For our fourth episode of the Converge Lecture Series Podcast , we're joined by writer Karen Russell. A novelist and short story writer, Russell is perhaps best known for her novel, " Swamplandia!" Set in the waterlogged wilderness of south Florida, it tells the story of a family of alligator wrestlers struggling to cope with tragedy and dealing with a string of bad luck that threatens their roadside theme park. It’s a book about grief and survival, and a haunting, deeply affecting coming-of-age

The battle over a controversial citizenship question on the 2020 census may have profound economic implications for the Mountain West.

As the partial government shutdown continues, it's clear that communities and individuals across the country are being affected. That includes southern Colorado and Colorado Springs. Dr. Tatiana Bailey, director of the UCCS Economic Forum, came to 91.5 KRCC to discuss the local implications of the shutdown both now and in the long-term.

A new study says Amtrak’s Southwest Chief passenger rail line puts $49 million a year into Colorado’s economy.

Colorado Springs City Council has given preliminary approval to a new comprehensive plan, called PlanCOS. The plan replaces a previous one dating back to 2001, and lays out a vision for future development in the city, which is expected to grow by more than 200,000 people over the next 20 years.

A Colorado Springs man has been living at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church for the past week to avoid deportation back to his home country of El Salvador.

The thought of a backup on Interstate 25 can bring a groan to any driver. But if a state commission has its way, there could be alternative transportation along the Front Range in about a decade. It's the same group that's tasked with working to preserve Amtrak's Southwest Chief long distance passenger rail line that travels through southern Colorado.

For several years now , a state commission has been looking into ways to preserve and expand Amtrak's long-distance passenger rail line, the Southwest Chief. It travels through southern Colorado, with stops in Lamar, La Junta, and Trinidad. The group is also looking at the possibility of passenger rail along Colorado's Front Range.

The new legal marijuana industry is generating billions of dollars and creating thousands of jobs, but it's also creating instability, restructuring and some layoffs for one group of workers - drug detection dogs.

The ski industry is one of the most important contributors to the economy in the Mountain West. And it's dealing with some pretty big changes right now. Probably the biggest one is climate. Winters are getting shorter and mountain resorts are having to adapt.