Monday, January 28, 2019 – House calls for new parents
The first days and weeks as a new parent are an exciting time. But they can also be filled with anxious worry about making the best choices. Several programs in Native America send parenting experts into homes with new babies. From when to feed an infant to how much sleep parents should expect to get, the questions tribal in-home visitation specialists tackle range from mundane to critical.

Tuesday, January 29, 2019 – Update on the opioid abuse epidemic in Native America
Dozens of tribes are suing pharmaceutical companies and distributors over the opioid abuse epidemic. Overdose deaths have been steadily increasing over the past few years, although there is some evidence the numbers are leveling off. For American Indian and Alaska Natives, the rate of opioid overdose deaths remains slightly above the national average. We’ll check in with law enforcement, lawyers, and health care providers about the current status of the opioid abuse epidemic in Native America and also discuss the legal efforts to head it off.

Wednesday, January 30, 2019 – Book of the Month: Spider Woman’s Children: Navajo Weavers Today by Lynda Teller Pete and Barbara Teller Ornelas
Navajo weaving traditions are rich in culture and creativity. Generations of weavers have gifted their knowledge to their loved ones. Our January Book of the Month, “Spider Woman’s Children: Navajo Weavers Today” by Lynda Teller Pete and Barbara Teller Ornelas includes several profiles of today’s Navajo weavers. They range in age from sixteen years old all the way up to 88. The beauty of the work comes out in their stories, but they also talk about the challenges they and their nation have overcome. We invite you to join us as we visit with the fifth-generation Navajo weavers who put the book together.

Thursday, January 31, 2019 – “Growing Native” TV series explores Native America
A new four-part TV series airing on PBS explores topics like Indigenous food systems, renewable energy and subsistence hunting. At the same time, “Growing Native” takes viewers on a tour of traditional and contemporary Native culture. We’ll talk with the series creators about what the show is about and what it takes to bring engaging Native issues to a large audience.

Friday, February 1, 2019 – Native in the Spotlight: Chance Rush
When Chance Rush (Hidatsa) speaks to a crowd, they listen. He captivates audiences with personal stories, humor, and advice for success. He says his message is pretty simple: “use your personal talents to lead you to greatness.” On this hour we’ll talk with him about his upbringing, vision for Native America and passion for creating a better life for young and old alike.

Monday, January 21, 2019 – The government shutdown starts hitting home
As the partial federal government shutdown approaches the one-month mark, the effects on tribes and individuals who rely on services are growing: Nearly 9,000 Indian Health Service employees are working without pay; the Yomba Shoshone Tribe in Nevada shut off services and their tribal office administrator is working without pay; the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa in Minnesota is reducing workers’ hours; In addition, thousands of federal employees are going without pay, and those in power show no signs of coming to an agreement.

Tuesday, January 22, 2019 – The next chapter for Indigenous child welfare in Canada
Indigenous leaders in Canada are hoping their government will approve a series of reforms for the foster care system that disproportionately separates Indigenous families. Statistics Canada reports Indigenous children make up more than half of those under age 4 in the foster care system. Indigenous people make up less than 8 percent of the total population. The push comes following a heart-wrenching video of a newborn child taken from its mother in a Manitoba hospital. We get an overview of the Canadian child welfare system and hear about the efforts to improve it.

Wednesday, January 23, 2019 – Music Maker: Randy Boogie
Neo-contemporary Navajo artist Randy L. Barton is known for his ability to slap the paint on the canvas and across large murals to make vibrant images. He sees art as a tool for educating people. His talent also extends to the musical art form. This month we visit with him about his album “The Blessing Way Boogie” that mixes in electric sounds brushed with B-Boy break beats and tribal rhythms including sounds from his Diné Nation. Much like his visual art, his music calls on indigenous knowledge and creation stories that are full of instructions on life and facing the world. Join us for our January Music Maker with as he’s known on the dance floor and behind the turn tables, Randy Boogie.

Thursday, January 24, 2019 – House calls for new parents
The first days and weeks as a new parent are an exciting time. But they can also be filled with anxious worry about making the best choices. Several programs in Native America send parenting experts into homes with new babies. From when to feed an infant to how much sleep parents should expect to get, the questions tribal in-home visitation specialists tackle range from mundane to critical.

Friday, January 25, 2019 – January in the News
Several tribal leaders and Native organizations issued statements of outrage after President Trump took another jab at Senator Elizabeth Warren, this time mentioning the sacred battle grounds at Wounded Knee and Little Big Horn. Also we’ll examine the coverage of the federal government shutdown and its impact on Native Americans. And the Menominee Nation is not giving up in its fight against the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers over the Back Forty open pit mine project. Join us for those stories and more on our monthly news roundup.

