Ashland, OR — In a city where 0.53 percent of the population is Black and 18 percent are 65 and older (‘23 census), the Empowered Arts Ensemble, with its young multi-racial acting troupe, stands apart. In a tourist destination dedicated to the Bard, it centers young people as theater creators in their own right. In lieu of challenging youth on …

Two weeks into Donald Trump’s presidency, the hill we climb towards a union with purpose has become steeper and higher than ever. The current dismantling of DEI (the culprit, really, behind last week’s DC aviation disaster?) makes this February’s Black History Month all the more notable. As snow falls today in the Rogue Valley, I decided to offer up two …

For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. — George Frideric Handel, The Messiah For as long as I can remember, Handel’s Messiah has been an antidote to whatever end-of-year …

It is human nature — more or less — to pay attention to imminent risks and risks with which we have experience. On the natural disaster ledger this includes tornadoes in Kansas, hurricanes in Florida, flooding in Pennsylvania, Nor’easters in New England, and forest fires in California (or, gasp, New Jersey). This Thanksgiving, “Lake Effect” snow in five states joined the …

Like some of you, perhaps, I turned down my media dial as the 2024 Presidential election reached its climax. I ignored the polls. I avoided the news beyond scanning headlines. I encouraged friends to count on the youth vote to carry Harris to victory. I quelled my fears with hope. Post-election, I continued to look the other way. I refrained …

The doorbell to Martinho de Almada Pimentel’s house in Sintra, Portugal is hard to find, and he likes it that way. It’s a long rope that, when pulled, rings a literal bell on the roof that lets him know someone is outside the mountainside mansion that his great-grandfather built in 1914 as a monument to privacy. There’s been precious little …

This is not our world with trees in it. It’s a world of trees, where humans have just arrived.― Richard Powers, The Overstory Ancient — and not so ancient — trees are precious in ways we never knew, today’s forest scientists tell us. They communicate. They migrate. They protect. They heal.  The novelist Richard Powers, in his award-winning The Overstory, shares some of …