Oregon lawmakers are considering a bill to create an Oregon Wildlife Council. The eight-member council would be appointed by the governor with the stated purpose of developing a “comprehensive media-based program to promote and educate the public on the roles of hunting and fishing in wildlife conservation.” The council would not include anyone from a wildlife conservation organization and many of those groups are opposed to the bill. The proposed legislation does have the backing of the Oregon Hunters Association. Reporter Brian Oaster wrote about the Oregon Wildlife Council for Street Roots. They join us to talk about what their reporting revealed.

A mentorship program at Albany’s Memorial Middle School aims to provide a safe space for Black students to gather and get community support. We hear from Quincy Casey and Christopher Hughbanks, co-facilitators of the program, on why the program is important and what students can learn.

This week, Oregon Governor Kate Brown said most COVID-19 restrictions in the state will be lifted when 70% of eligible Oregonians have had at least one vaccine shot. Just two days later, the CDC put out new guidance saying that people who are vaccinated against the virus can stop wearing masks in most places. But are tired and traumatized Oregonians ready to start returning to something like pre-pandemic life? We’ll talk about the challenges of entering the next phase of the pandemic. Our guests are Julia Silverman, news editor for Portland Monthly Magazine, who recently wrote about this issue, and David Ropeik, author of “How Risky Is It Really? Why Our Fears Don’t Always Match the Facts.”

Fifteen-year-old Mariana Robins is still dealing with symptoms from a COVID-19 infection that dates back to September of 2020. At first, she says, it was just a runny nose, mild fever and fatigue. But sometime in October, she started passing out for no discernable reason. She experienced dizziness, intense pain all over her body and memory loss. She had to stop going to school because she could no longer focus on reading. Now, she’s slowly improving and has started attending classes at Edison High School in Beaverton, where she is a sophomore. She’s sharing her story in the hopes that it will motivate her peers to get vaccinated as soon as they can.

When Brian Grant retired from the NBA, he sunk into a deep depression. The life that he had fought so hard for seemed to evaporate, and his marriage started to crumble. Also, he noticed a strange twitch in his hand. Eventually Grant was diagnosed with Young Onset Parkinson’s disease. He tells the story of his life and struggles in his new memoir, “Rebound: Soaring in the NBA, Battling Parkinson’s and Finding What Really Matters.”

Ridership on TriMet buses and trains significantly decreased in mid-March of 2020. And that hasn’t changed much, due to public health restrictions and an overall drop in demand. But that could be changing as more people get vaccinated. We’ll hear what the last year has been like for the agency and what the future might hold from JC Vannatta, executive director of public affairs at TriMet.

Coos County has moved to the “moderate risk” level for COVID-19, a downward shift from high, giving businesses there more freedom to open up. The county moved into high in April after remaining in the extreme risk category longer than any other county in the state.

A conservative slate of candidates for the Bend-La Pine school board have gotten national media coverage, but have avoided local candidate forums. Jackson Hogan, education reporter for The Bulletin, tells us about how the non-partisan race has gotten so political.

The FDA has just approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents 12-15 years old. Research shows that the vaccine works as well in this age group as it does in those who are 16 and older. Nevertheless, some parents still have questions and aren’t sure about vaccinating their kids. Happy Valley pediatrician Ryan Hassan talks with his patients and their parents about immunizations, including the COVID-19 vaccine. He also gives presentations and answers lots of questions through Boost Oregon, a parents group focused on vaccine education. Hassan serves on the group's medical board, and he joins us to share what he’s hearing from patients and the public — and what he thinks could be done to increase vaccination rates more broadly.

In April, two men were killed along NE 82nd Ave. Last year, community members and traffic safety advocates requested that the same stretch of road have a lower speed limit. Hours before a planned online community rally demanding emergency safety improvements to 82nd Ave, the Oregon Department of Transportation announced its intention to seek a $10 million investment for pedestrian safety projects along the same road. We hear from Sarah Iannarone, Interim Executive Director of The Street Trust and Don Hamilton the Public Information Officer for ODOT.