Norgaard's scientific approach is laid out in detailed research and analysis that examines the cross cultural long-term impact of a massive clash of ideologies when Europeans arrived on this continent and engaged the native Karuk peoples through each successive generation.
From the commoditization of lands and resources to dispossession, destruction and disregard, colonialism wasn't merely a past historical event, Norgaard reminds us. Colonialism is an ever-present active mindset that is ongoing today, manifesting in myriad ways that's unseen through the lens of colonialism but continues to have a devastating impact on Native peoples.
In a well-researched and deeply documented book, Norgaard weaves together (through the lens of the Karuk tribe) the connective tissues of our collective humanity, and the lands, resources and environment that sustains us all.
"Our culture is our medicine" ... Medicaid agrees to cover traditional healing methods
Nov 21, 2024
Our culture is our medicine - Friendship House( Friendship House)
Medicaid announced coverage of Native traditional healing practices in a few states, which include Oregon, California, Arizona and New Mexico. (NPR news).
Friendship House in California is an example of a Native-led recovery treatment center that offers medicine rooted in traditional cultural practices that could now be covered by Medicaid for Native peoples.
Virginia Hedrick is the Executive Director of the California Consortium for Urban Indian Health and serves on the board of CalWellness. She joins the Exchange to discuss the impact of Medicaid's coverage of traditional healing practices used by Native communities.
Centuries of U.S. policy have created deep inequities for Native peoples. Native communities have faced systemic and structural racism and oppression, including the criminalization of Indian ceremonies and languages, family separation, forced relocation, and mass incarceration.
According to the U.S. Census, over 1 in 4 American Indians live in poverty. This brings disproportionate rates of incarceration, teen suicide, unemployment, high school dropouts, diabetes, domestic violence, and substance abuse.
Our clients often join our community as they deal with multiple issues, both personally and within their family or community. At Friendship House, we are reclaiming our traditions and building a healthy community.
California seeks to bridge historic divides through its Truth and Healing Council
Nov 20, 2024
Christina Snider-Ashtari, the Tribal Affairs Secretary for the Office of California Governor Gavin Newsom, speaks at the “Resilient Roots” forum on May 11, 2024. (California Civil Rights Department)
A federal report that was published this summer reveals documented facts about government and private sector forced boarding schools, and the resulting systemic abuses of Native children .. and associated deaths.
The state of California established the Governor's Office of Tribal Affairs to oversee a Truth & Healing Council which is paving a path forward toward addressing the present-day impact of the boarding school legacy, among other issues of concern.
Tribal Affairs Secretary Christina Snider-Ashtari joins the Exchange to discuss the past, present, and future of California's relationship with its indigenous Native nations.
Oregon State leaders work with Native nations on a process of returning artifacts
Nov 20, 2024
From left to right: Chief Jefferson Greene Jr., Wasco Chief, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Wilson Wewa, Tribal Council, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Jayathi Murthy, Oregon State University president; Scott Vignos, Oregon State vice president and chief diversity officer; Dawn Marie Alapisco, director of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act office at Oregon State; Chance White-Eyes, director of Tribal relations at Oregon State; Chief Doug Barrett, Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians. (Alteza Films / Oregon State University)
Oregon State University has partnered with nine federally recognized tribes in Oregon to build a campus venue that will be used to facilitate the repatriation of tribal ancestral and cultural items currently under the university's stewardship.
Dawn Marie Alapisco joins the Exchange. She is Director of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Office at Oregon State.
How does a Native American reporter view media and society?
Nov 19, 2024
Brian Bull interviews a guest for KLCC radio.(BOB WILLIAMS / KLCC)
The JX takes an introspective look at ourselves and our media industry.
Brian Bull joins the exchange to offer his insights and perspectives on how the media covers society ... and areas of society it doesn't cover well enough.
Brian Bull interviews a guest for KLCC radio.(BOB WILLIAMS / KLCC)
Bull is a member of the Nez Perce tribe and an award-winning career news reporter for KLCC. He's also an assistant professor at the University of Oregon.
Bull has worked with NPR's Next Generation Project geared towards diversifying the ranks of tomorrow's journalists. He's been a guest faculty instructor at the Poynter Institute on covering underrepresented communities. He's served as chair for Vision Maker Media, which supports authentic programs and documentaries produced by Native Americans.
Film sheds light on how Yoncalla Kalapuya people befriended the Applegate family
Nov 19, 2024
STRATA is a film series by the Archaeological Legacy Institute( Archaeological Legacy Institute)
"Two Way Seeing" is a short film featuring the relationship between the white pioneer Charles Applegate and his family with the Yoncalla Kalapuya people.
The film is being shown by the Archaeological Legacy Institute as part of its TV series, Strata: Portraits of Humanity.
