Think Out Loud

Meet the Oregon-group pushing for body liberation

Morgan Stanley has projected [https://www.morganstanley.com/insights/articles/weight-loss-medication-market-unstoppable-growth#:~:text=May%209%2C%202025,about%20$15%20billion%20in%20sales] the weight loss medication market to reach $150 billion globally by 2035. The use of GLP-1s, such as Ozempic, have increased drastically since 2019 [https://www.kff.org/medicaid/medicaid-coverage-of-and-spending-on-glp-1s/]. At the same time, new research [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Rkvs_sWM8GyjGgm_xH0wpsOI9yy5cj5odx8eYfF9QeE/edit?tab=t.0]shows that the use of these drugs still comes with the risk of judgement and social pressures that all relate to weight stigma. An Oregon-based group, Body Liberation for Public Health, [https://bodyliberationforpublichealth.com/this-changes-everything-or-nothing-a-public-health-perspective-on-weight-loss-drugs/] wants to help end these stigmas. The group is advocating for body liberation, which is a movement aimed to dismantle the systems that have created weight stigmas and bias, as opposed to the body positivity movement, which encourages acceptance of all body types. Debbie Kaufman is the creator of the project. She joins us to share more on what body liberation is and why it’s important to incorporate it into public health.

Celebrated Portland cartoonist launches kids’ podcast about animals

If you’ve been in Portland for a while, you’ve probably seen Mike Bennett’s artwork: It’s on the facade of the Wonderwood Restaurant & Indoor Mini Golf course. It’s on Trailblazer hats and Portland Timbers banners. It’s on road signs and beer cans. Now, the famous cartoonist and immersive space designer has launched a new video-podcast series that explores the animal kingdom for a youth audience. Every episode of “The Zooquarium Podcast” [https://mikebennettstudios.com/pages/zooquarium-podcast?srsltid=AfmBOoqtr-vgg9F_MeRRWuyErhfGWcRmp6HrekEHYeGePLIUApT5IvvA] begins with a listener-submitted question — mostly from young kids — and the video element features animations in Bennett’s whimsical cartoon style. The first episode aired Tuesday, with a silly and science-backed conversation about sloth stool.   Bennett joins us to share more about the origins and details of his new podcast. We’re also joined by his co-host, Chanel Hason, a marine biologist, science communicator and director of outreach and community relations at the Elakha Alliance.

University of Oregon professor wins prestigious arts fellowship for work centering queer Latinx youth

Earlier this month, the Oregon Community Foundation and Oregon Humanities announced the names of four recipients of Fields Artist Fellowships [https://oregoncf.org/news/ocf-fields-fellowship-invests-in-oregon-artists-and-communities]. Each of the winners will be awarded $150,000 during the two-year fellowship to work on artistic projects inspired by the communities and cultural traditions they hail from.   Ernesto Javier Martínez [https://www.ernestojaviermartinez.com/]is a 2026-2028 Fields Artist Fellow based in Eugene. He is also an associate professor and head of the indigenous, race and ethnic studies department at University of Oregon. Martinez is a filmmaker and children’s book author whose award-winning works provide a rare glimpse into the experiences of queer Latinx youth. He joins us to share his plans for the Fields Artist Fellowship, which include producing an animated TV pilot inspired by the real-life tragic story of a man and his child who drowned [https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/10/magazine/drowned-migrants-photo-us-mexico-border.html]while attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border.

A third of Oregon’s licensed psilocybin service centers have closed, NYT reporting finds

Oregon became the first in the nation to legalize psychedelic therapy through psilocybin back in 2020 [https://www.opb.org/article/2020/11/04/oregon-measure-109-psilocybin/]. What soon followed were bans in various jurisdictions [https://www.opb.org/article/2024/11/07/psilocybin-ban-mushroom-hallucinogenic-ballot-politics-elections-oregon/], large costs [https://www.opb.org/article/2025/07/03/oregon-new-date-shows-psilocybin-therapy-clients-wealthier/] for individuals seeking treatment and other barriers [https://www.opb.org/article/2024/12/05/psilocybin-mushroom-therapy-disability-access-mental-health-oregon-portland/] to access. Now, new reporting from The New York Times [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/health/shrooms-lead-the-pack-in-psychedelic-medicine-but-rollout-is-bumpy.html] found that a third of psilocybin service centers have closed and other states have also begun offering this therapy, including Colorado and New Mexico. Andrew Jacobs is a health and science reporter for the NYT. He joins us to share more on where things stand in Oregon’s program and what other states have learned from the state’s first-in-the-nation rollout.

Portland band Typhoon celebrates 20 years

This weekend the Portland band Typhoon will play two concerts celebrating 20 years of making music together. The band broke out in the early 2010s, with albums like "Hunger and Thirst" and "White Lighter." Two members of the band, Kyle Morton and Shannon Steele, join us to talk about the band’s history and future.