Women’s Windows Interview: Vagina Monologues 3/15/09

Host: Magdalen
Guest: Nicolette Yerxa: organizer, director, actor for the production

Topical summary: Vagina Monologues and VDAY project history; the problem of domestic violence in Maine; organizations in Maine that aid victims of DV and strive to end DV; new monologues in VM; details of the upcoming performance, March 20th and 21st at 7p.m. and March 22nd, at 2p.m., at the Maine Grind, 192 Main Street, Ellsworth, Maine. Tickets are available at the Grasshopper Shop and at the door. WERU is a co-sponsor. For more information: www.nextstepdvproject.org or WERU (207)-469-6600

Please join WERU in our support for The Next Step Domestic Violence Project, for Downeast Sexual Assault Services, and for women all over the world who have experienced violence.

The Vagina Monologues is a collection of pieces on a particular topic performed by an all-female cast. It is very funny at times, very explicit at others, but it is always powerful. Performances are organized yearly by women all over the world in order to raise money and awareness in their own towns.

Each year the author, Eve Ensler, chooses a place in the world or a population of women who need help and need to be heard. This year the spotlight is on the Democratic Republic of Congo. Over 300,000 women and girls in the DRC have been tortured or raped as a systematic tactic of war. Ninety percent of the money earned through this performance will go directly to local organizations and 10 percent will go to the national V-Day organization for the work they are doing in the DRC.

The Next Step Domestic Violence Project and Downeast Sexual Assault Services serve both Washington and Hancock Counties in their work to end violence against women and girls. Women from both counties have worked together on this project to support vital services for those who need them in their own communities.

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Weekend Voices 3/14/09

Producer/Host: Jim Campbell
Topic: 2009 Camden Conference
Guest: Nicholas Burns, Professor at the Kennedy School, xpeaking at the Camden Conference
Nicholas Burns on “A New Era of Diplomacy for the Obama Administration”
What does former Under Secretary Burns think are the major foreign relations opportunities facing the Obama administration? What does former Under Secretary Burns think are the major foreign relations challenges facing the Obama administration? Why is “soft power” so important for the U.S. today? T

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Talk of the Towns 3/13/09

Producer/Host: Ron Beard, University of Maine Cooperative Extension

Studio Engineer: Joel Mann

Guests: Russell Libby, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners, www.mofga.org; James McConnon, University of Maine Cooperative Extension; Daniel Price and Ginger McDermott, Freedom Farm, Freedom Maine; Greg Veilleaux, Bar Harbor Town Council Member, supporter of farmers market there; Keith Small, Washington-Hancock Community Agency

Topic: Farmer’s Markets Connect People and Communities to Food
What role do farmers markets play for small farmers? What role do you see farmers markets play in connecting people to local food, and why does that matter? Are farmers markets part of larger trends influencing Maine food systems?
FMI on the farmers market convention: www.downeastbiz.org click on “Farm to Market”

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BoatTalk 3/10/09

Producers/Hosts: Mike Joyce & Alan Sprague
Studio Engineer: Joel Mann

The March Boattalk program was done when the station’s transmitter was out and was only partially recorded. It has a full (short version) interview with Maine author, sailor & historian James L. Nelson who will be featured for the whole hour on April’s Boattalk 4/14/09, about his books, particularly on the American Revolution & why boatbuilders & sailors were absolutely indispensable.

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RadioActive 3/05/09

Producers/Hosts: Amy Browne & Meredith DeFrancesco

Topics: Privatization of water supplies….. the impacts of coal mining and burning on the environment…… climate change—– concerns about these issues are mobilizing international coalitions. Today on RadioActive we’ll get the latest news from Mainers who are involved. Segment 1: Residents of the towns of Shapleigh and Hancock move to protect their groundwater from corporate extraction; Segment 2: Thousands of protesters marched to a coal-fired plant in Washington DC Monday, and surrounded the plant to call attention to the coal industry’s impact on the environment and climate change. The event was organized by several groups, including the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Bill McKibben’s 350.org and Powershift 2009. In the days leading up to the protest more than 12,000 students attended a conference on the issues at George Washington University. Local artist and activist Rob Shetterly was among the participants. We spoke with him by phone yesterday and he described the protest and the growing movement of young people mobilizing on this issue.
FMI: www.coldrivermountainwatch.org , www.ilovemountains.org , www.kftc.org and mountainjustice.org/

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