Joining the exchange is Richard Pettigrew, Executive Director of ALI, to discuss the film and the work of his organization, which features its own broadcast channel, The Archaeology Channel.
Author offers insight into the extraordinary and complicated world of adult autism
Nov 15, 2024
(Author photo by Kelli Rad / Memoir Land Substack)
Marian Schembari is a prolific writer who was diagnosed with autism in her 30s.
Marian joins the Exchange to offer a broad range of insights into the world of autistic adults and how the people in the world around them can gain a deeper understanding.
Jackson County is experiencing a public defender crisis (again)
Nov 14, 2024
( Google maps)
What happens when there are more people in the county jail who need court dates and public defenders than there are public defenders available to accommodate the need?
This is the current state of affairs in Jackson County, which is experiencing a severe shortage of public defenders. But it isn't the only region in the state enduring such a challenge.
Joining the Exchange to shed light on the current state of affairs and possible solutions are Alyssa Bartholomew, a senior deputy defender in Jackson County, and Jessica Kampfe, Executive Director, Oregon Public Defense Commission.
Prescribed fires: Setting the forest on fire (but carefully)
Nov 14, 2024
FILE: A member of the Wolf Creek Hotshots uses a drip torch to ignite the forest floor during a prescribed burn near Sisters, Oregon, in 2018.(Jes Burns / OPB/EarthFix )
Joining the Exchange is State representative Pam Marsh. She championed a new Prescribed Fire Liability Program to address the insurance concerns.
Reintroduction of fire to Oregon’s landscapes is essential to improve forest health and ecosystem function, and to increase resilience to wildfire. Landowners, nonpublic entities, and cultural fire practitioners are seeking to increase the use of prescribed fires to accomplish these objectives.
But the lack or affordability of insurance, and concerns about liability and responsibility for payment of suppression costs, or for material damages resulting from escaped prescribed fire are major barriers.
Because prescribed fire is recognized as an essential and necessary tool to address the threats of catastrophic wildfire in Oregon, intervention from the state can help address concerns and remove barriers for increased use of prescribed fire.
Newly released report on Oregon's first statewide housing plan
Nov 13, 2024
The Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) released the final report on Oregon’s first-ever Statewide Housing Plan (SWHP).
The five-year housing plan was launched in July 2019 with a bold, shared vision: to ensure every person across Oregon has a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home.
The report’s Letter from the Director, Andrea Bell says the agency and its partners exceeded many of the goals outlined in the plan’s six priorities while navigating economic uncertainties, devastating wildfires, and a global pandemic.
Andrea Bell (OHCS), Mike Green (JPR host) and Melanie Doshier (Jackson County ACCESS)(JPR Senior Producer, Natalie Golay)
OHCS Director Andrea Bell joins the Exchange to discuss the plan, the report, and the progress. ACCESS Support Services Director, Melanie Doshier, also joins the conversation as a local partner.
Andrea Bell (OHCS), Mike Green (JPR host) and Melanie Doshier (Jackson County ACCESS)(JPR Senior Producer Natalie Golay)
Caring for those who care for the most vulnerable
Nov 13, 2024
( ORPARC)
It's National Adoption Month. Joining the Exchange are Kendra Morris Jacobson, Director of the Oregon Post Adoption Resource Center (ORPARC) and Liana Soifer, Co-Founder and Executive Director of BIPOC Adoptees. We discuss the extraordinary work of adopting families, as well as the challenges they adoptees face and the support they all need.
AARP Conference: Your Money. Your Future.
Nov 12, 2024
Dr. Geneva Craig joins the Exchange to share details about the Vital Aging Conference that took place at the Smullin Education Center in Medford, sponsored by AARP. This year's theme was "Your Money, Your Future."
Dr. Geneva Craig and JPR Host Mike Green(JPR Senior Producer Natalie Golay)
OSU fights climate change by feeding cows seaweed
Nov 12, 2024
Cows roam a field along Highway 30, just south of Baker City, Ore., in this July 30, 2024 file photo. (Anna Lueck / OPB )
It is widely believed that cows contribute significantly to greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere through the methane they expel. That belief has led to a lot of research on the problem, which led to a better understanding of how to address it.
Research by OSU reveals that cows actually do produce a ton of methane gasses, but not through their rear ends. Rather, through their front ends. Cows burp out a lot of methane as a byproduct of their fermentation-based digestion process. Natural compounds found in seaweed can inhibit the production of methane in cows.
So, OSU is feeding cows seaweed to cut down on their methane emissions, which leads to less greenhouse gas pollution that contributes to climate change.
The USDA has funded the research project with a $1M grant. OSU Asst. Professor Juliana Ranches joins the exchange to discuss the project and her research.
