This week on Inside Appalachia, a Ukrainian musician reflects on what music means during wartime. And there’s a growing number of a certain kind of blood-sucking arachnid — and diseases that come with it. We also sit in on one of the natural wonders of the Great Smoky Mountains.

On this West Virginia Morning, marching and concert bands from across the world are in Buckhannon this week for an international competition. Also, for the next 10 days, 15,000 scouts from around the country will camp out in Fayette County for the 2023 National Scouting Jamboree.

On this West Virginia Morning, tap water testing conducted in 18 states by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found New Martinsville had the second-highest level of PFAS, commonly known as “forever chemicals,” in the country at 40 parts per trillion. Chris Schulz spoke with EWG senior scientist Tasha Stoiber about water contamination, its health risks, and possible solutions.

On this West Virginia Morning, concerns over CO2 build up in the atmosphere causing climate change have people asking where to store that CO2 so it doesn’t cause problems. But not everyone agrees with storing it back underground. Eric Douglas has the story.

On this West Virginia Morning, voting is underway for the West Virginia Literary Hall of Recognition, which seeks to honor lesser-known writers in the Mountain State. Bill Lynch spoke with grant writer Kandi Workman and Marshall University English professor Cat Pleska, who are overseeing the project.

On this West Virginia Morning, we learn about a group at the Center for Gerontology at Virginia Tech that is researching extended family members who become dementia caregivers throughout central Appalachia. They want to understand how those caregivers moved into that role.

This week, we visit a farm in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania that can grow on one acre what other farms grow on 100 acres. We also hear about a podcast that remembers the "Back to the Land" movement of the 1970s and ‘80s – and a mysterious disappearance. And, we meet a team of scientists that found dozens of new millipedes across Appalachia. They named one species after a pop star.

On this West Virginia Morning, Curtis Tate speaks with Suzanne Mattei of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis for her perspective on the ongoing debate over construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Ultimately, the pipeline may get built, but some energy analysts question whether the pipeline is even needed.

On this West Virginia Morning, SNAP is a federal nutrition program – the name stands for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. It used to be called food stamps. The program started as a pilot project in the 1960s in McDowell County. Trey Kay learns more about the program that some say has changed lives.

On this West Virginia Morning, West Virginia University’s ongoing review of more than two dozen programs has left many in the school’s community with questions that officials have tried to answer. Chris Schulz has more.