the weather that makes living in Minnesota so unique. And the first story in that series comes from Kirsti Marohn, who's based out of our Collegeville bureau. She talked with host Cathy Wurzer.

Land acknowledgments have become common place over the past decades. They appear on the websites of universities, are read before corporate conferences and are displayed in museums.

But many say words are not enough. So Little Canada’s Indian Land Tenure Foundation has created a way for individuals and organizations to help tribal nations buy land. Cris Stainbrook is the president of the Indian Land Tenure Foundation — he talked with host Cathy Wurzer about the new initiative.

You can read more about the story in the Sahan Journal– that’s a nonprofit digital newsroom dedicated to reporting for immigrants and communities of color in Minnesota.

Details on Governor Walz’s proposal for new taxes and tax cuts. A conversation about the importance of Holocaust Remembrance Day. The latest on a new state proposal to recycle old electronics and an “optimist” works to fill a local news void. Plus all the sports news you need to know.

St. Cloud’s 93-year-old newspaper is in danger. The last reporter at the St. Cloud Times is leaving in February. The St. Cloud Times, which covers a population of more than 200,000 people, won't have any reporters, months after cuts by parent company Gannett decimated the paper’s staff.

In its wake, digital outlets are hoping to fill the gap—including Nora Hertel’s site, “Project Optimist.”

Nora is a St. Cloud-based journalist who worked at the newspaper between 2017 and 2021. She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the future of journalism in St. Cloud.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

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We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

Gov. Tim Walz has been unveiling his wish-list for state spending in pieces. And on Tuesday, he released the final part of his budget — and it includes taxes and tax breaks. Rochelle Olson is a politics and government reporter with the Star Tribune, and she talked to MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about who may pay more and who could get a break.

Our sports guys Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer for more of this week’s sports news. Wally is the creator of Minnesota Score Magazine and the co-host of 10,000 Takes Sports Show. Eric Nelson is the other co-host of that show and the Vikings reporter for CBS Sports’ Eye on Football show.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

How much tech is in front of you right now? A laptop, a cell phone, a tablet, perhaps a television? We can’t live without our tech, but what do you do with your old laptops and such when it’s time to upgrade? Only about 35% of electronic waste is collected – which means a lot of it ends up in the landfill. Could legislation change that? Representative Athena Hollins thinks so. She represents District 66 B in St. Paul and she spoke with Cathy about her plans to turn to electronic waste management around.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

Friday, January 27 is Holocaust Remembrance Day. That’s the day that the Auschwitz concentration camp was liberated. Even though one of the most horrific genocides in history occurred less than 100 years ago, according to the Institute on Holocaust Education, ten percent of American millennials and Gen Z do not believe or are uncertain that the Holocaust happened. Almost 60% of that age group believe something like the Holocaust could happen again.

Ellen Kennedy has worked for more than 20 years to set the record straight—and to prevent a similar event from ever happening again. Kennedy is the executive director and founder of World Without Genocide, a human rights organization based at the Mitchell Hamline School of Law. She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the rise of antisemitism in Minnesota and her goals for educating Minnesotans about the genocide.

Ashwini Ramaswamy is a choreographer of Bharatanatyam dance — a form of Indian classical dance. But her new project includes a wide range of dance traditions. It is premiering at the Great Northern Festival this weekend in Minneapolis. Ramaswamy talked with Host Cathy Wurzer about the show.

Temperatures are relatively mild today for late January but that won't last long.

Host Cathy Wurzer checked in with our chief meteorologist Paul Huttner with a detailed look at the weather and what's in store for us.