Monday, January 14, 2019 – The high cost of heat
Heating bills are projected to be a little higher this winter according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Winter Fuels Outlook. Expect to pay around 3 percent more if you heat with electricity, 5 percent more for gas and 20 percent more for home heating oil. The main reason for the increase is the higher fuel costs. In states like Alaska, North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin, where temperatures can drop to -40, heating costs are a major burden and even a safety issue. Tribal programs like the Gwich’in Solar and Energy Efficiency in the Arctic Project and U.S. Government aid, like the Low Income Home Energy

Tuesday, January 15, 2019 – The end of modern-day prohibition
A hundred years before the United States passed a constitutional amendment banning alcohol, Congress banned alcohol sales and production on reservations. The country quickly repealed Prohibition, but the reservation ban remained. That is until President Trump signed the law opening up alcohol manufacturing on Native land in December. For the first time in almost 200 years, tribes can now establish distilleries on reservation land. The Chehalis Tribe already has plans to open a distillery on their reservation in Washington State. Other than the obvious inequity based on race, the main reason to toss the outdated prohibition law is to tap into a growing trend for further economic development.

Wednesday, January 16, 2019 – The Wet’suwet’en stand-off
A tenuous agreement halted a tense, ongoing scuffle between Wet’suwet’en First Nations protesters and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. For now, the hereditary chiefs and members of the Unist’ot’en Camp agree to let workers from TC Energy (formerly TransCanada Corp.) onto unceded territory land in British Columbia slated for gas pipeline construction. The confrontation resulted in 14 arrests after a court ordered the protesters to take down barricades on the main road to the property. The traditional leadership is at odds with the First Nation’s elected chiefs over the pipeline. We’ll get a look at what’s at stake and what’s next in this latest pipeline construction flare-up.

Thursday, January 17, 2019 – Native women take office
The election is over and, after a record year for Native women candidates, it’s time to get down to business. From Congress to state houses to tribal councils, there’s more total Native women representation than at any other time. We’ll hear from some of the new elected leaders about their priorities as they settle into their respective offices. Will increased representation translate to increased action?

Friday, January 18, 2019 – The Indigenous Peoples March
Missing and murdered women, Indian child welfare, oil pipelines, and police abuse are among the many issues marchers hope to address during the first ever Indigenous Peoples March in Washington D.C. Organizers expect as many as 10,000 people from all over the world to raise awareness of human rights and environmental injustices faced by Indigenous people all over the world.

Monday, January 7, 2019 – Notable books for young readers
We carry on a tradition by devoting an hour to looking back at some of the outstanding books for young people published in the last year. Debbie Reese (Nambé Pueblo), founder of American Indians in Children’s Literature blog, will discuss her annual list of standouts. We’ll also hear from Dallas Hunt (Cree), author of “Awâsis and the World Famous Bannock” and Roy Boney (Cherokee), whose essay titled “Tell It In Your Own Way” is published in “We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices.”

Tuesday, January 8, 2019 – The art and beauty of porcupine quills
Plains tribes used dyed porcupine quills to adorn clothing, dolls and other items (called quillwork) before the introduction of beads. Many Native artists still choose to express themselves with the art form that begins with many hours of meticulous quill harvesting from porcupines—which may or may not still be alive. It also requires involved processing that includes flattening and dyeing the quills. The resulting work is vivid and unique. Join our conversation with some contemporary Native quillworkers about this traditional art form.

Wednesday, January 9, 2019 – The 2018 Farm Bill
The new $867 billion Farm Bill just signed President Donald Trump is getting praise from tribes, Native farmers and advocates. One Native agriculture organization calls the number of Native-related provisions “unprecedented”. It also means access to more USDA programs and some changes for tribal food producers and the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (commodity foods program). The bill also legalizes hemp opening doors to tribes getting into the industry.

Thursday, January 10, 2019 – Jesuits’ abuse of Alaska Native women and girls
The Catholic Church ignored the abuse of Native women and children by Jesuit priests in Alaska. That’s one of the revelations from a 19-month-long investigation by the Center for Investigative Journalism and the Northwest News Network. The reporting also found the church shuffled offending priests around, sometimes to other Alaska Native villages and ultimately offered them a retirement sanctuary in Washington state. We’ll talk with the one of the reporters from the project and a survivor featured in the report.

Friday, January 11, 2019 – Native in the Spotlight: Aaron Yazzie
Aaron Yazzie’s (Navajo) work is literally out of this world. Lately, the NASA mechanical engineer’s main job is designing the machinery gathering information 140 million miles away on the surface of Mars. In November he and his fellow scientists celebrated the end of an anxious six months, waiting for the successful flight and deployment of the unmanned Mars lander, InSight. We’ll hear about his own journey from the Navajo Nation to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.