Think Out Loud

Next week, 36 college and university teams will travel to Portland to compete in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl. It is the first time in the 30 year history of the competition that it will be held in Portland, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics. Over the course of two days, judges will score matches between opposing teams based on how they respond to case studies that require ethical reasoning and decision-making. Each team has been given six weeks to research and prepare for the 17 case studies crafted for this year’s event. The cases span current affairs topics ranging from free speech on campus to the limits of copyright protections; the merits of trying to save the giant panda from extinction to the merits of efforts to combat accusations of racism and bias on reality TV.

John Garcia is the chair of the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl Council and a professor of philosophy at Harper College in Palatine, Illinois. Eleanor Jeffers is a junior majoring in philosophy at Whitworth University in Spokane. They join us to talk about the ethics bowl, how it differs from debate competitions and what it offers in an era of political polarization and misinformation

Starting in 2017, all new apartment buildings built in Portland with more than 20 units must dedicate a portion of their units for low and moderate income housing. But some developers are choosing to pay a penalty instead of creating affordable housing. The developers of the new Ritz-Carlton building downtown may be paying more than $7 million dollars. Portland Business Journal reporter Jonathan Bach has been following Portland’s inclusionary zoning efforts and joins us to explain.

For months last year, protesters rallied through the streets of Iran after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody in September.
Now, protests in the country have diminished after a crackdown by authorities. Thousands of protesters were arrested, including journalists, and more than 500 people have been killed, according to one human rights group.
In Portland, for one college student, the country’s issues remain top of mind. His family still lives in Iran and has been affected by the movement. He joins us with details of his family’s experiences and why he hopes Oregonians will pay attention to what’s happening there.
Editor’s note: Because the student fears for the safety of his family, “Think Out Loud” will not be using his name.

The importance of getting more Oregon children learning more languages is what the U.S. Secretary of Education is scheduled to talk about on his trip to Woodburn this week. Meanwhile, the National Association of Bilingual Education is meeting in Portland for its annual conference. And the Beaverton School District is actively looking for input from parents on how to expand its dual language program. Toshiko Maurizio is the administrator for the district's multilingual programs and she says with more than 100 languages spoken in the district, it’s critical to hear from K-4th grade parents in particular where they would like to see the district invest their dual language dollars. We talk with Maurizio about the district's plan and what the research shows about how bilingual students compare academically with those who only speak English.

Western Oregon was blanketed Wednesday with nearly 11 inches of snow, which disrupted commutes and activities across the region. The heavy snow was the second biggest in Portland history and came as a surprise to forecasters who had predicted a much lighter dusting. We talk with National Weather Service meteorologist Colby Neuman, and get reactions from Rachel Pearl with Multnomah County’s department of human services and Newport Mayor Dean Sawyer.

Patrick Radden Keefe has made a career of finding out about people who don’t want to talk to him. In 2021 he published “Empire of Pain,” a nonfiction account of the Sackler family, noted philanthropists and purveyors of the opioid OxyContin. He has also taken on the Troubles in Ireland in his book “Say Nothing,” and CIA maneuvering during the Cold War in his podcast “Wind of Change.” Patrick Radden Keefe joins us in front of an audience of high school students at Lincoln High.

There are almost 200 school districts in Oregon, and each one is responsible for selecting its own curriculum. Oregon has a list of pre-approved curricula districts can choose from, but that means some schools are using discredited systems for teaching reading. Now, advocates, researchers and teachers are trying to incorporate new ways of teaching that focus on the science behind learning to read. Ronda Fritz is an associate professor in Eastern Oregon University's College of Education and is the director of the Reading Clinic there. Amanda Francois is a 4th grade teacher at Gilbert Heights Elementary in the David Douglas School District and has recently brought what she’s learned from LETRS, a science of reading course, into her classroom. They join us to share what makes the science of reading work and the challenges some teachers are now seeing.

Despite protections for wildlife in marine gardens along Oregon’s coast, officials at Haystack Rock are seeing bald spots. As The Astorian reports, locals are suspected to have been poaching mussels in the area. These incidents are not new, but officials are growing more concerned as these invertebrates play a vital role in sea star recovery efforts. Kelli Ennis is the director of the Haystack Rock Awareness Program. She joins us to share where poaching is occurring and how it may indirectly affect Oregon’s sea stars.

Fuels reduction, which includes tools like prescribed fires and thinning, can help maintain a healthy forest. As wildfires grow more severe, scientists and experts continue to explore what should be done to protect fragile ecosystems. Freelance writer and editor Emily Shepherd dug into these issues for High Country News. She joins us with more on what methods can help preserve forests.

We listen back to a conversation with writer Jill Lepore, author of “These Truths” and “The Secret History of Wonder Woman,” in front of a live audience at Literary Arts in downtown Portland from 2018.