Where We Live

106,000 Americans are waiting for an organ transplant, yet federal officials have raised serious questions about the national transplant system, known UNOS, the United Network for Organ Sharing.

This hour, we learn about a confidential government report and Senate investigation, both finding serious weaknesses in the transplant system.

Washington Post health and medicine reporter Lenny Bernstein, joins us and later, we hear from the Chief of Transplant Surgery at Hartford Hospital.

But first, a Connecticut couple shares their experience waiting for a liver transplant. Kevin Prue is a Madison resident searching for a living donor. His wife Amy manages their Facebook page, Kevin’s Journey to Liver Transplant, and is a volunteer with New England Donor Services. 

• Lenny Bernstein: Health and Medicine Reporter, The Washington Post
• Dr. Glyn Morgan: Chief of Transplant Surgery, Hartford Hospital
• Amy and Kevin Prue: Residents of Madison, CT

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Microbeads were banned in the U.S. in 2015, but tiny bits of plastic known as microplastics, and another manmade family of chemicals called PFAS, are turning up in our environment and in our bodies. A recent survey conducted by Connecticut Sea Grant identified both materials as "top" contaminants of emerging concern this year.

This hour, we hear about efforts to track PFAS and microplastics in Connecticut. Experts at Connecticut Sea Grant and the State Department of Public Health join us to discuss the prevalence and impact of PFAS; and UConn Professor and Head of UConn's Marine Sciences Department J. Evan Ward touches on microplastics in the Long Island Sound.

Plus, Elizabeth Ellenwood is an artist from Pawcatuck whose work draws attention to ocean pollution and microplastics. She was recently awarded a Fulbright Research Scholarship and an American Scandinavian Foundation Grant to travel to Norway, where she's working with environmental chemists and marine biologists to produce scientifically-informed photographs focusing on ocean pollution.

GUESTS:

• J. Evan Ward: Professor and Head of Marine Sciences Department, University of Connecticut
• Sylvain De Guise: Director, Connecticut Sea Grant at UConn Avery Point
• Lori Mathieu: Drinking Water Section Chief, Connecticut Department of Public Health
• Elizabeth Ellenwood: Artist

Where We Live is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Cat Pastor contributed to this show which originally aired May 12, 2022.

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Brother Carl Hardrick has been a leader in violence prevention in Hartford for decades. Now there is an Institute for Violence Prevention and Community Engagement in his name.

This hour, we sit down with Hardrick to reflect on his impact and his hopes for the Institute.

"Interrupters" and "interveners" will train to take local action, working with youth and families and mediating conflict.

"We're looking for, how do you stop violence? How do you stop a young person from killing another? Somebody knows. So what we need is engagers, young people in the street, contacting other young people," he says.

"We have to go where they are and we have to start early."

There have been 25 gun homicides in Hartford since January. There were a total of 35 homicides last year, the highest in Hartford in 18 years, according to Hearst Connecticut.

Hardrick's grandson, Makhi Buckly, was among those lost in 2021. We touch on this unthinkable tragedy with him.

Hardrick speaks to the need to address young people "in the middle" who may not be in trouble, as well as the need for robust community supports, whether after-school programming, mental health resources or even a ride home.

He also touches on the focus on incarceration in Connecticut.

"That’s not gonna solve the problem. It’s gonna make the problem worse. You’re gonna invest in that, and you’re not willing to give teachers more money, put more money in the education system, but you will invest in locking them up." The Institute, he explains, "is going to look at why they’re doing what they’re doing and study that."

We also discuss the recent rise in violence in Hartford with Jacquelyn Santiago Nazario, CEO of COMPASS Youth Collaborative.

GUESTS:

• Brother Carl Hardrick: Founding Director, Brother Carl Hardrick Institute for Violence Prevention and Community Engagement
• Jacquelyn Santiago Nazario: CEO, COMPASS Youth Collaborative

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A new study examining "news deserts" in the U.S. finds an average of two newspapers are closing per week, and estimates that by 2025, "one-third of American newspapers that existed roughly two decades ago will be out of business."

This hour, we hear from lead author Penny Abernathy, plus, a researcher with Oxford’s Reuters Institute who found that at the same time, digital news is failing to fill the void.

"More people are disconnected, interest in news is down, selective news avoidance up, and trust far from a given," the annual Digital News Report concluded.

We'll hear from local journalists to discuss how these trends are playing out in Connecticut.

GUESTS:

• Penelope Muse Abernathy: Visiting Professor, Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism
• Wendy Metcalfe: Senior Vice President of Content and Editor-in-Chief, Hearst Connecticut Media Group
• Daniela Altimari: Reporter, Route Fifty
• Nic Newman: Senior Research Associate, Reuters Institute of the Study of Journalism

Cat Pastor contributed to this show which originally aired July 1, 2022.

Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new study examining "news deserts" in the U.S. finds an average of two newspapers are closing per week, and estimates that by 2025, "one-third of American newspapers that existed roughly two decades ago will be out of business."

This hour, we hear from lead author Penny Abernathy, plus, a researcher with Oxford’s Reuters Institute who found that at the same time, digital news is failing to fill the void.

"More people are disconnected, interest in news is down, selective news avoidance up, and trust far from a given," the annual Digital News Report concluded. We'll hear from local journalists to discuss how these trends are playing out in Connecticut.

GUESTS:

• Penelope Muse Abernathy: Visiting Professor, Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism
• Wendy Metcalfe: Senior Vice President of Content and Editor-in-Chief, Hearst Connecticut Media Group
• Daniela Altimari: Reporter, Route Fifty
• Nic Newman: Senior Research Associate, Reuters Institute of the Study of Journalism

Where We Live is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Cat Pastor contributed to this show which originally aired July 1, 2022.

Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2018, New London was designated a "site of memory" on the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization's slave route project, an effort launched in 1994 to "break the silence" around the history of slavery.

New London Landmarks held a ceremony in July to recognize the designation, installing a plaque at Amistad Pier. The site is considered the sixteenth stop on the New London Black Heritage Trail, which was unveiled last year.

The "Middle Passage to New London" plaque explains that in 1761, the Speedwell, a large schooner, arrived in New London from the west coast of Africa transporting 74 captive people. 21 people had not survived the harrowing voyage.

"The Speedwell docked in New London for several days before sailing to Middletown." New London joins Middletown and 51 other ports, or "sites of memory," in North America.

The plaque, and the designation itself, are meant to honor those who died during the Middle Passage, "and the enslaved people whose forced labor created much of New London's early wealth and led to disparities which still exist today."

This hour, we hear from local historians about their research, showing the Speedwell represents a small part of the city’s links to slavery. Plus, the Hempsted Houses represent several stops on the New London Black Heritage Trail. We'll hear from assistant site administrator Nicole Thomas.

GUESTS:

• Tom Schuch: New London Historian; Researcher, New London Black Heritage Trail
• Lonnie Braxton II: Historian; Researcher, New London Black Heritage Trail
• Nicole Thomas: Assistant Site Administrator, Hempsted Houses

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The recent monkeypox outbreak started in May, and the virus continues to spread.

Today, we learn more including how monkeypox is transmitted to who’s eligible for vaccination.

We hear from Dr. Celine Gounder Senior Fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Editor-at-Large for Public Health at Kaiser Health News.

What questions do you have about monkeypox?

But first up, Wesley Renfro, Professor of Political Science at Quinnipiac University joins us to breakdown Connecticut Primary Day results.

• Wesley Renfro - Professor of Political Science at Quinnipiac University
• Dr. Celine Gounder - Senior Fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Editor-at-Large for Public Health at Kaiser Health News. She is also an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist. She was a member of the Biden-Harris Transition COVID Advisory Board
• Kay Perkins - reporter for Connecticut Public Radio
• Linda Estabrook - Executive Director for the Hartford Gay and Lesbian Health Collective

Where We Live

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New research from multiple studies – yet to be published – was highlighted at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in San Diego, August.

This hour on Where We Live, we discuss studies that show high blood pressure during pregnancy; consumption of highly processed foods; and the loss of smell and taste are all predictors of cognitive decline later on.

We hear from an Alzheimer’s patient and his caregiver wife about life before and after joining an Eli Lilly clinical trial.

And later, we hear about new research on how experiencing discrimination and racism increases the risk of memory loss.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, there are 6 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease. In Connecticut, that number is 80,000. Nationally, two-thirds of women have Alzheimer’s and two-thirds of women are caregivers for someone who has the disease.

GUESTS: 

Sandi and George Carlino: George has early stage Alzheimer’s and is in an Eli Lilly clinical trial in New Haven.

Dr. Amy Sanders: Medical Director of the Hartford HealthCare Memory Care Center, and a Medical Scientific Advisory Council member at the Alzheimer’s Association, Connecticut Chapter.

Dr. Carl Hill: Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Alzheimer's Association. 

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How are the deep racial disparities in reproductive health care being addressed in light of Roe v. Wade’s overturning?

Connecticut nurse-midwife, nurse educator and historian Dr. Lucinda Canty recently launched Lucinda's House, to help local women of color "become an active part in eliminating structural barriers to improve their overall health and well-being."

This hour, we hear from Dr. Canty about this new effort, as well as her research on maternal morbidity. Her 2020 doctoral thesis was titled, "It's Not Always Rainbows and Unicorns: The Lived Experience of Severe Maternal Morbidity Among Black Women."

Plus, journalist and author Linda Villarosa discusses her new book, Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of Our Nation.

"Black women are three to four times more likely to die or almost die" during childbirth, Villarosa explains. "A Black woman with a master's degree or more is more likely to have a poorer birth outcome than a white woman with an eighth grade education. So that speaks to something beyond even the place where you are, it speaks to something... happening to Black women, even across class lines."

Villarosa stresses that while "it's important for every woman no matter who you are, to have the best health care, to demand that kind of health care, to be educated, to have someone like a doula or some other kind of birth partner with you... we can't just put this responsibility of raising our birth status of our country on the backs of individuals themselves, especially those who are pregnant... Instead, we have to advocate for changes in the system that make it more equitable."

GUESTS:

• Dr. Lucinda Canty: Nurse-Midwife; Founder, Lucinda's House; Assistant Professor of Nursing, University of St. Joseph; Researcher and Historian; Reproductive Health Justice Activist; Artist; Poet
• Linda Villarosa: Author, Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of Our Nation; Contributing Writer, The New York Times

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Tuesday is the Connecticut primary, will you be voting?

The races to watch include four candidates competing in the Democratic and Republican primaries for Secretary of the State, and the Treasurer’s race where three candidates are vying for the Democratic vote. And which Republican candidate has the best chance to go up against US Senator Richard Blumenthal in November?

Mark Pazniokas from the Connecticut Mirror joins us.

And later, we hear about a new documentary that explores the history of Mom and Pop stores in downtown Stamford. How did redevelopment change the city’s core forever?

GUESTS:

• Mark Pazniokas - Capitol Bureau Chief for Connecticut Mirror
• Margaret Stapor Costa - Owner and President of Aries Productions, LLC
• Gail Trell - Production coordinator for Remembering the Family Store
• Steve Karp - narrator of Remembering the Family Store
• Thomas Bradford - barber based in Stamford, Connecticut.

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