Think Out Loud

Oregon has invested millions in workforce development across the state. But a program aimed at helping workers and businesses along the coast will be ending soon. Northwest Oregon Works serves Benton, Clatsop, Columbia, Lincoln and Tillamook counties.    The nonprofit has supported the state’s maritime industry and has funded projects for organizations including Newport Fishermen’s Wives, Oregon State University and the Oregon Coast Visitors Association. OoNee Sea Urchin Ranch also received funding to train divers and aquaculture interns. The ranch aims to sustainably harvest sea urchin in the state. It collects urchins and feeds them on land. It processes uni, the organ found in sea urchins that’s considered a culinary delicacy, in Newport. We learn more about the future of the maritime industry in Oregon from OoNee Sea Urchin Ranch CEO Aaron Huang and Len Tumbarello, the Maritime Program Coordinator for Northwest Oregon Works.

Soccer season has started in Oregon, but Timbers and Thorns fans might have to dig a little deeper to cheer their teams this year. Both teams face a lot of player injuries and offseason departures of some star players. Anne Peterson, sports writer for the Associated Press, joins us to preview what’s ahead for Portland soccer fans.

The lack of public restrooms remains an issue across the country. In Portland, there are about 17 public restrooms per 100,000 citizens, according to some estimates.  When the city placed more than 100 red portable toilets around town in 2020, some residents vehemently opposed their arrival. In 2023, only about 16 of the toilets remained, according to KGW.  Public restrooms offer a low barrier place for people to use the bathroom and wash their hands. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends carefully washing your hands with soap and water after going to the bathroom and changing diapers to prevent shigella infections. The bacteria causes inflammatory diarrhea.      In Multnomah County, shigella infections have been on the rise, according to The Oregonian. In 2023, a similar cluster of cases occurred as well.  Merilee Karr is the president of Phlush, an organization that advocates for better public sanitation. She joins us with more on why Portland and other cities would benefit from more public toilets.

Measure 114, which was narrowly approved by Oregon voters in 2022, bans the purchase of magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition and requires a permit for anybody purchasing a firearm. The measure never went into effect after it faced a number of legal challenges, but on Wednesday the Oregon Court of Appeals declared the measure constitutional. This overturns a 2023 decision from an Eastern Oregon judge who ruled it violated Oregon law. OPB reporter Conrad Wilson joins us to explain what it all means.

As a 9-year-old boy, Javier Zamora traveled over 3,000 miles to be with his parents, who had fled El Salvador to live and work in the United States. Zamora traveled with a group of people who were initially strangers and the various people they paid to help them survive the two month journey. Zamora’s memoir about the experience, “Solito,” is the choice for Multnomah County’s ‘Everybody Reads’ program in 2025. We talk to Zamora in front of students at Portland’s McDaniel High School.