Think Out Loud

Medical Teams International is based in Tigard but its workers and volunteers bring life-saving, humanitarian aid around the world. The nonprofit’s president and CEO Eric Ha says the refugees they serve in East Africa fled violence, war or natural disasters. Many of them came years ago from Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan, Tanzania and other countries. The camps over time have become settlements, and in some cases the MTI programs are people’s only access to any kind of medical care - from treating common diseases like cholera and malaria to providing vaccinations to child health to maternity care. Ha joins us to tell us how MTI is handling the Trump-Musk freeze of federal funds from the state department and USAID.

On Monday, the Salem city council will vote to place a property tax levy on the May ballot which would cost the average Salem homeowner nearly $230 a year. If approved, it would help the city address a $14 million budget deficit and restore library hours which were cut last year. The levy would also fund parks maintenance, recreation programs such as youth camps, and classes and activities for seniors at Center 50+.      

The vote will take place just two weeks after the abrupt resignation of city manager Keith Stahley. The Salem Reporter broke the news of Stahley’s resignation and the circumstances surrounding it after a performance audit released last month raised concerns about Stahley’s leadership and decision-making. Joe Siess covers local government for the Salem Reporter. He joins us to discuss the property tax levy and the controversy surrounding the city manager’s departure.  

The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians recently purchased roughly 2,000 acres of land near the Table Rocks preserve north of Medford. The property is part of the ancestral homeland of several tribes that were forced out of the Rogue Valley in the mid-1850s. The tribes were relocated to the newly-created Siletz reservation on the coast, forcing them to adapt to an unfamiliar climate and way of life. The tribe plans to use the Table Rocks property for conservation and the cultivation of first foods going forward.

Robert Kentta serves on the Siletz Tribal Council. He joins us to share more about the cultural, spiritual and historical significance of the site.

Earlier this month, the city of Bend announced it is seeking applicants to fill three vacancies on its Human Rights and Equity Commission. Its goals include advocating for historically marginalized or underrepresented groups, evaluating city policies or regulations for potential barriers they may create and recommending how to remove them. 

The commission is one of two community advisory groups convened by Bend’s Accessibility and Equity Department, which also provides linguistic services to non-native English speakers, and an array of other programs and training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. Meanwhile, Deschutes County commissioners recently voted to end the county’s DEIA committee. Andrés Portela, Bend’s equity and inclusion director, joins us to talk about his efforts amid the Trump administration’s backlash against DEI initiatives in government agencies, institutions and workplaces

In 2017, Oregon lawmakers passed a transportation package that was expected to generate $5.3 billion. Eight years later, revenue forecasts show funding has fallen short of projections, leaving the Oregon Department of Transportation with an ongoing budget crisis. Audits have revealed that ODOT is failing to meet accountability measures set up in the legislation, and many of its projects are behind schedule and over budget.

Anastasia Mason recently investigated the 2017 package for the Statesman Journal. She joins us to talk about what the findings could mean for ODOT as it prepares to make another big funding ask this legislative session.

Portland’s Albina district was once a center for Black musicians in this country - producing some classic jazz, soul and gospel albums and bands. The newest record in Albina Music Trust’s catalog features Portland-based producers remixing some of the city’s historic music. Music producer Tony Ozier and DJ Jumbo join us to share some of the music and talk about the collaboration.

Portland will soon have what may be the first-of-its-kind training facility purpose-built for female athletes. RAJ Sports, the owners of the Portland Thorns, are building several soccer pitches, basketball courts, and more to serve the Thorns and the new WNBA franchise team. Karina LeBlanc, executive vice president of strategic growth for RAJ Sports, joins us to discuss the new facility and the future of women’s sports in Portland.

The Bonneville Power Administration is among the federal agencies currently being gutted by Elon Musk at Pres. Donald Trump’s direction. The ostensible reason for federal government layoffs and buyouts is to save taxpayer dollars. In the case of the BPA, it’s funded by its ratepayers, not taxpayers, but that hasn’t stopped the departure of hundreds of the agency’s skilled and specialized workers. And additional staffers who were considered probationary were let go without notice last week. And that has industry watchers, including two former heads of the BPA, sounding the alarm about the potential catastrophic impacts on the power grid and the people who rely on it. Steven Wright and Randy Hardy wrote a joint article in an industry newsletter Friday detailing those possible threats.
The BPA can be thought of as the backbone of the Northwest power grid. It sells wholesale electricity to the utilities, companies and other entities that sell power to residents all over the region. Sources include hydropower from Columbia River dams and the region’s only operating nuclear power plant. It also transmits energy through 15,000 miles of high voltage lines.The thousands of BPA employees perform tasks from engineering and line work to complex demand modeling and resource planning. That planning includes decisions around sources of power and how to prioritize and price the power. Energy consultant and former BPA administrator Randy Hardy joins us to discuss the details and possible impacts of the Elon Musk-led reductions on the Northwest

The James Beard Foundation Awards are considered one of the top accomplishments in the culinary world. For the 2025 season, several restaurants and chefs in the state are semifinalists. Out of the seven Oregon chefs nominated for Best Northwest and Pacific Chef category, only two came from Portland. Kari Shaughnessy is the owner and executive chef of Hayward in McMinnville. Josh Dorcak is the owner and executive chef at MAS in Ashland. They both received a nomination and join us to share what the food scene is like in their respective communities and what it means to have so many chefs outside of Portland recognized for their work.

Donnie Horn started Triangle Productions with an original play he wrote in 1989 that dealt with being a gay man in the midst of the HIV/AIDS crisis. The theatre is now one of the oldest LGTBQ theatres in the country, celebrating its 35th season. The show that’s currently running is another Horn original: a musical he collaborated on with musician Michael Allen Harrison called “JC: Gospel According to an Angel.” Horn is also working on The Umbrella Project, which draws together a wide array of stories focused on Oregon’s LGTBQ history. He joins us to tell us more about that project, the musical he wrote with Harrison and how Triangle Productions has grown over the last 35 years.