The Nature of Phenology 8/22/20: Monarch Caterpillars

Producers: Hazel Stark & Joe Horn
Host: Hazel Stark

Adult monarch butterflies seek out milkweed in particular to lay their eggs. Milkweed is a native species so named for the slightly toxic milky sap that oozes from the broken leaves or stems. This diet of milkweed, which the monarch caterpillars evolved to not be harmed by, is actually essential to their survival.

Photos, a full transcript, references, contact information, and more available at thenatureofphenology.wordpress.com.

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Democracy Forum 8/21/20 Is Government Doing Good: Policy Feedback Effects & the Civic Divide

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine

NOTE: This is a rebroadcast of a program that originally aired on 11/15/2019

We’ll talk about new political science research into policy feedback effects
How public policy design affects people’s sense of themselves as citizens and their propensity to participate.
What this means for legislators and advocates

Guests:
Amy Fried, Professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of Maine
Don Moynihan, McCourt Chair at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University

To learn more about this topic:

Administrative Burden: Policymaking by Other Means, Pamela Herd and Donald P. Moynihan, December 2018

“Citizens feel disconnected from government. If they knew what government did for them, they wouldn’t.” Interview with Susan Mettler, Washington Post, November 2018

Reforms at Risk: What Happens After Major Policy Changes Are Enacted , Eric M. Patashnik, 2009

Citizens By Degree: Higher Education Policy and the Changing Gender Dynamics of American Citizenship. Deondra Rose, February 2018

The Government-Citizen Disconnect, Suzanne Mettler, July 2018

Arresting Citizenship: The Democratic Consequences of American Crime Control. Amy E. Lerman and Vesla M. Weaver, June 2014

Soldiers to Citizens: The G.I. Bill and the Making of the Greatest Generation, Suzanne Mettler, September 2007

The all-volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Maryann Ogonowski, Pam Person, Leah Taylor, Linda Washburn

About the host:
Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring special, and became a regular monthly program in 2012. She was the 2013 recipient of the Baldwin Award from the ACLU of Maine for her work on voting rights and elections. She joined the League in 1998 when she retired as Senior Vice President at SEI Investments. Ann was a founder of the MDI Restorative Justice Program, 1999 – 2000, and served on its Executive Board.

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Dawnland Signals 8/20/20: Tribal Language Revitalization

Producers/Hosts: Maria Girouard, Esther Anne
Production assistance: Jeffrey Hotchkiss

Dawnland Signals: Critical conversations of truth, healing, and change in the Dawnland

Key Discussion Points:
-How our guest first got involved in language work
-Language learning as an act of healing/resilience
-Language revitalization projects our guest has been involved in

Guest: Carol Dana, Penobscot Language Keeper

About the hosts:

Esther Anne, Passamaquoddy from Sipayik, joined the Muskie School of Public Service in 2003 where she works on projects that engage and benefit tribal communities including facilitating the Maine tribal-state Indian Child Welfare Act workgroup and creating child welfare resources with the Capacity Building Center for Tribes. She had a primary role in the creation and establishment of the Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Maine-Wabanaki REACH. Esther now serves as secretary for the REACH Board of Directors and on the REACH Communications Committee. Esther lives on Indian Island and her family includes adult children and a grandbaby.

Maria Girouard bio to follow

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Notes from the Electronic Cottage 8/20/20: Dark Patterns on the Web

Producer/Host: Jim Campbell

Seen any digital dark patterns lately? If you buy anything on the web, or subscribe to anything, or sign up for free samples of this or that, chances are pretty good that you have although you may not have noticed them. That’s the way they are designed, and not with your good in mind. Here’s how they work and why to avoid them.

Links mentioned in today’s program:

What Are Dark Patterns?

Link to the paper quoted today

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