Lomakatsi receives $21M federal grant for restoration project
Nov 12, 2024
( Lomakatsi)
Lomakatsi is a forest restoration nonprofit organization based in Ashland. On the eve of its 30-year anniversary it received $21.25M from the USDA, which is the largest award in its young history.
Marko Bey, Executive Director of the Lomakatsi Restoration Project, joins the Exchange to provide details of the funding and the projects it will support. Lomakatsi collaborates with other organizations in building forest and community resilience in the Rogue Valley, including a new 83,000-acre project area spanning the wildland urban interface and adjacent woodlands west of Medford and north of Jacksonville, within and around the communities of Gold Hill, Rogue River, and Jacksonville.
The project aims to implement ecological thinning and prescribed fire to reduce wildfire risk and improve forest health on 8,500 to 10,000 acres of private land, building on complementary efforts on private, municipal, and federal lands. Collaborations include the connecting West Bear All-Lands Restoration Project and the Ashland Forest Resiliency Stewardship Project to the southeast.
Lomakatsi will work closely with the NRCS, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Department of Forestry and others—including Rogue Forest Partners—to plan and implement the project, building on nearly two decades of collaboration.
Building post-election common ground in southern Oregon
Nov 07, 2024
( Oregon Public Broadcasting)
Taylor Stewart, Director of the Oregon Remembrance Project, joins JPR news reporter Roman Battaglia to discuss the work of his organization and an upcoming free community event in Ashland titled, "Finding Post-Election Common Ground."
Jefferson Exchange host, Mike Green, and his wife Emily, are featured speakers.
Taylor's organization works with truth and reconciliation projects in communities across Oregon. His work includes guiding local communities in adopting new identities as "sunrise communities," which is the flip side to the former "sundown town" monikers of many Oregon cities for generations.
OPB recently released a short film about the Oregon Remembrance Project.
Unearthing the hidden history of African Americans in northern California's Gold Rush
Nov 07, 2024
( Mark Oliver)
"Voices of the Golden Ghosts – African Americans in the California Gold Rush" is a unique book introducing previously unknown historical material documenting African American history in far northern California during the gold rush period.
This book brings together authors for the first time who have independently told these stories. They now appear in a collection for the first time.
Author Mark Oliver joins the Exchange to talk about his work (art, book and film) and how a small group of community members created the Golden Ghosts project to reveal this history to the public.
MARK OLIVER Voices of the Golden Ghosts discoveries started in 2010 while Mark Oliver was working on a documentary about black workers migrating to Northern California logging towns in the 1920s. During that work he discovered many African Americans in the 1850-1870 census records in Siskiyou County, California. Siskiyou County was considered the “Second Motherload” of the California gold rush, according to Mark's research.
“I was aware of Alvin Coffey’s story from Shasta County arriving as a slave and purchasing his freedom, but researching further, reading Rudolf Lapp and Delilah Beasley, it was apparent that information about far northern California has been absent from the contemporary record of the African American experience and contribution during the gold rush.”
Who won? JPR news reporters analyze election results
Nov 06, 2024
(Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB )
The JPR news team joins the Exchange to discuss election results from across the states of Oregon and California. We'll dive into which candidates and ballot measures from both states and local races across southern Oregon and northern California emerged victorious.
The impact of California's winning propositions
Nov 06, 2024
Jeanne Kuang of Calmatters joins the Exchange for a deep dive into the election results on California's many propositions and how the victories will impact residents. Jeanne is an accountability reporter who covers labor, politics and California’s state government. Previously, she wrote about homelessness and economic inequality as part of CalMatters’ California Divide team. Her reporting for a series examining long waits and low payouts for workers who claim they are victims of wage theft was honored with awards from the Society of Professional Journalists Northern California chapter and the Best of the West.
Election results: Oregon candidates and measures
Nov 06, 2024
Dirk Vanderhart of Oregon Public Broadcasting joins the Exchange to discuss the impact of the winning Oregon candidates and measures across the state. Dirk covers Oregon politics and government for OPB. Before entering the radio industry in 2018, he spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter—much of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury. He’s also had stints covering Southwest Missouri, Ohio, and all things Texas on Capitol Hill.
Dirk’s byline has appeared in USA Today, The New York Times, The Houston Chronicle, The Columbus Dispatch, The Oregonian, and more.
The Age of Melt (and Mummies)
Nov 05, 2024
Science journalist and author Lisa Baril traveled the world studying ice and its effect on humans. In her new book, "THE AGE OF MELT: What Glaciers, Ice Mummies, and Ancient Artifacts Teach Us about Climate, Culture, and a Future without Ice," she explores the shifting view that humans have long held of glaciers—from fear, to awe, to conquest.
Baril begins with the story of Ötzi, a 5,000 year-old well-preserved ice mummy discovered in 1991 by a pair of European hikers in the Alps. She joins the Exchange to explain what scientists learned from their mummy.
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