What does survival look like if it comes at the expense of freedom? How can we build safe places in an increasingly unstable world? These questions are at the heart of two new books by authors Leni Zumas and Cleyvis Natera. Zumas’s book “Wolf Bells” tells the story of an intergenerational group home determined to make a space for people who fall through capitalism’s cracks. Natera’s book “The Grand Paloma Resort” tells the story of staff at an exclusive Caribbean resort as they navigate class, race and colonialism. OPB’s Allison Frost spoke to Leni Zumas and Cleyvis Natera at the 2025 Portland Book Festival.

Irish-Canadian author Emma Donoghue is perhaps best known for her novel “Room,” told from the perspective of a 5-year-old boy held captive with his mother. Most of Donoghue’s work, however, is rooted in historical fiction. She frequently writes about characters and perspectives that are often erased from history. Her latest novel, “The Paris Express,” tells the story of a fateful disaster on a French train in 1895. Donoghue spoke to OPB’s Crystal Ligori in front of an audience at the 2025 Portland Book Festival.

The Owyhee Canyonlands area encompasses millions of acres along the Owyhee River on the borders of Oregon, Idaho and Nevada. The land is rugged and remote and beautiful, and efforts to to protect it in some way have dragged out for years. There were pushes for the last two Democratic presidents to designate the area a national monument and most recently, a bill to protect over 1 million acres of the land as wilderness failed in Congress at the end of last year. We traveled to the area and talked to people about the land and the efforts to protect it.

We stopped in Jordan Valley and talked to Mindy Kershner, a lifelong Jordan Valley resident, rancher, and owner of the Ranch Hand Hardware & Mercantile. Then we travelled down to Birch Creek Historic Ranch on the edge of the river to talk to Tim Davis, executive director of Friends of the Owyhee. We spoke to rancher Elias Eiguren on his family’s land in Arock. And then we talked to Reginald Sope, an elder of the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes who lives near the head of the canyon in Nevada.

Ponderosa pine trees dominate parts of Eastern Oregon and Washington and have long been an icon of the American West, but in the past decade more than two hundred million ponderosa have died. Particularly in the Southwest, scientists estimate that by mid-century less than 5% of the ponderosa trees may remain. Portland author Gary Ferguson explores the history and the future of the ponderosa forests of the Southwest in his newest book, “The Twilight Forest.”

As 2025 comes to a close, the staff of OPB's "Think Out Loud" look back on some of their favorite conversations from the past year. Producers Sage Van Wing, Gemma DiCarlo, Rolie Hernandez, Sheraz Sadiq, Riley Martinez and Malya Fass join host Dave Miller in conversation.

A new audit from the Secretary of State found that the implementation of Measure 110, the drug discrimination ballot initiative, faced a number of challenges with unclear results. The audit notes that despite the roughly $800 million dedicated to programs aimed at helping in-recovery and substance-use treatment, the outcomes — including the number of people served — are unclear. Beyond that, the audit also says frequent revisions “undermined confidence in the program.” Secretary of State Tobias Read joins us to share more on the audit and M110.

In 2023, Oregon lawmakers passed HB 3198, which created the Early Literacy Success Initiative, an effort to address the state’s dismal reading test scores. The bill aimed to more fully adopt a phonics-based teaching approach — often referred to as "the science of reading" — in schools across the state. Education experts broadly agree this approach is the best way to teach kids to read. But the question became: How will the state hold school systems accountable for implementing it? Earlier this year, Oregon passed another bill aimed at just that, but some experts worry it’s toothless.

Christine Pitts is the president and CEO of Open School and an Oregon-based policy expert. She joins us to unpack the many reasons Oregon's ability to implement the "science of reading" has been stalled. Steve Cook, the superintendent of Bend-La Pine Schools and president elect of the Oregon Association of School Executives, also joins us for a closer look at how districts are tackling Oregon’s literacy problem.

Last Monday, hundreds of students in Beaverton, Forest Grove and Hillsboro walked out of classes to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in their communities in Washington County.

The Beaverton School District has made available resources to assist immigrant and refugee students and their families, including reminders of its online school option and partnerships with nonprofits like the Latino Network that provide “Know Your Rights” workshops at the district’s schools. Shelly Reggiani, associate superintendent for teaching and learning at Beaverton School District, joins us to share more details about the district’s response to concerns from students, parents and staff about immigration enforcement.